Chapter 116: A spy on Jeju Island

"How to calculate it, our current ship ownership is not enough." Thorpe said with some disappointment after the deduction on the picture.

In the exercise command post, everyone feels the same.

On the wide map table, the glass plates covered with large-scale maps of the East China Sea region have been painted with various colors and marks. Various small models are scattered.

The female orderly soldiers responsible for marking and pushing the model on the glass plate have retreated to the back and stand respectfully against the wall. In the past, the female orderly soldiers' appearance, figure and uniform style have always been a topic that veteran officers are happy to discuss, but now no one has turned their attention to them.

Not only veteran officers, but also representatives from several cooperative departments such as the Colonial Trade Department and the Foreign Intelligence Bureau. They also showed a look of embarrassment on their faces.

The complexity of engine operations is far beyond their estimates. Although they have solved several prerequisites: stockpiling supplies, expanding ship production capacity, recruiting and training sailors, and even expanding quarantine camps... However, in the seemingly simple link of how to transport people back, it was discovered that there were many problems after deduction.

From Dengzhou to Linggao, the straight-line distance on the map is more than 1,500 nautical miles, and from Linggao to Zhapu, the straight-line distance is about 900 nautical miles.

Generally, sailing ships sailing at sea combine the factors of sea current and wind direction, and the average speed is about 2 to 4 knots. In other words, under ideal conditions, a ship can sail 96 nautical miles in 24 hours, and can complete a voyage from Dengzhou to Linggao in 15 days, and a voyage can be completed in 30 days.

But in fact, sailboats cannot go straight at sea. In order to obtain favorable wind directions and currents, they usually take relatively tortuous routes. Although no one has the experience of sailing for the full range of sailboats, according to the Navy's estimates, the single voyage from Dengzhou to Linggao is about 20 days. Considering that sailing in the sailing era relies heavily on ocean currents and wind directions, it is not impossible to have a doubled time difference. Considering that each voyage of a harmonious ship takes about 40 days between Dengzhou and Linggao - including a brief rest and supplementary materials in Linggao and Dengzhou.

Sailboats cannot sail all year round, and sailing along the coast of China also requires consideration to avoid the impact of typhoons in summer and autumn. The Senate’s weather forecast system is very weak. Even if meteorological observatories are set up in Dongsha, Xisha and other places, radio cannot achieve the level of forecasting the ships in the navigation. Therefore, once the typhoon is frequent, the navigation must be stopped. In this way, the sailing season will not exceed eight months, and 6 round trips a year can be carried out.

To transport 100,000 people from Shandong to Hainan, assuming that each person needs 2 tons of water displacement, that is, 200,000 tons? If people want to complete transportation within 8 months, they must have a transportation capacity of nearly 34,000 tons per time to immigrate. Including the Shanghai Army and sailors, as well as in Hainan, the transfer points along the way and Shandong maintain a certain fleet, then there must be a fleet of more than 50,000 tons of water displacement. In fact, this is an impossible plan for the shipbuilding industry in Lingao. Even if it is 100,000 immigrants from Zhejiang, it will be difficult to complete by direct transportation to Hainan.

Even if Shi Jiantao can complete the order of 24 h800 ships from the Planning Institute on time, he can "full of all" into the harmonious wheel of engine action less than 20,000 tons. In addition, other ships that are pieced together can be increased up to 30,000 tons.

It would take more than three years to transport 100,000 people according to this standard. This is really a bit long.

Although some people suggested that the African-American slave ships could meet the carrying standard of 1 person per ton, the mortality rate on the ship was obviously not what the elders pursued.

It is difficult to estimate how many people will survive when they reach the turmoil, which is crowded with canned ships.

I have worked hard to get people on board the boat, of course I am not going to throw the body at sea to play. How to transport people back as healthily as possible is the first thing the combat command needs to consider.

Obviously, it is unlikely that people can be transported back directly from Shandong or Zhejiang at one time. Then the only way is to set up stops in the middle and temporarily "stock up" the population. First, try to transport the population from Dengzhou, and then transport it back batch by batch.

"According to our health department's view, it is best to carry out a certain degree of purification and quarantine in local or near local locations." Zhang Tumu, who came to the meeting on behalf of the health department, said, "Otherwise, various epidemics will easily break out in the cabins where there are many people and air not circulating. The ship lacks the ability to deal with it effectively. Not only is the mortality rate of the voyage too high, the health of survivors transported to Linggao will also be greatly damaged."

"We have to find several mid-way transfer points," Chen Haiyang said. "It is best to set up a pre-purification camp at or near a certain location in the local area, just like Guangzhou Station."

What Linggao needs is manpower, especially those in northern dialects. But it does not mean that all these manpower must be brought back to Hainan immediately. The first step is actually only necessary for these people to send out the area controlled by the Ming Dynasty. Then slowly transport these manpower to Hainan or other places where they need it.

