Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 23 Firearms
In the courtyard of the palace, Zhu Lang took the ox horn bag, poured the black gunpowder into the barrel, and then held a long pole and poked a thumb-sized bullet into the barrel.

Zhu Lang put down the long pole, wrapped his arm around a circle of white matchlock, raised the musket in his hand horizontally, and pulled the trigger with his finger.
The trigger of the matchlock gun is S-shaped, with a trigger on one end and a white match on the other end.

click
Zhu Lang pulled the trigger, and the matchlock held by the iron clip at the other end of the trigger was pressed down and fell into the gunpowder pool on the gun body, making a crisp sound.
The trigger was pulled, but there was no unusual sound, and the rifle was still firmly held in Zhu Lang's hand.
Of course there would be no sound. At this moment, Zhu Lang was in the courtyard of the palace. If he really lit a fire or fired a gun, I'm afraid the whole palace would be in chaos.

"Fifty seconds"

Zhu Lang whispered to himself, then put down the rifle he was holding.

Zhu Lang held the matchlock gun, patted the black iron barrel gently, and sighed softly.

"The firing rate of this matchlock gun is too slow."

"It's already pretty good. Once Your Majesty becomes more proficient, it should be even faster."

Li Chengzhi, who was wearing the uniform of the royal guard, took the matchlock from Zhu Lang and said respectfully:
After Li Mingzhong decided to surrender to Zhu Lang, he selected the guards to enter the palace the next day and sent them directly to the palace.

Li Mingzhong did not disappoint Zhu Lang. Among the people he sent, eight were children of the generals in the camp, and the remaining twelve were also first-class elite soldiers, much stronger than the original guards of the palace.

These twelve men were all big and strong. When they glared at one another, one could feel a chill down one's neck. They had an amazing murderous aura and were clearly elite soldiers who had experienced many battles.

Li Chengzhi and others' entry into the palace could not be concealed from others, and Zhu Lang did not want to conceal it. He just wanted to let the people of the previous dynasty know that he had won over Li Mingzhong.
It was just a little strange that the former dynasty seemed quite calm about this. Zhu Lang was originally ready to face the joint questioning of the three people again, but he did not expect that the former dynasty was calm and peaceful, as if this matter had never happened.

The previous dynasty didn't care, Zhu Lang was happy to be quiet, and didn't care why the people of the previous dynasty were like this. In the past few days, he had been training with Li Chengzhi and others every day to get closer to Li Chengzhi and others.

Among the people sent by Li Mingzhong, the most noteworthy ones are Li Mingzhong's nephew Li Chengzhi and Lieutenant General Deng Yao's nephew Deng Mingwu.
Li Chengzhi has been in charge of the logistics of Li Mingzhong's camp. He is able to manage the food and wages of thousands of people. Needless to say, his ability

Deng Mingwu is a somewhat taciturn young man with a calm temperament.
Although he seems to be silent, he is actually very thoughtful and is also a good choice.

Compared with these two, Zhu Lang's two top generals are simply unbearable to look at.
In order to win over the two men, Zhu Lang has been keeping them by his side every day, and even entrusted the guards around him to them.

The two of them suddenly entered the mansion and were trusted so much, and they were a little flattered.
What they didn't know was that before they entered the palace, Zhu Lang had no guards at all.

Since Zhu Lang came to this world, he never left the house. In addition, the mansion was short of staff, so Zhu Lang actually had no guards around him.

At night, Li Guoyong would doze off by the door, which was considered a guard.

As for Wu Jisi, Old Wu has to go to the city to drink wine and win over the city clerks, and at the same time he has to drink tea, listen to music and talk with the young lady... No, he is trying to deceive and intrigue with all kinds of people and get information. If the prince wants him to keep watch, isn't this making things difficult for Old Wu?

Zhu Lang entrusted his protection to the two men, firstly to win them over, and secondly because he could not think of any motives of the two men that would pose a threat to him.
Today, Zhu Lang took Li Chengzhi and Deng Mingwu to exercise as usual. After exercise, Zhu Lang asked someone to bring a matchlock gun to see how the firearms of this era were.

