I'm sure of the prosperous age of Kangxi and Qianlong!

Chapter 372: Manila City Destroyed

"When will the tunnel be dug?"

"General, the ground here is too solid, and the soldiers are not used to the climate here. We can only dig slowly."

Do you think the Ming army’s strategy of using only indigenous soldiers to fight a war of attrition is stupid?
Liu Sheng simply couldn't figure out whether the blasting and siege tactics in China would be effective against this group of Spaniards.

The two simply marched in parallel, with the native soldiers consuming the Spaniards, and the Ming soldiers, except for not participating in the siege, digging tunnels throughout the process.

It just depends on which one works first.

Dutch commander De Wit came to see Liu Sheng: "Liu, I'm sorry for what happened earlier. I am also responsible for my soldiers. I took them out of their hometown and I cannot let them go back to their families."

Liu Sheng just sneered: "I don't care how responsible you are to your soldiers, but you can't interfere with our army's operations."

DeWitt was a little embarrassed, but still said: "Liu, with our current strength, we can only attack the city of Manila at this stage, and there is a Spanish castle in the city. They only need to defend Fort Santiago until the rainy season comes, and this battle will be over. It’s not easy to fight.”

Liu Sheng said: "We must fight even if it is difficult to fight. Our Emperor is bound to win Manila!"

"..." DeWitt was speechless.

It was the Chinese emperor who was determined to win Manila, and the Dutch wanted to retreat!

Although de Wit was the commander of the Dutch army, he was affiliated with the East India Company.This is a businessman's company that is only responsible to its shareholders and is not affiliated with the Dutch government.

Especially after the War of the Spanish Throne, these Dutch people's sense of belonging to the country was greatly reduced.For them, national interests are not as important as making money for themselves.

If it had been before, DeWitt might have had the idea of ​​taking Manila, and even proposed an idea for the governor.Although there are more Chinese troops on the ground, the Dutch can completely rely on their maritime superiority to cut off the supply line from Taiwan to Manila.

However, after seeing the devilish gunpowder weapons of the Chinese army.De Wit was stunned, knowing that the Netherlands would definitely not be able to steal the Chinese emperor.

Since we can't get Manila, why are we still here? How much food will be consumed by so many indigenous soldiers and fleets!
Moreover, a few days ago, news came back from the southern Philippines that Cebu Island had surrendered.The Netherlands had already gained enough benefits from this war that there was no need to waste any more effort.

Historically, in order to save money, the Dutch withdrew most of the garrison from Taiwan. As a result, Mr. Guo Xing seized the opportunity and took over the whole situation.

Highlight a businessman's willingness to spend money!

The Chinese army did not withdraw, and DeWitt did not dare to withdraw at will, because there was no withdrawal order jointly issued by the governor and the council.

Batavia.

Governor Zwaldkron is locked in a fierce struggle with the Council.

As long as the Council captures Cebu Island and the South Philippines, it will be able to control the South Pacific waterways and monopolize the trade in incense, porcelain, and cigars.

Zwaldekron wanted the entire Philippines and Manila, not because he had a big appetite, but because he was also thinking about the company.

The current strength of the Netherlands is no longer what it used to be, and the British, their mortal enemy, have begun to take root in the Far East.If they don't take advantage of the Spanish's weakness to squeeze them out of the Far East, how can the Dutch win against two enemies?
……

The days passed by.

During this period, the coalition forces organized several sporadic offensives, but each time the offensive failed because the Dutch ran too fast.

If these Dutch people were not considered "friendly" for the time being, Liu Sheng would have wanted to resort to military law.

Outside the city, the Ming army camp.

"General, there is news from the engineering troops. It is expected that the tunnel will be dug to the city wall tomorrow." A soldier came to report.

Liu Sheng stood up instantly, his face full of excitement: "Okay! After digging for almost a month, we are finally digging through."

Having said that, he summoned numerous senior generals in the army for a meeting that day. At the same time, he ordered an inventory of the combatable soldiers in the army, and ordered military doctors to immediately prepare decoctions and salt water.

Salt water is an empirical method used by military doctors, although the specific principle is not clear.But they know that drinking more salt water here seems to reduce the risk of illness.

In the evening, after counting, there were only more than 3000 soldiers left standing and fighting on the Ming army.

Good guy, how many days has it been?
Moreover, many of them were not malaria. Even the military doctors could not figure out what the specific disease was.We can only treat malaria first. Whether it gets better or not depends on luck.Soon, it was the next day.

After so many days, only the artillery is still firing from time to time.

Neither the Dutch nor the Ming army was dispatched, and even the indigenous soldiers were sent less.Because the natives are not willing to die in vain unless the Ming army and the Dutch take the lead.

Even if the coalition forces take the lead, the natives will only be forced to fight.After fighting for so long without defeat, they no longer believed they could break through Manila.The defenders on the Manila side also felt that there was a high probability that the coalition forces outside the city would not be able to get in, and even the Spaniards were gradually becoming lax.

Dusk is approaching.

The Dutch were preparing to light fires for cooking, and the natives were also preparing firewood for food.

On the walls of Manila, through the telescope, only a few indigenous soldiers standing guard could be seen sporadically. None of the Spanish officers were missing, obviously hiding somewhere to laze around.

"Send the order to the demolition camp and set fire in half a quarter of an hour!"

"Brothers, after finishing this bowl, we will fight in when the city wall collapses."

Liu Sheng issued two orders in succession, and the 3000 troops obeyed the order and quickly drank up the salt water in their hands.

On the other side, the demolition battalion in the tunnel received the order and took out the fire sticks to start a fire... Can't light it?

Although Luzon is hot, it is also humid. It belongs to that kind of high temperature and high humidity environment.Sugarpowder is inherently susceptible to moisture, and even when properly protected, these powders are still affected.

"I can't light it, what should I do?" The Ming soldier who lit the fire was a little at a loss.

The battalion officer of the demolition camp did not panic. He first changed the fuse, then took out a short knife and pulled away the damp gunpowder.

"Huh~ It's okay, it's not damp inside yet. Light the fire quickly!"

"Oh~oh!"

The fuse was lit, and the soldiers from the demolition battalion immediately ran away.

Not for a moment.

"Boom~~!"

With a dull loud noise, the ground beneath the Manila city wall suddenly exploded.

Huge thick smoke shot out from the ground accompanied by fire, like a volcano erupting.

The garrison soldiers on the walls of Manila were caught off guard, and they were all thrown to pieces by the earthquake-like vibration.

"What's going on? Is it an earthquake?" A Spanish officer barely stood up straight and ran out to shout.

Then, he saw that the Manila wall had been broken into two pieces for some unknown reason.

The section of wall he was standing on was still in good condition, but the other section of wall had already tilted completely.

People outside the city can run directly up the slope of the city wall with a little effort.

As for the garrison soldiers above, they had all fallen down like dumplings as the city wall tilted.

It’s over, the city of Manila can’t be defended!
Liu Sheng saw that although the city wall had not collapsed, he still issued an attack order: "Send the order, the whole army attacks! The Ming Dynasty will be victorious!"

"kill!"

3000 Ming troops rushed forward without hesitation.

Then came the Dutch and indigenous soldiers who had just reacted.

　It's finally almost over

　　
　
(End of this chapter)