The advantage of setting up a purification camp nearby is that the population transported from Dengzhou can be greatly increased. If one person can be transported per tonnage during 20 days of sea navigation, if the navigation time is controlled within 7 days, there is no need to load too much water and food on the ship, and the number of people per tonnage can be increased to 4 people or even 5 people.

Of course, this purification camp should not be set up on the mainland. Although the armed forces and foundation construction technology of the time travel group are enough to repel any armed forces on the mainland, the cost of investing in building a large camp on the mainland that can accommodate tens of thousands of people to defend it from attack is too high. In addition, it is also necessary to consider that refugees may escape because they are unwilling to leave their hometowns or are afraid of being transported overseas after they have gained a preliminary respite.

Therefore, this purification camp can only be set up on the sea, that is, on an offshore island.

The off-island is not only safe and secure - both the Ming army and the pirates have very weak ability to conduct amphibious operations. The Fubo army can protect the security of the off-island as long as it has a small number of garrison troops and naval patrol boats. The off-island also limits the possibility of refugees attempting to escape.

Regarding the specific locations of the off-island, some people propose to be in the Miaodao Islands, and some people propose to be in the Changshan Islands or Liugong Island. These islands are close to the Shandong Peninsula without exception, and have a certain water source that can support tens of thousands of people in a short period of time - of course, food needs to be provided outside. Some people also propose to set up purification camps in the Lushun area to directly occupy the currently abandoned Jinzhou City. However, these locations are either close to the war zones of the Later Jin and Ming Dynasty, they are easily disturbed by the Ming Navy; or they are too close to the mainland. At that time, the Bohai Sea was much more frozen than in the 21st century, and many small islands were equally connected to the mainland in winter. Therefore, many people proposed to capture Jeju Island as a transshipment center for Dengzhou.

Jeju Island is only 350 nautical miles away from Dengju, and a single voyage takes only 3 to 4 days. It is no problem to squeeze five or six hundred people into a Harmony ship.

North Korea did not have strong dominance on Jeju Island at that time, and the population on the island was not large. Jeju Island had 18,000 square kilometers, and even in the 21st century, it only had a population of 550,000. At that time, the island was used as an exile site and a horse farm by the Lee Dynasty. The population on the island would not exceed 10,000 or 20,000 people at most, and there were many officials and slaves who had no feelings for the Lee Dynasty. It was expected that they would not encounter much strong resistance.

The defense power on the island is very weak. The veterans are very clear about the foundation of the Lee North Korean military power, and its military status is strange. The Fubo army did not spend much effort to capture Jeju Island. In addition, the strategic environment that North Korea faced at that time and the weak military power made it impossible for them to recover the island once they lost Jeju Island.

There is a warm current passing by around Jeju Island, with a mild climate and abundant precipitation. Not only is the water source that the purification camp most needed is not a problem, but there are also rich fish farms around to replenish food.

Occupying Jeju Island not only allows you to obtain a safe purification camp, but also obtain thousands of official horses from the local North Korean horse farm. For the Senate, which has a long lack of horses, its value is no less than the tens of thousands of people transported from Dengzhou.

"...In the long run, occupying Jeju Island is equivalent to giving us a good base to interfere in the Liaodong war between the Ming Dynasty and the Qing Dynasty in the east, and intervene in the west." Luo Duo, the General Staff of the General Staff who strongly advocated occupying Jeju Island, said, "With the maritime power of the Ming Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty, the Li Dynasty, and Tokugawa at that time, none of them launched an attack that threatened Jeju Island. We can ensure the safety of the island with a small number of garrison troops. All refugees transported from Dengzhou do not have to be transported back to Linggao, and some of them can be resettled on the spot. In the future, the horses we purchased from the mainland can also be kept on the island."

"But what to do with cotton coats? Now it's the Little Ice Age, and almost all the Bohai Sea has frozen. Without thick cotton coats, a large number of people may have to freeze to death. There is also food. If more than 100,000 people are piled up on Jeju Island, the logistics pressure will be great." Thorpe said.

"Compared with Dengzhou and even a little further south on the mainland, the temperature on Jeju Island is much higher. In the 20th century, the lowest temperature in winter was above 0 degrees - a warm current passed. Citrus could be grown in the Li Dynasty. You should know that citrus could not be grown in the north of the Huai River. I think the temperature at that time would not be too low. Ordinary cotton jackets could deal with it. Besides, ships did not transport people from Linggao to Shandong, and the no-load tonnage could be used to transport grain, clothing and building materials. After refugees came to the island, they could also carry out production and self-rescue activities on the spot. Even extensive planting could obtain certain grain supplements."
Chapter completed!