But this test made him a little disappointed. The firing speed of all the matchlock guns in the Ming Dynasty was too slow. Even a skilled musketeer could only fire two or three rounds in a minute.

Zhu Lang handed the musket to Li Chengzhi, then sat down at the stone table, took a sip of the tea on the table, while Li Chengzhi and Deng Mingwu stood behind him.

"Sit together, what are you standing for?"

Zhu Lang waved to the two of them.
"I dare not, Your Majesty, please sit down, we will just stand," Li Chengzhi responded respectfully.
"I dare to entrust my life and property to you two. Why should I be afraid of just sitting here?"

"Don't say too much, sit down quickly, the weather is so hot, it's already October, why is it still so hot?" the young prince said with a displeased look on his face

Li Chengzhi and Deng Mingwu looked at each other, both smiled bitterly, and had to sit down as ordered.
In fact, this kind of thing has happened to them many times in the past few days, and it really makes them feel a little overwhelmed.

No matter what Zhu Lang's current situation is, he is still a prince of the Ming Dynasty, and will soon be the future regent emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

No matter in the past or now, he is a noble person who is second only to one person and above ten thousand people.

Such a person is born rich and arrogant, so he is definitely not easy to serve.
They had already prepared themselves mentally before coming here. They listened and watched more, waiting for the King of Gui to take the throne. When the elders and brothers in the army received their rewards, they said goodbye and went home.
But after entering the palace, the King of Gui was very different from what they had imagined. Not only was he not arrogant at all, but he was also very warm to them.

Yes, the King of Gui's enthusiasm has frightened them. He dares to put his own safety in their hands.
You know, they have never seen a person of such status dare to directly entrust his own safety to them before. It is really courageous.
Not only that, the King of Gui even took them with him for meals. They tried their best to refuse on the first day they came, but they have gradually gotten used to it in the past few days.

Because they found that not only them, but also the people close to the King of Gui ate together.
Not only that, the King of Gui would always have their share of cold drinks and seasonal vegetables in the palace.

Although they knew that this was the King of Gui trying to win over the people, they still admired him for being able to do this.

Li Chengzhi looked at the young prince who was fanning himself at the table, and gradually understood why his uncle decided to join the Gui King after only meeting him once. This Gui King was really not an ordinary person.
"Chengzhi, Mingwu is in the army, what do you think of this firearm?" Zhu Lang asked

"Among military firearms, the most useful is the artillery. In a field battle, if the enemy does not have shield vehicles, a dozen artillery pieces are enough to instantly destroy the enemy formation."

"Among all artillery pieces, the Red Cannon is the most powerful. With one shot, it can reach a distance of two or three miles. Wherever the shell passes, everything is destroyed. The morale of ordinary troops will collapse immediately when encountering it. It is truly a divine weapon in the army."

"But this red cannon is too heavy, weighing thousands of pounds. It is fine to place it on the top of the city wall for defense, but it is very inconvenient to transport it to the field. It's a pity," Li Chengzhi thought for a moment before answering.

After listening to what Li Chengzhi said, Zhu Lang nodded secretly in his heart. Li Chengzhi was indeed born in the army and had a deep understanding of the artillery of this era. He was not an ordinary nobleman who inherited the influence of his ancestors.

He thought about it and continued to ask

"So what about this musket?"

"A firearm is a thing that is neither good nor worth throwing away."

"Firearms are useless in close combat, and can only be compared with bows and arrows. Compared with bows and arrows, firearms have a slow firing rate. A skilled archer can shoot with just a bow, and can fire five or six arrows in an instant."

"Your Highness has just tested the firing speed of the musket. I'm afraid that after one shot from the musket, the archers on the other side have already shot two or three arrows." "Besides that, the musket is not as powerful as an arrow. When I followed the general in Liaodong, I saw the wolf-tooth heavy arrows used by the Tartars. The arrows were as big as a baby's arm and weighed three or four taels. They could penetrate two layers of thick armor within sixty steps. The generals in the Tartar army often used heavy arrows to shoot and kill our Ming army generals during battles."

