Chongzhen's domineering

Chapter 166 The Rise of the Fushe Society, Successors of the Donglin Party (Part 1)

Sun Chuanting's recapture of Haizhouwei reversed the situation in Liaodong.

This is because his single strike effectively severed the southern and northern parts of Liaodong.

Huang Taiji lost more than just Haizhouwei City. After Sun Chuanting recaptured Haizhouwei, the entire southern part of Liaodong became indefensible.

This effectively reversed the roles of offense and defense. Originally, it was the Jurchens who were attacking, and the Ming army could only hold out in the narrow Liaoxi defense line, barely surviving.

Now it is the Ming army that is attacking. After Sun Chuanting takes Haizhouwei, he can attack from both the north and the south. The Jurchens not only have to defend Gaizhouwei, Fuzhouwei, and Haizhouwei, but also Liaoyang, where the Liaodong Commandery is located.

Nine out of ten of the garrisons of Gaizhou, Fuzhou, and Haizhou would not be able to hold out. Huang Taiji would have no choice but to mobilize a large army to defend Liaoyang. If Liaoyang were to fall, Liaodong would not only be cut in half, but would be completely destroyed.

Liaoyang is a well-connected city, making it easy to travel to Shenyang in the north, Dingliao Youwei in the east, or even Liaohetao in the west.

If Liaoyang falls, the Jurchens will need to mobilize a large number of troops to defend too many places. The Jurchens don't have many troops to begin with, so it would be quite good if they could mobilize a large number of troops to defend Liaoyang alone.

In other words, most of the Jurchen infantry had to be transferred to garrison Liaoyang, and they could no longer launch attacks everywhere.

This not only changed the balance of power in Liaodong, but also put the capital region at safety.

If the Jurchens dare to mobilize a large number of infantry to attack the capital's defenses, then Liaodong will have very few troops left. If Sun Chuanting or even Mao Wenlong seize the opportunity, then the entire Liaodong region may fall.

Huang Taiji was unlikely to be so reckless; therefore, it was highly improbable that the capital region would be invaded by the Jurchens again.

With a stable environment, the capital region developed even faster.

Zhu Jue was overjoyed and immediately promoted Sun Yingyuan, who led the army to capture Haizhou Garrison, to the position of Left Commander-in-Chief of the Five Armies Commandery. The other generals were also rewarded.

And this is not the only piece of good news.

The next morning around 9 a.m., he had just arrived at the shipyard and was about to check on the assembly progress of the twenty giant ships when Bi Maokang unexpectedly came to him, beaming with joy and bowing, saying, "Your humble servant greets Your Majesty."

It's been a long time since I've seen this guy.

He did know that this guy was developing large artillery. In those days, he didn't have much to teach others about such outdated artillery, so he didn't bother him. He let Bi Maokang calm down and slowly figure out how to use existing technology to manufacture large breech-loading artillery.

Judging from this guy's expression, he's probably achieved something.

Zhu Jue nodded slightly, then asked, "Lord Meng, has there been any progress in the development of artillery?"

Bi Maokang nodded repeatedly and said, "Yes, Your Majesty, I have already made a cannon weighing two hundred catties and tested its power. It is enough to penetrate a three-inch thick ship plank within two miles."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Zhilong couldn't contain his excitement and asked, "Lord Bi, does a cannon weighing two hundred catties really have that much power?"

He had a great understanding of ship structure. The bottom plate of a two-thousand-ton ship was only about three inches thick, and the hull and deck were only about two inches thick.

This means that if a single shot hits within a two-mile radius, no matter where it hits, it will create a huge hole.

Old-fashioned cannons don't have that kind of power; even 500 pounds wouldn't be enough. This is because the shells of old-fashioned cannons are round, while the hull of a ship, except for the deck, is mostly curved.

In other words, even if the shells from old-fashioned cannons hit the side or even the bottom of the ship, they would likely just glide away due to the angle and not penetrate the shell, unless they hit it head-on or hit a gap in the deck where there was no support.

This new type of cannon, weighing 200 jin, can actually penetrate three inches of ship plank; it's more than enough for making gunboats.

The reason they hadn't started developing gunboats was precisely because they lacked suitable artillery.

Now he could finally start developing gunboats with Wang Zheng, and he was naturally overjoyed.

Bi Maokang nodded repeatedly and said, "Yes, my lord, I have already tested it several times, and there is no problem at all."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Jue waved his hand decisively and said, "Let's go take a look."

Soon, the group rode across the already built Tonghui Bridge and arrived at the artillery factory in Tongzhou City.

Before leading them into the artillery manufacturing plant, Bi Maokang took them directly to the open test range.

At this moment, Sun Yuanhua and several craftsmen were waiting there, with a cannon about four feet long set up in front of them.

