Tibet

"Is there any dispute among you about asking for help from Japan?" Li Ye asked again.

"It's a little controversial, but not big. I am against asking Japan for help. I have been to Japan twice. I can feel the Japanese people's ambition, but others can't feel it and don't believe what I say, including our king. , he supports asking for help from Japan, because Japan’s reinforcements will be faster, and the Tang Dynasty’s reinforcements will not arrive until next year at the earliest.”

"Do you think Japan will send troops to support you?"

Yang Chengqing nodded, "The possibility is very high. The leader of Japan, Fujiwara Nakamaro, prepared to invade Silla a few years ago. He built 500 ships and stationed 30,000 troops. Later, the plan to invade Silla was cancelled, but their war The ships and troops are still training and can cross the sea at any time. They can't find an excuse to send troops, but our request for help gives them a rare excuse, so these 30,000 Japanese soldiers may have arrived in Bohai Country, and Weichen is worried about this! "

Li Ye walked a few steps with his hands behind his hands: "How big are your ships, and how big are Japan's ships?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, the sea-going ships of the Bohai Kingdom are about three thousand dan, and there are more than 200 of them. Their styles are the same as those of the Tang Dynasty. The Japanese sea-going ships are about 2,000 dan. They are also called turtle ships. They look like turtles. flexible!"

Li Ye thought for a while and asked: "You took the sea route from Bohai to Datang. You should pass through the Tsushima Strait between Japan and Silla, right?"

"Yeah, that's the way to go."

"Didn't encounter a storm at sea?"

Yang Chengqing shook his head. In fact, we took the route that Japan used to send envoys to the Tang Dynasty, that is, we traveled close to the land. First we went to the coastline of the Bohai Kingdom, and then we walked around the entire Silla Peninsula, crossing the East China Sea and arriving at Dengzhou. The journey was calm and calm. , not encountering real stormy waves. "

"Never met?"

"Basically yes, our guide said he's been following this route for twenty years and has never encountered a hurricane."

Yang Chengqing paused and continued: "We met the Tang army on Tamluo Island and received supplies and fresh water."

Tamna Island is today's Jeju Island. It is a small link and branch in the entire Liaodong strategy. It is a chess piece arranged in advance to destroy Silla. The five thousand troops and thirty sea ships of Donghae Island are deployed in several They stationed on Tamna Island a few months ago.

In addition, Tamna Island is also a strategic node of the sea route. Currently, the safest sea route to Silla, Japan and the Bohai Sea is to follow the coastline to avoid sea storms. Tamna Island is the transit supply point of this sea route, which is somewhat similar. The feeling of the Cape of Good Hope in Africa.

"How is the garrison on Tamna Island doing now?"

"It's not bad. There used to be a group of pirates on Tamna Island, but they were destroyed by the Tang army. The nearby waters feel safe, otherwise they would always be on tenterhooks."

Li Ye nodded and asked in detail about Bohai's internal affairs and military affairs. He also learned about the distribution of the Mohe, Goguryeo, Han, Khitan, Xi, Turk, Shiwei and other ethnic groups in the Bohai Sea. He also inquired about the taxation and agricultural situation, and basically understood the situation. The bottom line of Bohai Country was cleared.

Li Ye was very satisfied with Yang Chengqing's cooperation, so he asked someone to accompany him back to the east hall of Honglu Temple to rest.

However, Wei Jiansu stayed, and beside him was Duan Xiushi, the privy envoy who met Yang Chengqing.

Li Ye ordered people to fetch the Liaodong map collected in the staff room.

There is currently no sand table in Liaodong. Only the Andong Protectorate drew a detailed map, including the current Bohai Kingdom and the Whale Sea, and even parts of Japan and Silla appeared on the map.

This map has been revised many times and is currently the most accurate map of Liaodong. It has become the basis for Li Ye's strategic deployment of Liaodong.

It can be clearly seen from the map that the original homeland of Goguryeo was occupied by the Tang Dynasty and became the territory of the Tang Dynasty. It was basically divided by today's Imjin River. To the south of the Imjin River was Silla, and to the north of the Imjin River belonged to the Tang Dynasty. Anton Protectorate.

But now the entire Liaodong has been lost, the Tang Dynasty's territory has been compressed to Pingzhou in the south of the Western Liaoning Corridor, the Andong Protectorate has been divided between Khitan and Silla, and Silla's sphere of influence has expanded northward to the Yalu River.

