Chapter 53

The sky had turned completely dark.

Wang Qignian was sitting in the underground shelter of Battery No. 1 at the port, reading documents. The candlelight was dim, but he was still engrossed. This was a new shipbuilding proposal submitted to the navy by a shipbuilder from Europe, in which he proposed a new design concept for a line-of-battle ship, which impressed Wang Qignian greatly.

"Hmm, it seems we should allocate more resources to the shipyard and see what he can come up with," Wang Qignian muttered to himself. Perhaps he had been sitting for too long, and as he stood up to stretch, he heard a distant rumble of cannon fire, which startled him almost to the point of hurting his back.

"Where is the cannon fire coming from?" Wang Qignian immediately climbed up to the battery and asked Li Yi, the head of the main battery. Li Yi pointed to the occasional flashes of fire on the distant sea and said, "There's a battle at sea. It seems to be between Spanish ships and someone else, but it's too dark to see clearly."

Wang Qignian observed the weak firelight on the sea for a while and frowned. "It looks like one ship is engaging several Spanish ships. This ship is quite large, with a high deck. The caliber of the guns, as indicated by the muzzle flashes, is also large, and the rate of fire is not slow. Moreover, the guns seem to be mostly installed at the ends of the ship. Could this... be...?"

At this point, Wang Qignian and Li Yi looked at each other in surprise. "Could this be the Yunsheng No. 1?"

They were right. Yunsheng No. 1 had escaped from the Spanish main fleet five days ago thanks to its superior speed. It then took advantage of the night to first head east and then turn north, secretly returning.

On the night of May 15, after five days of sailing, Yunsheng No. 1 arrived at the outer sea of Dàyú River. At this time, several small Spanish warships were still anchored in the outer sea, enforcing the blockade on the穿越者 (穿越者 refers to the group of people who have traveled through time or space, often used in Chinese science fiction and historical fiction. For the sake of clarity, I will translate it as "time travelers" here). Since the time travelers' only two warships were already out at sea on guerrilla missions, and the tugboats and barges had all been hidden in Dàyú River, the Spanish were quite relaxed. The four ships were anchored in the calm sea.

Such an opportunity would not be missed by Xiao Bai Lang, Wang Tie Chui, and others. Yunsheng No. 1 approached the outermost enemy ship under the cover of night, and its 8 broadside cannons fired in succession, devastating the enemy ship at close range. First, the luxurious stern deck officer's quarters and captain's cabin were hit, followed by the four-wheeled artillery carriages on the deck, and then the sailors' quarters on the forecastle...

The intense cannon fire completely destroyed the upper deck of the ship, causing heavy casualties. The sailors were rolling and moaning, the officers were stumbling into the captain's cabin to find their superiors, and the embarked army and apprentice sailors were firing their matchlock guns wildly, creating a chaotic scene. After firing dozens of rounds, Yunsheng No. 1 finally used two 24-pound heavy iron shells to open two large holes in the waterline deck, and then turned away, seeking the next target amidst the terrified looks of the Spanish sailors.

The other three Spanish ships had already raised their anchors, and the sailors were frantically raising sails to prepare for maneuvering. However, their actions were still somewhat slow. After dealing with the outermost ship, Yunsheng No. 1 turned left and bared its fangs at the next Spanish ship. The Spanish officers left their card tables and wine tables in the lower deck and rushed to the deck to command the battle. A few 4-pound and 6-pound guns fired several rounds toward the direction of the fire, but it was too dark to see if they hit anything.

However, Yunsheng No. 1's counterattack came quickly. As it turned, the four bow guns fired a salvo at the target ahead, and after completing the turn, the 8 starboard guns fired their first salvo of the night. The long muzzle flashes illuminated the 8 iron shells as they flew the short distance of over 500 meters and plunged into the wooden deck of the enemy ship. The powerful kinetic energy shattered the deck, and the flying debris caused additional injuries to the sailors.

The Spanish knew there was no way out. The officers kicked the sailors who were crouching on the deck to get them back to their gun positions and ordered them to fire back at the enemy.

Their efforts had some effect, as a large number of small-caliber iron shells hit the iron hull of Yunsheng No. 1, making a dull thudding sound. Wang Tie Chui knew without looking that Yunsheng No. 1 had taken several hits. However, he was not worried about these small-caliber iron shells. The short-barreled small guns could only chip off a layer of paint from the hull of Yunsheng No. 1, and at worst, create some dents, which were not serious.

