The Heroic Age of the Late Qing Dynasty

Li Tianqiao naturally didn't say much; there were so many people here, it was impossible to elaborate. He had previously spoken with Zhang Yinghao and understood his mission objectives. Now, through Chongqing, he had intelligence bureau personnel in Wuhan, Shanghai, and other places; otherwise, this arms deal wouldn't have been possible.

Zhang Yinghao's Quotes - Growth is bound to bring shame, and only through shame can one grow!

Chapter 75

After Zhang Yinghao learned about Liu Xinsheng's situation in Chongqing, Liu Xinsheng took Zhang Yinghao and his men to the Yangtze River to wait for the arms trade ship to arrive. Since the Chongqing docks were now controlled by the British, the arms trade could not be conducted at the docks. Otherwise, the Germans could not bear the wrath of the British.

“What’s going on with this dock?”

"Chairman, this is our temporary dock. We circumvent British customs, which is equivalent to smuggling. Our last Mauser pistol trade, as well as those textile machines, were all landed here."

"Were they not discovered by the foreigners?"

"Not yet. Besides, we have our own people inside the customs. There are only a few foreigners here, and they can't handle it all."

"Well, the customs is a very important institution. You should send someone to sort out the twists and turns in the customs. In the future, when we drive the foreigners away, we will still have to manage the customs. Don't let the foreigners leave and we don't know how to manage the customs ourselves.

If you don't understand it, then it's all over. And you should learn more about smuggling now. In the future, when customs is in our hands, we will not allow smuggling, but will crack down on it severely."

"Okay, Chairman, I'll assign someone to take charge of this matter and make sure to clarify the situation at customs. Chairman, the ship is here."

Zhang Yinghao looked up and saw lights flashing on a boat.

"So the flashing light is a signal?"

"Yes, Chairman. Let's go." "Okay. Let's go."

In fact, before arriving in Chongqing, Zhang Yinghao had asked Li Tianqiao if the Germans would be willing to ship arms to Guang'an, which would have been a boon for Zhang Yinghao. However, Li Tianqiao replied that they had already inquired with the Germans, and that arms were already embargoed, and that China's customs were controlled by the British. The Yangtze River basin was a British sphere of influence, so the Germans wouldn't dare to take advantage of it. Zhang Yinghao and his team had to cooperate with the smuggling operation, and that they would not engage in the arms business again after this one deal.

Zhang Yinghao - I think I understand. The Germans' influence in the Far East is indeed a bit weak, but if they don't do arms business, they can still do other businesses.

"Chairman, this is Mr. Hans. Mr. Hans, this is our chairman, Chairman Zhang Yinghao."

Hans didn't look very tough; on the contrary, he was wearing glasses. Zhang Yinghao didn't reach out to shake hands with the German because the German was always intimidating and had no intention of shaking hands.

"Hello, Mr. Hans, welcome to Chongqing." "So you want to buy this batch of arms?"

"It's not me, it's our prefect who wants to buy them. The Boxers in Sichuan are coming in droves, and there are rioters everywhere. Our prefect is buying weapons to suppress them."

Hans nodded. This was a reason. When the Eight-Nation Alliance entered Erye, the Boxers were fearless in resisting the foreigners. Now they have shouted

The slogan "Sweep away the foreigners" was adopted. However, Hans did not know the extent to which the Boxer Rebellion in Sichuan had developed.

"So when we heard Mr. Hans had a batch of arms, we contacted you immediately. You know, your countries are now imposing an arms embargo on the Qing Dynasty. If you don't sell this batch of arms quickly, it will soon be sitting in the warehouse and gathering dust. For you, it will be a considerable loss."

When the German heard Zhang Yinghao mention the arms embargo, his expression changed for a moment, but he recovered in an instant. However, due to the close distance, Zhang Yinghao still caught him.

"Mr. Hans, we in Sichuan have tung oil, tea, bristles, and other specialty materials that your country needs. Take a look, these are samples."

After saying that, Zhang Yinghao took out the sample he had prepared long ago and placed it in front of Hans.

"Look, this bristle has been processed by us, it's very strong and durable. Look at this tung oil, a specialty of our Sichuan. And..."

Zhang Yinghao introduced everything he had brought and said, "We don't need you to give us cash. We want to purchase machinery from your country. The money for the machinery will be offset by the supplies we sell you. In other words, you both make money. Of course, if you agree, we can also do this for your weapons."

"You guys take a look at this batch of weapons first." "Okay, let's go."

