Late Yuan Dynasty: I am the true emperor

Chapter 140 Ge Kejiu and Zhu Danxi

"This musket can actually shoot so far? And it's so powerful. It seems that I underestimated this musket before." Feng Guoyong said in surprise after seeing the shooting effect.

Zhu Shou was not too surprised. He had seen more magical things from Lu Jin, so he couldn't help but say.

"What's so strange about this? The great commander Gongshu's successor is not just a name, and he can easily capture some mechanical weapons and firearms."

"Okay, stop talking nonsense. Zhu Shou, Yang Huan, you two come forward and try the guns. I'll take notes. Today we're going to test the performance of this gun carefully." After firing a shot, Lu Jin checked it and immediately called the two men over to continue testing.

Each of the two people had a gun, and Lu Jin was guiding them, first teaching them how to load and shoot, and then starting the experiment.

There were three items in total in the experiment. The first was a firing rate test. The two men fired ten shots each. Perhaps because the quality of the gunpowder was relatively good and the gun was loaded in a fixed quantity each time, Xue Gang's gun, which often misfired, unexpectedly fired 90% of the time, while Sui Gu's gun only fired 70%.

Moreover, the two men were always worried about the possibility of the gun barrel exploding, but when using a fixed amount of gunpowder, they were able to fire more than ten rounds without any problems.

Lu Jin immediately said to the two craftsmen, "Sui Gu's gun barrel is well made, but the flintlock is not well made, especially the position of the fire hole and the medicine pot, which need to be adjusted."

Sui Gu suddenly became anxious and said quickly, "Marshal, I will pay attention next time."

Unexpectedly, Lu Jin waved his hand and said, "That's not necessary."

"what?"

"You two must teach the skills of making muskets to other craftsmen as soon as possible, and then you will only be responsible for making new products, that is, specializing in making samples and tooling." Lu Jin explained immediately.

Xue Gang and Sui Gu stared at each other in confusion, "Marshal, we understand samples, but what are work clothes?"

Seeing this, Lu Jin could only explain again.

“In industrial production, in addition to some general tools, such as hammers and anvils, all these iron tools are used, but when making special products, some special tools are also needed, which are tooling.

"Let me give you an example. For example, when you roll an iron pipe, the iron collar in the middle and the anvil with a groove are not used to hit other objects. They can only be used to hit iron pipes. This is the tooling of the fire gun, that is, a special tool."

"So that's how it is." Both of them suddenly realized.

Xue Gang still hesitated and asked, "Marshal, after we have taught you how to use the musket and made the work clothes, do we have any other work to do?"

Lu Jin looked at him in surprise. It was really strange that there were craftsmen who were worried that they would have no work to do.

"Don't worry, there will be plenty of work to do in the future. After you finish making the musket, I still have a lot of machinery for you to make. Even if there is nothing else to do, I will not treat you unfairly if you work for me. If you work hard, I will build houses and divide land for you. If you do a good job, I can even let you become officials."

The two craftsmen immediately became excited and said, "Yes."

After giving instructions to the craftsmen, Lu Jin took them to continue the experiment. Next was the power and range test. Zhu Shou and Yang Huan each fired dozens of rounds, hitting targets from twenty meters to a hundred meters away. After seeing the results, Zhu Shou spoke first without waiting for Lu Jin to speak.

"Marshal, this musket is best used within fifty meters. Only then can its accuracy and power be guaranteed. It will be difficult to hit the target at a distance of more than fifty meters, and even if it hits, it may not be able to penetrate the armor."

Lu Jin nodded. This is how flintlock rifles work. The super-long flintlock rifle in front of him can indeed have a range of one hundred meters, but its effective range is usually only around sixty meters. This is consistent with the records of the American Civil War. At that time, the combat distance of flintlock rifles was basically around seventy-five yards, which is equivalent to more than sixty meters.

Lu Jin smiled at this time, turned around and looked at everyone present, and asked them, "Do you think that we will still see bows and arrows on the battlefield from now on?"

"This" everyone was a little shocked, as they had never heard of any weapons disappearing from the battlefield, especially bows and arrows.

