The suicide fire ships used by the Lion Country for sneak attacks were small boats with weak defensive capabilities. They only needed to be hit by a few cannonballs to sink them.
The single-sided firepower of the eight steam gunships was very strong. There were more than 100 cannons in total. At least a dozen cannonballs could hit the fire ships of the Lion Kingdom at once.
The violent explosion made the fire ship's flames soar instantly. Then it gradually slowed down until it slowly sank into the harbor.
The surprise attack of the cannons was obviously effective. It did destroy some of the fire ships of the Lion Kingdom. However, there were 100 fire ships of the Lion Kingdom. Moreover, they moved very fast when the sails were following the wind. Therefore, the rapid fire of the cannons could not stop all the fire ships from entering the harbor.
In addition, Garigal was a deep-water harbor. The water depth of the harbor was relatively large. In this way, the sinking fire ships could not stop the ships behind them. The ships behind them were still rushing into the harbor quickly.
In order to protect themselves from being ignited, the steam gunships of the Tang Dynasty bombarded the fire ships of the Lion Kingdom while quickly retreating to the outside of the harbor. There was the sea outside, so there was enough space to avoid the fire ships that were a great threat. At the same time, they could also attack the warships of the Lion Kingdom behind the fire ships.
All the ships on duty in the harbor were scrambling to escape from the harbor that was about to become a sea of fire. In order to maintain order, the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty stopped the ships from escaping to ensure that their ships could leave the harbor as quickly as possible.
Seeing the balls of fire approaching the harbor of Garigal, the generals of the Lion Kingdom were both excited and surprised. They were excited because the fire ships would definitely burn the harbor to ashes after they rushed into the harbor. However, they were surprised because the warships of the Tang Dynasty in the harbor had been prepared and reacted very quickly. When the fire ships approached, more than 10 ships of the Tang Dynasty had already sailed out of the harbor to avoid the attack of the fire ships. In addition, the weapons of the ships of the Tang Dynasty were even more powerful. They could easily sink their fire ships, which was an eye-opener for them.
"Fortunately, we prepared 100 ships. If we had prepared less, we would have been stopped by the Tang Dynasty. It seems that the Tang Dynasty is really powerful. We have to be careful."
The general of the Lion Kingdom said.
"Yes, General. I wonder what kind of weapons the Tang dynasty's warships are. They are so powerful. If the fire ships can't destroy them, how can our small warships sink the Tang dynasty's warships?"
"General, the battleships of the Tang dynasty have escaped. The fire ships couldn't destroy them. We're in danger."
The general said, "Don't be afraid. All the warships will attack together. As long as we are close to the Tang dynasty's warships, their weapons won't work. We have more people, so we can fight side by side. Pick up your weapons and seize the Tang dynasty's warships."
The general of the Lion Kingdom was very insightful. He could see that the Tang dynasty only had eight warships. Although there were more soldiers on each ship, the total number was still very limited. On the other hand, the Lion Kingdom had hundreds of small warships and even more soldiers. The best battle strategy was to board the Tang dynasty's warships. Otherwise, with the weapons on these small warships, it was absolutely impossible for them to sink the steam gunboats of the Tang dynasty. They knew this very well.
"Full speed ahead. Full speed ahead."
Two hundred small and medium-sized warships and troop carriers of the Lion Kingdom rushed to the steam gunboats of the Tang dynasty at the fastest speed. All the soldiers on these ships added up to five or six thousand, which was several times the number of soldiers on the Tang dynasty's eight steam gunboats. Once they engaged in close combat, the Tang dynasty's troops would suffer heavy losses. The large steam gunboats were also likely to be seized by the Lion Kingdom's troops. That would be terrible.
However, the steam gunboats of the Tang dynasty had a great speed advantage. It was simply impossible for the Lion Kingdom's warships to get close to them. Obviously, these guys hadn't realized this yet.
Most of the ships in the harbor were merchant ships passing by. Among them, the Tang dynasty's merchant ships and South Tianzhu's merchant ships were the main ones. There were also some merchant ships from Dashi and other small countries. Half of the Tang Dynasty fleet had already evacuated, so there weren't many left.
Less than half of the hundred fire ships had been sunk. The remaining fire ships smoothly broke into the harbor of Garigal with the help of the wind and set fire to the outermost merchant ships, causing a larger fire.
