282 Chongzhen has been eleven years

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After hearing Li Zixiao's order, Quartz responded to the name, and then sent Tie Dan back to deliver the order.

Li Zixiao is not in a hurry to build a telescope, that thing is destined to be not easy to build, take your time.

"Like, are your Western armies now equipped with flintlock pistols in addition to arquebuses?"

"The general even knows flintlock pistols?"

After Li Ke heard Li Zixiao's inquiry, he was also surprised.

Li Zixiao pretended to smile mysteriously, there was no explanation, and he couldn't explain it, just quietly waiting for Li Ke's answer.

Li Ke saw that Li Zixiao didn't intend to explain, and he didn't dare to delve into it, so he thought for a while, and then replied: "Our Western ** teams are still using arquebuses.

However, I have also heard of flintlock pistols, and it is said that they no longer need to be fired with a lit arquebus, but by a complex machine, which seems to be called a retaining rifle.

It was all used by the nobles, but I had heard that the Prussian army used it, but the revolver musket was very expensive to build, and we didn't use it.

There were only a few handcuffs in the hands of the officers, and this was the kind of gun, which I had seen with my own eyes once. ”

"So, flintlock pistols have already appeared with you, but you don't have a lot of equipment right now, aren't they?"

Li Zixiao continued to ask.

"Yes, but it is said that the Prussian army used this gun, and in a war, defeated the Gauls, and the Gaul army was later equipped with this flintlock pistol."

After thinking about it carefully, Li Ke said to Li Zixiao.

Li Zixiao nodded, although he knew that at this time in the West, there should have been flintlock pistols.

However, the Western ** teams, at this time, have not fully realized the superiority of the flintlock pistol, a new thing.

Therefore, Li Ke said that at this time, there was no large-scale use of flintlock pistols in the Western ** teams, which is also a normal thing.

Li Zixiao has recently been working on his own hands, designing the firing mechanism of the flintlock pistol.

Wait for a suitable opportunity to tell Tie Pingliang, Sun Tong and them, maybe they can make the White Dragon Army's own flintlock pistol as soon as possible.

With Li Zixiao's mechanical knowledge in his previous life, it should not be difficult to design a suitable flintlock ignition mechanism.

And he also knows some of the history of the development of flintlock pistols, and the revolver musket mentioned by Li Ke should be the prototype of the flintlock pistol.

It mainly relies on a clockwork similar to a clockwork, as a firing mechanism, to provide the power of firing, that kind of revolver fire gun is indeed very complex structure, and the natural cost will be very high.

Relatively speaking, the output will also be very low, and the requirements for craftsmen will also be high, which is not the biggest problem.

The biggest problem is that this kind of revolver-type musket is too delicate, the failure rate is high, and the excitation rate is very low.

So until now, the West has not been able to promote equipment, so it is not surprising that Li Ke has not seen it.

It is precisely because of these problems that the revolver musket exists that the impact flintlock pistol will appear later.

And the flintlock pistol will be an important weapon for infantry in the world army for a long time to come, and this trend is irreversible.

The advantages of flintlock pistols will surely knock the arquebus into the dustbin of history.

Therefore, he must make this flintlock pistol in the future, otherwise his musketeers will lose their due combat effectiveness in the event of rain and wind.

And if it is equipped with a flintlock pistol, for the White Dragon Army, it can basically obtain all-weather combat effectiveness.

When the time comes, whether it is windy or rainy, the White Dragon Army can use flintlock pistols to kill the enemy.

It is estimated that on the battlefield, it will give the enemy a great deterrent, and it is easy to control the initiative on the battlefield.

Another advantage of the flintlock pistol is that it can be equipped with cavalry, so that the cavalry can at least have one more chance to strike at the enemy at a long distance than the enemy before the enemy, and greatly enhance the combat effectiveness of the cavalry.

Therefore, the flintlock pistol White Dragon Army will definitely be equipped in the future, but at the moment, the meal must be eaten one bite at a time, and it is impossible to ascend to the sky in one step.

Li Zixiao couldn't directly make this kind of flintlock pistol, and he couldn't make it by himself, so he could only give Tie Pingliang a hint little by little.

Let these professional people work and develop gradually, it is estimated that it will not take long to make the White Dragon Army's own flintlock pistol, and Li Zixiao also understands the truth that if you want to be fast, you can't reach it.

When Li Zixiao arrived at Baihu Village with Li Ke, Sun Tong and Tie Pingliang came out to greet him.

Moreover, Sun Tong had already received Li Zixiao's order, and a new cannon casting workshop had been prepared for Li Ke, and the craftsmen had also been selected, and things were arranged very properly.

