Chapter 582 The gap in maritime power
Apart from appropriations from the imperial court, where would the army's income come from? Li Jin didn't have a good solution for this. His knowledge was limited to the more "traditional" practices of reselling military supplies on empty pay, soldiers' blood, but practices like this could only enrich the military. The pocket bag has no effect on improving the combat capabilities of the troops. It is obviously not the method Zhang Xin mentioned.
From Li Jin's point of view, he could not imagine the operation method of gaining profits by launching foreign wars. After all, the wars that Ming Dynasty participated in in recent years did not have many outstanding achievements, and their own losses were often huge, which was out of the question. There is no income, but the taxes collected by the court from the private sector for the war are getting more and more every year.
Li Jin wanted to continue asking, but Zhang Xin obviously had no interest in continuing to discuss this issue with him, so he ordered: "Come here and send General Li back home!"
Zhang Xin was anxious to send Li Jin away because he had just received a message from the Executive Committee and had important matters to discuss with the military. After three months of preparations, the Executive Committee believed that the time was ripe to go south to seize the Natuna Islands, and was ready to launch this operational plan.
After last year's Qiongbei War ended, the Executive Committee and the Military Commission selected the Natuna Islands in the South China Sea as the next location. The reconnaissance fleet led by Wang Tom successfully completed the attack on the Natuna Islands in January this year. We conducted reconnaissance on the Tuna Islands and surrounding waters, and also made contact with the security agents lurking on the islands to obtain first-hand intelligence information.
However, Wang Tom and Lin Nan did not get much rest time after returning from Nanyang. Just over a month later, they met again in Danzhou, Qiongbei, and participated in the investigation of the rebellion case here. Zhao Ye, one of the main criminals, has not yet been captured. The Executive Committee has ordered the main navy fleet currently stationed in the Qiongzhou Strait to complete supplies in Danzhou Bay and be ready to set off at any time. As for what supplies this fleet needs to replenish in Danzhou, Zhang Xin must first communicate with the military.
"I'm really working hard. I'm not even halfway through my vacation, and I'm going to be busy again." Although Tom Wang was full of complaints, his expression looked eager to try.
Haihan wants to cross the sea to attack the Natuna Islands in the South China Sea. This combat mission can be said to be the main force of the navy. It is reasonable for Wang Tom, as the commander of the navy, to personally lead the army to the south. The defense of the Natuna Islands is not strong. It can be said that this battle south is an opportunity to improve the record. Wang Tom, who wants to become a famous general, will certainly not give up the battle just for his vacation.
Zhang Xin naturally understood Wang Tom's mentality, and shook his head helplessly and said: "Commander Wang, please stop showing off. I know you are a busy man. Hurry up and collect the supplies that the military needs. I can give them to you here." Organize supply.”
Tom Wang nodded and said: "I'll get it done as soon as possible, and I'll give you the list tomorrow at the latest!"
At the same time that Danzhou received the notice, the naval fleet located in the Qiongzhou Strait was also being redeployed. One of the two "Dignity-class" hybrid warships will serve as the flagship of the Southern Expedition Fleet, leading some of the navy's warships southward, while the other will continue to sit in the Qiongzhou Strait to prevent the situation from changing.
In view of the information obtained from the previous reconnaissance, the scale of the Southern Expedition Fleet organized by the Military Commission is not too exaggerated. There are one "Dignity Class", two "Exploration Class", and four "Exploration Class" ships, a total of seven combat ships. , in addition to four "Exploration-class" modified troop carriers and logistics supply ships, the entire fleet totaled eleven ships, with thousands of combat personnel and crew members. It is indeed not a big problem for such a fleet to attack Natuna Island, which does not even have coastal defense forts.
But this is not all of the fleet heading south. According to the Military Commission's plan, the Annan Military Region will also dispatch part of the army. Their task is to be responsible for long-term garrisoning there after the fleet captures the main island of the Natuna Islands.
