Liu Mang's army moved out. They had been in Hefei for more than a month! Both the Black Flag Army and the City Guard had undergone training. Although they were not as elite as before, they could be said to be independent. Not only that, the recruitment order brought real benefits to Liu Mang! The people in charge of Gushi, Anfeng, Hefei, Lujiang, and Guangzhou were all prepared by Liu Mang. Gan Ning's 12,000 navy directly went to Lujiang! Liu Mang wanted to set up two navy camps, one in Lujiang and the other in Shouchun. The docks were the same. Both sides would build ships together. This would ensure that the navy could enter the sea as soon as possible!
Liu Mang had also gathered nearly 8,000 people. More than 3,000 people could enter the Black Flag Army and the City Guard. This made the City Guard and Black Flag Army expand to 9,000 people! The remaining 5,000 people were basically ordinary people. If they wanted to get a meal from Liu Mang, their bodies were not bad. Otherwise, they would not have traveled so far! Therefore, Liu Mang divided them into five groups. They followed the county magistrates of Gushi, Anfeng, Hefei, and Lujiang to their respective cities. As the garrison forces, the field forces only needed the City Guard and the Black Flag Army!
Liu Mang also pulled out the 200 cavalry units that originally belonged to the City Guard. Although Liu Mang's cavalry units did not ride white horses, their heavy armor was silver-white. Liu Mang also ordered people to make two white robes overnight and handed one to each of the cavalry units.
Their commander was Zhao Yun. Liu Mang did not deliberately name these 200 heavy cavalry units. Instead, he directly used the elites under Zhao Yun's command. They were the protectors of the Han people outside the Great Wall, the White Horse Following Righteousness! Although their numbers were small! Liu Mang would expand the army later. Heavy armor was not a problem! The most important thing was the warhorse! It was impossible for any more warhorses to come out of Hebei. Now, there were only two ways to get warhorses. The first was to follow Jiangdong's waterway to the sea and import warhorses along the coastline to Liaodong. This kind of price was quite high. There was also another way to go through Jing Prefecture and import warhorses from Western Liang Prefecture! It was also not an easy task!
Although Jingzhou's Liu Biao and the Lvbu's Army were still in a honeymoon period, don't forget that warhorses were still under the control of Jingzhou's Liu Biao. Moreover, not only did they have to pass through Jingzhou's Liu Biao, but they also had to pass through Hanzhong's Zhang Lu and Wancheng's Zhang Xiu. Even if they wanted to reach Shouchun, they still had to pass through Runan's border! It was not an easy path to take.
Actually, there was another way to obtain warhorses, and that was the batch of Arabian warhorses that Liu Mang brought back! These warhorses had not been castrated, and there were many mares as well. But now that spring had passed, the warhorses' estrus period was over! Therefore, it was impossible for them to give birth to foals this year. They could only wait until the next spring! Even so, they still needed to obtain warhorses. Otherwise, when the batch of Arabian warhorses gave birth to foals, what would the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry ride?
Since the recruitment order, Liu Mang's attention had decreased by a lot! After all, Liu Mang's recruitment order had offended all the nobles in the world, and none of them were currently at war. Jingzhou's Liu Biao and Jiangdong's Sun Ce were in full swing. Sun Cejun had once again gained the upper hand because Sun Cejun had a capable person. He modified the warships in another direction, and that was the thickness. Not only did he increase the size of the warships, but he also used twice the amount of wood to make the warships. He also used copper and molten iron to make the warships. In order to prevent the warships from capsizing due to their heavy weight, watertight cabins were introduced in the shipbuilding industry at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty. The entire warship's cabin was sealed with watertight cabins. Not only did this greatly increase the warship's buoyancy, but even if it was hit by an arrow, caught on fire, or pierced through, as long as the watertight cabins were not completely destroyed, it could still float on the water. Such an outcome was a naval battle between Jingzhou's Liu Biao and Sun Ce. Similarly, Jingzhou's Liu Biao's warships lost dozens of warships. Jingzhou's warships were sent to the bottom of the river, while Sun Ce's warships were severely damaged. Because of the watertight cabins, as long as they did not sink into the water, they could be towed back by other warships after the battle. After the dock's craftsmen repaired and extinguished the flames, they could repair the damaged parts and replenish the soldiers.
