According to the reports of the officers and soldiers of the anti-ship missile force who returned to the capital with Zheng Zhilong, in the battle to block the East India Company's support fleet, the "harpoon" showed its power, sinking and damaging no less than forty or fifty Dutch warships.
It makes up for the huge gap between the two sides in terms of single-ship combat effectiveness. It can be said that the emergence of anti-ship missiles is equivalent to giving the Ming side the ability to check and balance the heavy naval guns mounted on Dutch warships.
If we are to catch up with the West in terms of naval guns, even if we use the imperial cannon, the M1857 12-pound field gun, its single-shot power is not as good as the Western 32-pound heavy artillery.
Merely surpassing Western artillery in terms of fire rate is not enough to form an overwhelming advantage over naval warships and even fleets of various countries in naval battles.
If anti-ship missiles are added and used in conjunction with the imperial artillery, Ming warships will have an advantage in firing speed in long-distance combat, and in close combat, they can launch "whaling harpoons" equipped with explosive warheads!
As long as it is a wooden warship, no matter how large the tonnage is and how strong it is built, it cannot withstand the heavy blow of the "harpoon".
If one is not enough, use two, and so on, until the opponent's warship is completely burned.
Previously, a certain prince asked Bo Jue to lead the anti-ship missile research and development team of the Academy of Sciences to develop an anti-ship weapon similar to a torpedo.
The "harpoon" flies on the water, but this weapon sails underwater!
Due to limitations in technological level, it is currently impossible to develop a steam-powered torpedo.
But this is not a problem for a certain prince. As long as he can sink the enemy's warships, he will always find a way.
Without torpedo-like power, the alternative is oh that missile-like power!
The prototype copied the "Harpoon" anti-ship missile and increased the wing area to ensure that the torpedo has sufficient buoyancy.
But how to ensure that it won’t stall when sailing underwater?
The torpedo is sealed as a whole to ensure that water does not enter. At the same time, the booster is placed above the water surface, and the exhaust channel is directly at a 45-degree angle with the sea surface.
The fixed depth of the torpedo is very shallow, and the navigation depth cannot be adjusted. This is not important. The intention of a certain prince is to use this weapon to attack the waterline position of the enemy ship.
As long as the impact is successful, an explosion occurs, and a hole is blown at the waterline, a large amount of water will definitely flood the warship.
In order to facilitate the deployment and firing of artillery, the current Western warships have all-through decks and no compartments at all.
Once water enters somewhere, it will either roll or become a "quasi-submarine"!
Through the speed test, the underwater speed of the torpedo is about fifteen knots.
The speed is unspeakable, but the advantage is that there is no defense at all.
At close range, such as about fifty meters, if you aim at an enemy ship, there is about a 70% chance of hitting the target.
As for whether it will explode after collision, since it is underwater, it depends on luck...
In general, after one hundred rounds of testing, the probability of hitting and exploding is more than 40%.
For a weapon that has never appeared in history, this is already a pretty good result.
The reason why torpedoes were developed was because the tonnage and sturdiness of Western warships were generally better than those of Eastern warships.
The only advantage of Eastern warships is their compartment design, which is a shortcoming of Western warships.
If this shortcoming can be effectively utilized, then this shortcoming will become its destiny!
For a warhead of the same weight, the damage caused by the underwater explosion of a torpedo is naturally much higher than that of a missile.
Another advantage of torpedoes is that they do not need to cut off part of the mast to carry them.
The device for launching torpedoes is similar to the missile launcher, but there are some minor differences.
That is, before the torpedo is launched, the launcher will be lowered to a position flush with the water.
It is necessary to ensure that the torpedo's booster will not be submerged in the water, and the torpedo cannot be allowed to fall into the sea from the air.
The disadvantage is that this torpedo-like "torpedo" is a weapon that can only be used in low sea conditions.
Under high sea conditions, it is easy for water to enter the nozzle of the booster, causing the torpedo to stall and turn into a floating object...
Take the imperial cannon, the whale harpoon, and the torpedo named "Black Shark". Each of the three weapons has its own merits.
The latter two are disposable weapons. Although the Royal Cannon is expensive to make, it can be used repeatedly.
But in terms of single-shot power, the Black Shark Ray Harpoon is the king's cannon!
In terms of usage environment, it is just the opposite. The Royal Cannon will not be affected by bad weather at all, and it is a weapon that can be used all-weather.
The two weapons whose tails can spit fire and smoke are all dependent on the weather. When there is heavy rain and rough waves at sea, they are basically useless.
If the sea conditions get worse, then there is no need to fight. Let's save our own warships first.
Zheng Zhilong didn't see this magical weapon because a certain prince didn't intend for him to see it.
All testing work of the Black Shark Mine is carried out in Taiye Pool. Unless insiders leak the secrets, the outside world will have no way of knowing.
Of course, a secret weapon that cost nearly 50,000 taels of silver could not reveal the true face of Lushan easily.
