The sun never sets in America

Chapter 155 The Naval Era: Voyage

In Jinshan Port of Han Dynasty, dozens of warships were docked in the military port inside Jinshan Port.

Jinshan Port is divided into two ports. One is a commercial port specially used for civilian use, which is the external image of Jinshan Port.

There is also a military port located on the inner right side, which is also the home port of the Han Navy.

Fortunately, the entire Jinshan Bay is large enough, otherwise civilian ships and naval warships would be easily confused.

However, the navy at Jinshan Port may not be able to stay for long. Because of the current development speed of Jinshan City and even Jinshan Port, as well as the confidentiality of military intelligence, it is imperative to relocate and leave Jinshan Port.

Even the most die-hard conservatives know that the Navy will not be able to stay at Jinshan Port for long.

The navy has long been mentally prepared to move out of Jinshan Port, and has even found a place.

That is Shazhou City in Xihai Province. This port is a port that has not yet been developed. It is located on the central coast of Xihai Province.

(Later Port of Tortugas, Baja California)
This port happens to be located in Xihai Province, close to the west coast of the core of Han Dynasty and the Republic of Mexico. It is strategically located. Once something happens to one of the two sides, the warships in this port can provide support at any time without having to go from Jinshan. Even Xijing mobilized troops.

This port is directly defined as a military port, not a commercial port. It can be seen that the senior officials of the Han Dynasty have a very clear positioning of this port.

It's just a pity that Xihai Province has lost such an important foreign trade port.

But this is the problem that a country needs to face in the process of development, that is, you cannot have your cake and eat it too!
It is impossible for all the ports of Han to be used to distinguish foreign trade. At least for now, the two ports of Han, Xijing and Jinshan, are completely sufficient for a country with a population of 500 million.

As for the other ports, one must be set aside as a military port. This is fate.

In a country, someone must make sacrifices. If within a country, even things like the port are quarreling, then the country is not far away from being finished.

Of course, there are still some people in the Navy who are reluctant to go to Shazhou Port. The biggest reason is that it is too good to stay in Jinshan Port.

Behind Jinshan Port is Jinshan City, the second largest city in Han Dynasty. It is full of flowers and nothing. From local industrial products in Han Dynasty to overseas commodities in high demand, rare treasures can be seen in Jinshan Port.

Among other things, Jinshan City's newly opened zoo in the second half of last year had a daily flow of more than 5000 people at its peak, and now there are still thousands of people visiting it every day.

In this zoo called Jinshan World, there are not only pumas, American bison, and North American gray wolves native to Han China, but also African lions, Asian tigers, and African elephants. They even built a so-called aquarium and raised several dolphins. and beluga.

This kind of zoo was very common in later generations, but in this era, it was like watching a science fiction movie for the first time. The feeling was indescribable.

And what makes those naval officers and soldiers miss Jinshan City the most are the beauties of Jinshan City.

As the largest port city for foreign trade in Han Dynasty, Jinshan City has gathered a large number of foreign businessmen. In addition to those doing serious business, there are also those doing informal business...

Among them, beauties from all over the world are sold to Jinshan City. In addition to those sold to brothels, the most common ones are sold to wealthy people in Jinshan as concubines.

Everyone within the Navy knows that Navy Minister Jiang Yucheng has two foreign concubines, one from Turkey and one from the Netherlands.

And this has further encouraged the trend of naval officers looking for foreign concubines...

It can be said that these naval generals are a little happy to stay in Jinshan City.

But it is precisely because of this that the cabinet decided to transfer the navy away from Jinshan City, a place where fireworks are bustling.

In the words of Cabinet Prime Minister Zhao Wei:

"Soldiers do not contribute to the country, but sit in the land where their children are gentle. If this continues, will I, a big man, still have a navy??"

Therefore, under the order of the cabinet, the navy had to leave even if it didn't want to.

Before leaving, the Navy was also planning a major event regarding the future development of the Navy.

