Since the Yuanchun wedding ceremony was completed, Jia Lian has returned his main focus to his official duties.
He has been in charge of the Military and Horse Division for two years, and he has managed it very well. It is no exaggeration to say that it is a headquarters. Therefore, apart from the daily routine work and occasionally giving lessons to some wealthy and wealthy people in Xicheng, it was nothing more.
Therefore, what consumed his most thoughts was the Shenji Camp Firearms Bureau.
On this day, he was in Shenji Camp, discussing with Wu Youquan and others how to connect gunpowder and bullets (bullets) to achieve rapid loading and truly solve the disadvantage of long firing gaps of muskets.
"Sir, can you wrap the lead balls and gunpowder together with oiled paper? When firing, the soldiers only need to bite or puncture the paper package and then load it into the barrel of the gun. This will also eliminate the need to load the lead balls separately. And the time of gunpowder…”
A senior craftsman from the Musket Battalion suggested this after receiving numerous lessons from Jia Lian.
Wu Youquan's eyes lit up, and he thought the suggestion was good. He looked at Jia Lian and said, "Master Hou, this method seems to work... I really can't understand the meaning of Master Hou. It is necessary to use copper or iron shells to hold gunpowder and set it in lead." Behind the bead, this is not difficult, but how to ignite the gunpowder inside?"
Although Wu Youquan is very passionate about firearms and has ideas, his thinking is all about how to improve firearms. In his concept, "bullets" are round beads, whether they are iron, copper or lead beads. However, It's a matter of cost and quality.
He couldn't imagine that bullets had to create structures like firearms.
Faced with Wu Youquan's rhetorical question, Jia Lian was also somewhat silent. He just knows that it is very low to simply use round beads as bullets. After all, although he was not a military fan in his previous life, as an ordinary person, he also knows that bullets are composed of bullets, bullet casings, etc. It is assumed that gunpowder is contained in the bullet casing, so Only then can the bullet be loaded into the firearm and ready to be fired.
However, Jia Lian had forgotten, or did not understand at all, how gunpowder contained in a metal bullet case was activated. Therefore, when faced with inquiries from "firearms pioneers" such as Wu Youquan, he was unable to come up with a practical plan.
So, facing the eyes of more than a dozen craftsmen who were eager for advanced knowledge, Jia Lian felt guilty for a while, but still acted enigmatically:
"Well, let me think about this issue again, and you can think about it again... For the time being, let's try according to Deputy Wang's idea and see how it works..."
I think that the exquisite, efficient, and fast bullets of later generations were created after countless experiments by pioneers and tests on the battlefield. Even if Jia Lian knew the existence of this thing, producing it from scratch would not be as easy as imagined.
If a small problem is not clarified, it will hinder the progress.
However, Jia Lian is not in a hurry. His immediate need is that he just needs to be one step ahead of others. As for advancing ten steps and a hundred steps forward, it will naturally be the best if you can do it, and it doesn’t matter if you can’t do it...
Come to think of it, if we really built things like airplanes and rocket launchers, not to mention the "powers" in the west would be so scared that they wet their pants. Speaking for himself, he didn't believe he had this ability, and regretted not studying military industry or something.
While they were discussing, they suddenly heard a familiar voice coming from outside: "Is this his office? It's too shabby, what does it smell like! Tell me... um, what's your name?"
"Go back to the Four Emperors, uh no, go back to His Highness Prince Xiao, humble post Bian Hong..."
"Haha, Sir Bian, are you trying to embarrass Jia Lian because of your seniority, so you exiled him to this corner?"
"His Royal Highness Xiao Wang is joking. How dare you do this in a humble position? It is actually the Marquis of Zhenyuan who likes to study firearms and takes the initiative to take charge of the firearms bureau. With his humble background, how can he dare to embarrass the Marquis of Zhenyuan..."
Through the wall, Jia Lian seemed to be able to see Bian Hong wiping his sweat.
No need to ask, Jia Lian knew who was coming, so he winked at Wu Youquan and others, who were a little surprised, and told them to start working first, and then got up and went to the gate.
Sure enough, they saw two other people in the Shenji Camp watching the commander in the huge craftsman's room. When they saw him coming out, they hurriedly reported: "Sir, His Royal Highness the Fourth Prince has arrived. Your Majesty, the Commander-in-Chief, asked you to..."
"Well, I understand."
Jia Lian raised his hand and responded. He had already seen the figures of Zhang Shuo brothers and the fourth prince.
"Haha, Jia Lian, you are indeed here!"
It has been several years, and in Jia Lian's eyes, the fourth prince is still the same little kid he was before. But this little brat can’t be offended yet!
Shaking his head secretly, Jia Lian hurried forward to greet him: "I have met Prince Xiao and Brother Shuo."
The prince's status is obviously higher than that of a prince, but the fourth prince seems to particularly like the title "Prince Xiao" and also likes people around him to call him that.
