Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

"Isn't this the flechette of later generations? 』

Looking at the arrow-shaped bullet in front of him, he listened to Lu Xiang's introduction. Zhu Youjian quickly thought of a type of bullet from later generations and matched it with the bullet in front of him.

Although the flechette bullets made by Lu Xiang and others are not exactly the same as those of later generations, the basic principle is the same, and there is basically no need to worry about the penetration.

And because it is developed on the basis of very mature bow and arrow arrows, it should have good lethality against unarmored targets, and there will not be the problem of excess penetration that Zhu Youjian was worried about before.

So when he looked at this kind of bullet, he felt very satisfied.

Not only did this bullet meet his requirements, but the creativity shown by Lu Xiang and others in the process was what he valued even more.

The emergence of arrow-shaped bullets means that Lu Xiang and others can realize what he proposed based on the original situation based on the situation of the Ming Dynasty.

This made it possible for many of his ideas to be realized.

"reward! 』

"It must be rewarded!" 』

“This team needs to be preserved. 』

Zhu Youjian was very satisfied with being able to conduct experiments according to his own requirements and produce finished products, and said to Lu Xiang:
"You can make the bullet so quickly, which shows that you have put your heart into it."

"Report the meritorious personnel as soon as possible after you return, and I will award them with honors and grade the engineers."

He took the bullet in his hand and said:
"Have you measured the maximum range and maximum armor-piercing distance of this flechette projectile?"

"Is the hundred-foot-breaking armor mentioned before its greatest power?"

Lu Xiang thought about it and said:

"This is the maximum distance we can measure using a direct fire."

"If it's any further away, the fire gun won't be able to hit it accurately."

"Actually, the distance of one hundred feet was achieved by some sharpshooters."

"Ordinary archers can only shoot accurately at eight or ninety feet."

According to Zhu You's metric system of weights and measures, ninety feet is three hundred meters. Therefore, based on the effective range and maximum range of later generations of firearms, he said to Lu Xiang:

"In this case, the effective range of this kind of bullets and firecrackers is temporarily set at three hundred meters."

"After you go back, make more muskets and bullets, and test them by throwing them at a target to test the maximum armor-piercing distance."

"If you can break the armor five to six hundred meters away, then when the enemies are concentrated five to six hundred meters away, you can launch missiles at them!"

This fighting method can still be seen in later generations. Heavy machine gun shooting is a basic skill beyond shooting.

Nowadays, the rate of fire of firecrackers is certainly not as fast as that of machine guns. But the concentration of soldiers is also far beyond that of later generations.

If a firecracker army equipped with flechettes can shoot at cluster targets five to six hundred meters away, it will be a great shock to the enemy——

It can make them afraid to concentrate on charging, and the impact force will be reduced when charging.

When Lu Xiang heard the projectile, he immediately understood what the emperor meant. Because bow and arrow throwing is more commonly used at this time. It's just that he didn't think about using it on a fire gun and throwing it five or six hundred meters away.

Now think about the shape of the flechette bullet. When it falls, the arrowhead is pointing downwards. It is much more powerful than the lead bullet used in the previous firecrackers. So after hearing the emperor's prompt, he was very excited and said:
"After I return, I will arrange for someone to test it to see how far the projectile can penetrate the armor."

He remembered another thing and said:

"For a distance of five to six hundred meters, the Folan cannon is usually used."

"Should we make flechette shells for the Folan cannon to make it more powerful?"

Zhu Youjian listened to his words, and there was a "boom" in his mind, and he thought of a kind of ammunition:
"shrapnel! Arrow-type shrapnel! 』

"This is the most suitable type of ammunition for attacking cluster targets——"

"It can throw tens of thousands of steel arrows at a time! 』

"How did I forget this?" 』

He had seen this kind of ammunition in later news reports. Now inspired by the flechettes and cannonballs created by Lu Xiang, I finally thought about it.

Unlike flechette bullets, which are not widely used in firearms, many artillery pieces in later generations have flechette shrapnel bullets. They have been widely criticized for causing tragedy.

Zhu Youjian had seen this kind of news before, but now that he thought about it, he realized that the most suitable use for flechette bullets was not in firearms, but in artillery.

The caliber of artillery is much larger than that of firearms. One artillery shell can be loaded with hundreds or tens of thousands of steel arrows. After they are thrown out, they can hit a large number of targets.

Compared with traditional shotguns and shrapnel, arrow-type shrapnel has much greater power and range. Because it is filled with steel arrows, the power of falling is much greater than ordinary projectiles.

(Modern arrow-type shrapnel, which is densely packed with steel arrows)
If qualified arrow-type shrapnel can be produced, coupled with the firing rate of the Folan cannon, it can almost be declared:

The days of soldiers charging in groups are coming to an end.

