(0686) "Someone! ”

Xu Xingxia suddenly shouted. [No pop-up novel network]

Staff officer Liu Hanwu hurriedly came in and listened to orders.

Xu Xingxia stood up and paced back and forth in the study. After a while, he said slowly: "Send someone to tell Yuan Yingtai immediately and let him leave for Dengzhou." I'll go to Dengzhou later. I want to hear from him in person. ”

"Understood!" Liu Hanwu agreed.

Xu Xingxia nodded and sat back at the back of the desk.

This time, he picked up a stack of reports. The reports were all glued together, in a thick pile, estimated at twenty or thirty copies. Obviously, all the reports describe the same thing. In fact, in the upper left corner of each report, there is a red label. There are two words on the top of the label, and that is "Navy". This shows that all the reports are related to the White Coats Army and Navy.

Most of the reports have three other words on the label, that is, "Weihaiwei". Weihaiwei, just listen to the name, you know that it is a famous military port. In fact, the headquarters of the Beiyang Navy Division in later generations was set up in Weihaiwei. Before the Qingdao Naval Base was built, the New Chinese Navy was also stationed in Weihaiwei, and a large number of warships were there.

Xu Xingxia wanted to establish the white-clothed navy, and the first general base he chose was Weihaiwei. This is not only taking into account the advantages of Weihaiwei's natural military port, but also taking into account Weihaiwei's strategic location. From Weihaiwei, the navy's warships can directly threaten Liaodong, North Korea, and Yueben. With such a good strategic location, Xu Xingxia certainly won't miss it.

The funds for the establishment of the White Coats Navy are basically in place. This time, the white-clothed army swept through the Central Plains and raided many palaces and high-ranking bureaucrats. They had at least fifty million taels of silver. With so much money, if it is put into the navy, in a short period of time, it should be possible to increase a considerable number of warships. Even if the funds needed to build a navy are huge, it is entirely possible to build a naval fleet in a short period of time.

However, Xu Xingxia is not particularly clear about the specific development ideas of the navy. With the development of new technologies, the Navy must also apply them. Only in this way can we defeat the Western powers. Frankly speaking, at present, the technology of the sail battleships of the Western powers is quite mature, and it is unlikely that the navy of the white army will surpass the Western powers in this regard. If you start too late, even if you have money, it will be difficult to catch up with others.

It seems that the strongest battleship of the Dutch, with a displacement of more than 1,000 tons, has more than 80 guns of all kinds on it. In the coming years, the Dutch battleships will have a much larger displacement and a larger number of guns. With a displacement of two thousand tons, more than a hundred guns, there are no problems at all. And this is only the situation of the Dutch Navy, not counting the later sea giants of the British.

Purely in terms of shipbuilding technology and artillery technology, the British are definitely the most advantageous among the Western powers. They will dominate the seas for more than 200 years. The so-called Immortal Empire was also formed during this time. In order to catch up with or even surpass the British, the navy of the White Coat Army must have its own unique advantages in shipbuilding and artillery technology. If you rely solely on battleships such as the current Fubune, they will certainly not be the opponents of the British.

What are the current technical advantages of the White Coats? One is gunpowder and the other is steel. The appearance of white explosives can completely make black gunpowder gradually withdraw from the stage. And high-quality steel, when casting guns, can also maintain the quality of the barrel. There is also a steam engine that gives the warship constant power, allowing it to continue to sail even when there is no wind. It's just that it's really not easy to apply these technologies to the navy. Just one recoil can kill a lot of people.

Under the influence of the Ming Dynasty's consistent Jinghai policy, the heroic appearance of Zheng He's fleet, which went to the West seven times, has long been gone. The shipbuilding technology of the Ming Dynasty has been basically lost. The so-called large treasure ships are basically just legends. The only thing that has been inherited is a small fortune boat. During the War of Resistance and Aid Korea, the most powerful warship of the Daming Navy Division had a displacement of only about 400 tons. As for weapons, it is even more miserable.

To be honest, the Daming Navy Division is also encountering a worse Navy, otherwise, it is really hard to say whether it can win the opponent. A warship with a displacement of only 400 tons and no powerful artillery was almost like a small sampan in the eyes of the Western powers. Rao is so, in the Battle of Lulianghai, the Daming Navy Division still killed a senior commander Deng Zilong. The Kingdom of Korea, on the other hand, also killed their spiritual leader, Yi Sunsin.