According to the previous plan of the Military Commission, the navy would not fly the Haihan flag in the attack on Natuna Island, but would occupy this area in the name of pirates and copy Qiongbei's approach in Nanyang. This is mainly done to avoid direct conflict with the Dutch in the short term. After all, Haihan's several ports in southern Annan are still in the construction stage, and they are unable to deploy a large navy near Natuna Island in the near future, and Natuna The island itself also lacks a natural harbor to station a naval fleet. Therefore, the Military Commission currently only sets the goal of actually controlling the strategic node of Natuna Island, and does not intend to immediately use it as a springboard to compete with the Dutch for control of key locations in the South China Sea waterway. .
To achieve this goal, the Annan militia army, whose main source of troops is Annan, is obviously more suitable to be stationed locally, so that at least the details of the island's armed forces will not be easily exposed to the Dutch. Even if the Dutch notice something is wrong, Haihan can push it away and buy more time for their military deployment in Southeast Asia.
On March 27, some ships of the Southern Expedition Fleet mobilized from the Qiongzhou Strait arrived in Danzhou Bay and began loading supplies. The fleet blocking the Qiongzhou Strait has not consumed much ammunition in the past few months, so not much of the supplies need to be transported all the way from the base camp. The only supply that needs to be shipped across the sea in large quantities is probably the anthracite produced in Black Earth Port. One of the four supply ships arranged by the fleet is specifically responsible for transporting coal, fresh water, ammunition and weapon spare parts to the "Majestic" battleship. Consumables.
Although the "Majesty" is equipped with the world's most advanced power propulsion system of this era, due to limitations in the materials and processes used to manufacture steam boilers, its service life and maintenance methods are greatly limited, and the long-term use of the boiler requires The amount of fresh water that needs to be consumed is by no means a small amount, so this ship is actually still powered by sails in most cases. Steam propulsion will only really come in handy during a limited combat time.
While the fleet was docked in Danzhou Bay, Li Jin, who was not willing to be lonely, naturally did not miss the opportunity to find out about Haihan's military strength. He made a special trip to Danzhou Bay almost every day in order to take a close look at this place. The unique features of the Haihan warship.
Wang Tom could probably guess what this guy was thinking, but he didn't care about it. Just like the Haihan Army, the advantages of the navy are not something that a few Ming officers can just look at and imitate - Ming Dynasty If he had this ability, how could he have been unable to deal with the pirate forces on the southeast coast all these years?
"General Wang, I would like to ask, how did Haihan establish such a powerful navy?" After watching the excitement for two days, Li Jin finally couldn't help but wanted to find Wang Tom to clarify his doubts in person.
Tom Wang smiled and said, "Didn't Director Zhang already explain your question a few days ago?"
Li Jin scratched his head and said, "So this is also a question of money?"
"Of course it's a matter of money." Wang Tom nodded and said, "The money spent to build this fleet should be more than the entire Guangdong Navy." "It's so expensive!" Li Jin was shocked, the Guangdong Navy Although the division's combat power is relatively poor, it spends a lot of money. Even an ordinary warship with two to three hundred materials will cost two to three thousand taels of silver. And the ships under the entire Guangdong Navy together, There are hundreds of ships, large and small. If Wang Tom said this, wouldn't this fleet be worth at least two to three hundred thousand taels of silver?
Seeing his disbelieving look, Wang Tom pointed to a nearby "Exploration-class" warship on the dock and said: "This is the smallest displacement 'Exploration-class' warship in our Haihan Navy. Although it is the same size as the Ming Dynasty Navy, The big fortune ship is similar, but the cost is much higher. Do you see that the main mast on the ship is much higher than the fortune ship you have seen before? ”
"Indeed, I wanted to ask when I first saw it. This mast is so high. Isn't it afraid of breaking in strong winds? Or will it affect the balance of the ship in the wind and waves?" Li Jin then asked.
Tom Wang smiled and said: "We had already thought of the two questions you asked when we designed this ship, so we used some special processes to make the mast. If Daming's shipyard built such a tall mast, It is possible that the problem you are worried about will occur, but the mast on our ship will definitely not happen. This mast alone is worth at least one thousand taels of silver!"
