Chapter 15

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Mindanao is the 14th largest island in the world and the second largest island in the Philippines after Luzon. Compared to Luzon, which was already under Spanish rule, Mindanao had not been invaded by the Western world. It was still controlled by the Moros and the indigenous people. The Sultanates of Maguindanao and Buayan, established by the Islamic Moros, were the most powerful forces on the island. Additionally, around the Sulu Sea, there was a powerful Sulu Sultanate. These countries were not ones that the pirates of Feiyu Island could provoke. Therefore, Long Yufei deliberately avoided these areas when choosing a destination.

Since the late Ming Dynasty, due to the chaos, a large number of Chinese people from coastal areas fled to the Nanyang region, the Indochinese Peninsula, Borneo, and the eastern coast of the South China Sea, including Luzon. At this time, there were more than 200,000 Chinese people in Luzon. However, most of these Chinese people lived on Luzon Island, with only a small number living on Mindanao, mainly in the northern coastal areas.

Mindanao is mountainous but also has many fertile plains. The climate is hot, suitable for growing cereal crops and other agricultural products. Moreover, Mindanao is rich in coal, iron, gold, chromium, copper, nickel, and other minerals. Therefore, Long Yufei decided to use this place as the base for initial development.

After two days of sailing, the fleet from Feiyu Island entered the Bohol Sea from the Sulu Sea and arrived at the northern part of Mindanao. Their destination was the mouth of the Agusan River in Wurei Bay. The land there was fertile, and there were Chinese people living there. The pirates of Feiyu Island should be able to quickly establish a foothold there. Most importantly, there were large coal and iron mines nearby (Mindanao is rich in minerals, but the specific locations differ from those described in the book; readers are asked not to delve too deeply, as this is the protagonist's golden finger), which would facilitate the initial establishment of the steel industry!

The Chinese people living on Mindanao were in a difficult situation. They often suffered from the oppression of the local indigenous people, who lived in the jungle and were not much different from savages. These indigenous people frequently attacked the Chinese settlements, stealing their livestock, food, and women, causing great harm to the Chinese. Although many Chinese people united to resist the attacks, their situation was very difficult due to their numerical disadvantage!

On the deck of the 'Feiyu' warship, Long Yufei and Luo Sangui stood at the bow. Luo Sangui appeared somewhat excited but also had a sense of confusion about the unknown future. Although she had made up her mind to trust Long Yufei and believe that he would lead Feiyu Island to a bright future, she could not help but worry about the distant and unpredictable future.

"San Gu, don't worry. We have already planned everything out. This time, our plan will definitely succeed!" Long Yufei knew what Luo Sangui was worried about and tried to reassure her. Over the past period, the relationship between Long Yufei and Luo Sangui had become much closer, and the elders of Feiyu Island had all noticed this, but most of them were optimistic about it. After all, Long Yufei's performance over the past month had already won their approval!

"Um! Yufei, how much longer until we reach the Wurei Bay you mentioned?" Luo Sangui asked.

"About that? Probably soon!" Long Yufei scratched his head, uncertain. He had never been to Mindanao before, and all his knowledge came from books. He hoped that the information in the books was accurate; otherwise, he would be in trouble!

"Are there really Chinese people and those cannibalistic savages who oppress them on the island?" Luo Sangui changed the subject.

"Of course! There are many savages living in the forests on the island. The Chinese people are in a very difficult situation! They are our compatriots, and we should help them! Once we unite the Chinese people on the island, we can easily destroy the other two sultanates on the island! Then, the entire Mindanao will be ours!" Long Yufei was filled with boundless hope. The total number of Chinese people on Mindanao was not large, only a few tens of thousands! But if they occupied Mindanao, they could attract Chinese people from other regions. After all, most Chinese people lived in dire straits, and if they could provide a haven for the Chinese people, they would definitely be willing to come. Then, their strength would grow like a snowball!

"Um!" Luo Sangui nodded; she also believed they would succeed! Although she was still the supreme leader, she was now only a nominal leader. The actual power had been delegated to Long Yufei, Zhao Yi, Li Decheng, Niu Meng, and others. She had no complaints about this. Over the past three years, she had endured too much pressure, and now that the burden on her shoulders was lighter, she felt much more relaxed.

