After some discussion, the Black Dragon and a few of his trusted subordinates made the decision to launch a surprise attack on Black Wolf Island. They left more than a hundred men to guard the island while the remaining five hundred pirates, under the personal leadership of the Black Dragon, boarded all nine armed clippers and set off in the direction of Black Wolf Island. The reason why they chose to use armed clippers was naturally for the sake of speed. They had to arrive at Black Wolf Island two to four hours before dawn and then immediately launch a surprise attack. If they used ordinary fishing boats, they would be delayed for too long and would only arrive at Black Wolf Island at dawn. Then, they would lose the opportunity to launch a surprise attack. As long as they used the cover of darkness, they would be able to launch a surprise attack on Black Wolf Island without anyone noticing.
Under the cover of darkness, the nine armed clippers advanced towards Black Wolf Island at their fastest speed. The formation was in groups of three, with the three in front leading the way and the Black Dragon personally overseeing the three in the middle. The last three clippers acted as the rear guard. In fact, other than considering speed, the reason why they deployed all the armed clippers was to prevent any accidents along the way. If the information was wrong, or if a large number of armed clippers suddenly entered Black Wolf Island, the nine armed clippers would be enough to deal with them. After all, they had a total of nine armed clippers while the other four pirates only had eight. They had the advantage in numbers and did not need to be afraid of being besieged at sea. Even if they suddenly encountered eight armed clippers, they would be able to deal with them. These armed clippers were the source of their confidence.
Because of the moonlight, the light on the sea was not bad. They could see the waves within three miles and occasionally see big fish leaping out of the water. The Black Dragon stood at the bow of the ship and thought about his relationship with the pirates who wanted to kill him.
In his opinion, he did not do anything wrong. He treated those four guys so well, but they actually repaid his kindness with enmity and wanted to join forces to deal with him. This was simply ungrateful behavior and must be severely punished. In the beginning, there were only ordinary people in this sea area and there were no pirates. But not long after, some lazy fishermen who were unwilling to put in effort to fish spontaneously organized themselves and engaged in the business of robbing. At first, there was only one group of pirates, which was the Black Dragon's group. Then, the other fishermen found that robbing earned more than fishing and was very impressive, so they also spontaneously formed a group. Very soon, there were four more groups that made a living by robbing. These four groups were naturally the Black Tiger's group. Because they did not have the advantage in development, their development was far less than the Black Dragon's scale. Moreover, the Black Dragon occupied the central position of the archipelago while the other four pirate groups could only occupy the surrounding four directions. The quality of the islands was not as good as the Black Dragon's island and the number of affiliated fishermen was also less. As a result, the pirate force they could develop was naturally far less than the Black Dragon's.
When these four pirate groups first started to develop, the Black Dragon was naturally very dissatisfied. He felt that they were trying to steal his people and proposed to incorporate them. However, the four groups were not willing and even joined forces to oppose. They felt that the Black Dragon should not monopolize the entire sea area by himself. Although the Black Dragon had the advantage in strength, if the four pirate groups all joined forces to go against him, he would have to pay a heavy price. In addition, it was difficult for him to firmly control the hundreds of miles around the Black Dragon's sea area. In the end, both sides reached a compromise. The Black Dragon was nominally the leader of the four groups, but in reality, he did not interfere in any of the four groups' affairs. The four groups had to give the Black Dragon some additional benefits and pay a certain amount of tribute every year. However, this amount was not large and was something that the four groups could completely bear.
From the Black Dragon's point of view, the four pirate groups had stolen his people and this sea area was his territory. The four groups were not honest in the first place. However, he was very magnanimous and did not make things difficult for the four pirate groups. He only symbolically collected a certain amount of protection fees. He felt that the amount he collected was too little.
From the four pirate groups' point of view, the Black Dragon was originally just a lazy fisherman. He was just one step ahead of them and took the lead. The core islands of the entire archipelago and most of the population were under his control. The four pirate groups were just drinking some soup. The Black Dragon actually wanted them to submit and even asked them to pay protection fees. Although this protection fee was not much, it still made them feel uncomfortable. The four pirate groups were not lucky to have the Black Dragon. Back then, they also knew the Black Dragon. He was just a lazy fisherman. Other than having a little strength, he did not have any other strong points. He even looked a little ugly. However, this ugly guy was actually one step ahead of them and became the leader of the entire Black Dragon Sea Area. How could the other four pirate groups accept this?
