Zhu Ying hasn't been very concerned about the situation in Japan recently.

His mind now was on the steam ironclad ship.

Today, the hull is completed and it is time to start installing steam.

It will take two or three days at most for this steam ironclad ship to be launched.

Beijing Shipyard.

This is a newly built shipyard, which is not open to the public but is dedicated to the research and development of shipbuilding technology.

When the Beijing Shipyard was first established, Zhu Ying recruited a large number of elite shipbuilding craftsmen from all over the country, including a large number of scholars.

The reason why scholars were willing to do the work of craftsmen was nothing else but that the key reason was that Zhu Ying paid them high enough.

The most basic thing is to provide food and accommodation, and the salary is 30 strings of cash per month.

This is a sky-high salary.

Besides, scholars nowadays are worthless. Apart from being exempted from kneeling when meeting officials, they no longer have other privileges.

The reason why Zhu Ying wanted scholars to participate was that in the inheritance of many techniques, craftsmen usually pass on the skills by word of mouth, and their ability to express themselves was not good, so it was difficult for apprentices to learn the skills of their masters.

In addition, there is a saying that if a master teaches his apprentice, he will starve to death, so usually the master will keep some tricks before teaching his apprentice.

This has put an even bigger barrier on a skill that is already difficult to pass on.

For this reason, Zhu Ying simply issued an order prohibiting the shipyard from hoarding its own belongings.

Anyone found guilty will be severely punished.

With generous rewards, this phenomenon was eliminated at least in the shipyard.

The advantage for readers is that they can write down these skills and compile them into a book, making it faster for later learners.

"Thank you for your hard work during this period."

Zhu Ying looked up at the large ship fully equipped with iron armor not far away, and said to Huang Guan beside him with some sigh.

He had heard that during the period of building the ironclad ship, Huang Guan spent most of his time resting in the shipyard.

He was a third-rank official, Zhan Shi, which meant he was definitely the first rank below the emperor in the entire Ming Dynasty.

As the representative of the Crown Prince, the Zhanshi Mansion has more invisible power than the six ministers.

In order to successfully build the ironclad ship, he abandoned his beloved wife at home and stayed by her side day and night.

This kind of behavior really touched Zhu Ying.

"I just want to make this ironclad ship come out as soon as possible. Compared with the steam ironclad ship, my little effort is nothing."

"Living here, I can better control the manufacture of ironclad ships. The sooner they are launched, the greater the prestige of the Ming Dynasty on the sea."

Huang Guan bowed and said.

It has to be said that with a third-rank official like him setting an example, officials at all levels below would not dare to be negligent in the slightest.

If the boss is like this, do subordinates have to get special treatment?

Therefore, almost no officials from top to bottom in the capital shipyard went back, and they all lived here, not daring to slack off in their supervision of the construction of ironclad ships.

This leads to a strange phenomenon.

Often, behind a blacksmith, there are four or five officials watching at any time.

Especially when it was still dark, Huang Guan would get up, and everyone, whether they were craftsmen or officials, had to get up as well.

In fact, many problems were encountered in the process of building the ironclad ship.

Some small problems can easily hold up the overall manufacturing progress.

Huang Guan is not omnipotent, but as soon as he finds a problem, he immediately calls a meeting to discuss a solution.

Three cobblers are better than one Zhuge Liang.

This is the key to completing the ironclad ship on time.

At this moment, a huge steam engine was being lifted into the cabin.

Zhu Ying patted Huang Guan on the shoulder and didn't say much, but his meaning was already very obvious.

With such a great contribution, as long as Huang Guan does not do anything evil, he can basically be pardoned.

It is more reliable than Zhu Yuanzhang’s iron scroll of immunity from death.

"Your Highness, it will take about two hours here. How about you take a rest first?"

The dock in front was busy with work. Guo Zhong saw that the sunlight was a bit scorching. After all, the weather in June was the hottest, so he started to persuade them.

"No need, I'll just watch here, it'll only take a few hours."

"You reminded me that the weather is too hot. Let's have some watermelons prepared as a reward for the craftsmen downstairs, so they don't get too hot."

Zhu Ying waved his hand to refuse, asked someone to find a chair, sat on the chair, looked down, and gave instructions.

Watermelon has been grown on a large scale in the Central Plains since the Southern Song Dynasty, and it is not considered an overly expensive fruit nowadays.

But it only costs a few dozen coins per pound, so only wealthy people dare not eat it.

