Guangzong Yaoming

Chapter 476: Single Ship, Far Away

An Zhongming looked at the sea to the southeast very nervously. He knew that somewhere there, there was only a lonely warship.

"Really...there won't be any problem?"

He muttered to himself, then recalled the conversation before he boarded his own ship.

"Your Majesty, you must be confident in your decision. They have to pretend no matter what. You, the Satsuma navy, should go first and see if they can continue the act."

Chen Jiuzu, the deputy admiral of the Ming Dynasty's East China Fleet, said so, regardless of An Zhongming's uneasiness.

"Why? They have no intention of fighting, and you still don't dare to fight them?"

"how come!"

This was the only answer An Zhongming could give at the time, and he could not say that he was worried about the loss being too great.

The Ming Dynasty's East China Fleet was not prepared to join the battle in Shodoshima from the beginning.

An Zhongming didn't know him, but now he knew his father. He was the son of the Ming general who commanded the navy in the Battle of Noryang, and it was said that he also participated in the battle. The Ming navy general was later awarded the title of earl and commanded the empire's Yangtze River navy.

Chen Jiuzu quietly gazed at the sea south of Shodoshima in front of him.

His father Chen Lin was also awarded the title of nobility in the first year of Taichang, and he served as the commander-in-chief of the Yangtze River Navy thereafter.

After his father passed away, he inherited the title of Pingyi Earl as the eldest son, while his younger brother Chen Jiujing joined the Beiyang Fleet as a military officer.

Today, some of the lords who were once granted the title of earl together with his father have now become dukes.

Shen Yourong came from behind and was even promoted to Marquis.

The battle in Japan is an opportunity for the Chen family to move to the next level.

The Chen Jiuzu brothers did not know that if the Taichang Dynasty had not been different, they would have ended up exiled and settled in Korea.

In this life, the Chen family has already been granted the title of lord, and Chen Jiuzu wants to live up to his father's reputation.

One and a half hours after the Zhiyuan had set out alone before daybreak, Chen Jiuzu looked through a telescope at the Satsuma navy, which had already slightly shifted its direction to the northeast in the morning light, and issued an order on the Jiguang.

"Send the flag signal, head southeast, bring the tail a little further away and then go to full speed."

After a while, this mixed fleet on the sea seemed to have different divisions of labor: the ship type was obviously that of the main fleet of the Ming Dynasty, and it seemed that they were going to Awaji Island collectively; the Satsuma navy, mainly composed of Ataka ships, seemed to be used only to blockade the navy on Shodoshima Island from going for support.

After about ten minutes, they saw that only two of the Shodoshima reconnaissance boats were still following. After a round of flag communication, the Oriental Fleet began to sail at full sail. The difference in the speed of the warships was already obvious.

Because of the convenience of maritime navigation, more reasonable standards for calculating speed and distance began to emerge at this time.

Before the Song Dynasty, most people used "months" and "days" as units, such as "It takes five months to sail from Rinan Barrier, Xuwen, and Hepu to the capital of Yuan State"; starting from the Song Dynasty, the method of using tides began to be used, and the number of tides along the waterway between two places was used to indicate the distance of the voyage, "a certain place with a certain tide to a certain place"; in the Daming Dynasty, the distance was calculated by "watches", "a watch is divided into ten watches per day and night, measured by the number of incense sticks, a piece of wood thrown into the sea, and people walking on the deck to check the wind speed. By determining the number of watches, you can know the ship has reached a certain mountain and ocean boundary."

Now with the establishment of the Institute of Scientific Research, the experience of Eastern and Western navigation, as well as the joint research in astronomy, geography, longitude and latitude, the Ming Dynasty's navigation has its own standard. The people may still have the old custom, but the Ming Dynasty's fleet has begun to use nautical miles, and one nautical mile roughly corresponds to one minute of latitude on the meridian.

The adoption of this speed and mileage calculation standard, combined with the observation and navigation instruments equipped on warships, led to great progress in navigation.

If measured in nautical miles, the normal sailing speed of the Antaku ship is only about three nautical miles per hour.

