Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 299
Episode 299 Departure. (5)
“Pirate ships appear to be gathering.”
Gangnam-gil responded to the manager’s report with a cynicism.
“Are you trying to make a heavenly net? “You idiots.”
* * *
One of the common defensive tactics was to build a defense line with multiple troops in multiple layers to defend against an enemy approaching with a one-point assault.
It was a tactic nicknamed ‘Cheonnajimang’ among Joseon military commanders.
No matter how strong the attack power of the enemy who attempted to charge was, if it broke through two or three defense lines, its power would plummet, and it would eventually collapse and be counterattacked.
This tactic was applied on the largest scale in the famous ‘Battle of Kursk’.
That’s why Gangnam Road ridiculed the pirates’ movements.
If this place were on the ground, choosing ‘Cheonnajimang’ could be said to be a pretty good solution.
If it was the ground, even an improvised defense facility could be firmly anchored and the enemy’s feet could be tied down.
But now the place they were in was the sea.
It was impossible to stop Maeng Jin’s advance unless the ship was driven into Maeng Jin’s bow.
Given Maeng Jin’s size and sturdiness, a pirate ship, the largest of which was a ship, would have been thrown away unless it collided head-on.
And even if they were tied up according to their wishes, they were the ones in trouble. Maeng Jin was much larger than their ship and was well armed with artillery and rifles.
* * *
“The most important thing is…”
Gangnam-gil, who was watching the pirate fleet getting closer, turned his head back and looked at the sister ships following behind.
“The only one I have to fight with is Meng Jin, and I have no intention of becoming a scapegoat.”
The movements of the pirate fleet were similar to a pack of wolves hunting a herd of deer.
Set an appropriate goal and tackle it as a group.
Although the rest would be missed, it was a way to fill the stomach by making sure to catch the target prey.
* * *
Gangnam-gil raised his voice towards the sailors.
“Soldiers, listen!”
Gangnam-gil, who attracted the attention of the soldiers on the first floor deck, continued speaking.
“We are the first Joseon fleet to set foot in this sea! Dajeo (大抵) If we move to another town, it is our kindness to give at least one piece of barley rice cake! Therefore, treat them with sincerity! Do your best to send them to the Dragon Palace! That’s the best treat!”
The sailors on the first floor deck and the sailors on the second floor deck who were listening through Jeon Seong-gwan all raised their fists and shouted at the same time.
“Ooooh!”
At that time, a sailor observing the pirates from the watchtower sent a signal.
“Enemy ships have entered the range!”
Upon hearing the manager’s report, Gangnam-gil stretched out the baton he was holding.
“Huh! after! Hueup!”
Gangnam-gil took a deep breath and swung his baton downward.
“Bangpo!”
“Bangpo!”
Kwakwakwak!
At that moment, with a loud gunfire, both sides of Maeng Jin-ho’s huge hull were covered in gunfire.
* * *
The pirate ships that were hit by artillery fire as they approached the Maeng Jinho were in complete chaos.
“Some guy’s artillery shells flew 200 pieces (about 600 meters)!”
Wang Yi, the captain of the pirate ship, who was suddenly splashed with water while approaching a ship he had never seen before, shouted with a half-fazed look on his face.
“What is the damage?”
“doesn’t exist!”
“Boss! excuse me! excuse me!”
At the subordinate’s shout, Wang Yi looked at the direction the subordinate was pointing and gritted his teeth.
“Damn it!”
At the place the subordinate pointed to, the ships of his fellow pirates, racing ahead and behind his ship through the sea, were leaning to one side. At a glance, it seemed like there was serious damage and life was in danger.
The problem was that there were more than just one or two such ships.
“boss! Should I fall back?”
“Don’t be ridiculous! “Do you think the others will leave us alone if we already remove our tails?”
“But…”
“Keep rowing! You have to go within 50 pieces (about 160m) to shoot the crossbow! in action! “You can only survive by moving!”
“yes! boss! “Row!”
The pirates who grabbed the oars at Wang Yi’s command gritted their teeth and began rowing.
* * *
“Quickly close the hole!”
“If you don’t want to become meat, quickly close the hole!”
Jang Hak-su, who was leading one of the pirate ships approaching to attack Maeng Jin, clung to the railing and desperately shouted.
The pirate ship he was driving was now slowly sinking from the stern.
The pirate ship driven by Jang Hak-su was approaching Maeng Jin’s left flank.
