At the critical moment, Wang Mi jumped up and grabbed Huan Chong's wrist. Who would have thought that General Huan would actually make a real move this time. His big fist was so powerful that the veins on his wrist were so tight.
, Wang Mi couldn't stand firm and was almost thrown out.
"Zhiyuan, what are you doing here?'
"Let me handle this matter myself!'
Solve the devil!
Although Wang Mi did not see the cause and effect, he understood the general situation. This time it was Mr. Huan who was unreasonable.
"General Huan, this is Master Yan from the Mujiang Workshop. He and his apprentices made the wooden rests of all pistols." "Including the one you are wearing on your waist, it is the same."
Huan Chong was stunned and finally stopped.
"He also made mine?'
"Of course, I did it all. If you still don't believe it, now that Wang Shilang has proven it, you should believe it!"
Master Yan's tone softened a bit. When he heard Wang Mi call the old man a general, he didn't dare to do anything wrong again. Of course, even after a fight like this, he still couldn't lose his temper.
"Shilang Wang, I have a request here. I wonder if I can agree to it?"
"You want a gun, right?'
Master Yan immediately became happy,
"right!"
"What Mr. Wang said is absolutely correct!"
"Although I'm not a soldier, I'm very greedy when I see so many young people with guns in their hands!" "So many guns are made by me, but I can't own one.
It’s such a shame!”
"So I carved one with a pattern and wanted to wait until Wang Shilang came to inspect the workshop to ask for mercy."
It seemed that Lao Yan had already had this idea, and the basic preparations were in place. He was just waiting for Wang Mi to speak, and of course he agreed.
However, Mr. Huan's emotions also need to be appeased.
He took Huan Chong's shoulder and said with a smile: "Old General Huan, I brought you to the general workshop to see new weapons. You already have the pistol, so please return it to Master Yan.'
“New weapons?’
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?'
With the new ones, who wants the old ones? Huan Chong raised his hand and threw the wooden tray with lychees wrapped around it to Lao Yan, and followed Wang Mi to the workshop on the other side.
The so-called fresh weapons are actually not new at all in modern times.
Any invention and creation must be based on the background of the times. Anything that transcends the background of the times will never be made even if it takes the effort of breastfeeding.
For example, in the late Eastern Jin Dynasty, could you come up with rockets and missiles?
Or a spacecraft?
None of this is possible.
Therefore, even if Wang Mi has knowledge that transcends his time, when he considers the weapons he can make, he must be based on reality.
Therefore, among the many weapons that he could try to make, Wang Mi chose the one with the simplest technology and the easiest to achieve. "General Huan, you already have the pistol. The weapon I am going to make today, you can
Never seen it before, take a good look
Hearing that Wang Shilang was going to make new weapons again, the masters in the workshop, both old and new, put down their errands and began to move closer to the gunpowder workshop.
All of a sudden, the crowd gathered more and more. There were three floors inside and three floors outside, seeming to form a wall of people.
This gunpowder workshop was specially built under the leadership of Pu Chao after Wang Mi left. There are many parts to the pistol, and several departments still need to work together.
After being taught by Wang Mi personally, the apprentices in the gunpowder workshop have become proficient in making gunpowder, from ingredients to production, everything is perfect.
Wang Mi watched them skillfully finish making gunpowder and nodded with satisfaction.
"It would be better if there was sulfur from Jinju.'
According to historical records, the area near Linfen, Shanxi today, was called Jinzhou in ancient times. The sulfur produced here has a pure color and stronger explosive power. It is truly the top grade of sulfur.
Pity!
They have just captured Nanyang, which is the southern part of Henan, and have not even touched the threshold of Luoyang. As for Jinzhou on the border of Shanxi, it is really a place that can only be reached in dreams.
That’s it!
"Is the sulfur produced in Jinju more effective?'
Wang Mi put about two kilograms of gunpowder in a round basket and nodded slightly: "That's right." "When we defeat Shi Qin, we will have everything!"
"Li Kuan, bring me the caltrops!"
After all, although the workshop is now focused on making firearms, it still has a lot of ordinary weapons in stock.
Li Kuan quickly found a handful of caltrops in the warehouse and delivered it to Wang Mi.
"Put it in." Wang Mi pointed at the basket, and Li Kuan did as he was told.
Caltrops, gunpowder, these things look very familiar.
