The Pioneer, the flagship of the pioneering fleet, is sailing on the sea at an extremely fast speed, more than twice as fast as an ordinary merchant ship, and can travel thousands of miles a day.
"Report Captain, we are crossing the Sakhalin Strait!"
A sailor came in to report.
Wang Chaoxiang was looking at the map in the captain's cabin. When he heard the sound, he picked up the telescope and walked out to the deck. The hollow bow of the ship was rising and falling as the sailboat sailed at high speed, like giant scissors constantly cutting the sea surface.
Behind the Pioneer, several clipper boats followed closely.
They have run this route several times, and the crew members are already familiar with it, but this is the first time they take a clipper boat on this route, so the crew members are still more cautious.
"This ship is really fast. It took three days to reach the Sakhalin Strait."
"Captain, we are already slowing down. If we were running at full speed, we would be here in two days."
The Prime Minister raised his telescope and looked around. The sea was foggy, but fortunately it was not too thick.
"Lower the speed and sail at the speed of an ordinary merchant ship. Be careful when entering the strait."
Although he has traveled through this strait several times, the Prime Minister did not dare to be careless. The Sakhalin Strait runs from north to south and is about 1,200 miles long. It is wide in the south and narrow in the north. The narrowest point is only less than 15 miles, and the narrowest point in the south is
The width is nearly 700 miles.
Two years ago, a Dutch captain who was trading in Nagasaki, Japan, sailed north to the east of Sakhalin Island. However, he thought that Sakhalin Island was the mainland. He walked around the coast and found that it was very primitive and backward, so he had to return unwillingly.
The water depth in the strait varies greatly, and the shallow part of the channel is less than three feet.
To the south of the strait is the Whale Sea, and to the north is the Little Sea, a natural channel for cold and warm currents. The cold current of the small sea in the north flows southward, and the warm current of the south flows along the Whale Sea. The two currents meet in the strait, forming dense fog. Especially at the turn of spring and summer, the thick fog fills the air.
It greatly affects the traffic of ships.
In winter, there will be ice cover for more than two months, and there will be floating ice before and after the ice cover.
The crew immediately notified the people on the mast and asked them to hoist the signal flag, reduce the speed to eight knots, and sail in vertical rows.
There are three masts on the Pioneer. There are many people working on the masts. There are 24 people on duty, called forward observers. One part is responsible for the right string of the mast, observing the sea surface forward and to the right, and the other part is responsible for the mast.
To the left, observe the sea ahead and to the left.
The first mast is the forward mast with twenty-four people on it, the second main mast has twenty-six people on it, and the last mast is the aft mast with eighteen people on it.
There are also two navigation petty officers and two men without navigation experience on each mast to do manual work, as well as two trainees.
There are also two groups of people on the upper deck observing the left and right navigation respectively.
On the entire ship, everyone is divided into two classes to ensure continuous sailing day and night. Because of the reasonable coordination and clear division of labor, they can travel thousands of miles a day, and can even reach a maximum speed of 1,500 miles a day.
The three groups of people on the mast are the hardest working and the best. Standing on such a high mast is very dangerous. If you are not careful in strong winds and waves, you may fall into the sea. If you fall on the deck, you will either die or be disabled.
, in addition to observing the sea surface, they also have to determine the position and identify the target, which is beyond the ability of ordinary people.
Moreover, when sailing on the sea, masts, sails, and ropes are the main driving force of the ship and are the most important parts of the ship. They must be experienced to prevent damage to the masts, sails, and sails due to mistakes.
"This strait is thousands of miles long, and there is often heavy fog. There is also a freezing period of nearly three months every year, and there are also floating ice periods before and after. There are also many harbors with excellent conditions on both sides of the strait. We should choose a few places to build on these two sides.
port."
The chief mate suggested building a port and dock in the strait, or building a small fort to store some food and other supplies, as well as some ship repair materials, so that supplies could be supplied at any time and the ship could be repaired.
"Next time, this time we are going to find the Tsarist Russian bandits. We need to eradicate their coastal strongholds. We need to sail all the way to the Ryuki Peninsula, the Yasha Peninsula, and the Yasha Strait (Bering Strait). Let's wait until the next trip."
The destination of the Prime Minister this time is Fort Okhotsk, the first settlement of the Tsarist Russians in Xiaohai, which was established three years ago. The Prime Minister has visited the Heilongjiang estuary area several times before and collected the treasures from the local savage Jurchen tribe.
According to the intelligence, as early as twelve years ago, the Tsarist Russian Moskvikin led a Cossack team of more than fifty people to the small sea, which they called the Sea of Okhotsk.
Later, they established a permanent stronghold here, Okhotsk Fort. Boyakov, who invaded Heilongjiang last time, finally fled here. After resting for the winter, they followed the route of Moskvikin and returned north to Yakov.
Kutsk.
The distance from Okhotsk to Yakutsk is very long, and it is more than a thousand miles before entering the waters of the Lena River.
Before the castle was built, Tsarist Russian bandits went south from Yakutsk. Although there was a mature route, it would take at least a month to reach the seaside of Okhotsk, and they would return to Yakutsk before the arrival of winter.
After the castle was built, many Cossacks began to spend the winter here and used it as a base to travel further south and north. They even took boats out to sea and went directly to the Heilongjiang estuary to rob.
This time, the Chancellor of the Dynasty went directly to capture the Okhotsk Fort and remove this stronghold.
"I heard that Yakutsk is more than 10,000 miles away from Moscow, the capital of Tsarist Russia. From Moscow to Yakutsk and then to Okhotsk, it is an extremely desolate and bitter cold place. How can these Tsarist Russians be so energetic?
