Forty-eight years of Qianlong

Chapter 453 Poke a hornet's nest
John Jervis thought very well, but he couldn't help being surprised when he saw the flames continuously spewing out from the humble merchant ship.

The bombardment technology of the British Navy was considered the best in the 3th century, especially after the appearance of the Caron cannon, the average firing speed of the gunners was two rounds per [-] minutes.In the era of muzzle-loading guns, this was already the pinnacle.

"They use breech-loading guns! Only breech-loading guns can shoot at such speed! My God! Their technology has reached such a point!"

John Jervis was justifiably surprised.

It is said that from the [-]th to the [-]th century, almost all field guns and naval guns in Europe were breech-loading guns, including the mother-and-child guns called "Francis Machines".Early breech-loading guns used a wedge breech assembly to seal the breech. However, due to the leakage of gunpowder gas, the breech-loading guns gradually replaced the breech-loading guns.

With the gradual improvement of metallurgical technology and the appearance of boring machines driven by steam engines, the weight of various front-mounted artillery has been reduced.Those long-barreled guns larger than six inches or over 32 pounds were converted to coastal defense guns due to their slow firing rate and heavy weight.

However, the large-scale use of explosive bombs in maritime operations will take another 40 years. At present, explosive bombs in European countries are all used in mortars.Because of the safety hazards of explosive bombs, even in naval battles, small gunboats are dispatched alone to fight.

Historically, it was not until the late nineteenth century, with the continuous development of metallurgy and material technology, and the improvement of rifling, gunpowder, cartridges, cylindrical shells, and thread-shaped breech blocks, that breech-loading guns reappeared on the stage of war.

The Beihai Navy's 75mm gun is just imitating the spiral breech breech technology of another time and space, while the D30 is a semi-automatic vertical wedge type; with Beihai Town's existing machining capabilities, it cannot be manufactured at all.

For John Jervis, what it means to get this technology is self-evident.In this time and space, its role is comparable to the nuclear weapons of later generations, and the British Empire will be invincible in the world no matter in land or sea warfare.

Uh, not counting the North Navy.

So John Jervis immediately suggested to Hardanger to modify the tactics, let the four sailing ships work together to attack the flame-spitting Beihai No. Artillery fire.

"Reason? I need a reasonable explanation!" Hadanga was puzzled by the sudden adjustment of tactics.

"Cannon! Admiral, the enemy's quick cannon is the perfect explanation. As long as we get that kind of cannon, whether it is the Qing Empire or the British Empire, the military strength will be greatly improved! Believe me, your Great Emperor I will definitely reward you!"

Hardang'a understood it as soon as he heard it.The artillery of the Beihai Navy was too powerful, and the imperial court suffered countless times.If you can get a sample and take it back for imitation, the strategic situation outside the customs will definitely change!

So he immediately ordered his men to send signals to the ships to adjust the attack target.

However, the British thought very beautifully, but the fact gave John Jervis a big mouth.

32磅卡龙炮的最大有效射程是1087码，也就是994米。而且由于炮架的结构，其最大仰角也只能抬高5度。即便是68磅卡龙炮，其最大有效射程也就是1500码（1371米）。

In the actual naval battle, the British Navy always shoots within 500 meters of the target, so as to cause the maximum damage at one time and force the opponent to withdraw from the battle.

The problem is that Beihai No. 1.5 is not an ordinary sailing ship, but a motor sailing ship.As the captain, Guo Xuexian had already seen that the enemy was approaching him at this time, so the diesel motor of the Beihai No. 2 roared, and the bow of the ship turned westward. Keep the distance from each other at about [-] to [-] nautical miles.

After several 68-pound heavy guns in the Qing fleet tried to fire a few times, they found that they couldn't reach the Beihai No. [-] in the distance, and they could only look at the ocean and sigh.

And Guo Xuexian kept in mind what Deng Fei said in the naval cadet class, keep 1.5 to 2 nautical miles with the enemy, take advantage of his speed, and fight them in circles!
Now the British are all stupid, they have already seen the difference of Beihai No. [-].The four battleships were like stupid elephants being teased back and forth by a cheetah.

