Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 39 Prepare for a rainy day
"Three hundred acres of corn and three hundred acres of wheat were planted two days ago. In the next few days, we'll be planting pumpkins, potatoes, peanuts, and other grains. Well, the planned planting area is one hundred acres. ...Yes, that's over two hundred acres more than we originally planned."

On April 4, a heavy rain temporarily stopped the ongoing spring sowing work. Taking advantage of the break in the camp, the decision-making committee held an impromptu working meeting to inform the recent work progress and the next task arrangements.

Li Xianqing gently placed the plan progress chart on the table, nodded slightly to the eight committee members present, and continued, "The reason we need to add more than 200 acres of planting area is because we want to bring the nearly 200 to 300 Native Americans nearby under our jurisdiction."

"Therefore, we need more food and more supplies. As you all know, since the return of the Wavebreaker, it has brought back more than thirty Spaniards. This means that we now have over ninety Spaniards in Shixing Fort, almost double our number."

"As the old saying goes, those who are not of our race must have different hearts. Moreover, we live in such a... lawless era, and on such a remote and desolate island. Oh, to be frank, if we let our guard down even for a moment, I'm afraid we will fall into an irretrievable situation."

"So, whether it's to balance the Spanish's numerical advantage or to increase our labor resources in Fort Shixing, we need to bring the nearby Indians under our rule."

"Political Commissar, those Indians all have tribal leaders or chiefs. They may not necessarily submit to us obediently and become free labor for Shixing Fort." Wei Yingbin said.

"You're right. These Indians all have their own leaders or chiefs, and they may not necessarily obey our arrangements." Li Xianqing nodded and said, "We've also roughly assessed that the development level of these Indians is probably slightly behind that of the East Coast. They're roughly in the early stages of tribal alliances, which means they haven't yet entered the clan commune stage."

"So, at this stage of development, it's impossible for their tribal leaders, or so-called chiefs, to establish absolute authority. Tribal members simply rely on the tribal leader, who leads them in finding food, fighting the wild beasts of the forest, and enduring the harsh winter together."

"We also saw that although the two small tribes that first came into contact with us were defeated and annexed by the larger tribe called 'Black Bear,' over the next half month or so, more than twenty more Indians escaped and chose to join us at Shixing Fort."

"What does this prove? We have enough food, shelter from the cold, wooden strongholds to protect against wild animals, and a strong military force. This is why they spontaneously choose to join us. After all, humans have animal instincts. They will naturally gravitate towards whoever can bring them safety."

"For them, we are their greatest support. We keep them well fed and protect them from the harsh natural environment. Of course, the Black Bear tribe may be at a more advanced stage of development, evolving into the prototype of a tribal alliance, which can be considered as unlocking a new development model."

"If we don't intervene and stop them, maybe in a few decades they won't form a tribal alliance like our Indian compatriots on the East Coast. Therefore, we must use some tricks to make their development leap forward by a generation or two so that they can eventually become our hired labor force."

"Huh?...A little trick?" Everyone looked at him in surprise when they heard that.

"Li Liang, please tell me about this issue." Li Xianqing pointed at Li Liang and signaled him to explain the matter to everyone.

"I don't have much to say here." Li Liang said awkwardly, "We are just planning to cause an internal conflict among the Indians, and we might accidentally kill their tribal chief. Then, we will..."

"Oh..." Everyone immediately understood.

If the Indians lose their leader, they will be at our mercy.

Hiss, but this sounds a bit unpleasant!

We, a group of advanced civilizations from the future, are actually plotting against a group of Native Americans.

Tsk tsk, what an unfair victory!

"...In the next few days, after completing spring planting, our top priority will be to continue constructing the various infrastructure facilities in Shixing Fort."

After talking about spring sowing, Li Xianqing knocked on the table, signaling everyone to be quiet and start arranging the next work priorities.

"The temperature is rising rapidly now, almost to around 10 degrees Celsius above zero. So, we can speed up brick production and prioritize completing the warehouse facilities. The warehouses we built earlier were all temporary structures made of freshly felled wood, which was completely ineffective in keeping out moisture and insects."

