Shi Kefa came back, and Sun Chengzong talked to him very smoothly. Although he didn't know what a railway was, Shi Kefa was very interested in the position of Minister of Railways. Because, this Minister of Railways is at the same level as the Minister of the Sixth Minister.

Moreover, the Ministry of Railways is a newly built ministry, and most of the personnel are naturally selected by Shi Kefa, the minister. It took Li Hao a year to thoroughly survey the line from Jinzhou to Shanhaiguan. Just waiting for Shi Kefa to take the old department to Liaodong to build a railway.

Li Xiao waited in the capital for half a month before Chen Laohu came back with someone. Li Xiao didn't say a word, and took people directly to Tianjin Wei. They are all veterans floating on the water, and it is much easier to drive a steam engine ship than to drive a sailboat. At least you don't have to fiddle with the main sail, the bunch of sails.

After learning the advanced experience of Yangzhou City, the wooden hulls of the two ships were hung with composite armor. Dense wooden chests were hung on the sides of the hull. The box contained several layers of iron plates, and between the iron plates were asbestos plates and ceramic plates. When tested with a copper cannon, not a single shell penetrated this external armor.

Of course, there is a price. The draft of Zhenyuan and Dingyuan's hulls dropped by a full meter, and the speed of the ship was also a little slower. Li Xiao had to reduce the loading capacity of the ship's coal bunker to ensure the speed, which was not a real voyage anyway. There is a Daming coastline everywhere along the way, and people have been sent to various ports along the way, and coal can be replenished at any time.

On the day of sailing, the fisherman had to follow. He said that this was the most successful ship he had ever built in his life, and that he wanted to see how it beat those foreign ghosts.

Western ghosts! This is the new name for the English, although those who used to come from Europe were also yellow-haired and blue-eyed like ghosts. However, the Europeans have done some good things in the past. The Ming people mostly call them red-haired people, color-eyed people, or yellow-haired people.

This time, these guys actually dared to hit Daming, and they were blocking the mouth of the Yangtze River. The image of Europeans in the hearts of the people plummeted, so all Europeans had a new name - Western ghosts.

The whistle of the Zhenyuan was like a dragon's roar, and the low whistle echoed the surface of the sea and spread throughout the docks. The huge hull swayed and slowly sailed away from Tianjin Wei Wharf. The Dingyuan ship behind him also sounded the whistle, and its huge body was like a giant beast that had woken up.

Everyone was shocked by the scene, and everyone on the dock stood there dumbfounded, watching the two most ferocious warships of the Ming Dynasty set sail.

Li Xiao stood at the bow of the boat and watched Zhenyuan leave the dock and enter the deep water. When the fishing elder ordered to speed up, Zhenyuan seemed to be pushed hard by the gods. The bow of the ship smashed into the water, bursting into countless white sprays.

Seagulls circled around the town and chirped, and they had never seen such a large warship since the beginning of the world.

"It's autumn, and the north wind is already blowing. The weather is about to cool down, this is God wishing us a smooth journey. At this time, it would be good to meet those Englishmen, and we will win against the headwind, relying on the speed alone. "The fisherman's beard was swayed by the wind, and his head and face were full of beards.

"It's not that simple, we have to face dozens of times more warships []. Use the time on the road to train and familiarize the gunners with the guns as quickly as possible. Especially the rockets in the back row, it is important to hit them with one hit. Shooters must be sure! Li Xiao looked at the rocket launchers on the back deck of Dingyuan.

The rocket artillery thing is powerful enough, but the quasi-leader is a mess. Basically, the shells can only be guaranteed to be fired in one direction, and if you want to hit a point target like a ship, you can only rely on a salvo to increase the hit rate, anyway, as long as the size of this rocket shell hits, it can make the English sailboat into the soul with one shot. This thing was originally not suitable for naval warfare, but at the beginning, Yu Lao was preparing to deal with targets on the ground, and he didn't think about naval warfare.

"Shuai, the brethren have fought this thing with rocket artillery. This kind of rocket is the same as the one on our original ship. If you want to say that you want your subordinates to point where to fight, that's absolutely. But if you want to kill a boat with a salvo, you are still somewhat sure. In the past, when the second master was on the ship, he trained to hit the ship with rocket artillery. In general, one salvo can hit one or two shells on the target ship.

As far as the head of the rocket artillery shell is concerned, not to mention the explosion of a single hit, even if it is smashed, it can smash the ship through. "Chen Laohu has been familiar with the equipment since he got on the ship, and the rocket launchers on this ship are similar to a model on the original ship, and it is very easy for his subordinates to get started.

