Chapter 144 The South
Alan stood at the end of the queue, his expression very nervous. He looked at the door of the shipyard for a while, then lowered his head to check whether his collar was straightened.
Captain Quick patted his head, "Hey, kid, what are you doing, don't move around, just stand still."
"Well...yes! "The young man's slightly red face had a stern look on his face, and he looked ahead and stopped moving.
I received a notice from the Navy Headquarters last night that a big shot was coming to the shipyard to inspect, so the crew members of the Hara Nozomi and another ship stationed at the shipyard for acceptance of new equipment should be prepared for the reception. .
It wasn't until after dinner this morning that the shipyard learned that the person who was coming to inspect was none other than the lord of Arda, Paul Grayman.
As soon as the scheduled time arrived, the officers and soldiers in the factory were gathered together to welcome them. Rubin, the person in charge of the shipyard,
Just a few days after the young Allen joined the Navy, many people and They were not familiar with anything and were cautious in everything they did. When they heard that Lord Arda was coming to inspect them, they couldn't help but feel panicked.
As he grows up, the biggest official he has ever seen is the mayor of a nearby town. The person closest to the lord is the tax collector who comes to the village to collect taxes. He has never seen a real nobleman. Let alone the actual ruler of a territory.
According to the adults, that is the person whose words and deeds can determine the fate of civilians like them.
What does the Lord of Arda look like? Does he have one nose and two eyes like ordinary people?
Just as he was thinking wildly, an announcement came from the door: "Count Grayman has arrived!"
"Everyone - stand at attention!"
Following With Quick's order, all the officers and soldiers immediately changed from a resting state to standing at attention.
Then a group of people walked in from outside the gate.
"Salute!"
With the second order, the officers and soldiers raised their hands in unison.
Among the group of people who came in, Allen recognized one of them as Navy Commander Austin. At this moment, he and the other person also raised their hands to return the salute to the officers and soldiers.
As for the other person, looking at the respectful look of the people around him, it is not difficult to guess that he is Earl Grayman, the lord of Arda.
Alan was a little surprised. The Earl seemed to be about 16 years old. He had dark brown and almost black hair and eyes, and his appearance was unremarkable. Because he grew up in a noble family, he looked better than those in the village. His peers are stronger. Is such a young man the supreme ruler of the Earl of Arda?
Behind the Earl was a woman with green hair. The twelve-year-old boy had already begun to pay attention to the appearance of the opposite sex. Allen had never seen such an attractive elder sister. The girl he met at the pirate stronghold was also very beautiful. , but compared to the one in front of me, it can only be regarded as a green little apple.
“Is this our midshipman?” Count Grayman saw a row of teenagers standing neatly.
"Midshipman?" Austin was a little strange after hearing this.
"Aren't you going to use children to train reserve officers? I have decided to name them 'officer candidates' now."
"This is a good name, sir. From now on they will He is the 'officer cadet' of our navy. "
The young earl came to the equally young midshipmen and said: "I learned about your experiences from Austin's report, and I hope you can treat the Navy as your second home."
He looked towards Allen, who was obviously the youngest, reached out and patted his shoulder: "What's your name?"
"Alan...my name is Allen, sir."
The boy blushed He frowned and answered with great anxiety.
Paul laughed, this is the seed for the future development of his navy.
He patted the young man on the shoulder: "Don't be nervous, can you adapt to life on a warship?"
Allen replied: "Adapt, I feel good on it."
Paul Nodding with relief, Allen recalled his previous home, the home where his mother was always busy.
No matter how good the life on a warship is, how can it be compared with that at home?
There are a lot of miscellaneous rules, and if he makes a mistake - even forgetting to salute the officer, he has to take off his pants and expose his bare buttocks and get slapped by the picket. That is not the way his mother punished him before. Just one or two slaps and it's over. Instead, use a thick board to really hit her. After the spanking, your buttocks will be swollen for a long time. I heard from the seniors on the ship that this was because they were still underage and were surfing the Internet.