Under this situation, the Jingzhou Navy could not hold on any longer. Building a ship was not as fast as repairing a ship. Moreover, building a ship required a lot of resources. No matter how strong the Jingzhou Navy was, it would not be able to sustain this consumption. In a short while, Huangzhou and Wuchang were lost again. The Jiangdong Navy began to approach Sanjiangkou.
If Sanjiangkou was lost, then the Jingzhou Navy would return to the state before they had the ballistae.
Now, Jiangdong had a belly full of anger. They spent a lot of money to get the ballistae blueprints from Liu Mang from the Lvbu's Army. They were prepared to catch Jingzhou off guard. They even gave thousands of craftsmen, gold, silver and jewels to get the Lvbu's Army's promise to delay Jingzhou by a month. That way, they would have enough time to modify the warships.
But who knew that Liu Mang did not sell the blueprints and directly sold the ballistae. This was fun. Jiangdong wanted to catch Jingzhou off guard. They did not expect to be caught off guard by Jingzhou. If not for Zhou Yu's prompt decision and information about the ballistae, they would have been wiped out by Kuai Liang. Even so, Zhou Yu still abandoned Sanjiangkou and retreated all the way! Han Dang's fleet was also gone.
Sun Ce's Jiangdong Army did not dare to vent their anger on the Lvbu's Army. The unlucky one was Jingzhou's Liu Biao. Sun Ce, Taishi Ci, Zhou Yu, Lu Su. Sun Ce's lineup could be said to be extremely luxurious. Behind him was Zhang Shao and his brother Sun Quan.
Jingzhou relied on Wen Pin and Huang Zu to hold up the fort. Although the Kuai brothers were first class strategists, they could not be used as many people. Therefore, the Jingzhou Navy was once again in a predicament. Fortunately, this old man Liu Biao might have done too many good things in his previous life. When Jingzhou's Liu Biao was in a predicament, a god-like person joined the Jingzhou Army.
This person was Zhuge Liang, known as the Crouching Dragon. Although Zhuge Liang did not enter the official career, his reputation was not small. The Crouching Dragon and the Phoenix can conquer the world. Although it was bragging to the heavens, it was also a marketing method of the ancient people. If you have no reputation and no connections, who would hire you? Zhuge Liang was not a person without talent. When he joined the Jingzhou Army, Liu Biao was very happy. It wasn't a day or two that he wanted to recruit these talents from Jing Province. When the world was in chaos, only Jing Province was a paradise. Therefore, many famous and talented people came to Jing Province. These were all great talents! For example, Master Shui Jing and Pang Degong. Jingzhou's Liu Biao did not know how many times he visited, hoping that these people would work for him. Liu Biao was willing to work for his Jingzhou. However, Liu Biao returned empty-handed time and time again. These talents did not even look at Liu Biao. Even if you are talented, you can't do anything if your lord does not want to improve. Therefore, Liu Biao could only look at these people and feel heartbroken.
Now, as Master Shui Jing's proud disciple, Zhuge Liang actually worked for Jingzhou. This made Liu Biao very happy. What did this mean? It meant that the talents living in Jingzhou had thoughts about Jingzhou's Liu Biao. However, this was purely Liu Biao's wishful thinking.
Zhuge Liang joined Liu Biao's forces but he was the only one. Everyone else thought that Zhuge Liang was crazy and stupid. However, Zhuge Liang was the same as before. Even a certain dark fatty in Runan was stunned for a long time when he heard this news.
When Zhuge Liang joined Liu Biao's army, he did not accept Liu Biao's good intention to let him become the Xiangyang Governor. Instead, he told Liu Biao that he wanted to enter the army and go to Jiang Xia to help General Wen Pin and General Huang Zu. One must know that the current situation in Jiang Xia was not good. The casualties were very high. Now, Wen Pin's 70,000 troops were only left with less than 50,000. Moreover, the warships were severely damaged. It could be said that the people in the Jingzhou navy were anxious to return to Jingzhou. However, there were no people who wanted to go to the front line.