"In comparison, the firearms are quite powerful at close range, but if they are wearing double cotton armor, it is difficult for the firearms to penetrate them, and they are incomparable to the wolf-tooth heavy arrows of the Qing army."

After Li Chengzhi finished speaking, Deng Mingwu, who had been silent on the right, suddenly spoke up and added

"In addition, the quality of the army's firearms was worrying and unusable. Not only the muskets, but also the cannons sometimes exploded. Soldiers in the army often preferred to fight with swords, guns, and spears in front of the battle rather than use firearms."

After listening to the two people's words, Zhu Lang was also a little surprised. He didn't expect that firearms were so unpopular in the Ming Dynasty.
Zhu Lang thought for a moment, then said
"Chengzhi, Mingwu is indeed familiar with military affairs. He will surely become a good general for the Ming Dynasty in the future."

Zhu Lang glanced at the two of them, made an empty promise without leaving a trace, and then continued to speak without caring whether the two of them realized it or not.

"But regarding the firearm, I think otherwise. Although firearms have many problems at present, the future will definitely be the era of firearms."

Zhu Lang waved his hand with a firm look on his face.
"Please give me some advice, Your Highness." Li Chengzhi and the other man looked at each other. Although there was some disapproval in their eyes, they still spoke respectfully.

"Chengzhi's comments on the advantages and disadvantages of firearms and bows and arrows are insightful. However, although firearms are not good in many ways, they have one advantage that bows and arrows cannot compare to."

“That’s the cost”

Zhu Lang paused, then continued
"It takes at least several months to make a bow and arrow in the imperial court. The bow body and bow horns are dried and glued together in the shade. However, a musket is made entirely of iron. A craftsman forges a musket just like forging a sword. As long as there is enough iron, it can be made at any time. A skilled craftsman can make a musket in two or three days."

Li Chengzhi and the other two nodded subconsciously when they heard this. This was also the reason why the army was now using muskets on a large scale. Bows and arrows were too expensive and took too long to make.
Although the bow and arrow are more powerful than the musket, they are not so powerful that they cannot be compensated.

In comparison, firearms are cheaper, can be mass-produced, and can meet the requirements of long-range attacks to a certain extent. This is why firearms gradually replaced bows and arrows in this era.

But this is just some common sense in the military. Anyone who knows something about military affairs can tell it, and it is not surprising.
But the two were still somewhat amazed when they heard Zhu Lang say this.
Although these things are common sense, they are also common sense for the sons of generals. The King of Gui knows so much about military affairs, and it is obvious that he has really put in a lot of effort.

Seeing the two of them nod, Zhu Lang continued to speak.

"This is just one of the reasons. Another more important reason is the cost of personnel training."

"It would take at least half a year for a skilled archer to be able to draw a bow and arrow and maintain basic accuracy. And it would take years to train those excellent archers in the army."

"But it's different with muskets. As long as an ordinary soldier gets a musket, he can become proficient in using it in less than half a month as long as he is taught. In the time it takes to train a hundred archers, it's enough to train thousands of musketeers who are proficient in firearms."

"The Tatars were born outside the Great Wall and were born on horseback from a young age. They all relied on nomadic hunting for their livelihood. Even the old and the young, women and children can shoot arrows. Therefore, there is no shortage of archers in the Tatar army, and there are also many excellent archers."

"But it's not the case with our Ming Dynasty. Our people focus on farming and weaving. Apart from the sons of generals, few people practice riding and archery. If we want to compare riding and archery with the Tartars, we will be using the short to hit the long, which is absolutely not advisable."

"What are the advantages of our Ming Dynasty? Our Ming Dynasty's advantages lie in its prosperous population and numerous craftsmen."

