Wang Rulong, the life-saving benefactor, made Chen Mu's heart block all the way.

When I returned to Xiangshan, I looked at the craftsmen of the Ordnance Bureau who were kneeling all over the ground, and my mood that had just been relieved suddenly became even more blocked.

"What is this, all up!"

Guan Yuangu took the head, and the old craftsman fell to the ground trembling, obviously the news of the explosion of the artillery in this battle had spread, making the craftsmen panic.

Gunpowder craftsman Xu Erjin took a few of his gunpowder apprentices to stand from afar and watch the excitement, his medicine was fine, it was all about the cannon.

"Get up, what should you do if you're fine, get up!" Chen Mu's scalp was numb when he looked at kneeling, he didn't want to blame anyone, these craftsmen had eyesight, "Guan Craftsman will go to the Ordnance Bureau with me." ”

Chen Mu didn't want to punish or punish, the artillery had a lot of contributions in the battle, although it had only fought less than forty shots, but it was very useful, if it weren't for the rate that the artillery was close to 100% after use, this should have been an excellent gun, even if it was installed on a ship.

Walking into the Ordnance Bureau and asking people to close the door, Chen Mucai asked Guan Yuangu with a calm face: "Guan Jiang, what's the matter with the new cannon, it shouldn't be so explosive!" ”

The calm face is not because of anger, but because of real doubt.

"Don't worship, I don't blame you, just tell me about the cannon casting as it is."

Chen Mu has been trying to make cannons, but he hasn't seen the process of casting cannons a few times, because he thinks that craftsmen must know more than him, but now he must understand what the problem is.

"It's all blamed on Lao Er's bent on speed, and Qianhu said that he wanted to be light and the cannonball should be big, so he came up with the ...... to make a three-hundred-pound and five-catty cannon," Guan Yuangu felt sorry for himself as soon as he opened his mouth, and was interrupted by Chen Mu, "Just say how the cannon was made, it must have used other methods." ”

"The gunsmith said that three hundred catties can only make two catties of cannons, Lao Er didn't listen, he had to make five catties of cannons, so they came up with the idea of wrought iron cores and pig iron pouring skin to fool the soldiers, and thousands of households want to blame Lao Er, Lao Er's supervision is not good!"

"Wrought iron core, pig iron skin?"

Chen Mu understood, waved his hand and said, "I don't blame you, I blame me for going away." Now it's not anyone's business, it's right to find the problem and solve the problem, and cast a good cannon, I just want to know why this wrought iron core and pig iron can make the 300-kilogram cannon shoot five catties of bullets, and it can also be fired a few rounds before exploding. ”

"Wrought iron is tough, pig iron is hard, if the outside pouring copper skin may be better, someone tried to cast iron with copper core, but the copper is soft quickly, melted and shrunk inside, can not be made." Guan Yuangu listened to Chen Mu's meaning and did not pursue it, his heart was much more relaxed, and he explained to Chen Mu endlessly: "This time the cannon was blown up, and Lao Er felt that it might be because it was not easy to see that there was a problem with the wrought iron after pouring the iron sheet, and when there was a problem, it was directly exploded." ”

The melting point of copper is lower than that of iron, and the shrinkage rate of copper is larger...... Chen Mu's eyes lit up, and the craftsmen under him went astray again.

Iron core copper shell, not copper core iron shell, of course, if you take into account the cost performance, this kind of wrought iron, pig iron shell artillery is obviously not bad.

It's nothing more than that the chamber becomes smaller or continues to thicken.

"It's okay, there is plenty of time for Guan Jiang to make a new cannon later, this time Chen will not give you a set gun weight, two catties of infantry cannons, two catties of ammunition, two catties of shells, ten catties of ship cannons, just these three kinds of cannons, first do it according to the heaviness, no matter what process you use, whether it is pig iron wrapped in wrought iron, copper skin and iron bones, or even all copper cannons, you can try it."

"Someone in the Ordnance Bureau will calculate, calculate how much these kinds of guns cost, little by little lighter, use copper and iron, don't care about using the library, go to Haojing to find Li Danhuayu, let them buy from Fanren, and make a combination of 300 cannons without blowing up - how long will it take."

As soon as Chen Mu said, Guan Yuangu called the keeper of the Ordnance Bureau to record, and the old craftsman was dumbfounded after recording it, and he took a deep breath and just wanted to agree but was interrupted by Chen Mu: "Three months, can Guan Craftsman figure out how many catties of two-catty cannon weigh?" ”

He really suffered the loss of the craftsman, and few craftsmen in this era knew how to discuss with the chief.

Chen Mu used four blown up cannons to figure out one thing, even if it was him, the craftsman didn't dare to discuss it with him. Regardless of whether he said that it would take long to build the cannon or how heavy the cannon would be, then the final cannon must have been so heavy at this time.

The craftsman did not dare to be flexible, and if the chief understood these things, and the requirements put forward were in accordance with the regulations, a good finished product might end up; If the chief doesn't understand, and like Chen Mu, the lighter the cannon, the better, then the last thing that comes out can only be a barely firing cannon, and a battle is blown into a pile of scrap iron waiting to be returned.

"Yes!"

After only pondering the regulation of one cannon for three months, Guan Yuangu still had this confidence, and saluted: "Rest assured, within three months, Lao Er will definitely be able to make a two-pound cannon!" Can shoot 300 shots! ”

Chen Mu nodded, this time should have a margin in his expectations, he only needs Guan Yuangu to use different processes to create a few suitable cannons, bronze cannons, brass cannons, pig iron cannons, cast iron cannons, the same number of cannons that can fight three hundred cannons, and he will compare them when the time comes.

Naturally, the cost was huge, but he could already afford it, not only the fifteen hundred silk horses allocated by Zhang Han, but also the silk woven by Xiangshan, and he didn't even need to touch his own private property, just the money transferred into the Xiangshan treasury could cope with the consumption of making cannons.

Copper and iron, for the current Xiangshan Qianhu Chen Junye, are not expensive things.

Cooked iron is 100 catties and 2 taels of silver, and even 100 catties of Suzhou Iron and Steel is only 3 taels or 6 cents.

Copper is slightly more expensive, five taels of raw copper per 100 catties; Yellow cooked copper, red cooked copper 100 catties and 10 taels.

Only the cost of the all-copper cannon is high, if it is used to build a ship, it is possible that the jack cannon will be up to 100 taels, and Chen Mu can bear the other costs.

"There's another thing, the master is waiting for me to find it." Chen Mu flipped through the notes, and said to Guan Yuangu after finding it: "When playing loose bullets, the scattered noodles are too messy, and it is inevitable that they will be scattered when using bags and large bamboo tubes to fight, make a wooden bore support, wrap a circle of iron around it, make a cylinder slightly thinner than the muzzle, cover it with a thin pig iron sheet, and seal thirty round bullets inside, just use cast iron balls to make this cartridge as heavy as a big bullet, this is easy to do." ”

"Three of the same, two catties, five catties, and ten catties, to prepare for the artillery in the future."

This is not a difficult request, it is very easy, Guan Yuangu easily agreed, and said: "Qianhu rest assured, this is easy to do." ”

Chen Mu nodded and walked out of the Ordnance Bureau, crossed the threshold and suddenly turned back to Guan Yuangu and said: "If you put a few cannons on the artillery battlefield, there will be a problem, and the Ordnance Bureau will not escape the blame. ”

"The new cannon is made and used, the craftsman is still good, and there is a reward, you pass it on to the craftsman, and inform the craftsmen - the rebuilt cannon cannon, but it can't be blown up when it starts."