Chapter 299: Sweet Port Turbulence — Catching a Turtle in a Jar

Night descended slowly, enveloping the harbor in darkness. The sea breeze stirred a thin mist rising from the water—a common phenomenon in Lingao during early summer. The fog thickened, wrapping the docks, wharves, shores, islands, and factory buildings in a soft gauze. Only the faint glow of lamps within the buildings remained dimly visible.

Wu De glanced at the luminous dial of his watch: eight o'clock in the evening. The lights near the naval shipyard burned especially bright, and the rumble of steam engines could still be heard—the sound of cargo being loaded onto the Great Whale. The four smoothbore cannons destined for the ship had arrived at Bopu during the day. To avoid attracting attention, loading was conducted at night at the shipyard dock, carried out solely by marines without any laborers.

According to the plan, the Great Whale would erect walls of sand-filled burlap sacks, with rice or sugar sacks stacked on the outside as camouflage. Concealed within would be several cannons and two platoons of marines. The moment the enemy drew near, the cannons would open fire on the pirate ships. Based on descriptions from the Guangbing's crew, the pirates' vessels were uniformly small- to medium-sized coastal craft; a few cannonballs would certainly send them to the bottom.

If the pirates deployed only one or two ships, this plan—with the Great Whale's enhanced firepower—would be simple and effective. But should the enemy bring a swarm of vessels, the surprise of the initial salvo would prove effective only once. After firing, the cannons would require time to reload and re-aim. Any ships not struck could scatter and attack from multiple directions. The Great Whale was a non-motorized vessel—slow and cumbersome. If small boats swarmed it and the engagement devolved into close-quarters boarding combat, the enemy's numerical superiority would become dangerous. Conversely, if the enemy fled after the first volley, the Great Whale lacked the speed to pursue, reducing the action to a mere rout. Clearly, relying solely on the Great Whale was insufficient; other ships would need to coordinate the attack.

Yet if too many ships were deployed, the cunning pirates might withdraw their feelers entirely. Obviously, no matter what approach the Navy adopted, the fundamental condition for victory—"the initiative"—remained in the pirates' hands.

Spread before Wu De was a 1:100,000 nautical chart of the Hai'an Street area, magnified fifty times to display the distribution of islets, reefs, and sandbars. This region was dotted with islands and rocks of every size, forming countless winding channels and hidden straits. Such an environment was ideal for pirates employing small, nimble craft.

After a moment of contemplation, he picked up the phone. "Is the Dengyingzhou in port?"

"Yes, sir."

"Summon that, uh, Wang—" Wu De suddenly recalled that everyone referred to the first mate of the Dengyingzhou as "Wang the Bearded." "—the first mate to headquarters!"

"Wang the Bearded? Right away."

Wang arrived shortly. As for his beard—the Navy was divided into two factions: one believed it looked quite handsome, very "British," and urged him to keep it; the other insisted beards were unsanitary and that soldiers ought to be clean-shaven. The debate remained unresolved, so the beard persisted. After a voyage, crew members were entitled to a few days' rest, so he appeared clean and sharp. His Type 1 Naval Uniform fitted him well, shedding any trace of his former pirate image.

"Based on your experience as a pirate, if you were to intercept ships going in and out of Hai'an Street harbor, where would you strike?" Wu De indicated the chart. "Assume absolute security is required, and enemy vessels may have escorts."

Wang the Bearded studied the chart intently—these exquisitely detailed maps no longer surprised him.

"Here." He tapped a cluster of black dots.

Wu De examined the spot closely: a place called "Chrysanthemum Islets." Not proper islands, just a jumble of rocks breaking the surface. The location sat directly on the approach to Hai'an Street harbor.

He nodded. The Guangbing had been attacked approximately four nautical miles southeast of this very area. Wang's assessment was accurate.

"Why this particular spot?" Wu De inquired, noting that similar reef clusters existed elsewhere nearby.