Liu Biao was also prepared for the worst. That was to abandon Jiang Xia and retreat to Shiyang, Wulin and Chibi. He would be in a deadlock with Sun Ce. Now, Zhuge Liang actually wanted to go to the front line. At first, Liu Biao did not want to agree. If something happened to Zhuge Liang, then it would be difficult for Liu Biao. At the very least, Master Liu Biao and those famous scholars would have opinions about him. However, Zhuge Liang had already informed his master Master Pang Degong about this matter. He wanted to display himself and defend General Liu Biao's territory. After all, Zhuge Liang's second hometown was Nanyang. He could be considered half a Jingzhou citizen.
Cai Pa, Zhang Yun and some other nobles were also fanning the flames. They wanted Zhuge Liang to go to the front line. One must know that Liu Biao gave Zhuge Liang the position of Xiangyang Governor. Xiangyang was one of the wealthiest places in Jingzhou. Every day, merchant ships would come and go. Merchants from the North and South would trade here. Moreover, the people of Jingzhou were also rich. They were willing to buy things. Therefore, Xiangyang's taxes were equivalent to half of Jingzhou's taxes. As for the position of Xiangyang Governor, as long as they put in a little effort, they would be able to make a fortune. How could the Cai Family give up such a lucrative position?
The Kuai Brothers and Master Pang Degong had a good relationship. They also wanted to see what kind of disciple Shui Jing was like. Although the Kuai Brothers were not willing, they also did not want to give up the position of Xiangyang Governor. Therefore, everyone worked together and Zhuge Liang easily obtained the position of military advisor for the 50,000 soldiers in Jiang Xia. Moreover, Liu Biao also wrote in the letter that no matter big or small, he had to discuss it with Kongming. How could he just be a military advisor? It could be said that Wen Pin no longer had any autonomy. Even if he wanted to send out troops, he had to discuss it with Zhuge Liang first.
As for Huang Zu, although Jiang Xia was his territory, after so many days of fighting, Jiang Xia had been destroyed. His Huang Family was one of the four major families in Jingzhou. In order to appease him, Liu Biao gave the Huang Family Lingling and Guilin as compensation. Huang Zu was also a bachelor. He brought his son, Huang She, and a thousand soldiers to take up the position.
"Zhuge Liang?" Wen Pin stayed in the camp. He was holding the order given to him by Liu Biao. In it, Wen Pin was basically Zhuge Liang's deputy. Although Wen Pin knew of Nanyang's Crouching Dragon Zhuge Liang, Wen Pin's attitude towards people like him was to keep a respectful distance. He knew that these people might be talented and famous. However, those were all exaggerated. No one knew the real situation. Wen Pin also did not want to offend them. But now, it was different. Zhuge Liang had just become an official and he was valued by Liu Biao. Wen Pin, a general who had made great contributions to Jingzhou, became Zhuge Liang's deputy. What do you think Wen Pin would think?
One must know that although Wen Pin was not the main general of the Jingzhou Navy in name, the main general was Huang Zu. However, Huang Zu only had 20,000 subordinates while Wen Pin had 50,000 troops. It could be said that the main decision maker was still Wen Pin. Now that Huang Zu had left, Wen Pin became the main general of the Jingzhou Navy. However, he did not have any real power. Just wait for the next Retired Emperor Zhuge.
"Kongming, you are in Jingzhou?" In the Runan Governor's Office, a dark-skinned fat man looked at the information in his hand. He was stunned. Originally, he and Zhuge Liang had agreed to assist their respective lords and see whose lord would have greater achievements in a few years. The loser would become a page boy. But now, he came out and found his own lord. As he expected, this lord valued him very much. Now, his lord was even going to fight with the person that Kongming had taken a fancy to. Therefore, he had been carefully preparing for a good fight with his old friend. But who knew that the outcome would be like this.
