Chapter 542 - 54: Assault (Part 2)
The outstanding design of the Steel Bone ship provided convenience for their life at sea.
As boxes of charcoal burned to smoke and dust, steam propelled the machinery through the high-pressure boiler, and the crew gradually became one with the Steel Bone.
The handling of the ship became increasingly skillful; advancing and retreating more agile; personnel collaboration more seamless; cannon fire became increasingly accurate...
As the sun rose and set, time flew by, and the date to attack the Big Island drew nearer.
...
In mid-May 1666, the arrival of the dry season returned the entire sea area to a state of perpetual sunshine.
The blazing sun hung high, heating the deck, stirring the hearts, and darkening the faces of the crew.
Sunday counted the days on the calendar, and on May 16th, he heavily circled the date.
...
On the 16th, the weather was not entirely clear, with layers of white clouds over the sea providing a rare coolness around the island.
In the early morning, the whistle of the Steel Bone sounded as usual.
But this time, the drawn-out whistle did not linger near the shore; instead, the volume gradually decreased until it disappeared —
It sailed into deep sea.
The action date was set three months in advance, known only to Chen Zhou, Sunday, and a few island high-level officials, not even the sailors on board were aware of their departure date.
The sailor’s duty is to obey orders, a principle instilled in them from the start when they were selected for the crew.
They didn’t need to know the date or purpose of the mission or how much benefit the action might bring to the island; they only needed to follow orders and do all that the officers required.
...
For this expedition, the Steel Bone only symbolically hoisted the sails.
The sea breeze was not strong enough to propel the massive Steel Giant Ship, but the rapidly spinning propeller underwater provided substantial thrust to the ship.
Accompanied by the sound of wind blowing the canvas, sailors, fully armed, slung rifles on their backs and hung long sabers at their waists, headed straight towards their homeland.
The distance between islands was not far.
During routine drills, the Steel Bone had once reached within 10 kilometers of the Archipelago, from which point, a telescope on board could observe the island.
Yet, the island’s natives were unaware that they were being watched.
...
This time, the Steel Bone had a clear target, heading straight for the Archipelago.
It was dry season daylight, and the natives on the Archipelago were not resting.
In the distance, a few bare individuals diving near the shore to fish, saw the approaching large ship.
This giant and sinister creature vaguely resembled the ships of those brown-haired, clothed men before, but upon closer inspection, the details were quite different.
The diving natives instinctively felt uneasy, hurriedly abandoning their imminent catch and swam to shore.
Some ducked into the jungle, and some into their simple huts, but not one went to report this to the leader —
After being enamored with the alcohol brought by the Spaniards, the once ambitious young Leader, intent on unifying the entire island, had completely become a slave to alcohol.
He would either wallow in the post-drunken stupor, sleeping soundly on a bed covered with animal skins, or vent the discomfort of his body from drinking onto tribe members, either beating or scolding them, even killing someone in rage wasn’t unusual.
As the relationship with Spaniards gradually became distant, the supply of alcohol dwindled.
He dared not vent his anger on the Spaniards, so he imposed all his frustrations onto the tribe.
Since the disappearance of the only opponent, the Elder Priest, the new priest he supported to rise to position had clearly become his minion, turning a blind eye to his actions.
This situation persisted for nearly a year, leading to a divided tribe, subtly splitting into four small tribes, each struggling to survive.
The days of unity, jointly attacking rival tribes and engaging in large-scale conflicts involving hundreds, were gone.
The Leader’s prestige had long plummeted.
Everyone knew he cared for nothing but liquor, and disturbing him would not only bring no benefit but also invite beatings, even having your ear cut off.
Thus, upon seeing the Steel Bone, none of the dozen indigenous people fishing nearshore reported to the Leader, they only knew to retreat into their "shells," seeking some sense of safety behind their simple shelters.
...
These reactions, akin to frightened birds and beasts, were all visible through the monocular telescope.
Sunday, dressed in camouflage combat attire, stood at the ship’s bow like a long spear, overlooking the island’s natives.
The Steel Bone gradually approached the island, anchored at the selected landing point, and then lowered four small boats from the side of the ship.
The sailors methodically boarded the small boats, carrying prepared weapons and equipment, rowing towards the beach.
When 20 fully armed sailors dragged the small boats onto the beach and picked up vine shields to establish a simple defense, no trace of natives was visible in the nearby woods.
Birds hiding in the dense forest chirped, lush foliage obstructed vision, if not for the footprints left on the beach, the place seemed deserted.
For this action, Sunday did not stay on the ship but personally led the team.
As sailors unloaded the heavy vine shields and machetes and axes for clearing paths from the small boats, he was there supervising.
A long time ago, when he first accompanied the pre-renamed Lu Ku and Kosu to form a three-person team to land on the island, Sunday had sworn an oath —
One day, when he returned to this island, it would be for revenge.