At the end of Qin, I became a son of the plane

Chapter 597: The Imperial Secretariat and the Battle of Sicily
February 39, the 2th year of the Han Dynasty, Chang'an City, Qi Palace.

A dozen veterans, led by Cao Xing, were practicing Tai Chi slowly. They were practicing the Tai Chi that Xu Fan brought from the back market. These veterans looked down on this kind of boxing at first, but when they got older they found that this kind of boxing could relax their muscles and joints, and they could maintain their physical condition better, so Tai Chi began to become popular among these veterans.

Xu Fan formulated a retirement system. Many elders were resistant at the beginning, but people have a strong ability to adapt. After it became a trend, the elders gradually got used to it, especially the pioneering princes of the Han Dynasty. When they were young, they were willing to go to the wilderness to explore, but when they got older, they still preferred to stay in Chang'an City. First, Chang'an City was more prosperous. Second, the medical technology in Chang'an City was better. The hidden injuries left by these elders from the battles in their youth could be better treated. Third, there were many old friends.

Therefore, in recent years, the elderly princes of the Han Dynasty prefer to pass the throne to their sons, and go back to Chang'an to retire. In the past two years, the number of elders living in the palace of Qi has doubled.

In the pavilion on the other side of the garden, Li Shang and Zhou Bo were playing chess.

Zhou Bo asked, "Have you been so free recently? You have come here three times this month?"

Zhou Bo had also served as prime minister, so he naturally understood how busy the government affairs of the Han Dynasty's prime minister were. Back then, he really worked all night long and spent more time in the prime minister's residence than in his own residence.

Li Shang laughed at himself and said, "People already think I'm meddling in other people's business, so why should I be a clown? I don't have many years left anyway, so I might as well retire early."

Xu Aimin's words caused a huge shock and dealt a huge blow to Li Shang's prestige. The Han officials below began to take sides. At least in the Prime Minister's Office, his orders became difficult to execute smoothly. After the power of the Secretariat increased, the government affairs of the Prime Minister's Office were taken over by the Secretariat.

Zhou Bo said: "You are also a veteran who has been on the battlefield for a long time, but you were defeated by a junior like this. If you really continue to be decadent like this, you will really become a clown."

However, Zhou Bo still said, "Your Majesty is different from the emperor after all, and the way of governing is definitely different. It is normal to have some friction. If I were you, I would continue to stay in the Prime Minister's Mansion. If the villains below dare to mess around, I would punish them mercilessly. What do you have to be afraid of? You will be down in two years at most, and you can't let these villains step on your face."

At this time, Pang Yuan came over and said excitedly: "Li Shang, the emperor has avenged his anger for you. Jia Yi, the treacherous villain, has been demoted to be the governor of Changsha County."

These words immediately attracted the attention of other elders, and they all gathered around.

"I knew it, as long as the emperor is in power, the Han Dynasty can never be overturned." Cao Xing brought his men over and said with a smile.

Li Shang's experience resonated greatly with these veterans. If the prime minister who was still in office could be slapped in the face by his juniors, then those of them who were retired would not be any better off. No one wants to be forgotten after their people leave.

Li Shang was not too happy. He knew that his fundamental conflict was still with the emperor, and Jia Yi was just someone who was brought out to compete with him.

At this time, Chen Mai came to the Qi Palace, which immediately attracted the attention of these elders. After all, Chen Mai was a favorite of the emperor, and he became a Nine Ministers in his 30s. If nothing unexpected happened, he would definitely become the prime minister of the Han Dynasty.

Zhou Bo asked, "How can a busy man like you, Chen Mai, have time to visit us old folks?"

Pang Yuan said sarcastically, "He is the Internal Secretary. How can you call him by his name, Old Zhou? You should call him Chen Lingjun. Even if he is your junior, you should still call him Chen Neishi."

Chen Mai smiled bitterly and bowed, saying, "Uncles, please stop making fun of me. I grew up under your watch. Don't even mention calling me by my name. Even if you call me kid Chen, it would be an honor for me."