Because Garigal was a port trading point, and it could be considered a relatively large one, there were many merchant ships in the port. The merchant ships were all made of wood, and once they caught fire, it would definitely cause a chain reaction and cause a large area of fire. Moreover, this kind of fire couldn't be extinguished in a short period of time, and it would cause a huge loss.
Seeing the merchant ships in the harbor being set on fire one by one, the general of the steam gunboats was naturally very anxious. He ordered a quick bombardment to sink more fire ships and reduce the threat of these fire ships to the harbor.
"General, it's not good. The enemy's warships are approaching us. We have to turn our cannons to bombard their warships. Otherwise, once they get too close, our cannons won't be able to do anything. We will be in a passive position."
When the soldier saw the Lion Kingdom's warships approaching quickly, he immediately reported.
The problem now was right in front of them, and it was very serious. There weren't enough steam gunboats to begin with. Using them to bombard the fire ships had allowed many of them to slip through the net and enter the harbor. Now that the Lion Kingdom's warships were approaching, if they continued to bombard the fire ships, they would be in big trouble. However, if they turned their cannons to bombard the fire ships, more fire ships would rush into the harbor and cause greater damage to the harbor of Garigal.
This was a dilemma. To put it simply, it was a problem of saving people or protecting themselves. If they wanted to protect themselves, they would bombard the enemy's warships and retreat as they fought. If they gave up on saving the harbor, they would continue to bombard the fire ships that were advancing.
Humans were selfish, and the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty were no exception. Instead of putting themselves in danger in order to reduce the pressure on the harbor, it was better to give up on helping the harbor and protect themselves. This was more cost-effective. Moreover, they could sink the enemy's warships and obtain greater battle results and merits without suffering great losses. No matter how one looked at it, it was cost-effective.
"Immediately stop bombarding the fire ships and turn the cannons to bombard the enemy's warships and troop carriers."
The general of the steam gunboats gave the order loudly.
This was a very wise order. It was definitely not worth it to lose oneself for the sake of the merchant ships of Garigal. The most important thing to do was to protect oneself.
The steam gunboats of the Tang Dynasty lined up neatly and fired their cannons at the Lion Kingdom's warships at maximum capacity.
The first round of attacks caused a lot of damage to the Lion Kingdom's fleet. Because the Lion Kingdom's warships were too densely packed, the Tang Dynasty's cannons almost didn't need to aim. They could just fire their cannons directly.
"Boom, boom, boom …"
A large number of cannons fell like raindrops. They either hit the Lion Kingdom's warships and caused great losses to them, or fell into the sea and set off huge waves.
The navy of the Lion Kingdom had fought many wars. However, they had never met such a strong opponent as the Tang Dynasty, let alone been bombarded by cannons. Therefore, after a few rounds of bombardment, the navy of the Lion Kingdom was terrified. Looking at the badly mutilated bodies of their comrades, they felt very scared. Some of the warships had already begun to flee in panic, especially those that had been bombarded. They couldn't control their fear and began to flee.
Seeing this, the general of the Lion Kingdom's navy hurriedly ordered the fleeing warships to continue to charge. They wanted to use their advantage in numbers to rush to the side of the Tang Dynasty's warships and achieve the purpose of a boarding battle.
However, under the bombardment of the cannons, many soldiers were extremely frightened. The command had become less effective. The fleeing warships didn't return to continue to charge. Instead, they ran further and further away and disappeared into the night.
When the wind was blowing, the warships would be very fast. Thus, even though the cannons had caused many warships to sink or flee, most of the warships still managed to get close to the Tang steam gunships, and the situation became somewhat dangerous.
"General, the enemy is approaching."
"Retreat, retreat immediately. Keep the best distance from the enemy."
The general of the steam gunboats ordered the warships to retreat slowly and keep the best distance from the enemy.
In this way, they could destroy the enemy and at the same time, they could better protect themselves and keep themselves in a safe environment.
This tactic was equivalent to the cavalry's riding and shooting tactics. They didn't come into contact with the enemy and kept the enemy in a passive position.
With sufficient ammunition, this kind of fighting method could gradually exhaust the enemy's strength without suffering any losses. It was a very clever tactic.
The steam gunboats of the Tang Dynasty had the advantage of speed. No matter whether the enemy was advancing or retreating, they could easily maintain the best combat distance and keep themselves in an invincible position.
