Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 241 Breakthrough
At about seven o'clock in the evening on August 8, a fleet of three small armed ships quietly arrived at Banderas Bay and, just like eight years ago, slowly moved towards the port before nightfall.

With the help of the dim twilight, the outline of Banderas Valley gradually became clear, and the scattered lights in the town appeared particularly eye-catching under the evening sky.

There were several small fishing boats moored at the pier, bobbing up and down with the waves.

On the shore, there are several rows of wooden houses, and occasionally residents are walking back and forth.

In the small town in the distance, wisps of smoke rose up, and people were preparing a sumptuous dinner to reward them for a day's hard work.

In this peaceful and tranquil atmosphere, the Spaniards obviously did not expect that the nightmare of eight years ago would come again.

“Quick! …Hurry up!”

"The Spanish in the harbor are watching you!"

As soon as "Feijian-1" and "Feijian-2" docked at the pier, the officers hurriedly urged the Marines and militia to disembark quickly in order to control the situation in the port as soon as possible and crush any counterattack launched by the residents of the town.

Due to the evening tide, the harbor was surging with waves, causing the ship to be quite bumpy. The soldiers who rushed off the ship were crowded together, causing several unlucky men to fall into the water. They thrashed around and cried for help, causing chaos.

The first dozen or so soldiers who rushed ashore raised their muskets and formed a dense line to cover the subsequent soldiers who continued to land.

"Send a few people over to take a look!"

More than ten minutes later, more than 70 Marines and armed militiamen came ashore one after another without encountering any obstruction throughout the process.

Mu Dahai, commander of the landing force and second lieutenant of the third platoon of the temporary second company, looked up at the quiet dock area in front of him and gave orders to several militiamen.

Luo Congnan was actually quite dissatisfied with being ordered around by such a young officer.

But when he saw the other party looking at him with scrutiny, he immediately rushed forward with a dagger in his hand.

Although this officer is young, he graduated from the Army Training School and is a "direct general" of the Xinhua Army. He must not be offended.

Otherwise, if you were tried by military law and beheaded, that would be such an unfair death!

"Bang!" Gunshots were heard in front, and the Spaniards finally resisted.

The militiamen who were exploring the way ahead did not stop after the gunshots, but took advantage of the time when the other side was reloading their ammunition and rushed over quickly.

"Team One, Team Two, Go!"

After hearing the order, more than 30 armed militiamen immediately rushed forward with their guns.

"Bang, bang, bang..." The sound of gunfire like popping beans soon rang out from the front, accompanied by a few shrill screams from time to time.

After a while, several blurry figures were seen fleeing towards the town.

When Mu Dahai and the rest of the people rushed to the rows of houses, they found four or five Spanish bodies lying on the ground and in the corners of the houses.

"After our attack, the Western Yi fled back to the town, leaving behind a few corpses." Luo Congnan whispered, "I suggest we don't stop there. We should take advantage of the panic in the town and charge in immediately."

"It's getting late. If we rush in rashly, will it be..."

"No!" Luo Congnan said anxiously, "By now, the people in the town must be in a panic and at a loss. We should rush in immediately and kill all the Western barbarians who dare to rush out. Then we should set a few houses on fire and retreat to the outskirts of the town. That way, the enemy will be in the open, and we will be in the dark. We should be able to control the entire situation!"

Upon hearing this, Mu Dahai couldn't help but take a deep look at the militia captain who had strongly requested to join the raiding fleet in Changping Fort.

This is a veteran on the battlefield!

"All troops immediately charge into the town!"

"After charging into the town, form squads and avoid getting caught up in a melee with the Spanish!"

"After setting the fire, immediately retreat to the outskirts of the town, using the houses and the village walls as support to prevent the town's residents from escaping during the night!"

"Anyone who resists will be killed without mercy!"

As the order was given, the soldiers formed two sparse columns and marched quickly towards the town.

As the last ray of light in the sky was about to disappear, the town was slowly enveloped by a huge black curtain.

The Banderas Valley town appears to have learned nothing from the lessons it experienced eight years ago and has failed to build its limited defenses.

This small town, which can be seen from the end at a glance, not only has no coastal defense batteries built at the port, but also no city walls for protection. They are even too lazy to build symbolic wooden fences, and it is just presented to outsiders in plain sight.

The houses in the city are scattered around. Except for the churches, warehouses and town halls which are wood-concrete structures, most of them are wooden houses.

