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Volume 1: Fierce Battle in Changsha Chapter 262: Battle of Mawei

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    After the two Taiping fleets from Shanghai and Ningbo converged, they rested for a day and replenished fresh water, fresh vegetables, fruits, and grain before heading to Xiamen led by Tongbao monk, Lu Shunde, and Zhao Shunping.  Also accompanying the ship was the British Vice Consul in Shanghai, William Wytoma, who shouldered Wenhan's instructions to mediate between the Qing army and the Taiping Army so that Xiamen could peacefully escape the war.

    The huge fleet traveled on the sea for several days, and encountered the Fujian Qing navy several times. However, seeing the Taiping fleet's strength, the Qing navy did not dare to engage in battle and fled away one after another.  Monk Tongbao originally wanted to send a clipper to catch up and annihilate them, but Lu Shunde suggested that it was urgent to hurry, so the monk gave up.

    When we arrived at the sea in Fuzhou that day, we saw the Qing Navy's patrol fleet peeking ahead again. Monk Tongbao was very angry and wanted to get rid of these pesky flies. He ordered the Taiping Army's fleet to anchor off the Minjiang River, and he led the  Dozens of warships came to drive them away.  When the Qing navy patrol boats saw the Taiping warships coming, they immediately retreated into the Minjiang waterway.  Monk Tongbao led the fleet to pursue them all the way to Mawei Port in Fuzhou. They saw that the Qing navy was heavily guarded here, and the forts on the shore were also ready.  Witoma proposed to let him go ashore to discuss with the Qing generals. Once monk Tongbao, Lu Shunde and Zhao Shunping discussed it, they asked Witoma to board a British merchant ship flying the British flag to Mawei Port.

    Half a day later, Witoma returned to the ship and told the Taiping generals about the discussion.  Weitoma met Wang Yide, the Qing governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, at the Mawei Port Fort. He briefly explained that the Taiping Army came to Xiamen to pick up the subordinates there and return Xiamen to the Qing army.  But the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang was very arrogant, saying that the court never negotiated with rebels, and that the rebels in Xiamen could only surrender or die.

    After talking about the meeting, Witoma shrugged and said: "Generals, I think you should fight. In the eyes of us British, we can only let the guns speak for themselves. Otherwise, our fleet  It¡¯s huge, and there are Qing naval forces in Xiamen. If they join forces with the Fuzhou navy to attack us, it will be very difficult.¡±

    Monk Tongbao rolled up his sleeves and said: "How do you think? Even the foreigners say it's better to fight, so let's just go ahead and fight. Qing Yao won't be afraid if we don't fight! Hey, this foreign benefactor, are you also sending  Will the boat join us in defeating the demon?"

    After hearing the translation, Weitoma shook his head repeatedly and said: "No, no. We are only responsible for helping you transport people and cargo, and will not participate in the war between you. Moreover, according to the charter agreement, you have to protect our ships."

    Monk Tongbao arrogantly said: "You damn don't have enough friends." Then he turned to Lu Shunde and Zhao Shunping and said: "Let's send more red boats forward to sink a few more Qingyao's warships. We don't  Just go ashore.¡±

    In the Battle of Shanghai, the Taiping Army sank most of the red single ships and crab boats.  However, in the chaos of the Qing Navy, many red single boats and fast crab boats ran aground.  At the same time, the Taiping Army also captured many red single boats and fast crab boats during the boarding battle.  After the war, these ships were slightly repaired, and the Taiping Army repaired some salvaged sunken ships. The Taiping Army had a total of fifteen red single ships and more than forty crab boats. This time, the Shanghai Navy mobilized a hundred warships.  As the escort went south, red single boats and fast crab boats still accounted for the majority.

    The red single ships were equipped with more Western artillery, with each ship having fifteen to twenty cannons.  In terms of firepower alone, it is more fierce than the lucky boats, fast crab boats and sand boats of the Qing navy.  At that time, Lu Shunde and Zhao Shunping agreed with Monk Tongbao's strategy and sent a red single boat and a fast crab boat to attack. They were also annoyed by the flies of the Qing navy's followers along the way.

