Bi Maokang ordered people to pick up the swarm of bees placed on the ground, open all the barrels, and have people take out the rockets and look at them carefully.
He has studied various types of firearms and is aware of the disadvantages of most firearms, but he has no thoughts at the moment.
After a while, he sighed softly, turned around and bowed to Zhu Youxiao:
"Your Majesty, it will take a few days before I can reply to Your Majesty regarding the improvements."
Zhu Youxiao smiled slightly and said:
"My dear, don't sigh. This matter is not urgent. I will give you enough time!"
Technology cannot be forced, it can only be slowly figured out and constantly experimented. Nothing can be achieved in one step.
The self-generating fire gun was successfully developed in just half a year because Bi Maokang has been studying it for many years and has mastered the core key points, otherwise it would not be so easy.
Now that we have the Shenwu Fire Gun, we can deploy it into the army on a large scale. If we want to develop more advanced firearms, it is simply impossible to achieve it with the current knowledge reserves, technology, and industry.
You must know that the earliest flintlock musket was developed in the 16th century, and by the time the next technological advancement reached a new generation, it was already the 19th century. At that time, front-loading muskets were replaced by breech-loading muskets.
Zhu Youxiao looked at a firebox drive again:
"There is also this magical arrow. During my last northern expedition, it played a great role against the Mongolian cavalry. It allowed those barbarians to get acquainted with my Ming Dynasty's firearms."
"Although its power is enough to defeat the enemy, it is not enough. I want you to study it carefully and maximize its power and range, at least to the range of the Shenwei General Cannon."
Zhu Youxiao stood next to the fire truck, pointed forward and said:
"Most of our firearms, whether guns or cannons, shoot out in a straight line. Although there is no problem in using them on the battlefield, they are too simple after all."
"So I also want to change the firing method of the Liuguang Divine Machine Arrow, just like the Tiger Crouching Cannon, which shoots in a straight direction at an elevation angle."
Xu Guangqi asked with confusion:
"May I ask, Your Majesty, what do these angles of elevation and reflection mean?"
They knew the firing method of the Tiger Crouching Cannon. It had to be said that this cannon was best used in places such as mountains and jungles, because it was fired into the sky first and then fell to the ground, allowing it to overcome obstacles.
"The meaning of elevation and deflection is easy to understand. Please remember it and include these two words in the book."
"When you look up to the sky, this is the angle of elevation. If there is someone in front of you, it can also be called looking up."
"And this curve is a parabola. What is a parabola?"
After saying that, Zhu Youxiao bent down and picked up a stone, then threw it straight ahead, clapped his hands and said:
"This is a parabola, do you understand?"
All the ministers were puzzled and said in unison:
"I understand!"
Nowadays, Zhu Youxiao often starts to use modern vocabulary. He cannot be assimilated by this era. Although he cannot change anything with his own hands, fortunately, he knows much more advanced knowledge than they do.
He can use his words and deeds to change things slowly and subtly. Although it is not very eye-catching, it is also knowledge, at least it is much better than those who shout all day long.
"But I'm talking about a similar firing method. Although the Crouching Tiger Cannon is good, its range is only three to four hundred steps, and its power is not as powerful as the Flowing Light Divine Machine Arrow."
"What I want is to be able to carry out long-range strikes from thousands of steps away. No matter whether the enemy is stationed in the city or at a dangerous pass, they must be able to attack."
"Your Majesty, I am afraid that we cannot meet these requirements. Even the Crouching Tiger Cannon cannot cross the high and thick walls and attack directly into the city."
In order for them to understand better, Zhu Youxiao patiently answered the questions using both hands and mouth.
The rockets of the Ming Dynasty were made by attaching one or two small explosive packets to the arrows, and then igniting them through fuses and launching them.
This is the reason why the magical arrows have insufficient range and are not as powerful as artillery.
According to his idea, the first thing to change is the caliber of the gun barrel and the rocket.
If you want to be powerful enough to carry out bombing, you can only focus on the amount of gunpowder you can carry. If you want to increase the range, you can only work on gunpowder.
Then the angular position of the firebox car must also be changed, and it must be at an elevation angle.
Rockets cannot use ordinary arrows, they must use full gunpowder packs instead.
Moreover, there must be a certain aiming point so that the rocket cannot wander around after being launched.
This is a real technical job with a high degree of difficulty.
There is a big problem with current cannons, and that is that the angle is not enough.
Although the Hongyi cannon equipped by the Ming army was powerful, it was too bulky because this cannon was originally used at sea and was captured by the Ming army after defeating Western warships.