"So, our Ming Dynasty should vigorously develop firearms. If the Tartars recruit one hundred archers, we can train thousands of gunmen. When we face off the next day, thousands of guns will be fired at the same time. Even if the Tartars' bows and arrows are sharp, what use will they be?"

"Therefore, the advantage of our Ming Dynasty must be firearms, and tomorrow will surely be the era of firearms."

Zhu Lang's eyes flashed with a gleam of brilliance. As a person from the future, he certainly knew that the future would be the era of firearms, and this trend would continue to develop and could not be changed.
Therefore, he never thought of developing cold weapon formations in the Ming Dynasty. Firearms must be the main direction of future development.

Li Chengzhi and Deng Mingwu looked at the energetic young prince and were shocked. They knew that firearms were indispensable in the army, but they had never thought about it at this level.
They can prove the importance of firearms from the perspective of cost and training time, but they cannot think about the positioning of firearms from the perspective of the situation between the enemy and us.
This era is information-blocked, far from the information age of later generations where one can know what is happening in the world without leaving home.

At this time, those who can have this perspective are either generals like Li Mingzhong or the prime ministers of the court. Only they can think about the problem from these perspectives.

Therefore, the two were stunned by Zhu Lang for a moment. The more they thought about it, the more they felt that what Zhu Lang said made sense, and they also felt a little awe for the young prince in front of them.

"As for the rate of fire of the musket, in fact, the musket technology is also developing. I wonder if you know about the self-made musket," Zhu Lang said with a smile on his face.
"When I was in Liaodong, I heard about this thing. It is said that this self-igniting musket does not need to be ignited with a matchlock, it can ignite gunpowder and fire bullets. However, I heard that this self-igniting musket is quite expensive and is rarely equipped in the army."

"Yes, this fire gun uses flint and iron to start fire, and there is no need for a fuse. This will greatly increase the speed of the gun."

"As for the cost, it's not a problem. The cost of a self-propelled musket is high, all because of its firing device."

"This firing device is quite ingenious. The most difficult part is the reed. The reason why the self-igniting musket can start a fire is that the reed is pressed by the machine frame. The reed rebounds under the force and then drives the flint..."

"In short, the high cost of this self-propelled musket is due to this ignition device. As long as it is mass-produced in the future, the cost will be greatly reduced. It is very likely that the cost will be lower than that of the matchlock gun."

Zhu Lang explained the ignition principle of the flintlock rifle to the two men. They were shocked and looked like they didn't understand but thought it was amazing.

The two of them admired the young prince in front of them more and more. The prince of Gui in front of them was not only respectful to the wise and humble, but also extremely knowledgeable. He knew everything from military and national affairs to the manufacture of muskets.
The two of them couldn't help but sigh in their hearts. No wonder everyone in the court chose the King of Gui to be the regent. The King of Gui was indeed not an ordinary person.
Zhu Lang saw that his nonsense really intimidated the two people in front of him, and he couldn't help but feel a little proud. After all, I have a few hundred years more experience than you guys, so it's easy to deal with you two newbies.
"But Mingwu is right. The quality of firearms in our army is really worrying. The weapons made by the garrisons in various places are all perfunctory and many of them are unworthy of being used."

"War is a matter of great importance to a country. Soldiers fight desperately on the battlefield. If the weapons in their hands are unusable, it is a joke on the lives of our Ming soldiers."

"In the future, I will set up a military equipment manufacturing bureau and assign people to manufacture firearms. Not only firearms, but also weapons and armors for the army need to be supervised by special people. I must make sure that the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty have excellent armor and weapons and not fall behind others," Zhu Lang said with a wave of his hand.

"Your Highness is wise"

They both spoke at the same time, but this time their words were more sincere.
Zhu Lang chatted with the two of them for a while, drank a lot of tea, and ended today's training.
Zhu Lang greeted them and led them back to the study, but he didn't notice that Li Guoyong, who had been listening quietly, suddenly had a sharp light in his eyes.

4,000-word chapter, only one chapter of the 4,000-word chapter will be updated during the new book period

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(End of this chapter)