"Why don't you eat lobsters in the sea?" Wu Nanhai expressed contempt, "If you really like it, Australia also has freshwater crayfish. I'll go to Australia to eat them in the future. But I still want to eat real lobsters in the sea."
Then we talked about the issue of marine aquaculture. There are many tidal flats in Lingao, especially in the three harbors of Bopu, Ma Niao and Hongpai. There are large tracts of tidal flats, which are the main areas for tidal flat farming in Lingao in modern times. These three harbors
Each area is currently under the direct or indirect control of the Chuan Chuan Group and has the basis for carrying out mariculture.
"We don't understand mariculture, no one has learned it, and no one has done it." Wu Nanhai said, "I'm afraid I have to find a book and study it on my own. Besides, I think based on the level of fishery products in this time and space,
Expanding the fishing fleet is much more meaningful than engaging in mariculture."
"Let the fishermen do it. The early mariculture was discovered by the fishermen themselves. The cultivation of oysters and kelp is mainly about nursery and artificial environment. The feed is very limited, but the output is quite considerable."
No specific results were discussed on mariculture, because mariculture is also a type of fishery, which involves the Ministry of Maritime Power and requires coordination. Wu Nanhai thought for a long time and it would be better to ask the Ministry of Maritime Power to collect more "fishing tax". If
It is possible to organize fishery associations to carry out collective offshore fishing.
But at this time, the situation in the Qiongzhou Strait became turbulent. Chen Haiyang, People's Commissar of Maritime Power, was staring at the chart on the table in the captain's cabin of Fengcheng. This giant ship has been anchored here for almost a year. From the beginning
It became a symbol of the power of the Traveling Group. Even when they were huddled in the earthen enclosure of Bobu, the Fengcheng Wheel made everyone around them fearful.
For more than half a year, except for the two attacks by Zhu Cailao and Liu Xiang, no one has dared to challenge their presence in the Qiongzhou Strait. The small group of unsightly pirates who used to operate on the ocean near Lingao have long been eliminated by them.
Cleared.
But now, the navy on the Fengcheng ship began to feel the pressure.
In the Qiongzhou Strait, small groups of pirates began to appear constantly, robbing ships whenever they saw them, and often landing to harass and rob villages.
It’s not that this kind of thing didn’t happen before, but it has never happened so frequently in the past. Nowadays, Yanchang Village has 1 to 2 invasion alarms every week, and the number of people logging in each time ranges from 20 to 50. So much so.
The entire Yanchang Village is often exhausted, and the militia team in Yanchang Village has to be on alert around the clock, which seriously affects production. In order to protect the salt people's production, the Army has sent a platoon to Yanchang Village to garrison. The ships transporting salt from Yanchang Village to Bobu have also been under attack
Threat. The Ministry of Maritime Power lost a salt-carrying ship in early June. Not only did it lose several thousand kilograms of sea salt, it also killed and injured five or six people. By June, the number of attacks became more frequent. The Ministry of Maritime Power began to carry out attacks every day.
The salt-carrying ships were equipped with navy soldiers and adopted a convoy system. The Ma Niao-Bopu transport ships were transported in teams of 10, and each team was equipped with escort armed sailing ships. The pirates who intended to rob the salt ship were finally suppressed.
.
Although the escort battle is not fierce, many times the opponent will escape as soon as the escort fires. However, if the opponent has four or five ships, they may turn to a determined attack, especially the fleet transporting sea salt. In order to ensure safety,
The armament on the escort sailboat has been upgraded to artillery. Without the use of shotguns, it is difficult to repel these red-eyed pirates who have not eaten for a long time.
Chen Haiyang soon discovered that the Maritime Power Department did not have much power that could be used to maintain maritime hegemony on the high ocean. The number of ships owned by the Maritime Power Department was already quite large, but these ships were basically the same as those of various ships on the Guangdong ocean.
A hodgepodge, the general characteristic is that it is relatively small, with a displacement ranging from 15 to 100 tons, and the ship condition is also different, good or bad. Because most of the ships are responsible for transportation tasks, they basically have no gun equipment. They can be called warships.
