At this time, the Qing fleet followed the needle chart and compass guidance and slowly approached Changxing Island. No one on the five battleships dared to speak loudly. All they could hear were the roar of the fleet splitting the waves and the creaking of the masts.
On the main deck of the "Zhenbei" at the forefront of the fleet, the sailor standing at the bow suddenly heard a strange buzzing sound. He listened to the outside of the ship for a moment, then looked back and saw that the sailor opposite also shook his head. But he soon understood that the sound came from the air. So he hurriedly made signs to the people on the boat and pointed to the sky.
However, everyone on the deck looked up at the sky and saw nothing except the yellow dragon flag flying on the top of the main mast.
"Look! There!" Suddenly, a sailor pointed to a figure that appeared and disappeared from the mist not far in front of the bow.
Several East India Company instructors were stunned and immediately crossed themselves.
"what is that?"
"I don't know," the translator whispered, "but I have heard that those monsters in Beihai are good at practicing sorcery, and the court suffered great losses several times."
"Witchcraft?" After hearing this, several British people recited silent prayers: "O Lord, God of hosts..."
Soon, the "monster" quickly passed over the head of the "Zhenbei" and flew towards the warships behind it. The sudden unknown object cast an ominous shadow on the minds of the Qing troops and the British involved in this operation.
Four kilometers away on the Thor, Deng Fei and the others finally saw the towering mast, the fluttering yellow dragon flag, the white sails and the dense ropes on the screen. They were suddenly shocked and blurted out: "Sail fleet?!"
"Since when did the Qing Dynasty have a sailing fleet?!"
Jiang Fan asked Ding Guofeng: "What is a sailing fleet?"
Deng Fei didn't have time to explain, so he hurriedly picked up the starting phone, adjusted the frequency, and said loudly: "Guo Xuexian, did you hear that?"
"heard it!"
"Let a 75mm gun fire. The target is... 17 degrees north-northwest, 3.8 kilometers away. Fire a gun, right away!"
The North Korean Navy's ship-mounted 75mm gun is only equipped with a direct sight and no curved sight. All gunners must memorize the firing chart and calculate the muzzle height based on distance. As for the orientation, there is a small marine compass on each gun position, plus a universal angle ruler placed on the gun body to solve the problem.
Twenty seconds later, a cannon on the port side of Beihai 2 roared. The cast-iron shells instantly disappeared into the thick fog, and then a slight explosion was heard from the distant sea.
On the radar screen, the five sailboats were still moving forward; and in the blurry picture returned by the drone, the shell hit the sea outside the starboard side of the third ship in the fleet.
Deng Fei and the others didn't know that this one shot had already startled the Qing fleet.
The Qing army knew that the Northern Navy's cannons could hit far, but as of now, the Manchu Qing did not know the shape of the Northern Navy's cannons at all. According to the considerations of the Manchu and Qing Dynasties, the cannons of the Northern Navy can hit more than ten or twenty miles, so they must be tens of thousands of kilograms. And how did the Northern Navy transport such heavy artillery? In many past reconnaissances, Qing army sentry detectives did not find any troops transporting such artillery.
The British also knew that the Northern Navy's artillery was powerful. They not only learned about it from the Qing generals, but also inferred it from the Lei Shen's bombardment of Hengqin Island a few years ago.
The British opium merchants at that time made written records of the tragic situation after the bombardment of Hengqin Island and complained to the East India Company. But the East India Company's reply at that time was, you deserve it, who asked you to sell opium to China! Wouldn’t it be nice to ship it back to Europe? So the matter was settled.
However, this report attracted the attention of retired naval personnel in Madras.
Warship commanders in the age of sail must not only understand tactics, but also technology, otherwise they will not be able to exert the effectiveness of their weapons.
As some people have said, bring a battleship or an aircraft carrier from another time and space. Leaving aside whether there is a reserve of tens of thousands of technical talents, do you know what tactics should be used to fight? The technology is different, and so are the tactics.
You have to sing whatever song you go to in any mountain. Do you want to follow your temper? Grandma!
Having said that, the retired military officer keenly discovered from the report of the "Hengqin Island Incident" that the artillery on the Thor used explosive bombs, and the shelling distance exceeded 1.5 miles, which is 2.4 kilometers; and based on the remaining shrapnel, The shells it uses are not spherical at all.
This shocked the retired officer because such artillery technology was so advanced. The most effective firepower of ship's long-barreled guns at the end of the 18th century was one mile, and sometimes it could reach two thousand yards (1828 meters). It was meaningless and purely nonsense.
The characteristics of naval gunnery in this era are salvos, rapid fire at close range, and single shots are meaningless. It is precisely because of this guiding ideology of naval warfare that led to the emergence and large-scale application of the "Caron gun".
