The Black Sails of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 78 Turning Against the Wind
The Santa Ana opened fire with all its guns.

Li Kuiqi's fleet suffered another major blow.

A ship from Cangshan was hit in the bow by a cannon shot, which pierced through it, causing it to disintegrate on the spot and turn into wood chips everywhere.

Another bird ship was hit on the deck, and more than a dozen pirates turned into blood mist on the spot. The entire deck was stained bright red, and pieces of flesh were thrown back two or three miles, covering many pirates on the following ship.

Li Kuiqi, who was standing on the deck with his arms outstretched, heard a whooshing sound in his ears.

Behind him, on the stern, a series of cracking sounds came from bullets embedded in wood, and flying wood chips hit the back of Li Kuiqi's head, causing his imposing body to tremble slightly.

Li Kuiqi showed no fear on his face, but he was already somewhat flustered inside.

He had seen the government troops' bows and arrows; he had also experienced the Tiger Crouching Cannon, Dragon Emerging from Water, and Frankish cannons.

I have never felt this way before.

Lin Qian's gunboat fired with tremendous force, making his heart pound. Before they even boarded the ship, his men had suffered heavy casualties.

Fortunately, we're very close!

Lin Qian's gunboats were traveling from southwest to northeast, while his fleet was traveling from south to north.

After suffering casualties on three or four ships, the convoy was now less than a hundred paces away from the gunboats.

As long as he can get close to the boarding bar, with his imposing physique and numerous subordinates, Lin Qian will be no match for him.

If he were to seize this gunboat, he could dominate Fujian and Guangdong, and perhaps even rival Li Dan.

Once we get beneath the gunboat...

Thinking of this, Li Kuiqi's face contorted with excitement, but the next second, his arrogant expression froze on his face.

After firing another round of shots, the Santa Ana deftly changed course and headed north.

……

On the deck of the St. Anna, Lin Qian lowered her binoculars and ordered, "Head due north."

Chen Jiao: "Head due north, headwind to port, turn the rudder and change sails!"

With the addition of the three triangular sails on the bow, the St. Anne was much more agile in turning around and quickly changed course.

As the sails were once again filled with wind, the ship gradually gained speed at eight knots, quickly leaving Li Kuiqi's fleet two or three hundred paces behind.

At that moment, another clap of thunder sounded in the sky, and then the rain began to fall without warning.

Matchlock guns became unusable after rain, and the stern guns on the stern deck also became unusable.

"Enemy at 400 paces!" the mainmast lookout shouted.

Lin Qian said in a deep voice, "Head southwest, engage the enemy on port!"

Chen Jiao: "Head southwest, turn against the wind, turn to starboard with the wind, change the rudder and sail!"

Turning against the wind means that the bow of the ship is to pass through a region of strong and weak winds facing northwest. If the ship is not fast enough, it may stop in the strong and weak wind region, and may even be blown backward or capsize, which is very dangerous.

Unless required for combat, very few ships will turn against the wind.

As the helmsman turned the rudder, the bow of the St. Anna gradually pointed northwest. The wind flags on the mast swayed for a moment, then became parallel to the hull and pointed straight to the rear.

Everyone's heart was in their throat, and time seemed to drag on forever.

After a moment, the bow slowly turned west, gradually moving out of the headwind zone, and the sails were once again filled with wind.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Lei Sanxiang shouted from the gun deck, "Attack the enemy on port! Everyone to port! Prepare to load ammunition!"

Through the cannon slit, Lei Sanxiang could clearly see that Li Kuiqi's fleet was located not far to the southeast of the large sailing ship.

Once again, the shooting range and distance were excellent.

"Fire!" Chen Jiao roared.

Lei Sanxiang: "Release!"

After reloading, Lei Sanxiang shouted, "Fire!"

After several rounds of shelling, Lei Sanxiang's throat was hoarse, his throat reeked of sulfur, and his skin was sticky, but his muscles trembled with excitement, and his eyes shone with fervor. This was how a battle should be fought!
On the stern deck, Lin Qian saw that Li Kuiqi's fleet had lost three more ships, and the wake behind them was littered with burning planks and mangled flesh.

