In the conference room, upon hearing this, the red-bearded Wang Rulong hurriedly stood up and said in a rough voice:

"When Master Da left Chongming last time, I trained with Ma Yinglong on the three brigades he brought with him. We have been on the water almost every day for the past few months. I can't say anything else, but at least no one is seasick anymore, and the boarding battle is also so-so. But the accuracy of firing guns and cannons on the ship is still terrible."

According to Wang Rulong's standards, "mediocre" is already elite. As for the problem of inaccuracy, Mr. Zhao didn't care at all.

"It's normal." Young Master Zhao smiled tolerantly and said, "If they can hit the target, it would be like seeing a ghost."

Shooting at moving targets at sea has been a major problem that has troubled the world's navy for hundreds of years. The weather and hydrology at sea are changeable, the targets are highly maneuverable, and the ships themselves are also unstable, which brings many difficulties to shooting. So much so that in the Battle of Jutland in the early 20th century, the hit rate of British and German ships was only a pitiful 2%-3%, and it was basically concentrated at extremely close range.

This is even with the fire control system in place.

Therefore, although the artillery technology in the sailing battleship era had made great progress and the range could reach one or two kilometers, in naval artillery battles, a distance of 100 meters was required to ensure that most shots could hit the target.

The British even emphasized that they would open fire within 50 meters, while the Spanish were always ready for boarding battle, which was like putting bayonets on cannons.

Mr. Zhao had no hope that the problem that had not been solved until World War I could be solved in a short time. At least he had to wait until the Navigation Academy had trained the gunners and taught them to master simple geometric calculations and learn to use auxiliary instruments such as optical rangefinders before he could talk about improvement.

Before that, you can only rely on firing more to get a feel for it, and the miracle will come with the large amount.

So, facing the intensive fire from more than 200 guns, no matter how good the treasure ship was, it had to board the galleon.

~~

Currently, Jiangnan Security Company has four security brigades under its jurisdiction. The first brigade is stationed at Xishan Island and cannot move. The second brigade stationed in Chongming has been transformed into a maritime security team, with Wang Rulong as the captain and Ma Yinglong as the deputy captain.

The defense of the Second Battalion will be taken over by the Third Battalion originally stationed in Kunshan. While patrolling Chongming, Tong Zigong will conduct maritime training to ensure that the Third Battalion will be able to form combat effectiveness before the official transportation of grain by sea.

By then, the Xishan Island Training Team should have trained the Fourth Squadron, which will go to Chongming to take over the defense of the Second Squadron, and the Second Squadron will join the Coast Guard and perform the Coast Guard mission together with the First Squadron.

By then, there would be hundreds of ships to escort, and two battalions of a thousand people would not be enough. Fortunately, the sailors of the Sand Ship Gang had a certain combat capability. As long as they did not encounter big bandits like Zeng Yiben and the Lin brothers, they should be able to protect the safety of the fleet.

Zhao Hao asked about every detail, including the preparation of weapons and supplies.

Jin Ke replied that 2,000 matchlock guns, 500 Longqing-made guns, 100 large and small Portuguese guns purchased from Guangdong, and five precious bronze snake cannons were all in place and could be shipped at any time.

As for the bronze cannon designed by the 00 Institute, it is still under continuous improvement and cannot be relied upon for at least this voyage.

There was no need to worry about supplies. The Sand Ship Gang had extensive sailing experience and was proficient in various methods of preserving food.

For example, all kinds of meat, seafood, and vegetables are pickled with salt, sauce, vinegar, and wine lees, or smoked and dried. Fruits are dried in the sun to make candied fruits, or pickled with honey, sugar, or roasted, etc. During the voyage, the sailors are fed as well as possible, as it is related to the lives of the captain and the ship owner, so the sand ship gang dare not be careless even when the situation is bad.

In addition, there are salt, sauce, tea, wine, drinking water, non-perishable grains such as rice and wheat, beans, etc. Chen Huaixiu had already prepared a two-month reserve.

It was not yet March, and if the voyage lasted only ten days, she could even ensure that the sailors had fresh vegetables and fruits to eat. Although this was not a necessity, it was important to morale.

Finally, Mr. Zhao inquired carefully about the contingency plans for various emergencies and received satisfactory answers.

In fact, he was really too worried. It was only a ten-day voyage, and with the Sand Boat Gang and the former Qi Family Army generals taking care of it, he didn't need to worry about it at all.

Zhao Hao just took this matter too seriously, so it's inevitable that he became confused due to his concern.

~~

The meeting lasted until the afternoon. Zhao Hao really couldn't raise any questions, so he smiled and said, "Everything is ready, only the east wind is missing."

"Yes..." Everyone nodded, and they all understood what the young master meant.

No matter how well prepared you are, the fleet must have a legitimate reason to set sail. Although the Ming Dynasty's maritime ban is in name only, and there are still many fishing and commercial ships along the coast, you can do this, but you can't justify it.

The only purpose of Mr. Zhao's organizing the fleet to go north this time was to convince the emperor and his ministers in Beijing with facts to approve the sea transportation of grain.

If he set sail rashly without a valid reason, he would be accused of violating the maritime ban and sailing without permission, and all the efforts of everyone would be wasted.

"Don't worry, just make preparations. I will go back to Kunshan to ask for the east wind." Zhao Hao said confidently, "It will take at least ten days, or at most half a month, and we can set sail."

After a pause, he said solemnly, word by word: "I declare that Operation Spring Breeze has officially been launched!"

"Here!" The group of people stood up again and hit their hearts with their right fists.

~~

Time waits for no one, and Mr. Zhao left Chongming Island early the next morning. In order to save time, the number of sailors rowing the Science increased to ten, and finally returned to Kunshan before dark.

All the senior executives of Jiangnan Group had arrived in Kunshan first. Even Jiang Xueying, who was negotiating in Gaochun, rushed back day and night and arrived in the county town at the same time as Zhao Hao.

Everyone knows what the sea transportation of grain means to Jiangnan and the Jiangnan Group. It means that the heavy burden imposed by the court on the gentry and people of Jiangnan will be reduced by at least two-thirds. It means that the dilemma of Jiangnan's foreign trade will be completely broken. A golden period of rapid development will surely come to Jiangnan!

Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to elevate its significance.

Likewise, if this effort fails, it will be a fatal blow to the group. At that time, pressure from all sides will come overwhelmingly, and people's almost superstitious confidence in Mr. Zhao will be shaken. The group's still fragile interest alliance will inevitably fall apart...

Therefore, as soon as they received the news that the canal transportation was cut off, all the senior executives of the group rushed to Kunshan to wait for the young master to return.

Even people like Xiang Yuanbian and Qian Ruoshui, who were not from the Jiangnan Group or Nanzhili, could not sit still and rushed to Kunshan to inquire about the news.

Even local officials from Suzhou and Songjiang, including Wu Qing, Cai Guoxi, Zhong Zhengji, Wang Zhe, the prefect of Taicang, and Zhang Qi, the magistrate of Shanghai, were all present, which shows how important this matter was to Jiangnan.

ps. Second update, please give me your monthly vote!