I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 927: The Southern Tour Begins

On March 20th of the 11th year of the Wanli reign, spring was in full bloom in Beijing.

Beijing South Railway Station is under tight security.

On platform No. 1, a Forward II locomotive was parked at the front of the track, with three lines of large characters written on the side of the coal car behind it.

"Qinjin Type 0246", "Luan Car No. 0126", "Gyeonggi Bureau No. ".

This was developed in the seventh year of the Wanli reign of the Qing Dynasty. The Luanzhou Locomotive Factory developed and improved the Qianjin Model by absorbing practical experience gained over the years.

With high horsepower, coal saving, stable performance and simple maintenance, it gradually became the main locomotive of Daming Railway.

Immediately behind it was a freight car with doors on both sides.

The door was open and ammunition could be seen piled up inside. There were two heavy machine guns placed at the door with their black muzzles facing outside.

The gun body is a cylinder as thick as a bowl, with a rectangular iron box bolt at the back, a safety bolt on the bolt, and two handles at the end with a trigger on top.

A canvas belt was clamped on the right side of the bolt, neatly filled with 7.62 caliber 08 standard rifle bullets, and it dragged all the way to the wooden ammunition box below.

The entire machine gun is mounted on a tripod, with three soldiers standing behind it. The one in the middle is the machine gunner, standing behind the trigger, and the ones on the left and right are the ammunition handlers, who are not only responsible for organizing the supply of ammunition, but also ensuring cooling water.

Next came two hard-seat carriages, where two companies of guards were getting on board one after another.

They were dressed in field-gray army spring-autumn uniforms, with two leather bullet boxes on the right side of their belts and a bayonet sheath on the left. Behind their buttocks were a water bottle on the left and a leather grenade bag on the right, with four Type 06 wooden-handled grenades inserted in it.

The appearance of the Type 06 grenade is not much different from the previous old wooden-handled grenade. It also uses the friction ignition method by unscrewing the iron cover of the wooden handle, finding the pull ring, and pulling it hard.

However, the Type 06 grenade has optimized the prefabricated shrapnel to increase its lethality.

The biggest improvement is that the black gunpowder in the blasting part was changed to smokeless gunpowder.

The powerful dynamite is now mainly used in blasting and artillery shells.

They carried a marching bag with a blanket folded into a square and placed in a waterproof canvas bag. There was also standard food in the compartments inside, including canned food and fried noodles.

On top of the marching bag is a Type 05A army helmet, and below is a folding engineer shovel. It is produced by Kaiping Knife Factory and the quality is guaranteed.

After several years of actual combat testing, the Ming army's helmets gradually became unified.

The Army finally chose the Type 35A, which was an improvement on the M40, previously used by the Workers' Militia Division. It looked better than the regular Army helmet (SSH- steel helmet), so some Army soldiers started wearing it instead.

Tested in actual combat, it is indeed better than the old army helmet.

So it was improved and named Type 05A, which officially became the standard helmet of the Army.

The Navy and Marine Corps still use the Type 1A helmet (M helmet), which is indeed easy to use but expensive.

However, the Navy and the Marine Corps are wealthy and powerful people who don’t care about money.

The cavalry armies of the four wings of the Mongolian Empire continued to use cavalry helmets (Prussian spiked helmets) because these helmets were so beautiful. The Mongolian men's ideas were so simple and unpretentious.

The guards standing guard outside the platform, dressed in green uniforms and carrying muskets, switched to old-style army helmets (SSH-40 steel helmets).

Although it is not as convenient as the Type 05A and Type 02A, it is cheap. In addition, the army has switched to new helmets, and a large number of them are stockpiled in the warehouse, which is just right for the guards.

The guard helmet (Adrian helmet) previously used by the Guard Army is now equipped to the fire emergency team.

The fire emergency force is organized under the Guard Army, and daily training and management are also under the Guard Army.

However, local police departments can mobilize it.

At present, the Ming army's land force is divided into field armies and garrison regiments. The navy includes four major fleets and the Maritime Patrol Commandery. The Maritime Patrol Commandery includes the coastal defense regiments of various provinces.

