Daming: I asked you to supervise the country, Daming is all crazy?

Chapter 125 Daming's firearm level! ! !
By the end of the Tang Dynasty, gunpowder had been used on the battlefield.

In the early Song Dynasty, in 970 A.D., Shi Feng Jisheng, an order of the Ministry of War, introduced the rocket method, and the world's earliest fire-throwing weapon "rocket" was born in China.

As of the Ming Dynasty, firearms were used on the battlefield. From the bamboo guns in the Northern Song Dynasty to the metal firecrackers in the Yuan Dynasty, it has been almost 600 years of development history.

The names of firearms have also changed during this period, from wood to metal, from jets to shooting, and most of the firearms now are also called firecrackers.

During the Hongwu period, firearms in the Ming Dynasty reached their peak, and firearms began to be widely used in the army.

According to the establishment of the various guards, one-tenth of them will be equipped with firecrackers. Each naval ship is equipped with four bowl-mouthed blunderbuss, twenty muskets, and twenty fire arrows and magic arrows.

During the reign of Yongle, the "Shenji Battalion", the world's first firearms unit, appeared and became the earliest unit in the world to use firearms exclusively.

Until now, it can be said that Daming's firearms level has always been at the peak of the world, standing in an absolute leading position.

In this regard, what Zhu Zhanji admires the most is not actually his grandfather Zhu Di who established the world's first firearms unit by himself.

It was the founding emperor of Ming Dynasty, Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang.

I have to say that in many things, my great-grandfather's vision is definitely beyond everyone's imagination.

Especially for the emphasis on firearms, it can be said that to a certain extent, the level of firearms in the early Ming Dynasty was at the peak of the world for nearly a hundred years.

The influence of the Emperor Taizu is definitely the first among them. Whether it is the firecracker in his hand, or the cannon of General Hongwu, or the various mines and mines behind him, it can be said that they all appeared under the influence of the Taizu. of.

But some things have to be said to be really regrettable. Whether it is the invention of gunpowder, the world's first jet firearm, or other mines, mines, and artillery, when they first appeared, they were all in the land of China. superior.

But the end result was that someone else took the things they invented and opened the door of their own country.

It has to be said that it is a very ironic thing!

"Fortunately, it's not too late now. Chinese people have never lacked creativity since ancient times!"

In front of Yuan Jigang's mansion, Zhu Zhanji's carriage stopped slowly.

Looking at this magnificent courtyard in the past, which has now become a garden under his name, Zhu Zhanji's eyes showed a bit of emotion.

Twenty craftsmen transferred from the Ordnance Bureau got the news of Zhu Zhanji's arrival early in the morning. When they saw the carriage stop, they rushed forward to salute:

"See His Royal Highness Taisun!"

Zhu Zhanji looked at the group of "babies" in front of him, with a big smile on his face, stepped forward to help a craftsman, and said with a smile, "Excuse me, everyone!"

The craftsmen who had been nervous all night were relieved to see Zhu Zhanji, the great grandson, who was so approachable, and stood up to thank him:

"Thank you grandson!"

Zhu Zhanji glanced at these people, without too much chatter, and asked directly: "Among you, who knows the most about firearms?"

After Zhu Zhanji finished speaking, most of the people in the group subconsciously looked at a middle-aged man in his 40s.

"What's your name?"

Seeing everyone's reaction, Zhu Zhanji also looked over and asked.

Hearing Zhu Zhanji's question, the middle-aged man showed a little panic on his face, and quickly saluted: "His Royal Highness, villain Zhao Zhun!"

"Zhao Zhun, good name, I hope the firearms you make can be as accurate as your name!"

Zhu Zhanji smiled, waved his hand, and then continued: "Can you introduce to me, what is the best firearm you can make now?"

"The best firearm..."

Hearing Zhu Zhanji's question, not only Zhao Zhun fell into deep thought, but even other craftsmen began to think about it. After a while, Zhao Zhun said:

"Back to His Royal Highness, at present, the best firearm should be "a swarm of bees"."

"A swarm?"

Zhu Zhanji was taken aback when he heard this address.

Zhao Zhun immediately explained: "His Royal Highness, the swarm of bees is actually a kind of rocket. This rocket is developed on the basis of the Firebolt Meteor Arrow, but because it can shoot 32 arrows at a time, the number exceeds that of the Firebolt. There are many meteor arrows in the crossbow, and its shape is like a honeycomb, so it is called a swarm of bees, and the emperor used this kind of weapon when he was in Jingnan!"

Isn't this the original version of the multiple rocket launcher of later generations?

Hearing Zhao Zhun's explanation, Zhu Zhanji had a strange expression on his face. The multi-barrel rocket launcher will play a big role in later generations, especially the rocket launcher paired with a pickup truck. This is definitely a classic among classics.

