Chapter 77: Southeast training
Upstairs, Yan Changwu was able to deal with it freely, and commanded the Southeast ship steadily.
Speaking of it, he took the "subject examination" earnestly, and he has real talents, plus his cleverness and commanding ability has passed the test.
"Take one mid-mast sail, and then another top sail!" He watched the wind gradually become stronger, so he gave instructions again.
The sailors acted in accordance with the order, and the Southeast drove quickly to the south.
" As long as the wind direction stays the same, let the boat take the wind as much as possible. "Yan Changwu ordered his subordinates, and then asked in English: "Mr. David, how many points are in the wind, five o'clock?"
What he asked was his navigator, who turned out to be a blonde foreigner, the British Mr. David, who was an expert hired in the British fleet this time.
When Master Yan saw David, he felt that he saw him right.
Mr. David was born in a noble family and his family was a small manor. His grandfather and father had shares in the East India Company. Mr. David was not too old, he was a lieutenant who was less than 30 years old (this is the advantage of his family, ordinary It is impossible for a person to rise to such an official rank at his age), his appearance is handsome, he can handle everything, he is proficient in Western swordsmanship, boxing, spearmanship, and gun shooting, and he can also write French poetry (the British While fighting with the French, there are a lot of people in Hafa there. Compared with the fashion of the French, some British people think that Paris, France is the magic capital, very lively, and London, England is just a rural place, very boring), more wonderful It is because of his superb sailing that he has sailed to Africa to see the scenery when he was more than ten years old.
To be honest, Mr. David didn't really appreciate the small rural area of Southeast House. When Yan Changwu went to recruit experts that afternoon, Mr. David wanted to see the excitement, but. . . Everyone saw it right at once (didn't the two of them want to go back and forth?), became a foreign expert in the Southeast Mansion, and served as the captain of the Southeast.
"I suspect that at six o'clock, Mazu will be beautiful and bring us good wind!" Mr. David actually knew Mazu, and he spoke very smoothly.
(compass points: a 360 degree circle is divided into 32 compass points, and one compass point is 11.25 degrees)
"Come on, I'll steer! You will command!" Yan Changwu said, and he took over the helmsman's wheel.
Although it was not in accordance with the operating rules, the helmsman obediently obeyed and left the rudder position.
I placed my hand on the steering wheel, and felt a powerful force coming. This was also an individual effort. The control at that time was not as easy to drive as the cars of later generations.
The oak rudder blade of the Southeast is 1.5 meters wide and 9 meters high. It is controlled by a 7.2-meter-long tiller on the lower gun deck. The steers can control the direction of the ship's rudder through ropes and pulleys on the aft deck.
"Turn the ship downwind, turn right at seven compass points!" David said concisely, the sailor was busy, and Yan Changwu was in charge of steering, and the ship turned sharply under his control.
"Resume the rudder position!" David cried, watching the gust of wind pass.
Yan Changwu firmly grasped the tiller to adjust the direction of the ship again, and he really felt the pulsation of the ship’s vitality: the tiller trembled in his palm, a force was transmitted from the rudder all the time, and the breeze pointed at his cheek. Every time he turned the tiller, the Southeast responded flexibly and drove very smoothly.
"This is a good boat!" Yan Changwu admired with satisfaction.
What are Porsches and Ferraris? I control a 1,500-ton ship!
"It is indeed a good boat!" David deeply agreed: "In our UK, it is also second to none!"
gave an order: "Heading east to south, then south."
He kept giving orders to gradually adjust the ship to be more windy. The sails were splayed and the sails bulged. Yan Changwu looked up and found that the bow cable was tight and the fore mast sails began to tremble, so he let the sailors loosen. Open some.
Southeast was cutting waves all the way, and behind her, the group of warships followed closely!
"The goal ahead is about to arrive!" the sailor on the mast yelled.
Yan Changwu, who temporarily acted as the helmsman, handed over the rudder wheel and took a telescope to observe.
The black reef standing in the center of the sea is surrounded by red tongs painting a big circle with a cross in the middle.
began shelling training.
Yan Changwu let David take charge of the command, and he descended to the lowest gun deck, where Yan Donglai was ready.
24-pounder cannon!
The members of each artillery squad are a bit nervous, because this is under the command of Yan Changwu himself. Although I have simulated it many times before, the effect needs to be checked.
Their guns were tightly **** in strict accordance with the operating rules, and they were fixed on the gun positions by twisting reels. One end of each twisting reel was connected to the deck wall, and there was no displacement in the wind and waves.
This is a must. If they are allowed to roll freely, there will be wounded on the ship: each gun weighs two tons!
"Let go of the gun body"!
Yan Changwu ordered the first movement of the gun squad. They untied the pulley chain tied to the gun body, and also untied the tightly tied rope. The heavy gun body shook unsteadily with the wind and waves, and someone immediately grabbed the gun. The pulleys on both sides of the body (the other end is connected to the deck wall), control it, and don't let it be naughty, otherwise this two-ton big guy will not be able to pick it up even if he goes to pick the iron pulley.
"Let the gun body flat."
At first the muzzle was upright. A thick gunner pushed the winch rod under the thick tail and pryed it up. Another gunner pushed a wooden wedge into the position a little below the rear gun body. , Fix the barrel in a direct horizontal position.
"The artillery is in place!"
Lead the artillery to the open port window, pull the pulley to tow the gun with hands and legs, the muzzle points to the port window, pull to the port window, and take out the gun plug at the muzzle.
"Load gunpowder!"
At that time, the wuxiaspot gun was used~www.wuxiaspot.com~ The structure of the wuxiaspot gun was like a closed tube. The closed end was first set with gunpowder (usually a gunpowder bag wrapped in silk). A large matchstick filled the gunpowder solid, like pounding garlic, and then shot a cannonball into the muzzle.
At the closed end, there is a small hole (fire door) on the side, leading to the gunpowder, inserting a fuse, igniting it, passing to the gunpowder, the gunpowder explodes, and the ball is blown out.
"Put out the gun!"
The people behind fixed the cannon body, while others pushed the cannon. The people on the side pulled the pulley chain forcefully, and the other end was connected to the gun body, thus extending the muzzle.
"Install the fuse!"
The gunner first used the fire gate needle, stuffed it into the gun barrel from the fire gate, pierced the flannel that wrapped the gunpowder in the barrel, and stuffed a fuse into the gunpowder bag.
"Aim!"
Yan Changwu carefully looked out the porthole through the sight on the artillery. At this time, David guided the big ship around the reef, anticipating the advance, Yan Changwu ordered: "Fire!"
The gunner fired the torch towards the fuse, it creaked, the flames flashed, and several pounds of compacted gunpowder exploded in the barrel, sending out the cannonball as big as a grapefruit.
The cannonball hit the rock accurately.
The hit rate is good, but the time is far away.
"How much time?" Yan Changwu asked Yan Donglai who was pinching the clock.
"Four minutes and eleven seconds!"
"Really good!" Yan Changwu laughed at himself: "We hit the enemy with one shot, and the enemy can pay us back four cannons!" (The British fired one shell per minute)
"Practice!" He said fiercely: "The first three gun squads with the best grades of the day will enjoy the officer's food, and the three worst gun squads will be responsible for cleaning the floor!"
