Cutting over the end of the Ming Dynasty: a dog-leg knife at the beginning

Chapter 450 Divine Fish
Under the guidance of the pilot, four sea-going ships loaded with soldiers and supplies slowly sailed out of the military port. The sea wind blew the sails of the ships, and the sea-going ships headed for the Liaodong Peninsula across the sea at a speed of seven knots.According to this speed, they can arrive in Liaodong within a day at most—or how could it be said that Huang Taiji picked the worst time to start the war?When not to fight, he chose to start the fight in the unlucky season when the wind direction and military ration reserves are most beneficial to the Ming army. It is a bit difficult for him not to be unlucky.

These four ships were the vanguard of Deng Lai's new army, a total of 1.9 hoplites.Since it is not an easy task for thousands of people to board the ship, it will take a while, and there are still a lot of supplies to be loaded on the ship. The biggest thing is the courage and skill of hand-to-hand combat. Yang Menglong decided to take [-] hoplites to go there first, stabilize Lushun, and buy time for the main force.Although these hoplites did not wear armor, their height of more than [-] meters and their bulging muscles still gave people a strong sense of oppression, and their fierce and indifferent eyes made the scalp tingle. What a terrifying scene it is to put on iron armor weighing dozens of kilograms and swing a huge ax weighing more than ten or twenty kilograms to kill the enemy.But at the moment, these big guys are all well-behaved. The local soldiers from Shandong stayed in the cabin with their eyes closed and rested, while those from Shaanxi, Henan, and Hebei lay on the side of the boat, admiring the beautiful scenery.For the local soldiers in Shandong, the sea is nothing new, but the soldiers from other places have never been to the sea, so they just think everything is very novel.

Due to a typhoon just blowing, today's weather is particularly good, the blue sky is like washing, the sun is shining brightly, and the sea is getting bluer and bluer.In the distance, groups of elegant elves stretched their tail fins and leaped high, flying far away, and then plunged into the sea like torpedoes, like soldiers being inspected.Many people cried out in amazement: "Look, flying fish, a flying fish!" They shouted so loudly that the sailors and Shandong soldiers rolled their eyes.The seagulls chased the warships, skimmed across the sea from time to time, and when they flew up again, there was a small fish in their mouths. The elegant and swift figure was amazing.The red lady was amazed, and said to Li Yan: "I didn't know how big the world is until I went out to sea!"

Li Yan said: "Isn't it... Hey, what kind of fish is that?"

The red lady looked in the direction of his fingers, and saw one was playing and cruising in front of the battleship. Its forehead was raised, and there was a sharp mouth and lip line extending to the eyes, pulling out a beautiful arc. Its body was smooth and smooth. The sea is extremely spiritual.Everyone also found the big white fish one after another, and they cried out in amazement. Some soldiers cheered and said, "Bring the firecracker quickly, don't let it escape!" Someone took a musket and aimed at the big fish, and the The sailor, who was basking in the sun on the deck, walked over with an angry face, and shouted sharply: "Put down the firecracker, don't hurt it!"

The soldier who had never been out to sea was stunned for a moment: "Why?"

The sailor said: "It is the patron saint of the sea, the incarnation of Mazu. I don't know how many times it has brought the ships lost in the sea back to the channel, or rescued the ships trapped in the reef! It is our patron saint. , Whoever hurts it is our enemy!"

Many soldiers in the coastal area also shouted, glaring at the guy who was about to hit with a firecracker. Obviously, this kind of big white fish is very sacred in their minds and cannot be harmed.The guy who originally wanted to improve his food was stunned for a moment when he saw the anger of the crowd, and he didn't want to fight with a musket.The sailors didn't care that much. They straightened their messy hair and saluted reverently to the naughty white fish. The white fish seemed to feel their sincerity, surfaced and turned to look at the people on board.Its eyes are big and bright, clear without any impurities, and its mouth is slightly opened, as if it is smiling. The smile is innocent and friendly, just like a child.This is a very spiritual fish. The soldiers who witnessed its smile were shocked for no reason. The soldiers who were about to shoot with muskets were ashamed.

The red lady asked in amazement: "What kind of fish is this? It's so cute!"

A rough voice came: "It is the patron saint of fishermen. Before we go out to sea, we first go to the Mazu Temple to pray to Mazu Empress, and then Mazu Empress will turn into a divine fish and guard us at sea. When we lose our way Sometimes, when we are trapped in the treacherous reefs, it will show up, guide us, and save us from danger."

The sound fell, people arrived, and a typical man who made a living at sea walked out with Yang Menglong.His name is Shen Tingyang, the boss of the Shachuan Gang, and a native of Suzhou. The hard life at sea has honed this Jiangnan talent and made him strong and tough. There is no trace of the unique weakness of Jiangnan Water Town in him.He supported the mast with his hands, looked at the dolphin crawling around the hull, and smiled from the bottom of his heart, as if seeing an old friend.He smiled and said, "It's Bailang. Thanks to it, we escaped a storm at sea last time."

Li Yan asked in surprise: "Do you know it?"

Shen Tingyang said: "I know thirty or forty divine fish in this sea area, and each of them is our good friend...Master Yang, I hope you restrain your subordinates and don't hurt these divine fish."

Yang Menglong hummed and called, "Send me a semaphore!"

The soldier in charge of issuing the semaphore asked, "What?"

Yang Menglong said: "I will let anyone who dares touch a dolphin squat naked for two months in confinement!"

The soldier muttered: "This semaphore is really difficult!"