Unfortunately, the approaching direction of his pirate ship exactly overlapped with the firing line of one of the guns installed on the second floor of Maengjin.
And it was not the Joseon navy that would miss this luck.
The shell fired by the Joseon navy passed right next to the second mast of the pirate ship, penetrated the deck, and created a hole in the bottom of the stern.
As water entered through the hole, Jang Hak-su’s boat began to sink from the stern.
Although a significant number of pirate ships were mortally wounded in the first bombardment, the pirates persistently approached the Maengjinho. And as if waiting for him, Maeng Jin-ho’s second bombardment continued.
Kwakwakwak!
Once again, the Joseon army’s cannonballs hit the pirate ships.
The second bombardment inflicted even more serious losses on the pirates. While the shells used in the first bombardment were monolithic shells, i.e. simple iron balls, the second shells were fired by ‘combined-type general artillery’, which was designed only for challengers and responders. It was a bigyeokjincheonroe designed to fit.
* * *
Similar to the method of operation of the Land Forces and the Panokseon, an attempt was made to construct separate guns and artillery for the Bigyeokjincheonroe, but problems with efficiency arose, and Hyang developed the combined type general artillery.
To be precise, the aspect of scent virtue under the guise of efficiency was stronger.
Anyway, it was the beginning, but the Byeong-type general artillery that was created in that way boasted better performance than the Eul-type general artillery, and the efficiency of the artillery was also increased by using only two types of shells: the Byeong-type Cheonja Iron Projectile and the Byeong-type Heavy Attack Jincheonroe.
* * *
The thunderbolts that rained down like that exploded in the sky above the pirate ships, either on the deck or penetrating through the deck, where the oarsmen were.
This was a method devised while dealing with Japanese pirates and Ga-Jae (fake Japanese pirates) in the West Sea.
The purpose was to cause more serious damage to the hull and the Japanese pirates on board the ship by exploding in several places.
And the pirates who received the bombardment were experiencing a living hell.
“Ugh….”
Pirate Oasam held on to his bloody left arm and looked at the deck around him.
The blood flowing from the bodies of his fellow pirates was all around him.
Unidentifiable limbs were scattered everywhere, and although they had escaped immediate death, their seriously injured colleagues were screaming and moaning and writhing in the sea of blood.
Oasam looked at the mast he was leaning against.
Oasam ended up losing his left arm because his body was covered by a mast as thick as the waist of an adult man.
Oasam managed to get up and approached the hole in the deck.
“Wow!”
Asam O-sam looked down through the hole and suddenly vomited.
In addition to the hole overlooking the cucumbers, sunlight streamed through several more holes, clearly showing the devastation below.
None of the rowers and slaves below deck survived.
This tragedy did not occur only on Oasam’s ship.
Kwasik!
As the black iron ring hit the mast with a loud sound, all eyes of Gong Sam-nam and his colleagues turned to the mast.
And at that very moment, the iron ring embedded in the mast exploded.
bang!
At the same time as the explosion, the iron balls contained in the shell, the fragments of the shell, and the broken wood of the mast cruelly tore the bodies of the pirates around.
Bigyeokjincheonroe boasted more terrible power at sea than on land.
Most of the pirates were not wearing armor in case they fell into the sea.
Those who wore armor only wore small metal plates that covered important vital parts such as the breastplate.
They were crowded together on the narrow deck of a ship that was at best as big as a ship.
Therefore, when a lightning bolt exploded in the center of a group of pirates, it was not uncommon for one fragment to kill two or three pirates at the same time.
* * *
The pirate fleet, hit by a lightning strike, was facing catastrophe.
Gangnam-gil, who was looking at the pirate fleet in disarray, looked back at the manager, pointing to a large ship in the distance.
“No matter how you look at it, doesn’t that guy look like a captain?”
“That’s right!”
“Then let’s go say hello! “Rudder to port!”
“Rudder to port!”
At Gangnam-gil’s command, the helmsman turned the steering wheel vigorously.
“There are still quite a few of them left, right?”
To the manager’s question, Gang Nam-gil responded by pointing backwards with his chin.
“We’re not the only ones, right?”
The manager, who immediately understood what Gangnam-gil said, smiled and answered.
“All right!”
Maeng Jin-ho, who tore apart the pirate fleet, turned his bow to aim for a large ship that appeared to be a captain’s ship to finish.
