Cai He yawned. Although there was sunlight in the cabin, the room was too big, so he still lit an oil lamp. He listened to Du Lan and recorded his work every day, but sometimes he was really sleepy and could only do so much work.
Wait until the next day to do it, since I’m not busy every day anyway.
Being on the sea can be said to be extremely boring. Every day, the information coming from each ship is processed and the location of the fleet is determined. Other than that, it is a long wait.
"...Yesterday, I saw a big fish on the sea surface. Its back was like an island and it could spray water. I thought the big fish could swallow a small boat. I don't know its name or its full picture. When I return to Daqin, I will ask the teacher to name it." They saw a whale.
However, the ships in the fleet were no smaller than whales, so no accidents were encountered. However, some crew members thought that this was the Dragon King in the sea and said that they had made the Dragon King angry. Cai He finally calmed down this feudal superstition and spread it.
The person who spread the rumor was detained for two days.
"... I have been heading east for thirteen days. I use the star compass every day to position myself, supplement it with charts, and control the sea breeze. I dare not slack off at all. Since I encountered the island for supplies ten days ago, I have not seen land for ten days. The strength of the sea
It's really shocking." If Cai He didn't have 100% confidence in Dulan, he would have doubted whether they would be able to go home.
As the time without sight of land grew longer and longer, the crew became more and more uneasy. They didn't know what was waiting for them.
This fleet consists of three huge building ships, 60 supply boats, and 20 cargo ships. It includes 3,000 elite infantrymen of the Qin State, 3,000 crew members, 1,000 merchants, and thousands of animals and horses.
, poultry, cattle and sheep, etc.
This is definitely the largest ocean-going fleet in the world. In this era, neither Rome nor Macedonia has a plug-in like Duran.
This is an era when all civilizations on earth are in their own closed circles, especially the Mayan civilization in South America, which is isolated overseas and far away from other civilizations.
"Sir, there are a lot of dark clouds ahead, and there may be a storm." This is not the first time they have encountered a storm. It can be said that the weather on the sea is more unpredictable.
Cai He stood up and walked outdoors. He was on the second floor of the building ship. Below was the wide deck, where many sailors were cleaning the deck.
Picking up Dulan's 'magic weapon' - the telescope, Cai He saw the sea water surging in front of him, and the dark clouds and sea water were connected together. He knew that this was not a good sign. Although the ships in the fleet were very strong, if they were overturned by waves,
If so, they won't be able to make a comeback.
"Give the order, secure all items, and then keep a distance between all ships to prevent out-of-control collisions." "Order the captains of each ship to take care of the crew. We have to go through the storm." You can't hide, you can only go through it.
.
Cai He smiled when he saw that the herald faithfully conveyed his orders to other ships in flags. At least he did not disappoint his master.
At the top of the flagship, there is the largest semaphore device in the fleet. As long as it is moved, the entire fleet's lookouts can see it. Although there is no pinyin in this era and the syllables cannot be transmitted, it can still be used to separate navigation terms. Other complex commands
It is still necessary to use carrier pigeons or directly row boats to deliver the goods.
In short, it is very convenient to use semaphore for simple commands.
Everyone took action immediately. Facing the storm, Cai He was also very nervous. The strong winds and waves were enough to overturn the entire fleet. It was sunny just now and then it turned dark. Cai He had people light up the lanterns on every corner of the ship.
It guides the direction for other ships. However, the lanterns are easily extinguished by the rushing water, and everyone can only judge the distance between themselves and the surrounding ships based on the vague outline.
This storm was several times stronger than the previous one. This is the true temper of the sea.
Cai He couldn't help but worry. In such weather, they would definitely deviate from the course. In addition to the loss of the fleet, getting lost was even more terrifying.
Cai He was under great pressure on his first voyage without anyone's guidance. He didn't want to delay his master's mission. As the ship rose and fell, the guards' expressions changed, and they heard that the ship seemed to be disconnected.
The voice sounded, but Cai He's face remained as usual, which made people admire him.
At the beginning, they looked down on Cai He, a young eunuch, but his demeanor without changing his face even when the mountain collapsed still won the respect of everyone in the fleet.
For example, Cai He is currently focusing on the navigation chart, calculating the direction and distance they may deviate.
Cai He didn't sleep all night. The storm lasted all day and night, and the sea calmed down the next day.
There was a big storm, and three supply ships and two cargo ships were missing, probably sunk. Several other ships were damaged by waves, and two were so serious that they could no longer move.
Cai He made a prompt decision and ignored the lost supplies and crew. He first transported all the people and belongings on the lost ship to the building ship. The entire fleet calculated the losses as quickly as possible, and the injured were treated immediately; the ships that were not seriously injured were repaired as they went.
, they still have a long way to go.
Cai He stepped onto the deck again, and there was still a vast sea outside. Many crew members knelt on the deck and thanked God for their lives. The scene was very funny. Cai He did not stop him this time. There were countless difficulties ahead, and a storm cost them their lives.
After taking seven ships, I am afraid that when they return to Da Qin, it will be considered good to have three tower ships left behind.
You must know that other ships are not small. Although they are small compared to the two-hundred-meter-long, thirty-meter-wide, and fifteen-meter-high building ship, this small ship is also seventy or eighty meters long, which is still a huge thing in this era.
Everything was ready. Cai He looked at the sun, determined the direction, and set sail again.
So Cai He said some words that obviously should not belong to this world: "All ships turn on their power mechanisms, six ticks to the left, and all ships follow."
At the bottom of the cabin, two crew members rotated a huge mechanism that looked like a stone mill. Once it was turned on, the boat would get power. I didn't know the principle at all, but it just made the boat move forward very fast.
It was obviously a great ancient voyage, but once the power mechanism appeared, it became less magnificent and more opportunistic.
However, the person involved, Cai He, said that it didn't matter. The important thing was to complete Dulan's mission, to find a new continent and then circle the earth. What he saw along the way was still full of infinite unknowns.
"... On the thirtieth day after going to sea, a crew member saw an unknown bird. I knew we were close to land." Cai He's logbook for another day, the thirty-day voyage has made him fully mature.
After getting up, many things happened after the big storm. A group of people wanted to rebel, seize the ship and return to the sea, but were suppressed. Cai He showed his supreme martial arts and jumped from the building ship to the cargo ship where the rebellion occurred a hundred meters away, and beheaded him
He defeated the initiators and used force to frighten everyone.
There was also an infectious disease, but fortunately Cai He had medicine to suppress the outbreak. This journey was not easy. The most serious ones were rebellion and infectious diseases, which almost shook the entire fleet.
But today a flying bird made everyone excited, because birds always land, which means they are already very close to the land.
"Report——" A long and passionate roar made Cai He stand up.
"Bao, it's Lu..."
Cai He didn't wait for the guard to finish speaking, and walked a few steps outside. An undulating black shadow appeared on the horizon in the distance. Yes, it was land. There was no mistaking it.
Finally arrived, Cai He, who was only in his teens, couldn't help but shed tears. He had shouldered too much on his slender shoulders along the way and resisted too many doubts about the great master. Now he finally arrived on the mainland, and he could tell everyone
He announced that his master was right, there was another continent on the other side of the sea, and the Grand Master would never lie.
Thinking of this, Cai He turned around and bowed in the opposite direction to the mainland, expressing his unswerving trust in Du Lan and his joy in fulfilling his mission.