Huan Chong had an epiphany: "Zhiyuan, do you want to be a rocket?"
I still remember that on the Xiangyang battlefield, Wang Mi once lamented that if there was gunpowder, the rockets could be made better and more powerful. It seems that he is doing this now.
"What General Huan said is both correct and incorrect.'
"What I am going to do next is indeed a firearm, but it is not a rocket, nor does it require a bow and arrow to launch it, but an artillery piece.'
"artillery?"
"what is that?"
Everyone was confused. Some people who had been on the battlefield and had some experience could probably guess that since it was called a cannon, it should also be used by throwing it.
"Bring me a stack of straw paper and tear up some rags." Wang Mi didn't even have time to raise his head, so he asked Li Kuan to do something.
In order to save steel, iron materials, and weapons such as artillery, there is no need to use such precious raw materials. The artillery he is making now is the mainstream firearm of the Song Dynasty.
The technology at that time was to use paper and rags to form a relatively hard shell, and fill it with gunpowder and other substances.
Wang Mi followed the instructions in ancient books and mixed gunpowder and caltrops together. Of course it was not difficult.
The difficulty is how to combine the shell made of several layers of tissue paper and the gunpowder to form a more standardized spherical shape. "No, no, no!'
"Too crooked!"
"Li Kuan, you have two more layers of paper over there!'
According to Wang Mi's hand feel, the thickness of the paper shell is probably just right, but Li Kuan's side is not ideal.
Following his instructions, Li Kuan also followed the same pattern, gluing the paper shells layer by layer. However, the same process, in his hands, seemed to have turned into a torture device.
No matter how hard Li Kuan tried, the paper shell he controlled could not hold the gunpowder. Wang Mi looked at the crooked paper shell and thought for a while.
"Get out of the way and let me do it myself."
He took a few more pieces of straw paper, tore the paper into pieces, and kneaded them together with the soft rags, layer after layer of paper, and finally it looked like something!
Now it seems that based on the actual practice, it is more efficient for one person to operate and cooperate with each other. More people will get in the way. Before taking this step, Wang Mi had already made a lot of preparations, and now it is finally time for them to come in handy.
."Li Kuan!"
"quick!'
"hemp rope!'
The surface of the fireball was almost mushy. Following the curvature of the ball, Wang Mi tightened the paper shells layer by layer, inch by inch.
Just as he was about to seal his mouth, he stopped.
The most crucial step is still missing!
He looked at Li Kuan, but this subordinate who had always been very steady now looked confused.
"hemp rope?'
"Did you just ask me to prepare something like this?"
This Li Kuan, how could he miss the mark at the critical moment!
"certainly!"
"Go find it quickly!'
Wang Mi gave the order, and Li Kuan immediately panicked.
Of course it's not hard to find hemp rope, but Wang Mi wanted it urgently, and Li Kuan had done something wrong, and he was feeling guilty and anxious, so he couldn't find it even more.
He was still spinning around in a panic, Wang Mi was anxious, and he was raising his head with anger, "Tsk, tsk, I'm really afraid of what will happen! If I can't find the hemp rope in time, this paper shell will be in vain!"
"Zhiyuan, use this!"
"hurry up!"
A big hand, holding a piece of hemp rope, suddenly appeared in front of Wang Mi's eyes. The person who helped him in this desperate situation was none other than Huan Chong.
Although the old man has hardly done anything serious since he entered the general workshop, he can still stand up at critical moments.
It always proves that ginger is still spicy when old!
Although he didn't know why Huan Chong carried a hemp rope with him, Wang Mi was no longer in the mood to care about it.
Under his command, Huan Chong cut the hemp rope to a suitable length and placed it in the middle of the paper shell. According to the artillery production method popular in the Song Dynasty, a bamboo pole could also be placed in the middle of the gunpowder as a simple support.
In this way, the gunpowder can more easily gather around the bamboo pole to form a ball center. After that, it is relatively easy to wrap it with a paper shell.
However, that kind of artillery cannot be loaded with caltrops. Since you have made this choice today, you can only do this first.
After a while of scrambling, the paper shell was finally ready. Just when all the apprentices breathed a sigh of relief, Wang Mi made a new request.
"Bring the tung oil and rosin."
