Aside from Cixi and Ciqi, Hong Tao was not idle at this time, he was shrinking in the captain's room, which was more than twice as narrow as the original Jinhe, drawing nautical charts, and there was a locked leather case on the table. The box is full of whale skin paper, which is a voyage report compiled by the captain and the navigator after each voyage of the ships in Jinhe Bay in the past ten years, which in addition to describing the major events that occurred during the voyage, most of them are coordinate data and hydrographic data from various places.

This box Hong Tao has always carried with him, and when he goes home, he puts it in the safe of the old man Bofu, which is the safest place in Jinhe City. With these data, he can draw an accurate chart that is closer to the actual situation, even if he has not been to some places, but according to the data recorded in many materials, he can be as familiar as he has been.

Without this information, the more than ten years of sailing career would have been in vain. It is not enough for an oceanic navy to have strong ships and guns, and reliable navigation skills are not enough, but an accurate nautical chart and hydrographic data from various places are the real connotation of the navy. They don't seem to be useful in normal times, but in the event of a war, they can come in handy.

Do you want to fight the opposing fleet in a certain place, and the climate, currents, and reefs in the local sea are clear? If you don't know, you can go rashly, then you have to explore as you go, otherwise the whole fleet will be in great danger, maybe your fleet will crash into a reef overnight and go to the bottom of the sea to rest, and there will be a fart naval battle.

This is not alarmist, and this has not happened once or twice in history. Even in later generations, there were advanced radio plus satellite positioning and navigation. Tragedy due to ignorance of the situation in the sea area is not uncommon.

Now Hong Tao has to sort out and improve these materials. And to be divided into several parts. Three parts of Asia can be made public within the navy as standing operational information for the Royal Navy, stretching from the Japanese archipelago in the east, to the port of Kalamba in the west, to the Bohai Bay in the north, and to the Java Islands in the south.

With this information, the captains of the Royal Navy do not need to receive separate route maps for each voyage, but only need to consult these information, and they can move freely throughout the Asian seas.

As for some of the materials on Africa and Europe, Hong Tao does not plan to hand them over yet. The first is that the information is not complete, the second is that the Royal Navy will not need these materials for the time being, and the third is that he has to keep a few more backhands for himself. to meet unforeseen needs. What is needed from time to time, Hong Tao himself does not know, anyway, he is this character, he is never completely sure that he is safe, he prefers to assume that his situation is more dangerous, and then start to take precautions.

I don't know how long I have been writing and drawing, Hong Tao feels that his eyes and neck are a little tired. With the gas lights, the cabin is bright enough, but the temperature is also a bit high. Hong Tao stretched his waist, sorted out the materials on the table, and locked them all into the box. Then he walked over to the window and pushed open the two wooden sashes. At this time, the sun was already shining outside the window. This was a busy night. The float glass plant is still under construction, and if you wait a few more months, these windows will no longer have to be made of wooden boards, and will be completely transparent, weatherproof and light-proof.

"Bell bell bell ...... Ling Ling Ling ...... "The last time I had dinner was not long after I left Jinhe Bay, Hong Tao felt a little hungry, and reached out to ring the bell on the bulkhead.

"Your Majesty, you called me?" Soon, the hatch opened, and a shaggy curly head entered. The battleship that Hong Tao was on this time was captained by Swan, and this guy was very excited to sail with Hong Tao, needless to say, it was written on his face.

"What time is it now?" There was a timing hourglass in the captain's room, but unfortunately Hong Tao was busy forgetting it and didn't turn it over, and the hourglass was already empty.

"Ten o'clock in the morning...... Swan's head disappeared from the doorway, and soon reappeared, telling Hong Tao the time he had seen it from the helm.

"Go and ask the cook to get me a bowl of soup cakes, a big bowl, and two eggs!" As soon as he heard that it was ten o'clock, Hong Tao felt that the feeling of hunger in his stomach had intensified, and decided not to wait for lunch, but to eat some mats first.

“…… Your Majesty, when will your great ship be built? Swann disappeared again for a few minutes before burrowing his head back in.

"Something to say that you are a captain who is half outside the door and half inside the door, and you are not afraid to let the crew see the joke?" Hong Tao leaned back in his chair, put his feet on the desk, and lit a cigar. This was supposed to be Swan's captain's room, and he used it for himself when he got on the ship, but this table was really new, and it seems that Swann didn't usually use it much.

"Hey, hey, they can't beat me, whoever dares to laugh at me will beat him......" Swan got Hong Tao's order when he got on the ship, this captain's room does not allow anyone to trespass, he rarely sails alone with Hong Tao, and he doesn't know Hong Tao's habits.

"Why are you asking when my new flagship will be built?" Hong Tao likes this straight-tempered child very much, he has no hobbies except for fighting, and lives an extremely simple life. And this is a very studious person, who can transform from a cavalryman to a qualified sailor in more than half a year, and the hardships are very clear, and ordinary people can't do it.

"I want to be your captain on a new ship! The boat is so small, I love the big boats! I heard that the new ship is bigger than the original Jinhe, so it's so enjoyable. Swann didn't hide anything, he could say whatever he wanted.