In fact, he had heard what Zhang Yinghao said once before, and it was precisely because he was moved that he came to Chongqing. His batch of weapons had been shipped to the Far East early, but it happened to be the time of the Chinese invasion. He did not dare to sell them at that time, otherwise there would be the danger of aiding the enemy, so he did not sell them for a while.

For him, this deal was a big one. In Shanghai, perhaps only a few hundred thousand taels would be considered a big deal, but in Sichuan, it was definitely a huge deal. Sichuan was deep inland, so he didn't have to worry about the war in the north. And this was a committee rifle, not Germany's latest G98. Only the Chinese, who didn't know the real deal, would think this rifle was so good.

Zhang Yinghao, of course, didn't know that this rifle was no longer in production, and that the German army used the latest German rifle to suppress the Boxer Rebellion. Hans had brought this rifle to Germany for a trial sale. This also suggests that Hans was a very influential figure in Germany, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to obtain such ammunition, including the Maxim heavy machine gun and Gatling machine gun.

"This batch of ammunition is of German origin and is very advanced. The rifles come with 200 rounds of ammunition and the pistols come with 500 rounds of ammunition."

As they spoke, Zhang Yinghao and his men pried open a box, and a pungent smell of gun oil hit them. Zhang Yinghao paid no attention, picking up a gun, cocking it, and examining it. Yu Qingao also came over, picked up a gun, and began to examine it.

"This isn't a new gun. It's been used, about 80% new. It's one of those old-fashioned guns with a very high malfunction rate."

"Mr. Hans, you heard me. There's something wrong with your gun. Is it a disposal item?"

"This is indeed a gun that was discarded by the military, but I can guarantee that there is absolutely no problem with it."

Although Zhang Yinghao didn't know the specific problems with the rifle, he knew Germany better than Hans. He nodded, then shook his head and said, "This rifle has a very high failure rate. It's impossible for people in your country to still use this type of rifle. Don't give me too high a price, or I won't buy it. Let's look at the Maxim and Gatling."

Hans nodded and lifted the thick tarpaulin, revealing a heavy machine gun in front of Zhang Yinghao. The thick barrel was majestic and it was obvious that it was a deadly weapon.

Hans introduced all the data and performance of the Maxim. After he finished, William did not tell the price of the gun, but asked: "Mr. Zhang, what do you think of this gun?"

Zhang Yinghao acted disinterested and said, "Mr. Hans, this gun fires 600 rounds a minute. It consumes too much bullets. We can't afford it."

The Maxim heavy machine gun was a lousy bullet-guzzler. In China, if everyone had to buy bullets, how could they afford to maintain several heavy machine guns? This was the reality, as Li Hongzhang had said back then: "A heavy bullet consumer cannot afford to lose a large one." As a later arrival, Zhang Yinghao was well aware that the heavy machine gun's powerful power came at a significant cost.

What Zhang Yinghao also knew was that these foreigners made their money selling bullets. How much money could one make from a machine gun? Bullets were the real money. One bullet didn't make much, but with thousands of them, even a small battle wouldn't last. At six hundred rounds per minute, what was being fired wasn't just bullets, it was money.

While the Maxim heavy machine gun could be adjusted to a slow rate of fire, or single or continuous fire, depending on the situation, it still consumed a significant number of bullets during a battle. Zhang Yinghao purchased it because he would rarely need it against the Qing army, yet he needed it to prevent Qing cavalry charges.

"Let's take a look at Gatlin again."

The Gatling gun appears even more terrifying than the Maxim, with its multiple barrels capable of firing up to 900 rounds per minute—a veritable hail of bullets. Ironically, the Gatling gun was invented with the goal of allowing one man to fight a hundred, minimizing casualties. However, this bizarre logic contradicts reality, and the advent of rapid-fire weapons has exponentially increased casualties on the battlefield.

After listening to Hans's introduction, Zhang Yinghao had only one thing to say: Anti-Japanese dramas are killing people. The CCP had no guns or cannons, so the enemy built them for us. If the CCP could afford Gatling guns, how could they tolerate the Japanese's rampage? The Japanese only dared to use their crappy Type 99 rifles; they couldn't even afford the Maxim rifle.

"How much is this Maxim?"

"Mr. Zhang, a Maxim heavy machine gun costs six thousand taels of silver, and a Gatling machine gun costs three thousand taels of silver..."

Before Hans could finish, Zhang Yinghao interrupted him, "Impossible! This is too expensive! Even if I could afford it, I wouldn't be able to use it. I'd have to do the same as you and put it in a warehouse to collect dust. Not only can we not use it, but neither can the imperial army. Give me a fair price, and I'll buy all the weapons you have."