"Kongming, what are you thinking?" This was something that he could not figure out.
What was Zhuge Liang thinking? He didn't know. He originally planned to go directly to Lujiang, but the recruitment order stopped him from going there. He could go directly to Lujiang, but what about after that? Liu Mang's recruitment order could bring him a lot of talents in a short time. But in the long run, it was not worth the loss. He had offended the entire noble family. How could the noble family be so easy to deal with? If this was the case, there would not be four aristocratic families in Jingzhou. The Liu family would not be the only dominant family. Even someone like Liu Biao would have to consider the nobles' opinions. This was also the reason why Liu Biao chose to marry Cai Mao's sister. He needed to win over Cai Family so that the Liu family could maintain their rule in Jingzhou. Liu Mang's recruitment order this time offended all the noble families in the world. These noble families would not let Liu Mang obtain the world. Only you could destroy them. It could be said that Liu Mang was not facing any difficulties. Every time he attacked a place, the local nobles would fully support the local warlords. They would provide money and manpower. These nobles had a lot of resources.
Liu Mang was originally competing with the warlords for hegemony. But now, he was competing with the nobles. Liu Mang would either defeat the nobles and overthrow the old nobles or die. But Liu Mang was a wise lord. Zhuge Liang would not let such a scene happen. Therefore, Zhuge Liang needed to help him. Staying by Liu Mang's side was a kind of help. But this kind of help was too small and too limited. Zhuge Liang needed more help. So now that he was working in Jingzhou, Zhuge Liang would give him the whole of Jingzhou as a gift.
Thinking about this, Kongming's ship gradually sailed towards Shiyang. The water route was not safe. Therefore, Zhuge Liang needed to go directly to Sanjiangkou. In just a day's journey, Kongming and his party arrived at Sanjiangkou's camp. But before they arrived at Sanjiangkou's camp, a warlord led a group of people to greet Zhuge Liang.
"Is this person Wen Pin?" In Zhuge Liang's eyes, the warlord had thick eyebrows and big eyes. His face was very handsome. He looked more like a scholar than a general. If it was not for the scar on his face, it would have made this middle-aged man look more dignified.
"Is this person Zhuge Liang?" Wen Pin was also observing Zhuge Liang. Although Zhuge Liang appeared very indifferent, Wen Pin still frowned. This was because Zhuge Liang was too young. Could a kid who was not even 20 years old really be a military adviser? Could he really decide the life and death of an army? Wen Pin was a general. What was the most important thing for a general? That was strength! Zhuge Liang only had a good reputation. But a kid actually climbed over Wen Pin's head. This was not another Zhao Kuo. During the Warring States period, Zhao Kuo's reputation was even greater than Zhuge Liang's. In the capital of Zhao, there was no one who did not know about Zhao Kuo. Even the King of Zhao was very interested in Zhao Kuo. This was because Zhao Kuo had studied the art of war since he was young. Even his old father Zhao She, a veteran general, was not his opponent. It could be said that Zhao Kuo was a prodigy. His reputation in Jingzhou was much greater than Zhuge Liang's. Zhao Kuo lost the Battle of Changping. Two hundred thousand soldiers were killed and Zhao Kuo could not rise again.
Now Wen Pin was afraid that Zhuge Liang was also an armchair strategist. If that was the case, it would really be over. If that was the case, it would be better to surrender to Jiangdong. It was better than being captured, killed, and losing the last bit of his reputation in the world.
The two looked at each other. But Zhuge Liang was the first to speak. "General Wen Pin. Zhuge Liang of Nanyang greets the general. Everyone said that the general has Meng Tian's ability. Today, it seems that it is true. "Wen Pin was the general of the army. Even if Zhuge Liang was sent by Liu Biao to supervise the army, etiquette could not be ignored. Zhuge Liang praised Wen Pin as Meng Tian in order to get closer to Wen Pin. He also knew that he came from nowhere. He was young and most importantly, he had never commanded an army before. Thus, it was inevitable that Wen Pin would not be convinced. In order to maintain a harmonious relationship, Kongming had no choice but to support Wen Pin! At the very least, he had to give Wen Pin face on the surface.
