Daming Yuanfu

Chapter 2319 Fengshan (XVI) The Power of the Giant Cannon

As Zhu Yijun, Gao Youshi and others left the Dongchang and slowly walked towards the observation deck, the atmosphere on the sea became increasingly tense. The sun gradually rose higher, shining on the sparkling sea, reflecting a dazzling light. The sea breeze, with its salty and humid breath, gently brushed across everyone's face, as if foreshadowing the upcoming spectacular scene.

  The three target ships that had already sailed to the reserved area began to drop anchor at this time. They would stay in place in this way. On the one hand, this was to improve the hit rate during live ammunition shooting, so as to avoid the embarrassment of not being able to hit the target after firing several rounds of salvos in a real naval battle;

On the other hand, this is also because there cannot be anyone on the target ship during live-fire bombardment, and at this time the ships are all on the edge of Tianjin Port. If the target ship is allowed to drift, it may be washed ashore by the sea water before the shooting is over. That would be even more embarrassing, and even the subsequent shooting could not be completed.

At the same time as the target ship sailed to the designated area and dropped anchor, the Dongchang weighed anchor and sailed to its designated firing area. Yes, it obviously could not stop at the berth and fire, and had to sail to its own position after the emperor and his party disembarked.

The observation deck is located on a small hill near the dock, surrounded by green trees and flowers, with pleasant scenery. Not only can you overlook the entire Tianjin Port, but you can also clearly see the Dongchang and three target ships on the sea. Gao Youshi had obviously made arrangements long ago. There were several exquisite tables and chairs and dozens of high-powered telescopes equipped with brackets on the observation deck for the emperor and his accompanying officials to use.

After the emperor and the civil and military officials took their seats, Gao Youshi first briefly introduced to them the basic situation of naval bombardment. Of course, considering that this group of people were basically "military blind", Gao Youshi emphasized the fact that the hit rate of naval shooting was very low, as well as some related factors that caused the low hit rate.

When Zhu Yijun heard Gao Youshi say that in actual naval battles, sometimes long-range firefights lasted for half an hour but neither side could hit the target, he was not only surprised, but many of the accompanying civil servants were also stunned.

"No wonder you said that the navy is a money-eating beast. I originally thought you were just saying that shipbuilding costs are huge, but I didn't expect that fighting itself would also require huge costs. If what you said is true, if the two fleets fought for half an hour without anyone hitting the target, wouldn't that be a waste of a lot of shells and gunpowder? How much silver would this waste?"

Gao Youshi laughed and said, "It depends on the size of the two fleets. If we look at the situation during the war to aid Korea a few years ago, I once spent more than 40,000 taels of silver worth of shells and gunpowder in a battle that lasted more than an hour."

Zhu Yijun was shocked and said, "This is really a waste of money. It seems that Lu Zhan is very thrifty."

"Land warfare saves money, but there are still many things that require the fleet to do, such as blocking the sea route from Japan to Busan. This can only be done by a strong fleet. Otherwise, if the blockade fails, Japan's support for Busan will continue, and the war will have to be fought. If calculated in this way, although the cost of the fleet is high, it is still much cheaper than a long-term stalemate in the war."

"That's true." Zhu Yijun nodded and said thoughtfully, "In your opinion, does the imperial navy also need to keep some large artillery ships like the Dongchang for a long time?"

Gao Youshi said solemnly: "Navy strategy depends on national strategy. As for the current maritime defense situation of the Ming Dynasty, because of the existence of civilian forces such as Jinghua and even the Beiyang Maritime Trade Alliance, the court does not need to maintain a huge standing navy. Because the maritime forces of the coastal countries are not strong, the civilian maritime forces of the Ming Dynasty are enough to ensure the safety of the sea borders.

On the other hand, if the emperor needs to send troops overseas, then the court will have to build a new navy. At that time, a small number of advanced artillery ships will be needed, combined with multi-functional warships with certain armaments but mainly used to transport troops - such as Jinghua's armed transport ships. In this way, a force capable of projecting land warfare power in the distant seas can be formed, making it easier for the court to expand overseas territories. "

"Overseas territories?" Zhu Yijun frowned and thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I can't get past Taizu. The 'unconquered country' is clearly written in every word. Even in Japan, I couldn't send troops as you wished to teach them a lesson... In short, even if I had such an idea, the court officials would definitely persuade me that the Ming Dynasty is located in China and governs all nations. How can the wild and barbaric lands overseas be compared with China?"

