Chinese martial arts! Grandmaster

There must be a demon in the abnormal situation!
Yasutaka Shimazu convened a meeting to find out the specifics.

Judging from the actions of the Great Qian Dynasty over the past century, it seems to have had no interest in conquering overseas territories.

That's right,

The Great Qian Dynasty did not expand its territory overseas, but instead consistently pursued strategic contraction.

Whether it's the waters around the Penghu Islands, the northern border, the grasslands, the northeast, or even the Western Regions and Tibet.

Especially in recent years, after the Western powers attacked Daqian and blockaded the Daqian Dynasty's sea areas, Daqian suffered several defeats and became even more despondent.

Every time the Great Qian Dynasty lost a battle, it had to pay a huge amount of silver in reparations.

From the moment a large number of overseas Daqian people in Manila were brutally massacred, the Daqian Dynasty's court turned a deaf ear and dared not take any action.

Then,

The Satsuma Domain of the Eastern Empire conquered Ryukyu and colonized it.

Unexpectedly, the Great Qian Dynasty remained silent and dared not utter a single word of nonsense.

The Eastern Empire occupied the Penghu Islands, but unexpectedly, the Daqian court still dared not utter a word.

Therefore,
In Shimazu Yasutaka's mind, the Daqian Dynasty was terrified of war.

As long as the Satsuma Domain dares to start a war and deploy its fleet.

Then,

The garrison of the Great Qian Dynasty will obediently admit defeat and make compensation.

Therefore, Shimazu Yasutaka believed that if the Satsuma Domain sent troops to seize the Penghu Islands by force, the Daqian Dynasty would inevitably compromise.

of course,

The Satsuma Domain is no longer the powerful domain that was one of the Kyushu Islands in the East just a few decades ago.

In order to weaken the overall strength of the Satsuma Domain, Emperor Meiji reduced its territory by one-third.

in addition,

The main force of the Kwantung Army also drew nearly 200,000 elite troops from the Satsuma Domain.

Of the eight major fleets of the Eastern Empire, the two most powerful ones were originally transferred from the Satsuma Domain and incorporated into the navy of the Eastern Empire.

Therefore, Shimazu Yasutaka's fleet was actually not that large.

He mobilized a large army for three consecutive days, gathering a total of more than 100 warships and a naval force of 36,000 men.

Relatively speaking, this is an extremely large naval force.

Then,

He ordered his younger brother, Shimazu Yasuhiro, to be the commander-in-chief of the expedition against the Penghu Islands, leading a dozen or so generals in a grand march towards the Penghu Islands.

In the past few days, while mobilizing troops, Shimazu Yasutaka also inquired about the situation of the Ximentang fleet stationed in the Penghu Islands.

This Ximentang fleet has a total strength of about 10,000 men and is stationed on two islands.

Its only strength was that the fleet had four cruisers and more than ten gunboats and armored ships.

However, judging from the total strength of the forces, Shimazu Yasutaka believed that with his hundred warships, he should be able to easily take over the Penghu Islands.

After Shimazu Yoshimi took over as captain, he was equally confident.

In his mind, Sakurai Chojiro was a good-for-nothing. Although he had an army of 100,000 men, they were all natives recruited from the Penghu Islands and had almost no fighting power.

His army consisted of the elite troops of the Satsuma Domain, known for their bravery and skill in battle.

The Satsuma fleet departed from Kagoshima and first docked in Ryukyu.

The Ryukyu Kingdom had long been a colony of the Satsuma Domain, serving as a logistical supply base for the Satsuma fleet.

Next, the Satsuma fleet sailed in a grand procession toward the Penghu Islands.

Shimazu Yasume dispatched his general Harano Mitsuo as the vanguard, leading twenty-four warships to occupy Miyako Island as a port for his fleet.
Harano Mitsuo was a descendant of Harano Yoshichin, a famous general of the Satsuma Domain.