The Ming Zhenyang-class sailing warships could travel more than eight nautical miles per hour, and the smaller Weiyuan-class ships could reach a speed of nearly ten nautical miles per hour.

As for the Zhiyuan...

Chen Jiuzu looked behind him to the left with the telescope again.

At the rear of the fleet, a Weiyuan-class ship with two of the lightest and fastest patrol ships left the fleet as planned after setting sail at full sail and began to prepare to make a turn.

The Japanese army was certainly not fools, and the small reconnaissance boats tried their best to follow at a distance of three to five miles.

This distance was naturally "safe", after all, the Ming fleet had been led by the Satsuma navy, who had been following behind them at a reduced speed. At three or five nautical miles, they could see the enemy's movements, and if the enemy ships came to chase, it would take a long time to catch up at sea at this distance.

But at this moment, the Oriental Fleet fully revealed its speed, and this speed immediately scared them.

There was no way they could keep up, and the two or three ships were clearly planning to make a detour and report back to them.

Chen Jiuzu had to create an intelligence advantage to cause the Japanese navy on Shodoshima to misjudge.

With the telescope, there is visual advantage. With the speed advantage, the initiative is on our side.

Let's get rid of the tail first and make the Japanese army in Shodoshima hesitate.

Watching the two patrol boats complete the turn first and quickly approach the two Japanese navy ships, Chen Jiuzu continued to stare at the telescope and asked the naval staff: "Based on today's weather at sea, how far can the Japanese Yasukuni ship see?"

"General, their Anzhai ships have masts, but they are not high, and they don't have a lookout. According to today's weather, they can only see eight or nine miles away at most."

Chen Jiuzu nodded and said, "Then we should go out eight miles first and then split our forces into two groups and turn back."

Even if it takes two hours to go back and forth, they should be able to handle it.

After a fierce battle at sea, they were exhausted and probably could not row any further.

At that time, it will be like a civet cat playing with a mouse.

Now, what do you think about Shodoshima?
……

About half an hour after they sailed southeast, the Edo Ashigaru Navy had already sighted the Satsuma Navy's fleet.

"No news from the south yet?"

The elderly Watanabe Moritsuna walked out from the castle tower on the top floor of the Antaku ship, and squinted his eyes to look over at the guardrail on the deck.

From the time when the Ming warships separated from the Satsuma navy to now, the small early ship that first came back to report the news had just arrived.

Just after learning that the main fleet of the Ming Dynasty had gone to the southeast, they saw the Satsuma navy appear in their field of vision... They seemed to have a perfect grasp of the speed of the Satsuma navy and the time it would take for the Kobana to return from there.

"General, since there is no report yet, it means they are still heading to Awaji Island. Maybe there is a route on the way."

"...What about that black ship? Is it really not in the fleet?"

Watanabe Moritsuna looked at the slowly approaching Satsuma navy and felt hesitant.

The most terrifying thing is that the previous reports did not show any trace of the black ship. It is so huge, there is no reason why it cannot be seen.

Now there is not a single Ming warship here. They have arrived at the southeast sea. Have they seen through the deployment of the Yuyi navy and are preparing to intercept them midway?

"General! It's time to make a decision!"

Seeing the Satsuma navy getting closer and closer, someone couldn't help but urge them.

"...The Satsuma navy thinks they can hold us here?" Watanabe Moritsuna quickly made a decision. "We must defeat the traitors with one blow! Defeat them, then go west and force the Hanyi navy to come back for help! They will never abandon Seto's safety!"

Knowing that the enemy had seen through their plan to go to Naruto Strait, Watanabe Moritsuna certainly could not continue to charge in that direction and let them wait for him to tire himself out.

On the contrary, if they retreated directly in the face of the Satsuma navy, would the morale of the Imperial Japanese Army still be high after the news got out?
He decided to extend the battle line a little further, directly threaten the islands in the western sea, and mobilize the Ming fleet to come back.

"If we send the Kobana to Awa again, we'll probably have to postpone the plan by a day or two. Let them be ready at any time! Go around, go around from the east of Awaji."

