Lin Gao Qiming

Chapter 1421 Yachting
"Thank you, but please tell me what happened to those windmills. They are connected one by one, looking like a forest."

The captain looked suspiciously at the white-lit sea, and it took him a long time to realize that the earl was referring to the direction of Krabi.

"That's Cavite Fortress. Ah, no, you must be talking about the shipyard. The windmill was also made by the Japanese to pump water for the shipyard. Do you like this?"

"I like it," Weiss said, "I was lucky enough to travel to the Canary Islands when I was a boy, which is the land of windmills. So this scene makes me look very kind, what kind of Japanese you mentioned People, I would like to see and see."

"You can't see him. Although he is a secular person, he behaves like an ascetic or a hermit. Except for the governor and the archbishop, he can't see anyone, even his fiancée who has gone through all kinds of hardships to come to Manila. I'm afraid I won't be able to see him a few times—what a poor beauty..." The captain's beard curled up ambiguously, "However, the respected Commander Alfonso has frequent contacts with him, and you can ask him to help you in the future. introduce."

"Sir Alfonso, this venerable man is absent from our game today."

"He has a battle to fight," said the captain with a sour taste. "The Governor sent him four companies and a thousand natives to attack the Iloko in Panthea. The Japanese followed, Responsible for tending the cannon and rockets he built."

Just as Weiss was about to follow Captain Pilar down the fort, suddenly, a distant and indistinct gunshot was blown by the wind, followed by another.

"What's going on?" Pilar picked up the binoculars, "Is it the signal from the lighthouse ship that came from Corregidor?"

The two of them watched with binoculars in turn. The sunlight reflected on the sea was so intense that they could barely open their eyes. They could only vaguely see a few white sails flashing on the horizon.After nearly an hour, Weiss saw a cloud of smoke rising from the Cavite fortress, and there was a cannon shot.

"Damn! A ship has broken into the bay!" cried the captain, holding his hands to the crenel. "Ring the bell! Prepare for battle!"

The sentry rang the alarm bell, and as the alarm bell rang for a long time, the drummers of the company began to beat the assembly drum hastily.Gunners swarmed out of the barracks and rushed to the battery.The infantry also put on their armor and began to line up.Weiss knew it was not suitable to stay here, so he walked down the stairs.As soon as he walked out of the fortress, he saw Don Basilio galloping towards him on horseback in a panic.

"I've sent for you," panted the harbor tax-collector, taking off his hat with impertinence to wipe his sweat, "May Mary, look what your sailors have done, your yacht will be alarmed. His Excellency the Governor."

"Mr. Don Basilio, there is no need for me to teach you how to speak to a lord!" Weiss replied arrogantly, "What earth-shattering event happened?"

Half an hour later, Weiss was paddling into the bay in a sampan, and the tax collector was slumped next to the helmsman, talking about how a clipper broke in despite the warning of the Corregidor sentry ship. Manila Bay, cruising in the harbor at "amazing speed".None of the patrol galleys and warships in the harbor were able to overtake the ship, and at last the sailors on board agreed to let an unarmed skiff approach, and the harbor officials learned that the clipper belonged to the Earl.

The small sampan broke through the waves amidst the chants of the oarsmen, and the two-masted yacht that stirred up the Manila Bay gradually appeared in front of my eyes, with an elegant and slender black hull and a beautiful Victorian painting.As the sampan drew closer, Weiss looked up and saw a familiar weapon aimed at them in the high mast plate—a typewriter.

On the bulwarks and poop, sailors with rifles took their positions, controlling the surrounding waters and threatening the native canoes from approaching.

The sailors lowered the gangway, and Weiss climbed out of the sampan.When he reached the last step, a hand pulled him up onto the deck.

"Welcome back!" Xue Ziliang said.

Haiqi, or according to the newly changed name to confuse the Spaniards-Esmedala, was originally a private speedboat built by Hong Kong Shipyard for the wealthy Portuguese businessman Landella in Macau.The always shrewd industrial exporter never misses any opportunity to attract export customers, so Mr. Landella's order has changed from Hong Kong Shipyard to Bopu Shipyard's excellent test product.Some even suggested making the yacht a catamaran or trimaran.In the end, these overly horrifying suggestions were rejected.The final ship type is basically born out of the 200-ton two-masted patrol boat, which adopts a mature steel frame and wooden shell structure.The displacement is slightly reduced, the aspect ratio is increased, and a bilge keel is installed to enhance stability.However, when the hull was almost complete and the workers were nailing the copper skin on the bottom of the ship, sad news came: Mr. Landeira went bankrupt. Ships of precious sandalwood produced became the booty of the Dutch.