Chen Mai was willing to humble himself, and the teasing on the scene became less intense.

Chen Mai came to Zhou Bo and said, "Your Majesty, after hearing the teachings of the Supreme Emperor, has come to realize that the decades of experience of all your uncles in governing the country is the most valuable asset of the Han Dynasty. The Han Dynasty still cannot do without elders like you, so Your Majesty plans to establish the Zhongshujian, with Uncle Zhou as the Zhongshu Ling, and all your uncles as special elders, with nominal titles in the Zhongshujian. Your Majesty can consult your uncles at any time when you encounter problems in government affairs."

Chen Mai's words immediately aroused the excitement of these elders. If they became special elders and were listed in the Zhongshujian, they could maintain their influence. After all, they were by the side of the emperor. Those Han officials who were ignored by the public also had to think about this influence.

February 39, 2th year of the Han Dynasty, Roman Consulate.

While Xu Fan was still trying to bridge the contradiction between the imperial power of the Han Dynasty and the power of the prime minister, Zhang Pijiang suddenly discovered that the situation in Daqinzhou, which had been peaceful for several years, suddenly became tense. First, the small country of Numidia in Yanzhou invaded Carthage, but was defeated by the Carthaginians and thousands of soldiers were captured.

As a result, as soon as this small conflict ended, the Romans said that the Carthaginians had invaded their ally Numidia, and Rome would protect Numidia according to the alliance.

Then they began to conscript citizens to form an army, and Rome's navy in various parts of the Mediterranean also began to assemble. Suddenly, there was a feeling that a storm was about to come in the entire Mediterranean region. Rome was a well-deserved great power in the Mediterranean. All the small countries were very cautious to cut off relations with the Carthaginians. On the other hand, they also began to assemble a large army for fear that the fire in the city gate would affect innocent people. The combat effectiveness of the Roman army was still very famous in the Mediterranean circle. At least everyone was defeated.

On the one hand, the Carthaginians sent envoys to explain to Rome, but this was originally an excuse for the Romans to destroy Carthage. The explanation of the Carthaginian envoys was naturally not recognized. On the other hand, the Carthaginians asked the Han people for help to resist the Roman invasion.

Zhang Pijiang naturally did not want any unrest in Daqinzhou, especially after Carthage was annexed by Rome. Although the Carthaginians were ridiculed by the Mediterranean countries as the charioteers of the Han Dynasty.

But Zhang Pijiang had to admit that Carthage was a really useful coachman. Now the Yanzhou Governor's Office and Suei were the logistics of the canal, and most of them were guaranteed by the Carthaginian caravans. Carthage was a commercial country, and the food they transported was timely, high-quality, and low-priced. They were high-quality goods suppliers in the entire Mediterranean region.

Especially compared with the Ptolemaic people, these nobles always like to take some old grains, or mix some sand and stones into the grains to pass them off as good ones. Zhang Pijiang caught them and asked them why they were not trustworthy. As a result, these nobles said confidently: "These are originally food for slaves. Giving them these is already a high regard for them. If they eat well, these slaves will be spoiled. I am doing this for the good of you Han people."

What made Zhang Pijiang laugh and cry the most was that these nobles actually wanted to bribe him with the money embezzled from the corrupt Han people. Could you please use these crooked ideas to improve the quality of the goods? You should know that the Ptolemy Kingdom is the granary of the entire Mediterranean. This country has always been mainly engaged in exporting grain. They are doing so poorly in their main business. Zhang Pijiang dare not imagine how bad other things will be.

After spending a few years in the Ptolemaic Empire, he would rather deal with unscrupulous businessmen than with these corrupt independent nobles, because you have no idea what they will do, and Zhang Pijiang simply cannot understand their thought processes.