Gao Fusi hesitated for a moment and said, "If that's the case, then there's no need to keep a large-scale standing modern fleet. But if the emperor wants to demonstrate the power of the country, I think it's still possible to build a few giant ships."

Zhu Yijun got a little angry and asked, "Just now you said that the Dongchang is Jinghua's second-class battleship. Does that mean there is a larger 'first-class battleship' than it?"

"On paper, there is indeed a first-class battleship." Gao Youshi introduced: "According to Jinghua's plan and design draft, the first-class battleship will weigh 2500 tons, or 5000 tons, and will also be a three-deck gun design with 108 guns of various types and a full crew of 720 people.

However, because the cost of building a single ship is estimated to be as high as 48 taels of silver, which is too expensive even for Jinghua, I hesitated for several years and have not built a single ship yet... Of course, I have stored some of the materials needed for construction, such as various top-grade shipbuilding woods."

Zhu Yijun's eyes lit up and he said, "If you can't make up your mind, why not let the court build this first-class battleship. Although 480,000 taels is indeed expensive, just like the expenditure plans you made, we don't have to take out all the silver at once. We can allocate it in batches according to the construction time... In this way, the Ministry of Revenue can still take out the money, right?"

Gao Youshi pondered and said, "If the money is allocated in batches, the Ministry of Revenue can indeed provide it, but... I do not recommend that the Ministry of Revenue pay this money."

Zhu Yijun was stunned, then his eyes widened: "Rixin, what do you mean by this? If the Ministry of Revenue doesn't pay, do you want me to use the money from the treasury to build it?"

"Yes." Gao Youshi seemed not to sense the emperor's displeasure, and said solemnly: "If the emperor is willing to use the money from the treasury to build a first-class battleship, then the Ministry of Revenue is willing to fund the construction of two second-class battleships.

Moreover, I can, on behalf of Jinghua Shipyard, reduce the cost of the two second-class battleships from 350,000 taels per ship to 300,000 taels, that is, the total cost of the two second-class battleships will drop from 700,000 taels to 600,000 taels, saving the court 100,000 taels of silver. "

Zhu Yijun was stunned for a moment, then he snorted and laughed: "Gao Rixin, you are making money on my head? I built a first-class battleship to show the prestige of the country, but you insisted on forcing me to build two second-class battleships? You have made a good calculation. The three ships together are worth more than one million taels of silver. Such a big business..."

"Your Majesty, this is really unfair to me." Gao Youshi said, "No matter how powerful a ship is, it can't really replace a fleet. It's like marching and deploying troops. No matter how powerful the central army is, when fighting, you always have to arrange troops on the two wings to avoid being attacked from the flanks.

The same is true for the fleet. Unless the Emperor builds this first-class battleship purely for display in the harbor, if it is to be of any use, it will inevitably have to be equipped with two or more auxiliary ships. I only suggest building two more second-class battleships, which is the conclusion after fully considering the court's finances."

"Oh... that does make sense." Zhu Yijun pondered for a moment and waved his hand: "This is a serious matter. Please allow me to think about it carefully later."

"I have no objection." Gao Youshi replied.

Zhu Yijun nodded and turned his attention back to the Dongchang. He picked up a telescope in front of him and carefully observed the movements on the sea.

Just as they were talking, the battleship Dongchang had arrived at the designated location and was quietly anchored on the sea, while the three target ships were located around it, forming an unequal triangle layout, with one ship each at far, middle, and near. Each target ship was hoisted with a striking flag to indicate its identity.

Gao Fusi explained softly, "Your Majesty, the Dongchang will conduct live ammunition shooting at three target ships in turn. First, we will start with the farthest target ship to test the range and power of heavy artillery; then the medium-range target ship to test the shooting effect of medium-caliber artillery; and finally the close-range target ship to demonstrate the rapid shooting capability of light artillery.

However, although the guns were fired in sequence, the Dongchang might not necessarily fire at the same time, because according to the live-fire shooting rules of Jinghua, live-fire shooting requires to simulate actual combat as much as possible, so today the Dongchang may also assume that the enemy ships are divided into several different sizes, among which large ships conduct long-range shooting, and small and medium-sized warships approach to break through..." Zhu Yijun nodded to show his understanding, and his eyes flashed with anticipation. Although he is the emperor, he also has a strong interest in such a large cannon and a huge ship in front of him, which is the most normal behavior of a man. And being able to witness the live-fire shooting of the warship today is undoubtedly a rare experience for him.