After the semaphore was hung out, everyone calmed down and didn't dare to think about the dolphins anymore. They just leaned on the mast of the ship and admired the playful posture of the dolphins.At this time, several dolphins came swimming over, chasing and playing in the sea. A little dolphin was probably curious about these ships, and stopped to look at them from time to time. With that sweet smile, the cuteness instantly turned into a large piece.Shen Tingyang smiled and said, "Shenyu is talking to us."

The red lady asked curiously, "What did it say?"

Shen Tingyang said: "It said that the weather has been calm these days, and you can sail at sea with confidence."

The red lady looked at the cheerful and playful figure of the dolphins and exclaimed: "What a group of spiritual fish!"

Yang Menglong touched Shen Tingyang: "Boss Shen..."

Shen Tingyang said: "Don't dare to be the one, just call me by my name directly."

Yang Menglong said carelessly: "Why are we being polite? Let me tell you, Boss Shen, you have been living at sea for many years. How is your business?"

Shen Tingyang said with a smile: "Thanks to my lord, I dare not say that I am making money every day, but at least I am making a small profit."

Yang Menglong said: "But I don't think you have many boats..."

Shen Tingyang stopped laughing, sighed, and said a little depressed: "The imperial court doesn't pay much attention to shipping. Shen has limited financial resources and can't get support, so he can only make small troubles."

Yang Menglong looked disdainful: "What's the point of making small troubles? A man should either stop doing it or do it. If he wants to do it, he must do it vigorously and earth-shatteringly. Even if he fails in the end, he will not leave any regrets!" Patted Shen Tingyang wide shoulder, "I see that you have exquisite bones, full of heaven, and absolutely extraordinary. Are you interested in fighting with me?"

Shen Tingyang smiled wryly, why does this guy always make people think he is joking?He asked implicitly: "I don't know if my lord can use it for me?"

Yang Menglong said: "My Denglai Navy has more than a hundred warships. It is strong and lacks everything. The only thing missing is an experienced and daring boss like you. Don't be such a bad guy. When you come to the Denglai Navy How about you help me bring this fleet up?"

Shen Tingyang chuckled: "The Denglai Navy does have more than a hundred warships, but I don't know how many of them can go to sea?" He was telling the truth. The Daming Navy is just like the Army. Pirates can't even beat them. For a navy that claims to have a thousand warships, it's fine if there are a hundred warships that can still move.

Yang Menglong roared: "I have spent a lot of money to repair those warships, and every one of them can go to sea to fight!" He gestured with his hands, "I also plan to use steel as the keel to build several invincible giant ships with a length of 28 feet. Install powerful heavy guns on it as the flagship of the fleet... Do you know our naval guns? Four inches and [-] times the diameter, can shoot shells ten miles away, and are equipped with flowering bombs and incendiary bombs. It's over! Put dozens of these giant cannons on the giant ship, and just one salvo can blast the entire port into a sea of ​​flames... How about it, are you interested in commanding such a navy? I am very sincere !"

He spoke very sincerely, but his baby face and his unreliable reputation made it hard for Shen Tingyang to believe that he would spend money to build such a navy.No way, the Navy is a famous gold-swallowing behemoth. Every time it goes to sea, it consumes a large amount of supplies and a huge amount of rigging, canvas, wood, tung oil, asphalt and other materials. The maintenance cost of the battleship is even more astronomical. A large fleet is a huge challenge for any country.Everyone knows that the United Kingdom is one of the best maritime powers. It has spanned five continents and four oceans for more than two hundred years. After defeating the Spanish Armada, Britain disbanded their navy in the first place?For a whole century after that, Britain was busy with the civil war and did not expand a step outside. It was not until the completion of the Industrial Revolution that it began to dominate the world.In the final analysis, the navy can afford too much military expenditure, and the national strength of the United Kingdom at that time could not afford it at all.Therefore, the financial department and the navy are deadly rivals. The financial department will never make ends meet for the navy, and the navy will always complain that the financial department is stingy.The captains of many warships are in fact the bosses of a large group of crew members under them. They have to pay their own wages to the crew. Many warships operate in debt. If they do not get enough money to go to sea, they cannot pay the sailors. There will be riots; if the bank loan is not paid, the captain will have to jump into the sea... In short, the navy is a loss-making product, and the Ming Dynasty is not willing to support it. Shen Tingyang does not believe that this little kid is willing to spend So much money to build a navy!
Yang Menglong felt very depressed, he was an honest child, why didn't anyone believe him?He is sincere!The depressed little General Yang looked to the south and muttered: "If only my Decepticon and Optimus Prime were here... as long as I let them show their hands, I'm not afraid that you won't kneel in front of me and sing conquest!" , honestly be my little brother..."

More than 2000 miles away, two sailing warships equipped with the latest rear-mounted rifled guns that Yang Menglong placed high hopes on—the Decepticon and Optimus Prime with a displacement of more than [-] tons are sailing at full sail, rushing day and night. to the north.Their firepower is not powerful, each battleship only has ten naval guns, but the range and accuracy are astonishing, and the rate of fire is even more astonishing.The two captains are full of ambition, full of self-confidence as if they were pumped out, and this confidence comes from the superior performance of their warships—the remodeled warships can run at a high speed of twelve knots, which is faster than ordinary sailboats Five knots, this is an astonishingly high speed. You must know that the speed of the first generation steamer equipped with a steam engine was only twelve knots.And the powerful naval guns made them even more proud. They couldn't think of any warship in the world that could withstand a volley of their own ten naval guns!

However, what makes them a little depressed is that they don't understand the meaning of the weird ship names "Deceptor" and "Optimus Prime" at all...

(End of this chapter)