Li Zixiao arranged for Li Ke to get acquainted with the cannon casting workshop, and at the same time meet the dozen or so craftsmen, which met his requirements.

Li Zixiao was not in a hurry to let Li Ke start work immediately, they also needed to re-melt those bronze artifacts to obtain bronze.

Li Ke began to get busy, and Li Zixiao inspected Baihu Village, at this time, there were hundreds of craftsmen in dozens of workshops for casting armor and weapons in Bailong Village.

The White Tiger Village has also become the main weapon manufacturing center of the White Dragon Army, and every day the craftsmen here will make a lot of sharp weapons such as armor, new bird guns, tiger squat cannons, etc.

In the White Tiger Village, all projects are also progressing step by step, advancing rapidly.

Whether Li Zixiao stays here or not, basically it doesn't play a big role, and his arrival will at most play an incentive role for those craftsmen.

So Li Zixiao didn't wait here, and after a little command, he took his entourage and went directly out of the White Tiger Village.

I didn't let people see me off, and I went straight to Beigu Town by car, and I entered Beigu Town in a short time.

It was much more lively than the last time he came, and there were more than twice as many people in charge of ironmaking as he had been when he first came a year ago.

And here, like the White Snake Village and the White Tiger Village, there is no rest during the New Year, and the iron furnaces are still working overtime to make iron.

There is no other reason, although people attach importance to the New Year this year.

But in such a year, everyone who is poor is Jingling, if it weren't for the White Dragon Army to provide food for the people here.

Don't talk about the New Year, even if it is a Chinese New Year's Eve meal with meat and vegetables, I am afraid it is very difficult.

Therefore, the old furnace head in charge of this place was grateful for the changes in life that Li Zixiao brought to them, and immediately led people to start ironmaking just after the New Year.

The old stove head did not say that it would stop work, and at this time, other craftsmen in Beigu Town did not dare to stop work for the New Year.

What's more, on the thirtieth day of the Lunar New Year, the White Dragon Army sent some pork to the people of Beigu Town, so that they could improve their food and reward the craftsmen here.

The craftsmen can eat enough, and they have seen the meat, what else is there to complain about?

Being able to eat a bite of meat during the New Year is better than anything else, which is very comfortable in their minds.

Therefore, the craftsmen did not complain, and they rushed to the favor of the White Dragon Army to them, and they continued to work overtime without stopping.

The old furnace leader even led a group of selected subordinates to inspect all the old iron furnaces in the town, and selected the iron furnaces that could be repaired and put back into production.

Begin to repair it so that production can resume as soon as possible.

As a result, the old furnace repaired two medium-sized iron furnaces and seven or eight small iron furnaces in the past two months.

The construction of new iron materials is also progressing well, and a new medium-sized iron material has been put into use.

The furnace craftsmen in Beigu Town also began to divide shifts and work overtime to make iron, and the output of iron here has increased by several percent in just half a month.

All kinds of iron produced were also collected, and then waiting for people and cars from Baihu Village to transport these irons to Baihu Village and send them to those military workshops for use.

As soon as the old stove heard that Li Zixiao had come here to inspect again, he hurried over to pick him up, and Li Zixiao and the old stove talked while walking.

"General, I didn't dare to rest for a while, old man, you see, these people under me are busy!

After a few days of repair, there is another iron furnace, which is almost repaired, and the day after tomorrow it will be ready for ignition, and the speed of iron-making will be at that time. It's going to be faster.

Is the general still satisfied? ”

The old stove head was not very nervous when he saw Li Zixiao now, and knew that Li Zixiao was not difficult for them craftsmen, so he said to Li Zixiao with a smile.

"Yes, I'm satisfied, but you've worked hard."

Li Zixiao smiled, and said to the old stove head while looking at it, Beigu Town does seem to have more stoves than he came last time, and he is using more stoves for production.

"The general is benevolent and righteous, not only cares about what we eat and drink, but also gives us rice, meat, and cloth for the New Year.

We had a good year, and we were able to tear a piece of cloth for the children and make two new clothes, and the children almost had a lot of fun.

If it weren't for the general, it is estimated that our Beigu Town would become more and more desolate, and in the end, I am afraid that our gang will really leave our hometown and go out to beg!

The general is so kind to us, and we people have nothing to repay the general, so we can only work hard! The old stove head put his hands behind his back and said with Li Zixiao.

After listening to the words of the old stove, Li Zixiao sighed slightly in his heart.

In this era, most of the people in the Ming Dynasty are simple and kind, as long as you treat them well, they can see it.