"Maxim 5,500 taels, Gatling 2,500 taels..."

"It's still too expensive. I can only offer 3,500 taels for the Maxim and 1,000 taels for the Gatling gun. That's the highest price I can accept. Also, you have to give me at least 3,000 rounds of ammunition."

"God, that's impossible! Our costs plus shipping are more than that." "Mr. Hans, you need to take a long-term view. The profit margin on your arms far exceeds that of other commodities. If you can make this deal, you can earn at least over 10,000 taels. If you bring back our bristle tung oil and sell it, you can make tens of thousands of taels round trip. There's no risk at all, just profit. Besides, we need your help with the subsequent machines, Hans. We also need to purchase ammunition through you, otherwise our weapons will just be scrap metal."

After some bargaining, the Mark was sold for 3,800 taels, the Gatling for 1,200 taels, and Zhang Yinghao bought all the ammunition Hans brought, including machine gun, rifle, and pistol bullets, for 6,000 taels. The money confiscated from Zhou Weiren's house was used to purchase this batch of arms.

Zhang Yinghao could only sigh: the arms trade is truly a highly profitable industry. For buyers, it's a sheer drain on wealth. If a country's weapons and ammunition supply were controlled by another country, the consequences would be disastrous. No matter how wealthy a country is, war can leave it penniless.

Then, Zhang Yinghao discussed with Hans about purchasing bristles and other products. As for these materials, Zhang Yinghao did not want to export raw materials at all. What Zhang Yinghao wanted was to export primary processed products. In this way, at least the added value of the products would be increased a lot, and it would also create employment opportunities for the base.

Zhang Yinghao was now considered a key client in Hans's eyes. Having agreed to the deal, Hans became more than happy. To retain Zhang Yinghao and forge further collaboration, Hans refused to accept any cash this time, instead using the entire amount for purchasing supplies. Zhang Yinghao naturally relished this opportunity, and even if it meant digging deep underground, he would still gather all the supplies Hans needed.

"Mr. Hans, we need to build a small steel plant in Guang'an. Please go back and sort out the information and give us a quote. If it's acceptable, we can continue our cooperation..."

In the end, both parties were happy. With this successful transaction, Hans successfully opened up the Sichuan market. Zhang Yinghao was also very happy, having successfully established a relationship with Germany. From now on, Zhang Yinghao would no longer be needed to conduct transactions with the Germans; other comrades would be able to handle the task.

Zhang Yinghao returned to Guang'an with the weapons. At this time, Chen Yiwei also began to purchase machinery and equipment in the United States and shipped them back, along with a large amount of information and many technical personnel.

Zhang Yinghao now had a strong army and felt more independent. He also knew a bit about firearms. The first gun he had seized from the bandits was a Hanyang rifle, modeled after the German Mauser rifle. However, the inability to fire continuously frustrated Zhang Yinghao. After firing a round, he had to eject the shell and reload it, which was not only time-consuming but also extremely inconvenient.

Zhang Yinghao had previously fired the Type 92 pistol, a Mauser pistol capable of continuous fire. The mechanism is simple: there's a spring inside the magazine and another spring behind the firing pin. The powerful gas dynamics generated by the firing of the bullet's gunpowder push back the firing pin, ejecting the cartridge case. The spring pushes the bullet from the magazine into the chamber, where the firing pin, under the action of the spring, strikes the bullet again, igniting the propellant and firing a new round. This cycle continues, creating the effect of automatic continuous fire.

Quotations from Zhang Yinghao: If someone starts working with a salary of 3,000 yuan, and ten or twenty years later it's still 3,000 or 4,000 yuan, you really can't blame the country!

Chapter 76

Zhang Yinghao returned to Guang'an with the weapons. The excitement of purchasing the weapons had subsided, and the atmosphere was rather subdued. The comrades all knew that buying weapons this way wasn't the right approach; they had to completely solve the problem of producing them themselves. A single machine gun cost several thousand taels of silver. How much more material would be needed to buy it back? They had never dared to imagine such a thing before.

But Zhang Yinghao knew that localization wasn't easy. If Britain, Germany, and the United States were industrialized, then Japan was semi-industrialized. Zhang Yinghao's current production was purely handicraft, still very primitive. He didn't have any good solutions. Even if he bought all the American machinery, he wouldn't be able to operate it himself.

"Director Yu, I'll give you both a Gatling gun and a Maxim machine gun. You'll be responsible for researching and seeing if you can manufacture them. If you can't manufacture them now, you'll need to understand the underlying principles. We'll manufacture them in the future when conditions permit. If we keep purchasing weapons like this, all of our country's wealth will be taken away by the foreign powers."