Haruno Gichin was the most loyal retainer of the Shimazu family and made great contributions to the conquest of the Ryukyu Kingdom.

It can be said that the Shimazu family's current status is inseparable from Harano Gichin.

Haruno Mitsuo was always incredibly proud and honored to be a descendant of the Haruno family.

After his birth, the Eastern Empire had already ruled the entire Satsuma Domain.

The Shimazu family chose to submit to the rule of the Eastern Empire, which made Haruno Mitsuo feel regretful all along, as it deprived him of the opportunity to make a name for himself.

to be frank,
He harbored a deep-seated ambition to separate the Satsuma Domain from the Eastern Empire.

He even lamented that he was born so many years too late, and that he had not distinguished himself during the warring states period, missing the best opportunity to compete for supremacy.

right now,

Finally, it was time to send troops to attack the Penghu Islands.

Upon receiving the order, Haruno Mitsuo was so excited he almost screamed.

He was confident that he would make great contributions to the Satsuma Domain during the attack on the Penghu Islands, and bring unparalleled glory to the entire Haruno family once again.

Therefore, after he led a fleet of twenty-four ships to capture Miyako Island, he did not wait for the main force to arrive, leaving only five hundred soldiers to garrison the island, and directly led the fleet to attack the Penghu Islands.

Next,
When Shimazu Yasume led the main force of the Satsuma fleet to Miyako Island, it was immediately discovered by the French Allied Fleet.

After deliberation, the commanders of the French fleet decided to lead their fleet into battle, to give the Satsuma Domain fleet a taste of its power and deliver a crushing blow.

at the same time,

The French fleet reported the situation to the Third Fleet of the Ximen Hall and instructed them to notify the Third Fleet of the Daqian Dynasty to send reinforcements to capture the Satsuma Domain fleet.

at this time,

Just then, the three men of Haruno set off with their vanguard fleet and encountered the French fleet.

Boom! Boom! Boom!
The two sides engaged in the fiercest naval battle in the waters off Xian Island.

The French Allied Fleet deployed sixteen warships, most of which were gunboats.

The largest of them was the cruiser HMS Devil, with a displacement of 3600 tons, while the others were gunboats and armored ships with a displacement of less than 1,000 tons.

The 24 warships of the three men of Harano were more numerous than the French Allied Fleet.

but,

These warships were converted from ships that had been phased out by the West. The ships had small displacements, and some were even sailing ships.

Not only were the ships smaller in tonnage, but their naval guns were also a level below those of the French Allied Fleet.

then,

Twenty-four ships were met with a crushing defeat by the sixteen warships of the French mercenaries.

Naval warfare in the Satsuma Domain of the Toyotomi Hideyoshi era was still based on close-range artillery attacks followed by naval encirclement.

Although the Satsuma Domain fleet was highly mobile, it had few artillery pieces.

Even the largest warship was only equipped with eighteen cannons, and had no heavy cannons.

The French Allied Fleet was a mercenary force under Simon's command, equipped with artillery; any one of their light cannons could easily overwhelm the Satsuma fleet.

Not only did it have an overwhelming advantage in the number of naval guns, but its firepower was also several levels stronger.

The cruiser 'Devil' alone was equipped with eighty-eight naval guns.

Once the two sides clash, the Satsuma fleet will only be able to take a beating.

In less than half an hour, the Satsuma fleet was completely destroyed.

Of the twenty-four ships, fourteen were sunk and six were captured.

Seeing that the situation was not right, Haruno Mitsuo led the remaining four ships in a hasty retreat towards Miyako Island.

The French Allied fleet suffered only one armored ship hit by the shelling, resulting in very minor losses, and easily captured the fleet of the three heroes of Harano.

Although the French allied fleet achieved a great victory in this naval battle.

but,

After the Satsuma Domain fleet returned to Miyako Island, the total number of warships exceeded eighty, including several large cruisers.

For a while,
The French allied forces also dared not launch a rash attack on Miyako Island.

