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

Chapter 735 Never Back Down

Another big surprise for Yang Menglong from the arsenal is that the mortar in the true sense has finally been produced... The large-scale application of thunder mercury and the improvement of spring technology have enabled soldiers operating long-barreled mortars to finally get rid of the mortar that is inserted into the barrel. The annoying job of stuffing gunpowder cannons, now you only need to put the long-tailed shells into the barrel, then pull the matchlock, release the hammer to slam the primer of the shells, and the shells will scream and fly towards the enemy, which is very convenient .Although the technology is not very good enough, the hammer can only be used instead of the lighter firing pin, but compared with the previous long barrel mortar, it is already as strong as heaven!The most important thing is that the whole gun is made of steel and is very light. A few people can disassemble a 120mm mortar and carry it away. How about a 120mm cannon?
Yang Menglong patted the black mortar excitedly, and said to the factory manager: "You have made a great contribution! With this sharp weapon, our army can get powerful artillery support even in the mountains. A few of these cannons might turn the tide of a battle and save the lives of thousands of soldiers!"

The director of the factory said: "This kind of thunderbolt gun is fast in shooting speed, small in size, light in weight, and simple in structure. It can be said that it has many advantages, but its power is not great. It is far worse than howitzers. significance!"

Yang Menglong shook his head: "No, although its lethality is weak, its deployment is very flexible. After dismantling it, a few soldiers can carry it and run all over the mountain. This is something that no howitzer can do. This is very important. You allocate some manpower and machines, and then set up a branch factory to specialize in the production of this... oh, you call it the Thunderbolt Cannon, right? Build a branch factory to specialize in the production of this kind of Thunderbolt Cannon!"

The factory director was a little confused. He had personally tested this kind of gun. It was easy to operate, had a fast rate of fire, and was strong and durable, but its power could only be said to be average. He believed that as the howitzer technology became increasingly mature, the 85mm howitzer's With the weight further reduced, this kind of lightning cannon should be withdrawn from the equipment list. Why does Yang Menglong pay so much attention to it?
Yang Menglong thought for a while, and then added: "By the way, after it goes into mass production, you should try to develop a smaller-caliber thunderbolt cannon, [-]mm or [-]mm. It doesn't matter if the range is shorter. The important thing is that it must be light, Durable and cheap, the troops will need a lot of equipment in the future, it is too expensive and everyone can't afford it!"

The factory director couldn't help but ask: "Is this kind of gun really worth mass production?"

Yang Menglong said with a smile: "You have never been in the army, so you don't know its value... just do what I say!"

The factory manager had no choice but to do so. After Yang Menglong left, he allocated manpower and machines to set up a branch factory, which was responsible for manufacturing and improving this cheap lightning cannon.And what Yang Menglong said was absolutely right, this lightweight artillery was very popular after it was installed, and the orders flew in like snowflakes, and the whole factory couldn't even turn around...

After inspecting the gun factory, Yang Menglong stopped by the explosives factory which was several kilometers away from the gun factory.

Dynamite production factories are producing explosives around the clock.At present, the application of new explosives is becoming more and more widespread. Mining and road construction are inseparable from it. Sichuan even uses it to blow up the treacherous reefs on the Yangtze River waterway to clear the waterway. Therefore, the business of the explosives factory is booming. .Shiploads of nitric acid, cotton, tar, flour, and yellow phosphorus were sent over, and then turned into collodion, collodion, picric acid, nitroglycerin, explosives, etc., which are necessary for murder and robbery.Less powerful but very safe dynamites like dynamite were used to blast rocks, and gunwool, collodion, and picric acid were kept in arsenals, gunwool was gun propellant, and picric acid was packed into Cannonballs and grenades become life-saving weapons inside, and collodion... store it first and take it out when needed!
"We have ten tons of cotton in stock right now!" Pang Xia was a little distressed, "We must use up some of it, it's dangerous and takes up space to pile it up in the warehouse..."

Yang Menglong smiled: "Don't worry, I will take care of it."