At this time, the Santa Ana was located northwest of Li Kuiqi's fleet. If his fleet wanted to catch up, it would have to go against the wind, turn around multiple times, and take a zigzag route.

That was tantamount to dancing in the gun ports of the Santa Ana.

He was beaten up for nothing and couldn't even catch up.

This is the advantage of gaining the upper hand in the age of sailing warships.

In Lin Qian's view, Li Kuiqi's fleet had already turned against the wind three times, and was being shot at by the St. Anna like sitting ducks.

It's truly remarkable that they could still charge forward despite such a humiliating defeat.

But that's just right; it's always satisfying to see the enemy get beaten for nothing.

After Li Kuiqi's fleet made its fourth turn against the wind, it finally learned its lesson and began sailing southwest, intending to make a large detour before charging again to avoid the firing range of the Santa Ana.

Lin Qian commanded, "Slightly steer to starboard and maintain firing range on port!"

Chen Jiao loudly relayed the order.

As the St. Anne slowly turned, Li Kuiqi's fleet returned to Lei Sanxiang's sight.

From below deck came Lei Sanxiang's arrogant laughter: "Hahahaha... You son of a bitch! Let's see where you run now!"

Li Kuiqi's fleet sailed almost parallel to the St. Anna, resulting in a significantly lower cannon hit rate.

But they couldn't stop the shells from being fired non-stop, as if they were free.

Along the way, Li Kuiqi's ships were hit by cannon fire several more times, and two of his bird ships broke apart.

By this time, after several turns against the wind, the fleet had gradually sailed to the northwest upwind.

Meanwhile, the Santa Ana gradually drifted to the southeast and downwind.

Having gained the upper hand, Li Kuiqi was filled with grief and indignation. He glanced behind him and saw that there were less than sixty ships left.

These are all the assets he has accumulated little by little over the past ten years; they are his most precious possessions.

Watching his men turn into blood mist one by one, and his warships burn to dust one by one, was as painful as being slowly tortured with a knife.

It would be fine if we died in a fair fight, but instead we were bombarded to death by artillery fire. It was a meaningless and pathetic death!

Fortunately, the brothers' deaths were worthwhile. He has now gained the upper hand, and as long as he goes downwind, he can seize the gunboat in one fell swoop!

Admittedly, Lin Qian could turn around and run away again, but this place is already close to the edge of the lagoon, and there are coral reefs not far ahead.

Li Kuiqi has been a powerful figure in the South China Sea for over a decade; he's no fool!

He used the lives of his brothers as bait to gradually drive Lin Qian into a desperate situation!

As long as we can break through and seize the large sailing ship, there is still hope, and it will all be worthwhile. He will still be the tyrant of Fujian and Guangdong, while the likes of Lin Qian will be wiped out at sea!
Thinking of this, Li Kuiqi's tiger-like eyes filled with tears. He raised his ghost-headed broadsword, turned around in the wind and rain, and shouted to his men with tears in his eyes, "The time has come to avenge our fallen brothers! Follow me to charge onto the ship and kill this scoundrel!"

Inspired by his expression, the pirates' blood boiled, and they too raised their swords.

Amidst thunder and torrential rain, Li Kuiqi's fleet set sail, heading towards the Santa Ana with the wind in a poignant manner!

On the deck of the St. Anna, Lin Qian saw through her binoculars that Li Kuiqi said a few words at the bow of the ship, and then the entire fleet charged forward like an arrow released from a bow.

At this moment, Chen Jiao pointed to the left bow of the ship and said, "Helmsman, look!"

Lin Qian looked in the direction of the sound and saw a ring of indigo blue water appear on the dark sea surface that had been battered by countless raindrops.

They had no idea when they had driven to the edge of the coral atoll.

Lin Qian then realized that Li Kuiqi's sudden and desperate escape was actually to lure him to the edge of the coral reef and use the reef to restrict the St. Anna's maneuverability.

To come up with such a solution in such a hurry is truly remarkable.

pity.

Lin Qian sneered and ordered, "Left rudder, heading due east!"

(End of this chapter)