Even though two years have passed, Zhu Xianhai still cannot forget the simulation two years ago.
In that simulation, every minute and every second of those long years, hundreds of thousands of South Chinese people were writing sacrifices with their lives!
In the past two years, everything Zhu Xianhai has done is not just to stop it!
But for revenge!
In the past two years, every minute and every second of his life has been filled with two words - revenge!
Yes, there must be revenge!
Two years!
For the past two years, he has been waiting for the opportunity to take revenge, and now...the opportunity has finally come!
The outbreak of the Paraguay War freed up Zhu Xianhai's hands. The most important thing is that after more than two years of preparation, the time is almost ripe.
Of course, the timing is still a little off.
"We still need some fire right now!"
After thinking about it, Zhu Xianhai took out a document, opened it, and said to himself.
"Comrade Jingwei, since you have become a dog, you must first tighten the dog's leash. If it is not tightened, the dog's legs will break free..."
Then this dog has no value in existing.
The "dog" in Zhu Xianhai's mouth is of course the "Chilean President" Pedro Leon Gallo whom he single-handedly supports. Since that guy formed the government in Chilian, he has been trying to be completely independent.
Zhu Xianhai did not stop this attempt. After all, after that long-term simulation, the plan to "support the puppet" had changed - to completely solve Chile.
In other words, occupy Chile!
But before that, we can completely use the hands of Pedro and others to consume a wave of Chilean power. After all, the more people die in the war between them, the more conducive it will be to future invasions. Oh, no, it is the purpose
A special military operation to restore peace and allow local people to live and work in peace and contentment again.
"Um……"
After thinking about it, Zhu Xianhai said to himself.
"It seems that it is time for the fleet to conduct long-distance training, just to embolden Pedro and the others."
Now Nanhua already has a large fleet - a fleet of twelve warships. Apart from a few merchant ships converted into sail training ships and small steam gunboats, these twelve warships are only two
A "Flying Dragon" class ironclad ship can be used.
The "Flying Dragon" class ironclad was secretly ordered by the Confederate States of America from the British Laird Shipyard in 1862. It was later confiscated by the British official. In August last year, it was sold to Nanhua in the name of "merchant ship". At the beginning of the year, two unarmed warships sailed
After returning to Nanhua, two front and rear turrets were installed. Different from the four 9-inch Armstrong front-loading rifled guns installed by the British on the two turrets in history, Nanhua equipped it with two self-produced 210 mm breech-loading guns.
The caliber of the rifled gun is slightly inferior, but the power of the two is absolutely different. With the improvement of the chemical industry, the production of new explosives has been included in the plan as early as last year.
The new explosive is not Noble's "explosion glue", but picric acid, which is trinitrophenol. The reason why it was chosen instead of the safer tnt - Prussian chemist TJ Wilberland reported last year
TNT was synthesized, to put it bluntly, because its technology is more mature and cheaper. After all, trinitrophenol is a "dye" that has been used for decades and can be used in the military with slight improvements.
However, because picric acid all reacts with iron, it is necessary to apply a thick layer of wax inside the shell. This is not difficult. Compared with silica explosives made of nitroglycerin diatomaceous earth, it is more suitable for shells.
It can withstand the impact of artillery fire without the risk of bomb explosion.
In the early morning of late May 1864, the two ironclad ships "Feilong" and "Qinglong" and the sailing training ship "Sihai" successively left Nanhua Bay. Afterwards, the three warships followed the channel that Magellan and other celebrities had walked.
It was heading south. On June 1st, it crossed the winter solstice line and turned to the Strait of Magellan. This is the only option for ships to travel between the Atlantic and the Pacific. There is also the Drake Strait. However, the Drake Passage has high winds and rough waves.
Generally speaking, ships are willing to sail to the Pacific Ocean from the Strait of Magellan. The correct length of the strait is only 700 kilometers, and there is deep water everywhere. Even a giant ship like the Great Eastern can sail normally, and there are many bays for ships to berth along the way.
have.
After the fleet entered the strait, Li Xuelin, the captain of the Feilong, pointed at the strait and said.
“Patagonia wouldn’t be complete without the Strait of Magellan…”
The reason why he was so emotional was because as early as 20 years ago, Chile had declared sovereignty over the strait and sent immigrants to occupy it, but this is the southernmost land of Patagonia.
"Don't worry, I think one day you will take back this land,"
Major Douglas held the pipe in his hand and looked at the coast and said.
"This world has always respected the strong. Now, although your fleet only has two ironclads, the Chileans don't have one. As long as you have sufficient funds, your fleet will soon surpass them on the battlefield.
Defeating them is a natural thing."
"Not sure yet."
Li Xuelin shook his head and said.
"Why? Your artillery skills have improved very quickly, and your navigation skills are also very skilled."
"I am very doubtful because we have just started to go to the ocean and our officers and sailors have no experience."
"Oh, that's the problem, my friend, you should know that even the Royal Navy was a rookie in the steam age and the iron armor age! It's all your imagination, right? Other, the biggest problem of the industrial revolution is
What?"
Holding his pipe, Major Douglas, a fleet advisor, shrugged his shoulders and smiled.
"Everyone is almost back on the starting line. The so-called accumulation of history may just be the decayed past."
Major Douglas, who has served in the Royal Navy for more than twenty years, has his own views on the navy. After coming to South China, he also had different ideas about this fleet.
"Hey! Just like when facing new technologies, the Royal Navy has once again chosen front-loading cannons. On the surface it is because of technology, but in fact? Because many officials in the Admiralty prefer front-loading cannons, but what about you?
We chose a more advanced breech-loading cannon, in this era."
He seemed to think for a moment, and then he said again,
"The winner of future naval battles will not necessarily be a fleet with a long history, but it will definitely be a fleet that is forge ahead and technologically ahead of other countries! Technology will win everything!"
"Indeed, technology is indeed very important!"
Li Xuelin nodded and said.
"But it's not just about the technology of warships and artillery. War also tests the quality of officers and the training of soldiers. It should be said that only advanced ship technology and unparalleled courage coupled with hard-earned training can forge a force capable of fighting.
The fleet that wins the naval battle!”
First mate Zhao Ming said on the side.
"You have told us time and again that a fleet that cannot "fight the enemy as soon as it sees it" cannot win a naval battle. Courage is the first step to winning a naval battle!"
Whether it is Li Xuelin or Zhao Ming, they are all officers who came out of merchant ships. They had not even gone to sea three years ago. It was only last year that they started to study at the naval training camp. However, as Nanhua,
The first-generation officers of the Navy have already begun to command warships to sail to the sea. Well, at least, whether it is a merchant ship or a whaling ship, they have been trained so that they do not need to hold a piece of paper to give orders.
"Of course, I will always insist on this, but technology! I believe that in war, in the face of technological superiority, courage alone is not enough..."
Douglas replied.
"If you want to defeat the Chileans, the easiest way is...to surpass them technically and crush them!"