"The conditions here are optimal. Numerous islets and rocks, all jumbled together—excellent for concealing ships. Simply anchor behind the Outer Islets, post a lookout on the rocks, and when a ship passes through, you can dash out and catch them off guard. If the enemy's escort proves too formidable to engage, you simply cut through the Outer Islets and flee. The channels are many, the reefs dense, the water riddled with hidden sandbars. Any pursuing vessel unfamiliar with the route will run aground instantly."

"Mm. And if we wished to capture these pirates, what approach would you recommend?"

"The best strategy is to conceal ships at the Inner Islets beforehand," Wang replied without hesitation. "Unless the pirates intend to escape via a route other than the Outer Islets, Cat's Leap Pass between the Inner and Outer Islets is their only path. Station an armed vessel there to block them, and you can attack from both sides. No matter what skills they possess, they won't escape."

"Very good." Wu De realized that merely examining the chart, he could never have deduced that this mere cluster of dots concealed so many tactical nuances.

"However, the Inner Islets are extremely difficult to navigate," Wang cautioned. "The channels are too complex. Only small skiffs can enter safely. Larger vessels risk striking reefs or running aground."

"What's the maximum size ship that can navigate through?"

Wang shook his head. "Two hundred liao at most. The currents inside are chaotic, and sandbars abound."

"Are you familiar with the approach?"

"Well..." Wang hesitated.

"Speak honestly," Wu De said. "This mission is critical. Complete it successfully, and you'll be commended!"

"Yes, sir." Wang came to attention in a less-than-perfect stance. "I have navigated inside once, only once. I still recall some of the channel markers."

"Good. Prepare yourself. Report to the shipyard dock."

The following day, Wu De busied himself selecting weapons and personnel. For this operation, he decided not to draw upon any transmigrators—it would be entirely a formed unit of the Navy's native troops. That evening, he and Wang the Bearded boarded a hundred-liao single-masted vessel and set out to reconnoiter the Chrysanthemum Islets.

To minimize their profile, they brought only seven or eight sailors plus two officer candidates from the first training batch—no one else. For safety, the boat was temporarily fitted with an outboard motor from one of the motorboats.

The vessel sailed for several hours through the night. Nearing midnight, Wu De estimated they were approaching their destination—the Chrysanthemum Islets, just outside Hai'an Street harbor.

The sea was calm, the moon bright. The boat had lowered its sails and now crept forward, propelled by sculling oars.

"Spotted anything?" he asked Wang, who was observing from behind a barricade at the bow.

"Not yet. Should be soon." Wang peered intently at the sea. His eyes had now adjusted to the darkness, and with the telescope, he could roughly discern objects within three hundred meters.

The reconnaissance vessel pressed onward.

"Dark shapes ahead," Wang called softly. "Mind the speed!"

At this point, what materialized before Wu De was not merely a few dark specks but an entire cluster of them. The crew tensed. Had they strayed off course? The chart indicated nothing resembling this strange jumble of small reefs and islets!

"All stop!" Wu De ordered sharply.

The vessel rapidly decelerated, gliding forward on its remaining momentum. Wu De checked the compass bearing and descended to the cabin, switched on a flashlight, and carefully compared the chart. But the chart displayed no such peculiar markings. Had sea conditions changed so drastically in four hundred years? The compass heading, ship's course, and calculated position were all correct. He pondered for a moment, then recalculated the tide table. That was it—this was the lowest tide, coinciding with a full moon, so many unnamed rocks had broken the surface. Such non-navigational waters would naturally not have been surveyed with great precision by modern hydrographers, and four centuries had elapsed since then. Even meticulously measured channels would be unrecognizable after so long. The only option now was to employ a sounding lead, probing passage by passage as they penetrated the islets.

The Outer Islets were relatively open, though reefs abounded.

"The tide is low," Wang observed. "Normally, most of these rocks lie submerged. A hundred-liao boat like ours can navigate safely with due caution."

Wu De surveyed the sea conditions and privately acknowledged that bringing Wang as an advisor had been the correct decision. Any large vessel pursuing into this area without local knowledge would almost certainly run aground.

"We're entering the Inner Islets now," Wang said tensely.

