Cursed Mountains and Seas

Chapter 59 The Parrot-Beaked Blue Robe, Wholesale Navigation Techniques

Until this moment, everyone felt as if they were in a dream.

This group of Tanka people, who had only been fishing and wielding firearms for less than a month, actually defeated a sailing warship that was almost invincible in one-on-one combat in the East China Sea.

They occupied it intact?

Incredulity, excitement, and ecstasy drove them to repeatedly toss their "sun" into the air.

Wang Cheng finally pulled his attention away from the "Beauty Undressing Method" and remembered what his most precious trophy was.

"I never dreamed of getting a Franco-made armed merchant ship for myself, but I never expected to get a capital warship in one go."

Even by international standards, this is only a fifth-class cruiser, not a fourth-class or higher battleship, but in the East China Sea it is considered top-of-the-line.

He couldn't pinpoint the mole within Wufeng Banner yet, so he could only offer his thanks from afar in the direction of Yuegang.

"Thanks, Master Pu, for the warship!"

I only realized it after I thanked them.

"【Zi Ying Hao】is the family fortune that my father accumulated. It was originally the family business that I, the young master, should inherit. It should be returned to its rightful owner since I captured it."

I increasingly feel that the weight of three taels and one mace is simply too much to bear:
"Busy and busy, struggling to make ends meet, when will the clouds part and the sun shine? It's hard to establish a family on the ancestral foundation, but in middle age, food and clothing are no longer a worry."

He wouldn't inherit a fraction of the family fortune, and even if he were lucky enough to get the [Zi Ying], it would only be a drop in the ocean, not even a fraction of the total.

Want to successfully reclaim other industries?
He doesn't have it in his destiny yet! Unless he continues to buy more life force to increase his bone weight.

Wang Cheng landed on his feet and checked that his men had not suffered any major damage from the fighting of the zombies under the influence of the curse. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

But then Zhang Wu, the vice-captain, came up to him, his face contorted with a bitter expression, and poured cold water on the hopes of all the brothers:
"Captain, brothers, don't get too excited yet. We still have a crucial problem to solve."

Everyone was baffled.

"what is the problem?"

Zhang Wu dissipated the enthusiastic atmosphere with just one sentence:
"None of us know how to sail this warship!"

"Uh"

The smiles on everyone's faces froze. They subconsciously looked up at the tall masts, sails, and extremely complex rigging overhead, and a wave of dizziness washed over them.

Even Wang Cheng, who had been raised to be a scholar since childhood and had never interned on a sailing warship, was a little confused.

He used to read the Spring and Autumn Annals much more diligently than he read the Warship Operation Manual.

The hardest part of sailing a warship is learning how to operate the sail and cable system.

The sail is the most technologically advanced component of a sailboat and also the most important power system; if the sail malfunctions, the entire boat will be destroyed.

Take the three-masted cruiser "Zi Ying" as an example. The standard configuration of a three-masted sailing warship is eleven square sails and eleven fore and aft sails.

The rigging system consists of two parts: white movable cables that can move, and black static cables that are mainly used for fixing.

When maneuvering the sails, the main adjustment is made to the white moving line.

Controlling the boom requires lifting cables, hoisting cables, and swing cables; controlling the sail requires: sail foot cables, sail foot front cables, and sail raising cables; furling the sail requires: sail foot cables, bottom side cables, and side cables.

A three-masted sailing warship has eleven square sails, four in the fore, four in the middle, and three in the stern. The rigging would have to be repeated eleven times, which would involve at least ninety-nine rigging pieces!
This does not include spare rigging, some double rigging that requires additional load-bearing capacity, or the rigging for maneuvering the fore and aft sails.

Just thinking about it gives Wang Cheng a headache.

"The key is that just knowing how to operate is far from enough."

It also requires sailors to locate the appropriate rigging as soon as possible, regardless of wind direction or weather conditions, and adjust it to the optimal position.

To perform his duties properly, a sailor needs to master at least fifty different knots, to the point that he can do them even blindfolded.

When sailing on calm waters, skilled sailors do not need to use a rudder; they can keep the boat sailing in a straight line simply by adjusting the sails.

Mastering any skill requires a long period of time, measured in years.

"At this stage, sailors who can steer sailed warships are highly valued and treated like precious gems in any faction."

Even a seasoned sea dog who has been at sea for ten years might not be able to master this system; it requires the most experienced sailing captain to direct it.

In the East, this position is called "Da Liao," and it is often held by Bai Shuilang himself.

"Gunners are similar, just like sailors and cable carriers, they are important technical soldiers, and even more dangerous. It's not so bad if they can't hit their targets, but it would be a joke if they accidentally blew up their own men."

When the Five Peaks Banner first established its sailing warship fleet, it also spent a lot of money to have the East Bharata Company of the Netherlands send naval officers to train them for several years.

Obviously, under normal circumstances, it would be a pipe dream for the Dazhao people to capture a sailing warship and then seamlessly transition into combat.