"Then find some clever ones to operate the front main gun. Pick a few strong carrying shells and try to increase the rate of fire. ”

"Don't worry, Sir, this ship is big, but the cannons are not as many as the ones on our original ship. Originally, we had 20 guns on one side of the ship. The two sides of the ship combined had forty guns, plus the front and rear main guns. The ship's side chord did not open the muzzle, but only placed ten guns on the side deck. This time, our gunners are all rich. "Chen Laohu was very dissatisfied with such a large ship and such a small number of guns.

"You're a rammer, you're in for a treat. Those are all new guns, breech-loaded. The shells are all cone-shaped shells, not the round shells you used to play with. This shell, in terms of rate of fire and range accuracy, is not the same thing as what you used to play with. The old fisher stretched out his hand and slapped Chen Laohu, Chen Laohu hunched his head and slumped his neck, and was slapped on the head by the old fisherman.

In fact, he had long found out that these guns were breech-loaded. It's just that for a while, I couldn't find anyone to teach how to operate this cannon. It is when I beg the old man to beg for the fisherman, it doesn't matter if I am beaten twice by the old guy, and I can open my mouth when I ask for someone for a while.

"Hurry up and get familiar with those guns, we don't have much time. This time, it is better to load less coal than to load so many shells, which is to train you on the road. ”

"No, it's just ......!" Listening to Li Xiao's instructions, Chen Laohu looked at the old fisher in embarrassment.

"Go to Zhao Shizhen, these cannons are all designed by him." The old fisherman waved his hand and drove away Chen Laohu like a fly.

"Xie Yulao!" Chen Laohu bowed, and then the person disappeared.

"This time it may be the last time the old man will go far away, and he will not be able to do it when he is older. I want to fight with the Japanese in North Korea back then, and the small wrecked ship is far less stable than this big ship, and the wind and waves can turn people upside down. The people in the cabin all vomited, and the smell, oops, don't mention it.

The big guy's legs are as soft as noodles, but when he heard that he was going to work with the Japanese cowards, everyone was in good spirits. It was so dark that the sea was covered with corpses. After the war, the whole sea was full of sharks, making the sea like a boiling pot. The blood...... Have you ever seen a red sea? The old fisherman looked at the dividing line between the Bohai Sea and the Yellow Sea, and his eyes were desolate and distant.

"At that time, in naval warfare, artillery had already been on the battlefield. However, gang jumping battles still occur from time to time, and that kind of naval battle is extremely cruel and bloody. Those predecessors back then really rolled over in the blood.

Now the imperial court is still in difficulty, and when the imperial court's finances are a little more generous, the imperial court will provide for these veterans. A country that forgets its heroes will soon be forgotten as well. ”

"Old man, on behalf of those old brothers, thank you for being handsome! When this man is old, he is willing to remember the past. It's strange to say that I didn't have so much thought when I was young. Now that I'm old, my brain can't be idle all day.

Now the old man only has two hours a day, and many times he stares until dawn, and he is left to think about these early years.

These artillery pieces or something, thanks to Zhao Shizhen, can be played. ”

"Dao Lao wrote to me, saying that he was old and wanted to go back to the Japanese country. I said let him retire on Changxing Island, don't blame me for being mean. It's really that he knows too many secrets of our weapons, and I don't say that you know the nature of the Japanese people. Now they are very deferential, and when they turn over and press us, they will be more ruthless than wolves. ”

"The old man knows about this, and the old man also thinks that you are doing the right thing. At that time, it was a last resort, and I could only rely on his experience. In the future, we will still have to find talents from the Chinese Miao descendants.

I was thinking about telling you this, Zhao Shizhen is a genius in terms of weapons. These two years were devoted to artillery, breech-loading guns, although you drew drawings. But there are a lot of difficult things, he led people to make cannonballs, and to forge cannon barrels to test materials. It took two years to figure out this breech-loading gun. Reload speed, accuracy, and range are not comparable to breech-loading guns.

