"Sir!" Zheng Chenggong hurriedly jumped off the warship, clasped his hands and loudly reported to Lu Xiangsheng, who had a serious look on his face, "The waves on the sea were too rough and two ships were lost. We have no choice but to return."
The sea breeze was a bit strong, but thanks to Zheng Chenggong's loud voice, Lu Xiangsheng was able to hear clearly the content of his report.
At this time, after he finished listening, he turned around and saw that the flags on the dock and the warship were blown loudly, and the warship rose and fell with the waves. He frowned and asked, "Is there a hurricane?"
One of the biggest impacts of the sea is strong winds and waves. However, Zheng Chenggong comes from a maritime family, and his subordinates are all veterans at sea. Naturally, they also know something about the ocean conditions in Nanyang, so he immediately replied to Lu Xiangsheng: "Sir, it stands to reason that hurricanes are rare at the end of the year, but It cannot be completely ruled out. From the current point of view, it does not look like a hurricane. It is normal for the wind and waves to suddenly become stronger!"
Lu Xiangsheng did not know much about the sea before. Even if he had fought with the Japanese in Korea, it was because the Japanese army came from afar and did not lead the troops to the decisive battle at sea.
The more people who don’t know much about the sea, the more they hear rumors about it, the more they become in awe of the sea. After hearing Zheng Chenggong's answer, Lu Xiangsheng immediately asked: "When can we go out again?"
The first expedition was unfavorable, which made him feel a little uncomfortable. After all, it was a bit unlucky.
"It's hard to say!" Zheng Chenggong thought for a while and replied matter-of-factly, "It depends on whether Mazu will bless you!"
After finishing speaking, he looked at Lu Xiangsheng a little worriedly, fearing that Lu Xiangsheng would force him to go on the expedition regardless of the situation of the sea. If one is not careful, the entire navy may be lost at sea.
Standing behind him, Anders, the Portuguese leader who had been silent, also said: "Sir, if there are only one or two ships, relying on the rich experience of the sailors, we can still survive the storm, but if the fleet sets off, It would be very dangerous.”
When they came to the distant Far East from the West, they often encountered wind and waves like this. However, they usually sail along the coastline, and when they see something is wrong, they often go to the shore to escape. They rarely cross the ocean or have to sail for many days in places where there is no land in sight.
When he said this, he was actually, like Zheng Chenggong, worried that Lu Xiangsheng would be eager to conquer the Spanish people in Luzon and force them to send troops.
However, it has to be said that they thought too much.
Lu Xiangsheng is a man who knows how to fight. Although he does not understand the wind and waves on the sea, he understands that the right time, place and people are not favorable. If the right time and place are not favorable, even if the war is on land, he will still consider how to use troops.
Therefore, he did not force the navy to send troops, but asked the navy to rest and set off as soon as the wind and waves allowed.
Upon hearing his military order, Zheng Chenggong and Anders both responded loudly and loudly.
None of them expected that on the day after Zheng Chenggong's fleet was forced to return, another decree from the emperor arrived.
That is, the Fujian Navy was renamed as the Southern Navy of the Ming Dynasty, and the post of governor of the Southern Navy was newly established, which is currently held concurrently by Lu Xiangsheng.
The name was changed from the Navy to the Navy. Although it was just a name change, everyone knew that this name change was of great significance.
Not to mention, there is also a naval governor, who is responsible for the navy. In addition, the Fifth Army Commander's Office will also be changed to the Sixth Army Commander's Office, and an additional navy will be added.
The emperor's decree clearly told everyone that the sailors, who had always been affiliated with the army, would from now on become an independent branch with the same status as the army.
As soon as the news spread, not only Zheng Chenggong and others, but also the ordinary sailors and soldiers, all cheered and were extremely excited.
Anders and the other Portuguese people had an indescribable feeling when they learned the news.
Obviously, today's Ming Dynasty has begun to pay attention to the sea. In this way, with the foundation of this empire, once it breaks out, will there be no more Western countries on this sea in the future?
However, Ming Dynasty and Portugal are brotherly states and must be a military alliance. When allies become stronger, whether they are the Spanish, the Dutch, or the British, they can no longer be afraid of them.
However, Anders and others always felt unhappy. After thinking about it carefully, Anders realized that this unhappy emotion seemed to be a sense of loss!
…………
After the storm subsided a little, many people wanted to perform well and strive to make a big contribution in response to the emperor's kindness, so they asked for a battle one after another. Senior navy generals, including Zheng Chenggong, also have this intention.
Of course, Lu Xiangsheng agreed.
As a result, the Ming Dynasty's southern navy went out for the second time.
However, no one expected that the wind and waves actually became stronger after a few days, and eventually the Southern Navy had to return. This time, there were about twice as many warships damaged as the last time.
