The prince is more stable

Chapter 77: Gun Test in the Training Ground
Zhao Xu was really busy when he left the palace.

Zhao Xiaoqian thought that he came out of the palace just to praise himself, but after praising himself, he had a meal in the palace, and after the meal, he dragged him shopping, and after the shopping, he had to go to the military camp.

The "Dragon Guard Camp" was under the jurisdiction of the Palace Front Division of the Imperial Guards of the Song Dynasty. During the reign of Emperor Taizong of Song, the Imperial Guards were restructured. Among them, there were four elite troops among the elite guarding Bianliang, which were called the "Upper Four Armies".

They are respectively called Sun-holder, Tianwu, Dragon Guard and Divine Guard.

Tsk, what a stern yet childish name.

All they need is a Dragon King who has returned in glory after his three-year term to lead them.

It may sound a bit childish, but it’s true, that’s really their name.

The Dragon Guard Camp was stationed in the south of Bianjing City. Theoretically, its establishment should have been 50,000 soldiers, but since the reign of Emperor Taizong, the Dragon Guard Camp has maintained a strength of around 15,000 people.

It’s not that some people are drawing salaries without working, but the Upper Four Armies are the elite among the elite guarding the capital of the Song Dynasty. The quality requirements for the soldiers are too high, and ordinary soldiers cannot join, so it is better to have no soldiers than to have unqualified ones.

Theoretically, the Upper Four Armies should have 200,000 soldiers, but in reality, the total number of the four armies was less than 50,000.

Zhao Xiaoqian didn't understand why Zhao Xu suddenly wanted to inspect the Longwei Camp, but he wisely chose not to ask.

A sensible man knows when to shut up in front of his boss.

Just as a sensible woman should also know, if the man is not awake in the early morning, she should take the initiative to sit on him, like the rocking car at the entrance of the supermarket, and rock him to understand the knowledge points.

The carriage trip was very low-key. Zhao Xu did not use the imperial carriage from the palace, but the carriage from the Prince of Chu's Palace.

The carriage drove to the south of the city, out of the inner city, and arrived at the Nanxun Gate of the outer city, where there was a vast open space and tents.

This is the base of the Dragon Guard Camp.

The soldiers in the camp had already received the order from the palace. When Zhao Xu and Zhao Xiaoqian got off the carriage, they heard the sound of armor colliding.

The vast army of soldiers and horses all bowed and clasped their fists, saying in unison, "Greetings, Your Majesty."

Zhao Xu looked calm, nodded lightly, and waved his hand to order all the soldiers to stand.

Zhao Xiaoqian looked at the camp curiously.

This was the first time he saw the organized imperial guards of the Song Dynasty. At first glance, judging from their appearance, they could indeed be called elite.

What comes to your face is a sense of bravery. Every soldier looks fierce, with firm eyes and resolute faces. Just standing there quietly makes people feel awe from the bottom of their hearts.

Such an army cannot possibly be a weak force.

Zhao Xiaoqian was secretly confused. The Bianliang Imperial Guards were so elite, so how did the government lose Bianliang and turn the Northern Song Dynasty into the Southern Song Dynasty?
For some things, the answers may only be found by touching the depths of a country's soul.

There is no denying that, judging from the appearance alone, this Dragon Guard Battalion is a well-deserved elite force.

If Zhao Xu had not brought him here today, it would have been difficult for Zhao Xiaoqian to feel the true atmosphere of the Imperial Guards.

Several armored generals came forward to salute, then led Zhao Xu and Zhao Xiaoqian into the camp.

Zhao Xu did not enter the general's tent, but went to an empty training ground with Zhao Xiaoqian.

There was a group of about 3,000 soldiers standing in formation on the parade ground. Under the scorching sun of early summer, the soldiers stood as straight as javelins and stood quietly.

When Zhao Xu arrived, a general waved his banner and shouted, "Greetings!"

With a loud bang, three thousand soldiers bowed and clasped their fists together: "Greetings, Your Majesty!"

Zhao Xu smiled and waved to the soldiers. The general waved his flag again and said, "Free!"

There was another loud noise, and the soldiers stood up and looked calmly at the command platform.

Zhao Xu turned his head to look at Zhao Xiaoqian and said with a smile, "Do you know why I brought you here today?"

"I am stupid and don't know."

