When the wind and snow were strong in the north, strong winds also blew on the North Sea. The strong winds rolled up waves and slapped on a group of ships.
A group of sailors wearing military uniforms of the Tang Dynasty were working hard to adjust the sails and operate the rudders to make the ship face the wind and waves. Only in this way can the ship not be capsized by the sea. This is the most basic requirement for sailing.
Just wanting to do this requires the coordination of many people. This is not a fully mechanical operation like in later generations. It only needs to be done with hands. Nowadays, it is all done by manpower.
"Liu Duwei, the wind and waves are too strong. Should we find a place to anchor and take shelter?" On the deck, a captain suggested to Liu Rengui beside him.
"Where are we now?" Liu Rengui asked, wiping the seawater from his face!
The captain hurriedly took out a sheepskin map from a small sheepskin bag on his waist, looked at it and said: "We are at this location now. There should be an island here. We must take shelter there!"
Liu Rengui took the map, looked at it and ordered: "Send a signal to other ships and tell them to follow us to this island to take shelter from the storm!"
Originally, Liu Rengui didn't want to avoid it temporarily, but unfortunately the storm was too big. If he insisted on going his own way, there would be a risk of annihilation of the entire army. He couldn't afford such a risk.
Although offshore ships are good, when they are not strong enough to face the sea, it is not a wise move to fight against nature.
Under Liu Rengui's order, the fleet slowly moved towards a small island on the map. This island was called Zhangzi Island. It was shaped like a deer, so it was named this island. It was two hundred miles away from Dalian in later generations.
Liu Rengui's destination was the port of Gaoguli, but he encountered a storm and had to take shelter here temporarily.
Two hours later, the fleet finally arrived here with difficulty, but the next moment, the sharp-eyed naval crew issued a warning.
Upon seeing the warning, Liu Rengui was stunned and said, "What happened?"
"Master Liu, the ship ahead found other ships in the island harbor and asked what to do?" the captain on the side reported hurriedly.
"See where the ship is? Is it a cargo ship or a warship?" Liu Rengui asked hurriedly after hearing the news.
After some questioning, the captain ran back to Liu Rengui and said, "It's a warship, a warship from the Gaoguli people! They also discovered us and are approaching us! Mr. Liu, what should we do?"
"How should I deal with this? Of course, beat me! Beat me hard!!!" Liu Rengui cursed.
"Master Liu, the weather is not good for us. Will the iron knots be unable to light?" the captain asked.
Liu Rengui glanced at the sky and said: "Pay attention to the wind and waves. Don't let the wind and waves get wet. It will be fine. It's not raining now, so you can light it. Give the order quickly and give the labor and management a hard beating!"
"Yes, sir!" The captain received the order and hurriedly went to give orders to the ships in the fleet.
As a ship led by Luo Zhang, he naturally knew the semaphore language. Luo Zhang himself was more interested in navigation, so he was naturally familiar with this aspect, and the semaphore language was naturally taught to Liu Rengui and the others.
So the way they convey orders is semaphore.
Soon, other ships in the fleet received Liu Rengui's order. One by one, the navy officers ran onto the plywood, lifted the oilcloth on the giant crossbow, and adjusted their position to face the invading Gaoguli ship.
According to Liu Rengui's order, there were more than a dozen soldiers on the side holding oilcloths and holding them up above their heads. This could effectively prevent the seawater from soaking the giant crossbows and igniting the iron knots.
You must know that the key to a crossbow is the bowstring. Bowstrings are made of beef tendon. Once exposed to water, they will swell. Then the crossbow will have no elasticity. How can you fire a crossbow without elasticity!
So when the boat was sailing, it was wrapped tightly with oilcloth, and it is still the same now.
When Liu Rengui issued the order, his opponents also discovered Liu Rengui.
"Cui Shi, give orders to all the ships to take shelter in the harbor. As long as the ships of the Tang Dynasty dare to approach, they will be beaten hard. They are outside and we are inside. This location is good for us!" Gao Gouli naval officer Shangguan Dao ordered.
"Yes, sir!" Cui Shi, his subordinate, received the order and went down to deliver it.
The other generals of Gaoguli looked at the Tang ships not far away and said: "I heard from the Japanese that the Tang navy is very powerful. I think it's not that the Tang navy is great, but that they are still weak. Even the weak ones Even the warships of the Tang Dynasty cannot be defeated, and they are still clamoring to dominate this sea area. They are really a bunch of arrogant guys!"
Shangguan Dao glanced at the general who was speaking next to him and said: "The Japanese are not weak. Since they said this, it means that these Tang Dynasty naval forces still have some strength. Don't underestimate them, otherwise we will be the ones who suffer!"
"Yes, sir! It's me, Meng Lang!" Cui Shi bowed and admitted his mistake, but the disdain in his eyes clearly disapproved of Shangguan Dao's words.
After receiving Shangguan Dao's order, Gaogouli's fleet only traveled a certain distance and then stopped, preparing to attack the approaching Tang ships head-on.
On the other side, Liu Rengui's ship was also prepared under his order, and messages were continuously passed to him through semaphores.
"Sir, the enemy is stationary in the port!" The captain reported the news he received to Liu Rengui.
"Don't move? Humph, you think we can't attack him in the wind and waves outside? It's really whimsical! Since they won't come out to fight, then let's rush in and give me a hard beating. It's better to rush in. This time They miscalculated!" Liu Rengui ordered.
Flags were played one after another, and the entire fleet immediately received Liu Rengui's order. Under the ship, oars were stretched out one by one. After the slogan was shouted, a soldier began to slide the oars.
This is used during war, in order to speed up the ship, instead of just relying on sails to travel. In this way, the maneuverability is much better than that of ordinary warships. This is also the guidance of the Dockyard Department in Luo Zhang Improvements made below.
The wind and waves coupled with the propulsion of the oars, the warship's speed suddenly increased by more than one level. Its speed made the people in the harbor a little dumbfounded.
Before Shangguan Dao could give the order to attack, Liu Rengui's ship fired giant iron crossbow arrows that were tied and lit at the Gaoguli ships in the port.
The crossbow arrows pierced the sky and shot towards the Gaoguli ship in the port.
Faced with the Tang Navy taking the lead in attacking, the Goguryeo Shangguan Dao was naturally furious, but he didn't pay attention. It was just a round of attacks. The Tang Navy has giant crossbows. Do you think we don't have them?
Immediately, he was ready to order the firing of their giant crossbows to give the Tang Navy a counterattack!
