I, the Ming Dynasty, can still save me

Chapter 369 Improvement of Flintlock Gun
"Oh~ Xu Aiqing, please tell me if you have any ideas."

When Zhu Youxiao heard what Xu Guangqi said, he immediately became interested. He immediately put the flintlock gun beside the table and asked him curiously.

"Your Majesty, Wei Chen previously built a firearms workshop in Tongzhou, and it is now in the second phase of construction. However, the court has huge demand and has to recruit people to come to the workshop to manufacture, but even this is only a drop in the bucket.

So I thought that last year I sent people to Guangzhou, Foshan and other places to ask them to cast firearms and artillery. Last month, the first batch of forty Krupp cannons and two thousand bird cannons arrived in Beijing. I saw not only the price but also the price. The price is even lower than that of the Ministry of Industry.

So I thought about it and felt that this method could be promoted on a large scale if part of the Ministry of Industry's Krug cannons and blunderbuss were handed over to private ironworks for manufacturing.This can not only improve efficiency, reduce costs, but also allow people to make a living again. This is a multi-purpose solution. "

After hearing this, Zhu Youxiao immediately understood what he meant, and pointed out that he wanted to contract part of the firearms manufacturing of the Ordnance Bureau of the Ministry of Industry to private individuals.

He is naturally aware of the advantages of this, but there are also disadvantages that cannot be ignored, such as quality issues, and even the circulation and supervision of these privately manufactured firearms, which are very troublesome to deal with.

But Zhu Youxiao thought about it for a while and still felt that this idea was good. As long as the cost could be reduced and the efficiency could be improved, it was not impossible.

Besides, Gyeonggi already has a ready-made iron factory. If it is done, it will not only promote development, but also link up with Xishan Coal Mine to promote employment. This is what he values ​​most.

"Ai Qing's suggestion is a good one. Since the imperial court once hired an iron factory to make firearms in Foshan, there is nothing wrong with doing it in Gyeonggi Province now. However, the details still need to be carefully reviewed, such as qualifications, quality, labor costs, etc., and it can even be done on a household basis. The ministry issues an announcement, puts forward requirements, and then lets capable ironworks come to apply for the job, compete together, and then select the appropriate manufacturer for production."

Listening to these new words popping out of the emperor's mouth, Xu Guangqi's thinking instantly broadened.

Originally, he was just looking for someone to speed up the manufacturing efficiency. Unexpectedly, the emperor actually came up with a plan to let the iron factories compete, and then the Ministry of Industry considered and adopted the plan.

He thought about it for a while and felt that this method was really wonderful. His Majesty was really the emperor and he was different from ordinary people. He immediately nodded in agreement.

"Your Majesty's words make sense. I will make arrangements well when I return and implement them as soon as possible."

"Well, we must discuss this matter with the Ministry of Household Affairs. After all, the Ministry of Household Affairs now pays for it and allows them to participate when selecting the iron factory. If this is successful, then we can be more open, not only Firearms and weapons are also allowed."

Zhu Youxiao said some more instructions, and then left Xu Guangqi to take care of it. This person always handled things carefully and properly.

"Okay, let's not talk about this anymore. Now that the flintlock gun has been built, it can be installed in small quantities. Test it first. If there are any problems, make improvements at any time. Cao will become a dragon!"

As Zhu Youxiao spoke, he waved his hand and asked Cao Bianjiao, who was standing behind the team, to come over.

"His Majesty!"

Upon seeing this, Cao Bianjiao trotted over. Although he was talking about your majesty, his eyes glanced at the new flintlock gun from time to time, and his desire to play with it was palpable.

"Haha, don't look at it. I said before that I would let you have a try after the flintlock gun is successfully tested. Today, it is up to you to test-fire at Caolan Field."

Zhu Youxiao said as he picked up the flintlock gun on the table and handed it to Cao Bianjiao proudly.

"Thank you, Your Majesty. You're welcome, little one."

Upon hearing this, Cao Bianjiao stood up quickly, solemnly took the flintlock gun handed over by the emperor, and began to watch and play with it. He looked at the spring piece for a while and the sickle and hammer for a while, and was very interested in it.

"I have long heard that the Bureau of Ordnance is developing a self-generating fire gun. Today I saw it and it is indeed extraordinary. If everyone in the army has one of these self-generating fire guns, the combat power of the army will be greatly increased."

"Okay, stop bragging. Let's get started."

Seeing Cao Bianjiao still playing with it, Zhu Youxiao smiled and asked him to do it quickly.

Of course, it was not just Cao Bianjiao. Since the purpose of this flintlock gun was to equip the Beijing camp, the Beijing camp also sent people to test fire, and Licao Lanchang also sent many people.Of course, there is also a special person, that is Gongsha Silao, the instructor of Licaolanchang.

Following the emperor's instructions, first Cao Bianjiao and others, followed by Zuo Liangyu, Guo Zuoguang of Yaowu Army and others also started to test fire. Even Chen Liangbi and others couldn't help but started playing with it when they saw everyone testing, "Bang" The sound of "bang bang" firecrackers made Licao Lanchang very lively.

"Your Majesty, originally the bird gun was not only bulky, but also had a burning rope, a lot of smoke when shooting, and the rate of fire was very slow. Now based on my humble observation, the rate of fire is at least twice as fast as the bird gun, and there is very little smoke. If Soldiers can stand closer together with this self-generated firecracker, and their firepower will be more powerful."

