Xinshun 1730

Chapter 246 Expedition Team

When he learned that he could finally explore the Americas and find a route from northern Asia to America, Bering looked in the mirror and looked at his gray hair, not knowing what to think.

After staying in Dashun for so long, he learned a word.

Fifty and know the destiny.

In fact, he is not only old enough to know the destiny, but he is about to hear it in five years.

All kinds of occupational diseases left by sailing career and crossing Siberia haunted him like a devil.Stomach problems, broken teeth, ulcers... Every disease may recur and become serious during the voyage. He doubts whether he can come back from America alive.

But even so, facing Liu Yu's permission, he still showed excitement.

Great voyages are no longer driven by one or two talented captains.Peter was nice to him, so he hoped to repay, but repayment required a material basis.

The expedition ships built on Heilongjiang are very small. Russia does not have an ice-free port in the Pacific Ocean, and the endless Siberian taiga forests make Russia unable to build sufficiently large expedition ships at the mouth of Heilongjiang.The boats built by a group of second-hand shipwrights are barely usable.

After surrendering to Dashun, Dashun fulfilled Liu Yu's promise during the boundary survey negotiations, saying that his wife and children had come from Russia.

In addition, Dashun has almost countless ice-free ports in the Pacific Ocean.The expensively hired French technicians were also able to build better and bigger expedition ships than his previous one on Heilongjiang, now named "Aurora".

Big, for sailing, means survival.

Naval officer trainees who are not weaker than the young boys of the newly established Russian Academy of Sciences have a level of geometry and mathematics, which also allows him to have sufficient manpower to draw clear maps.

Mathematics, for exploration, means more accurate maps.

In the era when longitude could not be measured at sea without nautical clocks and astronomical almanacs, we could only learn how Vasco da Gama and Columbus searched for India, judge latitude according to the clues in literature, and sail along the latitude.

Although he believes that America can be reached no matter how the latitude changes, he needs to record islands where he can rest and replenish along the way.It is better to go along the fixed latitude.

"Mr. Bering, I can now fulfill the original promise. I think, if there was no battle on Heilongjiang, you might be dead now. The Aurora is still too small as an expedition ship. And For the understanding of scurvy, even if Europeans sailed around the world earlier, they may not know more than me.”

Liu Yu boasted about his strength, but Bai Ling couldn't refute it.

Indeed, regarding the matter of scurvy, Liu Yu's understanding surprised him. According to Liu Yu's method, scurvy is indeed no longer a big problem.

Equipped with larger expedition ships, which could accommodate more soybeans, wine with lemon juice, and tomatoes preserved in stoppers and wax seals, the onset of scurvy could be slowed to a certain extent.

"My lord, there is no need to consider the issue of fresh water on the Arctic route. The snow all over the sky and the ice on the islands are good sources of fresh water. I have to admit that your words are not wrong. If you relied on that expedition ship back then, Maybe I'll die of scurvy on some island. But this time, with two larger expedition ships going together, I think we'll be the first to discover the North Asian and American routes."

"From here to Vladivostok, and then from Vladivostok to the Heilongjiang Estuary, ships have traveled this route many times. We can start directly from the Heilongjiang Estuary for supplies, and continue northward after receiving supplies from the Kamchatka trade."

This was the route Bering planned to take, but Liu Yu objected to it.

"I don't think this time we should go north from Kamchatka. My planned route is to set sail from Vladivostok, draw the coastline of Ezo, and follow the wind belt and ocean currents directly to the Americas after resupply in Ezo."

"For Russia, a colder place means more furs. Even in the polar regions, you can still get high-quality goods like sea lion skins."

"But for Dashun, we don't need so many furs, at least not too much at this time."

He didn't want Bering to follow the historical route to find the Bering Strait, which was a helpless move in a sense.

It is not only because of Russia's thirst for fur, but also because Russia cannot obtain the Heilongjiang estuary and Vladivostok, which are more suitable for routes along Vladivostok, Hokkaido, and Alaska.

Liu Yu's plan for the Northeast is very clear.

Occupying the estuary, occupying strategic points, and emigrating further to the Americas are temporarily dispensable.

It is impossible for the emperor and the household government to pay for the official organization of immigration to the Americas, because it is of no benefit to them, and on the contrary it is a waste of money.With so much money, it is better to immigrate to the Western Regions and Northeast.

He spends money to organize, and it's okay to get three to five hundred people, and more than a thousand people to put in the eyes.

What's more, with this resource, it's better to keep your eyes on Nanyang. The United States is about to become independent. If you go to America after so long, you can't expect to do great things.