Just a dozen improvements and dozens of test firings alone destroyed nearly 150 torpedoes and destroyed a dozen ships of various types.
The craftsmen were completely confused about the prince's request to build a ship in Taiye Pond, but the prince's price was high, so the craftsmen had no intention of being curious. After all, making money was the most important thing.
The ship the prince asked to build was also very strange. It didn't need masts, just the hull.
To be precise, as long as it looks like a boat and can float on the water!
After that, all kinds of fish in Taiye Pond were blown to death...
When the ones killed by the explosion float up, you can reward the members of the project team.
The remaining fish were also in panic all day long, and they were relieved until the water surface froze.
The laws of heaven are impermanent, and fortune brings fish!
Put such a prince on the table, count on them to take advantage of it!
After a few times, Bo Dacaizi learned the lesson. As long as he wanted to eat fish, he would go to Ouchi to test-fire torpedoes!
The explosion sound produced by the experiment will not scare the beautiful mother and other beauties, and it will be warned in advance every time.
Moreover, before the test firing, the bell will be rung ten times as an early warning so that anyone who can hear the explosion will be mentally prepared.
A certain prince felt that Black Shark Lei Shang needed further improvement and testing, and it was necessary to be on the safe side.
The current speed of this thing is fifteen knots, which can be said to be fast or slow, and its range is also very limited.
Torpedoes are much more difficult to navigate and detonate than missiles, and they will not be mass-produced until they are finalized.
In addition to the armored ship, these are the three artifacts that a certain prince will use to dominate the oceans and achieve "pop-up" around the world!
Compared to two hundred years later, these things are certainly not enough to watch.
But now, it is a magic weapon that makes colleagues admire and envy them!
If you get the chance, you must imitate it. If you can't imitate it, you must find ways to purchase it.
Zheng Zhilong didn't know the existence of torpedoes. This new and extremely magical thing like trains had already filled Zheng Zhilong's mind.
If there is still a little space, a few airships will be crammed in!
Since warships could not carry airships and aircraft carriers had not yet emerged, airships would be of minimal help to naval battles.
Zheng Zhilong wanted to purchase an airship because he wanted to go back and show off. After all, everyone has the desire to show off, and so did a certain father.
Including ammunition, spare parts, maintenance support and personnel training, the price is 50,000 taels of silver per unit, with a starting price of ten units!
As a result, airships have become a toy that only wealthy warlords can afford!
Just the train and airship, two big toys, cost Zheng Zhilong two million taels of silver in his pocket!
Don’t think it’s too expensive, you can buy it from this one person all over the world!
In other places, let alone steam trains running on the railway, there are not even horse-drawn trains!
A certain prince can now sell airships to any warlord in the world. He has the fuel technology in his hands and is not afraid of imitation.
It is impossible for an airship to take off with ordinary oil. The fuel used by the airship is refined oil.
Even if people with ulterior motives poach workers from the refinery, they still don't know the secret.
Refinery workers are only responsible for their own jobs and have no idea about the magical functions of the huge fractionating tower.
Without layer-by-layer fractionation, oil will always remain oil and cannot be turned into fuel oil.
According to the post-war inventory, it is reported below that more than one airship wreckage is missing from the battlefield.
That means the remains were taken away by Braid and dedicated to Huang Taiji. This guy suffered such a big loss and must make up for it.
One of the preparations is to imitate various advanced weapons of the Ming Dynasty, including airships!
Airships are 100% high-tech weapons and take up a lot of resources.
After mass production, it would cost the Daming Factory 5,000 taels of silver to build a "Wanli-Kirov".
If that guy Huang Taiji ordered the construction of a hundred airships, he would probably starve to death a large number of coated slaves...
Braid's resources are far less than those of Ming Dynasty. Sloping resources in a certain direction means that there will be a shortage of resources in other places.
However, a certain prince wished that the emperor would build a bunch of airships, and the Ming and Qing Dynasties would have a super air battle that shocked the world!
As many as you make, I will knock them down for you!
A certain prince even sent people to develop anti-aircraft guns, so he just waited for work and waited for his work.
But then I thought about it, you don’t even have fuel, and the airship can’t fly even if you build it. How can you lift it off by mouth? ? ?
Out of sympathy, a certain prince wanted to sell some fuel to Huang Taiji.
A barrel of fuel costs fifty kilograms and sells for one thousand taels of silver. It should be a reasonable price.
If even this is too expensive, then just don’t play with airships at all. This is a toy for rich people, not suitable for braids!
Braids are suitable for riding horses, wielding swords, and shooting arrows!
For these three items, a certain prince specially developed tanks, plate armor, and flintlock guns!
If you ride a horse and charge me into formation, I have a tank and can handle it.
You slash my soldiers with a sword. We have plate armor and are not afraid of being slashed.
You shoot an arrow, and we'll shoot at you with a musket!
You have used up all three axes, but my men and horses are not doing much, I will make you mad!
I have airships, tanks, and rocket launchers. If you can carry it, carry it. If you can't, get out!
