Chapter 1203: Navy Requests Battle

The shipping company incident was just an episode.

Later in the evening, Yun Zheng and his companions followed Zhao Liuliang to the navy camp.

Zhao Liuliang also immediately took out the nautical chart and showed it to Yun Zheng and others.

The route that Zhao Liuliang confirmed again went from Xinjin along the coastal waters of Shuobei and Beihuan, and finally stopped in the central part of Zhenhe.

The route ahead was the same route they took when they first went out to sea, passing through the strait between the Le Dynasty and the Yu Kingdom and heading north along the Le Dynasty's coastal line.

Regarding the following section of the route, Zhao Liuliang has not yet confirmed it as the performance of their current warships is somewhat insufficient.

Shen Luoyan looked at it for a moment, pointed at the nautical chart and asked, "Can the navy transport food and grass here?"

The location that Shen Luoyan pointed to was the bay at the border between Beihuan and Zhenhe.

If the navy warships could transport food and fodder there, they could reduce a lot of food and fodder loss.

Zhao Liuliang thought for a moment and replied, "You can try, but I can't guarantee that it will work."

"Why?"

Shen Luoyan asked in confusion.

Zhao Liuliang replied: "When I passed by there before, I thought it was a good port location, so I sent people to explore it. As a result, there are many reefs near the coast, and warships can easily run aground..."

Entering the bay, certainly possible.

But they are transporting food and supplies, so the warships must dock.

Even if small boats are used to help transport food and fodder, the warships must stay as close to the shore as possible.

Therefore, when approaching the coast, it is necessary to clearly explore the distribution of reefs on the seabed to prevent the warships from running aground.

After listening to Zhao Liuliang's explanation, Shen Luoyan shook her head gently, "Forget it then!"

"It's better for the navy not to move yet!" Yun Zheng shook his head gently, "After we capture Xiongjin, it would be better for the navy to directly station in Xiongjin!"

"Your Highness, the last general invites you to fight!"

As soon as Yun Zheng finished speaking, Zhao Liuliang asked for a fight.

"Requesting a fight? What kind of fight are you requesting?" Yun Zheng squinted at Zhao Liuliang, "Our Shuobei Navy has only a few warships, and you still want to clash with the Li Dynasty's navy?"

Although he didn't know how many warships the Le Dynasty navy had, he thought it should be much more than theirs.

After all, the Le Dynasty was so close to the Yu Kingdom. If the Le Dynasty navy was weak, the Yu Kingdom navy would have defeated the Le Dynasty navy long ago and landed directly in the Le Dynasty.

He felt that the navy of the Le Dynasty might be slightly stronger than that of Daqian.

Of course, the third brother built a lot of warships last year, and the strength of the Daqian Navy must have improved a lot now.

"A head-on confrontation will definitely not work." Zhao Liuliang smiled embarrassedly, "I just want to contain the Le Dynasty navy from the side! In addition, if we can cooperate with your highness's army to capture a few warships of the Le Dynasty navy, that would be even better!"

uh-huh?

Listening to Zhao Liuliang's words, Yun Zheng's mind suddenly became active.

Yes!

Building your own warships is not as fast as capturing the enemy's warships!

However, capturing enemy naval warships at sea is not as easy as capturing enemy troops on land!

Yun Zheng pondered for a moment, "Let me think about this matter again! The Shuobei navy has a weak foundation, so we must be cautious when using the navy!"

As he said, he had no confidence in the navy.

The navy was formed too recently and has no actual combat experience.

If you drag him to the battlefield, he might just be cannon fodder!

Moreover, he himself did not quite understand this kind of naval battle.

He only has this little fortune. If he loses it all in one battle, he will regret it so much.

"Your Highness, the navy is not for show!"

Zhao Liuliang asked for battle again, "Although the navy is weak, Your Highness is attacking the Li Dynasty in order to avenge the people of Yuzhou in the future!"

"The navy officers and soldiers are deeply grateful to His Highness, and they also want to contribute to this battle!"

