Lizhou, located on the east bank of the Jialing River in northern Sichuan, is surrounded by mountains and rivers and has steep terrain. It is the choke point for the north to enter Sichuan and has always been a battleground for military strategists.
For more than 300 years until the end of the Song Dynasty, Sichuan provided one-third of the taxes of the Southern Song Dynasty because of its "risk" and "distance", which was valued by successive Song emperors. In order to ensure the security of Shu, the Song Dynasty court established three passes and five states north of Lizhou, and stationed elite troops here to defend against foreign enemies.
To the west of Lizhou City, by the Jialing River, the newly built military camp was in full swing. Thirty thousand "new soldiers" under the command of Lizhou Rongsi were training.
They are said to be new recruits, but in fact they are all the best players in the previous armies, as well as the elite local army and militiamen. These people were all newly recruited into the army and enjoyed the same salary package.
The terrain in Shukou is complex and life is difficult, so the people's customs are strong and strong. Whether it is queue drills, spear assassination, grenade training, or artillery drills, they are all orderly and step-by-step.
"prick!"
Lu Yuanting, a graduate of Jinling Martial Arts Hall and general of Lizhou West Road, held a long gun, shouted loudly, and personally led the team to drill.
Just a year ago, he was a student of the Jinling Military Academy, practicing and studying in the Academy. Now, he is already a general of Lizhou West Road and an instructor of the Lizhou Rongsi.
"Brothers! The skill of stabbing is the most important skill in the army. Although it is not as powerful as firearms in killing enemies, the skill of stabbing can best reflect the courage of a soldier. If you don't dare to see the glory of stabbing, just don't be a soldier. No matter the cavalry or the The artillery charges into battle, but the infantry is always the one who finally cleans up the mess. Only by practicing the art of stabbing can you defeat the opponent and kill the enemy to serve the country!"
After yelling, Lu Yuanting turned around and walked into the team, carefully observing and correcting the training of the "new recruits".
"Remember, the three-word formula, "steady, accurate, ruthless", stab!"
Lu Yuanting shouted as he walked, feeling excited.
The bayonet is red!
It would be such a desirable scene if the trained recruits could treat death as if they were dead and defeat the opponent one by one through "stab charges".
"prick!"
The recruits concentrated their attention and thrust out the spears in their hands.
The spear-thrusting technique, like the grenade technique, is a must-learn technique in the Song Dynasty army, and it is also the foundation of a soldier's career. It is not only necessary to practice in martial arts halls and Jinling Academy, but it is also indispensable in the military.
The emperor wanted to organize and train 30,000 new troops in Lizhou Camp. As military instructors and graduates of the martial arts hall, they naturally had to take the lead.
"One two one, one two one, one two three four..."
The cold wind was biting, the officers shouted loudly, and the recruits shouted slogans loudly, running in unison and in an organized team on the training ground.
Walking in formation, walking in unison, and running in unison are compulsory exercises for all "new recruits" in the army and are the basis of military training.
The soldiers, whose faces were red from the cold, were holding long spears and remained motionless in the cold wind. Their feet were numb from the cold, but they did not dare to move. Those black-faced instructors had serious faces, and each one of them had a sinister look on their face, which made the recruits tremble with fear and kept everyone in high spirits.
On another training ground, the grenadiers threw practice bombs one by one, and they fell into the white gray circle in the distance.
Bomb dropping is another basic skill in the army and is a must for all soldiers. However, for these "new recruits" on the training ground, they have only heard of Thunder Thunder and seen practice ammunition, but this is the first time for live ammunition training.
The wooden handle and the iron head are carved with circles of criss-crossing grooves. Due to the purification of the molten iron and the granulation of the gunpowder, the thunder can produce twenty or thirty pieces of broken iron, greatly increasing its power.
"Look at it all, this is the basic action of dropping a bomb! Be careful, this will kill people!"
Cao Youwan carefully warned all the soldiers and acted seriously.
