1635 Han style rises again

Chapter 750 "Wind and Thunder"

1659, the year of Jihai, the 17th year of Qianwu in Daqi, the fifth year of Guangde in Ming Dynasty, and the 16th year of Shunzhi in Puppet Qing Dynasty.

On January 1, in the evening, Beihai (now the Timor Sea).

A huge fleet of as many as 28 ships is sailing in the North Sea, stretching for several miles, with the goal of going straight to the Hanzhou Continent in the south.Most of these ships are immigrant ships belonging to Qi State, and a few are merchant ships from India, Batavia and the Nanyang Islands.They gathered all the way in Guangning (now Cilegon City, Java Island, Indonesia), Baoan (now Kupang City, Timor Island, Indonesia), and Xinxiang (now Suai Town, East Timor), and then formed this huge fleet. Drive together to Hanzhou Jianye City.

On the outskirts of the fleet, there are five naval warships of the Qi State accompanying them.In fact, with Qi's current growing maritime strength, the entire Beihai region, and even Xuanhua Island (Timor Island), Weiyuan Island (now New Guinea Island), and Java Island have almost absolute control over the sea area, and they are also closely related to the active The Dutch East India Company in this area is in a very close commercial cooperation relationship, so there is no hostile force that can threaten Qi's ship exchanges.Therefore, the accompanying escort of these warships embodies more of a symbolic meaning.

"Father, look! What is that?" Zhu Yemao leaned on the side of the ship, suddenly pointed to the front left and shouted loudly: "It seems to be a light!"

Zhu Zhiyu looked in the direction pointed by the youngest son, and saw a bright light on a piece of land in front of the left.

"About a lighthouse, right?" Zhu Zhiyu looked at it for a while, then said with a smile, "I just heard the sailor on the ship say that the land ahead is two outlying islands not far from the mainland of Hanzhou, Damen Island (now Melville in northern Australia) Island) and Xiaomen Island (now Bathurst Island in northern Australia) have always been the gateways to Jianye Port. It is said that after passing these two islands, the mainland of Hanzhou is not far away!"

The construction history of the lighthouse can be traced back to about 270 BC. Ptolemy II commissioned a Greek architect, Sostratus of Nidos, to build the world's first lighthouse at the eastern end of Pharos Island. It served both as a guide for ships entering Alexandria and as a colossal symbol of the revived Egyptian monarchy's prominence.The Pharos Lighthouse thus became one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Since then, Arabs, Indians and Chinese have also learned this method to ensure the safety of ships at sea, and built lighthouses on their respective surrounding coasts.The first lighthouse in China was the Chongwu Lighthouse (1387) built in Huian County, Fujian Province with private funds.In the 1412th year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty ([-]), the government built a "mound with a square meter and a height of more than [-] feet" on the southeast beach of the Liuhe Estuary of the Yangtze River Estuary. On it, smoke was raised during the day and a fire was lit at night to guide ships in and out of the Yangtze River. mouth.

The first lighthouse in Qi State is located at the westernmost end of Xiaomen Island. It is made of cement and has a height of 66 meters. With the base of the tower, the overall height is about 72 meters.The tower is composed of three floors: the first floor is a square structure with a height of 45 meters, and there are more than 80 rooms of different sizes inside, which are used as fuel storage, engine room and housing for tower guards; the second floor is a hexagonal structure , 15 meters high, used to store and transport whale oil; the third floor is a circular structure with 6 stone pillars 8 meters high surrounding the dome light building.Above the lamp tower stands a 6-meter-high brass statue of Mazu in a standing posture.

This lighthouse uses several huge concave metal mirrors to reflect sunlight during the day, and lights up whale oil lamps at night to guide passing ships, so that ships 30-40 kilometers away can see the direction of the lighthouse, so that they will not If you lose your way, you can drive straight to Jianye Port.In Jianye Port, a lighthouse was also built, but its height and scale were much smaller than the lighthouse on Xiaomen Island.

"Mr. Zhu, our captain has prepared a sumptuous dinner. Please move to the cabin." When Zhu Zhiyu was looking at the huge lighthouse with his young son and students, a navigator stepped forward and said politely.

"Oh, I'll thank your captain." Zhu Zhiyu pondered for a moment, without being pretentious, and happily followed the captain.

Zhu Zhiyu was born in a family of bureaucrats and bureaucrats. His father, Zhu Zheng, had the character Cunzhi and the name Dinghuan.He ranks third in the family.After Zhu Zhiyu lost his father at the age of eight, his family fell into poverty and his life was poor, which even affected his study and education.The eldest brother, Zhu Qiming, was a Jinshi in the Chinese military in the fifth year of Tianqi (1625), and was later promoted to the chief soldier of Nanjing Shenwu Battalion and the governor of the Water Transport Army Gate.Zhu Zhiyu followed his eldest brother Ren and sent him to Songjiang Prefecture. He was a Confucian student in Songjiang Prefecture. Luan and others are teachers, studying ancient studies, especially good at "Poetry" and "Book".

