Royal Road

Chapter 372 Ampang(3)

The sails catch the sky, the drums are thunderous. Above Luoshui, the two teams of boat divisions are fighting with all their strength. The “Mengchong” hull is long and narrow, covered with cowhide, like a shuttle. There is a female wall on the “fighting ship”, and the flying feathers can’t avoid it and fight head-on. “Chima” is small and narrow, running like a horse, swimming like a fish. Countless ships are entangled in one place, and the fierce battle is in full swing.

But the most eye-catching is the two handsome ships. One of them has a heavy building, ten feet high, and has three floors. There are female walls on each floor with window holes for soldiers to send crossbows. Flags and banners were planted everywhere on the ship, and swords and guns lined up with unstoppable power. The other is shaped like a battleship, but it is bigger, with dense paddle wheels, and behind the female wall, the gun mount is like a forest.

The two huge ships are like dragons in the middle of the river, running off the waves and confronting each other. The boats below are fighting endlessly, the army is changing, and they all want to break through the enemy’s blockade and go straight to Huanglong. Suddenly, the new-style warship moved, the paddle wheels flew, stirred up huge waves, and rushed forward at an astonishing speed. Drums immediately sounded from the boat upstairs, and thousands of soldiers rushed to the side of the window, with their bows and crossbows all open, ready to fight.

However, faster than them, the battleship has already smashed horizontally, one side of the gun frame buzzed, dozens of artillery shells flew out, and smashed toward the enemy! Even the rappeller on the ship on the building has not yet entered range. How dare this weird ship throw it first? However, a crisp sound hit the deck, red and cyan smoke filled.

Red represents a fire, and cyan represents a broken ship. With the first blow, the giant ship began to turn and continue to advance. The towering ridge of the bow bulged forward, decorated with copper and iron, and with a mighty force, it crashed into the enemy ship!

“Ding Ding Ding”, the crisp Jinming echoed above the river. The outcome has been divided.

Sitting on the high platform by the shore, Liang Feng nodded with satisfaction: “Vehicles and boats are available.”

It has been three years since Zhao Guoshui Army was built, and it was the first time he personally reviewed it. The effect of this new warship is far better than expected.

Today’s water battle mode is far from what Liang Feng is familiar with. Without a reliable source of power and effective assault weapons, water warfare still emphasizes “many ships.” At the beginning of the Western Jin Dynasty famous general Wang Jun built the Lianfang, “One hundred and twenty steps, more than 2,000 people, using wood as a city, building a scull, and going out four times, all of them can be driven by horses.” Dongwu Sun Quan’s The “Chang’an” big ship “carries 3,000 people sitting upright.”

Large ships of this size, with bows and crossbows, are extremely powerful. A little further away, throw stones and splash iron. Or install a powerful rod to smash the enemy ship. With single-function boats such as “Meng Chong”, “Shooting Ship”, “Fire Boat”, and “Red Horse”, various water formations can be formed.

However, the number of skilled sailors required for such a ship is also an extremely impressive figure. The Northern Army, which is good at bowing horses, is inherently deficient compared to the Southern Army, which is good at water warfare.

In order to make up for this shortcoming, Liang Feng ordered the improvement of the ship. The sea-going ship is going in a huge direction. The deck is connected with nails and tenon to increase the strength, several sails are hung, the bed crossbow is assembled, the tail rudder is added, and the watertight compartment is installed. There is also the promotion of star guide and sextant to prepare for future ocean voyages.

Inland river ships pay more attention to attack distance and ship speed. Two years ago, the Ministry of Engineering designed a device that uses human foot pedals to rotate the oars, and made a “flying boat” with this. After several improvements, it was finally extended to the main battleship, which is now the “vehicle and ship”.

