Strictly speaking, Xiao Chen is not a literati. The shocking poems he recited were not written by himself, but were copied from others.
He just likes literature and has read a lot of Tang poetry, Song poetry and ancient articles.
He is actually a science guy.
The major studied is mechanical design, manufacturing and automation.
Mechanical design, manufacturing and automation are considered to be broad-caliber majors, with a wide range of design disciplines.
It is based on mechanical design and manufacturing, integrates computer science, information technology, automatic control and other technologies, uses advanced design and manufacturing theories and methods to solve various complex technical problems in the field of modern engineering, and also has intelligent design and manufacturing A multi-disciplinary, multi-directional major.
That's why he was able to design and manufacture a wheelchair with quite advanced craftsmanship and concepts.
As for the heating system, it was child's play for him.
It is no exaggeration to say that he understood this when he was in elementary school. At that time, the heating manufacturer where his grandfather worked was in a slump, so he went out to do private work on his own. Xiao Chen, who was on summer vacation, was following behind. What could he not know after seeing too much? Sometimes I even help put on a few turns of thread...
So when Xiao Chen gathered more than a dozen big craftsmen who had obviously improved their mood after receiving the settlement allowance and had a cordial chat with each other, everyone immediately looked at him with admiration.
"Why, Marshal Xiao, are you also a blacksmith?" A small but sturdy blacksmith guessed.
"This doesn't count, either." Xiao Chen said with a smile.
"Either you are from a family of craftsmen. The key points of the smelting technology you mentioned just now are impossible to explain without an expert!" said the little blacksmith.
"I usually like to think about these things. It's a hobby. What do you call your brother?" Xiao Chen has always been so approachable, which makes everyone quite scared.
"Oh, I don't dare take it. The villain's name is Liu Tiebi. Because of my strength, people call me Liu Tieji." Despite his small stature, his arms are very strong.
"We are just chatting. We are just brothers regardless of our status. Brother Liu, with our current tools and iron-making furnaces, can we think of a way to smelt lead and iron into an alloy?" Xiao Chen gradually got to the point.
"It's possible, but there are several ways to do it. It all depends on what it's used for?" Liu Tieji became more energetic when he talked about his profession.
"To make musket projectiles, our projectiles now are all made of iron. Firstly, they are too light and cannot shoot far. Secondly, the iron is too hard and will damage the barrel of the gun. The barrel of the gun will become useless after just a few uses." Xiao Chen said.
"That's simple, it's just iron wrapped with lead, I can do it!" Liu Tiejui grinned, how big a deal does it think it is?
"Okay, tomorrow you will choose a few helpers to go to Deputy General Wei Yuntian and discuss how to make it happen." Xiao Chen was overjoyed.
"Okay!" Liu Tieji was very excited. He had work to do as soon as he arrived, and he got an extra five taels of silver every month!
Besides, this is the first errand assigned to us by the marshal, so I leave it to me, Old Liu. Even if I am exhausted, I will definitely do a good job for you, marshal!
"Gongsun, can you make a cart?" Xiao Chen asked Gongsun Ban again.
"Looking at what you said, Marshal, we are great craftsmen, how can we not even build a car?" Gongsun Ban was not very happy when he heard this.
"I'm talking about the chariot." Xiao Chen ordered someone to bring a piece of white paper and asked for a piece of sharpened graphite. While writing and drawing on the paper, Xiao Chen told everyone his thoughts and intentions.
"Marshal, this is not a chariot. Isn't this a car?" A fat carpenter called Liu Yishou immediately expressed doubts when he saw Xiao Chen draw the general shape of the car.
The car he mentioned is actually a box car that looks like a sedan.
"This is called a box truck. Who said that a box truck can't be used as a combat vehicle?" Xiao Chen said with a smile, "And what I want is an armored chariot that can fire crossbows."
oh? The craftsmen were all interested after hearing this, so Marshal, what you mean is...
Xiao Chen began to draw the graphics inside the car. He had studied mechanical design, so he was a professional at graphic painting!
But a group of professionals said they didn't understand it.
"Marshal, you want to wrap a layer of iron on the outside of the car, and then install a large crossbow in the car. We all understand, but what are these curved rows of yours? And why do you need these triggers connected to the bow strings? Is it designed like this? In addition, the bottom part seems to be a spring? But what is its function?" Expert Gongsun Ban was confused after looking at it.
What Xiao Chen wants to make is a repeating crossbow, and it uses a mechanical device to control the firing. Theoretically, he hopes to achieve a firing rate of twenty guns per minute, but of course a dozen guns are also possible.
Those curved rows are quivers containing crossbow arrows. The trigger connected to the bow string has a gear transmission device that can automatically fire continuously. The spring below is used to push the crossbow arrows in the quiver onto the bow string.
Hmm...that's what it means.
The design idea of Marshal is really awesome, and the structure is actually not very complicated, but there are still many specific problems that need to be solved. First of all, it is difficult for us to make spring blades at present, and they will not be very durable.
In addition, although the structure inside is not very complicated, it is not strong. The car has to move. If the installation is not strong enough, it will fall apart halfway!
So it is best if it can be disassembled. It would be even better if it can be folded. This can also save most of the space in the car for transporting supplies...
This is really quite a challenging job.
But all good craftsmen are somewhat neurotic or have obsessive-compulsive disorder. The more difficult the job is, the more they want to complete it and do it well.
"Guys, take your time and think about it. If there is any problem, let's go back and find time to continue discussing it. I want to take a step in advance." Xiao Chen stood up and left.
Uh-huh, ah, let's go? Let's go.
Everyone was focused on the drawings. When they heard Xiao Chen's words, they just agreed casually. No one looked up at him at all.
The reason why Xiao Chen wanted to build this heavy armored crossbow was to deal with the Xianbo cavalry.
In this era, cavalry are the pride of the army. With their incredible mobility and terrifying speed, they are almost invincible on the battlefield.
The Xianbo people are nomadic people. They grew up on horseback. In order to compete for rich pastures and limited resources, they are almost always in a state of war. Therefore, no matter men, women, old or young, everyone is good at riding and shooting.
Most of Yanyun County is a plain area, which is most suitable for cavalry operations.
Although the more than a thousand people selected by Xiao Chen can barely be considered elite soldiers, most of them are infantry. They can ride horses, but they are far from capable of cavalry combat.
With more than a thousand infantry formed temporarily, running for hundreds of miles to fight against tens of thousands of elite cavalry... it is really no different from going to kill someone.
But Xiao Chen was unwilling to give in. He also said that even if he was a grasshopper after autumn, he still had to jump a few times!
