The wind rises at the end of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 193 Development
After entering September, the Chuangjun's offensive against Mian County gradually began to slow down.

Just like Gao Yingxiang, Li Zicheng continued to send troops to attack because of the military training. Naturally, Chen Wang cooperated and filled a large number of recruits under his command into Mian County.

Relying on the simple bastion defense line and the artillery positions established around Mian County, none of the intruders was able to cross the thunder pool half a step.

The two Thousand Household Fortresses were all completed in May, and the Weapons Bureau got on track earlier than Chen Wang originally planned.

Chen Wang gave Qi Zhengsong and Jiang Wanshan three months to rectify the workshop. Facts have proved that money can indeed move people's hearts.

Just two months later, Jiafang and Weaponry Workshop are already in operation.

The 120 craftsmen in the weapon workshop have all learned how to make firecrackers within two months.

Their ancestors have been craftsmen for generations, and they have worked with furnace hammers all their lives. The method of making bird guns is not difficult, and they can learn quickly if someone specially teaches them.

What's more, if they don't know how to make bird guns, they will be transferred to other workshops to make agricultural tools and kitchen knives...

If in the past, everything was hit, and it would be much easier to fight farm tools and kitchen knives than any ordnance, they would still wish for it.

But today's Military Weapons Bureau is no different from the original Military Weapons Bureau. It used to be the same for doing more and doing less, but now it does more for more, less for less, and can't do anything.

The treatment of the craftsmen in the military equipment is also divided into grades, and the monthly salary of the craftsmen in Weapon Workshop and Jiafang is the highest. Every month, they can receive one or two half of the monthly salary, which is equal to the monthly salary of the soldiers in those camps.

The monthly salary of craftsmen in other workshops is relatively pitiful, and it is slightly better than when they were still in Hanzhong Acropolis.

Now the weapons workshop can produce about one hundred bird guns every month.

Up to now, a total of more than 600 bird guns have been produced in the weapons workshop.

These blunderbusses were equipped by Chen Wang to the soldiers who followed him now. Hu Zhiyi, who led the troops stationed at Jitouguan, still used the old-fashioned three-eyed blunderbuss and did not replace them with new ones.

Chen Wang's rules for Weaponry Workshop are that the power of the blunderbuss is the first, and the range is second. It is required to be able to penetrate three layers of heavy armor within [-] steps.

The new-made bird guns of the Hanzhongwei Military Bureau are built according to the specifications, and even higher.

It has great lethality against unarmored enemy troops at a distance of [-] steps. It can destroy an enemy wearing a single-layer cloth face armor within [-] steps, and kill double-layer and triple-layer heavy armor within [-] steps.

The blunderbuss produced in the first few batches can only barely meet the standard. The outer iron armor and chain mail have been penetrated, but the last layer of thick cotton armor is extremely protective against the lead bullets of the blunderbuss.

During the test of the newly-made bird guns, some of them were not powerful enough, although they caused some damage, but they were not able to completely penetrate the final cotton armor.

But in fact, the lethality is already very strong. Although it didn't penetrate completely, if someone charged in with three layers of heavy armor, even if they were shot in the front, they would definitely not have much energy to continue charging forward.

Moreover, the Houjin soldiers wearing three layers of heavy armor are also the elite of the armies. Ordinary armored soldiers generally wear one or two layers of armor.

The rate of rogues wearing armor is very low, and the reason for such regulations is because of precautions.

Chen Wang estimated that by the 11th year of Chongzhen, there was a high probability that he would go north with Sun Chuanting, and he would inevitably confront the Qing soldiers at that time.

The first battle with the Qing soldiers is crucial for the subsequent development.

Jiannu won consecutive victories, entered the important areas of the capital many times, and defeated all Ming armies in a row.

Some people even spread rumors that "Jurchens are dissatisfied with ten thousand and invincible", so that the Ming army was often at a psychological disadvantage when fighting the Qing soldiers.

There are also rumors that the Jiannu soldiers are all evil spirits and monsters, and it is impossible to win, which has caused huge panic in many places.

These rumors affect not only the soldiers on the nine sides, but also the soldiers in the interior.

Jiannu entered the Gyeonggi area several times. After receiving the edict of King Qin, the soldiers who applied for the enlistment were all panicked and fearful.

Husband war, courage also.

The level of morale has a great influence on the station in this era.

Therefore, Chen Wang must win the first match, and it must be a hearty victory.

Only in this way can we eliminate the fear of the Qing army from top to bottom in the army, gain a psychological advantage, and ensure high morale.

However, if he wanted to win the first battle with the Qing army, Chen Wang knew very well that it was not enough to have the blunderbuss, he also needed cannons.

