Wan Lei hurriedly came to the government office. As the helmsman of Shuntian Mansion, any major emergencies must be reported to him immediately and handled by him personally. However, this time it was not Shuntian Mansion that had an accident, but Dagu Port.
Something happened there. Liu Wan, who was sent by Mrs. Liu to manage Dagu Port, rushed to Beiping City and said that he had something important to report.
As the outlet of Shuntian Prefecture, the safety of Dagu Port is directly related to the maritime trade of Shuntian Prefecture. Of course, Wan Lei cannot take it lightly. When Liu Wan saw him coming, he did not waste any time and told him directly: Three ships were sent to North Korea to carry out trade.
The lucky ship did not return on time, perhaps because of something unexpected.
"When did this happen?" Wan Lei asked. Of course he knew that it was normal for shipwrecks to occur due to strong winds and high waves on the sea. However, it was also possible that they were plotted by pirates. Before the cause of the shipwreck was figured out,
Those lucky ships can only stay in Dagu Port and dare not go out to sea to take risks.
"Those three ships went to sea at the end of last year. North Korea is not too far away from here. Logically speaking, they should have returned a month ago. Even if the ship's hull was damaged by a storm, people should have been sent back to report. Now there is no news. We
Worried that something bad happened to them."
"Don't you have spies everywhere? Let them inquire," Tie Xuan said.
"Our spy in North Korea recently reported that the three ships left the Busan Port of North Korea two months ago. From this, it can be inferred that they encountered an accident on the way back. As for whether they were unfortunately sunk or were robbed, it has not yet been determined.
I know." Liu Wan frowned even more tightly.
"It is unlikely that the ship will sink. This season is not the typhoon season, and the Bohai Sea is an inland sea, which does not make big waves. The Fuzhou ship has a watertight cabin and has excellent anti-sinking performance. Even if the hull is damaged, it will not sink. In my opinion, it is very
Eight or nine were robbed." Wan Lei touched his chin and asked, "What route do you usually take when going to North Korea?"
"There is no designated route. We often travel along the coast, first to Liaodong, and then from Liaodong to North Korea." Liu Wan said.
"Expand the map." Wan Lei waved to the guards standing aside. They rushed to the side of the hall and opened the curtain. An earth-colored cloth map one and a half feet long and one foot wide appeared on Wan Lei's side.
In front of him, this is a map of the Ming Dynasty that he drew based on his impressions. Although it is not accurate, it is still close to ten.
Wan Lei had more maps that he had not displayed, otherwise Liu Wan would be even more surprised. So he ignored the surprised Liu Wan and used a few red lines to stretch out the map, and he got the rough navigation of the warship.
route, and asked Tie Xuan: "Master Tie, who do you think did it?"
"It might be Japanese pirates, it might be the Ming Navy, or it might be the rebels from Liaodong." Tiexuan touched his nose and seemed to smell something disturbing, because no matter who did it, it was no longer close to Shuntian Mansion.
Far away. And Peiping is less than 300 miles away from the sea. If the enemy successfully lands at Dagukou, they will be able to attack Peiping City on the same day. We must be on guard.
"No matter who did it, they are a threat to our Shuntian Mansion. We can only make optimistic plans, but prepare for the worst. Miss Liu, how many artillery pieces are equipped on those three ships?"
"Each ship is equipped with four cannons and more than twenty muskets." Liu Wan answered truthfully. After all, it is not only related to the safety of Dagu Port, but also the safety of Beiping City. In the past, with these sharp skills
Their warships are rampant on the sea with their cannons. Once these cannons fall into the hands of the enemy, the consequences will be disastrous.
"There are a total of twelve cannons. We must assume that they have fallen into the hands of the enemy. The most important thing now is to find out where the enemy is coming from and prepare for the worst." What Wan Lei said was not unreasonable.
The truth is, if those three ships were occupied by
If the ship is robbed, even the ship and its cannons will fall into the hands of the enemy; even if the ship is sunk, the cannons will be salvaged and reused. After all, these ships are traveling along the coast and pass through mostly shallow waters. Salvage the sunken ship materials
It's not that difficult either.
"Well, what my nephew said is true, but how can we find out the origin of the enemy?" Tie Xuan asked with some worry. After all, even Mrs. Liu, who has a lot of friends, can't find out the clues. This is the case with Shuntian Mansion.
Even those with small connections may not be able to figure it out.
"I have my own solution for this. Send someone immediately to summon all the important military and political officials. We have to hold a meeting overnight to discuss. I'm going to see Zen Master Mu Dao now to discuss another important matter." Wan Lei stood up and was about to leave.
, but Liu Wan chased after him and said, "Young lady also wants to see the master?"
"Let's go together, but let me remind you, try not to go to sea in the near future to avoid another business trip."