Sailing against the wind is faster than sailing with the wind, is there any reason for this?God, I have a report for you
In the [-]th century, the Dutch engaged in melee combat at close range. Later, "line combat" became the basic tactical principle of the navy.The purpose of grabbing the downwind position and the "T head" is to cut off the enemy's retreat route, and then attack one part of it with concentrated firepower, knock down the masts and sails of the enemy's ship, and force the enemy's array to collapse.

Just like what Horatio Nelson did in the naval battle of Saints Island seven years ago, he interspersed and flanked the middle of the French formation, causing heavy losses to the French.

There is no problem with John Jervis' tactics, but he must be able to catch up with his opponent.
On the Thunder God on the other side, the cargo ship sent by the Qing army in Fuzhou had already been set on fire, and the sailors on the ship jumped into the sea holding a plank and swam to the fleet behind; but almost one-third of the people disappeared. the sea.

"Fire!" The four heavy machine guns on the starboard deck spit out flames, smashing the fireboat to pieces as the waves rose and fell.

With a "swish", a flame burst out from the deck of the Thor, and a visible fusiform object hit a fire boat, and then exploded with a "boom", a ball of fire jumped from the sea surface The fireboat was instantly shattered into pieces.

What stunned the Qing army in Fuzhou the most was that there were still people holding two large pipes on the bow of the Thunder God, spraying water as thick as an arm towards the approaching fire boat.In a blink of an eye, the fire boat was soaked inside and out, and the raging flames just disappeared.

"ol!!"

The Qing army in Fuzhou immediately became furious, how can this nima fight!

After a while, the heavy machine guns of the fireships pointed their guns at the fleet behind.As jets of water rose up from the sea, the Qing troops on several bird boats saw the water jets coming towards them, and the two cannons at the bow were shot into flames; the Qing troops on the deck suddenly fell into hell , Broken limbs and flesh and blood swayed in the air.

Immediately afterwards, the hard sail on the mast was ignited by incendiary bombs, and soon the mast became a big torch.The living Qing soldiers and sailors threw away their weapons and jumped into the water to escape.

"Withdraw! Quickly withdraw!" The deputy captain who led the fleet yelled at the top of his voice, and the miserable sound of gongs sounded on all the ships.

On the "Dinghai", when Admiral Hardang'a saw the Fuzhou fleet start to retreat, he knew that the situation was over.

The white sails of the four sailing warships were swollen, and they couldn't catch up with Beihai No. [-] even if they tried their best.The artillery on the opposing ship kept firing, causing a mess on the four warships.There was even a shell that penetrated the gun window on the second floor of the "Fubo" and exploded, destroying two Carron guns on the spot, causing heavy casualties in the gun deck.

"Mingjin, retreat!" Hadang'a decided not to listen to the British any more, and if the fight continued, all five ships would be destroyed; at least they could be used as a fort when they returned to Dagukou.

As a result, the Qing fleet retreated southwestward under the turbulence of the north wind.On the Beihai No. [-], because the shells had almost been fired, Guo Xuexian immediately adjusted the course and drove towards the vicinity of the Thunder God.

On the deck of Thor, the two D30s were still spewing flames unhurriedly.From time to time, the front, rear, left, and right sides of the Qing army fleet will rise up water columns from the explosion.

In the cockpit, after receiving Guo Xuexian's report, Deng Fei said to an officer of the Marine Battalion: "Record, send a report to the staff. The Qing army attacked our side in two ways at 11 o'clock in the morning on November 7th. Fleet. The Qing army dispatched five sailing battleships, nearly a hundred ships of various sizes, and the battle lasted four to 7 minutes, and they have all been repelled. The ammunition consumption is very large, and I request the next step."

Hong Liangji and Jiang Fan on the side were excited when they heard this.Jiang Fan was even more excited. He was already imagining the scene of the Beihai Navy landing and conquering Tianjin.

Half an hour later, Zhao Xin, who was in Beihai Town, saw Deng Fei's telegram.He shook his head in confusion, trying to figure out what Qianlong was thinking.Do you really think that with a sailing battleship, you can wrestle with the Beihai Navy?What are you thinking!

If so, don't blame yourself for being rude.