This is the way future war should be. The version that lags behind the times will eventually be eliminated by the times!
After riding the small train for ten full laps, Zheng Zhilong and others were still not satisfied.
This made a certain prince couldn't help but think that all the people in front of him were bumpkins from the countryside...
Didn’t you spend 1.5 million taels of silver to buy trains and build railways?
Then go home and have fun!
When the railway is built and opened to traffic, you can have fun every day!
In the remaining time, it was the turn of the prospective father-in-law, Xue Guoguan, the chief minister of Beiting.
After the important things are done, you can have some leisure and entertainment.
It was only after three o'clock after taking the small train, but a certain prince had no intention of leaving a group of guests to dine in the East Palace.
He has given full authority to his father-in-law-to-be to take the guests to Zhou Xin'er's beauty club to have fun.
A certain prince said hello to the proprietress and booked the venue for the past three days to make sure Zheng Laofi, a big customer, has a good time.
29. On the three days of New Year's Eve and the first day of the Lunar New Year, all beauties are used to entertain distinguished guests from Fujian.
Zhou Xin'er was of course extremely happy to be favored by a certain prince.
It's another thing that the distinguished guest is willing to give a reward, so she charged a cost price here.
What he was interested in was a bunch of in-demand commodities gifted by the prince, which were hard to buy with money.
In addition, Zhou Xin'er also received a coveted guarantee.
That is, once you encounter severe trauma and life-threatening injuries, you can enjoy the treatment of using the elixir "True Spirit" in the army hospital.
The "true spirit" is penicillin, and only generals or those who have made important military exploits are qualified to use it.
Before use, the medicine must be approved by a certain prince and signed by Dean Wu Youxing before it can be used on patients.
In addition, even if you don't have enough money, you will have to queue up if you go to the door and beg for 10,000 taels of silver to buy a bottle.
Whether you can get it in the end depends entirely on the mood of a certain prince...
After a lot of hard work, a certain prince had accumulated hundreds of doses of penicillin, one dose of which was enough to save a seriously injured person.
If the validity period was not as long as the original version, a certain prince would not be willing to sell it to outsiders.
As for who to sell and who not to sell, and who to save and who not to save, it all depends on who has more weight in a certain prince's heart!
Even if a certain prince agrees that the patient can get penicillin, he still has to wait for the results of the skin test.
If an allergic reaction occurs, it means that the patient is not blessed with the magic medicine and can just kick his legs!
Since the war had not long passed, many "true spirits" were used to treat the seriously injured, leaving only a handful for ordinary people.
Zhou Xin'er could not help but be overjoyed to get this guarantee, which was equivalent to getting the iron coupon of the simplified version of the Alchemy Book.
For every patient who uses "Zhenling", Dean Wu Youxing will personally check the condition.
Wu Youxing has now become a miracle doctor in the eyes of everyone. Everyone believes that as long as Dean Wu takes action, he can bring the patient back before the door is closed.
With enough benefits, Zhou Xin'er was naturally very attentive to what the Crown Prince ordered.
Zhou Xin'er had also heard of Zheng Zhilong's name. After all, he was the first noble person to be conferred since the prince took charge of the country.
The most important thing is that Zheng Zhilong's financial resources are rumored to be amazing. Some people say that his family wealth is as high as 100 million taels of silver, which has already surpassed Shen Wansan, a wealthy man in the early Ming Dynasty.
The last time Zheng Zhilong arrived in Beijing, he was received by Qi Yuer's beautiful lady. It was said that the reward for this landlady alone was as high as 10,000 taels of silver.
This time it was his turn to receive distinguished guests, so he really had to use all his skills.
In contrast, Qi Yuer did not suffer a loss, because many customers who came to the Beauty Center or not would choose the Beauty Center.
These two are considered to be the leading entertainment venues in the capital, and they are the only places for those who are not short of money.
From New Year's Eve to the 15th, these 16 days are the super peak season for the entertainment industry.
The money earned in the past half month is completely equal to the income earned in the off-season in the past few months.
Word spread on the street that the Japanese delegation would arrive in Beijing tomorrow, which made all the ladies in the city very excited.
The Japanese are short, and many of them have never seen the prosperity of the capital city. When they first arrive, they look like country people.
But the leaders among the Japanese are very rich and are willing to spend money.
These Japanese leaders, also known as daimyo, who are not short of money, are very popular in all walks of life.
Arriving in Beijing on New Year’s Eve?
Is this where you came from?
A certain prince was very puzzled, but the report would not be false. According to the report, the Japanese delegation will arrive in Tongzhou tonight and will arrive in the capital tomorrow.
If nothing else, the time to clear out the inventory and witness the miracle is coming again!
It doesn’t matter if you don’t have money to buy it. If you don’t have enough money, people will help you. Don’t you have ashigaru and samurai...
Both of these can be spent as money, and we don’t ask for a buyout, just rent it for a few months!
I believe that after spring, Dorgon and others will be "happy" and angry when they see this group of "old friends"!
