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Chapter 1100: Ships Gathering
“Everyone, this eastward advance has mobilized more than half of the main forces of the East China Sea Fleet and the South China Sea Fleet, plus almost all of the cargo ships of the Maritime Transport Command, with countless baggage and tens of thousands of laborers, which is equivalent to more than half of the navy’s assets. There must be no mistakes during the entire process.

Today, we called everyone here to review the planning process and backup plan. Please state them one by one, and do not miss any link. If the superior cannot remember the details, who should the subordinates go to for help in case of an accident?

Captain Sun, do you two have different opinions? No need to whisper. If I am wrong, you can speak up openly. As long as everyone thinks it makes sense, I will immediately ask the General Staff to modify the plan! "

Just as the King of Ryukyu was taking a quick shower and changing his clothes to prepare to go to the base to receive the emperor, more than a dozen naval officers were standing in the rear cabin of the deck of a Han-class battleship in the anchorage. Judging from their shoulder straps, they were both ship commanders and marine guards.

In the middle sat two older officers, all with red shoulder straps, octagonal gold stars, silver crescents, and the rank of second-rank general of cavalry. In the navy, only two people were promoted to the second rank, Left Admiral Huang Nanping and Right Admiral Li Rumei, and the Navy Chief of Staff Zhu Haiou was only promoted from the second rank with a six-pointed gold star.

The one who rushed towards the two officers in the back row with a sarcastic look was Huang Nanping. He was nearly sixty years old. It had been many years since he left the warship and entered the court, but his temper had not changed at all and he was still the same as when he was a pirate.

"Reporting to the governor, I have no objection to the plan. It's just that the base sent a flag signal that the King of Ryukyu is coming. He must be frightened by these ships and came to the base to find out the truth. I consulted with Staff Officer Hu to see if we can find someone to deal with it, so as not to make him uneasy."

The thousand households named were the General Sun mentioned by the Ryukyu King. He was very young and was originally a confidential staff officer in the Navy General Staff. Because his hometown was in Chaozhou, he could not only speak Cantonese and Minnan dialect, but also took Japanese as an elective. That’s why he was sent to the floating island naval base to be the main person in charge of communication with the Ryukyu Kingdom.

"Then how do you plan to talk to him?" After hearing this explanation, Huang Nanping did not continue to blame him, but he did not let him go immediately either.

"I don't think the Imperial Navy needs to be explained to outsiders. His Majesty has said that the base is the territory, and it is reasonable for Ming ships to be anchored within the territory of Ming. There is no need to explain. However, the military police guarding the perimeter of the base must treat them with courtesy. Without this general's intervention, it may be difficult for them to feel at ease."

Captain Sun stood up straight with his head held high, his chin raised, and answered loudly. The first half of his speech was very confident and righteous, as if he didn't want to give anyone face.

The second half is more humane, and it fits the nature of his job. As a liaison officer, besides communicating about official business, the main thing is to build relationships. Sometimes personal relationships are no less influential than warships and cannons.

"Hey, you're more thoughtful than I thought. You're a good fool. Okay, go deal with the King of Ryukyu first. I'll leave the exam for you. You can deal with it alone when you come back!"

Seeing Captain Sun's behavior, Huang Nanping stroked his beard with one hand and gave a thumbs up with the other. At the same time, faces emerged in his mind, all of them were the Imperial Horse Guard warriors, graduates of the Sea Household Division, and young eunuchs who were assigned by the emperor to train on board.

At that time, I was still a young man, hanging out with these young people, and watching them, who had never swum in the big rivers, gradually transform into naval officers commanding warships across the oceans.

In the blink of an eye, more than 20 years have passed. I am getting older day by day and have to leave the deck and the helm. Those young people have also reached middle age, most of them have become middle- and senior-level officers, and it is difficult to meet them except for official business.

Then, the younger generation like Captain Sun grew up unknowingly. Compared with more than 20 years ago, these kids are at a crushing level in terms of physical fitness, professional knowledge and practical experience. The navy has successors!
What's even more exciting is that young people who are younger and more knowledgeable than Sun Qianhu come out of the Royal Academy and the Imperial University every year and join the navy in batches. They have received very systematic military training when they were in school, and their heads are full of various relevant knowledge. They only need to hone their skills on the ship for a year or two, catch one or two storms, sail long voyages, and battles, and they will immediately become qualified commanders.

"Governor, the fleet of the Maritime Command has arrived!" As he was speaking, an officer on duty came in and loudly reported the new discovery.

"We're finally here. It's not that far to go, but you have to dawdle to get here on time. Well, let's all disperse and get ready to set sail!" Upon hearing the news, Huang Nanping slapped his thigh and stood up. He didn't even bother to take the test. He grabbed his hat and led the way out.

Compared with the more than 20 warships and armed cargo ships that arrived earlier, the new fleet was larger, not only in terms of quantity, but also in terms of individuals. A total of 40 large and medium-sized ocean-going cargo ships were divided into three formations and slowly approached the waters near the floating island base. The layers of gray-white canvas were like thick clouds, giving a very oppressive feeling.

More than a third of the ships were obviously several times larger than all the other ships. They moved in a very clumsy but stable manner, moving as if they were walking on flat ground among the waves, and the people on the deck did not see any ups and downs or shaking.

This is the flagship of the Maritime Transport Corporation, the Huangshan-class ocean-going cargo ship, which has just been in service for less than five years. It is 45 meters long, 13 meters wide, with a main mast height of 59 meters, a full-load draft of 5.6 meters, and a displacement of 2700 tons. It was built by the Da Nang Shipyard and the Manila Shipyard.

Each Huangshan-class ship uses more than 700 teak trees and more than 200 pine trees, as well as nearly 20 tons of copper and iron fittings. Even if the two shipyards work throughout the year, they can only build one and a half ships each.

The reason why it was only built in two shipyards, Da Nang and Manila, was not due to technical factors or confidentiality, but purely because of the origin of the raw materials.

Teak produced in the mountains of Lower Burma, Ayutthaya, and Cambodia was transported to the seaside by various means, closest to the Da Nang Shipyard. The Manila Shipyard used teak produced in Luzon Island.

Precisely because of the high cost and long construction period, there are not many Huangshan-class ocean-going cargo ships. They are only equipped on the routes to Port Enniao and Port Colombo, and there is at least one warship accompanying each voyage.

With such a large displacement and being an ocean-going cargo ship, does it mean that the ship has a low military power? The Huangshan class is not weak in design and armament. Thirty 30mm rear-loading cannons can be installed on the deck and stern, with a firepower that is almost three times that of the Guangzhou class.

But it certainly cannot beat the Guangzhou class. Apart from its huge hull, it is at an absolute disadvantage in terms of speed, turning, ease of operation, hull thickness and structural strength.

In other words, the Huangshan class has a thin skin and a large filling. Its advantages are that it has a lot of cargo, good airworthiness, and can sail long distances. Its disadvantages are that it has many operators, poor resistance to impact, low degree of armament, and high cost.

Therefore, when the ship was officially designed, the 30 deck guns were reduced to 12. There were 5 guns on each side and 2 guns at the stern, which were only enough for self-defense, that is, to deal with pirates, but not for participating in naval battles.

(End of this chapter)