Chapter 59

June 30th. Sunny. The early winter of the Little Ice Age in South America was cold. Off the coast of Rocha, more than twenty ships of various sizes were anchored, with the Spanish crown flags fluttering in the cold wind. The sailors shouted in unison as they hoisted heavy cannons and horses onto the small boats bobbing on the sea using pulleys. The sailors on the small boats secured these items and then rowed hard toward the shore.

On the shore, a considerable number of soldiers had already landed. Under the command of officers, they established a loose perimeter to protect the main force, which was still in the midst of the chaotic landing.

Captain Torres rode his warhorse, leading a group of Gaucho volunteers, patrolling the low, rolling hills near the coast of Rocha to prevent enemy scouts from spying or a sudden attack by the enemy's main force. So far, over 40 Gaucho riders had landed, and Captain Torres divided them into six groups to patrol and guard in different directions. These Gauchos were poorly equipped but skilled in horsemanship and fought bravely, making them a decent force overall.

Leonid, leading his horse, lay hidden in the grass on the hillside, carefully observing the Spanish landing scene more than a thousand meters away on the sea. Having received basic military education in a short-term course at the Distant East Military Academy, he tried to identify the number and composition of the Spanish forces.

"Victor, start recording. The Spanish infantry is mainly composed of pikemen and arquebusiers. The proportion of arquebusiers is relatively high, about 2:1 compared to pikemen. Additionally, there are about a hundred flintlock musketeers." The sea was filled with small boats continuously ferrying personnel and supplies to the shore. Leonid held a monocular telescope and spoke to the soldiers behind him.

Four Cossack cavalrymen from Zaporizhia, Ukraine, followed him. One of them took out paper and pen to record, drawing symbols and numbers that only he understood, while the other three rode their horses, cautiously guarding the surroundings.

"Approximately 1,000 infantry have landed so far. Additionally, some horses have also been brought ashore, indicating a significant number of cavalry in the enemy ranks." Leonid continued, "So far, I have seen four cannons being unloaded from the ships, which appear to be 4-pounder field guns."

As Leonid and his men observed and recorded, a cavalryman on guard suddenly issued a warning: enemy scouts were rapidly approaching. Leonid quickly stowed the monocular telescope in his saddlebag, mounted his horse, and looked in the direction his men were pointing. He saw a group of people in colorful clothing charging toward them from the distance.

"They are Gauchos!" Leonid said confidently. Before their mission, the Army Department had briefed them on the composition of the Spanish forces in the La Plata region, so he was well aware of the existence of the Gauchos in the Spanish army.

Like the Paulistas or Mamelukes in Brazil, the Gauchos are the mixed descendants of Spaniards and Indigenous people. They blend Spanish and Indigenous cultures, living on the vast Pampas grasslands with their unique lifestyle, mostly as herders. They are known for their bravery and fierce nature, often drawing knives at the slightest provocation in casinos or taverns, causing headaches for Spanish law enforcement in the La Plata region. Now, these proud sons of the Pampas were facing the brave Cossacks from the Ukrainian steppes, and Leonid knew from the moment he spotted them that today's battle would likely be to the death.

"Prepare for battle!" Leonid drew his 1633-pattern flintlock pistol from his belt, loaded and cocked it. The four men behind him did the same. There were about six or seven Gauchos, all brandishing sabers, charging down a gentle slope. The area was a hilly slope, providing limited space for cavalry maneuvering.

Retreat was no longer an option; they had to eliminate or rout the Gaucho cavalry before them to withdraw safely.

"Urah!" Leonid held the reins in his left hand and the loaded 1633-pattern flintlock pistol in his right, leading the charge. Due to the low production of the pistols, each cavalryman was equipped with only one 1633-pattern flintlock pistol. To compensate for the lack of firepower, they also carried a lance and a saber in their saddlebags.