: There are only four 8154 fishing vessels as the core force of the navy, the self-modified towed fishing boat "Deng Yingzhou", the first self-built fast sailing ship "Zhenhai", and the captured and rebuilt ketch "Fubo" from pirates
.The latter three are all equipped with diesel engines.
Chen Haiyang mobilized the main force to launch several patrols and suppressions, and also conducted many fishing law enforcement operations. He sank and captured more than 20 ships of various types, and killed hundreds of prisoners. From the interrogation of the prisoners, he learned:
Various maritime gangs, mostly from the ocean of Fujian, could not withstand the joint suppression by the official army and Zheng Zhilong, so they retreated and fled to the ocean of Guangdong. Since the Pearl River Estuary was also the focus of the Ming army's suppression, the Portuguese were worried that the waterway would be blocked, so they also dispatched large-scale
Ships patrolled the Pearl River estuary. Many small groups of pirates could not gain a foothold and had no choice but to continue to the western ocean where the pressure was less.
The Executive Committee learned the latest maritime trends from the mouths of the prisoners: after it was confirmed that Zheng Zhilong had been rescued, Xu Xinsu and Yang Liu had been killed at the end of 1628. As for Chen Shengyu, Wednesday and other small and medium-sized pirates, most of them were eliminated or annexed by him.
The battle between Li Kuiqi and Zheng Zhilong is still going on. Zhu Cai Lao, who is most concerned about by the Crossing Group, went to Fujian to wade through the muddy waters and attacked Tong'an repeatedly, as if he was preparing to get a piece of the chaos on the ocean in Fujian. According to the pirates, Zhu Cai Lao
Cai Lao took in the defeated people of various families along the way, and his momentum expanded a lot. He waited for opportunities to rob foreign ships on the ocean in Fujian, and made a fortune.
Chen Haiyang thought this could be regarded as a chain reaction. Zheng Zhilong fought against various maritime groups in the ocean of Fujian. In the process of annihilating and annexing these groups one by one, more and more scattered ships would inevitably escape to Qiongzhou.
Here in the strait.
This is a good opportunity to annex these people and ships. Chen Haiyang has already made plans at this time. He doesn't like ships yet, but these experienced sailors are extremely useful naval soldiers.
The farmers recruited and trained as sailors are not as good as these native seafarers.
As for whether these pirates can become qualified naval warriors, Chen Haiyang is not worried. This is a matter for Wei Aiwen of the Political Department - this brand-new organization was proposed by Ma Qianzhu and is under the General Staff and is responsible for military politics.
Work - Wei Aiwen was nominated for this new position because of his outstanding political propaganda work in the training camp. He is also the battalion commander of the recruit training camp directly under the General Staff. After the recruits join the army, they first receive 90 days of basic training and training here.
political education.
However, to achieve this goal, he must strengthen the patrol force on the Lingao ocean. Zhenhai and Fubo were originally responsible for long-distance armed transportation missions to Changhua and Yulin. Now they are put into public security patrols. In a short time, problems will arise.
Not much, but over time it will affect the transportation of routes around the island - especially the supply of coconuts and wood.
"What we need now is not a fleet, but a sufficient number of patrol vessels to maintain maritime security along the Lingao coast."
"Select some ships in better condition from the miscellaneous ships in hand, and add artillery to serve as patrol ships." This is actually the current form of armed sailboats. "Add diesel engines to increase mobility."
"No, these ships are too small. It's a waste to install diesel engines - I don't even want to give up artillery." Chen Haiyang quickly abandoned this suggestion. The equipment of the shipyard was updated, the technical workers became increasingly skilled and the machinery factory was able to provide more and more advanced equipment.
The abundance of equipment greatly expanded his ambitions.
"I want a small but professional standing patrol fleet." He clearly stated his request at the executive committee meeting. "The current mixed navy only has deterrence power in the Qiongzhou Strait, but no execution power."
Because this kind of miscellaneous ship has no performance advantage, and there are not as many experienced sailors as its opponents. It can only rely on the advantage of firearms to offset its opponents. However, when these miscellaneous ships were built, they did not consider the need to install artillery at all.
It is difficult to install multiple artillery pieces and extremely inconvenient to use.
Finally, the Executive Committee approved an emergency shipbuilding project, ordering Bobu Shipyard to concentrate all manpower and material resources to immediately build five triangular sail patrol ships. This type of ship imitates the concept of pirate pursuit ships built by the British Royal Navy in the 17th to 19th centuries.