"Military Advisor Kongming, there is no need for this. This old man is only responsible for guarding the land. " As the saying goes, do not hit a smiling person. Even though Wen Pin was not satisfied with Zhuge Liang and doubted Zhuge Liang's ability, he was now praising him. If he continued to show a sour face, then it would be a problem of quality. Moreover, even though Sanjiangkou was under the control of the Jingzhou Navy, it was inevitable that there would be spies from Jiangdong. If they were to see a disagreement, Jiangdong would be the laughing stock. No matter who was in charge of the army, it was to protect Jingzhou.
"Kongming is young and does not know much about the military. I hope that General Wen Pin will not be stingy with your guidance." Kongming was speaking from the bottom of his heart. He, Zhuge Liang, was talented. However, that was only in terms of strategy. If it was just Lun Ce, he, Zhuge Liang, could fight a group of people from Jiangdong. However, in reality, the hydrology of the Yangtze River, the loss of the warships and other trivial matters in the army were not known to Zhuge Liang. This was because Master Shui Jing and the books would not talk about these things. Therefore, Zhuge Liang needed Wen Pin's help.
The two of them stood at the door and exchanged pleasantries for a while. In the end, one of the officers spoke. "General, Military Advisor. Let's go to the city and talk." Sanjiangkou was a place that was half close to the Yangtze River and half close to the land. It was not so much a naval stronghold as it was a city. It was much bigger than Wancheng City's naval stronghold. Therefore, the officer said that he wanted to enter the city.
The group walked towards the city but Zhuge Liang shook his head. "General Wen Pin. Let's go to the place where the fleet is located first."
"Huh?" Wen Pin was surprised. Now, he should be the one to entertain Zhuge Liang and not directly go to the fleet. However, Wen Pin was after all a general. He was more interested in war than a banquet. Therefore, he did not say anything. He led Zhuge Liang towards the direction of the fleet. Sanjiangkou was very big. The group did not bring any horses. Therefore, they walked for a while before they arrived at Sanjiangkou.
"So, these are our warships!" Zhuge Liang muttered to himself as he looked at the warships that filled the entire stronghold. Although the Jingzhou Navy had suffered two defeats in the past two days, they only lost about 20,000 men. In addition, when Huang Zu left, it can be said that there were still 50,000 men here. 50,000 men and 160 warships. These 160 warships could be said to be the last of the Jingzhou Navy's capital. If they are gone, then they are gone. Even so, out of these 160 warships, only about 150 could be used. The rest were either injured or understaffed.
"Yes. Military Advisor. These are our warships. If Military Advisor had come two days earlier, there would be 200 warships here. " Wen Pin looked at these warships and could not help but sigh. This was because these warships and the navy were his men. His Lord Liu Biao trusted Wen Pin so he sent 50,000 elite navy to Wen Pin. A fleet of 200 warships. It could be said that if they were taken out, they would definitely cover the sky and cover the sun. Their sails would cover the entire Yangtze River Ferry. But now, only 150 battleships were left!
"Two days of consumption is so big?" Zhuge Liang also frowned. Losing 40 warships in two days was a huge consumption. Although the warships were destroyed and the navy was lucky enough to swim back, how could they fight without warships?
"These past two days, Sun Ce's navy attack is very urgent. Our army retreated from Huangzhou City to Wuchang City and then from Wuchang City to Sanjiangkou!" Wen Pin was also helpless. Although there were ballistae on the warships and they could solve many battles, the ballistae would eventually run out of ammunition. Once the ballistae were used up, it would take time to reload. Therefore, the boarding battle was once again the main battle between the two armies. Wen Pin had very few generals under his command, and even fewer could fight. As for the Jiangdong Navy, they were facing the Jiangdong Navy. Taishi Ci, Huang Gai, and Sun Ce would appear from time to time. The other generals were not weak either. These were not the key points. After all, Jingzhou had a lot of people. The key point was that Jingzhou could not afford to waste any more time.
