Total War: Restoration of the Ming Dynasty in Luzon

Chapter 55 Conquering Cebu

After the defeated soldiers fled back to Cebu City in a panic, their disheveled appearance was witnessed by the defending troops, which dealt another heavy blow to their already fragile morale.

The captain who had escaped was quickly brought before Salcedo, the supreme commander, whose face was so dark it was almost dripping with gloom.

After listening to the captain's stammering report, the colonel remained silent for a long time before waving him away. He had intended to punish the defeated officer according to military law, but he knew in his heart that even if he did, it wouldn't change the inevitable outcome of the battle.

Therefore, the colonel ultimately abandoned the idea of ​​dealing with the other party.

He stood alone by the window, gazing at the Ming warships on the sea that had ceased their bombardment, his heart filled with despair. If it weren't for his sense of honor as a soldier, he would have already chosen to surrender.

"Pass on my orders," he said hoarsely to his adjutant at the door. "Close all four gates, reinforce the city's defenses, and take inventory of all stored grain, ammunition, and gunpowder. From today onward, no one is to leave the city without my order."

"Also... send someone to contact Fort San Pedro and tell the garrison there to abandon the outer outposts and retreat to the core of the fortress to conserve ammunition. Do not fire without my signal."

The adjutant sensed the strong sense of passive defense in the order, and his heart sank, but he still forced himself to reply, "Yes, Colonel."

From then on, the Cebu garrison completely abandoned any intention to engage in open battle or launch an offensive, retreating into the city walls and fortresses and passively defending the walls.

After learning that the vanguard had easily defeated the Spanish army, Chen Ang became even more convinced that the defenders had no strength to resist. He ordered the landing troops to speed up and open up a road from the beach to Cebu City, so that large quantities of food, ammunition, and artillery could be transported ashore and eventually delivered to the city.

The Ming army took less than a day.

A day later, the Ming infantry completed their assembly and deployment outside Cebu City. Six hundred line infantrymen and a thousand indigenous allied soldiers completely surrounded Cebu's only city gate, with banners fluttering like a forest and the army in full force.

The defenders on the city wall could only watch helplessly as the Ming army set up artillery positions below the city, with eight 12-pound infantry cannons lined up in a row, their dark muzzles all aimed at the city tower.

Even the colonel himself, when inspecting the front lines, felt a sense of fear upon seeing the Ming army's cannons. Cebu's walls were not particularly strong to begin with, and the Ming army only needed to blast a breach in them, and they would certainly not be able to hold the city.

Despite his despair, he forced himself to stay strong and encouraged the wavering soldiers: "Hold on! Our reinforcements will arrive soon, and when they do, those evil infidels will pay a bloody price!"

However, even he himself no longer truly believed in the elusive reinforcements he spoke of. The soldiers were also unresponsive to his orders, their movements sluggish, their eyes unfocused; clearly, no one had placed their hopes on that unattainable phantom anymore.

After the Ming army completed the deployment of its artillery, it quickly began to concentrate its firepower on the Cebu city walls.

The defenders were powerless to retaliate and could only withdraw their cannons, hide in bunkers, cover their ears, and wait for the Ming army's bombardment to end.

Although this round of artillery bombardment by the Ming army was not a formal signal for an attack on the city, it still caused considerable damage to the city walls. The surface of the city walls, which were bombarded by concentrated fire, was pitted and cracked. Some cannonballs even hit the city gate, twisting and deforming the iron gate.

Seeing that Cebu's walls were indeed weak, Chen Ang ordered a halt to the shelling and decided to rest for the night before launching a formal main attack the next morning.

Time passed quickly.

On the morning of November 26, the sound of drums, like muffled thunder, rang out outside the city, and the general offensive officially began.

The deafening cannon fire kicked off the siege, with not only 12-pounder infantry guns on land, but also Nanyang Navy warships simultaneously bombarding Fort San Pedro with their ship-mounted guns.

Amidst the thunderous roar of cannons, bricks and stones crumbled, and smoke and dust filled the sky. After half an hour of intense bombardment, the Cebu city wall finally collapsed, revealing a jagged gap several meters wide. Brick fragments mixed with smoke and dust slid down, revealing the terrified faces of the city's defenders and the chaotic scene inside.

"The city wall has collapsed!"

The soldiers, witnessing this spectacular scene, erupted in thunderous cheers. The collapse of the city wall raised clouds of dust and grime, obscuring their vision, but it could not stop their cheers.

Chen Ang immediately drew his sword and shouted, "The breach has been opened! All companies, attack! Capture the city wall!"

woo-

"kill--"

With the sound of bugles and deafening battle cries, the Ming army, with its line infantry as the vanguard, cheered and charged toward the breach with bayonets raised. The indigenous allied forces also brandished their weapons and launched a massive charge, like the howling of monkeys.

After the breach, the Western Army soldiers saw the city wall collapse and had no courage to continue resisting. The defense line crumbled instantly. Some knelt down and surrendered, while others abandoned their armor and fled. No one chose to fight to the last moment.

Colonel Salcedo's will to resist died completely when he saw the city walls collapse. He looked up to the sky and sighed, threw his sword to the ground, slumped down, and gave orders to the bewildered soldiers around him:

"Surrender to the Chinese. Cebu can't be held anymore. There's no need for us to continue fighting."

With Colonel Salcedo's final order, the remaining, already weak will to resist in Cebu City was completely extinguished.

The officers looked at each other, then threw down their weapons with a sigh of relief. The soldiers rushed to drop their muskets and spears, knelt down, raised their hands, or hurriedly searched for white cloths to wave.

The Ming army encountered almost no decent resistance and surged into the breach in the city wall like a tide, quickly taking control of the city gates, streets, and key intersections.

Subsequent troops continued to enter the city, and battle flags with the character "朙" were raised one after another above the city walls, government offices, barracks, and warehouses.

Under the protection of his personal guards, Chen Ang stepped into Cebu City, treading through rubble and dust. The streets were lined with surrendered Spanish soldiers, mixed-race armed citizens, and native servants, their eyes filled with fear and their bodies trembling slightly.

Most ordinary residents kept their doors and windows tightly shut, peeking through the cracks at the unfamiliar victorious army.

"Issue orders to all units," Chen Ang instructed his men in a deep voice. "Strictly enforce military discipline, prohibit looting, and forbid harassment of civilians. Quickly wipe out the remaining enemy forces in the city and take control of the treasury, armory, granary, and docks."

All surrendered officers, soldiers, and armed personnel were gathered together and registered one by one. Western barbarian commanders and key officers were placed under separate custody, awaiting His Highness the Regent's decision.

"yes!"

The Ming army demonstrated excellent discipline and efficiency; the soldiers quickly carried out orders, maintained order, counted prisoners, and extinguished the small fires caused by the artillery fire.

After the city fell, the garrison of Saint Pedro Castle also chose to surrender decisively, lowering the Burgundian cross flag that represented the kingdom's prestige and raising the white flag of surrender instead.