Zhang Yinghao had underestimated Yu Qingao and the technological genius of this era. Although he couldn't mass-produce these weapons, and their quality wasn't as good as that of the other great powers, if he slowly refined them and accumulated time, Yu Qingao would still be able to produce them.

"I understand, Chairman. We will immediately conduct research upon our return and strive to produce it as soon as possible."

"Well, if you need any machinery, just ask the comrades at the Ministry of Commerce. Comrade Chen Yiwei is already in the United States, so you can ask him to buy it for you."

"Chairman, we have now used the kinetic energy of the recoil of the bullet shell to create a rifle that can fire continuously. When are you free to come and take a look?"

"Oh, what do you think?"

"After testing, this gun can now fire continuously. The original clip-loading method has been changed to box-loading, which can load six bullets at a time. In other words, the action of pushing the bullet into the chamber is eliminated. Now you can continuously pull the trigger and the bullet will be fired six times in a row."

"Okay, this improvement solves our soldiers' pain points. However, our rifles can't fire automatically. We have to pull the trigger to fire a round. If we did, we wouldn't be able to keep up with our ammunition supply, putting too much pressure on logistics. Oh, and by the way, how's our smokeless powder research going?"

"Chairman, we're conducting experiments based on the nitrocellulose and nitroglycerin you mentioned. Nitroglycerin is extremely unstable, and it caused an explosion that killed four of our staff members during our experiments. However, we've almost figured it out, and we'll be able to begin mass production soon."

"Their sacrifice is something no one wants to see, but it is worthwhile and valuable. They are martyrs and should be buried in the cemetery of our soldiers, so that future generations can pay tribute to them and know how difficult it was for their ancestors."

Of course, Zhang Yinghao had no idea how much of a problem his small reminder had solved for Yu Qingao and the others. Nitrocellulose was discovered by accident by researchers, and it burns without producing smoke. The research on nitroglycerin, however, killed countless people worldwide. Nobel's brother and four assistants were killed in the bombing, and Nobel himself suffered a stroke. Nobel himself faced death several times. So, if the base managed to develop this material with only four casualties, it would be incredibly fortunate.

Hearing Zhang Yinghao say this, Yu Qingao was deeply moved. He had previously worked for the Qing court, but when had the Qing ever valued researchers like him? But here at Zhang Yinghao's, as long as the conditions were met, their researchers would be the best. And now, even allowing those killed in the explosion to be buried in the Soldiers' Cemetery was a great honor.

"Okay, okay. I believe their souls in heaven can rest in peace now."

"We are still not doing well enough. But you still need to find a way to produce more of our bullets. Without bullets, a gun is just a fire stick. There is no bullet.

Fire sticks are useful. Let's go and send the guns to the warehouse first. We'll go test the guns and see if your new guns are any good. Oh, by the way, communicator, Comrade Hu Songhui will meet up at the arsenal soon."

"Yes."

After answering, the correspondent immediately turned around and ran away.

After Zhang Yinghao delivered the guns to the warehouse, he walked towards the arsenal with a Maxim and a Gatling gun for Yu Qingao to study.

Arriving at the arsenal, Zhang Yinghao suddenly said to Yu Qingao: "Director Yu, I have an idea for a cannon. I want to see if it works and whether it can be manufactured."

After that, Zhang Yinghao came to the office and started drawing on a blank piece of paper. He drew a mortar, and his drawing was very detailed, showing the structure of the bullet and other parts. Yu Qingao could understand the principle at a glance.

This type of gun is very suitable for use in China today. It has no terrain restrictions. Wherever infantry can reach, artillery can reach. It is light and convenient.

It can be carried by one person and moved freely, making it an ideal weapon to support infantry attacks.

The mortar has a simple structure. Zhang Yinghao believes that as long as he can concentrate on research for a period of time, he will be able to produce it. The most important thing is what kind of machine he needs.

Equipment can be purchased from foreign countries, unlike the local communists in previous lives, who had money but no land to buy the necessary equipment.

If the Qing army of this era faced bullets, they might still resist.

However, if it faces artillery shells, Zhang Jianmeng believes that Niu Shifeng will collapse in a short time. Mortars have not yet been invented, and he has drunk this steep soup; if artillery shells appear in places that the enemy cannot imagine, they will definitely have unexpected effects. If artillery shells attack in places where artillery shells cannot appear, there will be few enemies.

Be able to remain calm.