The occurrence of this situation allowed some people who had previously been afraid to have opinions because of the emperor's prestige to finally find an excuse to express their opinions.
Their excuses are nothing more than saying how terrible the sea is. There is no need for the Ming Dynasty to go to sea, and there is no need for the navy to be changed to the navy and raised to such a high level. Why bother, look at God’s attitude!
Some people even mentioned that when the Yuan Dynasty attacked the Japanese country, so many ships were blown away by hurricanes.
Due to all these factors, Lu Xiang could not increase the pressure, because not only Annan but also Fujian also lost warships. With the help of thoughtful people, this kind of news quickly spread in the south.
This situation was immediately reported to the capital by the factory guard in Jiangnan. However, there was no need to wait for Admiral Dongchang and Commander Jinyiwei to report to Emperor Chongzhen. Emperor Chongzhen himself learned about this public opinion through eavesdropping seeds in the south.
Unsaid, Emperor Chongzhen would not have any scruples at this time. The secret factory guards secretly investigated the source of such remarks and who was most active in such remarks, and then directly arrested and chopped down the leading individuals. Yes, the crime is that he has bad intentions and intends to resist the decree!
However, despite this, if the southern navy is unable to go out or is damaged again, it will still have an impact on the emperor's prestige. Others will say, look, no matter how great your emperor's will is, can it be greater than God?
If you encounter wind and waves continuously, or if you look like you can go out to sea but encounter big winds and waves, or even a hurricane, although this possibility is very small, it is not impossible. Once such a situation happens again, it will definitely affect the emperor's prestige.
As a result, Emperor Chongzhen headed south again.
Now, for him, going out of the capital is like drinking water and eating. No one can go against his will.
Everyone knew that the emperor's trip to Beijing was definitely related to the conquest of Luzon. In other words, it has something to do with whether the Ming Dynasty's southern navy can successfully attack Luzon.
However, you, the emperor, are the emperor, how can you be bigger than God? Can you still decree that God will not let the wind blow?
Some people believe in such things and feel that the emperor is wise and powerful and omnipotent; but more people just look at the emperor's trip with doubts. What will happen in the end? Only a small number of people just want to see the emperor's jokes. For this reason, they do not hesitate to secretly beg for blessings from various gods, Buddhas or demons, and it is best to slap the emperor in the face.
Anyway, the Ming Dynasty is so big, that is to say, the forest is big, and there are all kinds of birds.
This time, Emperor Chongzhen traveled south lightly, riding horses during the day and taking a boat at night. It could be said that he traveled day and night. It only took about a month to reach Annan.
Lu Xiangsheng was deeply uneasy about the emperor's arrival in person, and quickly apologized: "It's the incompetence of the humble minister, which has burdened your majesty."
After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen smiled slightly and said: "It doesn't matter. We have just opened the sea in the Ming Dynasty and only used foreign troops. It is certain that we will encounter some difficulties, as long as we can solve them."
But how can this matter of Feng Lang be solved? Even the emperor can't solve it!
This idea is not only shared by others, but also by Lu Xiangsheng.
Moreover, at this time, Lu Xiangsheng had more worries. If the emperor's prestige was affected due to reasons on his side, he would feel guilty.
Therefore, he directly reported to Emperor Chongzhen: "Your Majesty also invites you to go to Guangzhou to take charge of Annan. I will do a good job for you. I have consulted the local fishermen and discussed it with Vice Admiral Zheng many times. It should not be possible to go to sea recently." has a problem."
Emperor Chongzhen understood what he meant. If things still went wrong, he would be far away in Guangzhou, which would have little impact on his prestige. However, he came here so quickly just to solve this uncertain problem. How could he listen to Lu Xiangsheng and run to Guangzhou instead?
Therefore, Emperor Chongzhen smiled and said: "It doesn't matter, Lu Qing is worrying too much. I have the final say when to go out for the expedition. Just keep an eye on it!"
As soon as he said this, it was a golden statement, a certainty.
Lu Xiangsheng was helpless and did not dare to persuade him again. However, he was also a little curious in his heart. Hearing what the emperor said, he seemed to be very sure that everything would be fine if he could choose when to go on the expedition?
Thinking about this, he couldn't help but think of the emperor's various wise and heroic actions in the past, including knowing the smallest details and deducing the whole incident from the smallest details. It was later proved that this was indeed the case.
Thinking of this, Lu Xiangsheng couldn't help but feel strange. Could it be that the emperor can use this ability to calculate the storm conditions of the sea in the next few days?
So, he followed Emperor Chongzhen with his eyes really big and his ears erect. He wanted to see how the emperor could see through the subtleties and infer from the small details what God would do in the next few days.
However, Emperor Chongzhen did something unexpected again. He did not go to the beach to see how the waves were, but directly conveyed the order and convened a military meeting!