Zhao Xu smiled mysteriously: "Let me show you some good stuff." Then he nodded to a general in the audience. The general understood and waved his hand to have dozens of large wooden boxes brought in.

The box was opened under the stage, and inside were long spears. Their appearance and make were very familiar. Zhao Xiaoqian recalled that the short-barreled flintlock rifle he had made was very similar to these long spears.

The difference is that the barrels of the guns in front of him are longer, but the rear parts, triggers, stocks, etc. are basically the same as those he made himself.

Seeing Zhao Xiaoqian stunned, Zhao Xu smiled and said, "The artisans at the Military Equipment Bureau studied your flintlock rifle for days and nights, then copied it. Later, one of the artisans accidentally made the barrel a little longer, and discovered that it gave a longer range. So, this long-barreled flintlock rifle was designated as the standard for mass production."

"To date, the Arms Supervisor has been working day and night, producing over 500 rifles and over 3,000 kilograms of gunpowder."

"Zi'an, go check and see if there are any omissions in the items made by the Military Equipment Bureau."

Zhao Xiaoqian walked down the stage as instructed, picked up a gun and examined it carefully in his hand.

In fact, there is no need to be too careful. The fact that these guns could be brought in front of Zhao Xu means that they have been tested by the craftsmen, and there should be no problem with firing and range.

So after taking a few glances, Zhao Xiaoqian put down his gun and walked onto the stage.

Zhao Xu smiled and said, "How?"

Zhao Xiaoqian nodded and said, "What a good spear! As expected of a craftsman from the Military Equipment Supervisor, it's even more exquisite than mine."

Anyway, just close your eyes and say nice things in front of your leader, even if it’s not good, it has to be good.

Zhao Xu said happily, "Let the soldiers try out their guns. Perhaps this will bring a different atmosphere to the Song army's battle formation."

The general obeyed the order and more than 500 soldiers came forward, each picking up a flintlock rifle.

These soldiers must have been trained beforehand, and they were very skilled in using the guns after getting them.

Under the general's order, the soldiers stood in a row, loaded gunpowder and iron balls in an orderly manner, and finally raised their spears horizontally, facing the straw target about a hundred steps away.

At the general's command, there was a loud bang of gunfire, and after a puff of white smoke dissipated, the training ground was silent.

Even though he had witnessed it once before, Zhao Xu couldn't help but stand up excitedly and look at the straw target in the distance.

"Send someone to get some straw targets. I want to take a look."

Soon several straw targets were brought in, and the centers of the rings on them were full of small holes, obviously they had all been hit.

"Zi'an, come and take a look." Zhao Xu said happily, "This thing is really powerful. It can hit the enemy even at a hundred steps away. Its range is almost the same as the Three Stone Strong Bow."

Zhao Xiaoqian stepped forward to take a closer look and said, "It's indeed powerful. After the barrel is lengthened, the range is also much longer. If rifling can be added to the barrel, perhaps the range can be even longer, two or three hundred steps is not impossible."

"What are rifling?" Zhao Xu asked without understanding.

Zhao Xiaoqian gestured with his hands, but didn't know how to explain. He kept making "Aba Aba" signs like a mute in sign language and remained silent for a long time.

Zhao Xu nodded slowly: "Okay! Zi'an, now I understand everything! Haha, you are worthy of being me!"

Zhao Xiaoqian was stunned: "Does the emperor really understand?"

Zhao Xu said with a straight face, "I don't need to understand. I only care about the results. Zi'an, you've worked hard. You can think about the rifling later. With Zi'an's intelligence, I'm sure it will be easy to solve. I await your good news."

Zhao Xiaoqian opened his mouth, but hesitated to speak.

With today's primitive industrial level, it is too difficult to carve rifling inside a gun barrel. I don't know how to do this!

Either invent a machine tool for engraving rifling, or train a group of craftsmen to the eighth level of fitter and let them rub by hand. Both options are difficult.

Looking at the straw target in front of him that was pierced by a bullet, Zhao Xu became excited again, and his eyes shone with light.

After a long pause, Zhao Xu whispered, "Zi'an, if this weapon is deployed in the Imperial Guards, can it protect our territory from being invaded by the Liao cavalry?"

Zhao Xu suddenly gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, saying coldly, "I'm really fed up with being extorted by the Liao people every year. I'm fed up with giving them annual tributes. It's such a humiliation!"

(End of this chapter)