Compared with the boats, the navy that can be carried by vehicles and ships is much less, but the speed of travel is unmatched. It can move fast in the absence of wind or even headwind. There is no heavy building on the ship, leaving room for a reduced version of the catapult, which can throw iron and incendiary bombs. The range and power are greatly improved, effectively increasing the range of attack. The bow is also equipped with a collision angle, used in conjunction with the paddle wheel, and can even knock over top-heavy buildings. It was indeed a useful weapon for Zhao Guo, who had a scarce navy.

What is being drilled now is the formation that the navy has just perfected. If more than a hundred vehicles and boats are built, they will certainly be used when the southern expedition to the Jin Dynasty.

“Let the car and boat dock, I want to get on the boat to take a look.” It’s not enough to look on the shore, Liang Feng stood up and walked towards the shore.

The emperor gave the order, and the cars and boats soon came to the river. In front of the gangway, Yi Yi extended his hand next to him, and Liang Feng put his hand on his arm at will, and walked slowly onto the boat. The vehicles and ships were not small in size, and they dropped anchors on the river bank. After they boarded the deck, they couldn’t even feel the bumps, which was a bit of a battleship for later generations.

Liang Feng smiled and asked, “Is Bo Yuan still dizzy with such a boat?”

Before the establishment of the navy, the infantry had done a unified riding exercise. As a result, General Wu Ma Wushuang’s Hussar went seasick, making Liang Feng a joke for a few days.

Yi Yan smiled slightly: “If the boat starts moving, it will still be dizzy. I’m afraid your Majesty will not be able to ride it.”

A person who was dizzy in a carriage really couldn’t laugh at others.

Liang Feng snorted softly and walked towards the trebuchet. In order to prevent turbulence and control the balance, gun mounts are erected on both sides of the ship’s side, which are fixed on the hull so that they will not loosen even if the salvo is fired. Compared to the Thunderbolt on land, this catapult is more like a ballista. It uses torque, so it is called a “ballista”. The gun body is short and the firing range is not large, but the projectiles on the ship are quite light and can shoot four to five hundred steps.

Liang Feng reached out and touched the dry barrel, and asked, “Is this ballista easy to maintain?”

Yang Hui, the superintendent of the navy army, said: “Your Majesty, this gun is small, and the twisted tendons are not easy to get damp. It can fire two hundred rounds without damage.”

The life span is only two hundred times, which is not long. But compared to the cost, it can still be tolerated. In the era of cold weapons where science and technology have not yet reached the standard, the range and lethality of artillery may not have absolute advantages, and the price is too high. It is still more cost-effective for all kinds of trebuchets and bed crossbows.

“The artillery should be practiced or practiced, and the gunner should also practice harder to improve the accuracy.” Liang Feng ordered.

Yang Hui took the order, and then said: “There is always a shortage of fierce bombs in the army. Please send more of them.”

This fierce bomb is actually an incendiary bomb made of oil. If you add gunpowder, the power is even more amazing. But oil can’t be obtained casually. It was Liang Feng who sent people to conduct various surveys and discovered a surface vein near the Yanhe River in northern Shaanxi. It’s just that this place belongs to the Qianghu area, and after taking over Yongzhou, a large-scale collection of manpower was organized. The burning effect of oil is much better than the original coal tar. All armies are looking forward to changing equipment.

“I have ordered the Ministry of Defense to step up mining. Two years later, it will definitely be enough.” Liang Feng promised.

The meaning in the words of the emperor, is it going to be a southern expedition in two years? Yang Hui showed joy: “As long as the Ministry of Industry can build enough vehicles and ships, within two years, the minister will be able to train usable soldiers!”

He competed with Lu Kai from the Beihai Sea Division. At present, one ship built by the sea is bigger than the other. If you set sail southward and go straight from Jiangkou to Jianye, wouldn’t it take all the credit? Now that the navy has chariots and boats, the formation is even more changeable. He doesn’t want to be left behind!

Liang Feng smiled slightly: “The use of the navy is not just to conquer the south. Now that the Fenshui is opened up, the boat can go straight to Yongzhou. The transportation of troops and food can be used for great purposes. The second army of the waterway also needs to drill first and coordinate Fight.”

