In Lingao, in the port affiliated with the Hongpai Shipbuilding Yard, Pang Yu was holding a travel bag and standing on the dock, staring at the newly launched fast schooner in front of him.

The Qiongzhen Navy has developed very rapidly in recent years, but there are actually not many new ships built by them. The big ships are all snatched from Westerners and then modified. The remaining auxiliary ships are also purchased or captured ready-made.

The ships were transformed into a new fleet after transformation. In the shipyard that Wang Ruobin is responsible for, the new ships that are truly designed entirely with modern knowledge and built independently by Qiong Navy, including this latest one, are only the only ones so far.

Seven boats - this also includes the first small racing boat that was experimental and has now been retired.

However, the pedigrees of these seven boats are very pure. They are all standard fast longitudinal sails, which are the so-called "big clipper" boats. As the ultimate result of the wooden sail-driven boat type, the clipper boat has reached almost perfection.

Even though it actually still has many shortcomings: it is not suitable as a battleship - it is too difficult to control; it is not suitable as a passenger ship - it is too uncomfortable to ride; it is also difficult to move in inland rivers, but it alone is good at

The advantage of super high speed at sea is enough to make up for all these shortcomings. And this advantage is precisely unmatched by all other types of ships in this era.

Therefore, at an internal meeting at the shipyard, Wang Ruobin withstood external pressure and insisted that among all self-built ship types currently, there is only one type: the schooner. As for what armor, firepower, battle lines, etc. you require, for now, the captured large sailing ship will be used.

Let's make do. When the technical conditions improve in the future, we will go directly to the ironclads. At that time, whether you are a big ship and cannon party or a flat-deck god's cult, even if you have multiple turrets, riveted armor, steam power, rigid suspension, etc., everything can be discussed.

——But in the wooden sailing stage, we only recognize fast schooners!

Fortunately, everything is going well in Qiongzhen at sea now. With the Qionghai, the queen of battleships, in charge, it has never encountered any major setbacks. Moreover, the navy has indeed continued to seize large quantities of ships from the Westerners.

Sailboats can meet most needs after modification. Therefore, the Navy does not put too much pressure on the shipowner and allows him to build new ships according to his own judgment.

The Qiong Navy's fast sailing fleet has now become famous among the surrounding forces. Except for the fact that the Ming Dynasty has entered the end of the world, its consciousness is super slow, and it has not responded so far. Other forces that have some understanding of maritime affairs

, everyone is coveting the short-haired super fast ship - Wang Ruobin's shipyard has repeatedly caught spies trying to steal technology, and after interrogation, everyone is found: Zheng family, Japanese, British, Dutch.

.Even Annan and Siam, which they did not pay attention to at all, are trying to reach out here.

Therefore, the security work at the Red Card Shipbuilding Yard is also extremely tight. A company of the Marine Corps is permanently stationed here, and daily inspections and regulations are also implemented very strictly. As a "genuine shorthair", Pang Yu can move here without any restrictions.

, but other locals, even senior technicians, must strictly follow the scope on the pass. Otherwise, they will be scrutinized as spies, or even arrested.

"How is it? It feels good. This is the latest model of the 'Flying Shear Three', and it is one step closer to the ultimate ship type 'Flying Shear Five' that I expected."

The ship owner Wang Ruobin appeared on the dock at some unknown time with a proud expression on his face. The development of new ships on the Qiong Navy adopted a similar model to the navy of their original country in building new ships, which is the so-called "small steps and fast running": new

The development of ship types does not seek to achieve the goal in one step, but to improve the technical level little by little by repeatedly building verification ships. Usually only two or three finished verification ships of the same type are built, and then the lessons learned are absorbed. On this basis, the design and construction continue.

Update model.

Specific to these fast schooners, except for the initial experimental boat "Yukikaze", only one was built, and the subsequent two ships "Shigure" and "Nobuki" were the official versions based on it, that is,

What Wang Ruobin calls the "Flying Shear Type 1" is followed by the "Feiyan". The three ships "Baiju" and "Xin Xuefeng" belong to the "Flying Shear Type 2". When it comes to this new ship, it is the "Flying Shear Type".

Three”.

And Wang Ruobin's full effort to develop fast schooners has another advantage - he has a good idea of ​​how far this ship type will eventually reach. According to Wang Ruobin, the final and most mature model of the classical large schooner should be based on the model that is still used in modern society.