In order to keep the Han Dynasty, the largest supplier of materials, Zhang Pijiang came to Rome and found his old acquaintance Apatius in Rome and said, "This conflict broke out very suddenly, and there are many hidden secrets. I think it has not yet reached the point of fighting. I am willing to send envoys to Carthage together with you Rome to investigate. The peace in Daqinzhou is hard-won. Elder Apatius should not destroy this peace easily. Only regional peace can lead to better development."

Apatius said: "I am a country that values ​​allies and keeps its word. Carthage's brutal killing of our allies has touched our bottom line. Now I have prepared 3 soldiers and 300 warships. To use the words of your Han people, the arrow is on the string and has to be fired."

Zhang Pijiang persuaded him earnestly: "Using the army to solve the problem is an irrational choice. You have also been to the Han Dynasty. You should know that the military saint of the Han Dynasty once said that war is a major event for a country, a matter of life and death, and a matter of survival and destruction. It must be carefully examined. You started a war without careful investigation. This is not only not good for Carthage, but also not a good thing for Rome."

Apatius said: "War is our choice as Romans. The Carthaginians must pay the price for what they have done."

Zhang Pijiang realized that Rome was determined to fight this battle.

So he also said in a tough tone: "If you, Rome, really start this war, it will violate the rules set by my Han Dynasty in Daqinzhou. Rome will not only be an enemy of Carthage, but also an enemy of the Han Dynasty."

Apatius thought for a moment and slowed down his tone, "I, Rome, do not want to be an enemy of the Han Dynasty, but Carthage is an enemy that I, Rome, must destroy."

At the same time, he felt a little helpless in his heart. He was the most humble diplomatic envoy of Rome in hundreds of years. Now he finally understood the helplessness of the small country. They wanted to destroy the Carthaginians, but they could not offend the Han people. They tried their best to keep the Han people neutral. But obviously the Han people did not do as the elders wanted. They strongly supported the Carthaginians.

Zhang Pijiang said coldly: "I, the Han Dynasty, have saved Carthage. It depends on whether you, Rome, have the ability to defeat Carthage under the protection of the Han Dynasty."

After saying this, Zhang Pijiang was about to leave Rome, but Apatiusla said to him, "Even if we in Rome have some different opinions from the Han Dynasty, we hope that it will not affect the trade between the two sides."

The Romans found several types of goods that the Han people needed, and they certainly didn't want this profitable business to go to waste. The Roman senators gave Appatius this difficult task. Even if they became enemies with the Han people, they could not affect the trade with them. Of course, how to accomplish this problem was up to Appatius to figure out on his own.

Fortunately, Apatius has not yet turned into a bald eagle and still knows how to beg for help humbly.

But Zhang Pijiang threw away his sleeves and said coldly: "My Han Dynasty will not trade with a country like Rome that is not free and democratic."

Apatius was clearly hearing this for the first time, but he always felt that it was extremely familiar.

March 39, the 3th year of the Han Dynasty, Carthage.

After learning from Zhang Pijiang, the Carthaginians understood that the war against Carthage by the Romans was inevitable, and they had no choice but to fight. The only good thing was that this time they had a powerful ally, the Han people. The Yanzhou Governor's Office sent a battalion of Han troops to Carthage, and at the same time rented 100 steel cannons to the Carthaginians. The Carthaginians found Sorel Barca, the grandson of the famous general Hannibal, as the naval commander of Carthage, and used the 12 300-ton warships purchased from the Han as the main warships, and formed a huge fleet with 300 merchant ships of the Carthaginian country, and marched towards Sicily in a mighty manner.

The Carthaginian fleet sailed out of the port, and the Roman fleet also headed towards Carthage at the same time. Although the Romans did not have as many large warships as Carthage, they had their own arsenal and could produce 100 cannons every year. In recent years, the Roman arsenal has produced 300 cannons. Together with the cannons purchased by Rome in the previous two years, the entire Roman country possessed 600 cannons. The Roman Senate left 100 cannons to defend the city of Rome, so all cannons were taken to the battlefield.

