Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 151 Fleet and Immigrant Fleet

On the entire ironclad battleship, in addition to the two circular rotating turrets in front and behind, the twelve gun ports on both sides of the hull are worthy of attention, demonstrating its impressive firepower.

On every ironclad ship

They were equipped with 12 8-inch Rodman guns, 6 on each side, all of which were bombardment guns, which were sufficient to deal with enemy ships in ordinary battles.

Not all battles require the use of high-powered 15-inch main guns. If you are dealing with small or medium-sized sailing cargo ships, one shot can destroy them.

Speaking of Rodman naval guns, the US military produced a large number of Rodman guns during the Civil War, ranging from six inches to 20 inches.

Among them, more than 2200 eight-inch caliber guns, 1300 ten-inch caliber guns, and 15 323-inch caliber guns were produced.

There was also the largest-caliber 20-inch cannon, but due to its large size and weight, only one prototype was produced and it was not mass-produced.

The Rodman gun was not much different from the Dahlgren gun, using a similar mount, carriage and slewing mechanism.

The only difference is the slightly different shape of the guns, with the Rodman gun being a bit more slender and the Dahlgren gun having a fuller rear end.

The majority of the American-made sailing ships Zheng Guohui purchased were equipped with Rodman guns. The main sailing ships had two gun decks. The bottom gun deck was equipped with the Rodman cannon, a large-caliber 32-pounder.

The upper gun deck was equipped with 18-pound naval guns, with a total of 48 guns of two calibers. Although the number was much smaller than that of British sailing warships, the firepower was not inferior at all.

British first-, second-, and third-class main sailing battleships were equipped with between 130 and 60 guns. The more guns they had, the higher their grade.

According to the standards of Great Britain's sailing battleships, these American sailing battleships could at most be considered fourth-rate cruisers because of their small number of guns and insufficient firepower.

actually not
The number of guns equipped on American sailing battleships is indeed small, but the caliber of the guns is generally large, and the smallest is an 18-pound naval gun. There are no smaller caliber 12-pound naval guns, 9-pound naval guns and 6-pound naval guns.

British sailing battleships were equipped with at least three or more calibers of guns, the largest caliber being the 32-pound main gun, and the smaller calibers being the 12-pound, 9-pound and 6-pound guns, which were numerous and varied in number.

Comparing the two, their advantages and disadvantages are similar and it is difficult to tell which one is better.

This is because the demands of the two navies are different, which is reflected in different naval equipment.

British sailing warships are widely used in global hegemony. There are many occasions where they need to be used and ways to demonstrate strength. Of course, more caliber artillery is needed to increase the flexibility to deal with different scenarios.

For example, it can be used as a ship for the British royal family and cabinet officials, to deter colonies or enemy countries, to perform deterrent patrol missions, to serve as a ceremonial ship, and so on.

In many ceremonial occasions, it is only necessary to fire a 6-pound cannon. After all, you just hear the noise and you don’t even need to reload the shells.

If you are fighting against pirates and seizing enemy cargo ships, you can use larger caliber artillery, such as 9-pound or 12-pound guns.

No matter how many crew members there are on a British sailing warship, it is impossible to operate hundreds of cannons at the same time. That is simply a fantasy, and there are not enough people.

It takes at least two people to operate a small-caliber artillery, and at least five or six people to operate a large-caliber artillery. During combat, it is considered good if one-third of them can be operated at the same time.

American-made sailing warships have a single role, mainly used for fleet decisive battles, blockading ports and sea routes, conducting maritime commerce disruption or harassment warfare, and even playing the role of lone wolf.

This makes the role of American sailing warships simpler, focusing only on naval combat, and naturally does not require artillery of so many calibers.

For Zheng Guohui, the purchased American-made sailing warships better meet his needs.

The sailing warships used for transportation purposes basically removed the heavy guns equipped on the lower fire deck, and only retained the 18-pound naval guns on the upper gun deck.