Furthermore, due to technological development issues, the fuse of explosive bombs has a time limit. If an explosive bomb is fired at more than 2,000 yards, what kind of fuse should be used? The cannon comes out with a smoking "long braid"?
Therefore, the British are extremely curious about the Thor and are eager to learn about its ship construction and advanced artillery technology. This is also the main reason why the Admiralty Corps is willing to participate in the war.
But what confuses the Qing generals and the British at this moment is that although the opponent's artillery can hit far, they still have to see themselves first.
There is thick fog on the sea, the visual distance is less than one mile, and our actions are concealed enough, it shouldn't be!
Suddenly, the British naval captain Horatio Nelson on the Zhenbei seemed to understand something. He murmured: "It was the thing that just flew from the sky! It was the enemy's reconnaissance equipment. They used a strange hot air balloon!"
The assistant leader of the Qing army's water camp on the side quickly asked the translator: "What is he talking about?"
After hearing the translation, the assistant leader was stunned and said: "Ball? Can it fly in the sky?!"
On June 4, 1783, the French paper manufacturers Montgolfier brothers performed a public performance in the Place Annone in Lyon. A simulated balloon with a circumference of 110 feet flew 1.5 miles. In November of the same year, the two brothers conducted the world's first manned hot air balloon flight at Chateau Mouette in Paris, which lasted 25 minutes.
In Horatio Nelson's view, it had been six years since the invention of the hot air balloon. Perhaps the Northern Navy had obtained the technology from the French.
"It turns out that hot air balloons can still be used in this way!" 31-year-old Horatio Nelson suddenly realized. Only the Thor, which has a wide deck and no dense masts, can launch hot air balloons.
Thinking of this, he immediately explained to the Qing army co-leader. Soon, the Qing army musketeers on the deck raised their loaded shotguns and flintlock rifles, waiting for the buzzing "ball" to appear again.
The problem is that Deng Fei will not give the Qing fleet a chance to approach.
After learning the location of the impact point, Deng Fei quickly changed the shooting direction and ordered the fifteen guns on the port side of Beihai 2 to be divided into groups of three, and five groups to fire one after another; at the same time, he ordered the two D30 guns on the Thor to aim Five rapid fire shots were fired at the fleet position.
Although the artillery on the sailing ship is dense, no one will order all the guns on one side of the ship to fire at the same time, because in that case, the hull structure cannot withstand such a huge recoil.
"Attention! The bearing is 16 degrees north of northwest, 3.1 kilometers away!"
As each gun position report was prepared, Guo Xuexian, standing on the main deck of Beihai No. 2, immediately issued the firing order.
"Ready! Fire!"
The rumbling thunder pierced through the layers of fog, and before the people on the Qing fleet could turn pale in shock, continuous explosions sounded in front and behind the fleet.
The one photographed in the third position of the fleet was the "Dinghai". The thick fir wood foremast was hit in the middle by a cannonball, and then turned into a ball of fire. Some shrapnel flew downwards, and there were immediate casualties on the front deck.
At this time, no one on the "Zhenbei" cared about the "ball" in the sky anymore. Everyone shrank on the deck in fear, as if they could avoid the whizzing shells.
With a loud "boom", the beautifully crafted lion statue at the bow of the "Zhenbei" was hit by a cannonball. After the flying wood chips scattered in the sky, only a short section of the sprit at the bow of the ship was left. , and the bow of the ship has turned into a big hole, exposing the internal gun deck.
Admiral Hadang'a, the commander of the Qing army's water camp who was commanding the "Dinghai", climbed up from the deck at this moment. His face had lost the previous high spirits, and he said loudly: "Ming Jin! Turn around and retreat!"
"General! No retreat!" Rear Admiral Sir John Jervis raised his three-cornered hat and shouted: "The fleet must move forward quickly! Attack as planned when approaching!"
"Fart!" Hadang'a said sternly: "Our army has been discovered by thieves. If we don't withdraw now, we will all have to play it out! You can't bear this responsibility!"
"No! General, please listen to my explanation," John Jervis pressed on Hardanga's shoulder and shouted loudly: "On behalf of the British Empire Admiralty, I assure you that we will bear half of the fleet's losses! Your Excellency, we I haven’t fired a single shot, what should I say to the Emperor of your country when I go back?!”
Hadang'a was also stunned after hearing this. Yes, how can he communicate with the emperor this time?
Taking advantage of Hardanga's hesitation, John Jervis shouted to the British sailor instructor on the deck: "Guys! Now I order to advance at full speed! We must let the enemy know the power of the British Empire Navy!" John Jervey Sir Si also took the risk and didn't even see the shadow of the enemy. He was really unwilling to retreat like this. No matter what, he wanted to see the true appearance of the Thor.
There are five hundred artillery pieces of all kinds, we have to shoot them!
At this time, dense explosions occurred one after another on the sea. The sailor instructors on the deck quickly took over the steering wheel. They loudly ordered the Qing sailors in the rough and poor official language used in normal training.