Following Gao Youshi's order, the observation deck raised flag signals, and the gunners on the Dongchang began to get busy. With the sound of a low horn, all the crew members quickly entered combat mode. The gunners tightly grasped the cold gun handles and aimed at the target in the distance with their eyes as sharp as torches. The sea breeze blew past, bringing ripples, but it did not affect the crew's concentration and determination at all.

"Prepare for test firing!" Gao Shengyi stood on the bridge and gave orders loudly. His voice was quickly transmitted throughout the ship through the messenger, and every word was clear and powerful, making people feel a sense of solemnity.

The crew quickly adjusted the gun positions, and after confirming that they were correct, they all responded with firm eyes. The gun barrels were already filled with gunpowder, and they only needed an order to spray the angry flames into the distance.

"Fire!" Gao Shengyi's voice rang out again, resounding through the sky like thunder. Following his order, the gunners pulled the gun ropes violently, and the sixteen heavy guns (32 heavy guns on the ship, 16 on each side) instantly emitted a deafening roar, and the muzzles of the guns flashed with flames. The shells were like sharp arrows shot out of the barrel, piercing the sky and rushing towards the target.

The air on the entire sea seemed to freeze, and everyone's eyes were focused on the three target ships. However, none of the first sixteen heavy shells hit the target. They all fell in the sea around the target ships, splashing high water columns. Some were not far from the target ships, while others were at least one or two hundred meters away.

"Oh..." Many people sighed with regret. But they immediately remembered what Gao Youshi had said just now, knowing that this round of shooting was mainly to adjust the shooting parameters, and they had not made any preparations for hitting the target - if they could still hit the target, then their luck was too good.

Under Zhu Yijun's watch, the gunners of the Dongchang battleship really began a new round of shooting preparations. With the captain Gao Shengyi's command of "all gun positions quickly adjust the firing parameters", the entire ship seemed to be given life, and the gunners at each gun position were busy and orderly carrying out the final inspection before the second round of shooting.

The gunners adjusted the angle and direction of the guns, and the aimer carefully observed the target ship in the distance through the telescope, providing correction data to the gunners at any time. The muzzle of the gun moved slowly with the adjustment, and finally aimed steadily at the target. The gunners checked the amount of gunpowder and the position of the shells to ensure that each shot could exert the maximum power.

Following another order, the Dongchang's heavy guns roared again. Fire and smoke intertwined at the muzzle, and the huge recoil made the entire ship tremble. Even the people on the observation deck far away, who were experiencing the power of the battleship's huge guns for the first time, were disturbed by the guns. Many people felt their hearts beating violently, and it was no longer like a deer beating wildly, but like a bull beating wildly.

At the same time, this round of sixteen huge solid iron ball shells had already drawn arcs in the air and flew towards the target ship in the distance. This time, the shells landed significantly closer to the target ship, and one shell even grazed the side of the target ship, breaking the ship's left side railing, and wood chips and debris flew all around. The target ship's hull also began to shake slightly due to several near misses.

Zhu Yijun observed all this through the telescope, his expression was calm, but in his heart he had a deeper understanding of the gunners' skills and the power of the artillery. After all, Gao Youshi had just said that if the second round could hit a near miss, it meant that the gunners' calculations were very accurate. The reason why they might not hit the target was because the sea breeze and waves were things that could not be calculated or dealt with at the current level of technology. They were completely uncontrollable variables, and at this time, whether the target would be hit or not depended on luck.

Once again, it was time to reload, and the emperor and the civil and military officials were even more nervous, because the appearance of near misses meant that the chance of hitting the target had greatly increased. At this time, the voices that had been whispering to each other completely disappeared, and everyone held their telescopes and held their breath, fearing that they would miss this rare sight.

As the gunfire of the Dongchang battleship sounded again, the tense atmosphere on the sea reached its peak. Zhu Yijun's eyes were fixed on the target ship in the distance through the telescope.