They will repay them tenfold for your favor.

Li Zixiao nodded and said, "You don't have to thank me, this is what you deserve, and the life of the big guy will get better and better in the future."

If you give me someone to work, I will never let the big guy live the hard life of the past. ”

As they spoke, they circled around several of the town's newly repaired iron furnaces.

The people here are both respectful and afraid of Li Zixiao, and as soon as they saw Li Zixiao and his party coming, they all sold their lives and did it.

Li Zixiao stopped and said to the old stove head: "It seems that you have really made great efforts during this time, and in a short period of time, there are so many iron furnaces that can be used.

However, it is not a way to repair these old furnaces, and after all, they are still petty and far from catching up with the speed of mine output.

So next, we will build a larger iron furnace and strive to build a large furnace with a daily output of more than 1,000 catties.

Building such a large shaft furnace is equivalent to such a group of small furnaces, which not only saves ore, but also saves manpower, which can be said to kill two birds with one stone.

Therefore, this matter still needs to be bothered by the old stove, and we can't just smelt this kind of pig iron, but also find a way to produce more wrought iron. ”

The old stove head frowned and said: "What the general said is reasonable, but this kind of large furnace with a daily output of 1,000 catties is very difficult to build, and it will take a lot of people and a lot of effort."

According to the drawings that the general showed me before, the new iron furnace I built is now half built, and when it is completed, it may be able to produce 1,000 catties of iron per day. ”

"Very good, I am very satisfied here, you just have to rest assured and bold, tell me what you lack, I am responsible for solving it for you, whether it is manpower and material resources, it is not a problem."

Li Zixiao attaches great importance to Beigu Town, which is also the only iron production place in the hands of the White Dragon Army, and it is the first steel base that Li Zixiao wants to establish.

With Li Zixiao's next, to cast cannons on a large scale, as well as to continue to produce new types of birds, spears, shields and other weapons, a large amount of iron is needed.

That's why Li Zixiao attaches so much importance to Beigu Town, and the iron produced here can now be said to be used by the craftsmen of the entire White Tiger Mansion Arsenal.

The New Year has passed, and it has entered the eleventh year of Chongzhen at this time, and it is also from this year that the stormy Ming Dynasty has officially entered the final extinction stage.

Li Zixiao knew that a major event was going to happen this year, that is, in nine months, the Qing army would start the fourth sweep of the customs.

The fourth invasion of the Qing army was led by the Qing army commanded by the Rui prince Dolgon and Belle Yueto.

Starting from Shenyang, detour to Mongolia, break through the Great Wall fortress from the wall ridge east of Miyun and the Qingshan Pass east of Xifengkou.

Along the canal, south to Jinan, captured 460,000 people and animals, and the imperial court urgently transferred the Liaodong forward chief soldier Zu Dashou to help.

And Lu Xiangsheng fought desperately, ran out of ammunition and food, and finally died in battle.

Finally, from the 8th to the 11th day of March in the 12th year of Chongzhen (1639), the Qing army returned north from the Great Wall at Qingshankou.

This time, the Qing army was near the Ming Jingshi, but it was more than half a year around, plundering hundreds of thousands of people, countless cattle, sheep and livestock, and as for gold and silver, it was full of carts.

However, the Ming army also mobilized hundreds of thousands of troops, but after watching the Qing army burn and loot, they calmly left.

And soon, the rebellious army led by Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong in China will rise again, and they will become the gravediggers of the Ming Dynasty at that time.

Regarding the upcoming fourth invasion and looting of the Qing army this year, Li Zixiao did not plan to sit idly by.

At this time, his soldiers are strong and strong, and he doesn't go to those Tartars to play, what is the use of him raising so many men and horses.

But Li Zixiao never fights uncertain battles, he has to make adequate preparations before the arrival of September, and then he will have the confidence to go north to find Tartar desperately.

In fact, grain and grass, weapons and equipment, these are the most critical, and now the White Tiger Village is also working overtime for the New Year to build bird guns and armor.

If it was really wartime, they had a large number of weapons and equipment in their hands, so that they could support Li Zixiao to lead the army north to fight the Tartars.

"General rest assured, as long as the manpower and material resources can keep up, at the latest in two months, I can build a big iron furnace for the general." The old hearth reassured.

"Okay, then there's Lao Lao's stove for you." After Li Zixiao heard this, he laughed.

Li Zixiao stayed in Beigu Town for two days, and after leaving Beigu Town, Li Zixiao was idle, so he led people to the villages in Yongcheng County that Qian Guangyuan was responsible for.