Ever since the nominal affiliation was confirmed, the Black Dragon's trusted subordinates would often go to the four pirate groups' islands to freeload. At the very least, they would freeload a meal. After eating, they would also ask for good things when they saw something good. In particular, the Black Tiger Island, which was good at business, was the main target of the Black Dragon's trusted subordinates. The Black Tiger Island had a large amount of vegetables and fish. Every three to five days, the Black Dragon's trusted subordinates would come to ask for them. Although the amount they asked for was not much, the frequent requests still gave the Black Tiger quite a headache. However, they had to give it to them. Who asked them to be weaker than the Black Dragon?
In a situation where they were not strong enough, the Black Tiger had no choice but to submit to the Black Dragon's despotic power. However, because he had a certain level of strength, he dared to refuse the Black Dragon's trusted subordinates when they occasionally asked for too much. He had a famous saying that no matter how much food he gave to the Black Dragon Emperor, he would not feel any heartache. However, if he was asked to feed five to six hundred people on the Black Dragon Island, he would definitely not be able to do it and would not do so. Otherwise, it would be a falling out.
The Black Dragon's trusted subordinates naturally did not dare to force them too much. It was enough as long as they could scrape a little. Although the Black Tiger said that he would only feed the Black Dragon alone, the food that the Black Dragon's trusted subordinates often asked for was enough to feed more than twenty people. Other than the Black Dragon, those people under the Black Dragon could also benefit from it. At least, they, the leaders, did not have to worry about food and water. If they ran out, they could go to the Black Tiger Island to scrape.
"You guys tell me, am I not good to them? Why do they hate me so much? Do they treat me as an enemy? "
The Black Dragon frowned and looked at his trusted subordinates in confusion. It was obvious that he was extremely depressed.
One of his trusted subordinates said, "Your Majesty, you are already benevolent enough to them. They don't know what's good for them and nurture hatred. It's because the King is too good to them that they have developed such spoiled and domineering characters. If it weren't for the King giving them the opportunity to develop, they wouldn't be where they are today. I reckon that a tree would have grown over their graves. These reckless bastards, we must kill them this time and throw them into the sea to feed the fish."
The trusted subordinate next to him continued, "Your Majesty, these guys are wolves that can't be fed. We should have taken action against them long ago. The entire sea region is in our bag. We shouldn't have let them establish themselves here. Black Tiger Island is especially suitable for planting and breeding. When we take over the Black Tiger Island in the future, we won't have to worry about food and water anymore."
"Your Majesty, as long as you give the order, we will slaughter everyone on Black Wolf Island. Not even a fly will be spared."
Another one of his trusted subordinates said.
These trusted subordinates were the Black Dragon's best friends. They had followed the Black Dragon when the Black Dragon was forming the team. The Black Dragon trusted these trusted subordinates very much. At the same time, in order to prevent these people from becoming disloyal, the Black Dragon did not give them the right to be independent and guard an area even though he treated them very well. He did not give them the right to guard an area. He was worried that if he did that, he would not be able to get rid of them. It was precisely because of this that the Black Dragon could not control the hundreds of islands in the entire archipelago. He could only control some of the islands near the Black Dragon Island. This allowed the Black Tiger and the others to take advantage of this loophole.
However, the Black Dragon's worries were reasonable. If he let his trusted subordinates guard the islands far away from the Black Tiger Island alone, these trusted subordinates would not be able to be with him every day and listen to his teachings. This would inevitably lead to very serious consequences. That was, these trusted subordinates would develop independent thoughts. What was the difference between this and the Black Tiger and the others? Feelings could only be formed when one was close. If they were not in contact for a long time, these feelings would naturally fade and slowly, there would be no feelings to speak of.
Any feelings needed to be cultivated slowly. Even pirates who committed all kinds of evil also needed to cultivate feelings with each other. At the same time, they also needed to pay attention to guard against the disloyalty of their subordinates. There were many things to consider, and if they thought too much, it would inevitably lead to their own development being limited.
Listening to the comforting words of his trusted subordinates, the Black Dragon nodded in satisfaction. He seemed to be even more certain that he did not do anything wrong. The ones at fault were Black Tiger and the other three. These four fellows were too abominable. Not only did they not know how to be grateful, but they even wanted to join forces to deal with him. This was something he could not tolerate.