…………

Navy Headquarters Building...

dong dong dong...

"Come in……"

squeak……

"Minister Jiang, this is our latest plan." Director of Operations Luo Wei came over with a document and handed it to Navy Minister Jiang Yucheng, who was correcting Navy documents.

"You plan to send fifteen warships to visit abroad??" Jiang Yucheng looked at the plan for the overseas visit. In fact, he knew about this plan, but in his opinion, fifteen warships were really too much.

"Yes, Minister Jiang, we plan to send twelve combat ships and three supply ships to visit abroad." Luo Wei replied to Jiang Yucheng unhurriedly, "What we are doing is mainly fifteen ships, and more It is easy to form a fleet. If it is nine combat ships and two supply ships, although it can go to sea, it will definitely not give people as much momentum as fifteen warships." Luo Wei continued to explain to Jiang Yucheng why. The main reason for building fifteen warships.

"Fifteen ships..." Jiang Yucheng walked around in the office, frowning, "Yes, I can agree, but you must take the Asian route first, not Europe first." Although Jiang Yucheng agreed to Luo Wei their opinions, but also put forward a condition.

"This..." Luo Wei hesitated after hearing this. In fact, they didn't care about taking the Asian route, because there was no decent navy in Asia, and they wouldn't learn anything if they went there.

Therefore, many officers within the navy are actually very averse to going to Asia. Some even said that Asian countries are not worthy of seeing the heroic appearance of our great navy.

It sounds arrogant, but in fact, if you taste it carefully, there is still some truth in this sentence.

If nothing else, let’s just talk about the current Asian countries. Except for the two colonial countries of the Netherlands and Spain, do other Asian countries really have decent navies? ?

The answer is, no. Even Asian giants like the Qing Dynasty and even small tyrants like Japan do not actually have a navy in the true sense.

What is a navy? It is a navy that can go far across the ocean and deliver its naval power to the doorstep of other countries.

As for the navies of these two countries, let’s not mention them. Even veterans and veterans look down upon them. According to the standards of the Han navy, they are not navies at all, but water armies! !
Even for a thoroughly maritime country like Japan, the Tokugawa shogunate's development target has never been the navy.

The entire navy under the Tokugawa shogunate was actually the so-called navy. There were only about twenty old sailing ships. The only new ones in them were second-hand naval guns bought from the Han Dynasty. There was even a joke that the cannons were more valuable than warships. …

The overall thinking of the Tokugawa shogunate is still in the era of domestic hegemony. In the Tokugawa family's view, as long as their rule in Japan can continue, those big names cannot rise up to rebel, and those unruly people pay taxes honestly, that is Japan. Although this so-called prosperous age only belongs to the Tokugawa family, it can also be called a prosperous age in the history books, right? ?
Look at the Qing Dynasty next door. The prosperous age of Kangxi and Qianlong was blown up. It was almost touted as the most prosperous age in ancient and modern times. However, there are still people in future generations who are dissatisfied and will continue to boast about it.

At the same time, the Daqing Navy Army was as vulnerable as the Shogunate Navy Army.

To sum up, according to the actual situation, the Navy is indeed right to do it, just like a young male lion that has just grown a mane, it must express its existence to other older male lions, not Showing off your strength with the hyenas next door will only make you look even more stupid! !
But Jiang Yucheng didn't see it that way. In his opinion, going to Europe to express his presence was necessary, but not the main thing. Gaining benefits in Asia was the most important.

"You must go to Asia first and then Europe." Jiang Yucheng ordered Luo Wei in a non-negotiable tone.

"Yes, Minister Jiang!!" Although Luo Wei was unhappy, he could only salute Jiang Yucheng to express his obedience to the order.

"By the way, bring more translators with you this time, Spanish, German, and Arabic." Before Luo Wei left, Jiang Yucheng gave a final reminder. The reason for this is because he has to pass through Spain, the Netherlands, In West Asia, the language in this area is complicated. It is not enough to just speak English. You can only bring a few more translators. When the time comes, you will not be able to speak English and others will not understand.