For some reason, Pang Xia always felt that this guy's smile was a bit cold!
Generally speaking, Yang Menglong is very satisfied with the results of this inspection. His military factory already has a fairly strong production capacity, and has also accumulated a considerable amount of ammunition inventory, which is enough for him to fight a big battle.The satisfied big boss once again rewarded those craftsmen and skilled workers who worked hard, and then he left with satisfaction and went to the governor's office in Huguang, where Fang Yizhi, Fang Kongxuan, Li Yan and others were waiting for him.Although he is the Governor of Huguang, he said the same thing, but for such a major event as the use of troops by the Zheng Group, these few people still need to get their consent.The devil knows how long this war will last in the vast sea once the war starts, and the consumption of dozens of warships is astonishing. Yang Menglong asked himself that his wallet can't bear it!
When they came to the Governor's Yamen, the two big figures Fang Yizhi and Fang Kongxuan and nearly ten prefects from Hunan and Hubei were already waiting for him.Everyone didn't exchange too many pleasantries, and went straight to the point.Fang Yizhi had already learned about Yang Menglong's decision from Li Yan, and knew that he had made up his mind, but he still wanted to persuade him: "Do you really want to use troops? Can't you try to solve the problem in other ways?"

Yang Menglong shrugged helplessly, and said: "If other methods work, I will definitely not resort to military means. The problem is that the trouble we encountered this time can only be solved by military means." Huan said: "At present, maritime trade is booming, and the scale is getting bigger and bigger. With the friendship between Daming and Taixi, more and more western fleets come to Daming to do business. One can imagine the profits! Huguang wants To become truly prosperous and strong, one must do a good job in maritime trade and even attract investment, and Guangdong has a natural advantage in this area. To put it bluntly, Guangdong is the gateway for Huguang to go to the sea! The Zheng Group is a huge rock blocking the gate. If we don’t move it away, we won’t even be able to leave the door! At present, Guangdong maritime merchants have just shown signs of rising, and they are unceremoniously robbing Guangdong cargo ships, detaining crew members, and even supporting Japanese pirates to harass the coastal areas of Guangdong. It is simply lawless! "

Fang Kongxuan said: "Even if this is the case, we can still go to the imperial court and let the imperial court punish Zheng Zhilong, an outlaw! Champion, you are certainly an invincible general, invincible and invincible, but I am afraid that you will not be able to fight against the enemy. Solve the Zheng family in a short period of time? The people in Fujian and Guangdong are already suffering enough. If the war breaks out, they will be displaced and their families will be destroyed! This official believes that we should restrain ourselves a little, so as not to suffer the people!"

Yang Menglong said: "Let the imperial court punish Zheng Zhilong? If the imperial court can punish him, why bother to recruit and assign Quanzhou, Xiamen and other cities to his local territory? Zheng Zhilong has 20 subordinates, and he doesn't take the imperial court seriously at all. On the contrary, the imperial court is afraid of it." What's more, Zheng Zhilong dared to send troops to harass the coastal areas of Guangdong, and he was backed by some high-ranking officials in the court. It's simply fanciful to expect the court to punish him!" He paused, looked around the crowd, and said word by word: " There is no other way but to use military means to solve it! If we take this step back, those mad dogs will think that we are easy to bully, and they will pounce on us desperately and tear us to pieces!"

Fang Yizhi was silent for a long time, finally sighed, and asked: "Is there any chance of winning?"

Yang Menglong said: "I never fight a battle that has no chance of winning."

Fang Yizhi said: "Zheng's name is the general soldier of Fujian. He is actually a pirate. He dominates the sea, plunders and extorts recklessly, and earns tens of millions of taels a year. It is a great thing for the country and the people... If there is no other way, we can only solve them through military means. Champion, what are you going to do?"

Yang Menglong said: "Not long ago, the emperor allowed Heluo's new army to expand its army by 2000 people. I plan to recruit 2000 people from the militia and Miao people in one month and let them stay in Huguang. Han Peng led 2000 people. People started from Guangzhou, went to Fujian along the coastline, and went straight to Quanzhou and Xiamen. Half of Xue Siming's army stayed in Heluo, and the other half went to Denglai to wait for orders. After the navy defeated Zheng's fleet, they immediately went south to cooperate with Han Peng Pull out the stronghold established by the Zheng family in Fujian!"

Fang Yizhi frowned: "I have no doubt that the new army can easily defeat Zheng's in Fujian and capture Quanzhou and Xiamen, but can our navy defeat Zheng's fleet at sea? Zheng has more than 3000 ships Ship!"