Feng Guoyong immediately reminded him, "Marshal, bows and arrows have been used for thousands of years since ancient times. How can you just stop using them? Marshal, please think twice. Bows and arrows cannot be easily discontinued."

Lu Jin said.

"Nothing is irreplaceable. Listen carefully. Whether a weapon can survive on the battlefield is not determined by how long it has been used, nor by how many weapons there are to counter it. Instead, it depends on whether there are new weapons that can replace it in terms of effectiveness.

"Let me give you an example. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period and the beginning of the Qin and Han Dynasties, there were still chariots running back and forth on the battlefield. Now, thousands of years have passed. Do you still see chariots on the battlefield today?

"No! Why? Because armored cavalry replaced chariots in charging battle formations. Similarly, if there are new weapons that can replace the flexibility and mobility of war horses, and are not afraid of the enemy's long-range and short-range shooting, and can also replace armored cavalry in charging battle formations, then cavalry will naturally be eliminated."

Many people think that it was the Maxim and Gatling that eliminated the cavalry. In fact, this view is wrong. What really eliminated the cavalry were various mobile vehicles. As long as you don’t have mobile vehicles, war horses will still have their place.

Even if it cannot be used to charge into the enemy line, it can be used as a means of transportation to carry people during marches.

Everyone was pondering the meaning of these words, but Feng Guoyong still wanted to persuade him further, but Lu Jin quickly raised his hand to interrupt him.

"Mr. Feng, don't worry. I'm not that radical. If you want to completely replace bows and arrows, firearms still have a long way to go. At least the current firearms cannot shake the status of bows and arrows in terms of power, range, and firing speed. But it's hard to say in the future. If firearms continue to improve, it's only a matter of time before bows and arrows are eliminated from the battlefield."

Everyone felt very complicated after hearing this. Bows and arrows were weapons that had existed since the birth of mankind. Unexpectedly, Lu Jin judged that they would lose their place in the world.
"The last test is the rate of fire test. Prepare your ammunition and aim at the nearest target that's 20 meters away. See how many times you can fire in one minute. I'll time you."

"Yes."

Zhu Shou and Yang Huan prepared again. Lu Jin used his watch to calculate the time. With a burst of gunshots, the result came out quickly. If the gun was loaded with a bullet in advance and the gun was fired once before reloading, Zhu Shou could fire five rounds per minute. Yang Huan was a little slower and it took him 67 seconds to fire five rounds.

If you start with an empty gun and then reload after the timer is up, you can only shoot four times a minute.

However, this is only the level at the shooting range. If it is actual combat on the battlefield, being able to fire three rounds in a minute is considered fast, and the hit rate will also decrease.

Lu Jin personally tested the single-shot shooting again. From loading to shooting, the fastest time was about 15 seconds.

This round of rapid shooting immediately shocked everyone present. Lu Jin looked at Zhu Shou and Yang Huan and asked, "How is it, have you figured out how to use it?"

Zhu Shou thought about it and said, "We can do it like we did last time when we fought Kang Maocai. We can use the carts to cover the muskets within 20 steps and fire at them closely. We can guarantee that we will destroy the enemy in one round."

Lu Jin didn't know if it was possible, so he looked at Yang Huan again. Yang Huan scratched his head and said, "I think the chariots may not be of much use in the future. Didn't the commander say that he would build artillery? The commander also said that artillery can defeat the enemy from two miles away. What's the point of the chariots then?"

"This..." Zhu Shou also looked at Lu Jin after hearing this.

Lu Jin then said, "With the advent of fire guns and cannons, the use of chariots is indeed not great, but the chariots should still be preserved. They can still be used to form a chariot formation for defense at critical moments, but they should not be used for attack.

"You two must study and train well. The Royal Guards will be reorganized in the future and will use a lot of firearms."

"Yes." The two men agreed quickly. Then it was time to finalize the musket. Lu Jin asked the two men to disassemble the musket on the spot, and then reassembled a musket using Sui Gu's barrel and handguard, Xue Gang's flintlock and cleaning rod, and a bayonet. Then they made some minor modifications, such as the position of the fire hole and the medicine pot, and then used it as a sample for the army model.