?”
Wang Chaoxiang smiled and said, "Because of soft gold, our pioneer fleet traded with the Jurchens in the Haidong area last year. We only had three shipments of goods. How much money did we make?"
"The net profit after tax is hundreds of thousands of silver dollars. Mink fur is called soft gold. It's not nonsense. Those Cossacks are so poor in the west. I heard that they are just a group of serfs who can't survive. Poor people fleeing for self-government. They usually rely on
They cultivate the land during the farming season and rob during the free time, but most people still live a miserable life.
Those Tsarist Russian bandits who came to the Far East only earned one or two rubles for a year's hard work. But when they come to the Far East, even if they hunt by themselves, the furs they get are far better than at home. If they go to rob, they can still steal them if they are lucky.
earned a lot.
This is much more profitable than robbing their hometown in Eastern Europe."
Last year, the Pioneer Fleet received at least a few hundred yuan in dividends, and the three captains received tens of thousands of silver dollars. Isn't this just getting rich overnight?
This year the pioneer fleet went north several times. Although there are fewer tribes on both sides of the Sakhalin Strait, it made several trips and the profits were good.
They made a round trip, and the profits from the goods on this ship were ten times or dozens of times. Sable fur is called soft gold. This is really not an exaggeration. The top mink fur can be worth tens or even hundreds of silver dollars, and the worst one is worth
They are all worth one or two silver dollars.
They traded the Jurchens' favorite iron pot with them. A pot cost only a few dozen cents. In exchange for the mink skin, they used the pot to put it in. Until it was full, it was still a better mink skin. If it was a poor mink skin, it could still be used.
Change the pots.
Not to mention knives and axes, each ax can be replaced with more than a dozen fine sable skins.
Compared to the Ming Dynasty, which has advantages in sea transportation and is fully loaded with goods, and the cost of handmade goods in the Ming Dynasty is not high, the Tsarist Russians are far behind.
They came from Moscow, and it took them fifty years to open up a route to the Pacific Ocean, and built countless castles and fortresses along the way. But coming from Moscow was more than thousands of miles away, and there were no major roads. They just relied on moving repeatedly among the large and small rivers, and the big ships
The boats kept changing, and it was difficult to carry much cargo for trading.
So they robbed and kidnapped tribal leaders, extorted their furs, and then imposed fur taxes. By this means, they were able to gain nothing.
The Prime Minister and the others were able to fill several large ships with goods during one trip. They relied on bartering. Both parties were happy. By the way, they were also conferred official titles and titles, and were rewarded with a few good things.
"How many Tsarist Russian bandits are there in Fort Okhotsk? Can we defeat them with just a few boats and thousands of men?"
"I heard that there are not many people in Fort Okhotsk, the lair of Tsarist Russia. There are only a few hundred people at most, and the bandits use it as a stronghold. Most of them are looting outside and not in the lair. It's just that most of them come back here in winter.
winter."
Only by knowing the enemy can you fight without danger.
However, the information collected so far is not much. I only know that although it is called Okhotsk Castle, it is actually just a small gate. It is said that there are cannons inside, and the Cossacks also have muskets. Their firearms can deal with Sauron and other Jurchens.
, it is indeed very advantageous, but now Wang Chaoxiang and the others are bringing gunboats.
Although the clipper ship was designed to be a merchant ship transporting tea, who wouldn't bring a cannon when traveling across oceans these days?
Each ship of the pioneering fleet has seven or eight cannons. Although the number is small, it is enough to deal with small groups of Tsarist Russian invaders. They also have many muskets and artillery that can be moved off the ship for land combat.
Although the speed was reduced by half, it only took three days for the pioneering fleet to successfully pass through the Sakhalin Strait. This time they did not stop on both sides of the strait, but went directly north.
"Go to Yongning City."
The fleet arrived at the northern end of the strait, and the imperial court allowed the fleet to enter the Heilongjiang estuary.
A few dozen miles upstream of the river mouth is the Yuan Dynasty's Eastern Expedition Marshal's Mansion, which is also where the Ming Dynasty's Nuergan Dusi was located. Yishiha inspected Nuergan and built the Yongning Temple and the Yongning Monument here.
The Prime Minister of the Dynasty has arrived in Nurqian three times this year, rebuilt Yongning Temple on the old site, cleaned the Yongning Monument, and built a Yongning Pagoda to protect the monument.
After Xuanfu ennobled the surrounding tribes, he also hired them to build Yongning City.
The city gate is not big, but it has a fort and a warehouse. It is a simple bastion. People are stationed here to purchase furs, medicinal materials, etc.
The fleet sailed into the river mouth.
Arrive at Yongning Fort smoothly.
On the north bank of the river, with mountains behind and the river on its side, on a riverside plain, a fortress was built facing the river. Next to the castle, there was a town.
The flag of the Ming Dynasty is flying on the castle, and the cannons on the fort declare the sovereignty of the Ming Dynasty.
The nearby town is under the protection of the castle, and there are many boats parked at the river pier. Hezhe people, Oroqen people, Ewenki people, Feyaka people, Hulk people come here to trade, mink skins, salmon, pheasants...
··
"What a big boat!" A tribesman who came here for the first time exclaimed as he looked at the approaching fleet.
Some tribesmen who had seen the pioneering fleet before said excitedly, "The big ship is coming, the big ship is coming, the goods are coming."
The arrival of the Ming Dynasty's big ships meant in their eyes that more goods were coming. Axes, swords, iron pots, cloth hats, tea leaves and salt were all good things they wanted.
Especially those iron products, especially iron axes and iron knives, are much better than their stone axes, bone arrows and other things.
