Chapter 321 Trial train ride

Compared with colleagues who still use more primitive naval warfare methods such as ramming, fire attack, and gang jumping, Haihan is indeed in a leading position in terms of weapon level, shipbuilding technology, naval tactics, etc., but these are just theories.

It's just an advantage. In terms of true surface warfare, it was only fought once by the special operations company that went deep into the upper reaches of the Zhengjiang River during the expedition to Annan, but the opponent was incomparable in combat power.

The Annan navy in Zhoushui Village was even worse. Even if they achieved victory, they could not prove anything at all.

If the battlefield were to be changed to the vast sea and the opponents were replaced by pirate gangs experienced in naval warfare, then probably no one would have blind confidence in victory. The original naval warfare tactics are not without merit. Chinese sailing ships and equipment

Warships equipped with artillery also have a chance of winning. Originally, when Zheng Chenggong conquered Taiwan more than 30 years ago, he successfully sank the ship in a battle with the Dutch and captured many Dutch warships and armed merchant ships.

Of course, Zheng Chenggong's victory was ultimately based on his superiority in military strength, and he wiped out the Dutch maritime armed forces. But compared with the dozen or so warships sent by the East India Company to Jelanja City to participate in the battle at that time, today's

The only warship Haihan can really use is the "Exploration". Even with the No. 2 and No. 3 ships still in the outfitting stage, it is difficult to compete with the "Eighteen Zhi" with a navy of 30,000.

Having said that, the Executive Committee has spent so much time and gone through so many detours to try to support the Xu Xinsu Group in Fujian, why not just let it withstand the "Eighteen Zhi" offensive on the frontal battlefield in order to gain its own maritime power?

Development time?

If we give up the naval battle and just serve as a defensive force to assist Xu Xinsu in defending the city, there will not be much risk, but the hidden dangers caused by the long supply line are still unavoidable, which is still a problem for the crossing group that does not have enough capital to take risks.

It is an undesirable strategic plan.

After Yan Chujie quickly weighed the pros and cons in his mind, he still shook his head helplessly and rejected Dong Yanyun's proposal: "Boss Dong, this matter involves too many aspects, and it is not something that I can make a decision on my own. If you insist

, then I can make a proposal to the Executive Committee on your behalf, but you should not have any hope for the result. Fujian is too far away, and our militia currently does not have enough capabilities to carry out combat missions in such distant places."

Dong Yanyun couldn't hide the disappointment on his face: "In this case, I still have to ask General Yan to say a few kind words to the Executive Committee! If it comes to pass, I will thank you greatly!"

Yan Chujie waved his hand and said: "There is no need to thank you deeply. Although we will not directly participate in the battle between you and the 'Eighteen Zhi', we will still give you as much help as possible. As long as your big boss knows,

As long as we are on his side."

Dong Yanyun said yes again and again and thanked Yan Chujie endlessly. Although he could not borrow troops from the Haihan people, he could get such a clear statement from the senior officials of the Haihan military. Dong Yanyun's trip was not in vain. The Haihan people were willing to

Reluctance to lend troops to help is not a key condition for Xu Xinsu Group's victory or defeat. Compared with this, Dong Yanyun is more worried about the fact that the Haihan people will sell weapons to their opponents while watching on the sidelines.

Therefore, when he came to Victory Port this time, in addition to negotiating cooperation and purchasing arms, he also wanted to check whether there were other colleagues from Fujian who came to Victory Port, because it was very likely that the "Eighteen Zhi" were in Fujian.

Fortunately, so far, the only Fujian business representative Dong Yanyun knows is himself. It can be basically concluded that there is no connection between the Haihan people and the "Eighteen Zhi".

If he really met his colleagues from Fujian in Shengli Port, Dong Yanyun actually had no good solution. It would be impossible to attack the Haihan people's territory. The labor camp in Shengli Port was one of the famous "attractions" here.

, all the guys who violate the rules of the Haihan people here will be thrown into the labor camp regardless of their identity. Dong Yanyun does not dare to expect that these rich and powerful local bullies will give him any special treatment. The only feasible way is to rely on money.

