Chapter 716: Fubo goes to war
In fact, with the current technical level of the Han tribe, the fastest way to transmit instant information should be a lighthouse. As long as a set of flashing lights is added to the existing lighthouse, Morse code can be transmitted dozens of miles away.
However, the disadvantages of this thing are also obvious. The first is that the cost and maintenance cost are expensive. The second is that it is completely useless during the day. No matter how bright your light is, it cannot be seen during the day.
What's more, the lighthouse is not suitable for the current war situation, so after discussion, a group of bigwigs finally decided to use wolf smoke to transmit information.
Smoke during the day and fire at night.
The tactics and strategies have been finalized, and the next step is to move the camp and train intensively. The army outside the city broke camp and reset the camp three kilometers west of Kaiyuan City. The camp adopts a wooden fence defense line and sets up several layers of barricades to defend against enemy cavalry attacks. Several artillery positions are also prepared in advance around it. No matter which direction the enemy comes from, the Han tribe can quickly maneuver and provide fire support.
The people in the outer city also moved to the city urgently, taking away everything they could. Fortunately, the herdsmen had just joined and didn't have much to take. It was impossible to move the houses. If they were destroyed by the enemy, they could only rebuild them.
In the military camp outside the city, scouts and rangers were sent out to patrol the surrounding areas every day to prevent the enemy from making sudden attacks. The parade ground in the camp was also filled with the rumbling of cannons and the shouting of soldiers and horses during training.
It was at this time that Ying Rui and You Zhi each wrote a letter to Luo Chong to report the situation.
Ying Rui mainly introduced the tactical plan and defense preparations of Kaiyuan County, while You Zhi talked about the intelligence he had heard from the enemy. Combining the two, Luo Chong finally understood the situation on the grassland. This time, they really had to fight.
But he was not afraid. To be honest, the Han tribe had been preparing for this battle for a long time. Whether it was weapons and equipment or strategies and tactics, they could crush the enemy across the ages. If they still lost like this, it would be too embarrassing for the traversers.
"Twenty thousand versus sixty thousand?"
Luo Chong was not very worried about this. Even if the Han tribe lost, at most they could retreat to the inner city to defend. The worst result would not be too tragic. He could fully afford the loss.
So he did not plan to command the battle on the front line. First, it was definitely too late. Second, he could use this opportunity to train the soldiers and generals below and let them mature quickly. If he had to ask about everything, what would they do?
The Han tribe would become stronger in the future. Would they tire him to death?
However, after this battle, what would the pattern of the entire grassland look like? This was what Luo Chong was most concerned about.
It was impossible to completely annihilate the nomadic tribes in battle. They were the ones who knew how to preserve their strength the most. If they could win, they would rush up to grab. If they could not win, they would run faster than rabbits. It was difficult to catch up.
But Luo Chong did not want to give them the opportunity to continue jumping around. Since they had fought, it was better to defeat them completely.
Thinking of this, Luo Chong immediately set off for Weishan County to inspect the progress of the gunboat's outfitting. If he could catch up, he would make sure that Maodun could not even go home.
Since the appointment of Shu Da in charge of the gunboat, the gunboat has been transferred to Weishan County for outfitting, because the demand for carpentry is not high in the later period, but the Weishan County dock close to the lake island and Xingang County is more suitable.
After spending a day to arrive in Weishan County, Luo Chong immediately came to the big ship and summoned Shu Da, asking him to give him a detailed introduction to the outfitting situation on the ship.
"Captain, now the command and communication channels on the ship have all been installed. Each floor has a megaphone and a loudspeaker. The other end is gathered at the command desk on the top floor of the stern. Speaking into a few copper loudspeakers, the commanders and gunners on each floor below can hear it.
Due to the abundance of materials, the progress of waterproofing is much faster than the previous shipbuilding speed. This asphalt is really a good thing. Except for the unpleasant smell, it is much better than fish bladder in other aspects. The key is that the quantity is sufficient. I didn't expect that such a treasure can be extracted from the coal mine."
Luo Chong nodded lightly. He didn't have any thoughts on this obscure horse. It's not difficult to extract asphalt from coal tar. It's not an achievement worth boasting about. The real thing is that it can be put to use after it is produced.
"How are the other aspects of the decoration? I just want to know when this ship can be pulled out for battle."
"Don't worry, Chief. The gun decks on all levels have been renovated. The fixed tracks and guns have all been installed. Now the gunners are training how to quickly load ammunition on the ship.
But Chief, I've been watching their gun training for a while and found that the guns on the ship are not as convenient as the gun carriages on land. It's because the space is too small and the density is too high. So I think there is room for improvement in this gun." Shu Da said after a slight hesitation.
"How to improve it?" Luo Chong looked at him with a smile, wanting to test Shu Da's vision.
"I think it would be better to change the ship's artillery to load gunpowder and shells from the back. This will not only save space for operation, but also increase the rate of fire, which will definitely make this new weapon more powerful.
With the current speed of the crew, loading one round every forty breaths is considered fast, which seriously reduces the terrifying power of the artillery."
"You are right. I thought about the rear-loading gun at the beginning, but with the current level of our Han tribe, it is still too difficult to make it usable. Let's use the current one first.
It doesn't matter if it's a little slow. Anyway, we are the only ones fighting others, and others can't fight back. This advantage alone is enough for us to beat all tribes near the water." Luo Chong explained.
"What the leader said is right, hehehe." Shu Da laughed dryly twice and continued to walk around the ship with Luo Chong.
There are six cabins under the main deck. The bottom three floors are all warehouses. The bottom floor is for various food reserves, the second floor is for various shells, and the third floor is for gunpowder. The fourth to sixth floors are the three-story artillery deck above the waterline, which also bears the needs of combat and accommodation.
All the guns were installed against the side, and Luo Chong designed the middle position into a three-story berth that is common on trains for the crew to rest.
The first floor of the poop above the main deck is the kitchen and restaurant. They are placed there mainly for fire safety and smoke exhaust to prevent the explosion of the ammunition depot due to fire.
In addition, next to the restaurant, a small space is planned to place a set of ironmaking equipment to repair various ironware on the ship.
Finally, we came to the combat command room on the second floor of the poop. The decoration inside is also very perfect. There are long conference tables, maps, sand tables, and everything else. A row of golden megaphones are installed on the high command desk, and the corresponding areas are marked on them, which is convenient for the commander-in-chief to shout and issue orders to various places.
A circle of transparent glass windows around the command desk also allows the commander-in-chief to have a clear view of the surrounding situation, and the field of vision is second only to the observation deck on the top of the mast.
At the same time, in order to prevent rats, several civet cats are specially raised on the ship, which can be said to be fully prepared.
Finally, he went to the main deck to check the sails, cables and equipment. After everything was in order, Luo Chong ordered the soldiers to prepare for the battle.
Before leaving, Luo Chong personally wrote a name for the ship, the "Fubo" artillery warship, and had someone make a flag to hang on the top of the mast, and painted Fubo's name on both sides of the bow and the stern.
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And
(End of this chapter)
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