But Wang Cheng's behavior was abnormal; his eyes darted around and an idea struck him. As if completely oblivious to the dejected and helpless expressions on everyone's faces, he waved his hand dismissively:
"I hereby announce that the [Zi Ying] ship shall be renamed the [Ying Zui Qing Yi] ship from this day forward, in memory of our brothers' oath of brotherhood in blue robes."

Isn't your concern that you won't know how to operate a sailing warship?

Don't forget, your captain is a reserve officer in charge of buying and selling [Chaofenglang].

"Come on, I'll take you to get some goods!"

He led everyone into the lower cabin, to the through gun deck where the 12-pounder cannons were mounted.

There are no cabins on the warship specifically for the crew to rest; apart from a few leaders and officers, everyone sleeps in hammocks here.

The hammocks that were meant for sailors to rest on New Year's Eve were all rolled up high. Most of the Japanese gathered here to feast and drink, and now they are sleeping like dead pigs.

The incense in front of the shrine of Prince Jing has burned out. Outside, blood flows like a river, but inside, the sound of snoring is deafening.

Near the stern, at the head of the ship, lay Shibata, the "financial assistant" in charge of military supplies, logistics, trade, and ledgers. He was the third most important person in the ship, after the captain, Choi Shing, and the vice-captain, Tanaka.

Lying next to him was the fifth-ranking person, "Dairo" Daisuke, who was in charge of the ship's sails and ropes.

There was also the young interpreter who was initially following the vice-captain Tanaka, wearing an aida (a type of head covering). Judging from his appearance, he was clearly a Dazhao native. His name was Gao Ren.

"Tie everyone up first, then splash water on these three to wake them up."

At Wang Cheng's command, Zhang Wu led his men to tie up all the Japanese crew members, while Zhang Wen fetched icy seawater and splashed it on Cai Fu, Da Liao, and Tong Yi, giving them a thorough chill.

Wow!

Even with the strongest incense, the stimulation almost made her jump up on the spot.

The reason it was "almost" is because they saw the steel knife at their necks immediately.

Shibata, the "Zaifu" (a type of tacit agreement holder), struggled and shouted:
"お前らはクソ野郎だ、どうして俺たちの Shipにいるんだ? 俺はお前らをkillす!"

Zhang Wu pressed down on the gleaming blade pressed against the interpreter's neck:
"Can you translate for us? What kind of gibberish is this Japanese guy speaking?"

The translator, Gao Ren, glanced around at the bound Japanese men and the strong smell of blood emanating from the open deck, and immediately grasped the situation.

Upon hearing Zhang Wu's question, his face fell, but then he broke into a wide smile, bowing and scraping as he replied:

"He just said we lost, please, kind sirs, spare our lives and just let us go!"

puff!

When Wang Cheng killed Tanaka, the vice-captain, a few days ago, he had just bought a Japanese book from him, but no one else knew about it unless he told them.

So what Shibata, the "financial backer," just said to him was:

"You damned Tanka people, what are you doing on our boat? I'm going to kill you all!"

He took a deep look at the Great Zhao Tongyi lying at his feet and secretly praised him as a truly remarkable person.

The skill he possesses is probably the legendary divine translation, right?
Then, the two Japanese men who had woken up were excited and started shouting at Wang Cheng and his group.

Daisuke Oiryo: "You guys don't actually know how to operate a sailing warship, do you? We are samurai of Satsuma, and we will never surrender to the enemy!"

Without Wang Cheng and the others even asking, the interpreter Gao Ren knew exactly what they wanted, and dutifully translated:
He said he was Daisuke Ikehara, the chief sailor of the Ziying, and that all the sailors on the ship were under his command. He was willing to serve the hero.

"If you point east, you dare not go west; if you point west, you dare not go east."

Daisuke Oiraki: "Even if I have to take this ship, the [Zi Ying], with me and sink with it, I will never let you get away with this!"

Interpreter Gao Ren: "He said there are stubborn and uncooperative crew members. You can make an example of them, but you absolutely cannot kill the interpreter. We can help you train your own sailors and cable handlers."

"Zaifu" Shibata: "Daisuke-kun is right. Don't let me find an opportunity. As soon as I do, I'll detonate the powder keg and send you all to the sky."

Translator Gao Ren:

"Zaifu Shibata said he was also willing to cooperate, as he has an eighty-year-old mother and a three-year-old child."

He usually managed the ship's firearms on a part-time basis, training the gunners and maintaining the munitions. Serving as a lackey for the Great Zhao was an honor for him!

Daisuke and Shibata: "Stop talking! We samurai will never surrender!"

Despite being bound by ropes, the translator was full of the will to survive. Even so, he managed to turn over and do a dogeza (a traditional Chinese way of bowing down) on the ground.

Together with the two Japanese leaders, they unleashed a final roar, their voices even surpassing those of the two in front of them:

"We were wrong, please have mercy!!!"

(End of this chapter)