In the 11th year of Chongzhen (1638), he was recommended to the Ministry of Rites as "the best all-rounder in civil and military affairs", but Zhu Zhiyu saw that "the world is getting worse and worse, the country is changing day by day", "officials get money, and government is achieved by bribery", the government is in chaos, and he himself If you can't be tolerated by popular customs, you will give up your official career and focus on learning.After Jiashen Tianchang, he refused to be recruited by the Hongguang court three times, and was hated by treacherous officials.Zhu Zhiyu fled to Zhoushan overnight, using merchants as a cover.

In the next few years, he traveled around the south of the Yangtze River, Guangdong and Guangxi, and finally returned to Zhoushan in 1652 at the invitation of Zhang Huangyan.

In February of the third year of Guangde (1657), he was recommended by Zhang Huangyan to the imperial court and became the left servant of the Ministry of Rites.But not long after serving as an official, he resigned and returned to Ningbo because he was not angry at sun Kewang's power.

In October last year, at the invitation of Fu Yanzhao, the representative of the Qi State in Nanjing, he decided to take a Qi State immigration ship to visit the Hanzhou Continent and make a field trip to this Chinese kingdom built by the Ming people.Take a look at how this new kingdom stands on the Southern Wilderness Continent and grows strong enough to dominate the South Seas.

Zhu Zhiyu took his concubine, two sons, and five students, boarded a ship from Ningbo, traveled all the way south, stopped in Guangzhou, Qiongzhou, and arrived in Nanping (now Jinlan City, Vietnam).After resting here for a week, I took an immigrant boat and continued southward, passing through Lin'an (now Vung Tau, Vietnam), Ambuna Island (now Natuna Island, Indonesia), Quang Ninh, Bao'an, Xinxiang and other places.Now, seeing that they are about to arrive in the mainland of Hanzhou, Zhu Zhiyu and his party can't help but feel an unprecedented relaxation.

This road trip, I am afraid it is not thousands of miles away.Deep down in his heart, he was also amazed at the fact that there are so many supply points for a series of shipping routes established by the Qi State. It may take more than ten days, but within four or five days, there must be a suitable island or coastal port for the many immigrants on board to do a short-term visit. Staying and resting can greatly avoid and alleviate various diseases and fatigue caused by immigrants during the boat trip.

It is said that the sea route is nothing more than a ghostly journey. People who run the sea, after experiencing thousands of miles of voyage, three out of ten will die at sea due to various situations.But Zhu Zhiyu traveled all the way with the immigrant boat, and there were not many people who collapsed and died on the way, but the number was very small.Those immigrants who broke out of illness or became unwell on the ship will also be temporarily resettled at various supply points along the way.After his body recovers, he will either continue to take the immigration boat to Hanzhou, or under the arrangement of local officials, he will become a resident subject under his jurisdiction.

Although he has not yet reached the mainland of Hanzhou, after a rough observation of several territories under the jurisdiction of Qi State along the way, Zhu Zhiyu thinks that Qi State's people's livelihood construction may be far stronger than that of Daming.The local residents have ruddy complexions and strong bodies. Although they are dressed in coarse cotton and linen, their mental state is extremely high-spirited. Looking at their appearance, they are all clean and tidy.

In the territory of Ming Dynasty, Zhu Zhiyu was often criticized for the short hair and open-button clothing of Qi soldiers and some officials.Thinking about whether the people of Qi State, after leaving the country and leaving their hometown, are also like the Qing captives, forcing the people under their jurisdiction to shave their hair and change their clothes, mixing them with barbarians.

However, passing through several overseas territories of the Qi State along the way, it was found that the local people wore various clothes and hair accessories, and the local government of the Qi State did not have mandatory requirements.There are the same hair-tied crown belts of the people of the Ming Dynasty, and there are also casual hair buns and simple cloth skirts, and those with short hair and new clothes are only half of them.

It is said that in the Hanzhou mainland and overseas territories of Qi State, one can tell whether a person is an old immigrant or a new immigrant by his clothing and hair accessories.Generally, immigrants who have settled for three to five years will basically shave off their thick long hair and keep a pair of neat short hair, whether it is to integrate into the new social environment or to adapt to the warm and humid climate.

In the area under the jurisdiction of Qi State, in order to prevent the outbreak of epidemics among the people in the territory, the food hygiene and environmental hygiene of the people are also strictly regulated.The centralized control period of more than three months for each new immigrant is enough for all the immigrant to learn how to pack themselves into a clean and tidy Qi people.

On January 1th, in the early morning, the fleet had already approached the mainland of Hanzhou. Seeing the lush scenery on the shore, everyone showed a look of relief. Finally, the long and tedious sea journey was over, and they arrived in the mainland of Qi.

"Look, there's a ship there that keeps spewing smoke out." Zhu Yemao lay on the ship's side, excitedly pointed to the left side of the fleet, and shouted loudly.