    The Qing army originally thought that the Taiping fleet was going south to attack Fuzhou or a port. After Wang Yide received a report from the navy that a large number of Changmao navy was heading south.  He was so shocked that he couldn't speak for a long time.  The Qing court was furious after the loss of southern Jiangsu. Emperor Xianfeng had already issued several strict orders. Wang Yide was demoted to a third rank due to his failure in rescuing Suzhou and Hangzhou. Emperor Xianfeng gave him the shortest time to recover Xiamen and then send his army north to counterattack Suzhou and Hangzhou.

    Wang Yide also had a headache for the rebel group in Xiamen. Although Li Tingyu led 30,000 land and water troops to seal Xiamen airtight, it has been more than seventy days since the fall of Xiamen. The Qing army and the rebels fought four times.  In more than ten battles, although the Qing army won more than it lost, Xiamen was rebellious and could not get out. The periphery of Xiamen changed hands several times, and both sides were furious.

    Wang Yide was in Fuzhou, dispatching troops and food, and was exhausted. Supplying money, food, arms and equipment to the army ahead was a large sum of money every day. Wang Yide tried every means to raise money.  While Wang Yide was struggling, good news came from Li Tingyu of Xiamen. According to the confessions of recently captured prisoners, the food reserves in Xiamen had been exhausted, and people in the city were panicked.  Wang Yide breathed a sigh of relief. He had already seen the dawn of breaking the city and regaining Xiamen.

    Unfortunately, bad news came next. Ningbo fell. Wang Yide sent additional naval patrols to the northern waters. He was worried that pirates from Ningbo would take the opportunity to go south to cause trouble. Recently, a fleet of ships really went south, but he did not expect it.It's the flag of the long-haired thief.

    Wang Yide was also considered an official. After receiving the report, he immediately strengthened Fuzhou's defenses, sent troops to issue an alarm, and ordered the coastal states to be on strict alert to prevent Chang Mao from landing.  Fuzhou was an important place to go, and Wang Yide himself was in Fuzhou, so he transferred most of the Fujian Navy fleet to Fuzhou to guard it.  Wang Yide heard that the Changmao Navy had nearly a thousand large and small ships, so he did not dare to take the initiative to find trouble. Anyway, he just had to defend his home base of Fuzhou.

    Unexpectedly, the large fleet of the Taiping Army came straight to the south. Wang Yide was very nervous. If the Taiping Army came to attack Fuzhou and Fuzhou was lost again, then he would not even think about escaping. He would be with Fuzhou City.  He deserved it, because even if he could escape, Xianfeng would not let him go.  Therefore, as if Wang Yide was facing a formidable enemy, he ordered all naval and land armies to be on alert and prepare to defend Fuzhou to the death.

    After Wang Yide set up a posture for a fierce battle, the Taiping fleet did not attack. Instead, foreign merchant ships came to negotiate.  Wang Yide was sure that the Taiping Army was coming to Xiamen to rescue people, and he immediately breathed a sigh of relief. Since the Taiping Army had no intention of attacking Fuzhou, he picked up his official airs and walked around the mountains and rivers with Wade for a long time. Anyway, he didn't  I don¡¯t want to offend the foreigners, but in just one sentence, I will not agree to the Taiping Army going south to pick up people, nor will I negotiate with the rebels.

    To be honest, Wang Yide was very angry. When had he ever seen such an arrogant rebel, he actually colluded with foreign barbarians to bargain with the imperial court? You must know that even if the imperial court finally pardons the traitor, it will still have to be a favor, and it will never be so high-sounding.  Bargaining with the officers and soldiers.

    Who knew Changmao was so bold?  Shortly after the foreigners returned, more than ten red single boats and more than twenty fast crab boats in the long-haired fleet flew out of the formation and pounced viciously on the Qing navy in Mawei Port on the Minjiang River.

    The Fujian Navy of the Qing Army stationed here only had dozens of ships. Most of them were transferred to Xiamen by Li Tingyu. The rest were small boats. Where could they be the opponent of the Taiping Navy?

    The two sides began an artillery battle. The Qing warships had small ships and small cannons, and they were scurrying around the harbor. After all, Monk Tongbao was a pirate who had been at sea for many years, and had fought many naval battles with foreigners.  Very familiar with the essence of naval battles, he lined up the red ships to seize the upper hand and blocked all the poor boats of the Qing navy in the harbor.  After a round of artillery fire, almost all the Qing navy warships were sunk in the harbor.  The Taiping Army then shelled the forts on the shore.