"Yes..." Before Luo Wei left, he saluted Jiang Yucheng one last time, and then left Jiang Yucheng's minister's office with trembling military boots.

"The world is so big..." Jiang Yucheng sat on a chair and moved the globe in front of him. Looking at the not-too-big Han Dynasty on the globe, Jiang Yucheng was impressed by how big the world was, and he also felt boundless. Ambition.

"The world is so big and the ocean is so vast. Foreigners can go there, but we, the Han Dynasty, can't go there??" Jiang Yucheng looked at the largest ocean on the globe and murmured to himself as he asked and answered questions, seemingly asking , actually reflects the ambitions of Jiang Yucheng and even all navies.That is to build the Han Navy into a global navy.

To achieve this goal, everyone in the navy trains hard. Although many people say that they are living and drinking in Jinshan City, only the navy itself knows that it is just an act of passing time and satisfying desires during boring training. In Jiang Yucheng's personal opinion, It's nothing. What man doesn't do this? The generals in the army all have wives and concubines, so why should we call them the navy?

And within these four years, the navy has grown from nine warships in 1840 to more than forty warships now, all of which are fully manned.

Doesn't this just show the efforts of the navy? ?

Among the forty warships in the navy, there are five three-thousand-ton sail warships alone.

They are the flagships of each team.

There are even more third-level sailing battleships and fourth-level sailing battleships that are the mainstay.

It can be said that they account for more than half of the Han Navy, and the rest are fifth-level and sixth-level miscellaneous ships and escort ships...

There are even more than 100 armed merchant ships in the Han Dynasty. Although they belong to the private sector, if the navy wants to recruit them in wartime, is it really impossible to recruit them? ?

Moreover, the naval talents cultivated by the Han Navy in recent years have reached two-thirds of the talents required by the naval department, and the rest are the hired British.

It can be said that anyone sitting in Jiang Yucheng's position will involuntarily have the feeling that our Han Navy is invincible in America. Although it is an exaggeration, this is a true psychological portrayal of many naval officers.

Represents the current mentality of the Navy! !

Of course, this kind of mentality also gives people a feeling of being a villain and being arrogant. The main reason is that the Navy lacks an opportunity to prove itself, and this opportunity may be at a certain moment in the future.

.............................................

Outside Jinshan Port, fifteen fleets flying the blue navy dragon flag were firing salutes outside the port. The salutes were like music when leaving. As the last salute disappeared, this huge Han navy had ever been formed. The fleet officially set sail in the Western Sea of ​​Han...

On the watchtower of the military port, Jiang Yucheng slowly put down the telescope in his hand after the fleet completely disappeared from the telescope. His solemn expression was suddenly released, and his eyes showed unprecedented relief. He knew that the navy was already there. In his hands, he embarked on the path that truly belonged to the Han Navy.

Just like the motto of the Naval Academy:
"Defend the enemy thousands of miles away, defeat the enemy outside the country's gate, open up the sea and expand the country's territory thousands of miles away, and promote the country's prestige in the world!!"

…………

On the Pacific Ocean, a huge fleet was sailing in a straight line. At the forefront was the Huo Qubing, one of the five first-class sailing battleships of Han Dynasty.

According to the warship naming rules of the Han Navy Ministry, all first-class sailing warships are named after famous ancient Chinese generals.

The third-level sailing battleships are named after the four-level names of Haijianghehu, among which the third level is the sea level.

The fourth-level sailing battleship is a river, the fifth-level is a river, and the smallest level six is ​​a lake.

In fact, there was also a second-level sailing battleship among them, but because this thing was too useless, the combat was not as good as the first level, the maneuverability was not as good as the third level, and the price was still high, so it was axed by the Han Navy and only the fifth level ship was retained. , respectively one to six, but there is no two in between...

