open sea

Chapter 639
The generals and officers of the Beiyang Army at all levels were busy the night before, and officials at all levels of the military government gathered together in the morning of the next day.

The number of ships needed for the Eastern Expedition is not as many as Hei Yunlong said, but they do need a lot of ships, at least four hundred, and they are sea ships.

The young head of the Beiyang Branch of the Ministry of War also felt a headache about this matter.

"Chen Shuai of the Ming Dynasty, it is not difficult to raise [-] ships from the private sector, but it is difficult to raise [-] sea-going ships. The northern coast of our country is mostly fishing boats and civilian ships. Even if they go to sea, they only sail along the coast. There are very few sea-going ships. To use ships, if you need [-] or [-] ships, you can transfer the straight ships to the south, and if you need [-] or [-] ships, you can transfer the ships to Fujian.

"If the ships are transferred forcibly, the people below intend to please them. Even if enough ships are transferred, it may not be useful."

What Wang Yingjiao said, Chen Mu couldn't be more clear. Except for the thriving maritime merchants and coastal navy in Ming Dynasty, there are no seagoing ships.

"Don't worry, we don't need enough ships from the beginning. As long as the submerged can ask the Ministry of War to transfer a hundred ships, it will be enough."

"Hundred ships?"

Wang Yingjiao's originally embarrassing expression calmed down a little, and he said solemnly: "If there are only a hundred ships, the officials will be recruited as many as they are!"

Chen Mu had his own plan, to call for a hundred sea ships from the imperial court, and then borrow more than a hundred sea ships from Fujian-Guangzhou joint prosperous merchants, make up two hundred ships, and then send a small-armored warship and other ships to each of the coastal provinces. The fleet he belongs to can make up enough sea ships for the Eastern Expedition.

As long as there are enough ships for Beiyang's first phase of recruiting troops and sailing eastward, the second batch of ships will be ready to sail.

"Order to the shipyards in Fujian, Guangxi and Nanyang to make a batch of lucky boats, and the Dongyang military government will buy them at market prices. By the way, Lin Daogan from Tangmin Island also asked him to build some boats. The second batch of boats The problem of the team can be easily solved." Chen Mu cupped his hands to Ye Mengxiong, the head of the household department, and said, "These matters need to be more troublesome when Mr. Chen sets sail."

Ye Mengxiong bowed his head and nodded, and said: "The rice and grain needed for the Eastern Expedition is huge, and it has been purchased in bulk from major grain merchants in Zhili in the north. It is not difficult to make up the first batch of military funds needed, and we will also buy dried meat and fish in the future." Dried, tea and other military resources, during the march can also follow the example of Yongle's fleet sailing to the west to grow bean sprouts on board for the soldiers to eat."

"Bean sprouts?"

Chen Mu nodded slowly, and said: "I know about bean sprouts. When I was in Nanyang, there were often soldiers who were greedy and sent some bean sprouts on board to eat. However, the Eastern voyage is no more than the Nanyang and Western Seas. There are more times when sailing along the coast, and the offshore When there is little time, fresh water can be replenished anytime and anywhere when drilling wells on the shore, but China Eastern Airlines is different."

"Eastern Airlines spends less time on shore and more time off shore. If there is not enough fresh water, it has to deviate to find land. However, the northern part is mostly permafrost and ice sheets in subsequent seasons. It is more difficult to germinate bean sprouts at sea than on land. It only takes three or four days on land. It takes seven or eight days at sea, and although it does not consume much fresh water, it can keep people alive when necessary."

"However, in the first half of the journey, between Dagukou and Baihusuo for four thousand miles, soldiers can grow bean sprouts on board, and the supplies along the way are fairly stable."

As soon as Chen Mu finished talking about this matter, Zhao Shizhen on the other side took out a letter from his cuff, handed it to Chen Mu and said, "Chen Shuai, this is a letter from the Nanyang Defense Weapons Bureau in Jingyunli this year, and also sent a few letters to Beiyang. A cannon, it seems to be a sample cannon, and the cannon has been shipped into the warehouse."

"Oh? A sample gun?"

Chen Mu took over the letter, which was sent by Guan Zunban of the Nanyang Armament Bureau. In the letter, he said that the casting process of General Zhenshuo's cannon has matured, and the researchers of the Ordnance Department of the Navy Lecture Hall took General Zhenshuo's cannon as the prototype. Referring to the types of Portuguese and Western cannons, several types of artillery suitable for different battles were further manufactured. During the Beijing Games, several samples were sent to Beiyang for him to have a look.

At the end of the letter, Guan Zunban carefully mentioned that the Naval Lecture Hall changed the artillery specifications left by Chen Mu with the weight of the shell as the standard, and instead determined the shape with parameters such as the width of the barrel, which was more detailed.

The corners of Chen Mu's mouth curled up when he was reading the letter... The Chen family's poison is getting less and less!

Among the types of guns sent by the Nanyang Armament Bureau this time, there is naturally a larger-caliber ship-used General Zhenshuo Long Cannon. This is actually the same as the previous artillery, but because of its long diameter, it is called a long gun. Corresponding to it is naturally the general Zhenshuo short gun for ships.

In addition, there is the Fran machine that the Ming Empire could not change. The Fran machine type Zhenshuo general gun used by ships has a larger caliber than long guns of the same weight. The original intention of this general gun is to quickly and mass To play Sanzi.

In Lu Ting's design of the Naval Lecture Hall, a large number of ship-used Francophones should be placed on the uppermost deck, spraying scatter during close combat, and killing the enemy's navy.

"This reminded me, send this letter and the sample cannons to the Beiyang Military Weapons Bureau, let the Military Weapons Bureau make a batch first, and then send the imitated samples to the Xuanfu, let the Xuanfu Military Weapons Bureau design accordingly, Setting the standard for future Army artillery."

Although Ye Mengxiong is the head of the Bureau of the Household Department, this does not prevent him from caring about the military. He asked Chen Mu: "Chen Shuai, compared with the big Xiyi ship, my ship may not have an advantage in naval battles. There are only a few dozen shark warships in the fleet, neither as many nor as big as other ships... Once there is a battle, what should we do?"

"I thought about it."

Chen Mu asked Ye Mengxiong to sit down first, and then said: "In a short period of time, it is too late to build larger ships everywhere, and we can no longer wait for the new ship to be built in Beiyang, at least it will be next year."

"On the one hand, let the shipyards prepare to build larger shark ships. At least [-] material shark ships must be used as the main gunship, loaded with more artillery, and strengthen the thickness of the ship; strive to have [-] such large ships next year. America."

"But this year, I'm afraid we can only use a few [-] Liuding Liujia ships as a facade. I have analyzed the situation in North America. There are only local people and the forces of Spain and Portugal. In a short period of time, Try to avoid angering them, and when the third fleet arrives, you should be able to have a decent fleet."

"A big ship may not be effective. Although the shape of the ship has not developed to a larger size in the past two years, the ship's guns have been replaced many times. The heavier guns can still give us the ability to threaten their giant ships. Even if we have to go to war as a last resort, as long as We won't be at a disadvantage if they don't have more than ten big ships like that."

Landing in the Americas is really a race for the throne.

England, France, Spain, Portugal, and other countries all scrambled for territory in the New World, established ports and commercial stations, and set up one fortress after another.

Chen Mu recalled the selected landing coast on the sand table, and the corner of his mouth revealed an indelible joy.

The Ming Dynasty will also occupy a place there!
(End of this chapter)