Dugulou ordered his followers to return and sent a message to Wanyanhong saying that the princess's condition was getting worse and she could no longer travel long distances back.
This year we can only celebrate the New Year in Changshan Prefecture, and wait until next summer...it depends on the situation.
I also sent a letter to Wanyan Pingqiu. The content was similar, but in the tone of a master, he asked him to feel at ease and repent, to examine himself, to cultivate his health, and to study hard!
I will take good care of your mother, please rest assured...
As the governor, Xiao Chen officially ascended the throne to discuss matters, and the first thing he announced was to appoint Dugulou as the commander-in-chief of the navy of our Yanyun County!
Let's call him Navy Admiral.
But because of his special status, this matter must be kept secret. It is enough for everyone here to know, but it is not easy to spread the word.
His real name cannot be used, so let's use the name Li Ling. From now on, everyone will call him Admiral Li or Lord Li, and the name Dugulou will never be mentioned again.
From now on, the shipyard will also be under his control, and Gongsun Ban, the captain of Qinglong, will also officially belong to the navy rank, which is justifiable.
Yue Zhonglin and a thousand soldiers who came back to report on their duties were also given to Dugulou. Otherwise, it would be unreasonable for a naval admiral to have no soldiers under his command.
Didn’t Yue Zhonglin always escort grain and grass?
No need now.
Because Li Wanjiang suddenly showed great kindness, he issued a decree saying that Xiao Chen's troops were already insufficient, so it was not appropriate to divide the troops to escort the grain and grass. From now on, the task of escorting the grain and grass would be left to Qin Gang...
The first thing Dugulou did after taking office was to recruit new soldiers.
In addition to being physically strong, there is only one requirement, which is that you must not get seasick. Priority will be given to those who have been fishermen.
Of course, it is also necessary if the water quality is particularly good, such as the kind that can hold one's breath in the water for more than one stick of incense, the kind that can dive into the seabed hundreds of meters deep to catch crabs, and the kind that can swim in the water for a whole day without sinking.
The kind of...
There are indeed many fishermen in Changshan Prefecture. They used to make a living fishing in Shunfeng Port. When the Russians came, they all fled to Changshan Prefecture and fished freshwater fish on the Bailong River instead.
The children of fishermen families have lived on sea boats since they were young. They can get into the water when they are naked, so seasickness is impossible. Landsickness is almost the same...
Because Yanyun County has been in war, their fishing life is not easy, and northerners don't really like to eat fish.
If you can't catch fish, you won't be able to live. If you catch fish, you can't sell them.
So most fishermen were forced to become farmers.
But they still like the sea in their hearts. Even if they can't go to sea to fish, they can still go to sea to fight.
It's best to drive away all the Ross devils in Sunny Harbor, so that we can fish again in the future...
There is another reason why everyone volunteered to join the Navy, and that is because the military pay is extremely high, which is a full 20% more than what General Lin Yue recruited!
And there are subsidies for going overseas... You've done a great job!
But there is only one question that the recruits don't understand. We are the navy, right? But where are our warships?
There are no warships, not at the moment anyway.
Dugulou asked Yue Zhonglin to conduct basic training for them first, to increase their physical strength, become familiar with swords and guns, learn to form formations, and know how to give orders.
In addition, he also has a requirement that all sailors must learn to use firearms!
The second thing Dugulou did was naturally build ships.
Gongsun Ban has found several inlets in the slow flow of the Bailong River that can be transformed into shipyards.
He is also a man of work. In the past few days, he has led a group of people to cut through the ice on the river, took advantage of the bottom of the waterline in winter, transported rocks and soil, and started to build a dam around the embankment.
Unfortunately, the docks on the river are too small and the draft is too shallow, making it extremely difficult to build large seagoing ships.
However, Dugulou did not intend to build large warships. Instead, he ordered Gongsun Ban and the others to build as many small speedboats as possible under the existing conditions.
There are several types of small speedboats. One of them only needs to be able to carry twenty people. The specific requirements are that it can move flexibly and be fast enough, but it cannot use sails and can only use paddles. In other words, it must be maneuvered by manpower and cannot
By the wind.
There is also a gunboat. Each gunboat only needs to be able to install one cannon on the bow. The displacement does not need to be too high. The main thing is to optimize its maneuverability as much as possible.
There is also a fire ship. During combat, the cabin is filled with sulfur, kerosene and other flammable substances, and then a sharp iron point is installed on the bow. When approaching the opponent's warship, it is nailed directly to it, and then the ship is set on fire.
The crew had to jump into the sea to escape before the fuse burned out.
In short, they are all small ships, not a single large ship or even a medium-sized ship.
Everyone felt that relying on these small boats to fight against Ross's large warships... would be a joke.
But Admiral Li's orders come out like a mountain, and everyone just obeys them.
What Dugulou needs most now is artillery that can be installed on gunboats. Since each gunboat can only carry one, he hopes that the weight of the artillery is light enough and the firepower is sustainable. Of course, the greater the power, the better.
This requires the help of a madman, and the madman is now going crazy again. He has locked himself in the design room of the arsenal without leaving the house for several days.
Everyone under his command knew his temper, and no one dared to disturb him, not even if Dugulou, the admiral and commander of the navy, came to see him in person.
I had no choice but to invite the boss, Xiao Chen, and then I broke in and saw the madman with stubble all over his face.
"Gunboat..." The madman said two words after listening to Dugulou's request, then suddenly his head tilted and he fainted.
This frightened Xiao Chen, and he quickly ordered people to carry him back to the Governor's Mansion, where he found Wen Shanchang to diagnose and treat him.
"He's not sick either..." Wen Shanchang frowned and said, "Why did he seem to have fainted from hunger?"
"Ah? No way, how can a living person faint from hunger?" Xiao Chen found it unbelievable.
"I'm afraid our crazy boss is really hungry. He hasn't eaten for two days and two nights. He doesn't allow us to go in and disturb him. We can only send food in through the window, but he is too busy to eat.
, he didn’t listen even when we told him..." Several craftsmen from the arsenal who followed us said in a confused voice.
"Huh? Where am I?" While everyone was talking, the madman woke up leisurely and looked around with a confused look on his face.
"Alas...you madman is going to scare me to death!" Xiao Chen sighed helplessly, waved his hand and ordered all the craftsmen to leave, and then asked someone to bring a bowl of hot milk with honey for the madman to drink.
"I just fainted from hunger? No way, I remembered that I ate." The madman has forgotten whether he has eaten in the past two days.
Xiao Chen ordered someone to force him into Ling'er's previous room with a bathroom, let him take a good bath, shave him, cut his hair and change his clothes.
Then let him sleep with me!
Let's sleep for a day and a night first.
"Why should I sleep? I'm not sleepy. I just had an idea and I was about to tell you, boss..." The madman struggled and refused to leave.