Next, the few people will build sailor and cavalry models. The sailor's flintlock rifle is the same as the army's, but it is shorter for easy use on board. The total length is generally about one meter and one meter.

The cavalry type is much shorter, no longer than half a meter, making it convenient to use with one hand. It also has a larger caliber and is mainly used to shoot shotgun shells.

In Lu Jin's combat concept, the main long-range weapon of the cavalry was still the bow and arrow, and the musket was only a supplement to the firepower of the cavalry's right hand against the enemy.

It’s not that his tactics were too conservative, but that the early flintlock rifles had too low a firing rate and a short range, and they had no advantage against traditional cavalry archers.

If Lu Jin fought against such an opponent, he would definitely send out cavalry to lure the enemy to open fire, and then send out the main force to pester them, and would not give the enemy a second chance to reload. If the enemy gave up his bows and arrows, he would have no power to fight back.

If the cavalry gave up bows and arrows and turned to pure firearms, they would be courting death when facing the powerful Mongolian cavalry at the end of the Yuan Dynasty.

Moreover, the cavalry's wall charge is also useless. It's not that the wall charge is ineffective, but that this tactic has too many limitations. War horses have limited physical strength. There may be only one opportunity for a charge in a battle, and it is easy to be resolved by enemy cavalry. Some European tactics are not suitable for the Chinese battlefield.

In addition, the European cavalry wall charge was essentially an extension of the line infantry tactics to the cavalry. The so-called wall charge was originally a cavalry version of the line shooting, and was no better than China's cavalry tactics.

After finishing the finalization of the musket, the remaining cannon casting would have to wait until the ironworks had production. Lu Jin brought Yang Huan and others back to the Marshal's Mansion, found a set of Gongshu Secret Book and gave it to Meng Zhifang, asking him to temporarily study in Yang Huan's teaching camp to catch up on his learning progress, and also to copy a set of books by hand.

At noon the next day, Lu Jin did not go out of the Marshal's Mansion, waiting for Bao Heng to bring the doctor to see him.

In the second hall of the Marshal's Mansion, Chi Renping felt Zhang Yunxiu's pulse and said immediately, "It is indeed a happy pulse. It should be the first baby. Congratulations, Marshal, and congratulations, Madam."

Lu Jin became curious upon hearing this. Although he was not a medical professional, he had no prejudice against Chinese medicine. On the contrary, he was quite interested in it. When he heard the other party say it was the first child, he immediately asked for advice.

"Mr. Chi, although I have never studied medicine, I am also quite interested in curing illnesses and saving lives. You said it's a single baby. Can you tell whether it's a single or a double baby by taking the pulse?"

Chi Renping was in his early forties, with a goatee. He smiled and stroked his beard.

"General, you may not know that when a woman is pregnant, the pulses on the left and right of her cun, guan and chi are different. The Pulse Classic says: If you want to know the gender of a child when a woman is four months pregnant, if the left pulse is strong, it means a boy, and if the right pulse is strong, it means a girl. If both pulses are strong, it means two boys, then they are twins.

"Madam, the pulse on the Shaoyin meridian of your hand is smooth and strong, which is a sign of pregnancy. If both the left and right pulses are slippery, then you are having twins."

Lu Jin was very surprised and asked immediately, "Can you tell the gender of a boy or girl by taking the pulse?"

"This." Chi Renping knew that Lu Jin's identity was extraordinary, so of course he didn't dare to talk nonsense about such things, so he could only explain.

"General, please allow me to report. I have been following my master's medical practice for more than ten years and have seen many pregnant women. Although the Pulse Classic does record the method of distinguishing between males and females, people have different physiques, and I have also encountered cases that are contrary to what is recorded in medical books.

"And the first pregnancy is not very reliable. If you know the pulse of the first pregnancy, you can be sure of the gender of the second pregnancy."

"So that's how it is." Lu Jin suddenly realized. Although the second child can only be determined after the gender of the first child is determined, it is still very advanced. Compared with the bloodletting therapy in Europe at the same time, it is simply a world of difference.

At this time, Europe was still suffering from the Black Death.

After finally meeting a fairly skilled ancient doctor, Lu Jin immediately started chatting with him.