Tiger crouching guns and Franco cannons are not good. Their caliber and power are too small to penetrate the shield vehicles of the Qing army.

Once the heavy armor of the Qing army pushes the shield chariot to the front, there will be a rain of arrows pouring out like a torrential rain.

The damage that a heavy arrow like a small spear can cause, and the blow to morale is almost destructive.

If possible, Chen Wang didn't want to go hand in hand with the Qing army.

Although he also applied the tactics of the Qing army in the army, with heavy armor and heavy bow, shield chariot and artillery, Chen Wang knew very well how good the generals under his command were.

None of the craftsmen in the Hanzhongwei Weapons Bureau knew how to make cannons. To be precise, none of them knew how to make cannons.

Qi Zhengsong can make a tiger squat cannon, but it is unnecessary to make a tiger squat cannon.

If you really want a tiger to squat, send a note to Sun Chuanting and Hong Chengchou, there is no need to waste productivity.

Chen Wang is not a fan of weapons, he knows nothing about how to make cannons.

But Chen Wang is very clear about one thing - professional things should be left to professional people.

Chen Wang intends to entrust the task of casting new cannons to professionals like Bo Jue.

On Bo Jue's side, the people sent by Chen Wang had already connected.

However, Bo Jue's situation was a little bit bad. At this time, Bo Jue was already suffering from a disease, but seeking medical advice had little effect, and because of the illness, a lot of the family's meager assets were lost.

Bo Jue failed many tests in his early years, so he turned to study astronomy, mechanics and other skills, focusing on practice, and even set up a laboratory by himself to configure various tools and equipment, which also cost a lot of money.

When casting the cannon for Zhang Guowei, he also spent a lot of money on his own, but he didn't get much compensation in the follow-up.

Zhang Guowei recommended him as an official, but he was not allowed, and Zhang Guowei did not continue to insist, so the matter was left alone.

Bo Jue had no choice but to retreat to the Wu family. Because of the illness, the family had become more and more difficult at this time.

Chen Wang knew that Bo Jue died of poverty due to medical treatment, and Bo Jue's safety was crucial to his future plans.

So Chen Wang sent a total of more than ten people to Wumen to invite Bo Jue, bringing a total of more than 1000 taels of silver, and these people were all close friends of Chen Wang's subordinates.

There is absolutely no room for mistakes in Bo Jue's line.

The sound of artillery in the distance faded away, and the rising white smoke was also blown away by the blowing east wind.

Standing on the watchtower, Chen Wang saw the aggressive rushing troops at the pass back again. As usual, they left a lot of corpses again, but they still returned in vain.

The Chuang army began to storm Mian County in May, and almost three months have passed so far.

In more than three months, nearly a thousand soldiers under Chen Wang's command were killed or injured, and hundreds of soldiers under Zhou Yumao's command were also killed or injured.

The reason why there were more casualties was that Chen Wang's soldiers undertook most of the defense.

The rogues killed and injured even more, probably around [-] people.

However, after several months of fighting, there were not only casualties but no gains.

Chen Wang could clearly sense the changes in the soldiers under his command.

It turned out that most of the recruits under his command were not strong in combat strength, and their fighting will was not considered tenacious.

But after experiencing the siege of Xing'an and the defense of Mian County this time, the recruits in the army have already become veterans.

They are used to the battlefield...

The same is true for the Chuangjun side, those hungry soldiers and troops have also begun to get used to all this.

In the past three months or so, Chuangjun has been attacking repeatedly from the beginning, almost day and night.

Until now, a wave of attacks will be launched from time to time, facing each other across the mountain, all of which proves that the main force of the invading army has shifted.

The battlefield is the best place to train the army. Li Zicheng sent troops out of the mountains to plunder many times, and those hungry soldiers who were trapped by the plunder were sent to the battlefield in Mian County.

After they had experienced the flames of war and tasted the blood, these people were transferred and replaced with a new batch of hungry soldiers.

To be honest, Chen Wang felt a little tired after the battle had reached this level, but out of caution, Chen Wang still didn't relax his vigilance.

Even a few days ago, he did not relax when he received the news that Ningqiang Prefecture had been compromised.

After all, Cao Bianjiao and Hou Liangzhu are now on standby at Qipan Pass, waiting for Li Zicheng's arrival.

Li Zicheng had definitely discovered that Qipanguan was heavily guarded and it was difficult to pass through.

In this way, Li Zicheng is equivalent to being trapped in the steps and deep mountains, just like the Chexiang Gorge back then.

The only difference is that the Chaxiang Gorge is much smaller, while the Jie and Chengliang Mountains are much wider, leaving much more room for Li Zicheng to maneuver.

