In the palace of the King of Chu, the ministers of Chu State were urgently summoned.
When Prime Minister Xu Minghan saw Navy Commander Hu Weiwei, he frowned and asked, "Your Majesty summoned us so eagerly, it must be that the naval battle has a result.
Governor Hu, does he have any news to disclose?"
Hu Weiwei also had an anxious look on his face.
He shook his head and said: "In order to prevent more people from knowing the news, the Chinese Navy has taken precautions.
The fleet on the front line has always been in separate contact with the king.
The passwords used are all one-time passwords. Even the empire's cryptography experts are helpless when it comes to this kind of encrypted telegram.
It can effectively avoid the failure of the war due to intelligence leakage."
With heavy hearts, they came to the palace of the King of Chu.
Prime Minister Xu Minghan was even pondering, once the Chu navy was defeated, what should Chu do?
He admired General Ge Hongliu in his heart. He allowed the army to take temporary refuge, which saved the lives of at least 20,000 army troops.
Even if the navy suffered heavy losses, the army's casualties would not be too great.
Prime Minister Xu Minghan saw the smiling expression of Chu King Lu Chenyang, and he completely relaxed.
The expression on the face of Chu King Lu Chenyang shows that the Chu navy at least did not suffer a disastrous defeat.
The somewhat heavy atmosphere in the Chu Palace disappeared immediately.
Navy Commander Hu Weiwei couldn't wait to ask: "Your Majesty, is there any good news from the navy on the front line?"
King Lu Chenyang of Chu asked the eunuch to circulate the copied telegram to these important ministers of Chu.
He said happily: "Ge Aiqing performed very well on the battlefield this time. He led our country's naval fleet and fought a large-scale naval battle in which the weak defeated the strong.
Sink the flagship of the Song Navy and capture a Song Navy battleship.
This naval battle further verified the importance of torpedoes.
Our country was the first country to use torpedoes in naval battles.
This king believes that we should continue to study this weapon and make it the trump card of the Chu Navy."
Prime Minister Heo Myung-han did not see the details of the naval battle.
He doesn’t need to know how the Chu navy won the battle?
All he needed to know was that the Chu navy had won the battle.
Prime Minister Xu Minghan discovered that the military commanders of the Metropolitan Governor's Office were studying the contents of the battle report.
The other civil servants in the cabinet were all waiting for themselves to speak first.
Prime Minister Xu Minghan said excitedly: "Your Majesty, since our country has won the war, we must eat all the benefits of the winner.
Nowadays, all countries are forming alliances, and all countries have realized that relying on only one country will not be able to win in future regional hegemony.
Only by forming an alliance, each country complementing its advantages and defeating its challengers can it become a regional hegemon.
Nowadays, when countries form alliances, the most important thing is the strength of a certain country.
A powerful country can easily find allies and its status can be protected.
Our country announced the news of victory in the war, which can use the power of victory to win over some countries.
It can also deter countries that want to treat us as opponents.
Let the world know how powerful Chu is, which will also help talents from all over the world join.
During the pre-Qin period, both Mengchang and Lord Mengchang of the Qi clan chose to go to Qin to serve as officials.
This shows the extent to which big countries attract talents.”
King Lu Chenyang of Chu heard what Prime Minister Xu Minghan said.
He kept nodding and said: "Xu Aiqing is responsible for this matter and wants to publicize the strength of our army around the world.
Let the people in the country know that the military can guarantee their safety.
Let the opposition people in other countries know that Chu is very powerful and can provide them with a platform for development."
Prime Minister Heo Myung-han accepted the matter with a smile.
The king of Chu, Lu Chenyang, entrusted him with such an important matter because he valued him.
As Navy Commander Hu Weiwei read the battle report, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.
If the navy achieves a great victory, it will have sufficient confidence to compete for resources in the future.
King Lu Chenyang of Chu will also increase investment in the navy.
As the platform of the navy expands, their status as naval generals will rise.
Navy Commander Hu Weiwei put down the telegram and said excitedly: "General Ge fought this battle very well, showing the majesty and style of our Chu Navy.
When the torpedo weapon first appeared on the battlefield, it achieved shocking results.
As the commander of the front line, General Ge also put forward many opinions on torpedoes and torpedo boats.
General Ge pointed out that the range of torpedoes was too far, and the torpedo boats needed to be very close to the enemy ships to be effective.
As the torpedo boats approached the enemy ships, they suffered a large number of casualties.
This is because our country’s industrial technology is not up to standard and the gas cylinders produced cannot store high-pressure gas.
The air pressure in the cylinder is low, and there is less gas stored, so the distance the torpedo can be pushed forward is very limited.
Our navy is also trying to solve this problem.
The initial approach is to purchase high-pressure gas cylinders and pressurizing equipment from the Empire.