In addition, there are some thatched Indian houses scattered here and there, messy and disorderly, making the town look very dilapidated.

The occasional gunshots and screams from the dock had already alarmed the town's residents. The lights in the houses quickly went out, accompanied by the cries of children, the terrified screams of women, and the roars of men, plunging the entire town into panic and chaos.

"Bang bang bang..."

As figures rushed into the town, the sound of gunfire continued to ring out, occasionally with the screams and groans of people before death.

In a moment, flames appeared in several houses, and under the influence of the sea breeze, the fire quickly rose upwards, illuminating the nearby open space.

"First row, ready, fire!"

"Bang bang bang..."

"Team Three, Ready, Fire!"

"Bang bang bang..."

"...Everyone inside, listen up! Raise your hands and walk over here slowly!"

"...put your heads in your hands and lie flat on the ground!"

"..."

The battle—well, to be more precise, it should be a successful raid—stopped at around ten o'clock in the evening. When the residents of the town found that their attempts to escape at night were blocked by the pirates' dense musketry, they all stayed in the house and waited for the judgment of their fate.

It was obvious that this group of pirates were very professional. After landing on the shore as quickly as possible, they immediately rushed into the town without giving the residents any time to react. They also set fire to several houses, illuminating the town.

In the process, they shot and killed the men who dared to come out to fight one by one with the most decisive attitude, shocking everyone.

Afterwards, they quietly dispersed to the outer exits of the town, completely blocking several escape routes and becoming their lambs to be slaughtered.

At dawn the next day, the mayor, judge and priest of the town came to the "pirate" camp under a white flag and handed over control of the place to the other party.

There are about 300 residents in the town, more than half of whom are Indians.

And now, they have all become the prey of the "pirates".

As the "pirates" drove in triumphantly, the residents looked at them anxiously through the corner of the window and could only pray silently to God.

Mu Dahai requisitioned the most magnificent building in the town - the brick and stone town hall, as the temporary headquarters of the "occupiers".

Coincidentally, when Xinhua captured this town eight years ago, it also used this place as a command post.

After receiving the message, the navy sailors left behind necessary guards and began to go ashore to help their army brothers "receive" the fruits of victory.

In accordance with European pirate tradition, every resident of the town was required to pay a ransom of three pesos or ornaments of equal value.

The soldiers, armed with firearms and sabers, escorted more than ten captured Spanish militiamen and went door to door to "visit" them and collect the required money to buy their lives.

As for the town’s warehouses, town hall, church and the property of the “rebels”, they were all ruthlessly confiscated to compensate for the losses of the new Chinese.

Last night, although the soldiers acted quickly and took advantage of the town residents' unpreparedness, they quickly disarmed the area and took control of the entire town.

However, in the chaos of the night, casualties still occurred, with a total of two militiamen killed and three militiamen and one Marine injured.

The collection of "ransom" and supplies took most of the day, and about 2,400 pesos of gold, silver, currency and jewelry were confiscated, more than 3,700 kilograms of grain such as wheat, corn and potatoes, 18 pigs, cattle and sheep, three barrels of wine, more than 100 pieces of cloth, a small amount of gunpowder and lead bullets were confiscated.

In addition, the town’s only dozen or so craftsmen and artisans, along with their families, were all “invited” on board the ship to be taken back to Xinhua.

In order to demonstrate to the Spaniards, when the raiding fleet left Banderas Valley on the third day, they humanely distributed several days' rations to each town resident. Then, regardless of the other party's pleading, they set fire to all the houses and burned all the livestock, poultry and other supplies that could not be taken away.

After this disaster, the town has been virtually physically wiped out.

If we want to rebuild it, without the financial support of the colonial government, it may not be restored to its original state even after another eight years.

On the morning of August 8, the raiding fleet left the Banderas Valley, leaving the Spanish with a town in ruins.

Han Jian stood at the bow of the ship, looking at the sea level in the distance, and let out a long sigh.

He knew that the war had just begun, and if he wanted to stop the fighting and force the Spanish to surrender, there was still a long way to go.

But this raid undoubtedly sent a clear signal to the Spaniards: Xinhua will never sit idly by and wait for death, but will take the initiative to attack and bring the war to your Spanish territory.

The war was brought upon us by you Spaniards, but the damage was mutual.

It all depends on who of us can't bear it first.

(End of this chapter)