The "Royal Clipper" was used to design it. It was a behemoth that was 150 meters long, weighed 5,000 tons when empty, and had a displacement of 11,000 tons when fully loaded!

The information collected by Wang Ruobin contains almost all the data about this ship, but how to actually build it is a problem for him - just like cheating on an exam. Although Wang Ruobin knows the final answer, the derivation process in the middle is still unclear.

He had to explore by himself. So there was a gradual advancement from "Flying Shear One" to "Flying Shear Five". Of course, this was just a plan. If "Flying Shear Five" could not meet the requirements, then "Flying Shear Six" would appear later.

"Flying Shear Seven" is not surprising either.

"Do you name the model according to the number of masts?"

Pang Yu doesn't know much about this aspect, but he can at least see that Wang Ruobin's designs are generally getting bigger and bigger, with more and more masts and sails - the previous two ships "Shigure" and "Nobuki"

They are all single-masted, and later "Xinxuefeng", "White Horse", "Feiyan" and others are two-masted ships. This latest model has three main masts standing tall from front to back on the narrow and slender hull.

The total length of the hull was close to that of the Spanish galleon they captured.

"Haha, it's almost the same. The ultimate model of my plan, the 'Flying Shear Five', is a five-masted ship... Of course there will be some other changes, but basically... yes, there are more and more masts."

Under the leadership of Wang Ruobin, Pang Yu boarded the ship for another visit. Perhaps it was because he was so impressed when he rode the earliest little "Xue Feng" that fast sailing seemed to always be in Pang Yu's mind.

It's a small boat. Of course, this is also because the length-to-width ratio of a schooner is always relatively large. The hull is always very slender and it feels like it can't hold much.

Therefore, the previous four ships, "Nowaki" and "Shigure", were purely reconnaissance ships and auxiliary ships. After "New Yukikaze", "Jieyan" and "Hakuba" entered service, the fleet of fast sailing ships was finally formed.

They can be combined together and used to perform certain high-speed assault missions. They can also occasionally be used to urgently transport small quantities of goods.

But today's "Flying Shear III" type should be considered a large ship. The length of the hull is more than fifty meters, the width is more than six meters even if calculated according to one to eight, and the displacement, according to Wang Ruobin, alone is more than 100 meters without a load.

Two hundred tons. If the full load can reach more than five hundred tons, it means that this ship can carry about three hundred tons of cargo. This data has surpassed most of the auxiliary ships except large sailing ships in the Qiong Navy. If more are built,

With just a few ships, they can be used independently as a transport fleet - specializing in high-speed transportation.

"In fact, this is the main purpose of the clipper ship - high-speed freight. Back then, the Americans used it to send newly produced tea to Europe as quickly as possible. It only took thirteen days to cross the Atlantic. If we use it to go north

Transporting agricultural products can even guarantee that Chen Tao and the others can eat fresh lychees. And it doesn’t even need a convoy, no warship or pirate ship can catch up with it.”

“Can we reach Lushun in five days?”

Pang Yu only cares about this now, and the reason why he ran to the dock is precisely for this reason. The committee was also confused for a while after receiving the emergency telegram from Chen Jun, and then quickly made a decision: send him there.

When we take over the Weihaiwei base again, we must take care of the affairs of Lushun as well. In short, I can just say: Go clean up that mess.

"No problem. If the wind goes smoothly, four days will be enough."

The reason why the latest flying shears were sent out was that in addition to sending Pang Yu there, they also had to bring along a key figure - surgeon Shi Yisheng. Although Wen Desi sent a telegram saying that he had already brought Old Jack with him.

set off, but there were no clippers in the northward fleet, and the clipper fleet was all performing tasks in Luzon at this time. The committee calculated the time and felt that with the speed of Wen Desi's large fleet, even if it started near Ningbo

Go ahead at full speed. I'm afraid it will be too late when you get to Port Arthur. It's better to send a speedboat and a doctor from Hainan Island - Wang Ruobin guarantees that his new ship can move at a constant speed of more than fifteen knots, and can run out at twenty knots if necessary.

If you are lucky and have a smooth journey, it will only take four or five days to reach the vicinity of Lushunkou.