To defeat the opponent forcefully, the worst is to book the venue at a high price - all the money that was not used when I came to Victory Port last time was shipped here again this time. Since I can't buy cannons now, I will definitely buy 8,000 muskets.

There's just one thing that Dong Yanyun hasn't figured out yet. This group of Haihan people is said to come from an unknown continent thousands of miles away. After arriving in Qiongzhou, they have never had any contact with Zheng Yiguan's group. The furthest they have been is Guangzhou.

Why are they so proactive in participating in this war along the coast of Fujian, and their attitude is so firm, and they have been on Xu Xinsu's side from the beginning? Is this group of people really interested in enlightenment and want to work for the imperial court to suppress bandits?

If Dong Yanyun had not dealt with the Haihan people, he might have been skeptical when hearing such rumors. After all, the majesty of the Ming Dynasty was still there these days. Even if Annan succeeded in seeking independence, he would still give the Ming Dynasty face in public.

It is not uncommon for some foreigners from overseas to want to join the Ming Dynasty. But after he personally dealt with the Haihan people twice, he completely gave up this idea - it is possible for anyone to surrender to the Ming Dynasty, but they will never

It's these Haihan people.

These guys didn't pay attention to the various prohibitions of the Ming Dynasty at all, and completely built Victory Port into a lawless place. Not only did the Haihan people have their own armed forces, they even made their own local laws and regulations. The laws of the Ming Dynasty are here

It is of no use at all. As for the Yulin Inspection Department that still exists here, it is not difficult for Dong Yanyun to see the fishiness in it - Xu Xinsu has done this kind of emptying out of places in Fujian. Of course, now Xu Xinsu has

Obtaining an official position is a legal excuse, but it is definitely illegal for these Haihan people to play this trick.

Dong Yanyun had no intention of surrendering to the Ming Dynasty or raising an army to rebel. Dong Yanyun didn't understand why this group of people eagerly fought against the "Eighteen Zhi" who were thousands of miles away and had no interest in it. Let's just fight.

They did it so secretly, as if they didn't want the "Eighteen Zhi" to know their existence too early. Dong Yanyun originally thought that the strategy of borrowing troops would be appreciated by the Haihan people, because it would fulfill their wish to intervene in the Fujian war.

, but unexpectedly, Yan Chujie thought about it for a long time and finally did not agree to his proposal, which made Dong Yanyun feel a little frustrated.

But then Yan Chujie gave him a suggestion that sounded very good: "The people you sent to Victory Port this time are basically craftsmen who repair firearms and artillery, but in fact we think what you need to learn more is the use of firearms.

For advanced tactics, we should select some grassroots officers with better quality and send them here to receive our professional training. Although our weapons manufacturing technology will not be easily taught to outsiders, our fighting skills can still be appropriately taught to those with close cooperation.

Partner...Boss Dong, do you know how many military cadets came from North Vietnam this time?"

"I don't know, please give me some advice from General Yan!" Dong Yanyun responded respectfully.

"Twenty people, all young officers." Yan Chujie said very proudly: "After these officers return to China after studying here, they will become the main force in the army and lead the army to attack the South Vietnamese rebels. And the army of Annan Kingdom

, is also expected to enter the age of firearms from now on. Although their weapons are changed several decades later than the Ming Dynasty, as long as they learn the tactics we teach, their combat effectiveness will soon catch up with the Ming Dynasty."

"I see. As soon as I get back, I will write to the family head as soon as possible and select capable people to go to Victory Port to join this military academy." Dong Yanyun made it clear and understood that Yan Chujie's enrollment was only one aspect, and the main purpose was to use this to further consolidate the relationship between the two parties.

Relationship. Although the size of the troops directly under Xu Xinsu's command is not comparable to that of North Vietnam, ten or eight loyal and available talents can definitely be selected. As for issues such as admission fees, Dong Yanyun has no intention of asking, anyway, many people have

If you can pay and you will definitely pay, asking will make you look petty.