Zhu Zhiyu couldn't help but shook his head with a smile, the young mind really jumped out, and he was curious about everything along the way.But he couldn't help but look forward to the left.

There were two ships in that sea area, one large and one small. The ship that Zhu Yemao said could emit fireworks was a small sailboat of more than 200 tons.But the strange thing is that the small boat did not open its sails, but was running fast on the sea.The accompanying big ship opened all its sails and stuck tightly behind its side, as if it was guarding its voyage.

"Father, that boat doesn't seem to have oars!" Zhu Yemao actually observed from a distance that there were no oars on the sides of the small sailboat, and he couldn't help but said in surprise: "That boat didn't use sails either, how did it move forward?" ?”

Zhu Zhiyu looked at it for a long time, but he was also puzzled. He waved his hands in embarrassment, and reprimanded softly: "This is a strange skill and obscenity. It has its own mechanism, and it is not worth discussing."

"But, isn't father always teaching children to learn practically and apply what they have learned?" Zhu Yemao said, "This is an ingenious thing. Children don't understand it and are curious, so they naturally have questions."

"Very good!" Zhu Zhiyu's face froze when he heard the words, but then he patted the young son's head approvingly, "But my father once warned you that the way of learning is to practice, and the learning of sages and sages must be practiced." Since you don’t understand, you can seek advice from a knowledgeable person to relieve your confusion.”

"My child understands." Zhu Yemao nodded, bowed deeply to his father, then turned and walked towards the sailors on the boat.
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The small sailing boat Zhu Yemao saw that spewed thick smoke was the latest steam test ship "Fenglei 2" developed by the Qi State Navy.With the unremitting efforts of the Qi State Industrial Research Institute and the Navy, as early as two years ago (1657), the Jianye Shipyard successfully "moved" the steam engine to the ship and built the first test ship—" Fenglei 1".

The full load capacity of the first steamship was only more than [-] tons. Under the suggestion of the king, it directly used the propeller propeller.First, a secret experiment was carried out at Han Lake near Jianye City (after years of expansion, the initially built reservoir has gradually formed an artificial lake with an area of ​​six square kilometers), and continuous improvements were made.

In December last year, Jianye Shipyard built a second steamship, "Fenglei 2", with a full load displacement of 250 tons. After a trial voyage in Han Lake, it was towed to the sea for some sea trials. Test its sailing performance.

This kind of steamship, which belongs to the state's heavy weapon, is classified as highly confidential, whether it is various construction techniques, casting materials, or navigation data, and it is also a key control target of the Public Survey Office. For details, some mid- and low-level officers in the navy cannot obtain further information on this.Therefore, when Zhu Yemao tried to inquire about the situation of the steamship from the sailors on the immigrant ship, he was bound to be disappointed.

"Without sails, what is the fastest speed?" On the "Fenglei 2" steam test ship, Minister of Military and Political Affairs, Chief of the Navy, and General Zhen Guo (Lieutenant General) Qi Dajiang looked at several sailors with a pipe in his mouth. Start hoisting a few sails.

"Returning to the commander, without sails, it can reach four knots at the fastest (one saves 1.8 km/h)." Gong Yongzhi, the captain of Fenglei 2 and Yuwu Xiaowei (captain), said excitedly: "If you sail along the ocean current If it is used, the estimated speed can be increased to five knots."

"Not bad, not bad!..." Qi Dajiang showed a little smile on his face, "If we add sails, it is estimated that it can be increased by three to four knots, which is almost catching up with the speed of the flying fish boat.... The coal stored on the ship , how much mileage can be completed?"

"If the bilge is filled with coal, it is estimated that Beizhi can travel a distance of [-] kilometers or even longer. After all, when there is wind at sea, we can stop the operation of the machine and save a lot of coal." Gong Yongzhi cautiously Said.

"This ship is still too small to store much coal. In addition, the power of the steam engine on the ship is also a bit small, and the propulsion speed is not fast. It cannot be compared with those test locomotives on land."

"My lord, in addition to the small power of the steam engine, its efficiency ratio is also very poor, and the power conversion rate is estimated to be less than 30.00%." ​​A master craftsman from the Black Mountain Industrial Research Institute shook his head and said: "After all, it has not been two years since this thing was installed on the ship. , there are still air leaks everywhere, and the operation process is extremely unstable. To build a reliable large steamship, I think, it may take a few years to wait."

"It doesn't matter!" Qi Dajiang waved his hand and said, "I heard from the king that the application of steam engines, our Qi country should be at least 50 years ahead of all other countries in the world. This kind of heavy weapon of a big country must rely on experts like you. Master's continuous research and improvement must be perfect. In a few years, our navy can still wait. In the next few decades, we will also be able to firmly control the entire Southeast Asia and Indian waters with only pure sail warships. "

"Hehe..., given time, when the wind and thunder prevails all over the world, how can all the Western countries come to compete with us on the seas of Qi!"

(End of this chapter)