weaving

Chapter 329 Yunzhou gun

In the craftsman camp along the Beibai River in Yunzhoubao on Shangbei Road, Xuanzhen Town.

Reminded by Zhang Cheng, the old man Shi Tiegen lowered his head and pondered. He seemed to have some ideas, but he couldn't figure out the reason for it for a while. Suddenly, Wei Zhice said beside him: "I remember that there is a record in "Tiangong Kaiwu" , I don’t understand it very well, it seems to be very similar to what the general said.”

Zhang Cheng seemed to be invigorated. He vaguely remembered that there was a human-powered lathe in the Ming Dynasty, which could be used to make and polish jade wares, but he was not sure whether it could be used to drill and grind gun barrels.

If it is feasible, besides manpower, animal power and water power should also be considered, especially water power. There are still many mountain springs on the North Road, so it is indeed much more convenient if it is feasible.

At that moment, Zhang Cheng said to the old man Shi Tiegen: "Yes, this thing is called a lathe, and it can also be called a drilling machine. Shi Tiegen, you choose a few old craftsmen with quick minds, find a secluded place,
Specially to develop this kind of machine, but if you need it, please report directly to Wei Zhice, and I will try my best to meet your requirements. According to the "Tiangong Kaiwu", this drilling machine must be developed. "

He went on to say: "I'm not going to call in five bookstores, Shi Tiegen, you specially select some skilled and experienced masters to form a scientific research group, yes, it's called a scientific research group, dedicated to overcoming difficulties. Things.

The first thing to do is to drill and grind the gun barrel. For the time being, continue to drill and grind the gun barrel according to the original method, but you should also step up the development of manpower, animal power, water power and other equipment. If you succeed, it will be considered a great achievement, and you will have your own rewards .

Besides, the water flow of the Baihe River is fairly stable, and there are many streams around it. Shi Tiegen, you can make some keel waterwheels, water mills and other appliances according to the actual situation. These are recorded in the book "Tiangong Kaiwu" . "

"Yes, General, Shi Tiegen made a note.

This matter will be handed over to Wang Qiancheng, the head of the Fire Gun Bureau. This person is a craftsman dispatched from the Ministry of Industry of the Beijing Normal University, and he can also read some characters. "

The high-pitched voice of Li Guofu, the surveillance eunuch who came to inspect the craftsman camp together, came at this time: "There are not enough craftsmen, so I'll call in some more. Your Majesty prays day and night for the early formation of our new army on the North Road. How can we be hindered by such trivial matters?" .”

Zhang Cheng said: "It's so great, but it's really inconvenient for Zhang Cheng to be outside the North Road. Only Eunuch Li can make it work. If a craftsman who can drill and grind gun barrels comes to the North Road, he will take it as his home. At the same time, two taels of silver will be issued, thinking that it is owned by Sichuan!"

He also said: "If the current speed of drilling and grinding the gun barrels is followed, by the end of the year, at most, there will be five hundred bird guns, which is only enough to equip one fire soldier. I have four troops under my command. Not two years?
Eunuch Li, it seems that I have to invite you to take charge of this matter. According to the estimate, at least [-] gun barrels can be drilled and ground every month, so that the entire army can be equipped with new bird guns in May and June of the next year. , Fang Weicheng. "

Li Guofu listened quietly to Zhang Cheng's words, the corners of his mouth twitched, a hint of a smile appeared, and he said sharply: "It's not just a hundred or so craftsmen, our family will repair books tomorrow, if Xuanzhen's tunes are not in order, our family will do it in person." Go back to the capital, there are still enough craftsmen in Tianjin Wei."

Zhang Cheng and others were overjoyed when they heard the words. They actually counted on Li Guofu for their operations. When King Qin left the capital last time, Zhang Cheng brought back more than 300 artisans.

Now, if he wants so many craftsmen who drill and grind gun barrels, he is afraid that the court will suspect that he has other intentions. However, if Li Guofu, who is a monitoring eunuch, mobilizes such craftsmen in Xuanzhen, or even returns to the capital, he will be fine. No one will suspect him.