With few customers, business can be negotiated quickly. The recommendation meeting of the military industry department did not even take half of Ning Qi's time before it came to an end - of course, this is also due to the fact that the military industry department has not launched export-oriented weapons and equipment in the near future.

It has a lot to do with it. And this situation of resting on one's laurels will probably continue for some time until the relevant departments feel it is necessary to start replacing them with next-generation weapons.

The military industry department has never stopped developing new weapons for a day. The reason why it has slowed down the pace of weapon updates is that on the one hand, there are still many areas for further improvement and improvement in the manufacturing process of weapons. The military hopes to obtain stable performance.

, a product with relatively guaranteed quality rather than a trial product hastily taken out from the laboratory. On the other hand, the reasons are more complicated. In addition to the current large gap in the group's own weapons installation needs, the commercial department hopes to

Use the previous generation of products in exchange for as much sales revenue as possible. After the market purchasing power drops to a certain level, the weapons will be upgraded and replaced, and then the weapons replaced by the militia will be sold. In this way, profits from the arms trade can be realized.

Maximization - the differential sales strategy for the arms trade was originally designed for this purpose.

With North Vietnam currently having less than 2,000 muskets and orders for dozens of artillery pieces, both the military and commercial departments believe that there is still great potential to be tapped. At least North Vietnam must be able to arm a thermal weapons force of 10,000 people.

As for the sales volume in Fujian, it is estimated that the sales volume will be slightly smaller. After all, Xu Xinsu is only a military leader now. Even if his team is overstaffed, there are limitations, but there is still a lot of room for maneuver. Therefore, the relevant departments have a lot of space for arms sales.

I'm not particularly anxious about it. After all, there is no other place to buy this thing for the time being. Xu Xinsu is probably not willing to spend the same amount of money to buy inferior goods supervised by the Ministry of War of the Ming Dynasty. She can only wait patiently for Haihan to ship it.

.

When several representatives walked out of the place where they were discussing matters, Dong Yanyun lost his voice and said, "Then... what is that!"

Everyone turned around and saw different expressions. The North Vietnamese envoy was similar to Dong Yanyun, looking like he had seen a ghost. But Li Nai, the representative of "Furuifeng", was not surprised and still waved his hands leisurely.

The folding fan in the middle said: "You don't know, but this is the steam engine invented by the Haihan people! This thing uses clean coal to boil water, and the water vapor drives the connecting rod. It is extremely powerful and can carry tens of thousands of kilograms of things. The white color that moves quickly across

Smoke is the water vapor after boiling!"

"Win chicken? Coal? Boil water?" Even though Dong Yanyun was well-informed, after listening to Li Nai's explanation, Monk Zhanger was still confused. As for the North Vietnamese mission, let alone the two uncles Zheng Zao and Zheng Ting.

My nephew stared at him, completely confused.

Seeing that these people were still in a confused state, Li Nai suddenly felt a sense of intellectual superiority. He raised his hand to Yan Chujie and said, "I wonder if Mr. Yan can arrange for me to take a test ride on a steam locomotive?"

Yan Chujie smiled and said: "Of course there is no problem with this. If I guessed correctly, the car now carrying should be the Guangdong business group that came to Victory Port for inspection this time."

Yan Chujie's guess was indeed correct. The shareholders of "Qiong Lianfa" were sitting in the carriage dragged by the steam locomotive, enjoying the pleasure of speeding. Although the speed of the train was not actually very fast, some people were still holding on to the windows tremblingly.

Frame, seemed to be worried about being thrown out by this rumbling monster. Others looked excited, sticking their heads out from the left to take a look, and then looking from the right, as if to make sure again and again.

This big guy is not being led by a galloping horse or anything else.

The only thing that made everyone feel a little uncomfortable was that this so-called carriage had multiple windows, and none of them had been installed. So the soot mixed with water vapor directly filled the entire carriage, which made the wealthy businessmen who were used to living a comfortable life feel uncomfortable.