Liu Wan nodded. In fact, she would not go to sea easily without Wan Lei's reminder. After all, most of the sea ships had already headed south to prepare for big plans. There were only two small warships in Dagu Port, so of course they would not go out to seek death.
Qingshou Temple is four or five miles away from the government office. Wan Lei rode on horseback under the protection of Jingzhong Guards, and Liu Wan followed closely. Since it was getting late, the street lamps on the roadside were already lit, so the journey was considered uneventful.
At this time, Qingshou Temple was closed, and Wan Lei waited at the door for a while before a monk came out to answer the door.
"The donor came to visit at starry night. What's the important matter?" Zen Master Mu Dao went out to greet him personally. Of course, he also saw Liu Wan behind Wan Lei, but he could still distinguish the priorities, so he ignored Liu Wan and followed him first.
Wan Lei said hello.
"If there's something important, let's go inside and talk about it."
"Please come in, almsgiver." Zen Master Mu Dao clasped his hands and invited Wan Lei and a group of Jing Zhong Guards in. His disciples looked at Wan Lei with resentment in their eyes, but because of the might of the Jing Zhong Guards, no one dared to
Move around.
When it comes to the stamina of the Jingzhong Guards, the monks who have been practicing martial arts for decades are ashamed to compare. It is not that their martial arts are better than the monks, but because they fight without risking their lives. This person will not even risk his life once
, Not to mention one against ten, one against two or three is not a problem. Moreover, they are well-trained. Once they find that someone is harmful to Wan Lei, they will definitely protect their master to the death and will not give up until they fight to the death. In short, they are very difficult to mess with.
After entering the main hall, Wan Lei first offered incense to the memorial hall of the Buddha and the martyrs as usual, and then knelt down and worshiped before entering the inner hall. The host and guest sat down on both sides, and then they began to talk.
"Master, I heard that you were a captain of the Han Dynasty and supervised the construction of large ships for the King of Han. I wonder if you still remember the relevant drawings." Wan Lei did not mince words and asked directly. He wanted to build a warship by himself, but there was no relevant information.
He also needed the blueprints and shipwrights, so he made a special trip to see Zen Master Mu Dao.
The King of Han in Wan Lei's mouth was Chen Youliang, who competed with Zhu Yuanzhang for the world. In terms of navy and shipbuilding, this guy was indeed brilliant. Zhu Yuanzhang suffered a lot in water battles back then. It was precisely because of painful experience that he understood
Chao also paid special attention to navy and shipbuilding.
"These are all events of the past. I am old and forgetful. How can I still remember so much?" Zen Master Mu Dao shook his head and said expressionlessly.
"Master, if you think about it carefully, even if you only think of some superficial things, it will be of great benefit to us." Wan Lei said with a look of determination.
"Let Lao Na think about it again." Zen Master Mu Dao closed his eyes and thought for a while, and then said: "Lao Na still remembers some old friends. They used to be shipbuilders who built ships."
"Who is it?" Wan Lei asked anxiously.
"This..." Zen Master Mu Dao said no more. Of course Wan Lei could see that this mature guy wanted to bargain, so he said bluntly: "Master, just ask for whatever you want, as long as it is within your ability."
Yes, I will definitely be satisfied.”
Seeing that Wan Lei was so happy, Zen Master Mu Dao still had a sad expression and said: "Lao Na once had eight worshippers with the King of Han, but he failed to live up to his trust and could not protect his descendants. In the future, he will have no face under the nine springs.
Goodbye old friend."
"What do you mean, let us rescue the descendants of the Chen family?" Wan Lei asked. He had long heard Tie Xuan mention that after Zhu Yuanzhang defeated the Chen Han forces, he did not rush to kill the descendants of the Chen family.
Chen Youliang's youngest son
Chen Li was also named a Marquis of Guide. Later, when Chen Li was older and Zhu Yuanzhang was worried, he sent him to North Korea and let the King of North Korea strictly monitor him. Now the descendants of the Chen family are living in pickles in North Korea. How can they be miserable?
Remarkable.
But Zen Master Mu Dao still shook his head and said: "This matter is not urgent. Lao Na just wants to make a golden promise to the donor and promise to treat the descendants of the Chen family well in the future."
"Of course." Wan Lei nodded repeatedly, but secretly said in his heart: This old guy is really as smart as a ghost, he has a lot of calculations, and he is not willing to suffer any losses.
In fact, with the ability of Jingzhongwei, it is not impossible to rescue Chen Li and his family from Korea. However, Zen Master Mu Dao seems not to be optimistic about the future of Shuntian Mansion and does not want the Chen family to take risks with them. Although the Chen family is in misery now,
However, we still have food and shelter, and we can't die for the time being. When Shuntian Mansion really develops and grows in the future, the Chen family will join in to share the fruits of victory. Naturally, there will be no surprises, no risks, no loss, no profit.