Li Ye's Liaodong strategy is to use three to five years to wipe out all the forces in Liaodong, including Silla.

"Your Highness, the situation in Liaodong has become complicated!" Wei Jiansu whispered.

Li Ye nodded and smiled: "But the turmoil in Liaodong is also an opportunity. When we end, the overall situation will be decided."

Duan Xiushi said to the side: "Inform the Liaodong intelligence scout immediately and find a way to detect the situation in Bohai Country. I want to know if the Japanese army is already in Bohai Country?"

"Wei Chen obeys the order!"

Li Ye thought for a while and then said: "Also, notify the navy in various places that vehicles and ships with more than 5,000 stones of stone will gather in Dengzhou."

"Follow the order!"

Duan Xiu performed a courtesy and hurried away.

Li Ye then smiled at Wei Jiansu and said, "There happened to be a breakthrough at the steam engine. Let's go and see it together!"

Wei Jiansu said happily: "It is said to be a monster machine. I don't know much about it. Let's go and have a look!"

The steam engine was noisy and was no longer in the engineering school. Instead, a large shed was built on the bank of the Wei River north of the spear, surrounded by high walls.

Of course, it is difficult to build a steam engine. Even if Li Ye drew the schematic diagram, it still took nearly two years to develop and cost tens of thousands of dollars.

Currently, the construction of steam engines is in charge of Yao Chunshan, the commander of the Ordnance Supervisory Agency, and his apprentice Wei Jincheng. Wei Jincheng is currently the deputy commander of the agency.

When Li Ye returned from Youzhou in August, 90% of the work was completed. Now two and a half months have passed, and it has basically been successful.

When Li Ye and Wei Jiansu came to the factory, they happened to be burning a boiler. Water vapor poured into a huge iron cabinet through the pipes, driving a pair of piston rods to move back and forth.

Yao Chunshan was a famous mechanism master in the Tang Dynasty. He designed many complex mechanisms. He was the one who designed Li Ye's secret room in Wubenfang.

He was also the one who built the gravity clock that appeared last year. He led a group of apprentices to become apprentices. Currently, hundreds of gravity clocks have been built, and every state capital has a gravity clock.

Yao Chunshan also went through ups and downs in building the steam engine. Many of the principles were understood, but the materials could not be built, such as the pipes for transporting steam and the chimneys for emitting steam and soot. Finally, they were made of white lead and copper alloy. For pipes, white lead is zinc. It was refined in large quantities in the Tang Dynasty and was generally used to cast coins, Buddha statues and decorations. After being made into copper alloy, it has good ductility and is suitable for making pipes and chimneys.

Yao Chunshan sighed and said to Li Ye and Wei Jiansu: "There was an explosion at the beginning of the year, killing two craftsmen, and the completed steam engine was also blown up. This was the worst time for us."

"Why did it explode?" Li Ye asked.

"A large amount of steam could not be discharged, and the boiler exploded when it could not bear it. Later, we installed a chimney and a valve. If the pressure is found to be too high, the steam must be discharged in time. All experienced boiler operators are very important. We In specialized training.”

Li Ye nodded silently. Without various instruments, he could only rely on experience.

Wei Jiansu next to him asked: "How many units were built before and after?"

"Reporting back to the Prime Minister, seven units were built in total. In fact, the fourth unit was successful. It has been continuously improved since then. Now it is the seventh unit. I am mainly observing how long it can run continuously. It started running yesterday. This is very important. Just in case. If it breaks down at sea, you’ll be in big trouble.”

"How long do you think it can run continuously?" Li Ye asked.

Yao Chunshan quickly bowed and said: "Reporting to Your Highness, it will take at least two months. If the mortise and tenon joints are strong enough, then there is no problem in continuous operation for more than three months, or even half a year. I am considering the worst result."

Li Ye nodded. The entire internal parts of the steam engine are made of copper. Like furniture, the most important thing about a steam engine is its sturdiness. Currently, there are no screws and nuts, so the shell can only be cast in one piece as much as possible, and the parts inside rely on traditional The mortise and tenon technology will prevent it from suddenly falling apart after running for a period of time.

Li Ye said slowly: "I hope to hear the good news that you have successfully developed it next spring."