The warships of the Lion Kingdom suffered losses along the way. However, the warships of the Tang Dynasty were just ahead. They were neither far nor near. They were always so far away that they couldn't reach or touch them.
The general of the South Tianzhu navy was anxious. Seeing that his men were suffering more and more losses and that the distance between the warships of the Tang Dynasty couldn't be shortened, he immediately ordered a retreat.
"The losses are too great. Retreat immediately. Retreat."
Facing the unfavorable situation, the fleet of the Lion Kingdom had to retreat immediately.
However, when they were advancing, they were sailing against the wind. When they were retreating, they were sailing against the wind. Under the wind, the speed of an ordinary sailboat was very slow. It was more than ten times slower than that of a steam gunboat. Therefore, it was impossible for them to escape.
The general of the steam gunboats of the Tang Dynasty saw that the fleet of the Lion Kingdom was planning to escape. He smiled and immediately ordered, "Chase and attack immediately. Destroy the navy of the Lion Kingdom."
Eight steam gunboats immediately chased and continued to bombard the warships and transport vehicles of the Lion Kingdom that were escaping. They achieved great results.
This time, the soldiers of the Lion Kingdom were completely flustered. They found that they couldn't escape at all. They suffered losses along the way. If this continued, they would be completely wiped out.
More than half of the more than 200 warships and transport vehicles had been lost. Their main force had been lost. It was impossible to turn around and attack the steam gunboats of the Tang Dynasty again. They couldn't catch up with them. Since the fire attack was discovered in advance, their plan had failed.
"Disperse and retreat. Disperse and retreat immediately. The Tang Dynasty only has eight warships."
The general of the Lion Kingdom navy found a very good way. He took advantage of the small number of warships of the Tang Dynasty to disperse and retreat. In this way, no matter how the warships of the Tang Dynasty chased, they couldn't destroy all the warships. In this way, at least they would have some strength to escape.
"The enemy has dispersed and fled."
"Pass my order. Disperse and pursue. Sink as many as you can."
The eight steam gunboats of the Tang Dynasty quickly chased and dispersed to chase in different directions to achieve the greatest results.
Because the enemy had dispersed and fled, there was no need to worry about boarding when chasing. The steam gunboats directly rushed into the middle of the enemy's warships with the advantage of speed. The two-string cannons fired at the same time, which could destroy the enemy's warships more quickly. It was even better when they encountered transport vehicles, because the transport vehicles couldn't resist at all. The warships could also throw large stones and giant crossbows, causing minor damage to the steam gunboats of the Tang Dynasty.
This naval battle was very satisfying. The eight steam gunboats of the Tang Dynasty were invincible all the way, and the small wooden ships of the Lion Kingdom were defeated.
However, because they didn't expect the Lion Kingdom to use such a cruel method of fire attack, the loss of the port of Caligar was still very great. When the steam gunboats chased after the naval warships of the Lion Kingdom, the merchant ships in the port of Caligar were set on fire one after another, and the fire almost lit up the entire port city.
In addition, many of the necessary facilities in the port were also destroyed by the fire. There were also many casualties, and many people died from the fire.
Looking at the fire that was burning more and more fiercely, Li Feiyu immediately ordered the troops of the Lion Kingdom stationed in the city to immediately reinforce the port and join the action of putting out the fire.
The 1,000 troops of the Tang Dynasty stationed in the port didn't move, naturally, in order to prevent spies from making trouble in the city. In addition, he was also worried that the Lion Kingdom's army would attack from the land.
"General, with such a big fire in the port, the loss must be very great. I'm afraid that many merchants will go bankrupt."
A subordinate sighed.
"Not only that, I'm afraid that the warships of the Tang Dynasty will also be damaged."
Another subordinate said.
Li Feiyu smiled and said, "You don't have to worry about the loss. This fire was started by the Lion Kingdom, so naturally, the Lion Kingdom will have to compensate. As long as we defeat the Lion Kingdom, we will make them compensate according to the price, no, double the compensation."
"Yes, that's right. We must make the Lion Kingdom pay double the compensation. We must not let the Lion Kingdom get away with it so that they will never be able to recover."
His subordinate agreed.
The fire in the port of Caligar was so big that it lit up the entire city of Caligar. The infantry of the Lion Kingdom, who were ten miles away, could see it clearly.
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