As the others spoke, the speed of the five-tooth warships had fully increased.
Fang Er’s walkie-talkie crackled to life.
“Dong yao, Dong yao, this is Dong wu, engines are at full power, over.”
Fang Er replied, “Dong wu, Dong wu, Dong yao received, commencing speed calculation! Over.”
Li Shimin gazed out the window. The trees on both banks blurred as they sped past, a pace far exceeding anything he’d imagined for a five-tooth warship.
At this speed, he mused, the eight hundred li of waterway from Chang’an to Luoyang could probably be covered in a single day.
Not long after, Li Shun’s voice came through Fang Er’s walkie-talkie again.
“Dong yao, Dong yao, this is Dong wu, speed measurement complete. At full speed, we can cover about a hundred li in an hour. Over.”
“Dong wu, Dong wu, Dong yao received. Prepare to test emergency braking. Over!”
After putting down the walkie-talkie, Fang Er turned to Li Shimin and the assembled dukes. “Your Majesty, esteemed dukes, please hold on tight.”
Then, Li Shun’s voice came through the walkie-talkie: “Dong yao, Dong yao, Dong wu received. Repeating, emergency braking. Over!”
Putting down his walkie-talkie, Li Shun, inside the engine room, began issuing orders to the shipwrights.
“Drop anchor! Reverse propellers!”
“Yes!”
“Yes!”
“Yes!”
The five-tooth warship was equipped with three anchors: one at the bow and one on each side.
The shipwrights swiftly cast off the anchors on the port and starboard sides.
With a great splash, the massive anchors, attached to steel cables as thick as a bowl, spun the capstans at high speed.
As the anchors hit the riverbed, the entire five-tooth warship lurched violently, its speed decreasing. Mud and sand were rapidly churned up from the river bottom by the dragging anchors, clouding the water.
Shipwrights at the stern first cut off the propeller’s rotation. Once the blades stopped spinning, they were quickly switched to reverse.
With the propellers spinning in reverse, the Zhenyuan shuddered again violently before its speed rapidly abated.
The entire process was not as instantaneous as braking a vehicle. From full speed to an emergency stop, the Zhenyuan was pushed forward by inertia for several hundred meters before it finally came to a steady halt.
After testing these two functions, it was time to assess the impact of the cannons on the keel.
Fang Er picked up the walkie-talkie. “Dong wu, Dong wu, testing. Left side cannons to fire simultaneously! Over.”
After issuing the command, he reminded Li Shimin and the others to brace themselves once more.
The anchors were retracted, and the large vessel slowly turned, repositioning itself across the center of the Wei River.
The shipwrights, temporarily serving as gunners, moved cannonballs from the lower ammunition hold and returned to their assigned firing positions.
“All stations, left side gun positions, set delayed fuses, load powder charge one! Read.”
Beside each cannon, three shipwrights busied themselves according to their assigned tasks.
Moments later.
“Left one ready!”
“Left two ready!”
“Left three ready!”
~~~
All eleven cannons reported their status loudly.
Once all firing positions were ready, Li Shun bellowed.
“Fire!”
With a thunderous roar, all eleven cannons fired simultaneously. The immense recoil converged on the keel, pushing the ship sideways from its original position.
Li Shimin and the others on the upper deck felt a sudden jolt. Cheng Yaojin, having disregarded Fang Er’s earlier warning, was thrown to the floor, his face flushed red. “Damn! That’s got some kick!”
Rubbing his posterior, he got up from the floor and walked to the port window, looking out at the river.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
At a distance of a thousand meters, eleven geysers of water erupted on the river’s surface, shooting up several zhang high before falling back down.
“Inspect the keel!”
As Li Shun’s command rang out, the shipwrights below began a meticulous inspection of the keel, tapping and listening to the feedback from the sounds.
“Keel is intact!”
“Right side gun positions, set delayed fuses, load powder charge two!”
“Right one ready!”
“Right two ready!”
“Right three ready!”
~~~
“Fire!”
Li Shun’s fierce cry echoed.
With a thunderous roar, the right-side cannons fired instantly.
Powder charge two, the same type the dukes had used earlier, had a range of fifteen hundred meters.
There was also the powder charge three, which Fang Er had mentioned, capable of reaching two thousand meters.
“Right side cannons, salvo fire with powder charge two. Keel remains intact.”
The large vessel was once again pushed sideways by a considerable distance.
Next was the test firing of powder charge three, with a simultaneous barrage from all twenty-two cannons on both sides.
This was the firing configuration that would be employed when under siege.
After the twenty-two cannons unleashed their fury, the shipwrights below reported the inspection results.
The keel showed no signs of damage.
This filled Li Shun with a sense of accomplishment. He excitedly grabbed the walkie-talkie.
“Dong yao, Dong yao, this is Dong wu. Zhenyuan has passed the extreme cannon test. Keel meets all expectations! Over.”
“Dong wu, Dong wu, this is Dong yao. Report received. All craftsmen, ten strings of cash in reward! Return voyage! Over.”
Hearing Fang Er’s voice through the walkie-talkie, the shipwrights erupted in joyous shouts.
Hundreds of days and nights of hard work had finally yielded a satisfactory result, and the pride they felt was almost overwhelming.
“Hahaha! We did it!”
“Did you hear that? The Marquis promised a reward of ten strings! Hahaha, I’m going to get drunk for three days straight!”
“Ha, look at you. I’m heading to Flower Bloom Pavilion! Those ladies there have been on my mind for a long time!”
These men had completely forgotten that the Emperor and a group of dukes were seated on the upper deck.
However, Li Shimin and the others paid them no mind.
Fang Xuanling approached Fang Er again.
“Boy, now you can tell us about the cost of this great ship.”