Neither side wore armor. The Gauchos were dressed in a variety of ethnic clothing, while the Ukrainian cavalry wore uniform dark blue army uniforms. As the distance between them closed, Leonid could even see that some of the Gauchos were wielding the 1932-pattern officer's sabers, which were popular in the La Plata region.

"Bang! Bang!" As they entered pistol range, the five cavalrymen fired their flintlock pistols almost simultaneously, then quickly drew their sabers from their saddlebags. Three of the Gauchos were knocked off their horses by the first volley, and the remaining four continued their charge. The two sides soon clashed. Leonid, with his skilled horsemanship, easily dodged a saber swing from a Gaucho, and in the process, he lightly slashed his saber across the Gaucho's body, making a "pfft" sound as the blade cut through flesh. In that moment, Leonid felt the thrill of his past battles on the Crimean Peninsula, where countless Tatars, Turks, Poles, and even Russians had fallen to the sabers of the Zaporizhian Cossacks.

After charging a short distance, Leonid slowed his horse and turned around, noticing that one of the cavalrymen following him was missing. On the opposite side, only two Gauchos remained, and they did not flee but instead turned to charge back, seemingly determined to continue the fight.

"True warriors!" Leonid praised, leading the remaining three cavalrymen to meet them. He had no time to reload his pistol and saw no need to, as the battle between brave men would be decided by sabers.

Sabers flew, and blood spattered. The last two Gaucho cavalrymen fell from their horses, and behind them, a Ukrainian cavalryman clutched his stomach, spitting blood, and collapsed on the grass. Leonid turned his horse and galloped back to the battlefield where the initial clash had occurred. One of the cavalrymen dismounted and rushed to the fallen comrade, checking his injuries and calling his name. After a long moment, he gently laid his comrade down and slowly shook his head at Leonid.

"Victor, Oleg, go and collect the bodies of our comrades and round up the nearby horses. Hurry!" Leonid said solemnly, then rode to the first place of engagement. On the ground lay four men, three Gauchos killed by bullets, and one Cossack cavalryman with a deep gash in his abdomen, near death. Leonid dismounted and tightly held the soldier's right hand, listening to his weak voice and the dialect of his homeland, until his voice faded away.

The horse did not leave; it snorted and licked its master's face, as if calling for him to wake up and continue the fight together...

After tying the body of his comrade to the horse, Leonid checked the bodies of the Gauchos on the ground. The Gauchos were indeed poor herders, with almost no personal belongings other than their sabers—except for a leather pouch. Inside the pouch were salt, rations, yerba mate, and flint tools, nothing else, making them look no better off than beggars.

After clearing the battlefield, Leonid and his two companions did not linger. They were concerned about encountering a second group of Spanish scouts and needed to quickly report the important information about the Spanish landing. They left the battlefield, three men and twelve horses, galloping toward the nearest stronghold of the穿越者—Distant East Fort.

On the morning of July 1st, Lin Youde, Chang Kaisheng, and others guarding Distant East Fort received the news of the large-scale Spanish landing. In the afternoon, the news reached the Executive Committee and the Army Department, and the Army immediately began pre-battle mobilization.

So far, the regular army consists of six infantry companies with nearly 500 men, three cavalry companies with over 100 men, and two artillery companies with nearly 100 men, totaling about 700 men. Additionally, due to the critical moment of survival, about 600 civilian personnel, technical craftsmen, well-behaved prisoners, and Charuans were urgently mobilized as the general reserve force. These people generally received little training, were equipped with a mix of cold and hot weapons, and had low combat morale. However, if the front line faced unfavorable conditions, they would be forced into battle.

The 1st and 2nd Infantry Companies, the 2nd Artillery Company, and about 100 reserve forces were currently stationed at Distant East Fort, while the rest were garrisoned in the capital. All preparations were in place, awaiting the arrival of the Spanish.

The battlefield, shrouded in smoke, was about to enter its most intense moment.

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *

* * *