This cannon wasn't as thick as an arm, but as thick as a thigh; and the muzzle wasn't as big as a rice bowl, but as big as a soup bowl.

Zhu Jue carefully examined the finely crafted cannon barrel, then raised his small binoculars to scan the boat-shaped wooden planks laid out two miles away. He said with considerable interest, "Chuyang, fire a shot and see." Upon hearing this, Sun Yuanhua quickly waved his hand, ordering the craftsmen to bring over cannonballs, open the cannon door, stuff the cannonballs inside, pull out the fuse, and then close the cannon door and insert the cylindrical pin.

Immediately afterwards, he took out a tinderbox, blew on it, and then lit the fuse without hesitation.

With a loud "boom," Zhu Jue was startled.

When that small cannon, about the size of a tiger crouching cannon, fired, it sounded like a tiger roaring; the sound was loud, but not alarming.

The sound of that 200-pound cannon firing was like a thunderclap, so loud it made people's eardrums ache.

I was careless; I was only thinking about the power of the artillery.

This thing, the roar was like someone was blasting thunder right next to your ear.

Zhu Jue awkwardly picked at his ear before raising his binoculars to take a closer look. Sure enough, one of the ship planks in the pile had been pierced, and the hole and the surrounding cracks were probably as big as a washbasin.

If this hits the waterline of the ship, the ship will definitely sink.

He looked at the cast steel gun mount again and then asked, "Zhilong, how is it? Will there be any problem equipping this cannon on the gunboat?"

Of course, the cannons on my gunboats don't have that kind of power.

Zheng Zhilong nodded repeatedly and said, "No problem, Your Majesty, we can begin developing gunboats."

This gunboat is not just about having a giant ship or cannons; the interior of the gunboat also needs to be reinforced. The recoil of cannons is enormous, and if the interior of the gunboat is not reinforced, the hull may become loose and crack due to the vibration, causing it to leak.

Furthermore, gun ports had to be added to the ship's hold, and the cannons had to be propelled and pushed out by gun carriages.

This is because during naval battles, water columns shoot into the sky and water mist fills the air. If gun ports are not installed, the water columns stirred up by enemy ship shells falling into the water will be like a torrential rain, and the cannons will definitely be soaked through, making it impossible to ignite the fuses.

Therefore, gunboats are different from cargo ships; there are significant differences in their cabins and even hull structures.

Zhu Jue was pondering whether to develop ordinary gunboats first or go straight for multi-span gunboats when Wang Yingchao suddenly rushed in with a memorial in his hand, bowing and saying, "Your Majesty, this is a report from the Grand Tutor Zhou."

You came back pretty quickly.

However, I would like to see a memorial from either Xu Guangqi or Xiong Wencan.

What is there for the Emperor's father-in-law, Zhou Kui, to report? Is there something wrong with his business in Jinling?
Zhu Jue took the memorial and frowned slightly upon reading it.

The Emperor's father-in-law, Zhou Kui, reported not on business matters, but on the affairs of scholars. He discovered that many scholars in Nanjing were cursing the eunuch faction and Wei Zhongxian, and they were doing so quite fiercely.

It's not that the eunuch faction and Wei Zhongxian are untouchable; it's perfectly acceptable for scholars to criticize them behind their backs.

The problem is that Zhou Kui, who was in business, found out, and he scolded him exceptionally harshly.

The scholars in Nanjing certainly wouldn't be idle and have nothing better to do than spend their days cursing Wei Zhongxian and his eunuch faction.

There must be something fishy about this matter.

Zhu Jue thought for a moment, then asked, "Where are Xiong Wencan and Zixian? What are they doing?"

Wang Yingchao reported in detail: "Your Majesty, both Lord Xiong and Lord Xu are in Dongfan. Lord Xiong is preparing the second batch of goods for the Spanish, and Lord Xu is leading people to plant potatoes, sweet potatoes, grains, sugarcane, mulberry trees, etc."

Lord Xiong also mentioned that the sugarcane Lord Xu and his men planted last year is about to be harvested. Processing it into sugar should be enough to meet the Spanish demand. The question is about porcelain; should they go and purchase more this time?

This guy, he's also thinking about making money and currying favor with his superiors, isn't he?

Alright, the Spanish business is indeed very important, so it's good for this guy to keep an eye on things over there.

Zhu Jue nodded slightly and said, "Tell him that there is no need to purchase anything. Just build enough warehouses. A new batch of ships will be built soon. They will be used to transport goods to Dongfan. The new ships can transport the Spanish goods in one trip with twenty 800-ton ships."

Upon hearing this, Wang Yingchao nodded repeatedly and said, "This servant understands."

Zhu Jue thought for a moment, then decisively said, "Zhenghua, select a hundred capable guards, dress them in plain clothes, and go with Yingchao's ship to Jinling City to investigate and see what those scholars are up to."

(End of this chapter)