The emperors and ministers of the Ming Dynasty were attracted by its power. After the imitation was successful, the Hongyi cannon was sent to important cities in Liaodong and erected on the city walls for city defense.
Although the Folang cannon and the General cannon are much lighter, they are only compared to the Hongyi cannon.
The artillery used by the Ming army in field battles was mostly Tiger cannons and small Folang machine guns. These were relatively light and easy to carry, but their power was extremely limited.
Zhu Youxiao's idea is very simple. Since the shortcomings of cannons cannot be solved now, he should first explore and develop rocket launchers and accumulate certain technologies first.
Zhu Youxiao explained for a long time, and the ministers finally understood. He also showed a smile of relief. This was really difficult.
"Although I am brave enough to reform it, my dear, I only have one request, and that is to carry out coverage bombing in a straight-line way. As long as this is achieved, it will be considered a success."
"I understand, but if you want to complete it, it may take a long time, and I can't guarantee that it will succeed."
"My dear, please relax. I'm still saying what I said, don't rush for a while, just go ahead and do it. Whether you need people, money or food, in short, I will fully support you."
Bi Maokang said excitedly:
"I thank Your Majesty, I will do my best to live up to Your Majesty's favor!"
Rocket artillery, this is really an important weapon that can become the foundation of a country, but I don’t know when it will be available.
"I think you all should be very familiar with this divine fire flying crow."
Who says that ancient people are not as smart as modern people? They just haven't developed to this point in terms of ideological knowledge and technical reserve ability. When it comes to brains, it doesn't need to be much worse than modern people.
Take the Divine Fire Flying Crow as an example. Although Zhu Youxiao didn't know which firearms master developed the Divine Fire Flying Crow, he still couldn't hide his admiration.
The Shenhuo Flying Crow is similar to a modern micro-fighter, the kind that self-destructs and is pushed forward by the reaction force of rockets. It has two rockets attached to the bottom and an airplane-like top. The shape is very similar to a crow, and it can attack the enemy by surprise.
Moreover, it can also carry biochemical poison gas. When the amount reaches a certain level, it can cause people to lose their combat effectiveness due to poisoning. This is why the Shenhuo Flying Crow got its name.
During the Wanli period when Korea was conquered, little Japan was severely beaten by divine fire and flying crows, and it can be said that it suffered greatly.
It is recorded in "The Summary of the Restoration of the Country" that once the artillery is set up, the Japanese will stick to it. It is necessary to release thousands of poisonous fire arrows into the city in the middle of the night when there is no wind. The dark air condenses in the middle of the night and the fire smoke is difficult to disperse. How can the Japanese be so majestic? The poisonous gas fumes and burns, causing the recipient to vomit, feel dizzy, and find it difficult to get up from bed.
When the Ming army attacked a heavy city, they used divine fire and flying crows as their main attack weapon. It only took one night to easily capture the heavily guarded city.
When the night is quiet and all the Japanese are asleep, first shoot poisonous fire arrows into them. When they wake up and have been deeply poisoned, use open fire arrows to burn them again, lure the Japanese out of their houses to put out the fire, and then use cannons to fly lead. Strike it with iron. This is what a good military strategist calls the method of catching the enemy by surprise and attacking them unprepared.
It can be seen from this that the Divine Fire Flying Crow is not just in vain, but is actually a powerful weapon that can strike at the enemy.
Even though it is just a small rocket, it is not cheap to make, and the most important thing is that it is a one-time self-destruction weapon. It is gone after it is used, and every time it is used, it is at least tens of thousands. Looking at the entire Ming Dynasty, It was only used on a large scale once during the Wanli period when it was used as the main combat weapon during the conquest of Korea.
At other times, it was mostly cooperation and assistance. The current Ming Dynasty could not afford this thing at all. It was too poor. Only in the extremely wealthy era thirty years ago Wanli had this capital.
And this is also the reason why its reputation is not obvious, because at the end of the Ming Dynasty, there was basically no flying crow of divine fire, and no one could afford to use it.
But just because it can't be used doesn't mean it should be given up. Zhu Youxiao decided to hand it over to the arsenal and improve it and update the technology so that it will definitely be used in the future.
After everything about the improvement of firearms was clearly explained, Zhu Youxiao took a group of divine weapons and took a royal chariot back to the palace.
On the dragon chariot, Zhu Youxiao played with the fire gun in his hand and said:
"Master Xu, when you go back, you will draw up a decree. All arms bureaus in all provinces across the country will stop making tiger squat cannons, blunderbuss, carrying guns, etc. Wherever the decree goes, they will stop. Anyone who resists the decree will be killed. Severe punishment will not be tolerated."