"Hey, Jia Lian, what are you busy with all day long? It takes a lot of effort to find you!"
The fourth prince had no intention of meeting Jia Lian. As soon as they met, he patted Jia Lian's saluting hand, walked around and looked at him, and even poked his head into the craftsman's room. When I saw that inside there were some rough guys with their arms exposed in the autumn, they were burning boilers and forging iron, making ping-pong bang-bang sounds, and I couldn't help but curl my lips.
Looking back, he saw Bian Hong and others watching helplessly, and he waved again: "You all can go, I came here specifically to see him, so you don't need to be in the way."
Bian Hong and others wanted to say something else, but when they saw the fourth prince's eyes glaring, they could only retreat angrily.
"I heard from my imperial sister that you are improving firearms, which are the kind of things that make a loud noise when you play them. I heard that they are very effective. Can you let me see it? Anyway, I don't believe you. What the imperial sister said is so exaggerated, why should we rely on it to decide the outcome on the battlefield in the future? If we don't fight with real swords and guns, can we win by just two bangs of these black sticks? If that's the case, it's really boring."
The fourth prince was obviously a passionate young man, and he even had a longing and yearning for the battlefield. He had no idea how cruel the battlefield was. Jia Lian didn't care about him. Anyway, he yelled a lot, but as long as Emperor Ning Kang was still alive, the chance of this kid going to the battlefield and causing mischief was basically zero.
Zhang Shuo also took advantage of the situation and smiled: "We also came to see the power of firearms."
"In that case, I'll make arrangements right now."
…
On the school field, when Jia Lian arranged for hundreds of officers and soldiers to fire a volley according to the "four-stage" method, the fourth prince and others looked at each other in shock as they looked at the pile of wooden rakes that had been beaten into a sieve.
"This feels different from the firecrackers I've played before... By the way, this thing is called a firecracker, right?"
"Back to Your Highness, we now call it a 'musket' because it fires faster, has a longer range, and is more powerful than the previous musket."
Not to mention the identities of the fourth princes, even the Zhang Shuo brothers, whose father is also a doctor in the Ministry of War and is in charge of the Ministry of War, have been studying firearms in the past six months, and many things and materials have been collected and withdrawn thanks to the help of this second uncle. Therefore, Jia Lian naturally did not hesitate to show the power of firearms as much as possible in front of them.
People in this era despise firearms. If we delve deeper into the origin, we have to slowly change their views step by step.
The fourth prince went down to inspect it personally and found that the wooden rakes were even thicker than the average bow and arrow targets, and he felt a bit grumpy in his heart.
Zhang Tao even sneered and said: "What's the use of being powerful? It takes so long to shoot once. With that skill, I could have killed the enemy with a bow and arrow."
Jia Lian did not explain or refute Zhang Tao's words, but looked at him with a smile: "How about I give you one for fun?"
"really?"
Zhang Tao's eyes flashed subconsciously, but he immediately realized that his face was as red as a pig's liver, and he didn't know what to do.
It turned out that Jia Lian had long discovered that when those bright muskets were displayed, Zhang Tao was the most eager and curious one. He grabbed one and studied it, and couldn't bear to put it away for a long time.
Maybe he thinks it's true that the reloading speed of this thing is slower than that of a bow and arrow, but if nothing else, the sound of firing a musket is something that no man doesn't like.
What he doesn't like is Jia Lian.
In the past, he was always disliked by the old man because of his small stature. Later, when Jia Lian came over, the comparison became even more obvious.
In addition, Jia Lian always bullied him, which made him always against Jia Lian.
Although he has "deep resentment" against Jia Lian, he likes to study all powerful weapons. He thought to himself that if Jia Lian was really willing to give him a musket to play with...forget it, how could this stingy guy really give him something as a gift?
So he said disdainfully: "It's shameful to not keep your word."
Because of his angry look, it was obvious that he was angry because he wanted something he couldn't get. Not to mention Jia Lian, even Zhang Shuo and the fourth prince found it funny.
The fourth prince liked to get involved in this kind of thing. He smiled and said: "That's right. A man must keep his word. Jia Lian, you can't keep your word. No matter what others say, it's your cousin. You are the cousin." Brother, you might be stingy."
Jia Lian shook his head and said, "It's true that I am his cousin, but this kid never really called me cousin from the beginning to the end. I am also very embarrassed."
Jia Lian didn't lie either. Unless he couldn't hide in front of the old man, Zhang Tao would reluctantly call him "Second Brother". In private, it would be considered good if he didn't glare. Jia Lian felt that this child was a bit needy.
Therefore, Jia Lian deliberately ordered his men to fetch two wooden boxes.
"Hey, what is this?"
Following the fourth prince's question, Jia Lian opened the first one, revealing a gilded and colorful musket inside, the length of which was only one-third of a normal musket. In the grid next to it are bottles of gunpowder and fire starters.