The Agusan River is the largest river in the northeastern part of Mindanao. The riverbanks are fertile, but most of the area is covered by dense primary forests. The indigenous people lived in these forests, and their backward production methods did not cause significant damage to nature. This made their civilization extremely backward and their lives very poor. The indigenous people were very xenophobic, and wars often broke out between different tribes. Although the scale of these wars was small, they were extremely cruel, and the defeated side often saw all their men slaughtered, with the women taken as spoils of war. The level of civilization among these indigenous people was very low; it was said that Magellan lost his life here during his circumnavigation of the globe!

When the Chinese people came to Mindanao, they built their homes with their hands and hard work. Initially, they could live peacefully with the indigenous people. However, the indigenous people soon became envious of the wealth created by the Chinese. The lazy and indolent indigenous people did not want to work for this wealth; instead, they chose to use force to plunder it, using cruel methods to rob the Chinese.

In the massacres by the indigenous people, the Chinese suffered heavy losses. Although they resisted fiercely, they were always at a disadvantage due to their smaller numbers. Despite this, the Chinese people had persisted for hundreds of years!

On the west bank of the mouth of the Agusan River, there was a Chinese village called Wu Family Village. Nearly half of the villagers were surnamed Wu, and their ancestors had come to this land 200 years ago and had been living and reproducing here ever since. The village was close to the sea, and the villagers made a living by fishing and farming. The population of the village was not large, less than 1,000 people. However, the village was now in a very dangerous situation!

The village was surrounded by a wooden fence, but outside the fence, countless dark-skinned indigenous people were looking greedily at the village, which was in a state of panic. Inside the village, men, women, and children had all picked up weapons—bows, arrows, large knives, spears, fish forks, and hoes. However, most of the villagers' eyes were filled with despair. The village had only about 1,000 people, with only 300 to 400 able-bodied men, while outside the village, there were at least a thousand indigenous people. These indigenous people were extremely cruel, and if they broke into the village, the fate of the entire village was easy to imagine.

"Village Chief, the people coming are from the Buena tribe. I heard that three months ago, they destroyed a Chinese village to the west. Hundreds of people in the village were all killed by those beasts, except for the women!" A middle-aged man said to the old village chief, who had white hair.

"Those beasts, they will surely be punished by heaven for what they have done!" The old village chief said angrily, but his eyes were filled with more despair. In recent years, attacks by the indigenous people on Chinese villages had become more frequent, and many Chinese villages had been wiped out. He never thought that it would be their turn this time!

"Heaven! The Buena tribe is the largest tribe in the area, with about 7,000 people! Village Chief, if we can't resist, we should surrender to them!" Someone said in panic.

"Hmph! Those beasts are not human. Even if we surrender to them, they won't let us off! I, Wu Daniu, would rather die than surrender to them!" A middle-aged man shouted; he was the old village chief's son!

"That's right, we should fight those beasts to the death! Even if we die in battle, we won't let them have it easy!" The young men in the village shouted. Young people always have a lot of courage. However, a sad atmosphere had already spread throughout the village!

"Everyone, men, women, and children, get ready. We will fight these beasts to the death and try to repel them! Also, all the women should be prepared. If we fail, they should commit suicide! If they are captured by those beasts, they will suffer worse than death!" The old village chief ordered!

"Yes, Old Village Chief, we will fight these beasts to the death!" The men in the village shouted, sounding very tragic!

Not far from the village, a small, thin indigenous man was surrounded by others. Unlike the other indigenous people, who were naked and covered only by leaves, he wore a black shirt. However, the color was not very good. The shirt was originally white, but it had been worn for so long that it had turned black! This indigenous man was the chief of the Buena tribe, Enado. This time, he had brought 2,000 of his people to destroy Wu Family Village! A few months ago, he had destroyed a small Chinese village, looting a large amount of food and wealth. What he was most satisfied with were the Chinese women, whose white bodies and smooth skin were much better than the dark-skinned indigenous women. Just thinking about those Chinese women made Enado drool!