He stared at the sea of ​​whales, focusing on three places.

Vladivostok, connected to the Songhua River and Heilongjiang, blocks the possibility of seizure by others by sea, and directly controls northern Japan.

The Heilongjiang River Estuary occupies the Jiangkou as the foothold in the north.

Hokkaido, which controls Japan, serves as the departure point for future spontaneous immigration to the western Americas.

Just like the legendary weasel trapping the chicken, first draw a circle and occupy the edge of the circle, and the part inside the circle will naturally be your own.

He took out a known map of Northeast Asia, pointed to the very unclear location of Ezo and said: "The earth is a sphere, and the latitude here determines that the crossing distance is not very far."

"You can try to cross to the Americas from here, and you can choose to go south along the west coast of the Americas, from the Spanish port, and return to Luzon along the mature treasure ship route."

"You can choose iron for those who want to hold the warehouse, and you can exchange it with the local natives when you get there. You can also give you all the gold and silver. It will be easier to get to the port of Spain."

"If you want, you can try to find the mysterious southern continent from South America to the east."

"Both ships can be refitted to carry more cargo and supplies. Equipped with doctors, draftsmen, craftsmen. If the supplies are enough, then try it; if the supplies are not enough, you can return to Luzon from Mexico in Spain. "

The wind direction is not right now, and it is not the season suitable for long voyages.There were still a few months before the season suitable for long voyages, Liu Yu allowed Bering to modify the expedition ship according to his own wishes, trying to accommodate more people and supplies.

"If you choose to continue exploring, I hope you can bring back some rubber saplings and some cinchona saplings from South America. I don't really need anything else. If the crew wants to make a fortune, they can also hunt walruses in the north , refine oil, or break their teeth. These are expensive possessions that can go to the crew.”

Bering had heard of such things as quinine cream.Rubber saplings have also been heard in some European natural history works.Only then did Bering know that things like rubber trees need to be transplanted with saplings, rather than relying on seeds.

"If you were in Europe, you must be a famous naturalist. You really read a lot of books. Although most of them are half-knowledgeable. But now, natural history is a subject of half-knowledge."

He complimented Liu Yu, and Bai Ling was very satisfied with Liu Yu's arrangement.

Russia's previous support for him cost too little.With less money, many things cannot be done, at least not so smoothly.

This time Liu Yu gave him a lot of support, and the most expensive naval academy officer students gave a lot.

Bering is well aware of the dangers of nautical expeditions. Even with the mature trans-Pacific route, the sinking rate is still about 7%.

And to explore new routes, the sinking rate must be more than doubled.

In addition to the sinking rate, conflicts with the natives, accidents, reefs, supplies, etc., will cause the death rate to be around [-]%, even under the premise of spending a lot of money and preparing so well.

Bai Ling knew that Liu Yu regarded these military officers as gold and precious stones, and he had long known the reality of Liu Yu's lavish spending, but he knew that Liu Yu would not easily let these officer students take risks.

Therefore, this time, fifty military cadets were dispatched at once, equivalent to one-sixth of the personnel reserve of the Dashun Navy. This attitude moved Bai Ling greatly.

Just like a fledgling in a test flight, there are always various accidents before it flies to the clouds and dies in the dangerous test flight.

Talent, to some extent, is a consumable.

Those who survive will have a complete expedition sailing experience.

Maybe they are not suitable as naval officers, but those who survived will definitely be good as merchant captains in the future.

"Master Earl, please rest assured. I will try my best to bring these young men back safely. Including the two saplings you want. I am 54 years old this year, and perhaps this is my last voyage."

"It's like Columbus, an explorer, who died during the expedition, that's a good home. I, Sven, and Chelikov are all officials of Dashun now. If I die, they will continue Complete this expedition. Their level is also very high."

Navigators do not shy away from life and death, and they are people who fight with death.For them, death is just an accident that hinders the exploration, not the final destination.

When Liu Yu heard these words, he still encouraged Bai Ling.

"If there is enough confidence, if enough supplies are raised in Mexico and Peru, then go to the southern continent. If not, then return from Luzon."

"You are not too old, and you can still fight against the sea for a while. I heard that the British have already made a nautical clock. Maybe this time when you come back, I will spend 10 taels of silver to buy the nautical clock back from England. Perhaps you can make the most accurate nautical charts with latitude and longitude that are actually possible."

"So, come back when you can."

Given a great temptation, Liu Yu knew what this kind of explorer was craving for.Bering swallowed a mouthful of saliva, extremely excited by this temptation, nodded and said: "Yes, yes. I will try my best to come back alive."

(End of this chapter)