The naval fleet on the sea soon received a signal that their ships had dropped a large number of small boats. The sailors rowed the small boats deep into the Gambian river channel, began to measure the water depth and mark the waterway.

Two "Yangwu"-class fast cruisers are still patrolling the coast, ensuring that the entire fleet will not be suddenly attacked from both sides.

At this time, the British built the shopping mall on the banks of the Gambia River, which was a panic moment.

"Mr. Chris, it is certain that they are from the East Coast. They raised the national flag." Heywood, the army commander at the commercial station, said, pointing to the flag raised above the falling coastal defense turret in front.

Tony Chris nodded expressionlessly, put away his monocular lens, and then said in a hurry to a fat middle-aged man beside him: "Mr. Eksette, didn't you say that the East Coast people are panicking and asking for peace with the Portuguese, and that the war will end soon and the East Coast people will surrender. But why did the East Coast people's fleet suddenly appear in the Gambia?"

The middle-aged man, Mr. Eksette, was obviously speechless. He just shook his head and said, "The people on the East Coast are crazy. They are escalating the war! The gentlemen of the Company Council will not ignore it. Gentlemen, please hold on! The Company Council still has several warships in Guinea, and we must hold on until they come."

Chris glanced at the fat man, said nothing, turned around and commanded the castle's defense.

The British Guyana Trader Company built this shop on the banks of the Gambia River, which is more suitable than a castle. Its core building is several stone buildings connected together, with a circle of brick walls surrounding it as a protection. The brick wall is about 2.5 meters high and less than one meter thick and has a circumference of about 200 meters. A stone protrusion was built on the side facing the river, with two cannons placed on it.

Relying on this wall, the British built a large number of wooden houses, some of which were lived by the British themselves, some of which were lived by their black servants, and some were places for transactions. These messy and lack of planning buildings were built along the river bank and the walls, making the entire merchant station look more like an indigenous village.

"James, I will return to the 'Banjuel Merchant' to command the battle. You are here to command the battle on the castle. I will leave you 60 musketeers and some gunners. You have to rely on them and those stupid black men to stick to the business station. If necessary, you can gather all the staff of the business station and send them weapons. Everyone will fight to the end!" Chris patted his eldest mate James on the shoulder and said while walking towards the dock.

"Yes, Captain!" James replied loudly, "God bless the 'Banjuel Merchant' and the 'Roamer' for the glory of England!"

"For the glory of England!" Chris's voice gradually faded away.

"Children, take your weapons. Don't be afraid, the East Coast people are nothing great. In fact, they are being beaten badly by us in the New World now." James mobilized the musketeers from England in the business station. These poor people, mostly domestic refugees, looked at him numbly, which made James feel that the effect of simple verbal mobilization did not seem very good.

In recent years, many refugees have appeared in the UK. The main reason is that more and more emerging British merchants or nobles have invested in the booming textile industry to make huge profits. These people try their best to enclose a large piece of land in the UK, drive away the farmers who grow barley on the land, then plant alfalfa and raise sheep to obtain the raw material of the wool industry - wool.

Especially after the British wool industry was fiercely challenged by emerging East Coast people, this process was accelerating. Nowadays, more and more British bourgeois merchants recognize the disadvantages of the traditional rural hand-made textile industry, and they began to try to set up large textile factories to reduce costs and compete with foreign goods.

This process has resulted in a large number of landless refugees in the UK, who wandered among cities, looking for jobs to make a living. Some of them became industrial workers in emerging factories, some were forced to go to the New World to try their luck, and some became sailors or hired workers in colonial companies to travel to Africa and Asia.

The dozens of musketeers from the local area were once landless farmers. After training in Africa for a few years, they have now become the backbone of the military stations, acting as guards of the merchant stations and elite thugs who suppressed the natives. Of course, these mercenaries who fight purely for money are also very realistic. Don’t expect some sweet words that lack practical information to inspire their morale. These are all masters who do not see rabbits and do not show off their eagles.