.It adopts a single-masted triangular sail and a shallow-draft ship type, which is convenient for fighting in rugged coastal terrain and shallow sea areas. In order to facilitate rapid maneuvering in windless or unfavorable wind conditions, it is also equipped with multiple pairs of oars.
The British pirate pursuit ship has a displacement of up to 113 tons, but the standard displacement of the ship designed by Wen Desi is only half that - it is just a reference to its concept, not an imitation. The purpose of these ships is only in the Qiongzhou Strait, and will be used most in the future.
On the coast of Hainan Island, long-distance navigation performance does not need to be considered too much.
The displacement of the new patrol boat was reduced to 60 tons to speed up the construction speed. The sloop design was retained because it was very suitable for the changing wind directions in coastal areas. The sail and cable operating systems were all copied from the yachts brought by the North American split helm.
In addition to replacing the electric motor with a hand hoist, three pairs of long oars are also installed on the ship to provide additional propulsion and accelerated steering.
The entire ship adopts a central island layout. There is a 12-pound M1857 smoothbore cannon-modified naval gun on each deck on the front and rear decks. It adopts the same deck-exposed gun profile installation method as the Zhenhai. According to Wen Deji's calculations, even if the gunner's training is not enough
It is too sufficient, each gun can be fired once per minute. Based on the experience of several naval battles, the shell configuration includes more incendiary bombs, grenades and shotgun shells, as well as chain bombs specially used to shoot masts.
Because the pirates faced by the patrol boats like to use gang-hopping battles as the main method of fighting, small ships with a small number of people will suffer a disadvantage. The ship is also equipped with a large-scale killer weapon specially designed to deal with dense combatants: a multi-barreled gun.
The multi-barreled gun is not a machine gun. Although it can fire continuously for a short period of time, it does not have an automatic device on the gun. In essence, it is a weapon that integrates many rifles and fires them in sequence to achieve a continuous fire effect. This strange weapon is widely used in Europe.
It was very popular at one time.
The weapon designed by Li Yunxing basically replicates the previous structure and consists of 16 barrels. In order to reduce manufacturing costs, the barrels are made of seamless steel tubes drawn in batches from a steel rolling mill and then rifled. The barrel is filled with
Mini paper-packed ammunition, flash cap firing. Caliber 14mm - this size is inherited from the seamless boiler tube brought by modern time and space to serve as the barrel of the Mini rifle. The maximum range is 400 meters, and the effective range is 100 meters
rice.
The major disadvantage of multi-barreled guns is that it is difficult to reload. It is almost impossible to reload this weapon during combat. So later, a self-loading ammunition system was developed. The gun body was divided into two parts: the barrel and the magazine.
The magazine part can be disassembled and assembled as a whole. In this way, ammunition can be reloaded quickly. The idea is similar to directly changing the revolver when loading a revolver.
As a result, the finished product became so heavy that people who wanted to use this gun as a "machine gun" felt that it was impossible to equip the army when they saw its huge size. Historically, this kind of multi-barrel
The gun must use a double-wheeled mount when maneuvering on land. It weighs nearly a light artillery, but its power and range are not as good as that of an artillery gun. Therefore, it was quickly eliminated in field troops.
Naval ships are relatively insensitive to weight. The multi-barreled gun uses a gun mount equipped with a universal joint on the ship deck, which can easily fire in all directions. The gun mount is equipped with a sliding track, which uses the stroke to offset part of the fire.
An improved version of the ignition device was also installed: a hammer firing device similar to a typewriter keyboard, which can control the frequency of firing under the control of the shooter. After Li Yunxing operated it several times, he was actually able to fire. This
This weapon was nicknamed the "typewriter". Each multi-barreled gun group carried 12 bullet discs as standard. In order to protect the shooter, an iron machine gun shield was installed on the multi-barreled gun.
In addition to this terrifying melee weapon, the patrol ship has also installed an ancient but effective method to prevent the enemy from jumping gangs. There are protective nets on both sides of the ship's side. As for the hand-held shotguns that are very effective in the battle against bandits
Cannons are also equipped as standard equipment on ships and are used as melee weapons for deck combat.
