Wild North America 1846

What is the future of developing armored vehicles?
Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao has been thinking about this question for a long time. After repeatedly comparing the advantages and disadvantages of the two solutions of wheeled vehicles and tracked vehicles, he finally determined that tracked armored vehicles have irreplaceable advantages.

especially in the field

In the vast plains of Ohio and Pennsylvania, there is a lot of rain every spring and summer, and the roads and fields will become muddy, making it almost impossible for wheeled armored vehicles to move.

Almost half of the armored vehicles of the Detroit Independent First Cavalry Chariot Battalion broke down because they were struggling on the muddy roads, and various failures occurred frequently, which greatly affected the combat effectiveness.

For several days after the rain, armored vehicles could not be deployed on muddy roads and fields, and they were greatly restricted.

But the development of a tracked armored force is a new topic for the entire Royal Army. Except for some tracked agricultural machinery, there is almost no foundation.

Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao couldn't help sighing slightly when he thought of the series of difficulties he was facing, and then his eyes became firm.

No matter how many difficulties there are, we must face them.

Focus on the development of tracked armored vehicles, this road must not go wrong.

Thanks to his unremitting efforts, this scientific research project has been approved by the Ministry of Military Affairs, and a scientific research team will soon be formed and funding will be obtained.

The entire army was transferred to Philadelphia this time because of the request of the military department. Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao became the military representative of the project. After all, this distinguished status brought a lot of convenience.

There are several very high-level polytechnics in Philadelphia, surrounded by a large number of scientific research institutions, scientists and laboratories in the New York area, and a contemporary advanced machining industry, which is suitable for the development of tracked armored vehicles.

Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao applied to the Northern Army as early as August last year to establish a frontier team for the development of tracked armored vehicles. He will participate as a military representative and develop this series of tracked armored vehicles in accordance with military standards throughout the process.

After thinking of the name, it is called the "Wild Wolf" chariot.

one week later

Philadelphia
Two military convertible cars galloped one after the other, passed McCart Street in Philadelphia's Central Plaza, and then turned into Kennedy Street. The tall buildings along the way made people feel like they were in a metropolis in Europe.

Lieutenant Lin Liuer, the second lieutenant driver, was driving in front, and Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao, Captain Pan Zhixin, the project liaison officer, and Captain Tan Fusheng, the royal aide and military attache, were all in the car.

The car behind was driven by Second Lieutenant Pan Zhicheng, with several engineers on board, and followed the car in front at a fast pace.

Along the way, pass famous buildings such as the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Rodin Museum, the Benjamin Franklin Memorial, and the Fez Planetarium, and drive in the direction of Fairmont Park.

After driving for more than 20 minutes, we arrived at the tree-lined road on the west side of Fairmont Park.

Sixteen years ago, the famous "Presidential Candidate Assassination Case" occurred on this road. Mr. Zhang Zongliang was assassinated by organized gunmen here and almost died on the spot.

Time flies, ten years have passed by
Philadelphia has now become an inseparable part of the empire. Looking back, how can it not be embarrassing?

Fairmont Park is the largest urban park in the world, covering an area of ​​more than 1600 hectares. It is the natural green lung of the Philadelphia metropolis. It contains the site of the 1876 American Independence Centennial Exposition. There are many historical sites, of course, it is only more than 100 years old.

Stretching along the Schuylkill River, the park is full of forests and lakes, and the rolling mountains are beautiful. It is a good place for an alarm clock.

The two convertible cars drove forward for more than ten minutes, and arrived at the destination on the side of the park after turning around.

There is a building with a great sense of historical vicissitudes. The main building is a two-story British steeple building, surrounded by some single-story Shiche bungalows. Looking at the past, there are about a dozen buildings.

The two cars stopped in front of the main building. Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao and others got out of the car and looked around, feeling very satisfied.

Captain Pan Zhixin followed beside him, and introduced politely;

"Sir, about 1.3 kilometers to the left of this research base, there is a vast grassland and mountains with an area of ​​more than 200 hectares, which can be used for field tests of tracked armored vehicles.

There are forests, wetlands, and mountains here, which can imitate field practice in various environments, and there are vast forests and lakes around, so the secrecy is better.

As long as we arrange a guard cavalry company around, guard several main passages, and close the area with barbed wire, we can achieve a very good security effect.

According to the requirements of the superior;

In the near future, experimental equipment and personnel will be in place one after another. Do you want to give this place a name for convenience? "

"Well, if you really need it, let's call it..." Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao took a few steps forward, looked back at the two-story English-style building covered with moss, and said with a playful look in his eyes, "Just call it "Wuthering Heights". It's simple and easy to remember."

Wuthering Heights?