"Black Wolf Island is still two hours away. When we arrive at Black Wolf Island, do you have any opinions on where to buy and how to fight?"
The Black Dragon looked at his trusted subordinates and asked.
One of his trusted subordinates said, "Great Emperor, we have many people. We can just charge and kill. There's no need for any schemes. There's no need for that at all."
Another trusted subordinate said, "Great Emperor, we can't just charge blindly. If Black Tiger and the others escape, it will be troublesome. Our main force will launch a surprise attack from the port. Then, send two ships to the back of Black Wolf Island and seal off the island. They won't be able to escape even if they want to."
"Your Majesty, I think it's best to split into three. Four ships will launch a surprise attack on the port as the main force of the attack. Two ships will cruise behind Black Wolf Island to prevent their small boats from escaping. The last three ships will hold the line on the periphery to prevent any accidents. Once there are accidents, we can react in time."
Another trusted subordinate said.
The Black Dragon pondered for a moment and felt that it was better to be safe. If there was a trap and they rushed in blindly, wouldn't they be like sheep in a tiger's den? Even though he felt that the possibility of this happening was very small, it was never wrong to be careful. If the intelligence was correct, they only needed to send a small number of people to complete the mission. There was no need for too many people to rush in together. It would be a waste to send too many people. There was nothing wrong with sending a small number of people to provide support outside.
This time, they had nearly 500 people. In the Black Dragon's opinion, it was enough to send 300 people to attack Black Wolf Island. The rest would be enough to provide support outside.
After thinking about the attack strategy, the pirates under Black Dragon's command were divided into three groups. Three hundred pirates in charge of the attack rode on four armed clippers. They were the main force. Two fifty pirates were responsible for circling the rear of Black Wolf Island to prevent the Black Wolf Island's Black Tiger and others from escaping. The remaining three clippers and the rest of the pirates would coordinate with Black Dragon on the periphery, ready to support the pirates fighting in the front. If there was an accident, they could easily escape from the periphery, so they would be in an invincible position.
The Black Dragon was very careful. In order to avoid accidents, he had made so many preparations. From this, it could be seen that he was not a reckless person. However, the deployment of the Tang Dynasty's troops was more adequate than what the Black Dragon had imagined. In addition to the deployment around the Black Wolf Island, the Black Tiger Island and several other islands were also deployed. These three islands had dispatched sentry boats to cruise in the distance of the Black Wolf Island. Using the advantage of the magnification of the telescope, they could monitor the Black Dragon Island from the sight of the pirates. Even at night, they could monitor the movements of the Black Dragon Island without being noticed. The pirates of the Black Dragon Island could not discover them. Not only could the telescope expand the field of vision by ten times during the day, it was also the same at night. It was just that the field of vision was proportionally shortened. For example, during the day, the eyes could see ten miles away, and the telescope could monitor a hundred miles away. At night, the eyes could only see one mile away, and the telescope could expand the field of vision to ten miles. Of course, if the light was too dim, the telescope would not have any effect. When there was no light, no matter whether the telescope was used or not, nothing could be seen. However, these days, the light at night was still good. Although the field of vision was more than ten times shorter than during the day, it was still not a problem to monitor the port of the Black Dragon Island. Therefore, after the Black Dragon led his nine armed clippers from the port of the Black Dragon Island, these sentry boats immediately returned to their respective islands and reported the news to the Tang Dynasty guards on the islands. Then, the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty on the three islands immediately boarded ships and set out for the Black Dragon Island. They wanted to take advantage of the situation and quietly attack the Black Dragon Island.
There were more than 600 to 700 Tang dynasty officers and soldiers on the three islands. Apart from leaving a few guards behind to guard the islands, the main force could all go to the Black Dragon Islands. Therefore, gathering 500 to 600 men on the three islands was not a problem at all.
This time, in order to launch an all-out attack on the remaining pirates on the Black Dragon Islands, Ang Lee had mobilized more than half of the officers and soldiers under his command. There were nearly 2,000 officers and soldiers participating in the operation, while only 1,000 officers and soldiers were left behind to guard Tianguang Port. This was for the sake of better preparation and thus reducing the casualties of the officers and soldiers.
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