The 8 gun crews on the starboard side of Yunsheng No. 1 were now firing freely, and the two sides were exchanging fire at a distance of several hundred meters, creating a spectacular scene. Unfortunately, the brave actions of the Spanish naval officers did not significantly affect the battle. The difference between 6-pound and 8-pound guns and 18-pound and 24-pound guns was too great to be overcome by human effort. Their only success was a lucky 8-pound shell that hit a 12-pound gun crew on Yunsheng No. 1, causing three casualties. However, their good luck ended there. Ten minutes later, the Spanish ship, with a large hole in its waterline, began to tilt, and the desperate sailors jumped into the cold sea, fighting for small boats or broken planks, and shouting for help from the other two ships.

However, reality was not on their side. The remaining two Spanish warships had already raised their sails and fled in different directions. One was already out of sight, and the other was just a vague shadow. Wang Tie Chui, on Yunsheng No. 1, did not hesitate and followed the one that was still visible. At 10 knots, Yunsheng No. 1 caught up to the small Spanish coastal warship in just a few minutes. The Spanish knew they could not escape and stopped fleeing, firing their small-caliber guns at Yunsheng No. 1. The unequal battle lasted 15 minutes, and Yunsheng No. 1 ended it with two 24-pound shells, sending the Spanish ship to the bottom of the South Atlantic.

Wang Tie Chui took Yunsheng No. 1 for another round in the nearby waters but found no trace of the last remaining Spanish ship. After rescuing some of the Spanish sailors who had fallen into the water, he returned to the port. The commander of Battery No. 3 on the small island outside the port used a simple iron megaphone to shout to the sea, confirming it was Yunsheng No. 1 before allowing it to enter the port.

Wang Qignian and others, who had witnessed the entire raid from the battery, rushed to the dock to welcome them. Li Yi was so excited that he patted Wang Tie Chui's shoulder and repeatedly exclaimed, "Damn! Damn!"

"‘Eagle of the East Coast’—how is it?" Wang Qignian, the naval commissioner, retained a bit of calm and said, "Let's go back to the naval headquarters. We can discuss the details there."

Yunsheng No. 1 had already anchored in the port, and the injured gunners were immediately taken to the hospital for treatment. The other crew members temporarily went ashore to rest at the dock. The Chaluan laborers, under the direction of the time travelers, were loading cannonballs, gunpowder, and supplies onto the ship. Yunsheng No. 1 would not stay in port for long, and these supplies needed to be loaded as quickly as possible.

"Old Xiao, is ‘Eagle of the East Coast’ okay?" Wang Qignian asked as soon as they entered the naval headquarters. The time travelers' navy was small and could not afford any losses.

Wang Tie Chui glanced at Xiao Bai Lang and said, "On the afternoon of May 10, we encountered the Spanish main fleet in the outer sea of the Strait of Magellan. ‘Eagle of the East Coast’ immediately withdrew to the southwest, and the Spanish focused on Yunsheng No. 1. They did not send ships to search the southwest until it was dark. ‘Eagle of the East Coast’ should have escaped safely. They can circle back to Malvinas Island at night, and the Spanish will not find them easily."

"Good, that's a relief," Wang Qignian said, his face relaxing. "Every bit of our naval strength is precious. What are your plans next? Are you going to continue as a commerce raiding fleet?"

"Sure," Wang Tie Chui nodded without hesitation. "Thanks to the sail modifications we made to Yunsheng No. 1, we can mostly sail without using fuel. We've only used about 90 tons of diesel in over a month. Since that's the case, we might as well continue our operations. Staying in port as a fleet in being is a dead end. It's much more effective to keep the Spanish sea routes under constant threat. We should load the supplies tonight and set sail early tomorrow. By the way, can we get some more manpower, preferably trained army soldiers? I hear some Spanish towns are quite wealthy, and we don't mind playing the role of pirates on land."

"We need to apply to the executive committee tomorrow and see what Peng Zhicheng says," Wang Qignian replied. "What is your next target?"

"The Spanish main fleet will take at least seven to eight days to return. Since we have this time, I'd like to go to Buenos Aires," Xiao Bai Lang said with a smile.

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