If you want to do a good job, you must first sharpen your tools, which is the most basic common sense. In terms of naval warships, even more so. Your warships are not as powerful as the other side, and your artillery is not as powerful as the other side, so you will only be beaten. You can't hit others, but others can hit you, isn't this a passive beating? Naval warfare is not the same as land warfare. In a naval battle, if the gap in equipment between the two sides is too large, it will be difficult to turn the tide without falling. Xu Xingxia didn't want his navy to be in a state of passive beating. The equipment of both sides must at least be leveled.

While he was pondering, Zhang Tianhao came to Xu Xingxia with light steps and said in a low voice: "My lord, Yuan Keli is here." ”

Xu Xingxia nodded and said quietly, "Please." ”

A moment later, Zhang Tianhao came in with Yuan Keli. Yuan Keli is a little old, he is fifty-five years old this year. However, he seems to be in good spirits, and he walks with a steady foot. However, if you look closely, you can still see the hidden haggard and depressed look on Yuan Keli's face. Maybe Yuan Keli wanted to hide his haggard and depressed as much as possible, but he never hid it.

There is no way, Yuan Keli has always been unintentional in the officialdom of the Ming Dynasty. He can be described as an all-rounder, and when he first entered the official career, he did indeed make a lot of commendable achievements. For example, he has the credit for quelling the Japanese and other things. However, he did offend many people in the officialdom. As a result, since the twenty-sixth year of Wanli, Yuan Keli has been idle at home and has never had the opportunity to display his talents.

Yuan Keli, who was in the twenty-sixth year of Wanli, was about thirty years old, strong in blood, full of energy, and ready to show off his strength, but at this time, he was belittled. It's twenty years. Twenty years is a very long time for anyone. Yuan Keli was not knocked down by this long time, he didn't get sick, or even die, which is already quite good.

Xu Xingxia called Yuan Keli here, mainly for the affairs of the navy. The navy is the main force for the future development of the white army. The white-clothed army wanted to land in the city, seize the island of Taiwan, control the South Sea, and follow the route all the way to the west, occupying India, occupying the Persian Gulf, occupying Africa, and occupying Europe. Or all the way east, to the Americas, all the way to the Americas, without the support of a strong navy. Not to mention the maritime battle with the Western powers because of the relationship of interests.

However, Xu Xingxia himself does not know much about the Navy. The navy is actually a very professional service, and it is definitely not something that can be understood by looking at the surface. In later generations, although he has seen a lot of warships on the Internet, he has never seen a single warship in reality. As for the internal organization, training, and operations of the navy, Xu Xingxia also learned about it from the Internet. As for whether this is the case in reality, it is really hard to say. These experiences on the Internet in later generations, put four hundred years ago, whether they are suitable or not, Xu Xingxia himself does not know.

For the sake of stability, Xu Xingxia decided to find a few talented people to build the navy's shelves with him. Thankfully, he arrived at the right time. He needs to look for talents, Shandong does still have a lot. Although 20 years have passed since the War of Resistance and Aid to the DPRK, the original Daming Water Division has also disappeared. However, many of the talents left behind by the Daming Navy Master are still living in the coastal areas of Shandong. Maybe they're a little older, but their experience and skills are still there. These people are the foundation of the future of the White Coats Army and Navy.

When Chen Luan, the commander of the Ming Naval Division, formed a fleet and went to reinforce Korea, he had recruited a large number of troops from the coastal areas of Shandong, so after the battle, quite a number of sailors and soldiers also returned to their hometowns. That's how the war was at that time. Soldiers were recruited only when the war began, and after the battle, the troops were immediately disbanded to save money.

Xu Xingxia initially estimated that there were at least 10,000 officers and soldiers of the former Daming Water Division who were disbanded and returned home. Basically, it can meet the initial needs of the white-coated army and navy. However, it is not enough to have ordinary naval non-commissioned officers, there must also be high-ranking generals. It is a pity that after the battle, Chen Lan took the high-level of the Daming Navy Division back to Nanao Island in Guangdong to rest. Subsequently, the Daming Water Division was in a state of semi-dissolution, and the high-level of the Water Division were also scattered in the Jiangnan area. In Shandong, there are no high-ranking generals.

Yuan Keli is the deputy director of the Navy Command of the White Army appointed by Xu Xingxia. As for the minister, of course, it is Xu Xingxia himself. The reason why Yuan Keli was selected as the actual person in charge of the navy was to consider that this old man, who had never met a talent before, was very good at managing the army. He needed Yuan Keli to help him manage the navy.

In real history, Yuan Keli is still very capable. When he served as the governor of Denglai, he started almost from scratch, created a fairly powerful army, stockpiled a large number of military supplies, and provided strong assistance for the war in Liaodong. If it weren't for offending Wei Zhongxian and being dismissed from office, he should have been able to establish greater meritorious service.

(To be continued)