Late Ming Dynasty: The Counterattack Begins with Sea Pirates

For the next month or so, all the sailors trained intensively.

The veteran sailors work the hardest, not only training and familiarizing themselves with the conditions and combat methods of the three-tiered battleships, but also taking the new sailors to small sailboats for training.

During his inspection, Chi Honghai discovered two problems.

Firstly, while the previous six warships all had names (Dingbo, Dinghai, Dinglang, Hoian, Huicheng, and Huiyuan), this third-class battleship has not yet been named.

As his flagship, it naturally needed a good name. After much thought, Chi Honghai named this behemoth Tianquan.

The second problem is not so simple. According to the Portuguese, although third-class battleships are relatively common in their country, in the East, it is very rare, or rather, non-existent, to have such a tall ship.

Ships like those of Zheng He's time are mostly fond memories for the Ming Dynasty today. Whether they had the financial resources to build them is one thing, and whether they had enough wood to build them is another.

Thus, this third-class battleship could be considered a maritime overlord in the Eastern waters, its advantages not only being its sixty-four cannons, but also its towering deck.

When the enemy is fighting against us, boarding the ship? What is boarding? With this difference in elevation, it can only be a feint attack. Even if the grappling hook is thrown up, it's like climbing a mountain first. Similarly, it's not very convenient for our own people to get down.

Moreover, the crew consists of experienced sailors with numerous combat experience, and losing even one of them would be a painful loss for Chi Honghai.

After careful observation, Chi Honghai summoned everyone on the Tianquan ship, including Instructor Lang and Liu Qingjiang.

He stood on the deck and solemnly announced a battle report to the more than 500 people on board.

No one on board the Tianquan is allowed to initiate a boarding or docking operation.

Everyone was very puzzled when they heard this news. In the past, the brothers had always won battles by boarding the enemy. Without boarding, how could they wipe out the enemy? How could they seize the goods from the enemy ship? Now that they couldn't do it that way, wouldn't all their previous skills have been wasted?

Hearing the questions from the crowd, Chi Honghai took two steps back to a higher position and explained the issues he was considering to everyone.

"Our ship is named Tianquan. It has two decks and is significantly taller than other ships. Take a look at the ships we sailed before, and see how they compare to Tianquan."

"If there's such a large height difference, how would we initiate the boarding maneuver? Hook onto their mast and slowly descend? Wouldn't that make us easy targets?"

"Then, sir, what should we do if the enemy attacks?" the servant asked.

Chi Honghai raised the corner of his mouth and held out his hand for Liu Qingjiang to hand him the firearm.

Holding the firearm, Chi Honghai touched the trigger and said, "If the enemy attacks, with such a large elevation difference, we can only launch a feint. There are enough firearms on the ship. Just use this to deal with the enemy. Besides, if one or two ships try to surround us, they'll probably be in deep trouble."

When everyone heard what Master Chi said, they understood the truth. It was indeed the case. If you did a bad jump from a high place, you would fall half to your death, or you would be finished off by someone else.

Therefore, the sailors on the Tianquan ship spent more time on shooting training afterward.

However, practicing shooting is not about practicing shooting accuracy. Firearms at this time did not have much precision, so it was not closely related to an individual's shooting accuracy.

Although the vertical difference between ships is not large, it is still possible for projectiles to deviate from their trajectory.

The issue of accuracy is not a big problem in Chi Honghai's eyes now. It's not that he doesn't want to solve it, but that even if he wanted to, he doesn't have the conditions to do it. There are almost no technical personnel related to firearms on Hong Kong Island. Most people who know about firearms know how to maintain and use them, but as for how to manufacture high-quality firearms equipment, they are still far behind.

Since precision cannot be solved, quantity will prevail. The crew of the Tianquan has an advantage in terms of numbers. Although the Franks said that the ship could carry more than 500 people, it could actually accommodate 600 people. In addition to combat personnel, it could also be matched with relevant military doctors, cooks, technicians, etc.

While a large number of people is certainly a good thing, the frequency of firing is also of paramount importance.

The difference in reloading speed between a seasoned musketeer and a novice is like night and day.

Therefore, their training, apart from artillery firing coordination and improving accuracy as much as possible, mainly focused on the deck crew practicing loading muskets.

I thought that solved the problem, but another problem was discovered during the subsequent simulation training.

The length of the Tianquan was far greater than that of ordinary small boats. Even galleys, if not made that large, would be shorter than the Tianquan.

Despite the fact that the boat's width allows for shooting from a greater distance on the deck, actual testing revealed that the hit rate of shooting from a distant deck towards the center was so poor that it was hard to even find a compliment.

Wasting energy and ammunition, only to hear a bang, is unacceptable to both Chi Honghai and his crew.

After all, war is no child's play; it's a real fight to the death.

Chi Honghai wandered around the deck of the Tianquan again, watching his men train as usual, when he suddenly remembered something.

There have been multiple firing exercises in the shore training before, and the results of a real-world test were indeed quite good. So why not apply this tactic to the ship, but we need to modify it a bit.

When facing smaller ships at close range, one team would be dedicated to firing, while another team would stay behind to reload. Light breech-loading cannons that could be mounted on the deck would be placed at equal intervals to avoid blind spots in the firepower.

After this method was passed on to Instructor Lang and Liu Qingjiang, everyone gathered together to practice on the deck. The feedback was less than satisfactory, but they couldn't think of a better way to improve it for the time being.

Chi Honghai also made some adjustments to the crew of the Tianquan, equipping it with cooks, military doctors, and ship repair technicians, which were not available on the small sailboats before. He also clearly told Instructor Lang and Liu Qingjiang that whenever the ship went to sea, it must be loaded with enough food. He also specifically emphasized that it must be fresh, and if it was a long voyage, it should also carry a certain amount of fresh fruit.

Everyone understands the situation regarding food supplies; it's only right that people receive better treatment on such a large and precious ship.

However, only Instructor Lang knew the truth about fruit. If fresh fruit, especially citrus fruits, were not brought on a long voyage, the sailors on board would easily get scurvy. This experience came from his previous experiences and the experience of the older generation.

But no matter what, this is the master's order, and the master must have his own plans, so we should just do as he says.

With the close-quarters combat problem resolved, the new crew members on the small sailboat have also gained relevant proficiency. Things at sea are never something that a single ship can handle alone.

Back in Humen, Chi Honghai had already come to a profound understanding of this.