The strong have their own way of playing.

The weak have their own way of playing.

The strength of the navy does not affect its determination to participate in the war.

"It's time for you to contribute!"

Yun Zheng glared at Zhao Liuliang and said, "Your first task now is to train the navy as soon as possible! When the time comes to use the navy, if the navy can't stand up, I will kill you first!"

"Yes!"

Zhao Liuliang suddenly straightened up, his eyes determined, "But... I still want to fight! Your Highness is going to the expedition to the Le Dynasty this time, and the navy will definitely be useful..."

A navy must be pulled out to fight a battle before it can be considered a real navy.

A navy is one that can fight!

A navy that cannot fight might as well use its warships as merchant ships. After all, they can carry more cargo than merchant ships!

Moreover, this opportunity is also an extremely valuable practical training opportunity for the navy.

To put it bluntly, even if they did not engage in battle with the enemy's navy, just sending the warships over would be a way of accumulating valuable experience for the navy.

If we don't seize the time to accumulate experience now, the navy may not be able to take on the responsibility when it is needed in the future.

Listening to Zhao Liuliang's words, Yun Zheng couldn't help but remain silent.

What Zhao Liuliang said this time really touched his heart.

Combat as training!

It can be said that their navy was built up from scratch.

The earliest prototype of the navy was established by three warships robbed from the imperial court.

We really need to give the navy more opportunities for actual combat training!

Just as Zhao Liuliang said, even if you just drive a navy warship out for a spin, you are accumulating valuable experience.

You can’t grow flowers with strong vitality in a greenhouse!

Yun Zheng thought quietly for a while, then looked up at Zhao Liuliang, "Do you really want to join the battle?"

"Ok!"

Zhao Liuliang nodded heavily.

Facing Zhao Liuliang's determined gaze, Yun Zheng paced back and forth in the barracks again.

Yun Zheng stopped and looked at Zhao Liuliang. "How many people can the navy's current warships carry?"

“Three thousand people!”

Zhao Liuliang replied: "If you want to use the horse ship as a tower ship or treasure ship, you can bring more..."

"what?"

Miaoyin was stunned. "There are only so few people?"

They had previously gone overseas to search for various seeds, and there were nearly two thousand people on just three warships!

Now that they have added so many warships, they can take out another thousand people?

Zhao Liuliang explained: "Madam Miaoyin, you may not know that our previous three warships were all standard treasure ships of the imperial court, and they can carry more people..."

The treasure ship built by Shuobei is smaller in size and can certainly carry fewer people.

That's why he said that the horse ship could be used as a tower ship or a treasure ship.

After listening to Zhao Liuliang's explanation, Shen Luoyan and Miaoyin suddenly realized.

It is no wonder that the Daqian court did not attach much importance to the navy.

I spent so much money but it seems like nothing happened.

I really don’t know how much money it would cost to build a powerful navy.

"One thousand five hundred people!"

Yun Zheng didn't care about this and ordered, "First, select 1,500 strong soldiers, train them as soon as possible, and wait for my order!"

"This……"

Zhao Liuliang hesitated for a moment, "Your Highness, isn't 1,500 people... too few?"

What can fifteen hundred people do?

"You still want to take all the watermen out?"

Yun Zheng glared at Zhao Liuliang and said, "We have to leave some people behind to guard the navy camp!"

"Remember this, my king. This battle is for you to gain experience in naval warfare, not for you to fight to the death with the enemy navy!"

"With just the number of you guys, even if you pull all of them up there, are you enough to fight the enemy to the death?"

He mainly wanted to give the navy a chance to train.

He never expected the navy to engage the enemy.

"I will obey your orders!"

Zhao Liuliang didn't dare to say anything more and quickly obeyed the order loudly.

"Okay, that's it!"

Yun Zheng waved his hand gently, "I am also tired. Please arrange a place for us to stay first. We will go aboard the navy warship tomorrow to have a look!"

"Yes!"