"This is a special musket made of refined copper mixed with gold by my craftsmen. Although it is less powerful, it is compact and easy to carry and play with. If the Fourth Highness does not want to give it up, I would like to give it to the Fourth Highness for fun."
The fourth prince thought about it for a moment, then immediately smiled and said: "Okay, I just happen to think this thing is a bit interesting..."
So Jia Lian taught the fourth prince how to use the musket on the spot. The fourth prince had good understanding and quickly figured out how to play this thing, and then looked at another box with a similar appearance.
"What is this?"
"Oh, this one is made of fine copper. It's far inferior to your Highness's. If Your Highness likes it, feel free to take it. If you don't like it, I'll keep it and give it to others."
With that said, Jia Lian casually opened the box and showed it to everyone, especially Zhang Tao, the same golden gun inside, except for the different color, which was not bad at all in terms of exquisiteness.
The fourth prince couldn't see what Jia Lian meant. He was already willing to cooperate with Jia Lian's benefits, "Forget it, I already have this one, so I don't want that one."
"good."
Jia Lian immediately closed the box and handed it to the man next to him.
Zhang Tao was a little anxious.
If he likes those three-foot-long spears, he is limited, but this short, golden musket is too eye-catching.
If only Jia Lian hadn't said he wanted to send him off, but it was like this, it was really frustrating.
He pulled his brother's sleeve, but Zhang Shuo only gave him a helpless look.
"Take it away."
"yes."
Seeing that Jia Lian's soldiers had already taken a few steps away, and there would be no chance at all if it was too late, Zhang Tao finally couldn't bear it anymore: "Slow down!"
"Um?"
Facing Jia Lian's doubtful gaze, Zhang Tao's face twisted, and he finally took a step forward, clasped his fists at Jia Lian and said, "Little brother, I have seen second cousin Lian!
Is this okay? "
Her little eyes were full of anger, like a little daughter-in-law who had clearly been insulted but had to compromise.
The fourth prince and Zhang Shuo couldn't help laughing.
Jia Lian said: "What's all right? Oh, you want this musket, right? Well, originally, for the sake of you rarely calling me cousin, it wouldn't hurt to give it to you, but..."
Zhang Tao was completely angry and stared at Jia Lian, as if he would fight Jia Lian to death if Jia Lian dared to tease him.
"But this musket is a military object after all. You have no official position and no quota for personal soldiers. It's really difficult for me to call you cousin."
Jia Lian was bullying Zhang Tao because he was young and ignorant. In fact, except for specific military weapons and equipment such as heavy crossbows and heavy armor, which the court absolutely does not allow private production and possession by the private sector, the court will not pursue other weapons too closely as long as the quantity and regulations are within a controllable range.
As for muskets... at least until muskets show their absolute superiority over bows and arrows, the court will most likely not ban them from the public.
Even nowadays, there are still hunters among the people who use simple fire guns to hunt in the mountains.
Zhang Tao, however, didn't know what was going on inside. He felt that what Jia Lian said was reasonable, and his face was full of disappointment. Anyone who has experienced this feeling of having something that he obviously likes is placed in front of him, but he is not qualified to have it.
Zhang Shuo couldn't bear it any longer and responded: "You have forgotten that my grandfather is a first-class uncle, and he has soldiers under his command..."
"Well, that's right!" Finally, Zhang Tao wasn't too stupid. He patted his thigh and looked at Jia Lian:
"Jia Lian, it's in vain that Grandpa Fei likes you so much. Now that you have such a thing, you don't know how to honor him?
To be honest, I don't care about your useless stuff at all. I just thought that my grandfather had been in the army all his life and loved collecting all kinds of weapons, so I planned to take it back to show him.
Just tell me whether you want to give it or not! "
The more Zhang Tao talked, the more confident he became, and in the end he looked at Jia Lian with confidence, as if if you don't give it, I will sue you later for being heartless and unfilial.
"Do you really want it for me? Don't think about keeping it for yourself. I will ask you when the time comes."
"Of course, you can ask."
I will never steal it for myself. I will do it openly and I won’t be afraid to ask. If asked, I will just say that I borrowed it from the old man. Zhang Tao felt that although he had fallen out of favor, his grandfather still loved him and would not compete with him for such a gadget.
If grandpa really likes it, he can just let him rob Jia Lian again, and Jia Lian will not dare not give it to him.
Jia Lian smiled and waved his hand, asking Zhang Yong to give the thing to the boy.
Zhang Tao suddenly felt like he had found a treasure and hurriedly took it to the edge for inspection. Grandpa didn't say that he was small and suffered a loss when fighting with others because he was not as powerful as others. But with this thing, it was different. He felt that this thing was made for him. If others were big, it would be easier to hit him. He was bigger. It's so small that others can't hit it even if they want to, hehe.