Under the gaze of all the troops, Cao Youwan burned the fire twister in his hand, ignited the fuse of the Thunderbolt warhead, strode forward, and struggled to throw out the burning Thunderbolt in his hand.
The burning thunderbolt drew an arc in the air and landed far away around the target. In just a few seconds, with a loud bang, the thunderbolt exploded violently. The dust was flying, the wooden target was in pieces, and all the soldiers looked pale.
"General, you are so powerful!"
"General, this is really frightening!"
The soldiers all marveled.
The average soldier in the army can only throw fifteen or sixty feet, and the distance is only over twenty feet. There are really few strong men like Cao Youwan who can move twenty-seven or eighty feet in the army.
"Did you see it? This is the Thunderbolt, made by the emperor himself! The same goes for the artillery!"
Cao Youwan looked at the distance of his bombing and felt a little regretful.
When he was teaching martial arts in Jinling, his bomb-throwing distance could reach about 30 feet, which was much farther than most students. Now I am only about 25 feet, and my lack of training has indeed led to a decline in my level.
"It's all settled, I'll give another demonstration. After the second time, you will have live-fire training!"
After Cao Youwan finished speaking, he picked up another thunderbolt, explained it carefully, then lit it, started running, and threw it suddenly.
"General, 27 feet!"
"General, what a power!"
The soldiers applauded and cheered again.
"The following is a live-fire training. Listen carefully. You must be careful and don't be careless!"
Cao Youwan felt proud, but his face remained calm.
"Tongtong" explosions occurred one after another, and the training ground was filled with smoke. The muscles on Cao Youwan's face twitched, and he felt a secret pain.
After all this training, I don’t know how much manpower and material resources will be wasted. There are hundreds of thousands of thunderbolts for training alone.
And the artillery, in order to train qualified gunners, it must be trained with live ammunition over and over again and forced to feed it with ammunition.
Fortunately, the broken iron sheets from the Zhentian Lei and the solid iron balls from the artillery can be recycled and recast. Otherwise, the losses would have been even greater.
As far as the eye could see, a soldier was too nervous and dropped the burning thunderbolt to the ground. The instructor rushed up, picked up the thunderbolt, and threw it suddenly.
The officer scolded angrily, but the soldiers obeyed. They picked up the thunderbolt for the second time and finally successfully threw it.
Cao Youwan was shocked and shook his head.
Instructors who graduated from Jinling Martial Arts Hall are involved in all training subjects in the army, such as formation walking, stabbing, grenades, artillery, riding, blasting, etc., forming a complete officer in the army system, thereby ensuring the establishment of an army that transcends the times.
Five miles south of Lizhou Camp, west of Lizhou City, on the bank of the Jialing River, the Lizhou Arms Manufacturing Branch is located.
The cold willow breeze was blowing outside, and the weapons manufacturing branch was in full swing, especially in the assembly workshop, where craftsmen shuttled back and forth, instructing the workers to assemble the Thunder Thunder.
The poured shells, wooden handles of the thunderbolts, gunpowder, etc. are sent here. The shells, charges, heads, etc. are installed and tightened in sequence. After passing the inspection one by one, the finished thunderbolts are finished.
"Professor Zheng, how many thunderbolts can be made in a day now?"
At the door of the assembly workshop, Zheng Tu frowned and asked a gray-bearded craftsman.
"Tija, since the spring, we can assemble about five thousand pieces a day, and in a month, we can cast about 150,000 pieces."
Supervisor Zheng's name was Zheng Xing, who was actually Zheng Tu's uncle. Last autumn, Zheng Tu was ordered to bring a large number of craftsmen to Lizhou to build a factory and establish a Lizhou weapons manufacturing branch. Of course, Zheng Xing and other capable craftsmen followed him.
"Don't rush the craftsmen and workers, and you must ensure the quality of the firearms. If there is an accident on the battlefield, you and I will be blamed. But everyone will be killed!"