Mentioning Zheng's huge fleet, a trace of worry flashed across the brows of everyone present.Zheng Zhilong started his career as a pirate, he climbed up step by step from a small leader, and finally became the overlord of the South China Sea, accumulating extremely powerful strength, the navy of Guangdong and Fujian provinces made him lose his temper, and finally forced him to The imperial court had no choice but to pinch his nose to appease him, and let him continue to work as a pirate in the name of the imperial court!There is no strict distinction between warships and merchant ships these days. That is to say, Zheng Zhilong’s more than 3000 ships can all be used in naval warfare. With such terrifying strength, it took only two years to form an army, and only forty or fifty warships were boarded. Does Lai Shuishi have any hope of winning?

Yang Menglong responded to everyone's concerns with high confidence: "I have never doubted the combat effectiveness of my army!"

at the same time……

A few more merchant ships from Guangdong Maritime Merchant entered the port of Xiamen dejectedly under the escort of the Zheng family's fleet, and all the goods worth 10,000+ taels of silver became the Zheng family's spoils of war.A group of sailors happily carried several boxes of the most exquisite goods onto the trestle, and said to Zheng Zhilong who was waiting here: "My lord, these Guangdong barbarians have brought us another 10,000+ taels of silver!"

Zheng Zhilong squatted down, picked up a few goods, looked at them with interest, and said, "Yes, they are all very valuable goods! Contact the buyers in Jiangnan and sell them for a [-]% discount!"

Immediately someone behind him responded: "Okay!"

"As for these guys..." Zheng Zhilong pointed to the frightened Cantonese sailors, "Can they be thrown into the sea to feed the fish! I want to see if they are really not afraid of death, and dare to ignore me again and again warning, set sail to sea!"

Zheng Sen couldn't help but said: "Father, is it necessary to do this? They all paid protection fees to our Zheng family. We not only robbed their goods, but also took their lives. What will the sea merchants in other places think? "

Zheng Zhilong said calmly: "I don't care what they think. In short, I don't want to see another sea ship sailing from Guangzhou, bypassing us and directly trading with Xiyi, even if it pays us protection fees!" Touching Zheng Sen's shoulder, he said in a deep and deep voice: "Sen'er, you have to remember that there can only be one king in this sea!"

Yang Menglong and Li Yan analyzed many reasons why Zheng Zhilong wanted to kill Guangdong maritime merchants. Most of them guessed right. He has the right to maintain his monopoly on Daming's maritime trade, but neither Yang Menglong nor Li Yan have guessed the deeper reason:
There can only be one king in this sea!

In East Asia, where maritime trade is developed, maritime hegemony means infinite wealth.In order to monopolize the maritime trade in the East China Sea and the South China Sea, Zheng Zhilong can brazenly fight against the Guangdong and Fujian navy forces, beating them to the brink of death, or he can kill all his former sworn brothers after defecting to Ming Dynasty. In order to preserve his own status, he Dare to do anything.He started killing Guangdong maritime merchants because Yang Menglong set out to rebuild the Guangdong shipyard last year, trying to build warships with larger tonnage and more powerful firepower in Guangdong. Hegemony, he must nip all dangers in the bud!
With so many merchant ships being robbed and maritime merchants being killed, Guangdong maritime merchants should seriously consider whether it is worth supporting that bird feather champion Hou to reorganize the Guangdong Navy, right?If you still can't change your mind, I don't mind sending a fleet to Guangzhou to help you open up with naval guns!
In all honesty, Zheng Zhilong still admires Yang Menglong, and there are really too few people who can make Jiannu suffer repeatedly.However, now he has come to the opposite side of Yang Menglong. This is also due to his interests. When he put batches of Guangdong maritime merchants and sailors into sacks and threw them into the sea, he had no psychological burden. Yang Menglong, the means of putting pressure on the whole of Guangdong: If you are sensible, give up your plan to reorganize the Guangdong Navy, otherwise you will never have peace!
Yang Menglong may not have really seen through his intentions, but this is not important. The important thing is that the Denglai Navy has already sharpened its sword in the Bohai Sea.

The South China Sea is about to usher in a terrible bloodbath!
———— "The end of this volume"

(End of this chapter)