To deal with adult sailors, there is another disgraceful tool - the nine-tailed whip. The right to use this terrible torture instrument can only be controlled by the captain on the ship. The reason for the punishment and the amount of punishment It was also decided by the captain. During the specific implementation process, all personnel on the ship were required to gather on the deck to watch the torture process, which served as a warning to the monkeys. They also had to beat drums, flash whips, drink water, etc. The entire torture process was full of ritual.
In short, living on a warship is a tense and orderly life, not at all as comfortable and comfortable as before at home.
But Alan never regretted joining the Arda Navy. After he returned to the village with his companions who were kidnapped by pirates, the people in the village had buried his mother who was killed by pirates. He stood in front of his mother's tombstone. He vowed to destroy all pirates in the world, and the only one who could help him realize this wish was the Alda Navy.
At this time Paul said: "Take us to the new ship to have a look."
Austin guided from the front: "Please come this way, Lord Grayman."
The crowd walked towards the dock, and several candidates followed them as temporary attendants.
Two sloops docked quietly at the edge of the pier. From the outside, the two ships were larger than the "Hope", with six gun ports on each side of the ship. .
"Do they have names?"
"The one about to go south is named 'Southern', and the other one has not been named yet."
Everyone boarded the Southern, and Paul carefully touched every part of the hull he passed.
“Have the crew members who will go south to open a new route been determined?”
“Considering that this is an unfamiliar voyage, we asked the crew of the original Hope to drive this ship to the south. , after all, they have the most experience in operating this type of ship."
Paul looked at Quaker: "You and your crew have a heavy responsibility."
Quick said to him. Salute: "Yes, we will definitely live up to expectations!"
Paul suddenly thought of something and asked: "What do you carry on the boat? For example, food and so on?"
Austin replied: "We want to test the endurance of this ship to the limit, and try our best to She was asked not to dock for supplies on the way, so she prepared a large amount of cured meats, biscuits, canned foods, which are easy to preserve, and of course fresh water, but fresh water can easily go bad, so alcohol is also essential. "
"There are also plans to keep two hens on the ship to provide fresh eggs for possible illnesses, and a cat to catch mice that sneak onto the ship."
"In order to deal with possible dangers at sea, the Southern will be equipped with 12 cannons and 4 spare gun barrels, placed in the bottom ballast."
After the elimination of Garden's gang, the pressure on the navy was almost No longer existed, and the remaining scattered pirates voluntarily surrendered or fled away one after another, so Austin boldly equipped most of the artillery on the Southern.
But Paul pulled the navy commander's sleeve and pulled him to a corner. After confirming that no one was around, he asked in a low voice: "Do you know about scurvy?"
Austin didn't understand why the lord was so mysterious, and said : "I haven't had it, but it is said that it is a terrible infectious disease that will break out after a long voyage at sea."
Paul shook his head in denial: "Infectious disease? No, it is not contagious. . ”
“According to my research, if you don’t eat vegetables for a long time, you will get this disease, so you must bring more vegetables and dry them if you want to preserve them for a long time. It’s better than nothing. Once it’s eaten or rotten, don’t worry about the endurance test and go ashore to replenish it. I don’t want to kill anyone.”
Austin Daqi, does the count still have research on this?
However, seeing that the lord's face was solemn and not joking at all, he nodded vigorously: "Yes, I will remember your instructions."
Paul added: "By the way, the citrus from the south, Fruits such as oranges can also prevent scurvy, so let them take more with them when they return."
Then the conversation changed: "Please note that this must be listed as one of the Navy's confidential matters. Senior officers know that this must not be spread. I don’t want future naval opponents to know about this measure, which can greatly avoid attrition. I will keep it as long as possible.”
“Please rest assured, I will definitely do it. Be careful.”
It seems that the supplies on board the Nanfang need to be adjusted.
(End of this chapter)