* * *
“Damn it!”
Faced with a completely different situation than expected, Leader Zhao swore.
There were a total of 27 ships that attacked like a school of sharks targeting a whale. However, more than half of the ships disappeared in just two bombardments.
The ship they targeted was not a whale but a great white shark.
A great white shark that had bitten sharks smaller than itself was now running towards him.
“Shall we run away?”
“This slow and broken ship?”
“….”
The subordinate’s mouth was tightly shut in response to Zhao’s question.
Zhao’s ship had to undergo extensive reinforcement work in order to mount the artillery pieces purchased from a Ming Dynasty merchant. As a result, the speed of the ship, which had gained weight, slowed down considerably.
“We can’t escape on this slow-moving ship. Even if you can escape, the leaders of the other fleets will not stay still. So there is only one answer. I have no choice but to trust the artillery. “You have to believe it to be a cannon used by the Ming army!”
Zhao, who had made up his mind, shouted to his subordinates.
“Prepare the artillery! Catch that damn bastard!”
“yes!”
“At full speed! Talk to the oarsmen! “Make your arms explode and stir!”
“ancient! Wow!”
The subordinates responded with shouts to Zhao’s command.
Both Zhao and his subordinates were pirates from their roots.
As expected of these people for whom death is a common occurrence, their fighting spirit rose.
In this way, Zhao’s boat began to speed up, looking directly at Meng Jinho.
* * *
As Meng Jinhao got closer and closer, Zhao shouted.
“Better than 80! 80 steps! “When you get within 80 paces (about 100 meters), light the wick!”
“yes!”
While listening to his subordinates’ answers, Zhao clutched the railing and muttered.
“Damn artillery…”
As the Ming Dynasty merchant said, the artillery that Zhao obtained was capable of firing a 30 geun (about 18 kg) iron ring up to 200 paces (about 240 m).
However, this was limited to athletics. This distance was possible when the carriage was firmly anchored on solid ground.
But the place where the guns would be loaded was on a ship. In particular, pirate ships that valued speed were less robust, so Zhao had to do extensive reinforcement work on his ships.
Despite that, the problem still remained.
If the maximum amount of gunpowder was put into the gun and fired, the ship could not withstand it.
Because of this, Zhao had to repair the ship again and reduce the amount of gunpowder put into the guns.
In order for the shells fired due to the reduced gunpowder to be effective, they had to approach the target within 100 steps (about 120m).
* * *
The two ships that were rushing toward each other finally crossed.
The distance between the two ships was about 40 feet (about 120 meters). In a situation where each other’s sides were clearly visible, Gangnam-gil and Zhao shouted at the same time.
“Let go!”
“Shoot!”
Kwakwakwak!
‘Only a blind person would miss it at this level!’
‘Better than 100! ‘This is enough!’
As Gangnam Road and Zhao’s thoughts intersected, the iron rings on both sides intersected in the sky.
And the joys and sorrows were divided.
Kwasik! bang!
The boat Zhao was on was hit by the iron rings and Bigyeokjin thunderbolts fired from the Maengjin Lake, and became riddled with holes and began to sink.
Zhao, whose chest was pierced by a piece of wood thrown out by the explosion of a thunderbolt, looked at Meng Jinhao with an expression of disbelief.
The shells fired from Zhao’s ship accurately hit the Maeng Jin’s hull. However, Maeng Jin-ho’s hull easily bounced off the 30-geun iron rings.
“I can’t believe it…”
These were Zhao’s last words.
* * *
“What is the damage status?”
“None!”
As soon as the shell fired from the pirate ship hit the hull, Gangnam-gil immediately confirmed the damage.
Gangnam-gil, who received a report that there was no damage, raised his arms and shouted without realizing it.
“I, Crown Prince, live forever!”
This was because he remembered what Hyang had said when he first received the boat.
-Will there be a hole in the Challenger-class ship’s hull? Even if it hits a reef, it probably won’t get a hole in it with a decent amount of artillery fire.
* * *
The reason Maeng Jin-ho was able to withstand the 30-pound iron ring was possible because the plates that made up the side of the hull were not just two layers, but two layers.
The method introduced by Hyang was the method that the United States used on frigates such as Constitution.
Simply put, it was a form of plywood with no adhesive material, made by crossing two sheets at right angles.
It was thanks to this trick that the Challenger level fronts became infamous.