The torpedo's range is expected to be at least about 2 kilometers.
The Navy is also studying installing propellers on torpedoes.
It is very difficult to miniaturize propellers now, and this is a technology to be considered in the future.
General Ge also mentioned that torpedo boats have weak self-protection capabilities. Many torpedo boats have been sunk by enemy destroyers, and their survival rate on the battlefield is too low.
I would like to explain that the appearance of torpedo boats is only for emergency purposes.
Most torpedo boats are converted from cargo ships.
In the future, the Navy will specially design destroyers equipped with torpedoes.
The destroyer has both torpedoes and conventional naval guns, and it also has certain armor capabilities.
This kind of destroyer has better survivability.
The key suggestion put forward by General Ge was to let the country research submarines and equip them with torpedoes.
This combination of weapons and equipment has also been discussed by the Governor's Office.
Submarines are extremely concealable, their torpedoes are powerful, and they can attack proactively, rather than relying on luck like mines.
Submarines plus torpedoes are a perfect match and can become a weapon that scares the enemy."
Navy Commander Hu Weiwei answered many of the suggestions put forward by General Ge Hongliu.
The King of Chu, Lu Chenyang, only understood the general situation. He did not understand the details of the navy that thoroughly.
If the naval commander Hu Weiwei does not explain clearly, he will leave a label of incompetence on Chu King Lu Chenyang.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! King of Chu Lu Chenyang listened to the words of the Navy Commander Hu Weiwei.
He excitedly praised: "Your navy is very proactive, and I look forward to the navy's new weapons being put into use.
The navy must keep up with the trend of the times, enhance its own strength, and protect the interests of the Chu State."
The kings and ministers of Chu State looked excited and discussed many decisions.
Chu State achieved an initial victory and basically grasped the situation of the war, and many decisions were easily determined.
Major newspapers in Chu State printed special editions in the evening and announced this important news early the next morning.
…
In the palace of the King of Song Dynasty, King Zhantie of Song Dynasty was sitting on his seat drinking tea. He was leisurely waiting for the news of the fleet's victory.
In his mind, if the Song Navy fought against the Chu Navy, it would be like a heavily armed soldier fighting an unarmed farmer.
The war had only one outcome, and that was the victory of the Song Navy.
Commander Shi Tianyou came from the Shi family of Fujian, a long-established naval family in the empire.
He has been exposed to naval command since he was a child, and worked under King Zhan Tie of the Song Dynasty for many years.
King Zhan Tie of the Song Dynasty knew Shi Tianyou's ability and was assured that he would lead nearly half of the Song Dynasty's navy to fight in this war that would determine the fate of the country.
The red-haired little eunuch Dao Ge, holding a telegram, walked to the side of Song Wang Zhan Tie with sweat on his face.
Song Wang Zhantie said dissatisfiedly: "Doug, you usually perform very well, but why are you trembling today?
I am not a capricious and mediocre monarch, what are you afraid of?"
Song Wang Zhantie opened the telegram handed over by the red-haired eunuch.
He saw the first sentence, naval commander Shi Tianyou's apology, and the second sentence introduced the disastrous defeat of the Song Dynasty's navy.
Song Wang Zhan Tie's originally happy face immediately turned livid.
With a bang, Song Wang Zhantie slammed the tea cup in his hand to the ground.
King Zhan Tie of the Song Dynasty cursed angrily: "Shi Tianyou, this trash, ruined the national destiny of the Song Dynasty."
The failure of this war will most likely cause the Song Dynasty to lose the colony it just occupied.
The most critical point is that the Song Navy lost control of the Atlantic coast routes.
The Chu Navy could use weapons such as torpedoes, posing a threat to the Song Navy.
The proposer of the torpedo weapon was the Empire, and the relevant technology was published directly in newspapers for everyone to see.
If the Chu navy can produce torpedoes, other countries will surely be able to produce torpedoes.
They could use dozens of small boats, like a pair, to replace the battleships that the Song Navy had worked so hard to build.
This situation proved that the Song Navy was on the wrong path.
This was more like losing a war than defeating the Song Dynasty.
King Zhantie of the Song Dynasty immediately summoned Prime Minister Jin Kuohai and Chief of General Staff Lu Tingfang to discuss what the Song Dynasty should do after the defeat of this war.
He did not summon more officials, most of whom were just executors, not decision-makers.
They have neither the right nor the ability to determine the future development of the Song Dynasty.
Jin Kuohai, Prime Minister of the Song Dynasty, and Lu Tingfang, Chief of General Staff of the Song Dynasty, met at the gate of the palace.
Prime Minister Jin Kuohai was very happy. He thought the Song Navy had won.
He didn't know much about it, but after hearing the confident words of Song King Zhan Tie and Chief of General Staff Lu Tingfang, he also trusted the Song Navy.