Generally, four to six 18-pound naval guns are retained and used only for self-defense.

The large amount of space left after the demolition was used to transport goods and Chinese immigrants, providing a more spacious environment. It has now begun to travel between Chongming Island and Mindanao to carry out immigrant transportation tasks.

In 1507, a thousand-ton carrack sailing transport ship carried a maximum of 1420 slaves, which is a historical record.

Taking into account that Chinese immigrants need a certain amount of space to prevent the environment on the ship from being too harsh, Zheng Guohui set the upper limit at 800 people, no more and no less.

There are currently five thousand-ton sailing ships traveling between Chongming Island and Mindanao, which can carry 5 people at a time.

In addition, there are 17 large sailing ships of varying displacement, with a transport capacity of no less than people per voyage.

Two-phase total
The sailing fleet can transport 1.4 immigrants at a time. Depending on the wind direction, the one-way transportation time is between 11 and 15 days, and a round trip can be easily completed in a month.

Before the arrival of the second sailing fleet, there were still three Fujian fleets in better condition participating in the transportation of immigrants, with the capacity to transport 1.4 people at a time, and a total of more than 2.8 refugees per month.

This scale of immigration has already met current needs.

What's more, the naval fleet is also a potential transportation capacity.

If the Northern Expedition is completed and the Chinese rule in the Luzon Islands is consolidated, the navy's sailing fleet can also participate in the cross-strait immigration transportation routes.

Such ocean voyages are very helpful for fleet officers and soldiers to further familiarize themselves with ship handling skills and adapt to long-distance ocean voyages, and have replaced most of the maritime training subjects.

When we returned to the Marshal's headquarters, we were naturally surprised again.

There were more than ninety people in the Marshal's Mansion, including housekeepers, maids, servants, cooks, grooms, etc., who surrounded Qiao Yue, who was pregnant, and greeted her at the door of the Marshal's Mansion.

When Zheng Guohui and his party arrived, everyone knelt down to greet them.

Zheng Guohui dismounted and walked over to personally help the disabled Qiao Yue to her feet, saying with a tone of pity and reproach;
"You are such a heavy girl, and you are learning these customs and rituals from them. What if you get pregnant?"

Qiao Yue has been pregnant for 8 months and is not far from giving birth. Qiao Yue raised her face and smiled innocently, tears glistening under her fluttering eyelashes. Her face has become chubby due to pregnancy, which is very cute.

She narrowed her eyes and replied happily, "If I can kneel until the master returns home, Qiao Yue is willing to kneel every day. I'd be so happy."

"Silly girl, you are talking nonsense again. Let's go, get up and go back home together." Zheng Guohui waved his hand casually.

He took Qiao Yue's hand and walked into the general's mansion together. He stopped at a high point and turned to the head of the personal guard, Zheng Fu, and said:

“Now that I’m back, I won’t leave again in the short term.

You should discuss with Zheng Shan in the next few days to arrange the duty rotation of the personal guard regiment, and try your best to coordinate and handle any family matters of ordinary officers and soldiers.

You don't have to be on duty these days. You can concentrate on sorting out miscellaneous affairs, formulating routine military training plans, and ensuring that you can balance training and rotation.

List the relevant trivia items in a written document and submit it for approval. Is that clear?"

"'I understand, and will follow the commander's orders.'" Zheng Fu and Zheng Shan clasped their fists solemnly and accepted the order.

"Ah."

Zheng Guohui snorted, then took Qiao Yue's hand and continued to walk into the mansion.

Qiao Xing and Su Meiniang behind them looked at each other silently, and saw deep envy and desire in each other's eyes. Who doesn't want to be held by the hand and cared for by the master?
It’s a pity that my stomach is not doing well. Who can I blame?

Back to the mansion

A group of maids were busy following Zheng Guohui. They changed out of their old clothes that were full of sweat, and went to the wooden tub in the wing room to take a bath. When they came out, they felt refreshed all over.

