"When the grassroots and other people went to North America, they walked along the coast. The farther north they got, the colder it became. In the extreme north, this is the area."
When Li Wei said this, he pointed at the Bailing Strait area on the world map, and then continued: "From September every year to May of the following year, it is the ice period, and ships cannot travel. At this time, either from the ice
We can go to North America on the closed ocean, or we can only go there when the ice and snow melt.”
Generally speaking, the Bering Strait ice period lasts from October to April of the following year. However, at this time in the late Ming Dynasty, it happened to be the Little Ice Age, and the climate was much colder, so the ice period was longer.
Li Wei slowly became more comfortable as he spoke, as if he had forgotten that he was in the Forbidden City, in front of the emperor. He was immersed in his memory and said: "But the climate there is unimaginably cold, and there are frequent snowstorms, and the people are very crowded.
It’s hard to survive there. If you walk on the frozen ocean, the journey will be even more difficult when you reach the other side, unlike a sea ship that can go around high mountains and ridges.”
After listening to Li Wei's explanation, Wen Tiren and Xu Guangqi unconsciously came to the world map and looked at the map between Asia and America.
At this time, when Li Wei said that the climate in that place was so bad, Wen Tiren couldn't help but ask: "Why can't we cross the ocean earlier in the southern point, and we must choose the narrowest place?"
Li Wei took a quick look and saw an old man with a hint of majesty in his eyes. He looked at himself and carefully explained: "There are no winds and waves on the ocean. If you are not careful, the ship will not deviate from the direction."
, it will end with the boat capsizing and people being killed. Therefore, it is better to travel less distance on the ocean."
Xu Guangqi nodded in understanding, and he explained to Li Wei: "This is indeed the case on the ocean. When the church members in Xiaguan talked about the ocean, they were also very frightened. The power of heaven and earth is really unimaginable to those who have never seen it.
"
When Zhong Jinwei heard Xu Guangqi say the word "religionist", he turned his head and looked at the European part of the world map, and a thought suddenly came to his mind.
Li Wei glanced at Xu Guangqi gratefully, and then continued to explain: "The width of this place is about seventy miles, and there are two small islands in the middle for ships to park and stay, so as not to lose their way."
Hearing this, Wen Tiren nodded, never expecting that this narrowest place could have such benefits.
But Levi hadn't finished speaking yet, and continued to talk about the benefits of this place: "And there are many sea creatures here. They are huge. Catching one can feed one person for a long time. It is a natural supply point to North America."
Suddenly, a young and majestic voice sounded near Levi: "There are huge creatures in such a cold place?"
Li Wei turned around and saw that it was the emperor in dragon robes who had been sitting on it. He didn't know when he had come closer. He was a little flustered for a moment and stuttered back: "Yes, it is big, and there is a big one."
It's big, but you can't catch it in the sea."
Wang Chengen stood between Emperor Chongzhen and Li Wei, but did not block their sight. Seeing that this man could not speak clearly, he was ready to scold him.
Unexpectedly, Zhong Jinwei spoke, and he asked Li Wei: "Is it a sea beast with a smooth body and long teeth at the corners of its mouth? It can walk on land and swim quickly in the sea, and..."
Zhong Jinwei talked about several types of marine life near the Arctic Circle that he saw on TV, such as seals, walruses, fur seals, sea otters, and sea lions.
Li Wei's head kept nodding when he heard it, and he kept saying: "Yes, yes, yes..."
He was a little surprised that these sea beasts did not appear in Ming Dynasty. He didn't know how this young man knew about it.
As soon as Emperor Chongzhen heard that Zhong Jinwei was right, he knew that there was no lie.
He looked at the world map and didn't seem to see the two small islands that Li Wei just mentioned. He frowned slightly and asked Zhong Jinwei: "Master Zhong, there seems to be only one point on this map?"
Li Wei was surprised when he heard this. He didn't expect that this young man turned out to be the emperor's master. Could it be that he was the immortal who descended to earth to assist Ziweixing according to folklore in the capital?
Although he claimed to be a Christian, in his heart he believed in the myths passed down from his ancestors.
Hearing this, Zhong Jinwei took a closer look, and then saw the numbers painted on the lower right corner of the map, and said: "Your Majesty, the scale of this map is one to thirty-three million. The island is too small, so the scale on the map is
Didn’t point it out.”
Others didn't feel much after hearing this, but Li Wei was different. He made a living at sea. When Zhong Jinwei said this, he felt incredible.
If this map is drawn according to the scale mentioned by Zhong Jinwei, then it must be measured in advance. But looking at this map, there are dots of different sizes in so many places in the ocean. Is this something that should be done in the human world?
You know, ancient maps, including the world map of the late Ming Dynasty, were all drawn based on estimates, and were naturally not as accurate as those of later generations.
Emperor Chongzhen on the side already understood why there was no map on the map, so he said to Li Wei: "You continue to talk."
Levi was startled, but he immediately remembered that he was explaining the possibility of a large fleet heading to North America. So he continued: "If a small fleet goes to North America, go along the coast and wait in a suitable place for the ice to thaw in the ocean.
Actually, it is possible to pass through this sea area."
When Li Wei said this, he changed the topic and said: "But if it is a large fleet, it will be very difficult to obtain supplies while waiting for the ocean to thaw in a suitable place. After a while, when the nearby natural supplies are gone, only
It can be replenished by supplies brought on board. The opportunities for ship repairs will also increase. These are things that must be considered in ocean routes. If these problems can be solved, it will be feasible to travel to North America on a large scale."
After hearing this, Zhong Jinwei asked: "Does that mean a large supply point should be established in a suitable place?"
Li Wei looked at Zhong Jinwei, nodded and said, "Your Majesty is right."
"Then where is the best place to supply supplies?" Zhong Jinwei immediately asked.
Levi thought for a moment, then pointed to several places on the world map and said, "It would be best if there are supplies in these places."
When he was pointing, the people around him, including Emperor Chongzhen, were watching carefully.
After seeing several locations clearly, a group of people frowned.
Xu Guangqi pointed to the nearest place and asked: "Can this place be omitted?"
Zhong Jinwei looked at the place pointed by Xu Guangqi, which was the location of Vladivostok in later generations.
Li Wei looked at Xu Guangqi in surprise, and then replied: "Vladivostok does not freeze all year round, so it is an ideal supply point. The supply points further up will be frozen, so you need to go there at the right time. If so.
Not having supply points everywhere is either impossible, or it will add a lot of difficulties to the voyage."
Zhong Jinwei asked Xu Guangqi on the side: "Master Xu, do you think the supply point here was removed because of the construction of captives?"