Although the artillery now has a basic spherical shape, there is still one final step before it can be called an artillery. It is the waterproof and moisture-proof treatment. The selection of this moisture-proof material also requires some thinking. The artillery must use
When used on the battlefield, not only must it be moisture-proof, but it must also be flammable.
For example, things like fire cloth are very effective in preventing moisture and water, but they must not be used in the production of artillery.
In addition to being moisture-proof, fire-huan cloth is also fire-proof. What can you do with an artillery piece that cannot be lit?
Therefore, a series of materials that are both flammable and moisture-proof have become the first choice. Although the apprentices do not yet know what Wang Mi wants to do by asking for these things, as long as Wang Shilang wants it, he must do it.
Got it!
What Mr. Wang said is absolutely correct!
In the general workshop now, everyone is dissatisfied with Wang Mi, and they are all waiting for Xiao Wang to make a big move!
Tung oil and rosin are both excellent choices. Wang Mi found a brush and applied it carefully on the outer layer of the paper shell.
One layer after another...
He kept applying it until he was satisfied, then he stopped.
"alright!'
"Take it to dry!"
Mr. Huan had already stretched out his hands, but when he saw the treasure-like cannon being handed into Li Kuan's hand, he immediately stared.
"Isn't this for me?"
His hands were covered with tung oil. Before Wang Mi could wipe them, he heard Mr. Huan complaining. This old man really refused to suffer any losses.
"Of course it's for the old general, but we can't see the effectiveness of this artillery yet. How can I hand over the semi-finished product to you?"
‘Semi-finished product?’
"It's just not done yet?"
After working for so long and still not finished, Huan Chong suddenly lost his face and felt like he had been deceived. "Zhiyuan, can you do it?"
"Didn't you deliberately deceive me just to smooth over that old man Yan?"
"of course not!'
"The new artillery needs to be dried before it can be used. It doesn't take too long. One day is enough."
"Old general, be patient and don't be impatient. Be patient and don't be impatient."
It actually takes another day!
Mr. Huan was never in a hurry when fighting, and he took winning or losing lightly. However, now he has become the most impatient person.
Wang Mi is here to instruct the apprentices on the essentials of making artillery. Compared with pistols that use division of labor and cooperation, artillery can be operated by a single person.
Therefore, it requires higher personal qualities of craftsmen.
There are many processes involved in making artillery, and it was just one of the simpler types of firearms popular in the Song Dynasty. Before the arrival of Wang Mi, people in the late Jin Dynasty had never been exposed to firearms at all and had no concept of firearms at all.
Therefore, every step of the operation required Wang Mi's guidance bit by bit. Xiao Wang's energy was spent here, and Mr. Huan became a big idler in the workshop.
He was really free. Li Kuan, including the great general Pu Chao, were all gathered around Wang Mi, intending to learn a trick.
Only Mr. Huan didn't join in the fun. At this time, you have to admire Mr. Huan. You see, the old man is very self-aware. He doesn't need to be reminded by others. He can see that at his age, he wants to learn how to make artillery.
An easy thing.
Since it's not easy, don't make things difficult for yourself. Once they've done it, they'll be able to use it.
Doing nothing is the easiest way to cause trouble, and Mr. Huan's mentality fully reflects this.
Is it really not possible?
Not yet?
It can't be possible!
Huan Chong stood in front of the window, looking affectionately at the artillery placed on the windowsill to dry, and looking at its long lead, he couldn't hold back the impulse in his chest.
He probably also knows how to use this thing. He only needs a kind of fire to get what he wants!
So Easy!
Almost effortless!
The old man touched it on his waist. When he touched the cylindrical object, he immediately smiled.
Isn’t that all there is to it!
Huan Chong took out the fire primer and moved the cannon aside while the crowd gathered around Wang Mi.
In fact, the artillery can't be used yet, and the tung oil hasn't completely dried yet, but Mr. Huan can't wait, he must have a try!
Mr. Huan dares to do things that others dare not do!
Mr. Huan firmly refused to do anything that others wanted to do!
Holding the cannon in his arms, he trotted towards the southeast corner of Jiang's workshop, which was the farthest away from the workshop where Wang Mi and others gathered. After a while, Huan Chong disappeared from everyone's sight.
It's not that no one saw him, but people's attention had already been attracted by Wang Mi.
For Huan Chong, people often pass by with a quick glance, and no one thinks carefully about what he is going to do.