The field army and the four fleets belong to the strategic forces, while the garrison regiment and the maritime patrol headquarters belong to the national defense forces.

However, many people in the government and the opposition cannot distinguish between the garrison regiment, the coastal defense regiment and the guard army.

A newspaper has given a special explanation.

The garrison regiment and the coastal defense regiment can only be mobilized with the order of the military government and the execution of the provincial military preparation departments and maritime patrol departments.

No one in the local government, from the governor to the provincial governor to the county magistrate, had the power to make transfers.

In terms of rank, the Guard Army Commander-in-Chief, like the Marine Corps Commander-in-Chief, is a combat unit directly under the military government.

However, the guard troops were authorized, and local officials, governors, provincial governors, county magistrates and county magistrates, could mobilize a certain number of guard troops, including fire emergency forces.

Used for emergency matters such as flood prevention and disaster relief, suppressing riots, and cracking down on organized crime.

After the work is completed, detailed reports need to be submitted layer by layer. The military government and the Censorate, or the Censorate and the Military Preparations Department will strictly review whether there are any violations of procedures.

Or is there any emergency right if the procedure is violated?

The newspaper also explained that if a major disaster occurred, the provincial governors had the right to request assistance from the military government and the provincial military preparation departments and mobilize a certain number of garrison regiments and coastal defense regiments.

As for someone raising an army to rebel, that is the responsibility of the Military Preparation Department. Once someone shows up, there is a process to dispatch troops to put it down.

The guards waiting in line for the bus were all carrying Type 98 rifles (K).

After the Type 1903 rifle, Zhu Yijun also provided the ideas for the M Springfield rifle and the Lee-Enfield short rifle.

Anyway, he only needs to provide creative ideas and explain the general principles and advantages he heard when he was a keyboard warrior, and there will be a group of experienced firearms engineers to perfect it.

As a result, the Type 1903A rifle (M Springfield rifle) and Type B rifle (Lee Enfield short rifle) were developed.

The Navy and the Marine Corps were immediately attracted to the Type 07B rifle, which has a short barrel and is suitable for use on ship decks. It has a fast firing rate and can fire like a rain of pear blossoms!
As for the high cost and high consumption, that’s not a big deal!
It's it!
The Type 06A rifle was in a bit of an awkward situation. The army was so fond of the Type 05 rifle that they were unwilling to change it, so they converted it to "civilian use" and deployed it to the Reclamation and Pastoral Corps and the Construction Corps.

However, the output is not high, and it is still a small-batch trial production.

In terms of ammunition, the Gun Bureau developed 7.92x57, 7.62x63, 7.62x54 and other bullets based on the 7.92x54 standard bullet. In addition to the caliber and length, the differences also lie in the presence or absence of a flange, the material of the bullet and the amount of propellant.

Finally, after long-term live-fire testing, it was found that although the initial velocity of 7.92x57 is low, its kinetic energy is large and its penetration is strong, but its lethality is insufficient.

The 7.62x63 bullet has a high initial velocity and its kinetic energy is second only to the 7.92x57, but its lethality is far ahead.

After comprehensive evaluation and weighing of the pros and cons, the Rong government finally decided that 7.62x63 would be the standard rifle bullet for the Ming army and the standard rifle bullet.

The army and navy rifles and the light and heavy machine guns developed subsequently all followed this standard.

In the fifth year of Wanli, smokeless gunpowder was successfully developed. The Ming army was also in the process of continuous exploration of new firearms using smokeless gunpowder, so it was normal to make changes.

When Zhu Yijun was a senior civil servant, he acquired a wealth of knowledge about military equipment during his tenure as a civil servant, but he had no practical experience. He was only responsible for coming up with "creative ideas", and it was up to his subordinates to verify which one would be useful in actual combat.

Behind the two hard-seat cars are two ordinary sleeper cars and a dining car for use by the officers and non-commissioned officers of the guards. The dining car can also serve as a temporary command center.

Behind the dining car are two Class C sleeper cars for use by Fengchensi attendants and accompanying officials.

Behind the dining car is a second-class sleeper and a six-axle luxury carriage for the accompanying senior officials and their secretaries.

