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When Zheng He went to the Western Ocean, the first few entourage generals reached 27,000 people, and more than 200 large and small ships, according to the combat strength of the Ming army at that time, it was enough to sweep through the small countries along the way.

Yang Yi went out to the Indian Ocean this time, with nearly 50 large and small ships, nearly 40,000 soldiers, and merchants, sailors, medical personnel, craftsmen, and logistics support personnel, adding up to a total of 5,000 people.

Although the number of people is several times less, the combat power is definitely no worse than Zheng He's Invincible Armada, because Zheng He has no gunboats and no flintlock guns.

Yang Yi's fleet had 30 artillery pieces and 500 flintlock guns. With these weapons, whether it is naval or land warfare, it can also sweep through countries along the way.

The distance from Singapore to Shilan (Sri Lanka) is about 1,500 nautical miles (about the same as from Guangzhou to Singapore), and it takes about 20 days at a speed of five knots.

When Zheng He went to the West, it often took about two years to set off from Taicang, Jiangsu Province and return to India, and the reason for this was not that Zheng He's ship was too slow, but in fact, he berthed in various countries along the way for too long, and sometimes it was not surprising that he berthed in a certain country for a month.

That is to say, when Zheng He went to the West, most of the time was anchored in various countries, and the time he actually sailed at sea only accounted for a small part, it is said that he was looking for Emperor Jianwen, Yang Yi did not agree with this statement;

According to common sense, if it is really to find Emperor Jianwen, it is impossible to find the African side, there is no need for that, even if Emperor Jianwen unifies the whole of Africa, he will not be able to threaten the rule of Emperor Yongle, right?

When Yang Yi came up to the deck below, he saw that the sailors were taking the speed, which was quite interesting. It was a piece of wood thrown from the bow of the ship for measurement; Then the man walks from the bow to the stern at a certain speed, if the person and the wood chips go to the stern at the same time. It's called the upper shift.

And according to custom, people set a day as ten watches. The first watch is 2.4 hours, and the upper watch means that the time of driving at this time, that is, 2.4 hours, is 60 miles, which is converted into about 6 to 7 knots of speed in later generations.

If a person arrives before a plank, it is called not a change, and a plank that arrives before a person is called a change.

Now that the wind was tailwinding, the fleet had left the Strait of Malacca, and the sails were blowing and cleaving the waves towards the island of Shiran (Sri Lanka), reaching a speed of at least six knots;

On the route from Singapore to Shilan, the people of the Western Indian Ocean Trading Company have made several round-trips. It's kind of familiar;

Several merchant ships can also be seen passing on this route every day, and when the Three Buddhas were in full bloom, the Sinhalese kingdom on the island of Shilan was once a vassal state. Decades ago, when the southern Indian kingdom conquered Sriwijaya, it also took this route.

This time the pilot was a manager of a trading company, named Qin Xian, who had been back and forth to India twice and was familiar with the situation there, so Yang Yi asked people to make tea. chatted with him on the deck, and Le Tao, Meng Yunshan and others also listened together.

Qin Xian was quite talkative, chatting about what he had seen and heard in the past, and only heard him say: "At present, there are two small countries on Xilan Island. To the south, there is a Sinhalese country, and probably during the Warring States period, Aryans from North India migrated to the island of Shiran and established the Sinhalese country. In the early years of the Western Han Dynasty, Emperor Ashoka of the Mauryan Dynasty of India sent his son to the island to promote Buddhism. Welcomed by the Sinhalese king, the Sinhalese people rejected Brahmanism and converted to Buddhism.

The other is called the Tamil State. Around the beginning of the Western Han Dynasty, the Tamils of South India also began to migrate and settle in the northeastern part of the island of Shilan, and established the Tamil State, which was a Brahmanical religion.

The two small countries on the island of Shilan, because of conflicts of interest and differences of faith, have been fighting each other for thousands of years and have never reconciled. ”

Yang Yi was a little amused when he heard it, these two countries have been inherited for such a long time, and no one side has won after fighting for thousands of years, this thousand-year war is probably the longest war in the world.

Meng Yunshan suddenly said: "Who is richer in Sinhala or Tamil?" ”

When everyone heard this, they immediately laughed, a few days ago they made a lot of money in Srivijaya, if they were so poor that they didn't have clothes to cover their bodies, we would not bother to go.

Qin Xian replied with a smile: "In comparison, the Sinhalese country in the south is richer, its country is more than 7,000 li, the capital is more than 40 li, the land is fertile, the qi is warm and hot, the crops are abundant, the flowers and fruits are abundant, the people are prosperous, the family property is rich, the people are humble and dark in appearance, the nature is relatively strong, and they are studious and virtuous, and they are good at virtue and diligence;

There is a mountain name in the country, also called Cuilan Mountain, tall and towering, there is a giant's right footprint on the top of the mountain, eight feet long, two feet deep, according to legend, it is left by the god of creation;

The mountains are rich in cat's eyes, sapphires, rubies, washed down the mountain streams with the mountain rain, the locals pick up treasures from the sand, or go to the market to sell, or sell to foreign merchants in the past, the beaches of the country are beautiful, the most beautiful place I have ever seen, the sea is rich in snail pearls, very valuable"

As soon as he heard Qin Xian say that it was both a gem and a pearl, Meng Yunshan couldn't help licking his lips, Yang Yi couldn't help but laugh and scolded: "Don't think about it, we are far away from our homeland, it is necessary to make friends with some countries, the Sangha country believes in Buddhism, and the Brahmanical countries are hostile to each other, it is our most ideal strategic partner, whether it is a gem or a pearl, you don't imagine taking it directly in Bolin State." ”

Le Tao immediately said: "The captain is reasonable, India is too far away from our homeland, and it is impossible for us to station so many men and horses in India for a long time, befriend the Sangha country, and win his support, which is much more advantageous for us than directly conquering by force." ”

A few people were chatting on the deck, and at some point the wind on the sea calmed down, and it became quieter and quieter, as if all the wind had disappeared, and the scorching sun in the sky was still shining scorchingly, and a colorful halo was emitted around the scorching sun.