After receiving Wan Lei's verbal promise, Zen Master Mu Dao stopped asking for anything more, because he knew that Wan Lei was a man of his word, so he picked up a pen and wrote a list of names on paper and gave it to Wan Lei, and also said:
"These people are all Lao Na's old subordinates. They were later exiled to Liaodong due to some affairs. They are now in Beiping City. Most of them are good at water warfare. I hope the donor can use them."
Wan Lei glanced at the list and found that there were dozens of people. It seemed that he had underestimated this hero who once shocked the world. He also had a wide network of contacts and actually made friends under his nose.
Sorority, this is really hard to guard against. Fortunately, this guy is old and all his ambitions have turned into despair, otherwise he wouldn't have handed over the list so readily.
Wan Lei put away the list, said nothing more, stood up and left. As for Liu Wan and her master reminiscing about old times, he didn't care because he still had many important things to do.
At midnight, important officials from both the military and the government gathered in the government office and began to hold a closed-door meeting. The theme of the meeting was: should Shuntian Mansion develop a navy, that is, a navy. The main reason why Wan Lei made this proposal was because
Because Mrs. Liu's fleet can no longer guarantee the coastal defense of Shuntian Prefecture, it is now necessary to develop its own navy and fortify its own defenses.
Of course, the navy is not built just because you want to. Compared with the army, the navy is more difficult to build and has higher equipment requirements. If nothing else, let’s talk about sea ships, which are not affordable for ordinary people. In addition,
Pirates don't talk about benevolence, righteousness and morality. If they want to operate unimpeded on the sea, the ship must be strong enough and the cannons must be powerful enough. Otherwise, they will only die if they go out.
So in the final analysis, the most difficult thing about building a navy is to build warships. However, what Shuntian Mansion lacks are shipbuilding blueprints and shipwrights, and shipbuilding materials are also in short supply. If we really want to build a navy, I am afraid that the Shuntian Mansion has just accumulated these
A little bit of social wealth will be wasted.
Since this resolution was of great importance, Wan Lei certainly could not make a single statement and let important members of the Party Committee and Military Commission participate in the discussion and vote. The final result of the vote was to agree to develop the navy, and at the same time, Liu Wenxiu, the former commander of the artillery battalion, was elected as the commander of the navy.
, and assigned a thousand people to his tribe to train as sailors.
The organization was established, but the construction of warships was a headache. Wan Lei found those people recommended by Zen Master Mu Dao, and they introduced them at the meeting. They talked about the construction of blessing ships and sand ships commonly used in the Ming Dynasty.
Technology, this is still far from the performance of a warship that Wan Lei desires.
In this era, steam engines had not been invented and applied to ships, and navigation was still in the age of sails, that is, sea-going ships mainly relied on sails for propulsion. Of course, ships were also equipped with paddles, but these were only used during wartime.
Let’s talk about sails first. Wan Lei is very dissatisfied. Traditionally, Chinese sailboats like to use hard sails. These hard sails are usually woven with thin bamboo strips or cattail leaves. The advantage of hard sails is that they have high overall efficiency and can rotate around the mast.
, and can even completely utilize the wind from all directions. Compared with the hard sail and the soft sail per unit area, the use of wind power by the hard sail is much greater than that of the soft sail.
However, due to the heavy weight of hard sails, the larger the sail, the heavier it is. Some large ships can even be moved by hundreds of people, so the sail area is generally relatively small. Wan Lei is more optimistic about soft sails, because
The soft sail is made of leather or cloth. It is light in weight and can be made very large.
The biggest disadvantage of soft sails is that because the overall efficiency of the sail surface is low, the mast must be built very high. If the mast is too high, it will also cause the problem of insufficient strength of the mast. In order to increase the strength of the mast,
A large number of ropes must be tied to the mast to enhance the strength of the mast. In this way, the sail surface cannot rotate around the mast like a hard sail, and part of the wind cannot be used. Even if it can be used, it is because it is soft.
Due to the sails, the utilization efficiency is extremely low.
However, due to its light weight, the area of a soft sail can be very large. When the wind is downwind, the thrust it can obtain is far more than that of a hard sailboat, and it can also drive larger ships. Of course, sailing on the sea cannot be done most of the time.
When sailing with the wind, according to the Bernoulli effect, the maximum utilization of wind power by a soft sailing boat is when the side is downwind. Of course, the efficiency is low when the side is upwind. In order to take advantage of the wind blowing from the front and side, a triangular sail must be used.
.
Although the triangular sail is more efficient in utilizing crosswinds and headwinds, its efficiency is relatively low in downwind conditions. However, hard sails do not have so many concerns. Only one kind of sail can take advantage of winds in all directions, which is commonly known as the eight-sided wind.
Because of this, Chinese-made sailboats all use hard sails.