Guo Zhong quickly brought the eunuchs and brought a cartload of watermelons.

He walked to the edge of the pit and shouted, "The Crown Prince's order, the sun is scorching hot today. Considering the difficulty of construction, I will give you three carts of watermelons to help you cool down."

Upon hearing this, the craftsmen all knelt down and shouted, "Thank you, His Royal Highness, for the reward."

On such a summer day, they started working before dawn, and now it is already noon, so Zhu Ying let the craftsmen eat melons to cool off.

Today's watermelons are not as sweet as those in later generations, but for craftsmen, they are the best thing.

After taking a bite of watermelon, I felt much more energetic.

Many people would mutter words like thank you to the Crown Prince while eating.

After a short rest, the craftsmen naturally worked harder.

The lazy tricks have long been forgotten at this time.

Before noon, the steam engine had been installed in the cabin, and the bottom of the ship had been covered with iron plates, completely completed.

The shape of this steam-clad ship is rather ugly.

Compared to the treasure ship, it is like the difference between an ugly duckling and a white swan.

The iron sheets were forged by craftsmen hammer by hammer, so of course it cannot be said to be smooth. The iron sheets were fixed to the hull with rivets, leaving many marks of nails.

It looks black and looks like a lump of iron.

Only the sails on the ship indicate that it is a ship.

At the back of the hull is the propeller.

This is where the steam power is connected. Once the steam engine is started, the propeller can provide enough power for the ship.

Making this propeller takes a lot of effort. It took more than a dozen master blacksmiths to hammer it out, and then it went through constant polishing and calibration.

Nowadays, when there are no lathes, almost all high-precision things are completed by hand.

Only the Ming Dynasty could do this.

Other small countries simply do not have this capability.

In the big pit, the craftsmen's work has basically been completed. This is the last step in the steam ironclad ship: oiling.

If the iron sheet is in water for a long time, it will easily rust. Wiping it back and forth with a greased cloth has a good anti-rust effect.

These iron sheets have been maintained, and the large-scale oiling is to fill the grease that was damaged during the previous binding.

"Your Highness, you may open the gate now."

After all the craftsmen in the big pit came up, Huang Guan said beside them.

The Beijing Shipyard was built on the riverside and adopted a dock-style design.

That is to say, a large pit is dug by the river, and then a dock is built. Normally, shipbuilding is carried out in the large pit.

Large factories like the Beijing Shipyard would build two separate river channels, made of bricks and stones, and build large gates on the outer river channel.

After the hull in the pit is completed, the gates are opened to prevent water from entering the pit.

When the water is full, boats can follow the river into the river.

After the front gate is closed, the rear gate will be opened to divert the water downstream and drain it, so that the big pit can continue to build ships.

"Open the gate."

While Zhu Ying was speaking, he also stood up from his chair.

"The Crown Prince has ordered that the floodgates be opened! Let the water flow!"

As the shouts rang out, the strong men on both sides of the gate began to turn the roulette chains.

The chain gradually rose, driving the huge gate.

Like a flood, the water from the river rushed in, quickly filling the entire pit.

Gradually, the steam ironclad ship slowly floated up.

This caused a burst of exclamations.

Due to the limitations of knowledge, many people have participated in the creation but have always had doubts in their hearts.

Wouldn't a ship wrapped in iron sheets sink?

Even the outside is covered with iron sheets. What if it sinks?

And now, the floating iron ship is the best proof.

This was a scene that was like a divine presence, causing many craftsmen to kneel down and shout "Long live His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"

They thought that the iron ship could float because His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, as a banished immortal, had cast some magic on the iron ship.

Huang Guan's expression also became excited.

He was certainly not excited because the iron ship floated, but because the steam ironclad ship he supervised the construction of was finally able to come out.

From another perspective, the reason why Huang Guan worked so hard was because he understood the significance of building steam-clad ships.

This is a major event that is bound to go down in history and may even affect the situation of all nations in the world.

As someone who participated in the design and supervised the construction of steam engines and ironclad ships, he must have left a very significant mark in history books.

As a writer, who can ignore his reputation?

"What a great steam ironclad ship!" Zhu Ying's eyes were shining.

At this moment, Huang Guan suddenly had an idea and bowed, saying, "Your Highness, please give me a name."

Before this, ships did not have names. In all dynasties, the army was the main force and the navy was the auxiliary force. There were only ship types but no ship names.

If no name is given, then this type of ship will be called steam-clad ships in the future.

