Chapter 1153: Battle of Humen
Weddell's fleet remained anchored in the Pearl River Estuary for days.
The scouting light sailboat *Annie* had returned. It had spent several days delving deep into the Pearl River Estuary, reaching Toudaotan, just 15 miles from Guangzhou city. Along the way, it meticulously measured depths, marked channels, and thoroughly mapped the surrounding topography, hydrology, and the Ming army's defensive deployments.
Ming officials had already sensed something was amiss. Kai Long swiftly reported to his superior, stating, "The English fleet harbors sinister motives."
However, his superior merely sought convenience, unwilling to escalate the situation and invite trouble. Swathed in the arrogance of the "Celestial Empire" ideology, he utterly dismissed the idea of others spying on them. He replied to Kai Long, "They are just four barbarian ships; what kind of trouble could they possibly stir up? If they wish to shelter from a typhoon here, let them. There's no harm, no harm at all."
Kai Long grew frantic. As a Ministry of Rites official responsible for foreign affairs on the front line, he knew precisely what sort of characters these Westerners were. The more they were indulged, the more arrogant they became. Such people would only learn obedience after a proper beating.
Yet, he was merely a civil official with no troops at his command. Faced with such a situation, he was utterly helpless.
August...
Weddell's fleet finally stirred into action, sailing towards Humen Fortress.
Kai Long hastily ascended the fortress walls. He saw four English warships stop not far from the fortress and lower their tenders, openly surveying the nearby waterways.
Kai Long's face darkened. He roared an order: "Open fire! Warning shots! Drive them away!"
The military officer of Humen Fortress's artillery battalion whispered, "Master Kai, these Western ships have cannons lining both sides. Four ships combined, the number is staggering. If we fire upon them, we might not be able to defeat them."
Kai Long's face darkened further. "Is this a question of whether we can defeat them?" he demanded. "The enemy has already sailed right next to our military base and is surveying! If we don't act now, their scouts will soon swagger into our barracks and count our soldiers one by one!"
The officer conceded, "That is true!"
The struggle between nations is not as simple as 'if you can't win, don't fight.'
This isn't a cultivation world, where one immediately kneels upon seeing a stronger opponent, crying, 'Senior, have mercy, don't kill me, I'll even be your dog!'
A soldier's honor would never allow the enemy to tramp their shoe soles across their face.
Kai Long declared, "Even if we cannot win, we must fight! Our Great Ming will absolutely not tolerate barbarians running rampant. Open fire! Send three warning shots first to make our stance clear!"
The artillerymen gritted their teeth. "Open fire!"
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Three warning shells streaked through the air, landing on the water far from the English ships, sending up three white plumes of spray.
When Weddell saw the Great Ming dare to open fire, he paused in surprise, then burst into laughter. "Hahaha, the little dwarves are actually angry! Hahaha! It's war! Open fire on them! Take down that dilapidated fortress for me!"
Weddell's four sailing ships immediately fanned out, encircling Humen Fortress.
"Open fire!"
"Fire!"
Artillerymen on both sides roared simultaneously, as continuous booms of cannon fire erupted.
Cannonballs whistled past each other in mid-air, screaming towards their targets.
Then came the splintering sound of wood...
Weddell's four ships quickly sustained some damage, but this was negligible. At this time, British warships were formidable, and their sailors possessed exceptionally high combat prowess. They had only recently defeated the Spanish Armada, making their mark on the world, and were at the height of their aggressive ambition.
The cannon fire did not deter the English sailors. They regarded a few casualties as commonplace and continued to load their cannons, firing madly at Humen Fortress.
Cannonballs slammed into the fortress's parapets, sending earth and stone flying. Occasionally, a shell flew inside the fortress, striking an artilleryman, leaving him bloody and mangled.
Soon, Humen Fortress's firepower was suppressed. English cannonballs rained down ceaselessly, forcing the artillerymen to duck their heads. The loading of cannons ceased, and everyone huddled in corners.
Kai Long, shielded by two subordinates, cowered behind a low wall.
The cannon fire roared, his orders drowned out and unable to be heard.
A subordinate yelled into his ear: "Master Kai, it's no use! The English have too many cannons; our fortress can't withstand this!"
Kai Long scanned his surroundings, seeing that the entire fortress had lost its fighting capability, and couldn't help but let out a long sigh.
Humen Fortress was a stronghold built with immense imperial funds! It housed 44 cannons in total, a truly significant number. Compared to the cannons on the four English warships, it wasn't necessarily fewer.
But...
Although there were many cannons on the fortress, gunpowder and matching shells were insufficient. The artillerymen were also poorly trained and lacked combat morale. Once the fighting began, many artillerymen, fearing to be hit by shells, hid far away, completely failing to bring the fortress's combat power to bear.
Kai Long could only sigh towards the heavens, "What is to be done?"
"Sir," a subordinate urged, "no time for sighing, we must retreat!"
His subordinates dragged him out of the fortress, and then all artillerymen withdrew.
Humen Fortress... had fallen.
Weddell saw the Ming forces retreat from the fortress and burst into laughter. "Cease fire!" he commanded. "Send a hundred sailors to move all the cannons from the fortress onto our ships!"
A group of English sailors, swaggering triumphantly, came ashore. They boldly entered the fortress and began hauling the cannons onto their ships. Nine cannons had already been destroyed or crushed by collapsing stone walls, so the English took away thirty-five intact cannons.
"Urgent report!"
A messenger, running as if on wings, burst into Zhoushan Dinghai Port. On the dock, he stamped his feet with urgency: "I have urgent military intelligence, urgent military intelligence! Has Instructor Jiang returned?"
A sailor on the dock shook his head. "Instructor Jiang is in Dengzhou, reorganizing the navy. He hasn't returned yet."
The messenger was frantic. "Then what are we to do? Is anyone here? Is there anyone capable of fighting?"
"What's all the commotion?" A tall youth walked over, none other than Shi Lang, with Zheng Sen by his side.
It turned out that Jiang Cheng had remained in Dengzhou to reorganize the navy and construct a naval base.
However, Shi Lang and Zheng Sen had returned to Zhoushan Dinghai Port.
Both of them were still young and could not yet dedicate all their time to official duties. They still needed to study extensively at the maritime academy to reach greater heights in the future. Therefore, after their mission on Pi Island concluded, they immediately returned to Zhoushan Dinghai Port, just as the messenger arrived.
The messenger, upon seeing Shi Lang, quickly rushed over. "Young General Shi, it's good you're here!" he gasped. "A great calamity, a great calamity has occurred!"
Shi Lang looked puzzled.
The messenger reported, "Four English ships arrived, bombarded Humen Fortress, and carried away thirty-five of its cannons!"
At these words, Shi Lang was greatly alarmed, and Zheng Sen was equally shocked.
"The English have attacked our Great Ming Dynasty?"
"Damn them!"
Both youths erupted in shared fury, "Let's kill those sons of bitches!"
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