So the maiden voyage route of the "Danyang" was determined like this - yes, "Danyang" is the name of this first ship of the "Clipper III" type. Most people have no idea about this name, but

Pang Yu understood the secret, and complained a lot after hearing it:

"Isn't it said that people who run across the sea are the most superstitious? Why do you do such evil things? You have to compete with Xiangrui, don't you? Xiao Lang is awesome. When crossing the strait, you must imitate Fu Jian and set up a FLAG. This time it's great

.The current of Throwing Whip has really been cut off...Can't you guys give it a more normal name? The two ships called 'White Horse' and 'Feiyan' were just fine!"

Regarding Pang Yu's complaints, Boss Wang could only smile bitterly:

"I didn't make the naming regulations - the collective insists on giving this power to everyone, and some people just like to make pranks. What can you do to them?"

——Speaking of the ship naming rules, it is really confusing. It was originally said to be determined by a committee. Later, someone raised their opinion and said, why? Everyone should have the right, so it was agreed that from one hundred and thirty-nine

People take turns to draw lots, and whoever catches the name will get the right to name the new ship. Of course, it is also agreed in advance that the name cannot be too weird and vulgar. The problem is that most people don't know a name like "Danyang" with a profound connotation.

There is no way to deny it. By the time people who understand understand this, it has already been passed.

The two chatted for a while, and then several other people came over with simple luggage - including Dr. Shi Yisheng, several technicians from Wang Ruobin's shipyard, and the corresponding escorts and sailboat operators. This time

Because the operation was too hasty, several people in charge of the fast sailing team in the Qiong Navy were outside, so Boss Wang had to go out in person again. By the way, he also conducted a voyage test for the "Danyang".

Seeing that people had almost arrived, Wang Ruobin ordered to weigh the anchor and prepare to set sail. But at this moment, he saw a figure flashing at the entrance of the pier, and a burly man rushed over while shouting "Wait a minute".

——But it turned out to be the end of the banquet.

Pang Yu, Shi Yisheng and others looked at each other. As the original founder of the Shandong Weihai base, the official leader of the third regiment, and the Weihai general canonized by the Ming Empire, there was no doubt that Xie Xi would deal with the trouble in Lushunkou this time.

is the most suitable person to handle it. But the problem is that his wife Julie is about to give birth. Now her belly is very heavy and her mobility is becoming increasingly inconvenient. She even does not attend the daily regular meetings of the committee. He resigned in the first place to take care of his wife.

His duties returned to Hainan, and if he was asked to go to Liaodong again at this time, he would definitely not be able to catch up with the birth of the child. Not to mention that there might be danger - Xiao Lang's experience is right there.

Therefore, everyone in the committee had a tacit understanding and did not mention him at all. They directly asked Pang Yu to go alone. The latter also completely understood. He went back to tidy up a little before heading to the dock. He deliberately did not say goodbye to Lao Jie. He just didn't want to.

After letting him know, something unexpected happened, but as the spouse of a former committee member and a current committee member, he was well-informed about the resignation, so he still rushed over in time.

Seeing Lao Jie panting and rushing onto the boat carrying a luggage bag, everyone understood what he was thinking, but Pang Yu still asked:

"Julie, have you told her? If you go there this time, you may stay there for a long time."

"As I said, she fully understands. The third group is also my child, and I won't let anyone else ruin it again!"

There was still lingering anger on Jie Xi's face - after learning that Xiao Lang had just landed at Lushunkou, he couldn't wait to ask the first battalion, which had no artillery cover, to run to fight with the Jin army. Jie Xi was so angry that he yelled that Xiao Lang was a

You bastard, you don't feel bad for sacrificing other people's children. If it weren't for Xiao Lang himself being injured and his life and death are still uncertain now, he would definitely have impeached the committee immediately. He would never be allowed to take charge of the third regiment under any circumstances.

But the top priority right now is to bring the boys from the Third Regiment home safely. And Lao Jie will never lie to anyone else about this matter, not even Pang Yu, who has worked with him the longest and has the deepest friendship.

Let him do it himself!

Seeing that the party was so insistent, no one said any words of persuasion. So Wang Ruobin ordered the anchorage to be pulled up and the sails to be raised. Amidst the blessing bells ringing on the clock tower of the pier, the reborn "Danyang" took advantage of the wind and sailed quickly...
Chapter completed!