"I'm afraid it's difficult, according to the rank and seniority, Xiaoyu and Xiaoxiao will definitely be ahead of you, unless they both take the initiative to give in." Hong Tao didn't think about the new captain of the Sea King, he just deliberately wanted to tease Swann and see how he reacted.

"I can fight better than them, not only at sea, but I can also go ashore to fight, and they will definitely not be able to. If you want to go ashore one day, I can protect you. Swan felt that what Hong Tao said was very reasonable, he tilted his head and thought about it, and then said his advantages.

"That's right, you turned out to be a cavalryman...... Let me ask you, after so many years in the navy, have you forgotten the cavalry skills you originally learned? Hong Tao didn't expect Swan to say this, and he couldn't help but be stunned. It seems that something suddenly comes to mind. Stood up and paced back and forth with his head down. Suddenly raised his head and asked Swan a very serious question.

"Of course I haven't forgotten, for as long as I can remember, I've been running around on horseback with my father, and even if I forget to eat, I won't forget to ride a horse...... You're not going to let me be a cavalryman, are you? I don't want to go, it's just a hundred and ten people, there is no battle to fight, it's boring, I'm not the captain of a new ship. Swann was proud at first. But as he spoke, he understood, and immediately began to beg for mercy with a bitter face. In order not to become a cavalry instructor in the Marine Corps, he did not even fight for the position of captain.

"I mean, what if...... In! Hong Tao stared at Swann for a few seconds, and that evil smile appeared on his face again, as if Grandma Wolf had seen Little Red Riding Hood. Just as he was about to perform his tricks, there was a knock on the door, and the chef brought him the hot noodle soup.

"Bald ...... If...... Ha...... I'll let you ...... Ha...... Lead a real cavalry with ...... Ha...... Thousands, maybe more. There are endless battles to be fought every day, and you are willing to continue to be the captain. Or would you rather be a cavalry commander? "The noodles are hot, and Hong Tao is hungry. With a mouthful of hot noodles in his mouth, Hong Tao began his great cause of fooling.

Swann was a suitable candidate for him to go to the Americas for development temporarily, and the tribe with Luo Youde and the craftsmen seemed to be lacking, and if Swan, a natural cavalryman, was added, it should be even more perfect.

There are countless Indian tribes on the American continent, some of which can be co-opted and subdued by economic means, and some of them must have to fight themselves to the end. Originally, Hong Tao wanted to use musket infantry to deal with those Indians, but now he pondered, in the vast prairie, what could be more efficient than a cavalry to fight the enemy? Moreover, there is no such thing as horses in the Americas, and they have cavalry and others do not, which is a great advantage. This advantage will last for at least a decade or even longer before horses can breed on the American continent.

"There are battles every day? You don't lie to me? "Swann didn't really want to be a navy or a cavalryman, he just liked to fight, and he liked to be whatever he wanted when there was a fight.

"Suck and slip...... Am I like someone who likes to deceive people? Hong Tao was still struggling with the bowl of hot noodles, the more hungry he was, the more anxious he became, and the more anxious he was, the more he couldn't eat the hot noodles.

"Then I'll be a cavalryman!" Swann felt that Hong Tao was more credible, and immediately made his own choice.

"I'm not that good at being a cavalryman, there is a condition that you must promise me before you can go." I was sweating, and I didn't eat a few noodles, Hong Tao simply put the bowl aside, not guilty of this, when it was cold, when it was cold, and when it was cold, I would eat it again.

"I promise to listen to the command! Don't change the command at will! The first thing that came to Swan's mind when he heard the word "condition" was that he was often punished for disobeying orders. In fact, he didn't violate it all, but he always discounted it.

"This time I give you the authority to decide when to fight and when to stop, except for the necessary principles. There will be no one staring at you either, you are the supreme commander of this army, there is no need to listen to anyone's command, I will only go to see you once every few years. "Hong Tao has figured out Swan's character, he is an unruly fellow, and what he likes most is to do what he likes to do according to his own preferences, giving him full autonomy, which is a great temptation.

"You're asking me to go to an overseas territory to fight the natives...... Is it the Port of Kalamba or the Port of Cape Town? Swann was not stupid, he could understand with a little use of his brain that the model that Hong Tao said could not be used in the Jinhe Empire itself, and the Great Song Dynasty and the Mongol Empire were also unreliable, and only overseas territories could act like this.

"No, it's a new land, on the condition that you leave your present life, that you have no contact with anyone, and that I will declare you dead. It could be five years, it could be ten years, and the land was too big to conquer in ten years. ”

“…… I swear, never tell anyone! As long as I am given enough horses and weapons, I will be able to help the empire occupy a large territory, just like my father did. As Hong Tao thought, Swan only hesitated for a few seconds before making a decision. What young people like him think about all day long is how to make meritorious achievements, and they are full of enthusiasm, and their families and relatives are not important to them. This is also a tradition of the Mamluks, who have lived in a cruel tradition of survival of the fittest since childhood, thinking differently from ordinary people. To have your own territory means success, and it doesn't matter who you work for.

"Well, I'll arrange for you to die in an accident when you get to Cape Town, and you'll be with you, and you'll be their captain. Come here, look at this coordinates, and keep in mind that your ship is going to join me here. Hong Tao had already slightly modified the original plan in his head, and with Swan's participation, the implementation of the plan was more perfect.

(To be continued.) )