Regardless of infantry or cavalry, the only way to deal with this kind of ammunition is to disperse.

The Jianlu's superior cavalry and heavy infantry against the Ming Dynasty would lose their deterrence in the face of this ammunition.

Even the famous queuing to kill tactic of the flintlock era may not appear in this time and space due to the deterrence of flechette bullets and flechette shrapnel——

The power and range of this ammunition are too strong. The best way to deal with it is to change from a line formation to a skirmish line.

Therefore, Zhu Youjian greatly appreciated Lu Xiang, who proposed developing flechette bullets for the Fo Lang machine gun, and said to him happily:
"Lu Qing's proposal is really great!"

"I can promise now that whoever can make qualified arrow-type shrapnel will be enshrined in the Hundred Households."

"And it's hereditary, and it will be hereditary for hundreds of households in the future!"

In Zhu Youjian's view, this kind of bullet that can change the situation of the battle cannot be overemphasized.

So he immediately offered a reward and asked Lu Xiang to develop it carefully.

Lu Xiang worked so hard for the emperor. In addition to targeting Kuai Xiang, the most important purpose was to make a fortune for his family.

Even if he didn't know that he could become a hereditary knight after a hundred hereditary households and obtain a fiefdom overseas, he now knows very well that this is generational wealth——

Haven't you seen that 30% of the Jinshi in the Ming Dynasty came from officialdom?

Compared to himself, a hard-working craftsman, Shiguan is much more leisurely.

So, he immediately knelt on the ground and said loudly:
"I will definitely make qualified arrow-type shrapnel for Your Majesty!"

Then he asked what the so-called arrow-type shrapnel was and how it should be made.

Zhu Youjian's understanding of this type of ammunition is not as clear as that of armor-piercing shelling rounds. After all, armor-piercing discarding sabots are the mainstream type of ammunition for later tank guns, and the data are very rich. Arrow-type shrapnel is a niche type of ammunition, and because the killing method is too cruel, there is not much public information.

He could only tell Lu Xiang that there were hundreds to tens of thousands of small steel arrows in the shrapnel shells. A lot of flechettes can be stuffed into artillery shells, fired from the artillery and scattered in mid-air, killing and injuring enemy personnel.

But Zhu Youjian didn't understand how to make cannonballs and how to disperse them after being fired, leaving Lu Xiang to figure it out on his own. This very rough reminder made Lu Xiang realize that the manufacture of arrow-type shrapnel was not that simple. If you want to become a hereditary household, you still have many difficulties.

But he is not afraid of any difficulties, but what he fears most is not having a goal. Now that the emperor had made it clear that the reward should be granted to one hundred hereditary households, he had made up his mind to make the arrow-type shrapnel required by the emperor no matter how long it took.

Zhu Youjian is also looking forward to this. Jianlu, who used to be very fearful to him, does not seem to be so scary anymore——

As long as arrow-type shrapnel can be made, as long as the Ming Dynasty's artillery and artillery shells can be made well, and the soldiers have the courage to fight, he has absolute confidence that he can defeat Hou Jin Jianlu.

Even looking at the gun in his hand, he was very confident. Although the rate of fire of this kind of fire gun has not been improved much, it still can't keep up with the bow and arrow. However, the power and range of the flechette bullets are far superior to the previous bullets. Ability to strike at archers beyond the range of bows and arrows.

If the officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty could give full play to its power, they would have a great chance of defeating the Jianlu.

Therefore, Zhu Youjian has decided to equip Xu Guangqi's new army with such firecrackers and arrow-shaped bullets. Let him figure out the appropriate tactics to specifically target Jianlu.

After ordering people to summon Xu Guangqi and Sun Yuanhua, Zhu Youjian asked Lu Xiang again:
"How long will it take to complete the improvement and finalization of the firecrackers and flechette projectiles?"

"Based on the progress of the Ordnance Department, how long will it take to equip 5,000 people?"

Lu Xiang was unsure about this and said:

"Fireguns and flechettes can be improved easily, and I and other craftsmen can be on standby at any time."

"But I don't know how much the Ordnance Department can produce."

"Your Majesty, you can ask Mr. Bi. He is the Minister of Ordnance."

Hearing that he didn't want to get involved in the Ordnance Department's affairs, Zhu Youjian changed his question and said:

"Have you ever calculated the working hours of muskets and flechettes?"

"How long does it take to make a firecracker and a qualified flechette?"

Lu Xiang really had never done any statistics, and he didn’t even have this concept. He could only say:

"I will arrange for someone to do the counting after I return."