The baptism of heavy artillery finally arrived as promised. The third round of sixteen solid iron ball shells cut through the air with huge kinetic energy and hit the target directly. One shell finally hit the side of the target ship accurately, accompanied by a loud bang, and wood chips and iron pieces flew everywhere. The shell penetrated the ship's plank, forming an irregular large hole. The seawater rushed in, and the hull began to tilt significantly. The mast on the ship began to creak due to uneven force, and the sails swayed violently in the wind, as if telling of misfortune or unwillingness.

Then, the second shell landed on the target ship's deck, creating a huge hole and scattering wooden fragments, some of which were thrown into the air and some into the sea. Some items on the deck that were placed to simulate actual combat were swept away by this force, leaving only a mess. If there were really crew members on board at this time, such a blow would undoubtedly be fatal.

Unexpectedly, the gunners on the middle deck of the Dongchang seemed to have adjusted their firing angles, and the chain bullets whistled out. The chain bullets spun rapidly in the air, making a sharp and piercing whistle, and accurately hit the main mast of the second target ship.

The chain of the chain bullet was like a meat grinder, tearing the ropes and sails on the mast into pieces in an instant. The mast of the target ship, which was at a medium distance from the Dongchang, began to tilt under the huge pull, and finally broke with a loud bang, falling into the sea with the sails and ropes, splashing huge water.

According to Gao Youshi's previous introduction, when a medium-range ship is hit by a chain bomb and its mast falls down, it means it has lost power, and in other words, it has lost the ability to continue approaching the ship. The test launch of the medium-range bomb is a declaration of success.

The light artillery on the top deck also began their performance. The gunners quickly loaded, aimed, and fired, a series of actions that flowed smoothly. The solid shells fired by the light artillery flew towards the nearest target ship at an extremely fast speed, and the shells fell on the hull like raindrops, and each impact made the hull tremble.

Holes soon appeared on the side of the target ship, and the hull structure began to twist and deform. Some shells even penetrated the hull and flew out from the other side, bringing out more wood chips and seawater.

As the shooting continued, the condition of the three target ships became worse and worse. The farthest target ship had begun to sink sideways, with the bow gradually sinking into the water, and the waves constantly hitting the stern that was exposed above the water. However, because it was a wooden ship, it was usually difficult to sink completely, or it would take longer.

The mast of the medium-range target ship broke, and the sails and cables were scattered on the sea. The hull began to shake because it had lost power and direction. Since it had dropped anchor before the test launch, it could not drift, and as a result, it could only begin to spin helplessly.

The nearest target ship was almost unrecognizable, especially the exterior structure of the hull was severely damaged, with more holes and pits than a teenager's face. Some areas even began to disintegrate, and various debris floated and surged on the water.

Zhu Yijun witnessed all this, and his expression gradually changed from initial surprise to solemnity. He knew very well that the miserable state of these target ships would be irreparable losses in a real naval battle.

Gao Fusi was watching the emperor's expression silently. He knew that this live-fire shooting not only demonstrated the firepower of the Dongchang, but also gave the emperor a lot of inspiration. He said softly: "Your Majesty, just as Yu Dayou said back then, the tactics of naval warfare are actually very simple. It is nothing more than a big ship defeats a small ship, and more ships defeat fewer ships. If we also take the comparison of cannons into account, then we can add this sentence: a big cannon defeats a small cannon, and more cannon defeats fewer cannons."

Zhu Yijun nodded slightly, and suddenly let out a long breath, saying: "No wonder you always say that war is all about money, and you will never start a war without waiting for the court's treasury to be full. Today I know that what you said is indeed a true insight."

  As he spoke, he suddenly turned around, looked at Gao Youshi and said seriously: "Rixin, the court has been completely transformed over the years, all thanks to your wisdom. I want to thank you."
-

Thanks to book friend "Lilin00" for your support of 6 monthly tickets, thank you!

  感谢书友“云覆月雨”、“业余围观”、“书友160310112922767”、“秦朝小驻”、“GJC0516”、“书友20220612125649060”、“milan123”、“书友20201106163327990”、“我家门口有条路”、“书友20190829080256446”、“klauszx”、“书友20161221164832888”、“寒蝉清梦”、“元舟”、“书友20221205100349569”、“风冷霜华”、“静听风＆雪乱动”、“全网最靓陈美林”的月票支持，谢谢！

PS: It should have been posted before 0:5, but the content was slightly more than expected, and I wrote K+, so it’s a bit late.