At the command, except for the small boat that was newly sent out to deliver the message, the entire Edo Ashigaru navy pressed towards the Satsuma navy.

An Zhongming gritted his teeth when he saw the situation and said, "Keep fighting! They can't escape! Defeat the Edo Ashigaru navy!"

It was indeed the worst case scenario - for the Satsuma navy.

He is a little worried now. Is the Ming Dynasty's East China Fleet just planning to use them as bait here and let the Edo Ashigaru navy destroy them all?

Anyway, it was a fact that the Goi Navy was divided, so they could just go to the Naruto Strait and destroy the main force of the Goi Navy with their own strength. If the Kii Channel was blocked, wouldn't the Edo Ashigaru Navy be trapped in the Seto Inland Sea?
Could they possibly go back between Shikoku and Kyushu?

A typical Japanese naval battle began on the sea southwest of Shodoshima Island.

First, they launched long-range rockets in an attempt to cause chaos to the enemy with fire attacks. Then, they relied on the explosive power and flexibility of this human-powered paddle boat to board and fight.

However, the Edo Ashigaru navy had a sufficient advantage in the number of warships, and they were not as unwilling to fight as An Zhongming believed, and they only wanted to lure them to the Naruto Strait.

"Kill all these traitors!"

"Shameless bastard!"

"what!"

As the first pair of Ataka ships began to dock, the guard plates were lowered and the brave Edo Ashigaru navy soldiers roared and rushed onto the Satsuma navy Ataka ships. There were already sounds of swords clashing and screams of people being seriously injured.

An Zhongming could hear it because the boarded ship An Zhai was not far away.

After taking a look, he was a little surprised: the warship on the opposite side was very large, but the number of warriors on it was not as normal as it should be.

"Hold on!" An Zhongming understood. "Right now, the Edo navy's combat power is very low! The ships are all sailors!"

They were indeed preparing to escape, but they adjusted their battle plan because of the departure of the Ming fleet.

When facing the Satsuma navy, although the number of soldiers on each of their ships was small, they dared to look down on the combat effectiveness of the surrendered navy under the command of a mere daimyo.

"Abe Goro!"

An Zhongming suddenly heard someone calling his name.

"You have been a dog of the Han barbarians, but you didn't get even one piece of iron cannon? How can a mere bastard like you lead the Satsuma navy?"

An Zhongming was furious.

Although he vaguely saw an old veteran in front of the opponent's castle, he knew that it was not the voice of Watanabe Moritsuna.

The original commander of the Satsuma navy was indeed from the Shimazu branch, but so what?

"The Han barbarians treat you like dogs, and we are going to let you consume our energy here! If you still have a sense of shame and remember the loyalty of Bushido, you should surrender now!" The loud voice continued to shout, "Samurai who have no choice but to surrender, the general will understand your situation in Kyushu!"

"Fight to the death! Fight to the death!" An Zhongming could not let him be bewitched, and shouted loudly, "The so-called Hanzo of the Gun, prepare to escape from the beginning! Each ship has less than half of its usual combat power. Leaving them here is what we call the first formation of the downstream defense navy!"

In fact, he was a little too suspicious. The Satsuma navy had seen the strength of the Ming fleet along the way, and they knew how vulnerable the seemingly arrogant Edo Ashigaru navy was in front of that fleet.

If they surrender again at this point, they will inevitably end up dead - what the shogunate lacks most now is maritime defense power, and they will only use them to death.

Only by achieving victory now can we have a chance to survive.

However, the Ming warships are still nowhere to be seen. Have they really been abandoned?

Was the promise of them being the king's water commander in the future just a promise that would never be fulfilled?

The brutal cold weapon naval battle continued. Since the Edo Ashigaru Navy was Ashigaru, the most elite iron cannon navy stayed in Awa in the south.

In the cold weapon battle, although the Edo navy had more ships and more power, the number of samurai who could board and engage in battle was indeed less than usual.

