You were tasked with guarding the Sihang Warehouse, and you brought out a Tiger tank?

[LCS Landing Fire Support Craft]

Upgrade Cost: 600 Merit Points

Displacement: 400 tons

Armament: 1 x 3-inch (76.2mm) main gun, 2 x twin 40mm Bofors cannons, 4 x 20mm Oerlikon cannons, 4 x 12.7mm heavy machine guns, 10-tube Mark 7 rocket launcher.

Speed: 16 knots

[Note: This is a naval tank specifically designed for near-shore fire support. It is heavily armored, equipped with an armored commander's cupola, and possesses extremely sustained firepower.]

This is a proper warship. Although it is still called a "boat", its close-range firepower density has exceeded that of many old-fashioned destroyers. It is a miniature version of the multi-turret cult.

Lin Feng's mouth was practically watering as he watched.

"It has steel plates, heavy artillery, machine guns, and rockets. Driving it, you can roam freely in the Yangtze River; even the Japanese gunboats have to give way when they see it."

"It's a pity we still can't beat the Japanese destroyers that weigh several thousand tons, and our speed is a bit slow too. But using it to bully the Japanese inland river fleet is like a grandfather beating his grandson."

Finally, there is a choice of velocity flow.

PT-810 Torpedo Boat

Upgrade Cost: 300 Merit Points

Displacement: 90 tons

Armament: 2 x 40mm Bofors cannons, 2 x twin 20mm Oerlikon cannons, 4 x 533mm Mk.16 torpedoes

Speed: 44 knots

Lin Feng looked at the Mk.16 torpedo and couldn't help but mutter a complaint:

"Mk.16... at least it's not that damn Mk.13 or Mk.8 anymore."

In the early stages of World War II, the White Eagle's torpedoes had an extremely high failure rate. For example, the Mk.8 often hit enemy ships without exploding, earning it the nickname "kinetic iron rod".

"A speed of 44 knots, almost like flying. The Mk.16 torpedo has a large explosive charge and a reliable fuse. This is a true seaborne assassin."

Lin Feng quickly constructed a prototype of a small fleet in his mind.

"The LCS is responsible for head-on confrontation and providing fire suppression; the heavy-firepower PT boats are responsible for dogfights and clearing out the enemy ships; the PT-810 is responsible for high-speed penetration and torpedoes to deliver a devastating blow to the enemy's large ships."

"Perfect."

Lin Feng quickly constructed a prototype of a small fleet in his mind.

Without further hesitation, he immediately began the operation.

"Let's start with two LCS landing fire support craft to serve as the main flagship."

[Consumes 1000 merit points.]

"Bring four more PT boats with heavy firepower modifications, maximizing their close-combat firepower."

[Consumes 880 merit points.]

"The last four, emmmmm, it's worth saving some merit points. Let's not upgrade them for now, just keep the original configuration, 16 torpedoes, to deal with the Japanese big ships."

Soon, the once uniform PT-103 boat squadron had undergone a dramatic transformation.

The most eye-catching are those two LCS ships.

The massive ship pushed aside the river water and remained steadily afloat in the distance.

Lin Feng looked up at the enormous 48-meter-long warship, his heart filled with awe.

This ship is huge!

The 76mm naval gun at the bow is imposing, and the deck is densely packed with gun emplacements, layer upon layer, making it practically a mobile arsenal.

"This is a man's ultimate toy."

Lin Feng took the radio microphone, and the communications soldier immediately tuned it to the fleet channel:

"Attention, all ships, this is Lin Feng. You are ordered to conceal yourselves in the reeds along the riverbank and await further orders, and to prepare for camouflage."

I'll have someone bring you food and water. Don't reveal your position without my orders.

"Yes, Commander."

The captains of each ship gave a clear and powerful reply through the headset.

Having dealt with the fleet, Lin Feng looked at the LCS's spacious deck and suddenly felt a strong urge to join in.

"System, can this thing be upgraded?"

Upgradeable units detected

[Upgraded to - Barkley-class escort destroyer]

Upgrade Cost: 1000 Merit Points

Displacement: 1400 tons

Armament: 3 x 3-inch (76mm) L50 naval guns, 1 x twin 40mm Bofors gun, 4 x 20mm Oerlikon guns, 3 x 533mm torpedo tubes, Hedgehog launcher, depth charge rails, sonar.

Speed: 24 knots

"Destroyer!"

Sure enough, it can be upgraded.

Although it's just a stripped-down escort destroyer (DE), it's still a genuine thousand-ton warship!

If he could exchange for one, even just one, it would be enough to serve as the flagship of his inland river fleet.

Even with the help of the narrow terrain of the Yangtze River, it was not impossible for them to go toe-to-toe with the Japanese destroyers.

but……

Lin Feng glanced at the 93-meter length of the Barkley-class escort destroyer, then thought about his own 50x50x50 system space.

"It's too big..."

He sighed, looking regretful.

"If I actually redeem it, and things go wrong and I need to flee by land, leaving the Yangtze River, this huge thing won't fit in my system space. I can't exactly carry a destroyer with me, can I?"

Wouldn't that be like sailing on dry land?

"Never mind, I'll just have to bear with it for now."

Lin Feng reluctantly closed the upgrade interface.

"If we could establish a base along the coast in the future, and have a deep-water port..."

"Hmph, by then, let alone escort destroyers, I'll upgrade them all the way up to create Fletcher-class destroyers and Cleveland-class cruisers."

"Even... evolving step by step into the Iowa-class battleships and Essex-class aircraft carriers."

"When that time comes, I'm going to sail my aircraft carrier fleet to Tokyo Bay and give the Japanese Emperor a big fireworks display."

-----

After leaving the riverbank, Lin Feng went to the artillery regiment's garrison again.

As soon as I went inside.

Wow, this tastes amazing.

He didn't feel anything last night.

Now? This horse manure really stinks.

Hundreds of mules and horses were crammed into the makeshift stable, swishing their tails and happily chewing on the hay and bean cakes in the trough.

They had no idea that they had just escaped a period of grueling labor that would have exhausted them to the point of collapse.

Lin Feng stood by the stable, looking at the livestock, a mocking smile playing on his lips.

"Eat up, eat more. You're lucky today to have met such a considerate superior."

As the name suggests, a mountain gun is designed for combat in mountainous terrain.

Its distinctive feature is that it can be disassembled. A cannon can be disassembled into seven or eight parts, such as the barrel, carriage, and wheels, and then carried by mules or horses, or by soldiers, up the mountain with great effort.

Although Huashan is not very high, it has steep slopes and dense forests.

If these mules and horses were to carry dozens or even hundreds of pounds of iron uphill, and one of them were to stumble, they would all tumble down the cliff together, resulting in the loss of equipment and the need to eat horse meat sandwiches.

"Sigh, I guess I'm just destined to be a workaholic."

With a thought, Lin Feng waved his hand.

The 26 75mm Bofors mountain guns parked on the open ground, along with the dozen or so 120mm mortars and the mountain of ammunition boxes, vanished into thin air and were stored in the now frighteningly large system space.

The surrounding artillerymen, however, were unfazed and quickly formed ranks.

"All troops, listen to my command! Advance lightly equipped, destination: Huashan!"

Without the burden of heavy artillery, the artillery regiment and engineer company marched at an astonishing speed.

In less than an hour, Lin Feng led his troops to the top of Huashan Mountain.

"First and second battalions of the first regiment, construct the core position on the mountaintop and clear the field of fire for me."

"The Third Battalion will go to the mountainside to work with the Second Regiment to dig trenches and lay barbed wire. I want to turn Huashan into a hedgehog."