"Chairman, the gun you designed is simple. The main problem is the shells. However, I think we still need to purchase the barrel and steel spring from the foreign powers."

Zhang Yinghao waved his hand and said, "Then buy it. Comrade Yiwei happens to be in the United States. We've already spent so much money on guns, so why wouldn't we spend money on making cannons?"

Zhang Yinghao was now quite wealthy, having snatched up all the land kings in Guang'an. Furthermore, the entire city of Guang'an had officially banned the circulation of gold, silver, and copper, effectively turning all Guang'an residents into paupers. They needed to buy things, and women had to work to earn paper money or exchange gold, silver, and copper coins for tissues at credit unions. With so many disaster victims, Zhang Yinghao could maintain the purchasing power of the paper money as long as he kept the prices of salt and grain stable.

"Okay, I'll start researching this cannon shortly. Chairman, do you think this cannon has a long range?"

"We don't need to go far. Let's first figure out whether we have them or not. Two or three thousand meters, or even a few hundred meters, will be fine. It's better than our homemade grenades! Not only are they less powerful, but they only reach a few dozen meters."

Hearing Zhang Yinghao's words, Yu Qingao understood. Based on his knowledge of cannons, he knew the cannon Zhang Yinghao had drawn would not have a long range. If the range was too short, and Zhang Yinghao didn't understand, it would lead to misunderstandings.

"Chairman, Comrade Hu Songhui is here."

"Oh, let's go test the gun."

After saying this, he led the way out. Yu Qingao, however, carefully hid the blueprint Zhang Yinghao had just drawn before quickly leaving the office. Zhang Yinghao saw this and nodded, feeling quite satisfied. If this level of confidentiality wasn't even a little bit high, then there would be no secrets in the arsenal in the future.

"Chairman, what good do you want to see me for?"

"How do you know it's a good thing?"

"Haha, of course I know it's a good thing, otherwise why would I come to the Arsenal?" Hu Songhui remembered clearly that Zhang Yinghao had said that they would be given priority to try out the new weapons at the Arsenal. Since he came to the Arsenal, it must be a good thing, otherwise why would he come?

"Haha, that's a good thing indeed. Look, what's different about this gun?"

Hu Songhui took it and examined it carefully. He quickly noticed a difference. The previous gun was magazine-fed, requiring a bolt action for each shot. Furthermore, the magazine couldn't be removed until all the bullets were used. This gun now used a box-fed magazine, eliminating those previous hassles.

"Chairman, the feeding method has been changed."

"Haha, that's not all. Comrade gunner, try firing a full magazine of bullets first."

"Yes."

After answering, the gun calibrator lifted his rifle, pulled the bolt, and immediately half-knelt on the ground. He aimed at the target opposite him and pulled the trigger three times in succession. Three bullets instantly shot out of the barrel and hit the target, and every shot hit the target.

Zhang Yinghao is quite fond of the army and pays special attention to basic shooting skills training, such as gun holding posture, shooting while moving, etc., which requires hanging bricks on the muzzle of the gun.

The head, a gun posture is half an hour, a little Er Yushi Changer to the future, the Internet said that this training method is unscientific, holding the gun Lou Fen Yun Ai Xing 5 when the hero just want to say: I haven't touched the gun, just based on the head to comment is unscientific is wrong

of.

Even under extremely difficult circumstances, Zhang Yinghao provided the revolutionary soldiers with opportunities for live-fire training. Remember, during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Eighth Route Army soldiers averaged only five rounds of ammunition per battle. However, the Eighth Route Army engaged in countless battles at the squad, platoon, and company levels, and each soldier likely engaged in far more than that. Units that engaged in more frequent battles only had a few hundred rounds of ammunition per year. Therefore, the PLA not only possessed a large number of elite marksmen, but also fostered the maturity of infantry squad and platoon tactics.

The current revolutionary army wasn't a field force; most soldiers had to perform heavy labor in addition to training. Even so, these soldiers had conducted numerous live-fire drills. Furthermore, the revolutionary army had already attacked at least 500 earthen fortifications and strongholds of landlords and gentry, if not 1,000. Even if each attack offered few opportunities, the combined total of bullets fired by each revolutionary soldier was considerable.

Adhering to a scientific approach, the Revolutionary Army had specialized rifle calibration and shooting courses, specifically covering firearm construction, firing principles, and bullet trajectory. The Revolutionary Army required new recruits to be able to quickly reassemble a disassembled rifle. Through careful selection, the Revolutionary Army produced numerous sharpshooters, particularly those from hunter families, who made significant progress.