“The difference between whether the craftsmen are skilled or not is very big.”

"The working hours data of some craftsmen may not look good."

Zhu Youjian sighed, once again feeling the imperfections in industry. Thinking about the assembly line of future generations, he said:
"Can we break down the manufacturing process, just like printing is divided into typesetters, engravers, and mold workers, and the manufacturing of flechette bullets is divided into foundries, carpenters, gunpowder workers, and assemblers."

"Even more detailed, each person is responsible for one process, and after completion, it is handed over to another person to be responsible for another process."

"In this way, everyone will become familiar with a process and become a skilled worker faster."

"Then calculate the average working hours, set the basic task amount, and then reward workers who exceed this amount by piecework."

"Can you do this method?"

Lu Xiang thought about his experience in the Printing Research Institute and said:

"It should be possible. I'll arrange for someone to try it when I get back."

Zhu Youjian nodded and asked him to prepare the division of labor and various standards.

Then he looked at the medicine bag on the flechette bullet. After removing it, he frowned and said:

"Is the silk medicine bag expensive?"

“How much does this flechette cost?”

“Is it affordable for large-scale use?”

It was he who came up with the silk medicine pack, but his plan was to use it on artillery shells like later generations.

Nowadays, flechette bullets require this kind of medicine pack, which makes Zhu Youjian worried that too much silk will be consumed and the cost will be unbearable.

Lu Xiang has not yet considered the cost issue and cannot give an answer. He can only say:
"After I return, I will experiment with more materials and try to use oil paper and linen instead."

Zhu Youjian thought about how silk was often used as medicine bags in later generations, and knew that it would not be easy to replace it. After thinking about it, he said:
“Grade raw silk and silk, and try to use inferior raw silk and silk.”

"Anyway, the medicine package needs to be burned, so it doesn't require very good silk."

Let Lu Xiang's Ordnance Research Institute cooperate with the Shang Yi Supervisor to formulate silk grades. Try to use cheap and usable low-grade silk as medicine package material.

Then he thought that if he used silk to make medicine bags, he thought it was expensive, so when the Jianlu and Western armies used silk medicine bags, they would find it even more expensive. It's even possible that they won't be able to use the silk medicine bag at all -

Because they don't have enough silk.

This made his mood improve. I think silk medicine bags are also good, and Ming Dynasty has an advantage in this aspect.

Then, he took apart the wooden support on the flechette and divided it into four pieces. After looking at its shape and thinking for a while, he said:
"The manufacturing of this wooden pallet should be very trivial, right?"

"Have you ever thought about building a lathe specifically for cutting wooden pallets?"

He held the bayonet in his hand and made a gesture on the table. This means that the bayonet moves in a fixed direction and cuts the wood as it passes through it.

Lu Xiang hasn't figured this out yet. But Xu Guangqi, who had just arrived, understood clearly and said:
"Your Majesty, Tessie has a hydraulic sawmill, and it looks like this."

"Able to use water power to drive an iron saw and cut wood."

Zhu Youjian was very happy to hear this and said:

"That's it!"

“But the wood we cut is small, and we don’t need hydraulic power.”

"You can make a pedal and step on it with your feet to make the tool move."

"You guys think of a way to build a bicycle lathe that turns the wheel like a wheel to move the tool and process bullet holders and gun holders."

As he spoke, he roughly drew a sketch of what a pedal sewing machine would look like, with a simple tabletop, handwheel and knife on it. Let Lu Xiang and Xu Guangqi explore the bicycle lathe together.

If it could be made, the manufacturing efficiency of bullet holders and gun holders would be greatly improved. We can also explore sewing machines and develop the garment industry on this basis.

And when the bicycle lathe appeared, there must be a hydraulic lathe. When intermittent water power could not meet the needs, it was necessary to create a machine like the steam engine that could stably generate power. The coming of the industrial revolution will come naturally.

This was Zhu Youjian's plan. Although Xu Guangqi didn't know it, he thought the bicycle lathe was very simple. He had written the "Taiwan Water Method" and could easily build something similar to a hydraulic sawmill.

He did not think, like many Confucian ministers, that the emperor was not doing his job properly by paying attention to these matters. On the contrary, he was delighted that the emperor knew about water-powered sawmills and was very concerned about Western learning.

So he happily took over the task and did not exclude the emperor from letting him cooperate with Lu Xiang.

Then, Zhu Youjian showed Xu Guangqi the bayonet and flechette bullets made by Lu Xiang, and asked him and Lu Xiang to perfect the weapons and figure out how to use them.

Zhu Youjian also informed him about the manufacture of arrow-type shrapnel to see if he had any new ideas and make this kind of artillery shell as soon as possible. (End of chapter)