Everything now has deviated from the right track of history, and Chen Wang doesn't know what the next process will be. All he can do is to be as careful as possible to prevent accidents.

Learning from the Battle of Hanzhong at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Chen Wang moved the camp of the Chinese Army to Dingjun Mountain, set up a camp at the foot of the mountain, and sent people to seal off Mianshui to prevent thieves from smuggling in.

It is worth mentioning that Zhang Er, a thousand rooster, and Huang Long, a Dou Gu, were sent to Hanzhong Mansion by Sun Chuanting.

After several months, most of the thieves in Xi'an Mansion have been wiped out, only two or three big cats and kittens are left in Shangluo Mountain.

The two led the soldiers and horses of the headquarters through the Meridian Road, and traveled through most of Hanzhong Mansion all the way to help.

Sun Chuanting led the troops to occupy Feng County, and then headed south all the way.

The fighting at Jitouguan had temporarily stopped, because Sun Chuanting led the troops to go south, so Hun Shiwan and Little Red Wolf had to lead troops to retreat to surround Jitouguan to defend against the attack of Sun Chuanting's troops.

Hun Shiwan and Little Red Wolf camped in Chaiguan and Liuba, and fought with Sun Chuanting for more than ten rounds.

They set up a defense relying on favorable terrain, and the situation fell into a stalemate for a while.

On Hong Chengchou's side, the situation is still the same as it was a few months ago. From time to time, bandits stepped out of the deep mountains to loot the surrounding area and harass the officers and soldiers.

But that's all, most of the local people have moved away.

However, Hong Chengchou sent troops to block off the pass roads in various places, and set up mobile battalions to rush to help various places, so he temporarily suppressed it.

Chen Wang didn't keep observing the battle situation in Mian County. After entering September, he spent most of his time in the tent of the Chinese army dealing with matters in the guard.

After staying for about half an hour, Chen Wang returned to the tent of the Chinese army.

The right and last two thousand-household offices of Hanzhongwei are now on the right track. Wang Yuankang is indeed a talent. He manages the internal affairs of the two thousand-household offices in an orderly manner with almost no major disturbances. .

In comparison between the two, Tang Shiping's work is slightly inferior. The military affairs and the Military Weapons Bureau are a bit messy.
Chen Wang walked to the tent of the Chinese army and sat down. In the past, there was no one else in the tent, but this time Wang Yuankang and Tang Shiping stood in the tent.

Wang Yuankang and Tang Shiping came all the way to Shiquan with Chen Wang's military order, and asked him to wait in the military tent for his order, so Chen Wang was not surprised at all.

"sit."

Chen Wang sat on the seat and motioned for Wang Yuankang to sit down too.

Mian County is far away from Shiquan, about three or four hundred miles away. Before, Chen Wang's orders were delivered to him through Kuaima letters.

But this time, Chen Wang sent a message asking him to come from Shiquan. Wang Yuankang and Tang Shiping looked at each other, and they were sure it was not a trivial matter.

Seeing Chen Wang's signal, both Wang Yuankang and Tang Shiping sat down carefully.

"This is a classic book bought from the southeast. It will be helpful for your future affairs. I want you to take it back and study it carefully."

Chen Wang knocked on the table, and two soldiers holding a pile of classics entered the tent in response, and then put the classics in the hands of Wang Yuankang and Tang Shiping respectively.

"This is……"

Tang Shiping picked up one of the books, and what caught his eye was "Illustrations of Strange Artifacts in the Far West", and the other was "Illustrations of Newly Made Artifacts".

On Wang Yuankang's side, the first book he saw had four large characters written on it—"Complete Book of Agricultural Administration".

"These are the classics I sent people to buy, and a lot of the content is very helpful for your current situation."

Chen Wang's eyes flicked past the two of them.

In June, the people Chen Wang sent to Macau to buy books and utensils had already returned to Hanzhong Mansion, bringing back a large number of books.

Most of the books have been bought, but it is a pity that "Tiangong Kaiwu" is not available.

When reporting back, Chen Wang remembered that the first edition of "Heavenly Creation of Things" was only published in May of the tenth year of Chongzhen, and the number of volumes published was relatively small.

The people he sent out had already returned before May, so naturally they couldn't buy them, so they had to buy them next time.

But this time the harvest is enough.

Chen Wang has already read "Illustrations of the Far West's Strange Devices" and "Newly Made Various Devices". He has studied physics and has a solid foundation, so he quickly understands the mechanical principles.

This time Tang Shiping and Wang Yuankang were called to explain the details to them.

The times are advancing, so it is natural that the old methods cannot be used for farming development.

(End of this chapter)