Everyone came to an open place by the river, which was the firearms practice range, surrounded by a fence with wooden stakes to prevent people from wandering in by mistake.

In a wooden house in front of Zhang Cheng and Li Guofu, all kinds of things are stored, such as gunpowder, blunderbuss bullets, etc., and under a wooden shed in front of the house, there are several blunderbusses.

Wei Zhice stepped forward to pick up a blunderbuss, and said, "General, Eunuch Li, this is a newly made blunderbuss. Now the blunderbusses here in the craftsman camp are all according to the general's requirements, and all parts are of the same standard. , Bird guns are all charged with three qian and three fen, and shoot three qian heavy lead."

Zhang Cheng stretched out his hand to take the blunderbuss. Looking carefully, the blunderbuss looked very good. The barrel, fire door, trigger and other important parts were engraved with the maker's name and serial number. He walked away again. In the first few steps, I picked up another birdcage with my left hand, holding one in each hand to weigh the difference in weight.

He put down the blunderbuss, and then said: "It is indeed good. From now on, the blunderbusses made by my Yunzhou craftsman camp must strictly follow this standard. They will all use three-coin lead bullets, and the charge is also the standard three-coin-three-fen. This birdcrack From now on, it will be called Yunzhou Gun."

Father-in-law Li Guofu also stepped forward, muttering about "Yunzhou blunderbuss", he also reached out to pick up a gun and looked at it carefully, and asked, "Have you ever shot?"

Wei Zhice hastily stepped forward and replied: "Reporting to the Superintendent, the blunderbuss made by our Yunzhou craftsman camp must be tested three times without exploding to be considered qualified, before they can be put into the warehouse for inspection.
The five rods on the left in this shed are newly made Yunzhou blunderbusses, which have passed the inspection, and the ones on the right are better bird blunderbusses selected from the North Road inventory for comparison. "

"Oh!"

Li Guofu looked up at the human-shaped targets in the distance, and said, "Shoot a few shots and show our family."

"Here!"

After Wei Zhice received the order, he turned around and waved his hand to the west of the wooden shed. Immediately, four sergeants came running quickly, and he shouted an order: "Four new-made bird guns, shoot three shots each."

After receiving the order, the four sergeants turned back and entered the wooden house. To the astonishment of Zhang Cheng, Li Guofu and others, they wore plate armor on their chests, masks on their heads, and all kinds of medicine bags and lead bags on their bodies. Come out of the cabin.

After bowing to Zhang Cheng and others, each of them took a new-style Yunzhou blunderbuss in their hands, and began to wash the blunderbuss, inject medicine, compact, lead, and compact, then open the fire door, remove the thread medicine, and then close the gun. The fire door and the matchlock.

After everything was ready, he stood up and held the blunderbuss, and the first person reported loudly: "Report, the blunderbuss has been loaded and can be fired at any time."

"Raise the blunderbuss, open the fire door, aim at the eighty-step target, and prepare to shoot." Wei Zhice ordered loudly.

Zhang Cheng, Li Guofu and other people watched closely. When the sergeant was loading the medicine just now, Li Guofu let out a soft "Huh", but he didn't say anything.

All eyes were focused on the rows of human-shaped targets on the opposite side. These targets were erected at a distance of 120 steps, [-] steps, [-] steps, and [-] steps. They were all five feet high and two feet wide. similar to humanoid.

Qi Jiguang in the Ming Dynasty's "Ji Xiao Xin Shu" once mentioned the "three points and one line" shooting method, that is, the human eye is aligned with the door, the door is built against the front star, and the front star is aligned with the object being hit.

This shooting method has been used to this day.

Wei Zhice saw that the four sergeants in charge of inspecting the guns had already stood firm. They held the guns in front of one hand, and the body of the guns was clamped in their armpits. Take aim.

He looked back at Zhang Cheng again, and after seeing him nodding to himself, he turned around and shouted, "Let go!"

"boom!"

The muzzles of the four bird guns burst into flames almost simultaneously, and through the rising smoke, the three human-shaped targets eighty steps away had already been pierced by the gun bullets.

(End of this chapter)