In the first two days of battle, 200 warships were sent out. In the end, only 160 warships returned. Dozens of warships were injured and useless. What about Sun Ce's navy? Although they also lost 30 warships, the warships that were hit by the ballistae did not sink. As long as the ballistae were not destroyed, they would be cannon towers on the water.
This caused the Jingzhou Navy to suffer a big loss. Their warships were also hit by a wave of ballistae and were sent to the bottom of the river. As long as the enemy's warships did not sink after a battle, they could be pulled back to the dock for repair. After ten days or half a month, they could once again appear on the surface of the river. It could be said that the Jingzhou Navy had lost 20 warships. At most, they could only sink 4 of the enemy's warships. How could they fight like this? It was a loss of five to one.
Now, in addition to the warship itself being worth hundreds of gold, the ballistae were also very expensive. Five ballistae were not cheaper than a warship. War is all about money and Liu Biao could not afford to spend so much money. If Jiangdong's dock was not far from here, Sanjiangkou would not have been saved.
Zhuge Liang looked at the warships that were damaged by the ballistae. Most of the warships were shot through at the bottom while the upper structure was not damaged. As long as the bottom was pierced, the ship would be sunk. There was no need to attack the upper structure.
"The bottom of the ship can be strengthened." Since the bottom of the ship was the focus, then the bottom of the ship should be strengthened. Kong Ming looked at Wen Pin.
"It won't work." Wen Pin listened to Kong Ming's question and shook his head. It was not that Wen Pin had not tried before. The Jiangdong Navy had strengthened the bottom of the ship. They added a lot of copper and iron sheets to the bottom of the ship. As a result, the ballistae often had to fire several volleys to penetrate a Jiangdong warship. When Wen Pin saw the iron sheets, he also tried to have the boatmen add iron sheets to the bottom of the ship. However, what was the result? The warships could not bear the weight and the entire bottom of the ship would be pressed into the water. It was fine if it was used during normal times, but if there was a storm, then it would sink. If it sank to the bottom of the river before encountering the enemy, then what was the point of fighting? Therefore, Wen Pin decisively stopped the modification.
"Tear it down." Kong Ming looked at a warship for a long time and suddenly said.
"Tear it down?" Wen Pin was very puzzled. What does this Military Advisor Zhuge want to do? Tear down what? Tear down the warship? Or tear down what?
"Tear down those, those, those!" Zhuge Liang pointed at a warship and showed it to Wen Pin.
Wen Pin followed Zhuge Liang's gaze and found that Zhuge Liang was pointing at the upper structure of the ship.
"Nonsense! How can we tear down those?" Wen Pin could not help but use his anger. Turrets and turrets. Turrets and turrets. Those turrets and turrets could not only be used to suppress the enemy with bows and arrows, but they could also be used as watchtowers to observe the enemy's ships. The sails of the turrets and turrets were also placed on the turrets and turrets. The bigger the turrets, the more powerful the turrets were. For example, Wen Pin's flagship and Zhou Yu's flagship were larger than ordinary warships. Their superstructures were also much larger.
To the navy generals, these ships were actually walls above the water. Without these superstructures, how could the navy defend against the rain of arrows?
"If you don't tear them down, then you can just wait for the Jiangdong Navy to send Wen Pin and the rest of the navy to the bottom of the Yangtze River to feed the turtles!" Zhuge Liang was not polite. Although Zhuge Liang was inexperienced, he had amazing attainments in mechanical engineering. He looked at the warships and saw that there was a problem with the warships. There was basically no damage to the superstructures. Even if there was damage, it was caused by the ballista's arrows.
On the other hand, the bottom of the battleships had huge holes. The superstructure was originally designed to block the arrows, but now it was useless. It would be better to demolish it! The bottom of the ship was thickened and iron sheets were added.
"What if you tear down the watchtowers? Where will the sails be placed after that? " Wen Pin was holding back his anger because this person was sent by his Lord, Liu Biao. He was to supervise and act as a military advisor. In the letter, it was written that he needed to ask about every detail. If not for this sentence, Wen Pin would not have paid attention to Zhuge Liang. At worst, he would just let Zhuge Liang sit at the side and eat and drink.