    The seven forts of the Qing army were also well-arranged, and after half an hour of artillery battle.  Monk Tongbao didn't see any advantage.  If the battle continued, his side would definitely suffer losses. The goal of destroying the Qing's annoying boats had been achieved. He immediately ordered the entire army to withdraw from the mouth of the Minjiang River.

    Waitoma watched the whole battle of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Navy and said to the accompanying Navy Lieutenant Commander Hurley: "Major, what do you think of these Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Navy?"

    Hurley smiled slightly, raised his proud head and said: "They are just a group of pirates. Their ships and cannons are superior to the Qing army, and they are more numerous than the Qing army. Of course they can win. If we were the British Navy, we only need one battleship.  Can send them all to the sea."

    Witoma chuckled and said: "Really? Major, you are very proud, which is a good thing. But never underestimate your opponent's attitude towards learning. Can you imagine that the rebels of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom only fought in the mainland last year. In a short period of time,  , they have reached out to the ocean. Their spirit of learning and attitude of daring to try have far surpassed the Manchu and Qing government, and they will be a potential opponent."

    Hurley shook his head and said: "Mr. Vice Consul, our only opponent now is the Russians."

    Witoma did not speak to him anymore, but stood on the side of the ship and looked at the cheering and shouting officers and soldiers of the Taiping Navy. He said to himself: "Is the dwarf emperor of France right? China is a river.  The sleeping lion, once he wakes up, he will be invincible?"

    After the victory, the Taiping fleet that broke into the Minjiang River returned to the open sea. After a brief reorganization, they continued on their way.  As for Wang Yide of Fuzhou, after the Taiping Army started shelling the fort, he immediately fled back to Fuzhou City and stayed behind closed doors. It was not until his subordinates came to report for the third time that the Long Mao Fleet had left that he came to the fort to watch.

    Sure enough, the Changmao fleet had left completely, leaving only the wreckage of the Qing army's broken warships and countless corpses of navy soldiers on the river. Wang Yide was so stunned that he could not speak.

    One of Wang Yide's staff stepped forward and said: "General Xian, it seems that the long-haired thief is a traitor who really just wants to take Xiamen back. The rich lands of Fujian and Zhejiang are both on the coast. If the long-haired thief breaks Xiamen  Navy, they can roam freely near the sea, and we have nothing to control, but it is very disadvantageous. Now as long as Mr. Zongxian still has soldiers and navy on his hands, the court will not embarrass you too much. Let Changmao  If the thieves take away the bandits in Xiamen, we can regain Xiamen without spending a single soldier, and we can also protect the navy. Isn't it the best of both worlds?"

    Wang Yide stroked his goatee under his chin and muttered: "The wordsThat being said, I am afraid that the court will find out in the future, and it is inevitable that no one will join in colluding with the traitors.  "

    The staff member smiled slyly and said: "This matter is easy to hear. Isn't there a foreigner involved in it? Your Excellency, you can report that it was rebellion and collusion with foreign soldiers and criminals. Your Excellency worked hard to stabilize the situation in Fujian, and did not offend the barbarians or cause disaster."  , recaptured Xiamen, and drove away the navy fleet of hundreds of long-haired pirates. How can anyone else say anything? Besides, it was Li Tingyu and Li Junmen who besieged Xiamen."

    Wang Yide asked hesitantly: "Will Li Tingyu agree to do this?"

    The staff member smiled and said: "Don't worry, Mr. General Xian, the Li Junmen family is trapped in Xiamen City. He wants to regain Xiamen as soon as possible more than anyone else. I am willing to go to Xiamen, as long as the rebellion can keep the Li Junmen family safe.  I believe Li Junmen will definitely agree to change hands with Changmao in Xiamen."

    Wang Yide grunted, pondered for a moment and said: "Okay, you go to Xiamen immediately with my official document. In the official document, I will only tell Li Tingyu about the war here, but will not implement the other words. Just rely on  Just open your mouth and speak."

    The staff member bowed and smiled and said: "Don't worry, Lord General Xian, the villain will succeed immediately." (To be continued, please search Piaotian Literature, the novel is better and updated faster!
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