They were quite embarrassed. But in this novel environment, no one particularly cared about the choking soot.

The reason why this group of people appeared on the train is because one of the investment projects this time is the "intercity rail transit system." This is a new thing that the shareholders here have never been exposed to, and

The only shareholder who knew something about this, Li Nai, the third young master of "Fu Ruifeng", went to another promotion meeting, so everyone had no idea about it. So in order to give shareholders a quick and intuitive understanding, Tao

Donglai asked someone to arrange for them to take the Shengli Port to Tiandu line that had just been opened to traffic a few days ago.

"This thing is far smoother and faster than a sedan or carriage. It is really a magical tool!" Zhan Gui, a merchant from a large sea, took the lead and praised loudly.

"I just don't know the principle of this thing. It seems that the front of this car is made of fine iron. It must weigh several thousand kilograms. It can travel so fast. Looking at the secret skills of Haihan craftsmen, my Ming Dynasty can't match it!"

Wang Qin, the representative of Huizhou Haifeng, couldn't help but sigh.

Businessmen are very practical creatures. They quickly put away their novelty and began to consider the practical use of this thing. Needless to say, it is fast. Although this car is not as fast as a galloping horse, it is not too slow.

It is much faster to lift ordinary carriages, bullock carts, handcarts, sedans and other means of transportation. And its biggest feature is its load capacity. According to the Haihan people's instructions, this car can pull a carriage five times its own weight.

This kind of load-carrying capacity is a treasure for transportation lines with large freight volumes. The cargo that one vehicle can pull in one trip can be used as dozens of animal-drawn vehicles.

However, this kind of car also has some shortcomings, such as the need to burn a large amount of coal, the need to add water regularly, and the need to constantly add coal and boil water during travel. It must move along the laid track, and the manufacturing and laying construction of this track seem

It is not an easy task. In addition, the entire front of the car in key parts needs to be made of fine iron. In other words, although this kind of car looks easy to use, its construction and operation costs are much higher than traditional tools.

, Convenience is convenient but not necessarily cost-effective.

The plan given by Haihanfang is to build more civilian tracks in the future, recover costs by charging ride fees and freight fees, and gradually achieve profitability. Consider the construction period and initial investment of this project, as well as the local people

With the population size and income situation, shareholders are very doubtful whether the profits promised by Haihanfang can be realized. If the toll standard is set high, there will definitely be fewer people taking the bus. If it is set low, the time to recover the construction costs will become far away.

No deadline.

Although everyone is full of praise for the performance of this car, investing in operating it is another matter. In business, although things are good, shareholders are not willing to invest money in such an uncertain future.

Project up.

The car stopped halfway along the track and returned to Fort Victory Station. The executive committee did not intend to allow these shareholders to visit the production units in Tiandu Industrial Zone. After arriving at the station, there was hot water prepared by the staff.

Let these wealthy businessmen whose faces have been stained by coal smoke clean up first.

While they were still queuing up to wash their faces, Yan Chujie arrived at the station with a few excited customers. Both Zheng's uncle and nephew had military backgrounds and were very courageous, so they went straight to the locomotive to observe carefully.

They have much more thoughts than these businessmen - if this thing can be introduced to Annan, the time required to mobilize troops from Thang Long Palace to the front line by land can be shortened at least several times! The only problem is this

The route that the "Zhengqi Chicken" travels seems to need to be specially laid. However, Annan, especially the Red River Delta in the north, is famous for its rich water system. It is planned to build this kind of stone base and then use sleepers to lay the rails on top.

The road is not easy.

"You two, you can't tell the difference by just looking at it, so why not go up and take a ride." Li Nai smiled and helped the Haihan people push the two uncles and nephews into the water.

So about twenty minutes later, the rumbling train came back with a group of people who were also smoked into black faces. Li Nai shook his fan on the platform and chuckled, deeply proud of his wit - he had done it as early as last year

I had already ridden a small train hauling ore at the Tiandu Iron Mine. At that time, the person covered in soot was even more embarrassed than these others.
Chapter completed!