If there is no accident, there will definitely be an accident. Sure enough, an accident that Zhu Su did not expect happened unexpectedly.
At the beginning of the eastern noon of that month, black clouds suddenly gathered in the sky, as if they were about to collapse. Big waves also arose on the sea surface, and the whole world seemed to be seeking destruction.
From Zhang He's expression as if facing a formidable enemy, Zhu Su learned a piece of news that frightened him: the storm was coming.
The sea is in a storm! Even if the armored fleets of later generations could predict the storm in the vast sea, they would still find ways to avoid its edge. Not to mention those "sampans" made of wood like those in the Ming Dynasty.
Zhu Su made a decisive decision and entrusted the command to the most experienced Zhang He, entrusting the life and death of the entire fleet to Zhang He's legs. Zhang He, who had obtained the command, made a prompt decision and led the fleet to turn around and turn back, preparing for the coming storm.
Before that, we should go back to the small island where we first choked, wait until the storm subsides, and then plan our return to the Ming Dynasty.
After all, if you don't encounter a storm directly in the vast sea, it's probably the same as sailing towards the gate of hell...
However, things are always going to be unsatisfactory in heaven. It’s hard to wait for them to land on the island.
The storm is coming.
…
…
"Master, the boats in Tamsui are about to run out. No matter how much he saves, in another two months, Tamsui will be out of stock."
"And the remaining ten or so ships are more or less damaged by the storm. According to General Zhang's visual inspection, the most serious one can last another three months."
"There is not much food left in the ship. In those days, most of the soldiers relied on sea fish to satisfy their hunger. Morale became increasingly low..."
Outside the dilapidated cabin, the dog reported to Zhu Su with a worried look on his face.
"Well, I got it. I'll go east first and help General Zhang." Zhu Su's heart sank after hearing this, and he waved his legs to signal the dog to go east. Then he held his forehead anxiously, thinking about what to do next.
Wrong strategy from the east.
"The sea... is really dangerous!" Zhu Di looked at the dark clouds outside through the gap in the damaged cabin, with a touch of disbelief in his tone. Who would have thought that such a terrible storm would not sweep through a few months ago, and
When the moon comes out, will everything be calm?
The sea was like an extremely unpredictable and dangerous god. At one moment, Keke was communicating with me in a pleasant manner. But at the next moment, without any warning, his expression changed and he summoned the power of heaven and earth to seek my life.
Zhu Xi's head was sprayed when the storm came, and it looked like his head was wrapped in a red scarf, draped over the tattered prince's python robe, which looked quite nondescript. He also felt like he was surviving the disaster.
.He sighed sincerely: "Previously, he felt that as the princes of the Ming Dynasty, they must be able to do what others cannot."
"You won't know until you encounter a storm. No matter what prince you are, you can't do anything in the face of such power."
"A ship of that size is like a grain of rice dropped into Xuanwu Lake in the sea... The ship will capsize as soon as the waves lift..."
"Fortunately, we have General Zhang He and Zhang." Zhu Su sighed with great joy. "If it weren't for him, I'm afraid the three brothers would have been fed to the fishes long ago."
Fortunately, he handed over the command to Zhang He without hesitation. When encountering a storm, Zhang He accurately predicted the location of the storm and led the fleet to avoid countless huge waves and whirlpools.
Although because of this, the fleet completely lost its direction. When the storm came, the sky and the earth were as dark as ink, and it was impossible to distinguish the direction. There was no moon rising or setting, and it was unknown how long it had been drifting on the sea.
But at least those of us are alive now, right?
"Can he realize now why I value General Zhang so much?" Zhu Di rubbed his sore neck. "The sea is extremely dangerous."
"If there were no generals like General Zhang, the army would encounter storms on the sea..."
"I'm afraid that the whole army will be annihilated without even seeing the enemy's Yongxuan."
"Yes." Zhu Su also nodded. "If you want to develop after the Great Bright Moon, you cannot do without sea trade and conquest."
"Trade and conquest on the sea are inseparable from excellent captains and generals."
Thinking of that, Zhu Su couldn't help but smile bitterly. Now he was thinking about what happened to Daming. It was clear that even his own situation was unsafe.
If not, it has actually been swept to the Pacific Ocean by the storm... The vast ocean does not reach the sky, the east does not reach the ground, and the supplies are insufficient... Not to mention saving the seed of Zhang He, the naval admiral, for the Ming Dynasty, I am afraid that even my second brother Zhu Ping will...
The third brother, Zhu Fan, was buried there.
Now you can pray to the sky that when the storm rolls in, your people will not be swept too far from the land.
"In the east of the hall, the last general Zhang He wants to see you." Zhang He's voice came from outside.
"Come in quickly!" Zhu Su quickly asked Zhang He to come in. He saw that Zhang He's eye sockets were sunken, and it was obvious that he had not slept well for several months.
"General Zhang, have you determined the location?" Zhu Su asked. "Just now, my king's foreign servant informed me of the news."
"The supplies he is waiting for cannot last more than a few months. If we don't wait until the month when we run out of ammunition and food..." At that point, Zhu Su couldn't bear to say any more.
What will happen after we run out of ammunition and food? Either the soldiers mutinied and were hacked to death by the soldiers. Or it could be that they struggled to hold on and finally starved to death at sea...
All in all, within a few months, the fleet must find land, otherwise, everyone will have no way to survive.
As for how to find land, the important task rests on Zhang He's shoulders.
"... Even though the storm has subsided, there are still no stars in the sky." Zhang He shook his head bitterly. "Please forgive me for not being able to tell where they are."
"Then I will..." Zhu Su also sighed. If he could know the specific month and ensure that the ship was on the sea and not moving at all, he could calculate the maximum length and shortest length of Yongxuan in January and other algorithms.
Is there a way to roughly calculate the longitude and latitude of where he is? But during the storms in the past few months, no matter whether it was red sky or dark night, he could not see his fingers with his legs outstretched... He also didn't know what month it was now.
"Then General Zhang is here. Is there anything you want to tell me?" Zhu Su asked after reacting.
"Come here, I do have something I want to ask your Majesty." Zhang He said with fists in his hands. "Actually, when I first commanded the fleet, although most of them fled passively, they did not have a rough judgment on the route of the storm.
Should we go all the way north?"
"Oh?" Zhu Su was delighted. Heading all the way north?
Just because it didn't drift eastward means that our people haven't strayed too far from the Ming Dynasty!
"It should be..." Zhang He clasped his fists in shame. "Whether the general will follow the general trajectory. It cannot be ruled out that they are still going to the depths of the East China Sea."
"For example, generals at the end of the Ming Dynasty cannot tell the way forward, nor do they know how far away the Ming Dynasty is from them."
"Therefore, if you are brave, can you please ask the Emperor to order the fleet to head west? If you are lucky, maybe you can land at his Daming Port..."
"Of course, the west can also be the Japanese country, it can also be Liaodong, it can also be the Jurchen land of the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty. Or even... it can still be the vast sea." Zhang He said with difficulty.