Zhu Ying was also moved when he heard this. After thinking for a while, he said, "Once this ship is launched, there will be no other ship comparable to it on the sea. It will be like the Dinghai Magic Needle in the Dragon Palace of the East China Sea. I will give it the name Dinghai Ship."

Guo Zhong, who was standing beside him, heard this and immediately raised his voice and shouted, "The crown prince gave this name, Dinghai Ship."

At this time, Yu Jing, a captain of the navy who was already on the ship, knelt on one knee and responded: "Please give the order from His Royal Highness, and allow the Dinghai ship to be set on fire!"

Yu Jing is the second son of Yu Tongyuan, Marquis of Yuexi. Since the eldest son Yu Yi died early, Yu Jing is the current eldest son.

Steam ironclad ships not only need to be built, but also need to be operated by sailors.

During the period of building ironclad ships, Yu Jing, as the son of Yuexi Marquis and a core figure of the Ming Navy, naturally came here early.

Firstly, he was familiar with the operation of the ironclad ship, and secondly, he would be the naval commander of this ironclad ship in the future.

As the son of a marquis, he is certainly not lacking in social skills.

Zhu Ying was also a little excited and shouted in person: "Accurate!"

Yu Jing heard this and shouted, "The Crown Prince has ordered, light the fire!"

The soldiers on board immediately began to operate.

As the rumbling sound spread, a cloud of black smoke gradually poured out of the ship's pipes, a sign that the steam engine was ignited.

Everyone present was watching this scene closely.

If the steam engine stalled or failed to ignite at this time, it would be a huge joke.

Zhu Ying looked calm, but he was actually a little nervous.

The five fingers have been clenched into a fist.

He knew better than anyone else the significance of the advent of the steam-powered ironclad ship.

The rumbling sound became more and more intense, accompanied by noisy noises.

This is the propeller below starting to spin.

"It's moving, it's moving, the boat is moving."

“Without using the sails, the boat really moved.”

As the propeller speed increased, the Dinghai ship really started to move, and cheers of excitement were heard in the dock.

All the hard work is worth it.

The Ming Dynasty’s first steam ironclad ship, the Dinghai, was successfully built.

On the deck, Yu Jing looked particularly excited.

Having grown up on a ship, he could clearly feel the power of the Dinghai ship.

At this moment, the steam engine below is far from reaching its fastest speed, but it is already faster than an ordinary large ship.

When the ship is free from the influence of the wind, there is no other ship that can compare to it.

The Dinghai ship also has sails, which can also take advantage of the wind when it blows.

With a propeller, this will be the fastest ship in the world, no doubt about it.

Today's ships are not yet loaded with cannons. Once they are fully loaded with cannons, one ship can be as powerful as a hundred ships.

No, this is an existence that cannot be compared to even a hundred ships.

After entering the river, the Dinghai ship's speed became faster and faster.

This is not the Yangtze River, but the Outer Qinhuai River.

It flows around Jubao Gate, Shuixi Gate, and Dinghuai Gate, and flows into the Yangtze River from Sanchahe River.

This section of waterway is not allowed for merchants, so no merchant ships sail there.

Yu Jing did not drive very far, and did not even reach the maximum speed. He only drove a mile or two and turned back within the sight of the dock.

He knew very well that there would be plenty of opportunities to sail the Dinghai ship in the future, but if it sailed too far, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince would have to wait for a long time.

Things that were originally meritorious may turn into sins.

Of course, the Dinghai ship did not need to go back to the dock when it returned, but instead docked at the pier nearby.

Yu Jing, who came down from the dock, immediately went to meet Zhu Ying.

"Your Highness, the Dinghai ship is sailing smoothly and everything is normal."

Zhu Ying nodded slightly: "Okay, intensify the training these few days. I will give you three days. After three days, I will board the Dinghai ship with Your Majesty."

In fact, Zhu Ying wanted to get on the boat to experience it right away, but he still asked Yu Jing to train for three days first.

Three days is enough time to become familiar with the steam engine and some other issues.

This short voyage only marked the advent of the steam ironclad ship.

Besides, the Dinghai ship was actually only used to test steam engines and propellers. Only the real ones manufactured later would be equipped with cannons and sail to the sea.

At that time, not just one ship would be built, but more than ten ships would be manufactured at the same time.

"I will definitely fulfill my mission!" Yu Jing knelt on one knee and responded in a deep voice.