During the manufacturing process of the mast, a hollow metal tube is used to reduce weight and enhance toughness. This process sounds simple, but the actual manufacturing technology is indeed beyond the control of the current Daming Shipyard. Of course, Tom Wang's quotation is also a bit exaggerated. Even the cost of the mainmast of the largest "Dignity-class" battleship is only about the price he said, and the specification of the mast is two times thicker than that of the "Exploration-class". More than twice as much, a full third higher, and the manufacturing process is much more difficult.
Li Jin was secretly shocked when he heard this. Although he didn't know whether Wang Tom's words were true or false, judging from the achievements of Haihan Navy in naval battles in recent years, their warships should have great advantages in performance, and A taller mast can be hung with a larger sail, resulting in greater thrust and higher speed. Therefore, what Wang Tom said is probably true. After all, this can reasonably explain why the Haihan Navy has been There has never been a defeat.
Wang Tom pointed to the row of clearly visible gun windows on the side of the ship and said: "This kind of warship is usually equipped with about ten cannons. Each cannon is worth five hundred taels of silver. This is another five thousand taels, just one. The mast and the cannon on the ship are six thousand taels, and the cost of the entire ship is at least this amount.”
As Wang Tom spoke, he stretched out a finger and waved it in front of Li Jin's eyes. Li Jin swallowed and said, "One...ten thousand taels?"
Wang Tom nodded and said: "Don't think it's too expensive. This is only the most basic cost. For example, we require the installation of a fine steel ram on the bow, the further reinforcement of the keel on the hull, the installation of a steering wheel transmission system for easy steering, and so on. There is plenty of money. In addition to the cost of training sailors, combat gunners, and musketeers, the price of a ship must be around 20,000!”
"Hiss..." Li Jin couldn't help but take a breath of cold air. Although he was not a member of the navy, he still knew a little about the situation of the navy. A state-level water village, equipped with warships and sailors, could not be sold for more than 20,000 taels of silver. And one of the smallest warships in the Haihan fleet requires this number. How can such combat effectiveness be equal?
The data mentioned by Wang Tom are naturally bragging without paying taxes. In fact, the "Exploration Class" is the earliest model to be developed and built after time travel. Due to the maturity of the technology and the number of construction orders, the current cost is already quite low. Well, the export models started at the end of last year only cost around 10,000 taels, including the monkey version of the cannon. Both Annan and Fujian have placed orders at the Sanya Shipyard. In the words of Yue Zhiyun of the Ministry of Shipping, a large part of the construction funds for the military's third "Dignity-class" warship this year will come from the export war. The ship's profit was gone.
Naturally, Li Jin, a newly arrived general, could not understand these inside stories. After hearing this, he was also silently calculating. The smallest warship cost ten thousand to twenty thousand, and the largest ship was estimated to be even one hundred thousand taels. , the man surnamed Wang said that this fleet can defeat the entire Guangdong Navy, he is not bragging!
Tom Wang continued: "Don't think that there will be no need for money after the ship is built. These ships have to float on the water and cost money every moment. If you want to go on a long voyage, the money will be like running water."
"Then...how much will it cost?" Li Jin didn't have a clear idea about this.
"Well, to use an analogy..." Wang Tom pointed to the stern of the ship and said: "As wide as the waves raised by the stern are, use copper coins to cover them. As far as the sailing distance on the sea, use copper coins to cover them. It will probably cost this Much money!”
"This is indeed more expensive than the army on land!" Li Jin could no longer calculate how much money it was. Anyway, it was much larger than what he could count. There was nothing else to say except sighing.
But there was still an unexplained question in his mind: "How can you afford to consume such a huge fleet?"
"Director Zhang said that the other day, big investment will bring big benefits!" Wang Tom responded with a smile: "If the army can only spend money and cannot bring benefits, then who will keep throwing money into it? Well, By the way, I forgot about Daming.”
Regarding Wang Tom's joke, Li Jin could only pretend not to hear it. He himself was a general who had led troops, and of course he knew the current situation of the Ming Dynasty's army. Except for a small number of elite troops under the direct command of the imperial court, almost all local guard armies have rotted away and have no combat effectiveness at all. In many places, the establishment of guard armies has existed in name only, and even It was not as effective as the militia organized by local gentry.
As for comparing it with a super-standard "militia" like the Haihan Militia, let alone that. The strength of the two sides is indeed far apart.
(End of chapter)