The cost is low, the flexibility is high, and the power is not bad. It once made a certain country doubt its life.

Although there are no pickup trucks in this era, there is still no shortage of carriages.

Thinking of this, Zhu Zhanji asked, "How powerful is it?"

Zhao Zhun shook his head and said, "Because of the increased number of rockets, their power is very limited, but it is perfect for deterring the enemy!"

Zhu Zhanji couldn't help but shook his head when he heard it, and understood that there was probably a problem with gunpowder.

This is also the main reason why early firearms could not completely replace cold weapons.

The formula of gunpowder in this era was primitive, and the power of gunpowder was limited.

If you want to increase the power, you must increase the amount of gunpowder. However, if you increase the amount of gunpowder, not only will the reloading time increase.

In order to increase the power of firearms, the volume will increase accordingly, the weight will increase, and the flexibility will decrease.

Just like this "swarm of bees" rocket launcher, it is actually a very meaningful invention, but because of the insufficient power of gunpowder, the power of the rocket is also weakened, and the lethality is also reduced.

Otherwise, Zhu Zhanji thinks that combining this thing with the matching mode of rocket launchers and pickup trucks in later generations, and installing it on a carriage, although it will reduce some accuracy, but for pursuit battles or street battles, this weapon is definitely a magic weapon.

But Zhu Zhanji has no good way of gunpowder. He can remember not many gunpowder formulas, and in fact they are almost the most primitive gunpowder formulas.

Compared with the gunpowder formula of this era, it may not be able to advance much.

Thinking of this, Zhu Zhanji felt that there was no need to ask further questions. If the problem of gunpowder power was not resolved, no matter how good the idea was, it would be empty talk.

Zhao Zhun at the side didn't know what His Royal Highness Grandson was thinking. Seeing the disappointment on Zhu Zhanji's face, he immediately introduced several powerful firearms with some anxiety.

One-eyed, two-eyed, three-eyed firecrackers, several general cannons of different calibers, and even the "legendary" "fairy weapon" Thunderbolt, which can fly two or three miles at a height of three or four feet above the water, and can also The second-stage rocket Huolong came out of the water for the second launch, as well as the ancestor of the later large-scale bundled launch vehicle, the Shenhuo Flying Crow.

What Zhu Zhanji heard was also an eye-opener. It has to be said that Daming has absolutely no ambiguity in the ability to invent and create firearms.

However, the shortcomings are also obvious. In addition to the gunpowder itself, the materials of firearms are basically made of copper, or simply the most primitive bamboo, especially the artillery, which has not always been developed to the large caliber. There is a soft spot for this portable small-caliber gun.

There are also a variety of shells, lead bullets, stone bullets, and iron bullets, but there are no flowering bullets.

After Zhao Zhun had almost introduced all the firearms that Daming currently equipped in the army, seeing Zhao Zhun who was already a little dry, Zhu Zhanji suppressed his heart and continued to let Zhao Zhun popularize the knowledge of Daming firearms for himself. impulse.

Then he took out a piece of paper in his arms, and then took out a piece of paper that he had prepared a long time ago and handed it over:

"Look at such a firearm, can you make it?"

Zhao Zhun took the paper subconsciously, not daring to neglect the orders of His Royal Highness Zhu Zhanji, so he quickly read it seriously.

What appeared in front of his eyes was a blueprint of a firecracker design that he was very familiar with.

The general style does not seem to be much different from the current monocular firecracker.

But Zhao Zhun found a big difference in some details.

First of all, in the blueprint in front of you, compared with the bloated single-eyed firecracker, the firecracker on this blueprint has a slimmer body,

And there is no longer the original long handle, it seems that he has completely given up the ability of melee combat.

You must know that although the firecrackers of this era are firearms, they actually have certain melee capabilities.

With a long wooden handle and a thick metal barrel, this thing can be used as a hammer in close combat.

Of course, the more important thing is that after Zhao Zhun looked carefully, he didn't find any matchlocks.

"This kind of musket... well, let's call this kind of musket a musket."

Seeing Zhao Zhun stunned, Zhu Zhanji paused slightly, and then explained:

"Because this kind of musket gave up a lot of close combat ability, its barrel, that is, the section of the gun body, has been lengthened a lot, about two feet in length. In this way, the ammunition can be shot farther. Be more precise."

Hearing this, Zhao Zhun fell into deep thought. Now the gun body of the firecracker is not long, because a long gun body means increased weight, and it is not convenient for melee combat, but this kind of firecracker in front of him has given up melee combat. , increasing the range and accuracy, Zhao Zhun couldn't tell whether it was good or bad for this way of offsetting,
But there is one thing he can be sure of. From the perspective of firearms alone, this is undoubtedly good.

