Ming East India Company

The ribs are fixed vertically to the keel, with even spacing, one rib every 35 centimeters, gradually rising from the bottom of the ship to the side, forming a hull cross-section that is narrow at the top and wide at the bottom with smooth lines.

During installation, craftsmen first chisel out mortises on the keel, insert the lower ends of the ribs into them, and then fix them with iron nails and wooden pegs. Side longitudinal members and deck beams are added between the ribs, and they pull each other longitudinally and laterally to build a stable and resilient hull frame that can maintain structural integrity even when violently tossed in the wind and waves.

After the framework is built, the next step is to lay the waterproofing layer on the hull.

The carpenters laid the prepared fir planks row by row along the outline of the ribs, starting from the bottom of the boat. The edges of the planks were smoothly laid together to fit the curvature of the ribs. Iron nails were driven into the ribs, and wooden pegs were driven into the nail holes to double-fix the planks and ensure that they would never fall off.

After the outer shell was laid, it was the turn of the hemp threader. Holding a specially made chisel and a wooden mallet, the threader carefully inserted the hemp fibers into the gaps between the wooden boards, repeatedly pounding them to make them dense and filling every tiny gap.

Subsequently, tung oil and pine resin oil were evenly poured into the sealed gaps, and after cooling, they formed a hard waterproof layer, completely preventing seawater leakage.

The bottom of the ship will also be coated with an additional layer of lead paint to resist seawater corrosion and marine organism adhesion, thus extending the service life of the hull.

This process may seem complicated, but it is directly related to the watertightness of the ship. The slightest negligence could lead to leaks and sinking during the voyage. Baiye dared not slack off in the slightest and sent people to check the process in shifts every day to ensure that there were no problems with the waterproofness.

After the hull was completed, part of the base supporting the hull was removed, and the dry dock was gradually flooded to carry out comprehensive outfitting work. This was a crucial stage in enabling the hull to have navigation and combat capabilities.

First, the deck is laid out using cedar planks. Below the deck are storage compartments and freshwater tanks, while above the deck are paddling benches—the core configuration of the Calais galley. Each boat has 28 long oars on each side, each over 10 meters long, with three tiers of paddling seats. Each oar is rowed by three oarsmen working together. The spacing between the seats and the position of the oar holes are precisely calculated to ensure smooth power output for the oarsmen and a reasonable angle for the oar blades to enter the water.

During deck laying, the ship will undergo gradual water testing to check the hull's water resistance. If leaks are found, outfitting will be stopped and the seams will be re-sealed for repair. If there are too many leaks to be repaired, the ship will be abandoned and the entire project will be restarted to reduce construction costs.

The installation of sails and steering gear is carried out simultaneously. The sailboat is mainly powered by oars and supplemented by sails, with one main mast and two sturdy masts erected in the middle of the hull.

Given that the shipbuilding industry on Ryukyu Island had not yet developed the soft sail technology at this time, Hakuno adopted the approach of directly using hard sails as a substitute. After all, it was a green-water navy, and silver sails were more flexible.

The mast is secured to the keel and crossbeams with iron hoops at its base, and equipped with a cable and winch system for easy raising and lowering of the sails. A large rudder is mounted at the stern, with the rudder handle extending to the command cabin for easy helmsmanship.

Finally, there was the installation of weapons and equipment. The bow retained a sharp bronze ram for ramming enemy ships; an 18-pound Köfflin bronze cannon was mounted on the bow platform, and multiple breech-loading cannons were arranged on both sides of the ship.

The basic tactical setup involves first using heavy artillery to bombard the waterline, then using breech-loading cannons to prevent boarding, and finally finishing off the enemy with ramming guns. The ramming guns can fire both solid shot and grapeshot simultaneously, providing both long-range bombardment and close-range defense.

Finally, there's the issue of manpower. The core of a galley ship is the rowing slaves, thanks to the continuous supply from Tokugawa Ieyasu's "Kanto talent market." Hakuno currently has no shortage of slaves.

With 56 paddles and 3 people per paddle, a rowing sailboat requires approximately 160 paddlers, plus substitute paddlers, for a total of around 180 people.

Secondly, there were the crew members; the entire oar-powered sailing ship had about thirty crew members and about forty sailors.

In addition, there were five gunners specifically responsible for serving the Köfflin cannon at the bow of the ship.

Thus, a single Kövlin cannon and a galley could form a combat unit. Twenty Kövlin cannons and twenty galleys together formed the galley fleet in Shirano's hands.

To address the issue of the short legs of the galley sailing ships, each galley sailing ship in Baiye was supported by two Fujian-style ships, which took turns towing the galley sailing ships in the open ocean.

Once they reach nearshore waters, the oarsmen are freed from their "restraints" and can operate freely.

Thus, the Ryukyu oar-riding fleet, consisting of 20 oar-riding ships, 40 Fujian-style ships, 4000 oar-riding slaves, and 2000 naval personnel, was completed.

Shirano named it the "Sea Falcon" fleet.

It was early in the 25th year of the Wanli reign (1596) that the first galley of the Sea Falcon Fleet was launched and completed its sea trials.

After four years of so-called "peace talks" on the Korean battlefield, in February of the 25th year of the Wanli reign, the Ming Dynasty and the Japanese Empire resumed hostilities.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi's Eastern Army once again marched north to attack Korea, and the Ming Dynasty also dispatched an army to aid Korea, with Xing Jie as the strategist and Ma Gui as the general, which once again entered Korea.

Inside the royal palace of Shuri Castle in Ryukyu, Shirano convened a meeting to discuss battle plans.

Cheng Keqin, who had become the commander of the Sea Falcon fleet, reported on the "intelligence" he had recently gathered:

"Based on the intelligence gathered so far, the total strength of the Japanese army on the Korean front is about 150,000 to 200,000. With so many troops, the daily food and supplies can only be replenished by the Japanese mainland. If our army can launch an attack on their shipping routes, then the Japanese army in Korea will inevitably collapse without a fight."

"But is it necessary to do this? Wouldn't it be most advantageous for us to let the two powers of Ming and Japan fight each other, according to the established strategy?" Bai Jingxing asked rhetorically.

After several years of "management" by Shirayuki, the consciousness of the people on Ryukyu Island has undergone a significant "transformation," gradually completing the transformation from "Ming Dynasty people" to "Ryukyuan people." Feng Luzi is a typical example of this.

"This is a strategy devised by the master, because the master believes that this war should be used to weaken the East as much as possible, and then expand the territory to the East after the war." Wang Sanshi has now grown into Baiye's chief advisor, presiding over the war meetings on Baiye's behalf.

Seeing that it was a strategy devised by Shirano himself, the others stopped saying anything.

"From now on, the entire Sea Falcon Fleet will be divided into four squadrons to search for opportunities to intercept Japanese fleets in ports in southern Korea."

"Cheng Keqin will lead the First Fleet to blockade the ports of Busan, Dada, Seopyeong, and Ulsan in Gyeongsang Province. Bai Jingxing will lead the Second Fleet to blockade the ports of Sacheon, Gonyang, and Goseong in Jeolla Province. Pang Shipu will be responsible for blockading and capturing the outer strongholds of Jeju and Chilcheon-ryang. I will lead the Fourth Fleet as the general reserve. Do you understand?"

"Why do we army generals have to go with the navy too?" Pang Shipu couldn't help but complain.

"This is the Lord's order. From now on, all Ryukyu generals must be proficient in both land and water warfare."

"Yes, ma'am."