After listening to Guo Zuoguang and other people with actual combat experience, Zhu Youxiao also made up his mind. It seems that this weapon does not have major problems and can be widely used on a large scale. "Instructor Gongsha, I have long heard that this kind of firearm exists in the West. Now that Ming Dynasty has developed it, what do you think of the test firing just now?"

Gongsha's Sirao has been living in Macau and has already spoken relatively fluent Chinese. Now when he heard the emperor ask him about his new gun, he immediately handed it over and started talking.

"Dear Your Majesty the Emperor, Europe has indeed had this kind of flintlock musket for a long time, but in fact, there are not many countries equipped with it. Before I came from Europe, I found that matchlock muskets are still the main ones there. Although there are flintlock muskets, , but it is still a tool used by nobles, and soldiers are rarely equipped."

"Oh, I heard before that Europa successfully developed it a long time ago, but why hasn't it been promoted on a large scale yet?"

When Zhu Youxiao heard this, he immediately became curious. As the saying goes, stones from other mountains can attack jade.Now that I have heard the good news about packing the flintlock guns, I just wonder if this Gongsha can tell some problems so that I can avoid them in advance.

"Your Majesty, the reason is relatively easy to understand. The main reason is that although the flintlock gun is fast, its cost is still relatively high, and the main reason is that it is troublesome to maintain.

You must know that European infantry are notoriously uneducated and poorly trained people, and this gun is too complicated for them.

And put aside factors such as high price, complex structure and difficult maintenance.The reliability of flintlock muskets was also an issue. Not only would flint ignition severely wear the steel wheel, but the mechanism would also pose a risk of accidental discharge if the weapon was dropped.And the weapon was actually banned for the Austrian army.

However, I think the structure of this flintlock gun is simpler than the ones I saw in Europe, and its maintenance is not that complicated, so it is more suitable for large-scale promotion. "

Zhu Youxiao began to think about it after hearing this.Although what Gongsha Sirao said makes sense, it is not a problem at all in Zhu Youxiao's view.

And according to Zhu Youxiao's memory, what he was talking about was not a flintlock rifle like Bi Maokang, but a wheel-flint rifle with an extremely complex structure and many parts, so it was expensive to build and troublesome to maintain.

But the flintlock gun developed by Bi Maokang and others has no such problem at all. It just adds a spring leaf and a fire sickle.

If the repair only requires replacing the spring leaf and flint, the cost is much lower than that of a wheel flint rifle.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but secretly strive to seize this opportunity and lead Europe.

Historically, Bi Maokang finally developed a flintlock gun. However, after the Qing Dynasty entered the customs, although they knew that the firearms were powerful, they deliberately hid them in the snow to prevent the Han people from using them, causing China's firearms to lag behind those of the West.

But now that I have arrived, I will not let this happen.Moreover, the Ming Dynasty's firearm technology is not inferior to that of the West at all, and it is very easy to catch up. He must fully popularize flintlock guns.

"Haha, it seems that in terms of this blunderbuss, our country is far ahead of the West!"

Zhu Youxiao laughed when he heard this and ignored the Portuguese instructor. Instead, he gave instructions to Xu Guangqi, Bi Maokang, Sun Yuanhua and others.

"It is a great achievement for you to be able to develop this self-generated fire gun to this extent. In addition to rewarding those craftsmen, I will also reward everyone who participated in the development, and the money will be allocated from internal funds. But for this fire gun, I still There are some requirements.”

When Xu Guangqi and others heard that the emperor said that those who participated in the development would be rewarded, they were overjoyed and quickly bowed and thanked them.

"If flintlock guns are popularized on a large scale, our army's combat effectiveness will definitely increase greatly. But we must also consider the situation of close combat. I read "Records of Military Training" before. Qi Shaobao said that a blunderbuss knife can be inserted into the blunderbuss when necessary. In the tube, it is used as a long gun.

I think this thing is very good, I must have it, but it should not be inserted into the barrel of the gun, but should be fixed on the barrel of the flintlock gun, so that it can be used for both close combat and long-distance combat. You can also develop it according to the specific style. Just like the flintlock gun, I ask craftsmen to develop and improve it. Whoever can successfully develop it will be rewarded heavily by me.

In addition, the paper gunpowder that was previously used on the bird gun must also be used on it, so why not increase the rate of fire.

Finally, this self-generated fire gun can be used normally, but it may not be enough to face Jianlu's double-layer and triple-layer armor.Therefore, we need to develop a larger model, similar to the previous self-made firecrackers, so that we can have them all. "

Seeing the emperor talk about so many improvement plans in one breath, everyone couldn't help but admire the emperor for knowing so much about firearms. They were really ashamed of themselves.

"Your Majesty, don't worry, I will definitely improve accordingly."

"Well, let's settle it then. You guys can go back and polish it before mass production. The speed has been improved, and I want to change the outfit of Jingying first."

When Xu Guangqi heard this, he immediately relaxed, but he still had nothing to do, so he looked at Bi Maokang, slowly raised his hands and said:
"I obey the order, but I have an unkind request. This self-generated fire gun is newly developed by our court and has not been named yet. I am bold enough to ask Your Majesty to give it a name!"

(End of this chapter)