The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 849, Section 20? How is it possible! Is the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom going to break up the war?

Shanghai, late autumn of 1869.

The Huangpu River was filled with grayish-white morning mist. A steel behemoth with a standard displacement of 6500 tons was quietly anchored next to the No. 3 outfitting dock of the Pudong branch of the Jiangnan Shipyard.

Luo Yaoguo stood on the outfitting dock, his hands behind his back, staring at the steel giant that was about to be tested at sea. Behind him stood the core figure of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's National Defense Industry Committee - the gray-haired Xu Shou, frowning and holding a thick notebook in his hand; the 40-year-old Wang Yan pushed his glasses on his nose from time to time, his eyes flashing with excitement; the thin Ma Baocai squinted his eyes and scanned the graceful and slender metal hull again and again; and the Navy Chief of Staff Zhang Bao always maintained the upright posture unique to soldiers, but his slightly trembling fingers revealed his inner excitement.

This is a test ship with epoch-making and even epoch-making significance! Whether the Navy's "Project No. 1" (2-ton ironclad ship) and "Project No. 1.5" (-ton ironclad ship) can succeed depends on whether the key technologies used on this test ship named "Flying Fish" can be verified.

"Mr. Prime Minister, look at the curvature of the bow."

In the meeting room of the Flying Fish, French engineer Ri Yige, chief engineer of Jiangnan Shipyard and professor of Shanghai Naval University, spoke Chinese with a thick French accent, pointing to a ship model on the meeting table. His two Chinese students, Yan Fu and Chen Jitong, immediately stepped forward to introduce several important breakthroughs of the Flying Fish to the shipbuilding expert sent to China by Napoleon III.

Yan Fu cleared his throat and pointed to the unique bow. "Your Highness, please look. This is the clipper bow designed by Mr. Ri Yige based on your suggestion. With the addition of the bulbous bow structure, the traditional ram is completely eliminated." He paused and glanced at the data in his notebook. "According to our tests using ship models in the pool, this design can reduce wave-making resistance by 10%-20%."

Luo Yaoguo nodded slightly, walked forward slowly, and reached out to touch the cold steel model. The touch of the rivets reminded him of the ships he had seen in the 21st Century's "Ship Knowledge" more than years ago. He had read big books such as "The History of the Development of British Royal Navy Ship Design" and "The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Ship History" back then, otherwise how could he use the "sky design" on this "Flying Fish"?
"Your Highness, look here." Chen Jitong pointed at the stern of the model. "According to your instructions, a U-shaped contraction design is used here to match the propeller and rudder layout at a special angle." The young engineer was also excited. "In addition, Mr. Ri Yige recalculated the curvature of the propeller blades. According to the ship model test, the propulsion efficiency can theoretically be increased by more than 15%."

Yan Fu added: "The Flying Fish has also increased its length-to-width ratio to 6.8, which can significantly reduce frictional resistance. According to tests, it is about 25% lower than that of a wide-body ship. In addition, the Flying Fish has an all-steel hull, and the surface of the hull has been smoothed, and the rivets at and below the waterline have been polished, which further reduces resistance."

Reduce drag by 10%-20%, increase propulsion efficiency by 15%, and reduce friction resistance by another 25%
The dock suddenly became quiet, and everyone held their breath, waiting for the answer to the most critical question. Luo Yaoguo turned around and asked: "What is the speed?"

Ri Yige suddenly danced with excitement and spoke something quickly in French. Yan Fu's translation voice was trembling slightly: "Theoretical calculations show that the maximum speed may exceed 20 knots!"

"20 knots?!" Wang Yan's teacup fell to the ground with a "bang", and the broken pieces of porcelain flew everywhere. He grabbed Zhang Bao's arm beside him and said in a different tone: "The British Devastation is only 14 knots! How, how is this possible?"

The cabin fell silent in an instant. Luo Yaoguo narrowed his eyes and turned his gaze to the Indian Ocean on the world map hanging in the officer's room. If a 20-knot fast cruiser entered the Indian Ocean, the British Royal Navy would be busy.

"Arrange a trial voyage as soon as possible!" Luo Yaoguo showed a proud smile on his face, "Run a round trip on the Shanghai-Hong Kong route, and let the British sailors on this route open their eyes!"

Three weeks later, the blue waters of the East China Sea sparkled in the autumn sun. The British clipper ship Cutty Sark was cutting through the sea at a speed of 16 knots, and the white sails swelled like a full moon in the northwest wind. This legendary sailing ship, which was launched in 1868, had just set an amazing record of 63 days from Shanghai to London.

Captain Johnson stood comfortably on the poop deck, smoking a cherry wood pipe. He looked at the white waves rolling over the side and said to the first mate beside him with a smile: "Look at this speed, Tom! I bet no steamship in the entire Pacific can catch up with us."

