The Fisherman Who Never Catches Fish-Chapter 369 - 223: Never Run Out of Ships or Ammo Again! (Please Subscribe)

That indescribable mix of complex emotions was brewing inside.

In an instant, it pulled the thoughts of everyone in the livestream back to that bygone era.

Everyone wished they could return to that time and become a part of it.

"Damn it!"

"Hateful!"

"Pitiful!"

"Tragic!"

"Regrettable!"

Everyone’s heart was screaming.

They stood on the once Ironclad Ships, gazing at the distant enemy.

They wanted to meet the enemy but realized they had no ammunition left, and a feeling of powerlessness emerged, allowing them to empathize with the anger and impotence of the people on the ships back then.

They could only passively take hits, unable to exert their true capabilities.

This was the ultimate frustration.

This had been the ship known as Asia’s first Battleship, but due to some issues, like the problem with artillery ammunition, its combat effectiveness could not be fully implemented. It was defeated by the enemy, eventually leading to the loss of the battle.

Of course, the real reason was that the overall strength of the Beiyang Fleet had already begun to slowly fall behind the Japanese at that time.

It wasn’t an issue of one or two ships, but a gap in the entire fleet.

At that time, the Qing Dynasty believed that with the combat capability of the Dingyuan and other ships, everything was sufficient, so they did not add any new warships. This resulted in the rest of the fleet’s strength falling behind, and even some ships were too old, neglected over the years, with some decks still made of wood, which meant that once they were hit by projectiles, they were almost easily destroyed, losing combat effectiveness.

And there was a significant disparity in artillery technology as well.

The Japanese cannons had a much faster rate of fire than ours; we used large-caliber cannons, which were powerful, but much slower in firing rate. The Japanese’s main ships used medium-caliber cannons that achieved a technological breakthrough at that time.

Their projectiles could complete reloading within a few seconds after firing, significantly increasing the firing rate and accuracy.

Our cannons, on the other hand, were much bulkier, using spring and hydraulic recoil devices. The battleships of the Beiyang Fleet, whether it was the 305 mm or 210 mm main guns or the 150 mm and 120 mm secondary guns, all had separate upper carriages and mounts. frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓

The drawback of the disappearing gun carriage was quite obvious; after each firing, the enormous recoil would push the upper carriage to slide, using the process of sliding down a slope to counteract the recoil force. This made the overall artillery very bulky, and after climbing the slope, the guns would not automatically return to their original positions, requiring manual labor to reset them to their firing position.

As naval battle targets are moving, increasing the interval between shots meant that each round had to be re-aimed, further reducing the hit rate.

In addition, their ships’ speeds were faster, reaching up to 22 knots, whereas our Dingyuan Ship had a speed of only 14.5 knots, a clear difference in speed.

This greatly increased the difficulty of our projectiles hitting the enemy.

Beyond the disparity in cannons, the gap in projectiles was even bigger.

The Dingyuan Ship’s 305 mm main guns used Solid Armor-Piercing Bullets weighing 325 kilograms and Fragmentation Bombs weighing 298 kilograms filled with 10 kilograms of black powder. Obviously, such projectiles could only be effective if they hit the enemy’s waterline or exploded inside the ammunition depot or engine room.

And it was even rumored that our Solid Bullets were filled with sand rather than black powder.

This meant that even if they hit the enemy ship, they did not explode.

Meanwhile, the Japanese used Shimose Gunpowder based on the explosive used by the Gaul Chicken, which had an incendiary effect upon exploding, perfect for the Beiyang Fleet’s ships that contained a lot of flammable material. Talk about a recipe for disaster.

Furthermore, at that time, the Japanese ships had already adopted the new armory from Henry Niu, known as Harvey armor, using this type of armor as an invincible tactic.

Overall, it was our strength that was behind, not something one or two ships could compensate for.

Even if the Dingyuan Ship’s combat capabilities were formidable, if they couldn’t be utilized effectively, it made little difference.

"Fortunately, we are not the same as in the past."

"We won’t be without ships, nor will we be without ammunition."

"Now, our Navy is increasingly powerful, and ships are being launched like dumplings, with even the third aircraft carrier almost complete."

From nothing to something, then from having to becoming strong.

The hardships it took to get here are known only to us.

Now, globally, our fleet strength is second only to the Eagle’s.

"So, to build more ships, I’ve decided to smoke two more packs of cigarettes a day."

Upon learning that the sunken ship below was the Dingyuan Ship, the attitude of everyone in the livestream clearly changed.

The significance was too great.

Mainly because for us, the meaning of the Dingyuan Ship is utterly irreplacable.

It is a symbol of an era.

Constantly driving us on.

"I remember a few years ago, we also built a one-to-one replica of the Dingyuan Ship, moored at the Weihai Port maritime museum."

"That’s right, indeed, I went to that museum last year, and I can’t express how heartbreaking it was to see it."

"Yes, it’s infuriating, if only we had enough ammunition back then, the outcome wouldn’t have been the same."

"I read a statistical report stating that the Beiyang Battleship’s cannons had a higher hit rate than the Japanese ships’; moreover, many rounds hit the deadly spots like the waterline of the Japanese ships. It was unfortunate that the Beiyang Navy had too few high-explosive shells, and the gunners’ firing rate was reduced due to heavy casualties from the Japanese shells."