"Mr. Chi, I heard that your master is a famous doctor in Suzhou. I am also very concerned about the treatment of the common people, especially since there was a plague in Huaixi a few years ago, which was a disaster for the people.

"If I plan to set up a ministry with the same rank as the six ministers to manage the doctors in the world, set up government-run hospitals in various places, and also schools like the Imperial Academy that specialize in teaching medicine, responsible for training doctors and preventing and controlling plagues, do you have any suitable candidates to recommend?"

Chi Renping was stunned when he heard this. He didn't expect Lu Jin to have such an idea. Emperors of all dynasties never paid much attention to the profession of doctors, and it was basically in a stage of laissez-faire. It was even better in the Yuan Dynasty, when it directly became a medical family. People from generation to generation were doctors and were not allowed to change to other industries. It was basically equivalent to a slave class.

But when it came to Lu Jin, the situation was just the opposite. The general actually wanted to directly appoint the doctor as an official.

"Why does the Marshal have such an idea?"

Seeing the other party's surprised and puzzled expression, Lu Jin immediately explained.

"Mr. Chi is also a person who saves the dying and heals the wounded. I will not hide it from you. In today's world, the violent Yuan Dynasty is in power and has condoned many evil cults and obscene worship. As a result, many people do not go to see doctors when they are sick, but instead ask ghosts and gods, which leads to terminal illness and death. This is a big mistake."

When Chi Renping heard this, he immediately nodded repeatedly, agreeing with what Lu Jin said.

The Yuan Dynasty generally maintained an open policy towards religion. You could believe in anything, and there were various tax exemptions and preferential treatments for religious personnel. However, in history, during the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang severely punished them.

This situation is particularly serious in Zhejiang and Fujian. Chi Renping studied medicine in Suzhou and has a particularly deep understanding of this situation.

“Secondly, there are too many unskilled doctors in the world. Throughout the dynasties, there are only a few so-called famous doctors. It is extremely difficult for ordinary people to find a real doctor with excellent medical skills. Many people cheat under the banner of doctors. There are also people in evil cults who deceive the people under the guise of administering medicine. I hate this deeply.

"Therefore, I think that schools like the Imperial Academy should be established in several places across the country, and famous doctors should be invited to teach, so as to train real doctors who can treat diseases and know how to treat diseases. After the students have completed their studies, their medical skills will be assessed by the government, and they will be issued medical licenses. Itinerant doctors without licenses will be severely punished.

“If there is a person who has inherited medical skills from his family, he or she must be recommended by several licensed doctors and can only be granted a license after passing the assessment.

"As for the third one, the ancients said, if you can't be a good prime minister, then be a good doctor, treat the sick, heal the people, and heal the world. Doctors are born to shoulder the heavy responsibility of saving the dying and the wounded, and helping the people. However, one person's strength is limited, and ten people's strength is long. Some things are still too difficult for a doctor to do alone.

"For example, the smallpox vaccination technique of the former Song Dynasty can prevent smallpox, but without the power of the court and the government to forcefully promote it, it is difficult to spread. Therefore, I think that the court should set up such a department to intervene in medical matters. Do you agree?"

Chi Renping nodded repeatedly as he listened. The three bad policies that Lu Jin mentioned were basically the mortal enemies of doctors. Evil cults and obscene worship deceived people into asking ghosts and gods instead of seeing a doctor. Traveling doctors and charlatans ruined the reputation of doctors. It made it difficult to promote superb medical skills and prescriptions. These three points were basically the three things that doctors who were truly kind-hearted and knowledgeable about medicine hated the most.

It was not until this moment that Chi Renping had a new understanding of the rebel commander in front of him. This commander really wanted to do something and really cared about the people of the world. He was not the kind of mountain king who only wanted to satisfy his own ambitions.

If the Marshal is willing to fight for a higher status and benefits for the doctor, there is no harm in helping him.

"The Marshal cares about the people and is truly a benevolent person. I am not even half as good as him, but if the Marshal really wants to do this, there may be two people who can do it."

"Who is it?" Lu Jin asked immediately.

"The first is my senior brother, the famous Suzhou doctor Ge Kejiu, and the second is the famous Wuzhou doctor, Zhu Danxi."

(End of this chapter)