There is no engine installed on the ship for the time being. Considering the need for future upgrades and modifications, space and structure for modifications were left during the shipbuilding. The planned engine will use a single-cylinder or dual-cylinder diesel engine, which can be started quickly and is suitable for the needs of patrol boats.
.
Some people question the effectiveness of this kind of ship. After all, the ship is too small, with a capacity of only 30 people. However, Chen Haiyang believes that this kind of ship is sufficient for escort and patrol and other security tasks in the Qiongzhou Strait - no one can expect to use it.
They go to engage in a fleet battle.
In early June 1629, the Bobu Naval Shipyard placed five iron keels on the slipway and started construction at the same time. For the first time, the patrol boat used an iron-framed wooden shell structure. The keels and ribs were all made of rolled iron.
According to the design drawings, the steel plant batch-rolled the keels and ribs on the ship. The entire construction period was reduced by more than two-thirds compared to the original wooden keels and ribs.
Many modern design concepts were introduced during the construction of the patrol boat. The hull shape was completed on the computer by Wendoshi and several ship model enthusiasts with the help of virtual shipbuilding software and a huge fluid test database. The Industrial Energy Commission tried to promote standardization
Construction. The various wooden panels used in shipbuilding were unified in size and shape, and were mass-produced using woodworking machinery in the workshop. Wen Desi even made preliminary attempts at modular construction. Some large parts of the ship were built on the ground.
, and then hoisted it onto the ship for installation. The jib was ordered in Macau through the Jesuit relationship. The Jesuit letter informed them that the sailmaker they needed was on his way to Macau from Europe. If everything goes well, these sailmakers would
If the individual does not encounter storms, diseases or pirates on the way, he will arrive in a year and a half.
The Ministry of Maritime Power built ships and prepared the army for war. Chen Haiyang seized the time to carry out combat training, and sent the navy's trainee officers, non-commissioned officers and recruits to the armed sailboats. Anyway, there is no need to consider the issue of food and water for short-term voyages.
It doesn't matter if some people are blocked. Zhenhai and Fubo also maintain war preparedness and patrol the strait between Lingao and Xuwen every day. For a time, there were many sails and rafts along the coast of Lingao, which looked a lot like Wu Weiyang.
Soon the first batch of five patrol boats was launched. The entire construction period was less than 20 days. Wen Desi ordered to concentrate on outfitting one boat as a verification boat and put it into actual combat as soon as possible in order to identify problems and make further improvements.
Le Lin is now sitting on the bridge of this brand-new patrol boat. Under the awning is a rattan high-backed captain's chair fixed on the deck, and it can be rotated - this is carefully designed by Wu Kuangming
A gift to the Ministry of Maritime Power, it was also part of the shipbuilding standardization measures. This chair, which was very comfortable for sitting in the high climate, soon became a symbol of naval power. So much so that the "rattan chair" later became the name of the Navy of the Transnational Navy.
A slang term - meaning to become a captain.
His command flag is flying on the mast. The newly built patrol boat numbered 101 is the flagship of this patrol formation. The beautiful jib is fully spread, and on duty on the deck are sailors who have recently been equipped with navy-type Minie rifles.
The characteristic of the naval type is that the barrel is relatively short, suitable for use on the deck. The two front and rear guns have the same exposed gun profile as the "Zhenhai", with black holes protruding from the muzzles of the guns.
An experimental weapon is also installed at the rear of the bridge, namely the "machine gun"-"typewriter" developed by Li Yunxing. Several units have been manufactured and are being shipped for testing. Patrol Boat 101 is honored to be the first batch to install this weapon.
vessel.
"Finally, it looks like a warship." Le Lin said with satisfaction. He shifted his gaze from the cannon to the boats lined up on both sides of him. Although they were all slightly old fishing boats, their hard sails were also full of sails.
It was a patch, but the three-ship formation lined up on the sea still looked a lot like a naval formation. In his hallucination, he saw himself wearing a white gold-rimmed Navy Grand Marshal's uniform, with Korean-style medals hanging on his chest, standing on a battleship
On the bridge of the ship, on the sea next to it, there are battleships lined up with wild geese wings, riding the wind and waves under the shining of the morning sun...