The reason why Wan Lei hates hard sails is because the hard sail is raised and lowered by the whole sail, and the area cannot be too large, otherwise people cannot pull it. The height of the mast cannot be too high, otherwise the strength of the mast will be affected, otherwise it will be soft.
Sail has no advantage compared to it.
Technically speaking, hard sails are stronger than soft sails. However, with the current technical conditions, there is no light and hard material to fill the hard sail, and there is no mechanical lifting equipment. It is still impossible to fill the wind with the advantages of the hard sail, and smart
The Chinese discovered the shortcomings of soft sails early and abandoned soft sailing boats in favor of highly efficient hard sails. This forward-looking consciousness not only failed to lead the world trend, but actually restricted the development of the navigation industry.
Of course, the above three types of sails have their own advantages and cannot be generalized. However, for long-distance sailing, large transverse soft sails are more suitable for deep-sea long-distance sailing; and for freight within an area, the number of users is relatively small.
A hard sail is a better and more economical choice, which can save transportation costs. For small speedboats that are known for their speed, a triangular sail is more effective.
In addition, if soft sails are used, a mast that is tens of meters high must be composed of two or three independent masts. The mast is tall and the area of the sail that can be hung will be far greater than that of a hard sail, so it has an advantage in speed.
It is also obviously better than a hard sailing ship. It is fast, and in a sea artillery battle, a soft sailing ship can easily gain the upper hand.
In terms of hull structure, Wan Lei is also dissatisfied with the design of Fu Chuan and Sha Chuan. Due to the extensive use of watertight storage technology, Fu Chuan and Sha Chuan rarely use ribs, and the strength of the hull is supported by the partitions of the watertight compartments. Therefore,
The ship has good performance in terms of sinking resistance.
However, it is precisely because of the extensive use of watertight cabin technology on the Fu Ship that the hull is not strong enough in the transverse direction and cannot bear the recoil when a large number of artillery is fired. In other words, the Fu Ship can install artillery on the bow and stern, but cannot
Mounted on both sides, this greatly reduces firepower and flexibility.
In order to equip more artillery on the ship, it is necessary to abandon the watertight warehouse and use a large number of ribs to increase the thickness of the hull. Especially on battleships, if the ribs are one after another, using ribs to provide the hull with good
The protection can also improve the sturdiness of the hull. Fortunately, the side strings are also equipped with artillery to form a more violent fire attack.
In terms of ship shape, Wan Lei was also dissatisfied with the Fu Chuan, which had a wide bottom tip. Although the Fu Chuan's ship shape was similar to the V-shaped ship of later generations, the battleship required that as many heavy artillery pieces as possible be carried on the side strings in order to
Promote maximum firepower output. And v
The bottom area of the font-shaped hull is inherently small, which is not suitable for deploying long heavy artillery at all. What's more, the bottom layer is still a series of watertight cabins instead of a transverse rib-type all-through gun deck. You can imagine the number of heavy artillery that can be equipped.
Got it.
In order to solve this problem, the hull must be U-shaped, and the bottom is larger than the upper part. The advantage of this is that the spacious gun deck at the bottom can arrange more artillery, and the caliber and weight are gradually reduced layer by layer. Instead, the top deck is full of
The area of the boat is the smallest, which has the advantage of reducing the contact area during meat gambling.
Of course, Wan Lei still had to admire the clever ancients. The Fuchuan type invented based on waterfowl obviously coincided with the development of hull technology in later generations: modern warships hundreds of years later generally have a smaller number of large-caliber artillery on the deck.
The small-caliber light gun on the string side also uses the watertight cabin technology invented by the Chinese to increase its anti-sinkability. It is a pity that the advanced ingenuity of the ancients is still due to the backwardness of the material strength of the ship's hull and the backwardness of artillery science and technology...
In terms of the power of artillery, Wan Lei is very satisfied, because the Zhenyuan artillery, a large number of city defense artillery equipped in Shuntian Mansion, is not only suitable for defending the city, but also suitable for installation on warships. Because it has a large caliber and a range of up to three miles, as long as it is in
If you install dozens of these things on a warship, it will sweep them all the way.
After sorting out these problems, the next step is to redesign the warship. Of course, the new warship will use a large amount of high-quality wood as ribs, and the cost will definitely be very high. Although Wan Lei was mentally prepared, he still very cautiously asked everyone to vote whether to pass.
The decision to rebuild a new warship, after all, is not about heartbeats this time, but about lots of real money.
Of course, this new type of ship is only a transitional stage. Once a large steam engine is invented and successfully equipped on a ship, a new type of warship will have to be redesigned. After all, no matter what kind of warship, it must cater to the technological level of the time in order to exert its strongest capabilities.
power.
After more than an hour of deliberation and voting, the eleven people present finally approved all the plans. From then on, Shuntian Mansion began to develop maritime power and move towards the ocean.