The Romans learned from intelligence that the Carthaginians had only purchased 200 Chinese iron cannons, which were more powerful than theirs. The Romans were worried about the support of the Chinese, but as Apatius said, the situation was already on the verge of being launched. If they did not destroy Carthage, these elders would not be able to sleep or eat.

The Mediterranean Sea can be said to be a large bathtub. It is impossible for the two huge fleets of the Romans and Carthaginians to avoid it. On March 15, the fleets of both sides met off the coast of Sicily.

The observer on the Carthaginian lead ship suddenly reported with a telescope: "Roman warships are spotted ahead. There are five warships over 5 tons and countless small boats."

The Carthaginian naval commander, Sorel Barca, looked at the Han army captain beside him and said, "You have more experience in artillery battles. What formation should our army form now?"

Captain Xiong Ju said: "If you want to maximize the power of artillery, you must seize the upper wind. However, naval battles in your Mediterranean region are mainly based on string warfare. You should seize the upper wind and use artillery to destroy the enemy's main battleships. The oared boats should follow your traditional tactics. As long as you can destroy the Roman battleships as soon as possible, the remaining small warships will be nothing more than gun targets."

Sorel Barca, the commander of the Carthaginian navy, said: "This means that the main force of this battle depends on us."

Xiong Ju said: "Nowadays, naval warfare is about technology and strength. Big ships can beat small ships, and big cannons can beat small cannons. Our Han steel cannons are the largest cannons in the world. As long as we use these steel cannons reasonably, the Romans will definitely be defeated."

In order to improve the combat effectiveness of the Carthaginians, the Han Dynasty even sent their best artillerymen.

After receiving Xiong Ju's affirmation, Sorel Baca pointed at the Roman warships in the distance and shouted: "This time we Carthaginians will take back everything that belongs to us and prepare for battle."

The Carthaginian naval flagship raised the battle signal flag.

At the same time, the Roman military consul Laenas also issued an order to prepare for war.

Hundreds of warships from both sides lined up in neat rows and charged towards each other. Both fleets were in high spirits and approached each other quickly. Among them, the main warships of both sides quickly stood out from the team and then approached each other quickly, 10 kilometers, 5 kilometers, and 3 kilometers.

After approaching the range of his own steel cannons, Xiong Ju shouted loudly: "All main battleships turn the rudder to the left!"

Sorel Barca immediately gave the order, and under the command of flag signals, the 12 Carthaginian battleships almost simultaneously drew a graceful arc and turned their hulls sideways.

At this time, the Roman warships were still advancing rapidly. When the Roman military consul Laenas saw this scene of the enemy, he felt that something was wrong. The Roman artillery had not yet entered the range. Obviously, the enemy's artillery range was much longer than theirs.

"Speed ​​up and order the oars in the rear to catch up quickly!" The Roman team sailed faster after receiving the order, especially the oars. The soldiers rowing under the deck also increased their speed.

"Bang bang bang!"

Dozens of steel cannons opened fire, and water columns rose around the Roman fleet. Although the 2km position was within the range of the Han steel cannons, the hit rate at this distance was extremely touching. Even though Xiong Ju and his men had tried their best to aim and shoot, their luck was particularly bad. None of the 50 shells hit the enemy.

Xiong Ju desperately looked at the Roman warships aimed at the territory, while quickly calculating the trajectory of the artillery shells.

"Fire!"

"Boom!" The second round of fifty shells were fired, and a five-kilogram shell directly hit the Roman warship.

Suddenly a huge hole was made in the Roman warship, and three people were crushed to death inside the warship.

The Carthaginian naval observer shouted excitedly: "We hit the enemy with one shot."

Xiong Ju said: "Keep firing, aim and shoot."

With this extra 1 kilometer range, the Carthaginians fired 10 more rounds of artillery shells. Moreover, as the Roman warships got closer and closer, the Han cannons became more and more accurate. Ten of the 500 shells hit the target, directly breaking the main mast of a Roman battleship, causing it to lose power. Two ships were severely damaged and their speed was significantly slowed down. The crew members of the other two ships were also injured.

