My father-in-law Guan Yu, I persuaded Liu Bei to launch a surprise attack on Xiangyang at the beginn

Inside the royal tent, there was an instant silence.

The admiration and respect on the faces of the ministers were instantly replaced by worry.

“Bowen, what Youchang said makes sense. How to determine the direction when sailing on the open sea is a big problem.”

Liu Bei's gaze immediately turned to Xiao He.

Having lived in the south for many years, although he was not good at naval warfare, he was well aware of the advantages and disadvantages of river and sea navigation.

The advantages of sea transport are self-evident.

One of its drawbacks is that the sea is far more turbulent than rivers, and riverboats are extremely prone to capsizing when they enter the sea.

Xiao He's pointed-bottom seagoing ships perfectly overcame this drawback, greatly increasing the survival rate of warships sailing on the high seas.

He overlooked another drawback.

That is the direction.

Sailing close to the coastline naturally eliminates this problem, since land can be used as a reference point at any time.

But it's different when sailing on the open sea. During the day, you can only rely on the sun, and at night you can only rely on the stars to find your way.

But the weather at sea is unpredictable. What if it rains?
A storm could easily veer the flight path off course by a great distance.

At that point, forget about landing in Yuyang County; you'll be lucky if you can even find a piece of land to land on and not get lost in the vast sea.

Wind and waves, and direction, are two major challenges for navigating the open sea.

Liu Bei had only considered the former, neglecting the latter, and only realized it after Ma Su reminded him.

"Your Majesty, rest assured, I already have a solution to the concerns you have."

"I have already given the completed nautical chart to Boyan, and I have also given him two tools that can be used to determine direction at sea."

"With those two things, whether it's sunny or cloudy, I believe they will not deviate from their course and will definitely be able to land accurately at Gukou."

Xiao He remained calm and composed, reassuring Lao Liu and the others.

Everyone's spirits lifted, and a look of surprise immediately appeared in their eyes.

"Bowen, what kind of magical artifact did you give Boyan that has such miraculous effects?"

Liu Bei stared wide-eyed, full of curiosity, and asked.

Everyone was curious.

Seeing this, Xiao He could only smile and explain:
"The two tools I'm giving to Boyan are called a net..."

...

Ten days later, in the Bohai Sea.

On the vast ocean, dozens of huge ships are sailing swiftly.

Zhu Huan glanced around, a hint of guilt flickering across his face.

All around was a vast sea, with no trace of land in sight.

Since leaving the Qingzhou Weishan base, their naval fleet has been adrift at sea for almost ten days.

It's not the kind of drifting close to the coastline, where you can dock at any time; it's drifting far from land, truly adrift at sea.

Even though Zhu Huan was an expert in naval warfare, he still felt empty and increasingly uneasy after not seeing land for so long.

Zhu Huan was certainly aware of this, which was why he stayed away from the land to avoid being monitored by the Wei army's spies on the shore and to ensure the surprise of the attack.

But he was well aware of the risks involved.

For example, after a storm a few days ago, he was disoriented and completely lost his sense of direction.

All he could do was order the fleet to sail in the direction Lu Xun indicated.

After calming himself down a bit, Zhu Huan turned his gaze to Lu Xun at the bow of the ship.

At this moment, this fellow townsman from Jiangdong, the commander of this maritime expedition, was fiddling with the two "little gadgets" in his hands.

Lu Xun told him that these two little gadgets were called a compass and a sextant.

Lu Xun also told him that these were made by Grand Commandant Xiao He. Relying on these two instruments, they would not lose their way, whether it was windy, rainy, or sunny. They could always ensure that they did not deviate from their course.

At this moment, Lu Xun kept glancing at the compass in his hand, then raising the sextant to aim at the sky, and then comparing it with the nautical chart Xiao He had given him…

After all this commotion, Lu Xun gave new instructions, ordering the fleet to adjust its course from time to time.

"Hey Boyan, can this thing you're holding really help us find a port?"

Zhu Huan stepped forward and couldn't help but question.

Lu Xun stopped what he was doing and looked up at the sea in front of him.

"To be honest, I wasn't sure either. I was just using the compass and sextant according to the method that Commander Xiao taught me."

"However, since it is a divine artifact created by Grand Commandant Xiao, it should be true."

"After all these years, have you ever seen Grand Commandant Xiao make a mistake?"

Zhu Huan's heart skipped a beat, but all his doubts were silenced by Lu Xun's question, "Has Grand Commandant Xiao made any mistakes?"

Zhu Huan, what makes you think you can question the seemingly divine Grand Commandant Xiao?
"Grand Commandant Xiao is truly unfathomable. How could such a small gadget keep us from losing our way in the vast ocean?"