For a while, the fighting in the sea southwest of Shodoshima became stalemate - weren't the two sides launching psychological warfare precisely because they couldn't easily gain a complete victory?
But as time went on, the advantages of the sailors in the Edo Navy warships became apparent. Working in two shifts, they were able to maintain greater mobility.

Seeing that his side was gradually on the verge of defeat, An Zhongming killed another Edo samurai who jumped onto the boat, and finally heard a dull and distant cannon sound coming from the east.

The sound of the cannon was so abrupt on the battlefield that Watanabe Moritsuna couldn't help but look to the east behind him.

In fact, it is still hard to see clearly. The distance is so far, and this shot is certainly not intended to hit any target.

An Zhongming's eyes filled with tears and he screamed, "Hold them! Don't let them leave! The fleet has surrounded them!"

Of course, the sound of the cannon was meant to inform the Satsuma navy.

The Ming Dynasty did not abandon them!

Watanabe Moritsuna felt that he had achieved his goal: "West! West!"

The main force went to the southeast, that is, to the southeast.

After all, they were more familiar with this sea. As long as they were dragged around a corner, they could still turn east and south from the north of Shodoshima.

It was already noon and the view was very good.

Even though the battlefield was chaotic, not many warships actually caught fire.

At this time, Watanabe Moritsuna truly observed the actual speed of the Ming warships.

The Weiyuan class is faster than the Zhenyang class, but the speed of the two patrol boats is even faster.

They were the first to arrive at the battlefield. Although their warships were not as big as the large Kanbune here, nor as tall as the large Atakabune, they were all equipped with four guns.

These three ships were the only ones seen near the battlefield.

Watanabe Moritsuna felt that he could not outrun these three ships, but he was more worried that other Ming warships were not far away.

If the other Ming warships were heading east of Shodoshima...

"boom!"

This time, the Ming patrol ship actually bombarded the Antaku ship that had entered the attack range.

Since the main operations were boarding, there were many ships in the battle group.

Watanabe Moritsuna watched from afar as the huge wing of the Antaku ship was hit by a cannonball. Many sailors were tumbling in the air and were knocked out of the gap in the shield by a bullet and fell into the water.

At this time, the larger Ming warship at the rear also approached. After turning the rudder slightly, several cannons on the side roared together. The situation of the other Antaku ship was even worse, and its wing buildings began to collapse.

They all fired at very close range!

Watanabe Moritsuna watched as they turned northwest, as if they were going to drive the entire Edo navy southward from the northwest.

Just three battleships?

Watanabe Moritsuna was a little excited for a moment: "Stop them! Let the right army stop them!"

The overall situation was still to fight and retreat. On one hand, they continued to attack the remaining Satsuma navy and prepared to break through them to the west, while on the other hand, they sent some warships to the north to intercept the three Ming warships and even tried to board them.

However, the Ming warships, with their firepower and speed advantages, were like swift and ferocious sharks, tearing off whatever they passed by. Before they could collide or board, the arrows of the Edo navy could hardly cause any damage to these three warships.

On the contrary, when the distance was close enough, the Ming army's gunshots would hit the soldiers on the Ataka ships, Seki ships, and Kobayakawa.

By noon, the battlefield had shifted from the southwest of Shodoshima to the west of Shodoshima.

At this time, a larger Ming fleet finally appeared to their southwest, approaching the direction of their westward advance at a speed that made Watanabe Morinaga's heart turn cold.

At the seaside, there is sea breeze during the day and land breeze at night.

Is this all calculated?
Further south, beyond their visual range, on top of the high observation beam of the Jiguang, soldiers holding telescopes reported loudly.

"The enemy ships are about twelve nautical miles away, and the fleet is turning northwest."

Chen Jiuzu nodded and said, "Go after them with the wind. If they want to go around, chase them south when the wind changes direction. If they don't want to go around, we will destroy them all in Harima Bay."

At this time, the Zhiyuan ship was attending the meeting alone and had just arrived at the northern entrance of the Naruto Strait.

It was afternoon. These past two days the tide started to rise after noon and started to ebb around dusk.