But if you lose the melee ability, on the battlefield, once the enemy rushes to the front, the ability to resist is almost gone.

Zhu Zhanji glanced at Zhao Zhun and continued: "There is also this ignition method. My idea is to replace the match with flint and install two flints at the ignition place. When excited, the flint will directly generate sparks, thereby igniting the gunpowder. , In this way, as long as the gunpowder is not wet, this gun can be used normally even in rainy days."

Zhu Zhanji's drawing of the ignition position is very vague, which is also impossible. Although Zhu Zhanji knows the principle of the flintlock gun, he doesn't know how to get it.

Fortunately, the principle is not difficult. After knowing the principle, explain it to the craftsman again, and the rest is the work of the craftsman.

Zhao Zhun was also wondering why the firecracker didn't have a matchlock, but he suddenly realized it after hearing Zhu Zhanji's explanation.

Then his eyes lit up and he said: "His Majesty the Grandson is wise. He used flint to spark sparks and then ignited the gunpowder. This not only saves a lot of reloading time, but at the same time, there is no time for the match to burn, and the ammunition can be launched almost instantly. It can be done, so this firecracker will definitely be more convenient to use.”

"Well, so can you make such a firecracker?" Zhu Zhanji asked with some expectation.

This flintlock gun is actually a big problem, and many things are made by Zhu Zhanji's patchwork.

In terms of appearance, the only thing that impressed Zhu Zhanji the most was almost landing a 98k.

In addition, the shape of 98k is not complicated, and it is not difficult to design.

Therefore, in the shape of this gun, Zhu Zhanji largely adopted the shape of 98k.

As for the excitation method, the excitation method of the flintlock gun was chosen. Although the excitation method of the flintlock gun is also very problematic, this is also the limit of what Zhu Zhanji can do.

After all, flintlock guns, even if you don't know guns, but based on the name, and how to make fire with flint, you can easily understand the principle.

And more things are simply beyond what he, an amateur, can come up with.

Hearing this, Zhao Zhun thought for a while, and then cupped his hands and said, "Going back to Your Highness, I think I'm a little sure. The structure of this kind of firecracker is not complicated. The only troublesome thing is the barrel. Such a length, the hardness of the barrel is very strong." The requirements for gunpowder will also increase a lot, if the gun body is too fragile, the gunpowder will explode directly after ignition!"

This is the bomb.

Zhu Zhanji didn't feel any surprise when he heard the words. Even in later generations, firearms are in danger of exploding, let alone this era.

So after thinking about it, he said, "I will ask the Ministry of Industry to send a few more iron-making craftsmen over later, and then you will ask them to solve this problem, and if you need money, let them notice me."

While talking, Zhu Zhanji looked at the eunuch who brought these craftsmen here yesterday, and shouted:
"prosperity!"

The eunuch Changsheng was waiting at the side. Hearing Zhu Zhanji's call, he immediately stepped forward and saluted, "Your maidservant is here."

Zhu Zhanji ordered: "This will be my other garden in the future, and it will be handed over to you for the time being. You will arrange a few eunuchs and servants in charge of taking care of them to take care of the daily life of these great craftsmen. You have to try your best to satisfy whatever needs you have here, and if you really can’t make the decision, report it to me, and I will come here to inspect from time to time, if these master craftsmen have suffered and suffered, I will take you as a question!”

"This………"

Hearing Zhu Zhanji's arrangement, Changsheng was taken aback for a moment, opened his mouth, and wanted to say something, but seeing the unquestionable expression on Zhu Zhanji's face, he immediately said: "Your servant obeys!"

When several craftsmen heard Zhu Zhanji's words, they immediately bowed and said, "Thank you, His Royal Highness, for your kindness!"

"Ok!"

Zhu Zhanji waved his hand, and then said with a smile: "You are still responsible for the new firearms. Now the Northern Expedition is coming soon. If you can successfully develop it before the Northern Expedition, I will personally ask the emperor to reward you."

Several craftsmen were shocked when they heard the words, and immediately thanked them again: "Thank you, Your Royal Highness!"

"It's okay!"

Zhu Zhanji said: "In addition, I just listened to Zhao Zhun's words and found that the biggest problem with my Daming's firearms is the problem of gunpowder. You must also try your best to eliminate the smoke and dust when the gunpowder burns. , and secondly, the power of gunpowder must be improved, as well as other issues, so that gunpowder can better adapt to the battlefield.”

"Don't worry, grandson, the villains will definitely do their best!"

Zhao Zhun and the others immediately bowed in response.

(End of this chapter)