A sumptuous banquet has been set in the restaurant. Today's dishes are particularly delicious. Everyone from top to bottom is holding back their energy, hoping to serve the master with all their heart and soul.

Qiao Yue felt heavy, so she placed a brocade stool and sat a little behind Zheng Guohui. She took some small pieces of fruits and vegetables and fed them to the master. Her eyes were full of happiness when she looked at him.

This was a treatment the maid had never had before. Su Meiniang on the other side could only stand and serve, picking up the delicious dishes that were placed farther away and putting them in the bowls and plates in front of the master.

Zheng Guohui ate quite deliciously, but if one were to evaluate the banquet, there was nothing else worth mentioning except that the large portions of food were served in large bowls.

When it comes to cooking, it has to be the chef that Madam Zheng Li brought with her when she got married. He is able to cook authentic palace dishes with exquisite and ingenious presentation, and the dishes are delicious in color, aroma and taste.

Fortunately, Zheng Guohui was not picky. After lunch, he waved his hand and gave rewards to everyone. A group of servants and family members came to thank him.

After answering their questions, Zheng Guohui sat at the top and drank the freshly brewed tea. Only then did he have the opportunity to carefully observe the changes in Qiao Yue, which made the young woman blush.

I haven't seen her for 6 months. Qiao Yue has become much fatter than before. Her originally pointed chin has become rounder. Her pink skin is chubby and looks extremely cute.

Qiao Yue is now a ripe peach.

Zheng Guohui even pinched it and found it felt really good.

This intimate action made Qiao Yue blush even more, and she almost whispered, "Master, don't..."

The sound of the last word is almost as soft as a mosquito, which is why a concubine is more submissive than a wife.

No matter what the master does, even if it seems frivolous, Qiao Yue will never resist, but will only obey gently.

If it was Madam Zheng Li, she would definitely block it with her hands or turn around and run away. At such a young age, she had to maintain her dignity as a housewife, so it would be difficult for Zheng Guohui to succeed.

After a long voyage last night, coupled with the hustle and bustle of the morning, and after lunch and chatting for a while, Zheng Guohui felt a little sleepy.

Then he said, "I'm a little sleepy, Mei Niang, go and tidy up the master's bed. Ah Yue will accompany me for a nap."

"I obey your command." Su Mei Niang immediately went to prepare.

Zheng Guohui stood up as he spoke. Just as he was about to reach out to hold Qiaoyue's hand, he found that the girl was resisting. She raised her head and said timidly, "Master, don't..."

Just a moment
Zheng Guohui then understood what this girl was afraid of.
He gave a silent, unctuous smile, stretched out his finger, and gently scratched Qiao Yue's delicate nose. He leaned over and whispered, "The master is just holding you for a nap. What are you thinking about, little girl?"

"Oh, I'm so embarrassed." Qiao Yue covered her cheeks with her chubby little hands and twisted her body. She looked extremely embarrassed and anxious.

Zheng Guohui took her little hand and led her all the way to the dormitory.

Holding Qiao Yue's fragrant body, Zheng Guohui lay down on the bed and fell asleep in a short while, making a slight sound of snoring.

Qiao Yue was not sleepy. She curled up in the master's broad and thick chest, feeling like a safe and warm harbor, and every pore of her body was filled with happiness.

The wonderful feeling of being valued, loved and remembered by others made tears flow unconsciously, and I cried with happiness.

How have I deserved this? I'm afraid it must be the blessing I've accumulated over several lifetimes that I deserve such great love from the master.

May God bless me, may my ancestors bless me, and may I bear a boy for my master. If this happens, I am willing to worship Buddha and pray every day, rebuild the golden statue for the temple, and make many blessings.

If it's a girl, bah... Impossible, don't let your imagination run wild, don't let your imagination run wild...

Amidst her chaotic thoughts, Qiao Yue soon fell asleep.

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(End of this chapter)