I'm playing whack-a-mole in Siberia

Chapter 47 Playing instead

Supplying champagne to the royal family, because the cost of packaging is higher, George does not earn much, about the same as Nicholas.

But the champagne sold to the outside world makes a lot of money.

Ekaterina sells champagne in France without having to share money with Nicholas.

With the reputation of being exclusively supplied by the royal family, demand for Saint Louis exceeds supply in France. Who doesn’t want to get a taste of the royal family’s fairy spirit?

Nikolai's money was not given in vain. Mikhail took the "Prince Cult" with Nikolai's personal signature and circulated freely in St. Petersburg, and soon became the most popular person in St. Petersburg.

As the crown prince, Nicholas was closely protected. Except for a limited number of people, others had no chance to flatter Nicholas.

It doesn't matter if you can't flatter the crown prince, but if it affects the crown prince's business, you will be in big trouble.

The empire has been passed down for hundreds of years, and all walks of life have a complete chain of interests, and the wine part is particularly important.

Fortunately, Mikhail only makes champagne, not vodka.

To only make Champagne is to steal money from the immediate profit recipients in the Champagne line.

When it comes to vodka, that's robbing the state coffers.

So it is important to stick to your duty no matter what.

If Mikhail thinks he has Nikolai's support and reaches out everywhere, then Mikhail will be close to death.

If it's just champagne, some people can still accept it.

During this period, I don’t know how many people hope that through Mikhail, they can get in touch with Nikolai.

After being approached by the secret police, George became cautious, and his daily life became a two-pointer between Oak Grove and Gatchina Palace, and he did not even go to the Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

The veterans' houses have been built, the roads have been repaired, and the inside and outside of the manor have been given a new look.

George built a horse farm and a shooting range in the villa. Several older children have practiced riding with Peter. George's shooting skills have become more and more exquisite, so George has become more and more familiar with the No. 3 revolver and the Bertin II rifle. dissatisfied.

The No. 3 revolver and the Berdan II were actually developed by American companies specifically for Russia.

There is a story in it.

The relationship between Russia and European countries was not good. In the Ninth Russo-Turkish War, Russia was jointly attacked by the Ottoman Empire, Britain, and France. As Russia's allies, Prussia and the Austro-Hungarian Empire stood by and stood aside, and Russia was isolated.

Because European countries are afraid of Russia, Russia cannot obtain advanced weapons from European countries.

Russia's own industrial level is not high and it cannot produce qualified weapons steel. Therefore, American companies designed No. 3 revolvers and Berdan II rifles for Russia based on the level of Russian industry.

The problem of No. 3 revolver has been mentioned before.

The problem with the Berdan II rifle was also serious.

The Berdan II had a short range and low accuracy. Its tapered spear was fixed on the muzzle and could not be removed, which made George uncomfortable.

The tapered lance is not useful at all other times except for assassination.

The sword-style spear stab is usually installed in the scabbard, and is only installed when a bayonet is needed. It can also be used as a dagger in daily life, which is more beautiful and practical.

George tried to remove the spear thorn of the Berdan II, but was stopped by Ye Luoxin.

"Duke, you can't do this." Yeluoxin said as if Dalia had been snatched away.

"Why not?" George hated the four-edged spear.

In fact, the four-edged model is already an improved model, and the spear stab of the Berdan No. 1 is a three-edged one.

European countries have begun to replace sword-type bayonets on a large scale with more practical sword-type bayonets, but Russia is going further and further down the road of bayonets.

It’s not that Russia doesn’t want to change, it’s just that it can’t. Russia's backward metallurgical level resulted in the sword-shaped bayonets produced in Russia not being tough enough. In the cold winter, the sword-shaped bayonets frequently broke during use, so they could only be stabbed with spears.

But the Tsar wanted to change again.

What should I do?
  So the three edges became four edges.

Has it been changed?
  It has indeed changed.

Has it been improved?

No.

The reason why I insist on using the triangular spear to stab is not because of the poison quenching, nor because the wound is not healing well. The fundamental reason is that the metallurgical level is not up to standard.

But it is also true that Russia has a soft spot for bayonets.

Suvorov, the most famous military strategist of the Russian Empire, once said in his book "The Science of Victory": The bullet is a fool, the bayonet is a hero.

This was true in Suvorov's time. After all, Suvorov's time still used muzzle-loading guns.

In the era of muzzleloaders, few armies on the European battlefield could take advantage of the Russian army in hand-to-hand combat.

In the Battle of Remnik during the 6th Russo-Turkish War, 7000 Russian troops and 1.8 Austro-Hungarian troops raided 10 Turkish troops in the rain at night. With relatively backward weapons and equipment, it was Suvorov who commanded the Russian troops. The Austrian Allied Forces fought a good battle using artillery and bayonets.

In that battle, only 44 Russian soldiers were killed and more than 300 were injured.

More than 1.5 Turkish troops drowned, and countless people fled. After regrouping, only of the -strong army remained.

It was this battle that cemented the nickname "Sick Man of Europe" for the Ottoman Empire.

By the mid-to-late 19th century, with the rapid progress of thermal weapons, the probability of hand-to-hand combat became less and less. Therefore, mainstream European countries replaced the cone-type bayonets specially used for stabbing with multi-purpose sword-type bayonets.

Only Russia persists.

"Because-" Ye Luoxin hesitated for a long time, unable to explain why.

"Russia is so big, can't it produce even a qualified bayonet?" George was also speechless. It was probably not because he had no skills, but because he had a big problem.

With the support of the scientific madmen from the Petersburg Academy of Sciences, Russian technology is really not bad.

Then the key to the problem is cost.

If you want to produce better weapon steel, you have to update the equipment of the steel plant. After the update, you have to renovate millions of weapons and equipment. This is not a small expense. George's annual salary will be completely lost. You can't even get a splash when you go in.

George didn't think about large-scale transformation. This was not his business, it was the Tsar's business, and George would not do it for him.

George can still make a good one for himself.

George didn't ask too much, just remove the tapered spear thorn.

George was only using it to practice his skills, and he had no chance to compete with others on the bayonet. Why would he need a bayonet?
  Then go ahead, there is a blacksmith in the Yekaterin Palace, so you don’t need to bother others with this matter.

Now that the bayonet was removed, George had a new idea: why not cut off a section of the barrel of the No. 3 revolver.

The barrel of No. 3 is too long, which seriously affects George's speed of drawing the gun. George hopes to get a pistol that is easier to use.

As for accuracy and power, they are not important at all.

We have already reached the distance where we need to use a pistol, and the speed of shooting is the most important thing.

Then change it, winter is coming anyway, it’s freezing cold, there’s nothing to do, so let’s have fun instead.

(End of this chapter)