Zhuge Liang also thought of this point and asked Liu Biao to add this sentence in the letter. Although Zhuge Liang was inexperienced, he had knowledge. He could slowly comprehend experience, but true talent could not be learned.
"The watchtowers can be kept and the sails can also be kept!" Zhuge Liang did not listen to Wen Pin's words. In this era, if you want to see further, you need to stand higher. Without the watchtowers, the enemy could discover you but you did not know where the enemy was. That would be terrible. The enemy could predict the enemy's movements and make you fall into the enemy's trap. Therefore, the watchtowers can be kept!
The sails also need to be kept. These sails can maintain a high speed when going downstream. Some people can even use the wind to move against the wind.
"Haha!" Wen Pin was angered by Zhuge Liang. He could not help but ask Zhuge Liang. "Military advisor, without these floors, how are we going to board the enemy's warships? How are we going to fight? Are we going to wait for the enemy to approach us and shoot us to death? " The floors of the turreted ships were not designed for decoration, nor were they designed to make living more comfortable. Instead, they were designed to suppress the enemy from above. One could directly shoot arrows at the enemy from the top of the turreted ship. Moreover, when the two turreted ships were close to each other, the person with the higher floor would have a great advantage! They can rush into the opposite ship at any time and can also shoot arrows at the opposite side. It can be said that it was completely one-sided. If it was not for the fact that the floors could not be higher, it could cause the ship to tilt. Perhaps the floors of the ship would become higher and higher.
"Is there a need?" Zhuge Liang did not immediately answer Wen Pin's question. Instead, he directly asked a question.
"You!" Wen Pin was choked by Zhuge Liang's words. This brat really does not understand naval warships. In Wen Pin's mind, Zhuge Liang has become Zhao Kuo's armchair strategist. However, Zhuge Liang's next words made him ponder.
"General Wen Pin. Take a look for yourself. Since the appearance of the ballistae, what kind of changes have happened to the navy? "Zhuge Liang honestly admired him. Ballistae! Able to shoot continuously! The penetrating ability has directly changed the entire navy's fighting style. Originally, whoever has more people will be the fiercest general. Then, whoever has more people will be the overlord of the water. But now! Before you can even get close, you will be shot by the ballistae. If the ships are unlucky, they may not even be able to see the enemy and will be sent to the bottom of the ship. The reason why both sides have been fighting so fiercely for more than a month is because of the ballistae. This caused the warships to be seriously exhausted.
However, Wen Pin was still a little disdainful. "So what? No matter how strong the ballistae are, when they run out of arrows, they will run out. Then, it will be the same as before. They will have to engage in boarding battle. Without these floors, they can only wait for the destruction of the entire army. "Only when the floors are the same height, there will be no difference in height. Everyone can be the same as usual. The navy is already used to the shaking of the warships in the water as if it is flat ground. The height of the warships is the same as the height of Wan Cheng. The height of the warships is higher than Wan Cheng. Then the unlucky ones are the people on the walls. If the enemy wants to shoot you, they will shoot you. If the walls are higher than the warships, the people on the warships will have no place to fight.
"Run out? Haha! What if it is not used up? "Zhuge Liang sneered." General Wen Pin. Please take a look. Once the upper floors of the warships are removed, how much weight do you think the warships will have and how many people can they hold? "
"Huh?" Wen Pin frowned. Most of the weight of the warships is on the upper floors. Once the upper floors are removed, the weight of the warships will be reduced by more than half. With the buoyancy of the warships, the number of soldiers can be doubled. But so what if that's the case? Without the upper floors, they will not be able to engage in boarding battle. Once the warships are sent to the bottom of the river, even more people will die.