Whether it is the Yongqin or the secluded combination, it is the front line to guard against the nomads. Luoyang is located in the Central Plains. If you want to effectively control these areas, you must work **** the operation of troops. Road construction is the second priority, and unobstructed waterways are the key. Now you can go directly from Yecheng to Youzhou by boat, and you can also go directly to Chang’an from Jinyang. There is great room for the mobilization of troops. In the future, the south will be calmed down, and I am afraid that we will have to find a way to repair the canal from the Yellow River to the Huai River. In this way, the North-South Grand Canal also took shape. However, these are not something that can be accomplished in one or two generations, and the gradual picture is the key. He didn’t mean to imitate Emperor Sui Yang.

Hearing this, Yang Hui was a little disappointed, but immediately cheered up. Isn’t the training for the southern conquest? The more prepared, the better for the navy!

After watching the ballista, Liang Feng came to the lower paddle wheel warehouse. The space here is not too narrow, each blade is connected to the wheel, and the oarsman can push the ship forward by pedaling on the wheels. Unexpectedly, the pedal boat has been fully trial-produced before the bicycle is visible. Liang Feng nodded with satisfaction: “This is a sharp weapon for the navy. You must study it carefully to maximize strengths and avoid weaknesses.”

Vehicles and ships are not without their drawbacks. If the ship gets close to each other and starts a battle on the side, it will be difficult to solve the disadvantages of troops. In addition, the enemy also has offensive boats such as fireboats and patrol ships. Vessels such as vehicles and ships that store a large amount of inflammable and explosive materials must also be prepared for fire attacks. There are no invincible weapons in the world, so the art of war is extremely important.

All the generals around him took their orders.

After visiting the new ship, Liang Feng met the victorious navy again. Needless to say the reward, he even asked the ancestors of the people carefully, and indeed there are many people from Qingzhou and Jingzhou.

“It seems that it will take time for Beidi Boat to develop.” Liang Feng sighed, “Bo Yuan, how is your army’s’Flying Leopard’ practiced?”

“Flying Leopard” is actually the ancient version of the Marine Corps. Able to swim and ride a horse, martial arts archery are all outstanding in order to be selected.

“There are already two thousand. There are many good horses and few good waters in the army.” Yi Yan is not accustomed to sailing, and it is not easy to train such strong soldiers in the army.

Liang Feng nodded slightly: “Choose another three thousand people who know how to use water to train in the navy. Yang Qing, these soldiers are all handed over to you. If they are trained, they will be yours!”

Yang Hui was overjoyed: “Thank you, Your Majesty!”

At the beginning, Lu Kai had a thousand “Flying Leopards” and he was extremely powerful. But it made him greedy. Now give yourself three thousand strong soldiers in one breath. As long as you practice properly, isn’t it another pick? For him, the training of sailors is simple, but the bow and horse are difficult!

But Yi Yan’s heart was secretly, I’m afraid the lord wanted to attack Qinzhou. He knew best about the strategy formulated by the Privy Council, first to quell Qinzhou, then to advance to Jingzhou and Xu Zhu, and then to conquer Liangzhou. Compress the small southern court step by step and make it chaotic. The water battle is to be fought, but it must not be acted rashly like Wei Wu.

Therefore, whether it is Qinzhou or Jingzhou, you must first drill with the navy. I don’t know how useful this attack can be.

However, before Zhao State mobilized troops, news came from the south. The Jiangdong drought continues, and it seems that there is a new year’s trend. There was no harvest in the field, and there were two more solar eclipses. After all, Wang Dun couldn’t sit still, and raised his troops under the name of “the side of the Qing emperor.” Now Wang Dun can be said to be the most capable person in Jiangdong, and his men are tens of thousands of soldiers. Destroy all the way, and kill towards Jianye!

The author has something to say: The inventor of the car and ship is actually Zu Chongzhi, and as a result, it was opened three generations ahead of schedule.