When Prime Minister Jin Kuohai saw the gloomy look on Chief of General Staff Lu Tingfang's face, he realized that something was wrong.
He asked in a low voice: "Chief of General Staff Lu, what happened?"
Chief of General Staff Lu Tingfang smiled bitterly and said: "Something serious happened. Commander Shi Tianyou commanded our navy to besiege the Chu navy. The war ended in a disastrous defeat.
Two battleships were lost, and more than half of the warships lost their combat capability."
When Prime Minister Jin Kuohai heard the news, he opened his mouth wide and could not close it for a long time.
"Chief of General Staff Lu, is the information accurate?
Our navy is so powerful, how could it suffer a disastrous defeat when faced with a situation where its strength is inferior to ours?"
Chief of General Staff Lu Tingfang showed a painful expression and said helplessly: "The matter is absolutely true. Not only did we receive telegrams from Shi Tianyou, we also received farewell telegrams from many warships who died heroically.
Chu State discovered a powerful secret weapon torpedo, and he appeared on the battlefield for the first time.
Our army has absolutely no experience in guarding against such a previously unknown weapon.
This led to the disastrous defeat of this war.
New changes have occurred in the war, and the previous balance of power needs to be re-evaluated.
Besides, wars are ever-changing, and the outcome of a war cannot be determined by comparing parameters on paper.
Otherwise, there would not have been so many battles in history in which the weak defeated the strong."
Prime Minister Jin Kuohai nodded, but he did not quite accept this explanation.
The greatest ability of an army commander is to make emergency decisions on the battlefield.
He can only command operations mechanically and be at a loss when encountering emergencies. This is definitely not the performance of a famous general.
They received King Zhan Tie of the Song Dynasty, whose face was ashen and his eyes were bloodshot.
Prime Minister Jin Kuohai immediately returned and advised: "Your Majesty, our army has not lost all its strength despite this small defeat.
We still have great hope for a comeback, and a temporary setback will not have much impact on our army."
Prime Minister Jin Kuohai discovered that King Zhan Tie of the Song Dynasty was in a desperate mood, and he immediately gave advice.
King Zhan Tie of the Song Dynasty had a smooth life and did not encounter any major failures.
If his confidence was really shaken by this small defeat, then the Song Dynasty would be doomed.
Song Wang Zhantie waved his hand and said sadly: "I am not sad because of the loss of the navy.
We, the Song Dynasty, can accept such losses.
Even if all Song's warships are sunk, we can restore the number of warships within a few months.
This is why I want to establish an industrial chain for warships.
Outsourcing warships, destroying all the warships in a war, and the country can only wait for death.
There is a relevant industrial chain and you can build your own warships.
Only such a naval power can be sustainable.
The thing that grieves me the most is the wrong selection of people.
Shi Tianyou was only a general, but I asked him to command a huge fleet. His talents did not match his position.
I read the battle report carefully and found that Shi Tianyou had many opportunities to reduce the damage to the fleet, but he did nothing."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! When the two heard that King Zhan Tie of Song Dynasty blamed himself for this reason, they did not try to persuade him.
Song Wang Zhantie quickly recovered his mood and pointed to the Jinhe area on the map.
"What should we do next?"
Prime Minister Jin Kuohai said confidently: "Your Majesty, the Song Dynasty has not yet entered into war mobilization.
Once the people of the country are mobilized, the industrial strength that the Song Dynasty explodes will definitely rank among the best among European countries.
The treasury now also accumulates a large amount of silver coins, which is enough for war consumption.
I can guarantee that even if the war expands, logistical supplies will be adequately supplied."
The cabinet is not responsible for the specific situation of the war, and Prime Minister Jin Kuohai only talks about the material support for the war.
However, Lu Tingfang, the chief of general staff of the Song Dynasty, said categorically: "Your Majesty, we must continue to fight and achieve a result.
If our country withdraws its troops now, the Jinhe area will be handed over to others.
If our country persists in fighting, the most miserable result will be to be driven out.
The results of the two choices are the same, so why don't we choose the option that is more promising to change the future.
We have nothing to lose, and even if the worst outcome occurs, we can accept it.
If you try hard now, a miracle may happen."
Song Wang Zhantie nodded and said: "Yes!
The worst outcome is to lose the colony, but nothing else is lost.
The last moment has not yet come, and the soldiers on the front line have not given up. How can I give up so easily?
Let the army and navy in the Jinhe area cooperate well.
Even if we cannot stop the Chu State, we must try our best to eliminate the enemy's effective strength."
After King Zhan Tie of Song Dynasty finished speaking, he gave another warning.
"The Navy has not found any equipment that can effectively protect against torpedoes.
The main force of the navy should not engage in a decisive battle with the Chu navy."