"Of course, Captain." First mate Tom Wilson responded with a smile, "Even the fastest steam ship in the Royal Navy has a maximum speed of only 14 knots. And our 'Cutty Sark' can run at 17 knots!"

At this moment, a sailor's heart-wrenching cry suddenly came from the lookout: "Captain! There is a steamship approaching from behind! It's very fast!"

Johnson turned around with a sneer and slowly took out a monocular from his vest pocket. But when he put his eyes close to the lens, he froze instantly - a gray steel warship was approaching from behind at a terrifying speed. The wave wall stirred up by the bow was several meters high. The coal smoke from the two chimneys was pulled into two straight black lines, which were particularly eye-catching in the blue sky. "Oh my God!" The telescope slipped from his fingers. The ship had no sails. The all-steel hull glowed like a shark in the sun, and the red flag of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom on the side fluttered in the sea breeze.

First mate Wilson picked up the telescope and took a look before gasping for air: "What kind of monster is this? How could it run so fast?"

"Full speed! Full sail!" Johnson suddenly shouted, "Raise all the sails!" The sailors were busy adjusting the rigging, but everyone knew that their captain wanted to compete with the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's steamship in top speed - this was very meaningful!
If the Taiping steamer could easily catch up with the Cutty Sark, then no warship in the world could catch up with it, and no merchant ship could escape its pursuit.
But the steel monster was approaching at a speed visible to the naked eye.

At the same time, in the engine room of the Flying Fish, twenty firemen were working shirtless, with sweat glistening on their bronze backs. In front of the 300℃ boiler, the temperature was high enough to cook eggs, but no one complained.

"The pressure gauge has reached the top!" Chief Engineer Li Tiezhu's roar was almost drowned out by the screaming of the steam valve. He wiped the coal dust off his face and shouted into the megaphone: "Bridge! This is the engine room! We have burned the boiler to the limit!"

On the bridge, Zhang Bao stared at the speedometer needle that was shaking violently - 20.3 knots! This number made all the officers present hold their breath. The young communications officer suddenly exclaimed: "Chief of Staff! We are overtaking a British clipper!"

Zhang Bao walked quickly to the porthole and raised the telescope. In the lens, the crew of the "Cutty Sark" were running around on the deck in panic, and some even climbed up the mast, as if trying to see more clearly.

"Keep on course." Zhang Bao sneered, "Let these British people see what a real commerce raider is!"

At the Admiralty Building on Whitehall Street, the hands of the bronze clock just passed 1873pm. Admiral George Ward Hunt, the Secretary of the Navy, was drinking afternoon tea while reviewing the budget report for the construction of the second ship of the "Destroyer" class, the "Thunderbolt". This thick document showed that this ironclad ship, which was expected to be completed in 14.5, had a design speed of up to knots. It was still "high" now, but it would be "not high" in a while!

At this moment, the oak door of the office was slammed open. Admiral Sidney Darcy Drake, the First Sea Lord, rushed in clutching a telegram: "Your Excellency! Urgent telegram from Hong Kong! The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom has a fast ironclad ship!"

"Fast? Faster than the Devastation?" Hunter took the telegram impatiently, but when his eyes swept over the black lead type, his face turned pale in an instant. He stood up suddenly, his voice trembling a little: "20 knots?! Did those yellow monkeys steal God's design?!"

Admiral Drake nodded heavily. "It must have been Captain Johnson of the Cutty Sark who was stolen by Luo Yaoguo himself. That ship was not only incredibly fast, but also had an unprecedented design—a very long hull, no sails, and a clipper bow."

"Convene the Admiralty Committee immediately!" The Admiral rang the bell on his desk frantically. "Everyone! At once!"

Immediately means the next morning, in the meeting room of the Navy Committee. Twelve of the highest-ranking admirals of the Royal Navy sat around a huge oak table. The portrait of Nelson on the wall seemed to be looking down at his successors with one eye. The meeting room was filled with smoke, and the smell of tar from cigars and pipes mixed with the smell of high-end perfume created an elegant and suffocating atmosphere.

"Gentlemen," the Admiral tapped the Times on the table with his cane. The front page was printed with an imaginary picture of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's "mysterious ironclad ship". "If the Taiping Army deploys such ships in Java." He grabbed a red pencil and drew a glaring red line on the huge world map on the wall. "Our Indian route is as defenseless as the naked Venus!"

Sir Parker, the director of naval shipbuilding, suddenly stood up and said, "Your Excellency, we can start the design and manufacture of a new type of high-speed warship right away. We will use the latest and largest triple-expansion steam engine, reduce armor and firepower, lengthen the hull, and use a clipper bow. I believe we can also build a fast ironclad ship with a speed of 20 knots."

"Then move forward quickly!" shouted the Secretary of the Navy, George Ward Hunt. "I'll take care of the budget issue, and the design bidding will begin immediately. The British Empire needs fast ironclad ships as soon as possible!"

(End of this chapter)