Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

The internal conflicts within the Navy were displayed to outsiders, and many people watched with amusement as the situation became a laughing stock.

Border Defense Minister Liu Zunxian even chimed in:

"The navy doesn't need cannons, but our army can equip itself with more."

"His Majesty said that future wars will be artillery battles."

"Our army can't rely on the navy's ship guns; we need to make the cannons move on land."

"Tanks are like land cruisers. The Equipment Research Institute should study tanks more and develop cannons and shells."

Bi Maokang chimed in, adding:

"That's a good feeling!"

"The Equipment Research Institute will collaborate with the Imperial Stud to research artillery carriages capable of carrying cannons."

"Minister Min, shouldn't your logistics department also get involved?"

"The transportation of these shells is the responsibility of your logistics department."

Clearly, he was also somewhat angry that the Navy Department did not value the cannons he had developed.

Therefore, they colluded with the Border Defense Department to embarrass the Navy Department.

Min Mengde had already decided to retire and didn't want to get involved in these matters. He smiled and shook his head, saying:
"You are in charge of the research; the logistics department is only responsible for procurement."

"However, it is not easy for the army to equip itself with artillery. The Emperor said that the largest caliber of field artillery is 150 mm."

"If it were any bigger, the shells would be too heavy for soldiers to carry, which would be inconvenient in field operations. At most, we would equip a small number of them as special-purpose artillery."

"Also, you need to think about horses. Even if you have artillery carts, horses might not be able to pull them."

This made Liu Zunxian pause, realizing that it was indeed a problem.

Building vehicles is relatively straightforward; if we can build giant ships weighing hundreds of tons, then building large vehicles is certainly not out of the question.

However, unlike boats which can be rowed and utilize wind power, vehicles can only be towed by horses.

Don't build chariots that can't be pulled by horses; that would be a joke.

This also instilled a sense of crisis in him, making him understand why the emperor valued warships more than land-based chariots:

"Future warfare will be artillery warfare; the more powerful the artillery, the greater the advantage."

"Warships are so huge, the cannons they can carry will only become more and more powerful."

"Is it really possible to use the sea to control the land, and for the army to be unable to defeat the navy at the coast or on the water?"

The thought of this possibility sent chills down Liu Zunxian's spine.

He didn't want the army to decline under his leadership and become inferior to the navy.

Fortunately, Navy Minister Yu Anxing was a person with insufficient foresight.

He still insisted on building treasure ships, not warships that could only be used for fighting. He said:

"If a small treasure ship can't carry a big cannon, then build a big treasure ship."

"Let alone a 500-ton treasure ship, we can build a 3,000-ton treasure ship, as long as we have enough timber."

"When the time comes, we can equip these ships with cannons and still defeat the enemy."

Zheng Zhihu was furious when he heard this, and pointed at Yu Anxing, saying:

"Have you ever actually fought in a war?"

"How do you turn a 3,000-ton treasure ship during naval battle?"

"Using a ship like that as a battlefield is simply making it a target."

"A large ship carrying one or two cannons is simply a delivery of food."

“And…” Zheng Zhihu said, pointing to the Arrow-type shrapnel shells:

"Did you even read the operational summary of the Arrow-type shrapnel rounds carefully?"

"At least eight cannons need to fire simultaneously to unleash sufficient power."

"If you have one or two cannons on each ship, how do you command them to fire simultaneously?"

One specific question after another came out of his mouth.

Yu Anxing blushed deeply upon hearing this, repeatedly saying "rude!"

Some officials in the Privy Council were also dissatisfied, feeling that Zheng Zhihu was too domineering and dared to point directly at his superior.

Sun Chengzong's expression also turned sour, as he felt that Zheng Zhihu's reasoning had become unreasonable.

But as the leader of the meritorious officials in Liaodong, he could only protect them.

So his expression immediately turned serious, and he rebuked:
"Pointing and gesturing, what kind of behavior is that!"

“Apologize to Minister Yu and apologize to him in person.”

Zheng Zhihu was furious for a moment, but after realizing what had happened, he felt that he had made a big fuss.

He wasn't one to hold grudges; he immediately clasped his hands and bowed deeply to Yu Anxing.
"I was rude just now, please forgive me, Minister Yu."

Seeing that he did not respond, she slapped herself twice, punishing herself.

Now Yu Anxing couldn't press the matter any further, and the other ministers looked at Zheng Zhihu with a rather amused expression.

Although the matter has passed in person, given how far it has escalated, one of the two will inevitably have to leave the Navy.

The Naval Act cannot be delayed and must be finalized as soon as possible.
-
The events that occurred at the Equipment Research Institute were quickly reported to the imperial court, and an imperial censor impeached Zheng Zhihu for his arrogance.

Zhu Youjian had no choice but to punish him, demoting him from the newly appointed Right Commander of the Right Army Commandery to Assistant Commander.

However, he was actually very dissatisfied with Yu Anxing:

Lao Tzu said that future wars will be artillery battles, yet you so vehemently oppose it.

If we build a bunch of large but useless cargo ships, how will we compete with Western countries for sea power in the future?
Dissatisfied, he arranged for Zheng Zhihu and others to work on "The Theory of Sea Power" and vigorously advocated for control of the sea.

After gaining control of the sea, the Ming Dynasty's ships would have freedom of movement at sea, control of sea lanes, and restrictions on enemy ships.

The core of the theory of sea power is naval decisive battles and naval blockades, both of which require specialized and powerful warships.

Furthermore, based on his actual combat experience in Liaodong, Zheng Zhihu advocated using the sea to control the land, clamoring that "whoever controls the sea can control the land," and believed that the navy should not be subordinate to the army and should have independent combat rights.

Yu Zigao, who had just returned to the capital, also supported this view.

He also quoted his father Yu Dayou, who believed that "there is no other trick to naval warfare than large ships defeating small ships, large guns defeating small guns, many ships defeating few ships, and many guns defeating few guns."

To achieve victory in the naval battle, more large cannons and warships are needed.

His appointment as naval admiral immediately increased the number of people who supported the theory of sea power.

In particular, the theory of sea power was in the navy's interest, and even though Yu Anxing was the Minister of the Navy, he could not suppress them.

Under these circumstances, Zhu Youjian finally made a decision. He appointed Zheng Zhihu as Chief of Naval Staff, responsible for maintaining naval combat effectiveness and formulating naval operational plans. Zheng was qualified to participate in the Naval Ministry's meetings, responsible for the allocation of resources and budget preparation related to warships. Furthermore, as Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Zheng participated in the General Staff meetings, responsible for the naval-related sections of the operational plans formulated by the General Staff.

This appointment significantly boosted Zheng Zhihu's actual status and effectively marked a victory.

After Yu Anxing claimed to be ill, he and Yu Zigao jointly presided over the drafting of the "Naval Act".

The criteria for being a "two-strong" nation not only include the total tonnage of the navy, but also details such as the total tonnage of warships, the number of large-caliber artillery pieces, and the number of marines, all of which must exceed the "two-strong" standard.

Due to limitations in shipbuilding technology and artillery production capacity, the ten-year goal of the first Naval Act was to build more than fifty cruisers and two hundred and fifty armed merchant ships and fast ships for transporting logistical supplies and marines. The next objective was to conquer Japan, expel Spain and the Netherlands, and establish the first island chain defense line.

Based on this, the Navy Department formulated a more specific development plan, estimated costs, and applied for the relevant budget. (End of Chapter)