Zhuge Liang looked at Wen Pin and frowned. He knew that Wen Pin is following his train of thought. This is what Zhuge Liang wants. "General Wen Pin. Think about it. What if we don't use these weights to load the soldiers but to reinforce the bottom of the warships? We can cover the bottom of the warships with iron sheets and water them with copper. This way, we can compete with the Jiangdong Navy. " Zhuge Liang does not know how the Jiangdong Navy can penetrate the warships and still float on the water. However, he can also reinforce the bottom of the warships. If the bottom of the warships is reinforced, the chances of being penetrated by the ballistae will be smaller. The Jingzhou Navy might be able to compete with the Jiangdong Navy.
"But this old man will say the same thing. Once the ballistae run out of arrows. There is no way to engage in boarding battle. " The ballistae changed the naval warfare. However, the change was only at the beginning. At the beginning, everyone would use the ballistae to shoot at each other. However, after shooting, they would still engage in boarding battle.
"I am not just going to strengthen the bottom of the warships. Ballistae! The Jiangdong Navy warships have five ballistae. I can put ten ballistae on each warship. " Zhuge Liang said his idea. Demolishing the upper floors of the warships was to strengthen the bottom of the warships and increase the number of ballistae on the warships.
If such a weapon is not used on a large scale, it would be a waste. Since he is already changing the fighting style of the navy. It would be better to change the fighting style of the navy. Using a new fighting style to replace it.
"Ten ballistae!" Wen Pin was also shocked by Zhuge Liang's crazy idea. Five ballistae with twenty-five ballistae was already very scary. Now, Zhuge Liang wants to double the number.
"Yes, ten." Zhuge Liang said with assurance. "If it is an encounter, our ballistae will be twice as many as the enemy. We can completely suppress the enemy's warships. If one cannot penetrate the warships, then two or three ballistae will come. I do not believe that fifty ballistae cannot penetrate a warship. Even if it is a one for one exchange, our Jingzhou Navy will still profit. If it is a protracted battle, the ten ballistae will take turns. Five ballistae will form a group. When the first group finishes shooting, they will immediately reload and the second group will take over. When the second group finishes shooting, the first group will be ready again. There is such a time difference. General Wen Pin, do you think our army will finish shooting the ballistae? "
"This, this!" Wen Pin was also shocked by Zhuge Liang's crazy idea. If it is really like what Zhuge Liang said and the ballistae can take turns to fire, then there will not be a period where the ballistae are not firing. In the end, it will cause the ballistae to lose their effectiveness.
"General, Military Advisor, this is really a good idea!" The colonel also thought about it and became excited. If that is the case, then there will be ten ballistae on his warship. Just thinking about those ballistae that are filled with cold light and loaded with huge arrows is terrifying.
"I know." Wen Pin nodded. He finally knew the difference between a military advisor and a military advisor. A military advisor is indeed stronger than a military advisor. It can be said that a military advisor will only die in a one on one battle. Moreover, these strategists do not even have the strength to truss up a chicken. Asking them to go into battle is a joke. However, strategists can use their brains. Their ideas and thoughts are all terrifying. They are all calculated based on a battle. Those who should be sacrificed will be sacrificed. Now, Zhuge Liang wants to change the fighting style of an army.
If Zhuge Liang succeeds, then there will be naval battles in the future. The answer is no.
"Pass down my orders. All the warships will be dismantled. Thicken the bottom and load with ballistae. " Wen Pin is not a headstrong person. He is also not a person who does not listen to orders. When he saw the scene described by Zhuge Liang, Wen Pin was certain.
"General, there is no need to dismantle all of them. One fleet is enough." Zhuge Liang said to Wen Pin. If all the warships are dismantled, then it will take too long. Now is the time of war. If the Sun Ce's Navy blocks them in the camp, then the Jiangdong Navy will attack Jingzhou. That would be a big problem. Therefore, they can only dismantle the warships one by one. They must preserve the high-speed mobile forces.
"Military Advisor is right." Wen Pin nodded. He will not look down on the military advisor sent by the Lord. With a few ideas, he solved the problem of being suppressed by the Jiangdong Navy. Wen Pin can imagine what will happen to the Jiangdong Navy once all the warships are refitted.
There are not many ballistae left in Sanjiangkou. Therefore, they need to ask for more from Jingzhou.
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