Chapter 17 Chapter 17 Dongting Battle Cloud

The wind roars and the waves surge, breaking the waves like flying. Under the leadership of the main ships "Nujiao", "Water Jiao" and "Flying Jiao", nearly a hundred ships crossed the Dongting and set sail towards Nujiao Island. The three giant ships of Nujiao Gang are very famous in the rivers and lakes, and they belong to the Louchuan class of giant ships. In order to meet different war needs, ships are classified according to their situation, size and equipment, each with its own special purpose. The largest is the building boat. Lou Chuan is mainly produced in Fujian and Guangdong, so it is also called Fu Chuan and Guangzhou Chuan.

This kind of ship is as tall as a city tower, which can accommodate hundreds of people. There are three floors on the deck, and there are guard boards on both sides, standing like a wall.There are four floors in the boat. The bottom layer is full of wood and rocks, and the bottom cabin is compacted to make the hull stable and reduce the bumps in the wind and waves. If the wind is smooth and the water is smooth, as long as the pressure is full speed, when encountering a smaller ship, it will be like a cart crushing a praying mantis, fighting the boat instead of fighting the manpower. This kind of ship has a large hull and strong firepower, and it can also have a deterrent effect on the enemy.However, due to its inflexible rotation, it is difficult to maneuver freely, so it must be matched with other styles of ships before it can exert its power.

The three large ships of the Nujiao Gang were made by Shang Guanfei, the former leader of the Nujiao Gang, a generation of water warfare masters. After improvements, they are one size smaller than the largest building boats, with only two floors on the deck. There are "holding holes" on both sides of the hull for the oars to protrude, and the oarsmen are all hidden in the hull. The two sides of the stern are not equipped with "handling holes", but four giant wheels are installed instead, and the people in the stern cabin step on the feet to move the water with the wheels, and it moves like flying.

The number of masts and sails on the boat has increased to five, combined with the excellent boat maneuvering skills of the Nujiao Gang, it is able to cross the rivers and lakes, and even the powerful navy is helpless. In addition to these three main ships, there are twenty-five "fighting ship class" large ships of the next level, which are mainly used to charge and destroy the enemy. In the same way, parapet walls are built on both sides of the ship. Because the hull is relatively short, the lever holes are opened at the bottom of the parapet, so that the boat can be steered with oars.

Because of the lack of the "condescending" momentum of the building and the ship, the parapet also has "crossbow windows" and "bow holes" to attack the enemy with long-range weapons. The other 80 smaller warships are mainly "walking boats", "sea loaches" and "yachts". They are basically small "fighting ships", light and flexible. Among them, the loach gets its name from the fact that there are floating boards on the left and right sides, which are shaped like wings, which increase buoyancy and facilitate balance, that is, even in strong winds and waves, There is no risk of tilting.

At this time, the ship of the Nu Jiao Gang was busy. Shangguan Yingzhuo stood at the vantage point on the second deck of the Nujiao, observing the progress of the fleet in the starry night. More than a hundred large and small warships without lights advanced silently on the lake. The left wing consisted of 30 warships dominated by flying dragons, commanded by Liang Qiumo; the right wing consisted mainly of water dragons, commanded by experienced veteran Pang Guozhi. Nujiao and more than 30 larger warships were in the middle to support them. In the past ten years, it was the first time to go all out, and I was both excited and nervous.

Shangguan Ying's mind went back to saying goodbye to his new wife Yiyi when he got on the boat, his heart softened, and he cried secretly: "Don't worry! I will definitely come back alive to see you." At this time Ling Zhantian and Zhai Yushi came to the two sides respectively. Zhai Yushi let out a sigh of relief, wiped off the sweat from his forehead and said, "Report to the leader, everything is ready." Ling Zhantian added: "The guard plates and the hull were re-wrapped with rawhide and coated with 'fireproof powder', which is enough to deal with the enemy's rockets and fire bombs."

Shangguan Ying nodded in approval. You should know that water warfare is nothing more than three tactics: interception, impact, and fire, and among them, fire is the most powerful. Burning the enemy is nothing like fire, and the outcome can often be determined by this. No matter whether the warships are equipped with protective iron plates or sharp irons on the bow like the angry dragon warships, they are still mainly made of wood, and must be dipped in tung oil to prolong the time of use in water, but it is quite easy. on fire.In addition, the awnings, ropes, sails, boards and other things on the ship are all easy to burn. Therefore, even though Chen Youliang was connected by boats and boats and blocked the river with flags, he still could not survive Zhu Yuanzhang's fire attack with the help of Shangguan Fei, and the entire army was wiped out. , Established Zhu Yuanzhang's imperial career.