Therefore, the French Allied Fleet could only blockade this area of ​​waters, while the Ximentang Third Fleet stationed in the Penghu Islands tied down support from the East.

Whether or not to attack Ryukyu depends on instructions from the Ximengtang headquarters. Even the deputy commander of the French Allied Fleet, Povich, dared not give the order and could only consult Jack Bonaparte and Prince Qian, Chen Jie.

After receiving the military report, Chen Jie was unaware of the specific details of the naval battle between the two sides.

but,

He dared not be careless about the conflict that had occurred in Ryukyu.

He had originally planned to take advantage of the three-month window of opportunity to strike first and deliver a heavy blow to the Japanese, disrupting their plans.

but,

To his surprise, in less than a month, the Satsuma Domain fleet of the Japanese dared to provoke him first.

How could Chen Jie possibly miss such a great opportunity?

If we don't properly deal with the Satsuma Domain in the East and reclaim the Ryukyu Islands, we'll be wasting this golden opportunity.

Moreover, Chen Jie was very familiar with the current situation of the Eastern Empire.

Because the Eastern Empire had undergone the Meiji Restoration and become powerful, the Satsuma Domain was ambitious and aspired to revive the glory of the Warring States period.

The Japanese have a strong "Bushido" spirit and are extremely powerful in combat.

of course,

Chen Jie had no intention of following the Japanese's rules of diplomacy before resorting to force. Taking advantage of the rapid expansion of Ximentang's military strength, he urgently needed to use up his weapons and ammunition through a war and gain substantial benefits.

The soldiers of Ximen Hall are now all waiting to earn military merit.

The Satsuma Domain in Japan was the perfect target for a brutal beating, as it was located at the very throat of the Japanese Empire.

Once the Satsuma Domain is captured, the Kwantung Army stationed in the northeast of the Daqian Dynasty will be silenced.

When Simon built a powerful fleet and set sail for the sea, his first target in Southeast Asia was Manila.

Their first target in the invasion of the East was Ryukyu.

These are two important sea routes for the Daqian Dynasty to reach overseas. Occupying the Penghu Islands was merely to create a naval base.

Since Chen Jie challenged Miyamoto Musashi, the greatest swordsman in the East, he had been looking for an opportunity to take action against the Ryukyu Islands.

Unexpectedly, just when I was about to fall asleep, someone brought me a pillow; the Satsuma Domain of the Orient actually offered themselves up for death.

Although with Ximentang's current fighting strength, he might still be a little short of being able to sweep through the Eastern Empire.

However, attacking the Satsuma Domain and taking over Ryukyu was as easy as drinking water.

therefore,

Chen Jie made his decision almost without hesitation.

This time, we must not only teach the Satsuma Domain in the East a lesson, but also take this opportunity to directly seize Ryukyu.

The Ximentang warships must be docked directly at the Ryukyu port, and troops must be stationed there.

Knock on the mountain and shake the tiger!

Without stationing troops at the throat of the Japanese Empire, the Japanese simply don't know the pain.

Chen Jie knew the Japanese in the 'Urban World' very well. If he didn't hurt them and station troops under their feet, they would always be thinking of biting him.

Then,

Chen Jie immediately convened a meeting and summoned the commanders of the First and Second Fleets to discuss preparations for the battle against the Satsuma Domain of the Eastern Empire.

Naval generals such as Ma Ming, Shen Zhenhe, Zhang Wenbo, and Deng Yonghe gathered together.

Chen Jie suddenly remembered that there was a woman named Umegumi Kaoru living in the Penghu Islands.

This Japanese princess has never been of any use until now. This time, attacking the Satsuma Domain and taking over Ryukyu will finally put Ume-no-miya Kaoru to good use.

therefore,

Chen Jie immediately ordered someone to notify Mei Gongxunzi on the Penghu Islands.

In fact, among the French mercenary fleet, only Jack Bonaparte truly understood Chen Jie's meaning.