Huang Feng, the star officer on duty, shouted first: "Everyone prepare quickly, there is a storm, there is a storm, prepare quickly, the helmsman, sailor, and sailor are all in place, don't panic, the more panicked you are, the faster you will die, everyone must not forget, we are in the same boat, we must be in the same boat, everyone must stick to their duties, even if it is to pay for your life, because this is your duty"

Huang Feng shouted. While running towards Le Tao, because Le Tao is the captain of this boat. The duty of the duty officer is to observe the sun, moon and stars, and correct the course and speed. They are also responsible for observing the sea conditions, speed, enemy situation, etc., and issuing response orders to the crew as soon as they find the situation, and at the same time reporting to the captain as soon as possible, and the captain will command the entire ship and even the entire fleet.

The crew sprang into action at his shout, and the deck was full of sailors and crews rushing to their posts. At this moment, the fleet has sailed into the Indian Ocean, and there is no safe haven nearby, so this time it can only resist this storm.

The southwestern horizon has begun to turn a dark red. There was a thin layer of light ochre pale blue, and at the top was a dark and heavy cloud, which flew rapidly to the northeast;

The wind on the sea surface became stronger and stronger, and the dark clouds rolled with the wind until they pressed downward, and the dark red horizon became narrower and thinner, and the sea surface seemed to be squeezed by the thick clouds, and the waves began to rise. The waves are getting higher and higher

Yang Yi quickly ran back to the upper deck, took Qing Niang and the others to the lower deck, and hurriedly commanded: "Qing Niang, you must remember my words." No matter what happens, don't run around, when the storm comes. Hold on to the hull and close the doors and windows. Do not approach the location of doors and windows, otherwise when the waves hit. Enough to throw you out. ”

"Brother Yang, what are you going to do?"

"Qing Niang, the eldest brother is the person in charge of this fleet, although the fleet is not under the specific command of the eldest brother, but as the officer on duty said, everyone can't escape their responsibilities when the storm hits, the eldest brother must go to the command room, you have to be strong, our ship has a deep draft, and the ability to engage in wind and waves is strong, and it will be fine."

Although Yang Yi comforted them, looking at the dark clouds in the southwest direction and the rising wind and waves on the sea, Qing Niang's faces were still pale, and after Yang Yi asked the guards to take care of them, he quickly ran to the upper command room.

In the command room, Le Tao was giving orders to the fleet.

"The helmsman is careful to keep course and adjust at all times to make sure that the ship is facing the storm head-on."

"The mainsail is all folded and the right side sail is hoisted."

"The oarsman is in position, and the oarsman is out."

“”

Le Tao's order was quickly conveyed through the sound of drums or flags, and the huge sails were lowered one after another, and the mainsail was lowered to minimize the impact of the storm on the ship, so that the ship was facing the storm to avoid the side of the ship being beaten by the wind and waves, causing the ship to capsize.

This is very important, on the sea, only the brave are worthy of survival, in the face of a terrifying storm, if there is no safe haven nearby, you must not run away, the more you flee, the more miserable you die, only the brave to face the wind, always let the bow face the wind and waves, this is possible to survive.

At the same time, there is a big taboo when encountering a storm, that is, let the boat drift with the wind and waves, this is definitely a dead end, you must let the boat maintain a certain power, so you must hang the side sail, and at the same time the oarsman must make a huge oar, desperately rowing, so that the boat has enough power to maintain the correct course.

The wind grew stronger and stronger, and the waves became higher and higher, almost rolling up to the deck, and the sea began to roar, like the wrath of the dragon king, and set off huge waves like mountains, as if they were about to overturn everything, and the original giant ship seemed so small at this moment, like a matchbox fluttering on the sea.

The crew also began to roar, and under the command of the captain, they shouted in unison the earth-shattering trumpet, sweating like rain, rowing huge oars, adjusting the sails, mastering the course, and rushing towards the front of the storm;

It felt like a lonely general on the battlefield, facing an overwhelming enemy, resolutely raising his long knife, urging his war horse, and rushing towards the majestic enemy.

There was only the sound of the wind and waves in my ears, and I couldn't even hear the people next to me clearly, and the huge waves crashed against the bow of the ship, sometimes even submerged the entire bow, and the hull of the ship was thrown into the air at once, and then into the bottom of the waves;

But amid the hysterical roar of the crew, the bow of the ship always rose to the wind, splitting the waves as high as the same height

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PS: Thank you Fast & Furious, General Tatsumi, How could I not believe it, Moonlight BMW and others for their support, thank you.

(To be continued......)