For the Roman military consul Laenas, the one-kilometer voyage was a long and ordeal. Fortunately, they had now reached the range of the Roman artillery. He ordered the fleet to form a long snake line and point the artillery at the Carthaginian fleet.

"fire!"

"Bang bang bang!"

More than two hundred artillery pieces fired one after another like noisy firecrackers, and more than two hundred shells hit the Carthaginian warships like meteors.

The Romans were very lucky. More than a dozen shells hit the target, and two of them directly penetrated the planks of the two small boats. The sea water gurgled in and soon became dull.

Xiong Ju sneered, "Fight back and show the Romans how to fire a cannon! It's not just lighting a fire or shooting."

The Han artillery had ballistic data, so they could adjust the height of the artillery according to the distance of the enemy to improve accuracy. The Romans had only had artillery for a few years, so they had even less combat experience. It was good enough to know how to fire a cannon, but as for ballistic data, I'm sorry that the Romans' math wasn't that good yet, so they had to learn the Han geometry first.

After the distance reached 1 kilometer, the power of the Han army's steel cannons became even greater and the shooting accuracy became even higher. Under the shooting of the Han army's artillerymen, the hit rate of the Carthaginian artillery was about %, which means that one round of artillery could hit about six shells.

The Romans could only rely on faith to hit the target. Although they had more artillery, their hit rate was not as good as that of the Carthaginian artillery. In particular, Xiong Ju had the Carthaginians focus on bombarding the five main Roman battleships. After an hour, two of the five main Roman battleships were sunk, and two were severely damaged. They had to flee the battlefield. Only the main battleship of Laenas was still intact.

But the situation on the battlefield had begun to reverse. The four main battleships left the battlefield, taking away 80 artillery pieces. The Romans no longer had the firepower advantage on the battlefield.

The key point is that the Romans' paddle boats are like thin-skinned dumplings. First, there are not many waves in the Mediterranean Sea, so the ships they built are naturally not very sturdy. Second, the Romans of this era had not yet invented watertight warehouses. These paddle boats would be fine if they were not hit by artillery fire, but as long as they were hit by bullets, they would basically be solved with one shot.

At the decisive moment of this great battle, the Roman military consul Laenas issued a wrong order. He wanted to defeat the Carthaginian fleet by boarding battle and ordered the Roman fleet to charge towards the Carthaginian warships.

But he never expected that the rules of naval warfare had changed. The closer the warships were, the higher the accuracy of the artillery and the greater the power. At a distance of 1 kilometer, Xiong Ju and his team fired 10 rounds of artillery, fired 1500 shells each, hit more than 200 of them, and directly destroyed a small half of the Roman warships.

The frightened Romans began to flee in all directions when Xiong Ju fired the seventh round.

When the Carthaginian naval commander Sorel Barca saw that the Roman warships were defeated, he was so excited that tears filled his eyes. Since the defeat in the Second Punic War decades ago, Carthage has been in the crisis of national destruction. His grandfather Hannibal was even forced to death by the Romans. He and Rome really had national hatred and family feuds. Now, Carthage has won again, and the crisis of national destruction in the Mediterranean has been resolved.

Of course, he didn't want to give the Romans an easy time, so he ordered the warships to continue pursuing.

After the Roman military consul Laenas discovered that the Roman navy had been defeated, he sent out flag signals to let other warships flee back to Rome, while he himself blocked the front of the Carthaginian warships and opened fire fiercely.

In the end, the Roman flagship was fired upon by the Carthaginians and could only hold out for less than two rounds. The Roman warship was hit by more than twenty shells, the deck of the ship was broken, and it slowly sank.

Xiong Ju saw the Roman main ship being the last one to leave and sighed, "Rome also has soldiers."

(End of this chapter)