Captain Pan Zhixin's mind instantly flashed that old English villa, the love and hatred between several young men and women, this is a topic that is often talked about in the upper class.

He was born in a family of the top family in the empire, so how could he not know about this famous British novel?

Slightly stunned
Captain Pan Zhixin put his legs together immediately, and replied after paying a standard military salute; "As per your orders, sir, the official name of this research base will be Wuthering Heights, and I will officially confirm it in the next work deployment."

Soldiers take obedience to orders as their bounden duty, even if the chief named this place "shit", he must obey unconditionally.

"Well, very good, let's go and have a look inside." Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao nodded in satisfaction, and then walked towards the building with big strides, followed by seven or eight entourages.

Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao naturally knew that the two sons from the Duke's Mansion came to him, so he accepted them after a brief investigation.

In such a society of human relations, one more friend and one more road is one more help, and of course he will not refuse.

after some investigation
Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao is quite satisfied with the environment here, which is quiet and undisturbed. Although the houses are a bit old, they are quite tall and solid. The bungalows are generally 4.8 meters high, dry and bright.

This was originally a British barracks before the War of Independence. At that time, a musketeer regiment was stationed there. Some of the stables and thatched sheds were later demolished, and dozens of wooden stakes of more than 30 centimeters sawn off were still clearly visible.

Now people have gone to the vacant room, and I don't know how many years it has been vacant?
When you come here, you can see that the surrounding environment is quite clean. The grass in the yard is all freshly cut, leaving stubble sticking to the ground, which looks neat and simple.

The idle houses have also been cleaned, leaving only colorful watermarks that have been soaked for a long time. There are basically no cobwebs and dust, and the sundries are also cleaned.

According to reports;
More than 70 workers cleaned the building for more than ten days, and the garbage that was removed included more than 60 horse-drawn carts, as well as broken furniture from more than a dozen horse-drawn carts.

After tidying up, you can move in at any time.

The entire cavalry chariot brigade only has more than 240 people, plus a research and development team of more than 100 people and some craftsmen, this batch of buildings is enough to live in, and there is still a lot of surplus.

"It's really good. We will live here from now on." After looking around, Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao said to Captain Pan Zhixin beside him; "Well, I'm very satisfied with this place, please convey my thanks to Mr. Department.

"Uh...reporting sir, as a member of the research team, I will resolutely carry out your order."

"Hehehe... OK, then in the name of the military armor research team, I would like to formally express my gratitude to the North American Affairs Department."

"As ordered, sir."

Captain Pan Zhixin immediately raised his hand and gave a simple military salute, and replied without any confusion.

His statement was clear;

I am your subordinate now, and I will execute orders unconditionally. Private relationships cannot replace positions, and the two are clearly distinct.

Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao naturally followed good advice, he was more satisfied with the attitude of the other party, he would not confuse work with personal relationship, very good, this is a smart person who can understand clearly.

North American Affairs Building

Lord Pan Shouguo received the official thank-you letter from the military research team, and after simply flipping through it, he couldn't help laughing;
"Wuthering Heights"?
Judging from the name alone, it really has the impulsiveness of a young man!

He didn't care too much, and he approved the initial appropriation budget and the application for the allocation of scientific research personnel and equipment, and gave the green light to this project.

It's not that he cheated for personal gain, but that the emperor's secret decree requested special care for this armor research project, so the allocation of funds was extremely fast and abundant.

The North American Affairs Department has its own budget pool, which is also the first maverick in the imperial government. It is an important department approved by His Majesty the Emperor, and everything is to speed up the process of national integration.

It is not so convenient to allocate funds for special research and development projects in the military. It has to go through layers of project approval procedures at the military department, and it is now March. After the allocation is at least June to July, it belongs to the plan for the second half of the year.

The early start-up funds, as well as the successive entry of scientific research personnel and equipment, basically come from the allocation and transfer orders of the North American Affairs Department.

Restricted by his military vision, Lord Pan Shouguo did not place too much emphasis on this tracked armor research project. He only thought that allocating 20 million Tang Yuan would be a fool around with His Highness.

The main thing is that His Majesty the Holy Emperor pays attention, and no one below dares to be negligent. Naturally, they want money and people to give, and everything is convenient.

He never expected it, and really missed it.

This research on armored weapons originated in a park in Philadelphia, which brought the research and development level of armored weapons to the forefront of the world, gave birth to the world's top armored weapons industry, and completely subverted the rules of land warfare.

Its significance cannot be overemphasized.

After a long period of painstaking research, Lieutenant Colonel Lei Xiao formed a complete set of armor combat theories.

And many years later, under the pseudonym Lei Xiao, he published "Army Armored Weapon Operation Theory", which has since established the pioneering position in the field of army armored weapons in the world. (end of this chapter)