Zhu Huan took the sextant from Lu Xun's hand, muttering to himself, completely unable to understand its workings.

"This is a treasure, we mustn't break it, or we might not be able to get home." Lu Xunsheng, fearing he would damage it, snatched it back.

Zhu Huan pursed his lips, just about to complain a bit.

Sudden.

The lookout's shout came from the mast:

"Land! There's land ahead!"

Lu Xun was greatly encouraged and hurriedly climbed the mast himself to look into the distance.

At the edge of the sea ahead, the outline of land could indeed be seen.

"Order all ships to accelerate and approach."

Lu Xun shouted excitedly.

With the command flags waving, the navy's warships quickly headed towards that stretch of coastline.

Closer and closer...

The coastline gradually came into view, and the estuary of a river came into view. To the north of the estuary, there was a city.

After observing for a long time, Lu Xun climbed down the mast and carefully compared the nautical chart.

After a long while, Lu Xun slammed his hand on the table, overjoyed, and said:
"Yes, that's Gukou City. The river next to it is the Gu River. Our course is correct; that's Gukou City!"

Zhu Huan was equally overjoyed. Looking again at the compass and sextant in Lu Xun's hands, he clicked his tongue in admiration:
"I never imagined that Grand Commandant Xiao would possess such a naval marvel. In my opinion, he is not only a reincarnation of a military genius, but also a reincarnation of the sea god!"

On each ship, cheers from the Chu soldiers echoed simultaneously.

Lu Xun was the first to suppress his elation, raising his hand and pointing to Gukou City:

"Xiu Mu, Gukou City is right in front of us, what are we waiting for?"

Zhu Huan's fighting spirit was instantly ignited. He drew his sword, pointed it, and shouted boldly:

"Brothers, do you see that? Gukou City is right in front of us, and there's plenty of wine and meat inside!"

"Speed ​​up, all ships! Charge ashore, storm into Gukou City, and you'll have plenty of meat and wine to eat your fill!"

After more than ten days of hardship at sea, the Chu soldiers were immediately invigorated.

Dozens of ships, sails full, sped toward the coast.

The ship moved swiftly, and within half an hour it had entered the port of Gukou.

At this moment, the dock was in complete chaos. The few Wei soldiers had no idea that the Chu army would suddenly appear out of nowhere from the Bohai Sea without any warning.

The Wei soldiers, numbering less than two hundred, scattered like birds and beasts before the Chu army could even land.

Zhu Huan, Guan Ping, and others led their troops ashore and surged towards Gukou City like a tide.

In Gukou City.

A young Wei general was still patrolling the city walls.

"The King is currently engaged in a bloody battle with the traitorous Big Ears in Yijing. I bear the burden of national and personal vendettas. How can I, like a useless piece of trash, remain holed up in this rear area?"

"I must write a letter requesting to join the battle, and ask the King to transfer me to Yijing. I cannot waste any more time here..."

Xiahou Ba muttered to himself, looking absent-minded.

When his father Xiahou Yuan was killed by Liu Bei, he was still young and unable to fight on the battlefield to avenge his father.

However, he kept the hatred of his father's murder firmly in his heart.

Now, many years have passed since his reincarnation. He is over twenty years old, capable of wielding weapons and commanding troops. He boasts that he has thoroughly studied military strategy and possesses the talent of a great general.

He originally hoped to be valued by Cao Cao, to lead troops to fight against Liu Bei, and to avenge his father.

Just when Liu Bei was attacking Yijing from the north and Youzhou was on the verge of collapse, Cao Cao arranged for him to stay in Gukou, a small coastal city.

Xiahou Ba felt that he had no way to use his skills, and he was frustrated and resentful.

The more Xiahou Ba thought about it, the more agitated he became. He stopped in his tracks and ordered his guards to bring him pen and ink, so that he could write a letter of request to fight immediately.

His attendants hurriedly brought over brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, which Xiahou Ba spread out on the city tower. After a moment's thought, he picked up his brush to write.

"Ships... there are ships at sea... many ships..."

Suddenly, the soldiers' screams rang in my ears.

The Wei soldiers on duty immediately erupted in commotion.

Xiahou Ba put down his pen, looked up at the Bohai Sea, and his eyes suddenly focused.

On the vast sea, dozens of giant ships, like sea monsters descending from the deep sea, are sailing majestically toward the Gukou.

The banners bearing the character "Chu" were clearly visible in the setting sun.

The Chu army—that was the Chu navy!
Clang~
The pen slipped from Xiahou Ba's hand and fell to the ground; his eyes widened as if he had seen a ghost.

"How did the naval forces of the pseudo-Chu suddenly appear at my port?"

Why didn't the spies along the coast of Jizhou give any warning?

"What, what, what's going on?" (End of Chapter)