Therefore, the way of water warfare is first and foremost to prevent fire. Since the Song Dynasty, naval warships have mostly used mud and medicine to coat the walls of the hull and buildings for fire prevention, but the mud coating is not long-lasting, so there are various fireproof medicines, also known as "Pongsuo medicine". . Ling Zhantian is an expert in this field. He boiled alum, bee fat and other substances into a slurry, and then soaked everything on the ship, even if it was shot by a fireball rocket, it would not catch fire.Now it is more safe to use non-flammable raw cowhide and add fireproofing powder.

Shangguan Ying's eyes fell on the cannon erected on the ship's side, and he calmly said: "How is the situation?" The key to war lies in intelligence. Qianliling, the messenger of the Nujiao Gang, can fly between ships. Although he is on the ship, he can still receive messages from land and sea, so he can know the situation like the palm of his hand. Zhai Yushi said: "As expected, Hu Jie's navy did not dare to take the risk of losing the island, mobilize warships, and set up defenses on the east side of the island. But depending on the situation, as long as we change direction and sail on the Xiangshui River, they will You can follow my tail at any time and stop us from returning to Dongting."

Shangguan Ying said: "How is the situation on the Xiangshui side?" Zhai Yushi's face was dark, and he said in a deep voice: "Hu Jie's deputy Ma Bujian is stationed at Xiangshuikou. He has more than 200 warships in his hands. It is nothing to be afraid of, but I just received a report that there are more than 50 warships. The warships, mainly 'Mengchong Fighting Ships', flowed down the Xiangshui River to Dongting in the dark, and it seems that they should be the fleet of the Yellow River Clan." Ling Zhantian snorted coldly: "It must be the joint fleet of Mrs. Zhen and the Yellow River Gang. I didn't expect Hu Jie to join hands with the Mongolian people to deal with us. If Zhu Yuanzhang didn't agree, it would really show that Hu Jie had reached an agreement with Shurangama and conspired against us." rebel." Shangguan Ying's expression changed: "If we follow the original plan to catch up with the Xiangshui River, wouldn't it be a head-on blow for someone to go down the river?" Of course Ling and Zhai understood what he meant. In water battles, both the flow of water and the flow of wind play a decisive role. In the Warring States Period, during the dispute between Wu and Chu, Wu State never fought a successful water battle. The reason is that Chu people live in the upper reaches of the river, so Wu State will lose every battle. The second is the direction of the wind, regardless of archery, ship speed, fire attack, of course, those with the wind will take advantage of the time. It is for this reason that Kongming borrowed the east wind. Zhai Yushi said: "That's why I'm worried that Hu Jie will cut off our retreat. If we attack Hu Jie, don't say that they have thousands of large and small warships. With their energy these days, they can attack and defend The measures must be very sufficient, to guard a small Nu Jiao Island, it is more than enough..." Ling Zhantian interrupted him and said, "Under the leadership of the old gang leader, Big Brother and I moved to the rivers and lakes. We didn't win more with less that time. There are always risks in war." Zhai Yushi said solemnly: "Thank you for the lesson, Second Uncle." Ling Zhantian sighed and said: "No one can do better than Yushi, but in this dilemma, don't hesitate to make a decision. Set a goal, even if you know it is wrong, you must turn it into right, It will not lose the morale of the army." After a pause, he yelled: "The leader of the gang gives an order!" Shangguan Ying raised his eyebrows and sent down an order in a loud voice: "Attack Nu Jiao Island with all our strength to revive my name of Nu Jiao." The gang members on board suddenly agreed. The drums of war sounded. "Boom! Boom! Boom!" With the solemn drumming, the fleet changed its course and sailed towards the beloved gangland. Feng Xinglie was galloping at full speed in the wilderness. This is like a competition, whoever finds the soft crystal first will be the winner. Although the enemy set off a little earlier than him, he was not worried. No matter what specialties Mrs. Zhen had under her command who were good at tracking, it would always take time to search within a certain range, not to mention Shui Roujing was also good at tracking. Experts should have the ability to protect themselves. I'm afraid that if Shui Roujing avoids and goes elsewhere, even the contact method taught by Qi Changzheng will not work, and he can't wait there, then it's really a dilemma! Su Xiang is dead, he will not allow bad luck to happen to his beloved wife and servant or the lover of his comrades in arms. With a "Puff!" sound from the mountain on the left, a cloud of bright red light exploded and then slowly disappeared. Feng Xinglie was surprised. This is the communication firework of the evil sect, why did it appear