Zhao Xin immediately called Whale Harbor and informed Jinglei to "prepare the vehicle", and asked the staff to inform Thor and Beihai No. [-] to return to Lushun Port and wait there.

A [-]-ton freighter does not just turn the key and give its feet oil. It needs a series of preparatory work such as power supply preparation, clock calibration, car clock, rudder alignment, main engine warm-up, preparation of various power systems, cranking, ramming, and test run. , at least several hours to complete.

Then, he drew up another order, signed it after checking it was correct, and asked Yin Bingwei to send it to the training base on the other side of the river and hand it over to Wang Yuanfang.The above content is to order Wang Yuanfang to act as an agent of Beihai Town's military management affairs after he leaves.

In fact, this is just a formality, because the North Navy's staff and logistics departments are still controlled by themselves.Without the order of the staff, no one soldier can be mobilized; without his own order, no one can take out ammunition supplies from the logistics warehouse.

Then, he signed a few more orders: [-]. The second regiment transferred to Jiuzang (all the officers of the regiments and battalions had been transferred before) immediately packed up and received the weapons and ammunition of the two bases. [-]. Transfer Chen Jishan to temporarily act as the commander of the guard battalion, and travel with him; [-]. Order Liji to open the logistics warehouse, let the second regiment and the guard battalion receive ammunition supplies, and transfer a batch of shells to the ship.

After the military preparations were completed, he made several phone calls to Chen Qingsong, Yu Deli and others, explained the situation and gave instructions.Next, he sent telegrams to Liu Sheng, Fan Tong, Wu Siyu, Cao Peng, and Huji's headquarters stationed in Hunchun, informing them of the situation on Changxing Island and his next plan.

After all this was done, it was already afternoon.Zhao Xin recalled it for a while, and called Chen Jishan again. Only then did he feel that everything was arranged properly, and he walked out of the office and went straight home.

He went directly to the backyard of Sanjin, and saw A Miao holding Duofu in the sun on the steps, and a few kittens in the yard were chasing a pompom to play.Seeing Zhao Xin coming in, several kittens meowed and rushed over to surround him.

Zhao Xin gently pushed the kittens away with his feet, but the little ones simply hugged his feet.Seeing this, A Miao came over and hugged the cats away one by one, saying "Let's play together".Zhao Xin went to the steps and touched Duofu's head, so he turned over conveniently, revealing his fluffy white belly.

(Come and serve the King!)
After entering the house, Mama Zhao's loud voice rang out in the west room: "Close the door quickly, wash your hands after teasing the cat."

Zhao Xin smiled helplessly, and after washing his hands, he entered the west room with thick curtains.Looking up, she saw Shen Xuan sitting on the bed with a big belly, Zhao's mother was also sitting cross-legged on the side, and Shen Xuan's adoptive mother, Mrs. Wu, was sitting on the chair next to the bed.

"Yo, it's early enough today? It's not dark outside yet."

"Come back and have a look, didn't you miss you?"

Mama Zhao rolled her eyes, seeing that her son had something to say to his wife, she got out of bed, put on her shoes and went to the east room; Mrs. Wu also got up immediately, as if she was a little afraid of her son-in-law, and went out too.

Shen Xuan has been more than eight months old, and she is about to give birth in about a month.Although a lot of nutrition was supplemented during pregnancy, the belly grew but not the face; although the cheeks looked a lot more radiant, they didn't lose much weight.

The two chatted for a while, and Shen Xuan saw that Zhao Xin was hesitant to speak, so she asked, "Do you have something to go?"

Zhao Xin nodded slightly and said: "Yes. Something happened, I have to go to sea."

"Is it the island country?"

"No, it's Tianjin." Zhao Xin comforted, "I'll be back in 20 days at most."

Although Shen Xuan was not happy, but she knew what her man was doing, she thought for a while and said, "Take A Miao with you, go out alone, I don't have anyone around me who knows what's cold and what's hot, so I don't worry."

Zhao Xin laughed and said, "What are you thinking about? A Miao is still a child."

"It's not young, someone asked me about her a few days ago."

