"Master Hong, I heard that you have a dispute with Western craftsmen on the shipbuilding, right?" Xiao Minggan directly found Hong Yuanji and Najie Shengshi and the three British shipbuilding craftsmen.

"Sir, this is the case. The old man and the ship workers wanted to build these four large ships according to the structure of the blessing ship and the treasure ship passed down, but the three Western ship workers said that the structure we designed was very bad and was not conducive to fighting. We should redesign according to the style of the Western warships." Hong Yuanji replied.

"Oh! Jiesheng, why do they say that? Are there any flaws in the ship designed by Master Hong and others?" Xiao Minggan turned to Jiesheng and asked.

"Sir, they have discussed it several times, so I can answer your question."

"The bottom of the warship designed by Hong and others is too wide. Although it is more stable when sailing, its speed is much lower than that of Europe's narrow-bottom warships; secondly, the capital of the warships they designed is raised high, which not only reduces the speed of the warships, but also increases the chance of being hit by enemy artillery, causing the survivability of the warships to decrease on the battlefield;

Also, they insisted on laying a large number of watertight cabins on the warships, so that there would be no room for the warships to arrange artillery. Our European 600-ton warships can carry almost eighty guns, but the warships designed by Hong and others can carry up to twenty guns.

These three are the main shortcomings of the warships they designed, and of course there are other subtle and inappropriate aspects." Jayson expounded the main differences they discussed these days in one breath.

Xiao Minggan is an amateur in building ships, but he knows very well that these warships are used for combat. What are the main factors in combat? They are attack power, speed, and defense ability. Only those with strong attack ability can defeat their opponents faster, and only those with strong speed and defense ability can better attack, defense and even retreat.

So, as soon as Jayson said these three points, Xiao Minggan was completely on the side of the British craftsmen.

"Master Hong, modify the shipbuilding plan according to the suggestions of the three British craftsmen." Xiao Minggan said directly in an orderly tone.

"But Governor, we have always built ships like this." Hong Yuanji's face looked a little unfair.

"It doesn't mean it's right to build it like this. Master Hong, what I want is warships, they are completely used for combat and do not require any transportation functions.

Our ships may have many advantages such as stable navigation, large transportation capacity, and still have the ability to sail for a long distance after hitting the reef. However, these advantages are not warships, at least not what warships need to have today. Warships are used for combat, so we must pursue greater attack capabilities, faster speeds, and stronger defenses. Can you understand what I mean?"

Xiao Ming made some explanation and made Hong Yuanji feel a little better.

"We understand."

"Master Hong, our ships have many advantages. The ships made of this structure are much better for commercial ships than their Western ships. In the future, our shipyards will definitely take on shipbuilding orders from many maritime merchants. By then, our ships will have a place to use them."

Xiao Minggan's explanation and comfort finally settled the design of the warship, and also allowed the shipbuilders to untie the knot in their hearts.

"Please rest assured, Mr. Governor, we are not unreasonable. We will build these ships."

"Master Hong, I know that our ship has deep emotions in your heart. However, as times change, everything has to change. If we cannot innovate ourselves and keep remembering the glory of more than a hundred years ago, then others will soon surpass us. At that time, what can we compete with others? So in the future, you must learn more about their strengths and strive to create a bigger and better battleship.

You know, I am not satisfied with these 600-ton small ships, I want to build larger ships. Maybe in ten or twenty years, you will look back at these three-masted warships, which are already small sampans that are completely ineffective."

"Also, I want to announce a decision here. As long as any craftsman brings out an apprentice whose skills are equal to Master Hong, I will reward him with 300 taels of silver. And this apprentice is the same even if it is his children." Xiao Minggan announced loudly.

Xiao Ming's decision caused a stir on the spot. Three hundred taels of silver could buy 30 acres of good fertile land in the Ming Dynasty. Such a reward was not only moved by the Chinese craftsmen, but also the three Western craftsmen.

"Sir, what if he brought out multiple such apprentices?" After Jayson translated Xiao Minggan's words to the three British craftsmen, they knew that their fortune was coming.

"The more you bring out such apprentices, the more you will get. And if you can bring out ten such apprentices, I will reward you with an additional 10,000 taels of silver." There are only a few craftsmen, and even if they come with another 100,000, Xiao Ming will not feel that it will be too much.

Xiao Ming's heavy reward immediately made the entire shipyard excited. Everyone was full of energy and had a great chance to work under the masters who valued their craftsmen like this.

Afterwards, Xiao Minggan inspected the shipyard. Although no ship has officially started to be built, it was planned to build 20 docks of 2,000-ton warships at the same time from the beginning, making the entire shipyard look very spectacular and very empty. Even though the manufacturing materials for five ships are already in place, it is not conspicuous compared to the shipyard covering an area of ​​10,000 acres.

Sometimes Xiao Minggan feels that he is too tall. But when he thinks about the many European opponents he is about to face that have been developing for hundreds of years and his ideals, Xiao Minggan feels that he has not made any illusions.

"Mr. Wu Yundong asked for a meeting." Just as Xiao Minggan was asking a craftsman, Shi Yuan came to report.

"Yeah! Let him come over!"

"I have met the Governor." Wu Yundong bowed respectfully.

"Mr. Wu, don't have so much courtesy in the future. Just be simple." Seeing that Wu Yundong is becoming more and more respectful to him, Xiao Minggan decided to stop such a false courtesy from developing like this, and decided to talk about this matter with Tang Hongsheng.

"Yes! Governor, I am here this time to report to Governor about the Wu family in Jinjiang."

"Oh! Then let's talk somewhere else." This matter is a major event that determines the fate of their consortium. Xiao Minggan has to be cautious. If he is not intimate, it will have a great impact on them. Before that, Xiao Minggan notified all insiders to keep secrets strictly.
Chapter completed!