Shen Yourong looked through the telescope at the whirlpools of varying sizes that had begun to appear on the strait, and smiled as he said, "It's really a marvelous sight."

There were more than a dozen reconnaissance boats cruising several miles away, but they dared neither approach the Zhiyuan nor enter the Naruto Strait at this time. They all discovered the Zhiyuan one after another when it came over.

Shen Yourong looked to the east and then to the west.

The Ming warship arrived as expected, but there was only one.

So how will the main force of the Japanese navy be decided now?

"Admiral! A fleet is gathering on Awaji Island, about ten nautical miles northeast."

"west……"

News was frequently reported from Wangdou.

Shen Yourong nodded and said, "Let's get the boiler ready to ignite. When they get to three miles away, we'll go meet them first."

He used a telescope to look toward the northeast. There was no high observation post here and the view would be easily blocked by the waves.

After several sea trials, Shen Yourong had a very good idea of ​​the performance of the Zhiyuan ship.

It does not use steam paddle wheels, but is purely powered by sails. With a favorable wind, its speed is no more than seven nautical miles per hour.

But with the addition of the two large horizontal steam engines that were modified by the machinery factory specifically for warships, this is a real beast: with sails, its speed can reach over twelve nautical miles per hour with a tailwind, and it is much more flexible in turning than using only sails.

This must be a warship that far exceeds the imagination of the Japanese navy.

And there is only one ship here, and it is the main ship among the main ships of the Ming fleet. If they join forces with all their strength, can't they achieve results here?
Shen Yourong was not afraid at all: no matter how the wind direction changed, no matter how many enemy ships there were, the clean coal on the ship was enough to support the battle for more than ten days.

In terms of speed, caliber, and range, the Zhiyuan ship was completely superior.

In addition: Will it take Pingyi Bo a long time to deal with that pretentious bait fleet?

From Shodoshima to here, it is only about thirty nautical miles.

Perhaps half of the warships can be dispatched before dark.

When the Kuki navy on Awaji Island approached the northeast side of the Zhiyuan with their proud iron-clad Ataka fleet and spread out to encircle it, thick smoke suddenly came out of the chimney of the Zhiyuan, followed by a whistle that sounded far and wide.

The sails on the ship were deflected and the sailors began to control the direction of the rudder through the gear.

The Zhiyuan ship first began to slowly turn the direction of its bow, and after a turning radius that shocked Kuki Moritaka on the Ataku ship in the distance, it began to sail towards them.

Then the speed increased, until the distance that took the Ataka ship nearly an hour to cover did not seem that far at all.

Even though this is moving in opposite directions.

But just a few minutes later, the Zhiyuan ship completely entered full speed state.

Then it began to turn again, heading northwest, revealing its starboard side.

The distance of only a few miles seemed to be very close. The warriors behind the shields of the Kuki navy could see the rows of nearly forty dark and deep gun muzzles.

A moment later, dense smoke appeared. The sound only reached here when the Zhiyuan ship had already turned northwest and due west from the smoke.

None of the Ataku ships were hit. But a few breaths later, when they were preparing to block the north direction of the Naruto Strait with their flexible turning, a burst of dense explosions suddenly broke out near them again.

A total of four lucky warships seemed to be hit by something underwater.

The Zhiyuan continued to turn from due west, due west, southwest, due south, southeast, due east...

When it turned sideways, its port side was exposed.

The ships of the Kuki navy were getting closer, within a mile.

There was another burst of smoke, and again no ship was hit.

But this time, the secondary explosions began from a more central location throughout the fleet.

The Kuki navy, who were still in panic watching the four Ataka ships begin to tilt, became even more panicked, watching the Zhiyuan ship continue to move eastward and then turn south less than a mile in front of them.

Thick black smoke was constantly coming out of its chimney.

It's so big, how can it run so fast and so flexibly?
"That's great!" Shen Yourong shouted as he slammed the railing. "No need for floating mines anymore. Use kerosene bombs instead. Go around behind them and drive them towards the strait!"

swirl?

You guys can row across on your own!

(End of this chapter)