Chaos of the Three Kingdoms Summons

Chapter 2427: East China Sea Navy, Three Powers

In addition to the military forces of each state and each major camp, Li Xiang also set a goal for the recovery and development of the navy in the next few years.

Originally, three years ago, after the end of the Southern War, Li Xiang’s first thought was to expand Qi Jiguang’s Yangtze River Navy.

However, three years have passed now and my original thoughts have changed.

Although, in his vision for the development of the navy in the next few years, expansion is still the main theme.

However, it was not an expansion of the Yangtze River Navy, but a plan to form a new naval force!
He planned to gradually build an East China Sea navy of 50,000 people in the next few years while the Jin army was recovering.

This navy is mainly composed of large-scale ships capable of long-distance voyages.

At this stage, the Yellow River Navy is mainly composed of small and medium-sized warships, and there are not many large warships. After all, the Yellow River Navy is inland of the Yellow River, not as close to the sea outlet as Qingzhou, and large warships are not of much use to them.

The Yellow River Navy not only had a small number of personnel, but also lacked sufficient long-distance navigation capabilities.

As for the Yangtze River Navy, it not only has more people, but also has large and small warships on alert. It can fully meet the needs of river navigation and also has a certain long-distance voyage capability.

Compared with these two navies, once the East China Sea Navy is established, the main theme will be long-term naval aviation capabilities.

The reason why Li Xiang changed his mind compared to three years ago is, on the one hand, because the current Dajin lacks such a fleet specializing in long-distance voyages.

The Yangtze River Navy did have a certain degree of long-distance navigation capability, but it was not sufficient.

From the Han Dynasty to Japan, or from the Han Dynasty to Korea, it can be said that it has the ability to navigate long distances. It is true, but if the distance is just that, then it is very limited.

In Li Xiang's opinion, long-distance navigation can truly achieve his goal. Even if it cannot reach the level of Zheng He's voyages to the West, it can carry out global navigation.

However, the difference cannot be too outrageous in comparison.

It would be enough for the Yangtze River Navy to make a round trip to Japan. If they wanted to sail further on the sea, it would be beyond their capabilities.

Although, according to the normal historical trajectory, Zheng He's voyage to the West would have been more than a thousand years later, the productivity and technological levels of the Ming Dynasty were naturally much more advanced than those of the late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period.

However, that was compared to the normal late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period!

In the late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period, with the birth of various historical figures, many things from later generations were also brought out by these people.

Take ships as an example. Aren’t the tortoise-shell ships and iron-clad ships that appeared in the Tang Dynasty also products that appeared more than a thousand years after the normal historical trajectory?
Therefore, in Li Xiang's vision, Dajin must have a fleet capable of long-distance voyages, and perhaps it can even usher in the era of navigation ahead of time.

The emergence of this idea is also related to Southeast Asia. After all, in this era, there are four major powers in the world. Even if you are not a history major, you know it. However, he originally thought that in this era, apart from these four major powers, the other countries were representatives of poverty and backwardness.

Southeast Asia taught him a lesson: it is indeed backward compared to the Han people, but it is not necessarily the case that they are poor!

If it weren't for this lesson, Li Xiang probably wouldn't have thought of sending people around! If necessary, he might be able to follow the example of the British Empire, which rose in the West in later generations, and use the same method to get the first pot of gold.

Although the current Jin Dynasty, as a powerful country, is already on the rise, it would be great if we could find some windfalls.

It was really because these three years were so hard that he realized the importance of money!
On the other hand, giving up on expanding the Yangtze River Navy and instead forming a new East China Sea Navy is also to ensure the balance of naval power.

The Yellow River is limited by its natural factors. Even though the Jin Dynasty is now many times stronger than when it was founded, Li Xiang has never thought of expanding the Yellow River Navy. For the Yellow River, 30,000 people are enough.

Even if the Yangtze River Navy was not expanded, at its full strength, it would have a size of 80,000 people. Add to that the difference in warships and the difference in personnel quality between the South and the North, and there would already be a huge imbalance between the two naval forces.

If the Yangtze River Navy were to be expanded again, the gap in naval power would be even greater.

Therefore, instead of expanding the Yangtze River Navy, it would be better to establish a new East China Sea Navy to allow the navy to maintain a military balance.

The court needs a balance, the monarch and his subjects need a balance, the local and central governments need a balance, and the same is true for the military. If the power is unbalanced, the possibility of unrest will be greater.

However, given the current situation of the Jin Army, the formation and completion of the East China Sea Navy will take several years to complete and cannot be accomplished overnight.

Even the Yangtze River Navy and the Yellow River Navy focused on recovery in the next few years.

In the great war in the south three years ago, the Yangtze River Navy, as well as the part of the Yellow River Navy that temporarily fought under Qi Jiguang, suffered heavy losses after that battle.

During the three years of the epidemic, major efforts were made to fight the epidemic. Not to mention the navy, even the cavalry and infantry did not recover effectively.

This is not just the situation of the Great Jin, but the situation of all forces in the world. During these three years, the army has been downsized and the military strength has been continuously reduced. Which family has expanded its military strength in these three years?
As for the East China Sea Navy, Li Xiang plans to hand it over to Xu Chenglai.

Although this person was not well-known in the world, he had followed Di Qing and others in Qingzhou for many years. Even if he had no merits, he had worked hard.

In the Battle of Xuzhou in the Central Plains, Chen Qianzhi was able to appear on the battlefield of Xuzhou thanks to the existence of this person.

Although Di Qing's Qingzhou navy was small in number and weak in strength, with only a few thousand people, it had been established for several years and had good quality in all aspects, making it just the right size to serve as the backbone of the East China Sea navy.

In addition, Li Xiang also planned to transfer a large number of naval generals, including Sun Chengzong, Ding Feng, Lu Fan, Lu Meng, Jiu Chong, Deng Dang, Lu Dai, Cai Mao, and Lai Huer, from various armies to the East China Sea Navy that was about to be formed.

It is just a plan and has not been officially implemented yet. However, Li Xiang recently planned to transfer so many generals to the East China Sea Navy. It can be seen that he has expectations for the third naval force of Dajin.