Zheng Tu's expression softened a little and he gave instructions seriously.
There are more than 200 workers, 25 pills per person per day, which may seem less, but quality comes first and there must be no mistakes.
One hundred and fifty thousand a month, before the hot weather, we can make about half a million thunderbolts. Excluding the hundreds of thousands used for training, it should be enough to support the current war.
"Don't worry Tiha, I will keep an eye on it carefully. After the Zhentian Lei is assembled, it must be inspected three times. There will never be any problems!"
Zheng Xing nodded and bowed to his nephew with a smile on his face.
Although he is his nephew, there is still a distinction between superior and inferior in the officialdom.
"The emperor wants to use troops abroad and make firearms. We must not slack off. In short, we cannot take it lightly, otherwise no one will be able to save us when the time comes!"
When the emperor was mentioned, Zheng Tu's brows turned into knots again.
When he was young and prosperous, he thought he could reach the pinnacle of his life. Only now do I know that being an official is not that easy. I am born with a life of running around and working hard.
"His Majesty is really a god from heaven. He knows everything. There is nothing he doesn't understand. I really look forward to meeting him!"
Zheng Xing shook his head and said enviously.
"Calculating the time, I'm afraid your Majesty will arrive soon. Your Majesty has everything to do, and he will definitely come to the Lizhou Arms Manufacturing Branch. You will naturally see it when the time comes."
Zheng Tu also had a look of envy in his eyes.
It is already mid-March, and the imperial court will take the imperial examination at the end of April. If Zhao Hong doesn't come at this time, it will probably be May or June.
"Xiangong Tian, there is no delay in the supply of gunpowder, right?"
Although Tian Yi is in charge of the Lizhou Arms Manufacturing Branch, he is only in charge of gunpowder production. Zheng Tu is responsible for the entire firearms production.
The reason why Tian Yi is called Tian Xianggong is because although Tian Yi is only a military officer, he is a confidant of Emperor Zhao Hong. It is only a matter of time before he is granted the title of marquis.
Tian Yi is worthy of being a little husband-in-law.
"Back to Tijia, there is no problem with the supply of gunpowder. Mr. Tian often goes to the artillery casting workshop these days to check. He is very satisfied with the artillery production."
Zheng Xing smiled and relieved Zheng Tu's pressure.
"Supervisor Zheng, go to the artillery casting workshop and ask them to be careful about the quality of the artillery. If something goes wrong, no one can escape the blame!"
Zhao Hong was coming, and Zheng Tu's heart became tense again.
When artillery is cast, the inscriptions on the body of the artillery are engraved with the name of the craftsman and the casting date, which is also to ensure the quality of the artillery and traceability.
Zheng Tu didn't need to worry about the progress of the artillery casting. In hot weather, the Lizhou Arms Manufacturing Branch can cast thousands of artillery pieces, which should be able to keep up with the military's expenses.
A Lizhou weapons manufacturing branch has to be responsible for the supply of weapons and firearms for the entire northwest frontier. One can imagine the pressure on his shoulders.
"Uncle, find some reliable craftsmen. The emperor may go to the frontier to produce firearms. We must prepare in advance!"
Being prepared for danger in times of peace, Zheng Tu expressed his worries.
Lizhou and Lizhou West Road may sound like they are just a stone's throw away, but in fact, Lizhou City is still four to five hundred miles away from the three gates and five states on Lizhou West Road, which is still too far.
Given the emperor's temperament, after an inspection, he may have to build another weapons manufacturing branch on Lizhou West Road.
Zheng Xing quickly nodded in agreement.
Forging another weapons manufacturing branch is something that an ambitious emperor can do.
"Tihar, hurry up and greet us at the door, the emperor has arrived!"
The guards hurried in to report. Zheng Tu was shocked and quickly led a group of officials out of the workshop and went straight to the door.
Say Cao Cao, Cao Cao has arrived. I didn't expect the emperor to arrive so soon.
