In the Bohai Sea, at the mouth of the river, a large ship more than 20 meters long sailed into the port from a distance. The water cut through the middle. The three-story-high hull brought a huge sense of oppression to the people on the shore.
Unlike the previous large flat-bottomed ships, this large ship has a pointed bottom, which is more suitable for traveling on rough seas and is not easy to roll over. Moreover, the outside is covered with a layer of iron sheet, which greatly improves the defense and impact power.
This is the first trial voyage of Zhao's third-generation warship.
The first-generation warships of Zhao State were ten warships purchased from Yue State. After arriving in Zhao State, there were only seven warships left, and many places were damaged and needed to be repaired.
The second-generation warship was improved on the basis of the original Yue warship, reinforced, enlarged, and optimized the sail so that the sail could be raised and lowered freely, adjusted in direction, and multiple masts were added to make sailing more efficient. It is smooth and can also control the sailing speed by adjusting the number of sails raised.
At the same time, the ancient hanging boat stone was replaced by an iron anchor, which makes the boat more solid when it is stopped and avoids the phenomenon of running away from the boat.
The second-generation warship has been greatly improved in terms of speed and performance.
The third-generation warship replaced the flat-bottomed ship with a sharp-bottomed ship, and covered the outside with a layer of iron, which greatly reduced the probability of rolling over when sailing at sea, and further improved the defense and collision force.
The disadvantage is that the iron sheet is expensive and easy to rust, affecting the stability of the entire ship.
Zhao Guo is still trying to prevent iron from rusting, such as adding other metals to the iron, or spraying paint on the outside of the iron. But the specific effect has yet to be verified. This is Zhao's first third-generation warship. It has just been built and many things are not perfect yet.
As Yuan Hua shouted, a heavy anchor weighing hundreds of kilograms was thrown into the seabed, causing waves of more than ten meters, and the ship docked steadily on the shore.
"As long as there are more than ten large ships like this, even if the Wu Yue Navy comes back to life, I will be confident of defeating them." Yuan Hua stood on the ship, facing the sea, and said excitedly.
In front of such a big ship, who would dare to say that the northerners are not good at water warfare?
Even if I'm not good at it, I can just drive the boat over and hit your wooden boat. What can you do?
What does it mean to defeat all laws with one force? This is it!
The only regret is that Zhao State has no enemies at sea, not even a single enemy. Although Yan State also has ships, it does not have a navy.
Most of Qi's fishing boats are used for fishing. As for the naval fleet, it has long been abandoned.
On the contrary, these two countries often send some alchemists out to sea to look for sacred mountains and so on.
Although Zhao Guo now strongly supports the development of the navy, asking for money and people, Yuan Hua understands that if the navy cannot reflect its own value, these supports will disappear sooner or later, and even the navy will disappear.
The so-called value means that the benefits brought to Zhao State are greater than the costs of Zhao State.
Although the navy had no enemies in the past, it could do so through fishing. Now the fishing boats and the navy have been separated. Each is responsible for its own affairs, and the navy can only be responsible for training and operations.
Different from the competition for marine resources in later generations, now no one competes for marine resources at all. If you have the ability to occupy the entire Pacific Ocean, no one will care about it.
The problem is that with the marine resources of this era... apart from fishing and drying salt, Zhao Guo can do nothing else.
Petroleum gas? Not as good as fish.
Maritime trade? Except for this part of the Central Plains, the rest are all uncivilized savages. Who will trade with you?
"It's difficult." Yuan Hua sighed, with no trace of excitement on his face.
Without opponents, no benefits could be created, and even he himself could not figure out the meaning of the navy's existence.
However, this did not stop a group of shipwrights from continuing to be excited.
"I said that it can travel on the sea even if it is covered with iron sheets. When I was in Daliang, the king told me this truth. One day, I will build a real steel ship instead of the small ship covered with iron sheets now. "The young man whose name is also called Boat said loudly.
He is very talented in physics. He has been studying at Handan College. He recently came to the shipyard to practice. After two months, he will return to Handan College to continue his studies.
"If the problem of iron rust can be solved, it is indeed feasible." Wu Ying nodded.
He is a shipwright who came from Wuyue. It is said that he is a descendant of the down-and-out royal family of the Wu Kingdom. After the collapse of the Wu Kingdom, he took Wu as his surname. The second-generation warships of the Zhao Kingdom were designed and built with him as the main design, and Wu Ying is also one of the most skilled shipbuilders in the Zhao Kingdom.
"What is the driving force? In addition to being strong, warships also have extremely high requirements for speed. Even if your warship is a steel ship and others are canoes, it is useless if you can't catch up with them." Ou Yeshou shook his head. Shake his head,.
Of course, the stronger a warship is, the better, but speed is equally important.
If it is just covered with a layer of iron sheet to greatly increase the defense without reducing the speed too much, it is certainly possible.
But if the entire warship is replaced with steel, not to mention whether it can be overcome technically, but if it is actually built, can it catch up with others on the sea?
Unless it is replaced with a more powerful power system.
"... We will discuss the issue of power later. There is no way now, but it does not mean there will be no way in the future, and... I just said casually, the current technology is still far behind." Boat scratched his head and showed an embarrassed smile.
Let alone steel, even the problem of iron sheets has not been solved yet.
"It's better to tell the king about the third-generation warship first, and then apply for funds from the king. As long as the problem of rusty iron sheets can be solved, the third-generation warship will definitely be the most advanced warship in the world." Wu Ying said proudly.
According to his understanding of Zhao Kuo, as long as results are achieved, not only will the funds not be less, but more will be provided. By then, not only will there be money to build third-generation warships, but also he will be able to continue researching new warships.
"Okay, let's perfect the third-generation warship first and then talk about other things. The food must be eaten one bite at a time, and the road must be walked step by step." Ou Yeshou said, walking towards the shore with the help of the ship.
"I never thought that one day I would be able to win a fiefdom for my descendants." Wu Ying said happily, stroking his sparse beard.
Although the Chu State had a navy, it did not pay much attention to it. The kings of Chu throughout the dynasties aimed at dominating the Central Plains.
Wu Ying built ships for the Chu State in Jiangdong for decades without receiving any attention. After arriving in the Zhao State, he was named a minister not long after.
And according to the latest title system, as long as he obtains enough meritorious service, he will be able to become a lord and a fief like those generals who lead troops to fight in the future!
"General, Handan has sent an envoy." At this time, a soldier hurried from a distance, walked up to Yuan Hua, and said with cupped fists.
"Please go to the military camp first. I'll be there soon." Yuan Hua got off the boat and walked towards the military camp.