The reconnaissance vessel rounded a dark rock and turned into a narrow channel. It crept along like an aged donkey, halting and starting, while the sailors held their breath and strained their eyes at the bizarre rocks jutting up from the seabed all around. They gripped boat hooks and punt poles, poised to respond to any emergency.

The currents within the channel were wildly erratic. The oarsmen exerted all their strength to avoid being swept onto the rocks. Wang recalled the route he had once traveled, guiding the vessel's course. Occasionally he had to study a particular rock for some time to confirm it was the correct landmark.

After nearly an hour of halting progress, they finally entered the cramped Inner Islets and then slowly made their way toward Cat's Leap Pass—two massive rocks. The gap between them was so narrow that a two-hundred-liao ship could barely squeeze through.

"This is Cat's Leap Pass," Wang indicated the two rocks. "They say even a cat could leap across."

Wu De nodded. "And beyond this lie the Outer Islets?"

"Yes. Once pirates pass through here, they can exit the Inner Islets via other channels. Supposedly there are seven or eight such channels, all navigable for ships of one or two hundred liao—but only with a guide."

"Then why didn't we enter the Inner Islets from that side?"

"I don't know that stretch." Wang was candid. "I've heard the waters near Cat's Leap Pass on the Outer Islets side contain several shifting sandbars. Anyone unfamiliar with the local hydrology will probably run aground."

Wu De ordered the reconnaissance vessel into a narrow channel and located a rocky beach where they could moor. They cast the iron anchor onto the rocks, wedging it into a crevice to secure the ship.

The Chrysanthemum Islets were shaped, as the name suggested, like a chrysanthemum blossom scattered across the sea. The tiny islets and reefs between them created countless strange, jumbled channels and inlets—some almost too small to warrant the term "bays." At low tide, large ships simply could not maneuver among them. Only the waters of the Outer Islets were relatively broad.

Wu De took Wang and one sailor and climbed the unnamed islet. A pair of binoculars hung around his neck, and he wore an oilskin raincoat. The three men scrambled upward, startling seabirds and lizards into scattering. Wu De paused to scan for any movement on the surrounding sea.

The entire archipelago was utterly silent; only distant fishing lights flickered. Seeing nothing amiss, he led the party upward.

Halfway up the islet, a thick layer of wet, carpet-like moss covered the slope. Each footstep produced a squelching sound like a wet sponge. On steeper sections, the footing grew treacherously slippery, and they nearly fell several times. Higher up, the ground leveled into a relatively flat clearing overgrown with thorny bushes. Dense stiff grasses and fallen dead branches wove together into a natural hedge. The sailor hacked a path with his machete, and they reached a relatively level area near the cliff edge. The full moon hung overhead; moonlight glittered upon the water. The entire Cat's Leap Pass spread out below them.

The vantage point was superb, Wu De thought. An observation post could be positioned here. Suddenly, an idea flashed through his mind. Wasn't this a far superior firing position than any hundred- or two-hundred-liao ship could offer?

A small patrol craft could mount only light cannons, and not many at that. Attempting to block and intercept here would not provide firepower superiority. Since the Chrysanthemum Islets contained so many small islets, why not exploit them? Why not emplace cannons directly on the rocks? Excited by his own reasoning, he surveyed the surroundings.

He estimated the angles, then examined the area more closely. Though this slope tilted slightly, it was gentle enough that with modest leveling, medium-caliber guns could be mounted. The space was ample—three or four twelve-pounder artillery crews could be accommodated, along with a small infantry detachment for protection.

Gazing across at the opposite shore, he spotted several more potential gun positions. One or two cannons here, one or two there—totaling more than seven twelve-pounders, all creating interlocking fields of fire. Cannon shots from fixed rock positions would prove far more accurate than from a pitching ship. With one or two vessels blocking Cat's Leap Pass, any pirate ship reaching this point would be trapped like a turtle in a jar. Not a single one would escape.

"Summon the officer candidates!" Wu De ordered. "Have them conduct mapping exercises here and chart the surrounding reference landmarks!"

After issuing the order, he descended to the ship and radioed Lingao with his plan.

"Request Chief of Staff Ma coordinate this matter," he added at the conclusion of his message.

(End of Chapter)