"Mr. Exeter, look..." James turned his head to the fat man on the side. This fat man is one of the senators of the Guyana Traders Company Board. In theory, he has the full power of the entire business station at this moment, and his status is still above James. If Tony Chris' uncle was the major shareholder of the company, he would probably have to act according to Exeter's expression.

"Okay." Ixet took out his handkerchief and wiped the sweat beads from his forehead. The hot weather and nervous mood made him wet. "Soldiers, take your weapons and fight bravely. The company will give each soldier who fought bravely a 30 shillings bonus. If the enemy is repelled after the battle, you can also get an additional 30 shillings bonus. If the enemy is forced to retreat, the company will reward each person with a 60 shillings bonus. In the name of God, whether he dies in battle or not, the bonus will be paid in full to him or his designated beneficiaries."

After some mobilization and promise, the sixty musketeers finally got onto the top of the city with weapons. Following them were more than twenty gunners. Except for the personnel who manipulated the two artillery guns at the top of the city, everyone else picked up flintlock guns or clamp guns and prepared to join the battle at any time.

In addition, the staff and servants hired by some companies in the city wall also had a musket. They urged the black servants and soldiers to carry huge rocks to block the city gates and prevent them from rushing in by the East Coast people.

The battle started in the evening.

An army unit on the east coast tried to advance to the outside of the merchant station in the sunset, but their efforts were soon repelled by shells fired by artillery artillery on the top of the city.

"These cowards!" Some rude English musketeers whistled on the top of the city. These cowardly East Coast people retreated without even scratching their skin, which raised a hint of confidence among the uneasy musketeers. Perhaps today's opponents are very naughty?

"Their warships moved, God, so many artillery! Ah, she headed towards the dock, and our warships were also dispatched! Mr. Chris commanded the 'Banjuel Merchant' and the 'Roamer'! The armed merchant ship of the Mill was also followed, ah, the Dutch ship rushed up!"

"Four to four, but the enemy's warships seem to have strong firepower. Can Mr. Chris handle it?"

"Mr. Chris has systematically studied naval warfare theory and fought hard against pirates in the Caribbean. He is a qualified commander and we should trust him."

"That's right, but I always feel that the warships of the East Coast are stronger. Look, there are so many artillery arranged on the two double-deck battleships, that she can handle the two warships, the Banjul Merchant and the Wanderer. You know, the ship of the "Mill" and the Dutch are not serious warships, and they are not as good as those of the East Coast people in terms of speed and firepower."

"God, the East Coast people fired! They seized the upper hand and were shooting with side guns, God, what a spectacular volley!"

The soldiers were talking in James' ears, but this did not affect him. The East Coast Army retreated, and his attention was completely attracted by a fierce battle between fleets that were taking place on the wide Gambia River.

The warships of the East Coast drove into the wide river along the southwest wind, and approached the two warships commanded by Chris in a standard one-line formation, and then began firing fierce side-side artillery.

The volley of more than 80 artillery fired almost instantly to defeat one side of the ship of the Banjul Merchant and the Wanderer. James could clearly see from the telescope that the middle mast of the Banjul Merchant was hit at close range by two chain bombs, and the thick mast fell down with a bang, causing chaos on the deck.

Compared with the powerful firepower of the East Coast warships, the counterattack of our side seemed a bit insignificant. Only less than half of the East Coast people fired, and the caliber was generally smaller. The small-caliber shells hit the opponent's sturdy boat boards, causing only some seemingly limited damage.

The battle on the river surface of both sides continued. The East Coast people fired four rounds of artillery attacks, and the third round was just finished. James sighed secretly. The naval battle was actually decided, and there was no need to continue watching. Moreover, he was completely pessimistic about whether he could hold the business station. It is conceivable that after the East Coast people solved several Mr. Chris' ships, he would definitely turn to the business station to carry out artillery attacks.

Let the huge number of 32 pounds, 24 pounds and 18 pounds of long-tube cannon bombard the weak walls of the Shang Station at close range? God, forgive my sins, they will bombard the city walls with us!
Chapter completed!