On the Beihai No. 2 in the distance, when the fifteen guns on the port side fired five rounds, Guo Xuexian, who was holding the steering wheel, immediately ordered the ship to turn. The huge motor sailing boat quickly drew a semicircle on the sea with the high-speed rotation of the stern propeller, and the fifteen guns on the starboard side were also ready to fire.
"Hey! Let's take a break, it's up to you!" In the gun deck, the port gunner who had just fired five rounds wiped the sweat from his forehead and laughed.
"Look!"
In the cockpit of the Thor, Jiang Fan and Hong Liangji watched the two cannons on the deck firing continuously, and the Beihai No. 2 not far away was even more thunderous when it opened fire. They couldn't help but be dumbfounded, sweating profusely, and completely forgot about it. where you are.
Is this the true power of the North Sea ship? !
Who in the world can stop such a destructive force? !
Deng Fei, who was paying attention to the radar screen, noticed that the Qing fleet was still coming towards him at an unabated speed. He couldn't help but be surprised that the Qing fleet didn't run away because it had taken a beating today or something.
At this moment, Hardanga on the "Dinghai" also fell into a state of madness. He personally beat the drum and sent signals to the ships, ordering them to form a double line formation and advance at full speed towards the location of the Thor.
He also figured it out. If he went back without firing a shot, not to mention that the emperor couldn't explain it, Fu Changan wouldn't be able to spare him.
Shortly after the Thor opened fire, two fleets sailed out from the direction of Fuzhou Empress Palace. The first fleet was composed of small single-masted fishing boats, about forty or fifty in number. The cabins were filled with firewood, sulfur, gunpowder and other items that had been splashed with soybean oil.
In the fleet at the back, there were a mixture of bird boats, large boats, and sand boats. In addition to sailors, there were soldiers holding bows, arrows, and muskets. At the bow and stern, there are two and one primary and secondary cannons respectively. On the left and right sides, there are also large guns, strange cannons, mountain-splitting cannons, and sky-blasting cannons. Although there are not many in number, they are still full of murderous intent.
According to Fu Changan's strategy, Dutong Xiong Yue, who received the imperial envoy's order, led his troops to Fuzhou in person yesterday evening and was ordered to cooperate with the Qing fleet to launch an attack on the Northern Navy fleet on Changxing Island. Fuzhou prepared a fireboat overnight, sailed down the Fuzhou River, and stopped near the mouth of the sea. They only waited for the determined time to arrive before launching an attack.
The strategy Fu Changan formulated in a hurry is actually quite complete. His plan was to use fireships to distract the Northern Navy, and sail gunboats to approach and attack. Fuzhou troops, under the cover of the gunboats, quickly launched a boarding battle.
Unexpectedly, the Thor discovered the sailing fleet in advance and launched an attack. Therefore, even though the time had not arrived, after hearing the sound of cannons from Changxing Island, Dutong Xiong Yue knew that the situation had changed, and he immediately ordered the fireships to attack.
Because the ships of the fire fleet were too small and there was heavy fog from the sky, the radar of the Thor did not show it until it drove out of the Empress Palace and prepared to turn north into the protrusion at the northeast corner of Changxing Island.
"No! Ding Guofeng, immediately notify all the soldiers on the deck to prepare to engage the enemy. The enemy has sent another fleet over!"
"Damn! The Qing Dynasty is crazy. Let's just buy some soybeans, what about them?" Ding Guofeng picked up the automatic rifle on his back, picked up the mobile phone, and walked towards the compass deck while grumbling.
Deng Fei said without raising his head: "We were in the Bohai Bay and beat Lushun again. It was a stab in the heart of Qianlong. Anyone who replaces him would be anxious."
After that, he ordered the sailor on the side who was steering the wheel to turn the Thor so that the bow of the ship, which was originally facing east, faced the northwest, and then notified the gun crew on the deck to adjust the shooting direction. In this way, the four heavy machine guns on the right side of the Thor's hull and the soldiers in the sandbag fortifications can shoot at the Qing fleet coming from the east.
However, as the Thor and Beihai 2 adjusted their directions, the Qing fleet took advantage of the gap in the bombardment and finally broke through the fog and entered within one nautical mile of the Thor.
So the blue and white hull of the Thor and the Beihai 2 next to it also entered the telescope field of view of John Jervis and Horatio Nelson.
"God! This boat is so big!"
"Send signal! Zhenbei and Dinghai are on the left, Fubo and Weiyuan are on the right, forming a double line formation! Jingyuan goes to deal with that merchant ship!"
An aide asked John Jervis at this time: "General, are we going to seize the downwind?"
"No! It's too late!" John Jervis put away the telescope and said to his assistant and the translator next to him: "Go and tell the admiral to send signals to all ships! We have to go directly through and settle the battle with one bombardment!"
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