"Oh? Who is it?" A sneer appeared on the corner of Zhao Xin's mouth, and he thought that he really didn't know how to die, and he actually came up with A Miao's idea.

"Hey, don't ask, I've already blocked you." Shen Xuan gave Zhao Xin a white look, and pouted.

The young couple kept warm for a while, until it was dark and Zhao Ma called for dinner, Zhao Xin got up, went to the outer room and said to A Miao: "A Miao, go and pack your things, let's go to sea."

"Let's go now?" A Miao saw Zhao Xin nodding, she immediately smiled like a flower, and whispered to Zhao Xin: "Take Duofu with you, these days it always bullies the kitten, I'm afraid it won't happen."

Zhao Xin said indifferently: "It's as long as you are happy."

After dinner at home, Zhao Xin's ears were filled with Zhao's mother and Zhao's father's chanting, bid farewell to the reluctant Shen Xuan, and when he took A Miao to the front yard, he saw Chen Jishan brothers and sisters and Wu Rong in the door house .

"Miss Wu, Jishan should have told you everything. Although there are Jishan's younger sister and other guards in this house, they are far inferior to you in skill. My wife is pregnant, so I entrust you with the safety of the family. If you don't understand anything, you can ask Jishan's younger sister."

This was the first time Wu Rong met the legendary "King Zhao", but she didn't expect the other party to be so polite, and it was completely different from the prince she imagined.

She turned slightly to one side, and said with a blessing: "Thank you, my lord, for trusting the little girl. Brother Chen has explained everything to me, and Erya and I hit it off right away. Don't worry."

Wu Zhong had been in the barracks during this time, and it took him three or five days to cross the river and go home to have a look, but Wu Rong was so depressed.If Chen Jishan hadn't asked his younger sister to accompany her more during rest, Wu Rong wouldn't even have anyone to talk to.

According to Chen Jishan's report, Zhao Xin learned about Wu Rong's character and behavior, so he planned to try him out and give some advice to the guards in his home.

After explaining the matter, Zhao Xin took A Miao out and boarded the car, and was escorted by a platoon led by Chen Jishan to Whale Harbor.

When the group arrived at Whale Harbor Wharf, the second regiment was boarding the ship, and the munitions transferred from the logistics warehouse were also being hoisted.Jiuzang and Liji, who had been waiting on the pier for a long time, ran over to salute, and then Zhao Xin asked about the number of shells.

"Three thousand rounds of 75mm shells and five hundred rounds of 122mm shells. Other ammunition is as you said, two bases."

After Li Ji finished his report, he looked at Zhao Xin with glowing eyes and asked, "My lord, are you planning to enter Beijing this time? Can you take me with you?"

"What are you thinking about?" Zhao Xin chuckled, and explained: "It's just to scare Qianlong, and I will solve other things by the way."

"what's up?"

"population."

Zhao Xin has no patience for sneaking people from Sheyang Lake.The speed at which Xu Dayong transported people from Sichuan and Hubei was very slow, mainly because sailing in the Three Gorges was too difficult in this era, and crossing mountains and mountains was even more useless.Rather than letting the Bailian Sect make chaos for a few years and finally mess up half of China, it is better to let Beihai Town solve this hidden danger in advance.

Furthermore, the significance of the secret stronghold at Sheyang Lake is no longer significant.Manchu Qing now knows from top to bottom that you can go to Beihai Town by boat from outside Xuzhuang. The secret agents of the Qing court, Wu Zhong and others, and the people from the Bagua sect before are proof.

Xu Dayong and Wang Changsheng have been dispatched for a long time, and they need to replace a batch of fresh blood.

Although the Northern Navy and the Manchus were fighting outside the customs, Zhao Xin discussed with Yu Deli, Chen Qingsong and others, and everyone still hoped to get power as smoothly as possible.That is to say, let the Manchus spend their blood outside the customs, and when the Beihai Navy enters the customs, they will avoid the flames of war everywhere.

Moreover, people from the Ministry of Trade learned from those Tianjin merchants who sold soybeans that in August this year, large-scale floods occurred in the entire 54 halls and counties of Zhili, and countless victims were affected.If you don't act now, when will you wait?
(End of this chapter)