Next was a dining car that also served as a conference car, and behind it were three customized six-axle luxury carriages for use by Zhu Yijun and Concubine Song and other accompanying concubines, princes, and princesses.

At the back is a Class B and a Class C sleeper car, which are used by the accompanying eunuchs and palace maids.

There is a dining car, a Class C sleeper car, an ordinary hard seat car, and the last car is a double-door box truck and a Qianjin II locomotive.

There are 20 carriages in total, with two locomotives in front and back, one pulling and one pushing. In case of danger, it is very convenient to change direction.

In addition, there was a train parked at the third platform, with Gu Yuan, Xue Yi and Liu Yi sitting on the train representing the Jinyiwei, the Rong government and the Imperial Stables.

The train has sixteen carriages, four with sleepers, ten with hard seats, and two with double-door boxcars.

It will depart half an hour later and be ready to pick you up at any time.

Ten minutes ago, Song Gongliang, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, had already set off in the lead car of a train with twelve carriages.

Zhu Yijun was wearing a navy blue formal suit and standing on the platform, surrounded by a group of people.

The five leaders were Wang Yi'e, Qi Jiguang, Wang Chonggu, Xu Zhenming and Zhang Siwei, followed by a group of important officials including Pan Yinglong and Yu Dayou.

"Your Majesty, I hope your trip goes smoothly." Wang Yi'e bowed and said concisely.

"You all say that after the Wanli New Deal, the Ming Dynasty prospered. Especially the Jiangnan area represented by Shanghai and Huzhou, which was prosperous and rich.

I want to go and see it myself.

The capital was left to Wang Xiang and Yuan Jing.

If there are any military or national affairs that are undecided, just ask the telegraph office to send a telegram to me. This time, I will go south along the Jinpu Line and return north along the Jinghan Line. I will take the Yangtze River in between and will not deviate from the telegraph route. "

"I obey your order!" Wang Yi'e, Qi Jiguang and others responded with a bow.

In addition, Zhu Yijun also brought with him the latest wireless telegraph machine, which was directly connected to the military government and the Secretariat.

"Duke Fengpan, Fengwu, and Tujie, please perform your duties as a minister on our behalf."

Zhang Siwei, Pan Yinglong and Xiao Wenkui were the leaders of the civil and military attachés who accompanied Zhu Yijun on his inspection tour to the south. That's why Wang Yi'e and Qi Jiguang gave this advice.

"Zijian and Yuanjing, rest assured."

Zhang Siwei's face was filled with high spirits and he answered on behalf of everyone in a heroic manner.

Yang Jinshui approached quietly, "Your Majesty, the auspicious time is approaching, it's time to set off."

During this southern tour, the chief supervisor of internal and external affairs was not Zhang Siwei, the highest-ranking official, but Yang Jinshui, the Left Junior Supervisor of the Secretariat and the Supervisor of the Imperial Household.

That’s right, the Shaofujian also began to gradually change from an eunuch agency to one of the inner court agencies.

Zhu Yijun nodded, waved his hand and said, "I am about to get in the car and say goodbye to you all."

"Respectfully send off His Majesty the Emperor on his southern tour!"

Zhu Yijun walked into the car first, went into the dining car, and sat down in the seat by the window.

Zhang Siwei and other entourage got on the car one after another and sat down in the dining car one after another. Only officials above the rank of vice minister were qualified to sit in the seats near the windows and waved goodbye to the platform through the glass window.

The band on the platform played the music of Hongwu Zhengyun, which was generous and heroic.

The South Station dispatcher checked all the information and confirmed that it was correct. He asked Fu Jinyou, Deputy Director of the General Railway Administration and Director of the Gyeonggi Bureau, who was in charge of the dispatching room, and issued the order to start the train after receiving the instructions.

The dispatcher on the platform waved a green flag.

The locomotive in front blew its whistle and slowly pulled the train forward.

Wang Yi'e and Qi Jiguang crossed their arms and bowed to Zhu Yijun, saluting him and seeing him off.

With a long whistle, the long train went faster and faster, like a giant dragon winding southward.

(End of this chapter)