Mr. Landella, who was naturally bankrupt, was unable to pay off the remaining [-]% of the final payment, and the speedboat with a completion rate of more than [-]% became the property of the Planning Institute.

The Navy fought many lip service lawsuits with the Council of Agriculture, the special investigation team and the long-distance exploration team, and finally got the ship as it wished, and used it for sail training.The condition is that you must obey the call at any time to carry out the transportation tasks of dignitaries and important materials issued by the Executive Committee.The Hong Kong shipyard has carried out many large and small modifications in accordance with the requirements of the navy. In order to let the naval cadets familiarize themselves with different sails, the original design of the two-masted schooner eventually evolved into what Qian Shuiting called "brigantine". Sail, mainmast hangs vertical sail.After twists and turns, the sailing practice ship "Haiqi" ​​evolved from the yacht was incorporated into the naval sequence at the Hong Kong base.As for the fact that it will change its appearance in the future, transforming itself into the Esmedala, the private yacht of Count Van Nova, and playing a role in the joint intelligence-led operation, no one would have thought of it at the time.

"Don't drive the boat into that stinky ditch in Pasig River," Weiss said.

The Esmedala lowered its sails and anchored near the shore of Tondo, carefully keeping a distance from the cannons of Fort Santiago firing fiery bullets.Tangdu is the largest and most densely populated slum in the Philippines in another time and space, but now it is just an inconspicuous small village on the north bank of the Pasig River.Although the population is sparsely populated, the beautiful yachts are still quite eye-catching. More than a dozen canoes full of goods gradually surrounded them. The swarthy natives waved their arms and yelled in various incomprehensible languages ​​to sell pineapples, bananas, and mangoes to the crew. and taro.The sailors on the yacht were unmoved, and just pointed their black guns at those who tried to approach.It is a common trick of Malay pirates to take advantage of the opportunity of selling goods to board the deck and rob ships. Chinese merchant ships and European merchant ships here and there have suffered a lot.

The captain of the patrol ship stepped on the wooden rail at the top of the small sampan, and his body leaned forward so much that it seemed that he would fall into the water if he staggered.However, he always maintained this posture and stood there steadily, staring at the Esmedala that was getting closer.

To an old Basque sailor halfway around the world, the barracuda-like clipper yacht was a rare beauty.Not only is the proportion perfect, every detail of the ship is very delicate and well-proportioned.

After the triremes had driven off the native canoes, they drew up their oars and faced the yacht, two chains away.Before getting off the sampan, the captain ordered the cannons on the forecastle platform to be equipped for combat, and the swivel guns on both sides must be loaded with ammunition and fired at any time.But his order was in vain, except for the oarsmen below deck, all sailors and soldiers on or off duty rushed to the forecastle and poop, and even climbed up the mast with the sails down to watch the tall and narrow masts that had never been seen before. A unique sailboat.

"The mob," Xue Ziliang pointed his chin at the forecastle turret that was crowded with people on the galley.A Tagalog sailor straddled the sharp iron on the bow of the bow, waving the matchstick for firing the gun meaninglessly, but the cannon that he should be responsible for firing was several meters behind him, and there was also a gap in front of the muzzle. full of people. "One turn of the typewriter, a few long bursts, and this poor wreck will be a floating coffin before those idiots can even blow a fart."

The sampan leaned against the yacht, making a few muffled noises.The captain of the patrol ship grabbed the rope ladder on the side and jumped onto the deck in a few steps. He ignored the two fat-headed port staff who came in the same boat and still dangled on the rope ladder until they were pulled aboard by the sailors on the yacht.The captain was puzzled. The line shape of this yacht was different, slender, smooth and very smooth. There was no tall ship building, no eye-catching figure of the bow, and no common complicated lines extending from both sides to the poop. Sculpture.All I could see were neatly coiled cables, some machinery of unknown purpose, and a teak deck where people could be seen.

After taking two steps forward, he immediately understood the reason why the deck was so bright.A team of barefooted sailors, obviously Chinese, was scrubbing the deck following the dragging hose; then sprinkled sand, and lay down on the deck vigorously with stones.These Chinese people in front of them are quite different from the slovenly and slovenly compatriots on the Junk boat. They wear neat blue uniforms, the collars are flattened on the shoulders and back like the Dutch, and their short hair is exposed under the round-brimmed straw hats wrapped with white hatbands. Stubble, full of energy but seldom speaking, moved neatly with the boatswain's whistle.

This situation made the captain couldn't help thinking about his cadet seaman years, but he didn't pay attention to the position of the scupper beside the bulwark.The spout of water from the hose flooded the deck until it reached his boots before he noticed it, and he jumped aside to avoid the dirty water, only to crash into a man.

(End of this chapter)