"Since the return of the Wavebreaker, aside from the livestock, poultry, seeds, fruit seedlings, and some daily necessities that were gradually transported back to the camp, the majority of the food remains stored in the ship's hold. While this can somewhat preserve the food through the airtight environment, it's ultimately not a long-term solution."

"After all, the 'Breaker' is a sailing ship, ready to set sail at any time. Therefore, the most urgent task is to quickly build a dustproof, moisture-proof, and durable permanent warehouse to transfer all the food on board."

After hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement.

Speaking of the wooden house, let alone storing food, even those living inside could smell a very distinct damp smell. There was no other way. Freshly chopped wood was used directly to build the wooden house. How could it not be damp?

This winter is a little better. There is a fire burning in the house, which can remove some of the moisture.

But if it is spring or summer, you don’t have to light a stove and keep warm in the wooden house, right?
Therefore, not only brick and stone warehouses need to be built, but also several brick and tile houses for people to live in.

Otherwise, if you live in this wooden house for a long time, not only will it rot and become moldy and attract pests, but the expansion and contraction effects will cause the house to deform, affecting the stability of the overall structure. It is quite dangerous, and you may even develop chronic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.

That would be totally not worth it.

Now, there are at least 200 people in the entire camp. If we recruit some more Native Americans, we can even get more than 400 people.

There is strength in numbers, so shouldn’t we pool our manpower and resources to appropriately improve everyone’s living conditions?
"In addition to building warehouses, should we consider how to strengthen the armaments of Shixing Fort?" Zhang Ruosong, the chief engineer of the "Breaking Waves" who has always been quiet, suddenly spoke.

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone looked at them strangely.

Strengthen defense?

Do the surrounding Indians dare to attack us?

Can their wooden spears and stones pose a threat to us?
"If we were only dealing with Native Americans, we wouldn't need to strengthen our armaments," Zhang Ruosong said seriously, understanding everyone's thoughts. "But we have to consider the long-term threats ahead. We may have four modern assault rifles and two pistols, but our ammunition isn't infinite. If we run out of ammunition, who among you has the courage to confront the Spanish with a musket and execute them face to face? Even if we all possessed endless courage, how many times could we, with our limited numbers, withstand such a heavy blow?"

"Ruo Song is right!" Luo Zhenhui nodded and said, "Whether it was capturing the Spanish galleon and annihilating the invading Spanish sailors, or later looting supplies in the coastal towns of Mexico, we relied on a few advanced assault rifles to control the entire situation."

"If, in the future, we run out of assault rifle bullets, we will be forced to rely on the muskets we have captured to defend ourselves or to launch surprise attacks on the enemy. In this case, we will lose our original weapon advantage and be forced to engage in a brutal war of attrition with the enemy."

"But with our current strength, we're no match for any enemy. Even if a battle results in a five-to-one or ten-to-one outnumbered force, we can't afford it. Therefore, we must develop a replacement weapon before the assault rifle bullets run out. Even if this weapon's performance can't compare to modern assault rifles, it must at least be slightly ahead of the times."

"Even if this weapon's range is only ten meters longer than a matchlock and its operation speed is five seconds faster, it would still be a huge military advantage for us."

"Make a gun!"

After hearing this, everyone immediately showed a positive attitude.

"Indeed, if we don't have a few good weapons, we might not be able to defeat the Spanish in the future. We must develop some advanced muskets. If we can't develop bolt-action rifles, we must at least develop a percussion rifle."

"That's easy to say, but what are we going to use to make it?"

"We've got a blacksmith back from Mexico. Let's tinker with the existing matchlocks and see if we can improve their performance. At the very least, we'll increase their range by 20 to 30 meters. Even if we have to queue up and be shot, at least we can stand farther away and fire more shots."

"Yes, the new gun we create must not only have a longer range than the other party, but also simplify the operation process as much as possible, and pull the trigger faster than others."

"..."

"Ruosong, can those matchlock guns be modified?" Luo Zhenhui stopped everyone's discussion and turned to look at Zhang Ruosong.

"It should... be possible." Zhang Ruosong showed a hint of embarrassment on his face. "We can try to modify a few matchlock rifles first. At the very least, we can make an early dog-lock flintlock rifle. As for whether we can increase the range, it depends on how we modify the barrel or improve the gunpowder. ... Let's give it a try!"

(End of this chapter)