On the Huo Qubing, Bao Yunxiang, the commander of this ocean-going fleet, was looking at the scene opposite with a telescope.

Baoyun Township was the first to join the Han Navy, and he was also an old Liujiapu native.

(Liujiabao is now similar to the Huaixi Xungui during the Ming Dynasty and Peixian during the Liu Bang period)

"How far is it from Yunshan Island?" Baoyunxiang put down the telescope and asked the adjutant on the side. (Yunshan Island is Oahu)

"Report to the commander, there are about two hours left." The adjutant looked at the chart in his hand and the data calculated by the rear staff, and then replied to Baoyunxiang.

"Well..." After hearing this, Baoyunxiang nodded slightly and said, "Inform all ships to continue moving forward according to the original plan." Baoyunxiang then ordered.

"Yes!!" the adjutant immediately saluted.

On the side, after the adjutant left, Baoyun Xiang stood at the bow of the ship and took out a piece of jade from his chest, his eyes showing his longing for home.

His hometown is in Fujian, China. In his early years, because his family was poor, his parents gave birth to four children. He was the youngest and couldn't support him, so he was sold to the Red Flag Gang to work as a young pirate.

He worked for five years until Liu Yan left for North America. He had no idea at the time and was young, so he followed him.

So far, he has spent thirteen years in the Americas. This year is the 14th year. He has also changed from a young boy to a 34-year-old middle-aged man, and he has also served as the commander of the Ocean Fleet. Only he himself knows the bitterness of his position as an official.

Yunshan Island...

An island of just over a thousand square kilometers is about the same size as Hong Kong Island, and it has a natural bay. (Later Pearl Harbor on Oahu)

This island is currently the largest immigration transit center for Han in the Pacific.

Every year, tens to 20 immigrants from the Far East stop to rest on this island. After making some preparations, they continue sailing towards the mainland of Han.

Because of the needs of immigrants and its importance as a transit station, there are about [-] immigrants living here on the entire Yunshan Island.

They built towns, opened up farmland, and planted fruit trees in the bays of the island, which were far away from the wind and waves.

After several years of continuous development, the local area has even developed an industry that serves the lives of immigrants, relying on a steady stream of immigrants.

For example, as an immigrant, if you don’t want to live in a room assigned to multiple people, you can stay in a hotel in the town.

Moreover, there are a large number of fresh fruits sold locally to these immigrants. After all, the most important thing for long-distance voyages is to supplement various vitamins.

Fruits are the richest source of vitamins.

A huge amount of fruit is produced locally, but the locals can't actually eat it. They are mainly for immigrants. Even in the local area, Jinshan's canning company has invested in a medium-sized canning factory and a small iron smelting plant. .

Specializing in the mass production of canned fruits, a small food industry developed by relying on immigrants and caravans from the Far East to Han.

In addition to producing fruits for sale, local people also produce a large amount of rice and have opened up tens of thousands of acres of rice fields.

Because the area has three crops a year and abundant rainfall, the local rice production cannot be digested by the 7000 local people alone.

Therefore, we still have to rely on immigrants. Even the local mayor said: "As the ancients said, we rely on mountains to eat mountains, and we rely on water to eat water. We rely on immigrants, and of course we must eat from immigrants..."

Although this is a bit vulgar, it is indeed true. Just like Jiuyuan Province in the Han Kingdom, how could it have developed so fast without copper and gold mines.

Therefore, if a place wants to develop, it must determine its own advantages.

It is not shameful to rely on mountains and rivers to feed yourself, but on the contrary, it is shameful to rely on mountains and rivers and starve yourself to death! !
On Yunshan Island, with the arrival of the ocean-going fleet, everyone on the island was in a sensation, so people rushed to Yunshan Bay to see the warships. They saw so many warships at one time.

In particular, Huo Qubing, the largest and most powerful one, has become an enduring topic of conversation among the locals.

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(End of this chapter)