Don't look at the fact that there are only ten guns on our side of the ship now, but in terms of combat effectiveness, they are more powerful than the previous twenty guns. ”

"Zhao Shizhen is indeed a talent, and he can take on more responsibilities. His family has moved to the island and must take care of his family. I'll explain these things. ”

"In today's Martial Arts Research Institute, the old man is just a nominal one. These things can still be arranged, so you don't have to worry about it. The old man thought ......! ”

"The Martial Arts Research Institute still has to be in charge of you, and Zhao Shizhen can't afford to take the lead. In the future, you just need to centralize the schedule. I don't need to do everything myself, I should be at an age where I should be in this position, but it's not good for me to be dragged in this position. But you see, the world has just been peaceful, and the English have come to make trouble again. The Martial Arts Research Institute is not in charge of you, and I am not at ease.

In this way, to make up a vice president for Zhao Shizhen, according to the military system of the imperial court, can be regarded as a member of the fourth grade. ”

"It's not just Zhao Shizhen, Sun Lao sent a few people. Among them, there are two brothers named Xu Erjue and Xu Ermo who are particularly clever and capable, and many of the designs and manufactures on the locomotive are made by their brothers. Later, when the old man inquired, it turned out to be Xu Guangqi, the grandson of Lord Xu. The origin of this school is not a little stronger than that of an old man like me. ”

"Xu Guangqi's grandson? This is the ability of family learning, and it is necessary to make up for two stewards from the sixth grade. As long as there is a capable person, the court will not be stingy with official money. In the future of land transportation, trains are a top priority. Railways are the main arteries of the country.

In the future, shipbuilding, railways, and airships will all have to be built by the Martial Arts Research Institute. By the way, how is the matter with the airship. This thing needs to be done quickly! ”

"The hot air balloon is fine, the airship is not okay. The main reason is that the steam engine is too big, and the coal is too much, and the weight is too large for the airbag to lift. ”

"I know there's a kind of oil in the Middle East, and that oil can be refined to make gasoline. It weighs less than coal, but burns more violently than coal. It's a pity that there are only a few places in China that produce this thing. And it's all underground, and it's very difficult for our current technology to pull that thing out of the ground. ”

"Oil! It's not black, sticky, and smells a little stinky. The old fisherman thought for a moment and suddenly asked.

"You've seen it?" Li Xiao was surprised that the old fisherman actually knew about oil.

"I haven't seen the oil that the marshal said, but the old man knows that there is a kind of stone paint, which is very similar to what you said. When he was fighting with the Japanese people, Chen Dashuai once got some of this kind of stone paint. Thinking that it could attack the ships of the Japanese country, the effect was not good after the test. Later, it was useless, and the soldier took it and set it on fire. Collecting soot to make ink and writing it on paper is shiny, but it makes a lot of money. ”

“……！” Li Xiao was speechless, using oil to make ink, this is the first time I have heard of it.

"Do you know where that thing was made?" Li Xiao is more interested in oil than ink.

"It seems to say that it is over there in Sichuan, in a mountain. I don't know the specific old man! ”

"Let Chen Lao investigate, he will find it. Once you've found it, you just need to steam it in a pot and you'll get the gasoline I said. Be careful, though, that the oil will stratify when boiled. The first layer is gasoline, and the second layer is diesel. The rest can be sold as kerosene! Gasoline needs to be sealed and stored in cans, otherwise it will evaporate quickly. ”

"Volatilization?" The old fisherman was confused.

"Uh......! Just like alcohol, it will disappear when exposed to the air for a long time. ”

"Oh! Then this gasoline ......! ”

"I'll draw a drawing for you when I go back, and you mail the drawings to the Martial Arts Research Institute first. Specific things, after I return to Beijing this time, you ask the Xu brothers to come here. I'll tell them face to face, let's try to get this airship. In the future, after hitting the Middle East, we will build large oil tankers and pull them back into ships.

This petrol-powered machine could not only be made smaller than a steam engine, but it could also be more powerful than a steam engine. It's just that the processing requirements are a little higher, so let the Xu brothers and sisters tinker. If it doesn't work in one year, it will be two years, and if it doesn't work in two years, it will be three years If it doesn't work in three years, it's five years, anyway, we have time, and we can figure it out. ”

"Huh! Dashuai, you're right, but it's a pity that the old man can't see it. At the thought of the huge airship flying in the sky, the old fisherman was so excited that he swayed.

"Don't worry, you can see it. It won't take many years for this to happen, and once technology is developed, it will be like a meteor flying by. It's only going to get faster and faster, and it's definitely not going to stand still. If you look back in another ten or twenty years, our technology today will make you feel miserable.

In the future, the school will become more and more popular, and more and more children will learn knowledge. Quantitative change leads to qualitative change, and in 10 years you will find more and more talent available. ”