Judging from the posture of Ximentang's deployment of troops, it has begun to bare its fangs and is preparing to compete for maritime hegemony in the Asia-Pacific region.

That's right,

Ximentang has begun to truly unleash his power.

Since the last attack on the five islands of Kyushu, Ximentang's fleet has remained inactive.

The First and Second Fleets of the Westminster have already doubled in size.

Jack Bonaparte was very familiar with the struggle for naval supremacy, after all, for so many years, Europe had been the first to launch a naval struggle, relying on its powerful navy to conquer the world.

Portugal, France, the Netherlands, the British Empire, and many others all rose to prominence on the seas thanks to their fleets.

The Ximen Hall's conquest of Ryukyu signifies the emergence of a new maritime hegemon.

And without a doubt, Ximentang will be the most powerful maritime overlord.

Because Ximentang not only represents the Great Qian Dynasty of the East, but also possesses military power far exceeding that of the West.

Whether it's Portugal, the Netherlands, or other former maritime powers, or the current maritime hegemon, the British Empire, they are all a level below Simon's fleet in terms of combat power.

In the world's oceans, Simon's will be an invincible force.

Around noon that day.

Chen Jie found detailed maps of the Ryukyu region, including Kyushu in the East.

He marked the locations of Ryukyu and Satsuma on a map and created a sand table model.

Then,

He and his elite troops carefully studied and formulated the battle plan for attacking Ryukyu.

Personnel, logistics, warships, time, etc., are all clearly defined, and the objectives are clear.

Early the next morning, Deng Yonghe and Zhang Wenbo, along with all the naval officers and captains of the First and Second Fleets, arrived at the Qianwang Mansion in Nanjing.

Because the Third Fleet was only recently established and is currently in the training phase, the fleet has not yet been officially launched and put into service.

Therefore,
The only fleets capable of being deployed for combat are the First and Second Fleets of the Ximengtang.

Of course, it's impossible to deploy both of Ximentang's fleets to attack Ryukyu. It would be sufficient to select an elite fleet from the two fleets and form Ximentang's Fourth Fleet.

A total of eight cruisers, sixteen gunboats, sixteen armored cruisers, twelve supply ships, eight large troop transports, and twenty-four 'Storm' fast attack ships.

The temporarily formed Fourth Fleet of the Westminster consisted of a total of 84 ships, plus some transport ships.

in addition,

Chen Jie specifically called Jack Bonaparte over for a meeting.

Because the Ximentang fleet had only been established for a little over a year, but had not experienced many battles.

Although Jack Bonaparte was just a mercenary under Simondon, he was a professionally trained naval commander.

Moreover, the entire French Allied Fleet was under the command of Jack Bonaparte, so Chen Jie specifically asked him to attend this attack on Ryukyu.

Since the last attack on the Kyushu Islands in the East.

In the past six months, Simon had spent a lot of money to purchase 36 transport ships from Europeans, and all of them had been converted into 'Storm' fast attack ships.

Currently, the total strength of the four fleets of Ximentang has reached 80,000.

After being completely disbanded and reorganized, each fleet had 20,000 troops.

In addition to the 8,000 French mercenaries, the entire Ximen Hall was equivalent to having five large fleets, making it a powerful and well-equipped force.

Chen Jie was very satisfied with the development of the Ximentang Navy.

With the expansion of the navy of the Great Qian Dynasty, it has fully acquired the strength to dominate the world.

Next,
The Ximentang fleet can indeed show its strength globally, fight a few tough battles, and 'show off its power'!
To maximize the benefits for the Great Qian Dynasty, it is imperative to unsheathe its sword!

Whether it's the army, navy, or even the military industry of Ximentang.

Without sending troops overseas and without fighting several decisive and hard-fought battles, no one would be afraid, and no one would submit.

Therefore,
If the Great Qian Dynasty wants to become the world's only great power, it must possess a formidable military force that inspires fear. (End of Chapter)