Then he turned to Song Yingxing and said:
"Da Sikong, this Ministry of Public Affairs must also cooperate well. Anyone who resists the decree and disrespects it will be stripped of his hat and sent to prison before reporting to me."
The Ordnance Bureau is under the Ministry of Industry and has been established in every provincial capital to build weapons and equipment for local guards.
Song Yingxing immediately replied:
"Your Majesty, am I not being too hasty? Our Ming army has more than one million people. If we stop making weapons rashly, what will the soldiers do? How can we deter the world?"
Xu Guangqi, who had always supported the emperor, also quickly spoke up:
"Yes, Your Majesty, it would be appropriate to discuss this matter with the six ministers of the cabinet first and come up with a complete charter before making a decision."
Zhu Youxiao, who was at a loss for words, almost couldn't help but tell the truth. He wanted to return a million troops, or perhaps a million farmers would be more accurate.
In the current Ming army, after excluding the Jiubian military towns, only the guards and chieftains in the northwest and southwest still have a certain degree of combat effectiveness and can be used, because those places are not as good as those in the Central Plains, especially the northwest, which can be said to be the Jiubian.
The most combat effective.
The northwest is far away from the capital, and the situation nearby is complicated. Surrounded by powerful enemies, the Tatars and Tumut tribes, sometimes they also face the threat of Oara. If they didn't have some fighting power, others would have destroyed them long ago.
Less than two hundred years ago.
Moreover, there are many ethnic groups migrating there. In addition to dealing with foreign enemies, the army in the northwest also needs to quell internal strife from time to time. In the Battle of Ningxia, one of the three major campaigns in Wanli, although the leader was Li Rusong, the local army also showed
Decent fighting ability.
As for the guard posts in other places, there are no military towns, so naturally there are no professional soldiers similar to Jiubian.
Especially in the Jiangnan area, although it is the most prosperous area in the country, it is also the most thoroughly corrupt place. A guardhouse with 5,600 people looks good, but I don't know if it can fight even a fraction of that.
"You are too cautious. I want to ask you, how many firearms were made and shipped out of the warehouse in Shaanxi Pingliang Prefecture last year? Da Sikong, can you tell me?"
Song Yingxing thought for a while and said:
"Your Majesty, the total number of firearms of all types is less than a thousand!"
Zhu Youxiao said calmly:
"You all heard it, it's less than a thousand!"
"Okay, I assume there are a thousand of them a year. Think about it, how many guards and troops there are in Pingliang Prefecture. A mansion with tens of thousands of troops stationed there can build a thousand and ten in a year."
Only 10,000 pieces per year.”
"Moreover, these firearms were either cut corners or made haphazardly. They cannot be used by the army at all. What is the difference between having them and not having them?"
"Da Sima, you are the Minister of the Ministry of War. You know the actual military situation in various places best. Is what I am telling you the truth?"
Wang Zaijin, who was sitting closest to the chariot door, cupped his hands and said:
"Indeed, as your Majesty said, the Ministry of War receives submissions from military posts and military towns across the country every month. In addition to asking for food and salary, they also request the imperial court to issue weapons and equipment. I sometimes find it very annoying."
Zhu Youxiao pursed his lips and thought to himself, it's not all the good deeds of you literati seniors who insist on confronting the emperor and forcefully snatching the military power of the guard station from the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion.
"So you know why I have this idea, it's really dispensable."
The emperor had already mentioned this, and Xu Guangqi and Song Yingxing had nothing to say. They had been in the center for a while, and they thought they had a basic understanding of the country's conditions, but they didn't expect that what they discovered was just the tip of the iceberg.
No wonder His Majesty wants to impose such harsh punishments. It seems that the situation is really compelling.
Zhu Youjian discussed with the ministers some aspects of governing the country and bringing peace to the people. When it came to this, Song Yingxing changed from his normal state and acted like a chatterbox.
He is not as good as Xu Guangqi, Bi Maokang and others in the matter of arms and firearms, but in this aspect, he is much better than others.
Especially agriculture, whether it is rice or wheat, as long as it is a crop, he can talk a lot casually, and even Wang Zaijin, who has always been more self-centered, showed admiration.
Along the way, Song Yingxing's voice was basically the only one in the huge dragon chariot. Several others interrupted from time to time, but Zhu Youxiao just listened quietly and intently to Song Yingxing's various science popularizations.
At this time, he came up with the idea that his son must worship him as his teacher in the future.