in this barren mountain? Unable to hold back his curiosity, he secretly thought to see how much effort it would take, and hurried over. Passing through a forest and climbing up a slope, I saw another purple firework bursting on the hill. Feng Xinglie no longer has any doubts that this is indeed the unique communication method of the Xieyi Sect, and he climbed up quickly. Suddenly, Feng Xinglie came to the top of the hill. Standing prominently on the post are the twenty leaders of the Xieyi Sect, including the Four Great Guardians and the Seven Great Dock Masters. They all have solemn faces, as if they are waiting for someone. Feng Xinglie didn't expect to meet them here, he sighed, jumped in front of everyone, and saluted: "Everyone, it's been a long time!" Everyone was overjoyed, knelt down and shouted: "Sect Master! It's been hard for this subordinate to find you." Feng Xinglie pointed at himself in astonishment and lost his voice: "Master?" Shang Liang, one of the four great protectors who "hidden a sword in a smile," said solemnly: "As soon as we heard the news that the master of the sect had returned to the rivers and lakes to show his might, we immediately recruited all the experts in the sect to find the master of the sect. Unfortunately, we took a step back and couldn't keep up with the bloody battle in Huajie. Later, according to information, I learned that the sect master was hiding in the wilderness, and that Fang Yeyu was transferred to this direction, so he risked his life to find him in this area, and now we can actually meet the sect master. Prosper in hand." Feng Xinglie smiled wryly and said: "I left the Xieyi Sect long ago, and I am no longer qualified to be your Sect Master." Zheng Guangyan, the head of the four guardians and the oldest "Tian Tian Cudgel", said: "Sect Master Li handed over the zhanger red gun to the sect master, and it is obvious that he has taken the sect master back under his seat, and the sect master can't bear to watch Li The owner of the sect has been running the foundation for many years, let it go to waste!" Feng Xinglie feels conflicted. If I can take over the Xieyi Sect, my strength against Zhen Yaonu will be greatly enhanced, but I have no interest in the responsibility and status of the sect master, not to mention that these people are gangsters, none of them are good men and women, if they can't control They let him do evil everywhere, wouldn't he become a sinner. "Fire Thunderbolt" Luomashan, one of the seven masters, knocked his head three times and said: "We also understand the reason why the sect master is hesitant. We are afraid that we will not agree with each other, so before we come to the sect master, we have written down A blood letter, vowing to abide by the laws and regulations set by the sect master, and only ask the sect master to lead the Xieyi sect to avenge the Li sect master, and let the sect master decide whether to disband us after the incident." Zheng Tianyan took out the blood book from her arms and held it high above her head. Feng Xinglie was excited, took the blood book, and shouted: "Okay! You stand up, from today onwards, I, Feng Xinglie, will become the master of Xieyi Sect after my teacher." The crowd burst into cheers and stood up. The so-called unity makes strength strong, and separation makes strength weak. Enemies from evil sects are everywhere, and I don't know how many people they have offended. Without Li Ruohai, a big shade tree, and scattered things, how can it be easy to live a life that is afraid of people coming to the door every day? Wyatt, for practical reasons. Feng Xinglie is a natural leader, he made up his mind, his expression was very different, and he said, "Where are the others?" "Cracking Mountain Arrow" Xia Ji, one of the masters of the dock, said: "Nearly 400 people and more than a dozen warships from the sect gathered at Shitou Ferry on the Xiangshui River. As long as the master of the sect gives an order, they can immediately rush to Dongting to join the wrath. In the decisive battle between the Jiao Gang, Hu Jieshui Division and the Yellow River Gang." Feng Xinglie was stunned and said: "What?" At the moment, another Dharma protector, Shi Wuyi, known as the "brain tank", briefly explained the situation in Dongting to him. Feng Xinglie frowned when he heard this, and sighed: "But I have an urgent matter right now, how can I spare myself to help." He told about Shui Roujing. Everyone's expression changed, Shang Liang said: "The water girl may have fallen into the enemy's hands. According to the news reported by the spies, a group of people came back from the place the door owner said an hour ago, and the beautiful girl on one of the horses , the acupoints are obviously restricted, fortunately the sect master met us, otherwise it would be a waste of time." Feng Xing couldn't have imagined that Mrs. Zhen's subordinates could act so quickly, and said in disbelief, "We will rush to rescue people immediately, and the matter of Dongting Lake will not be discussed until the water girl is rescued." Everyone suddenly agreed.