Looking at the serious look on the Blacksmith's face, Zheng Ying felt that perhaps he shouldn't treat the matter as a joke.
But if he didn't treat it as a joke, it was still a little scary.
The flintlock musket that could shoot three hundred paces was comparable to the lighter medium Francis Cannon. The Francis Cannon was a cannon that weighed a few hundred pounds and was not easy to transport. On the other hand, the flintlock musket could be carried by a single person. It was obvious which was better and which was worse, there was no need to think too much.
"You're not lying? Can it really shoot three hundred paces? "
Zheng Ying asked with difficulty.
"Only if I'm blind."
The Blacksmith was still as serious as ever.
This time, Zheng Ying couldn't help but pay attention to this matter.
He noticed that the lead in his hand was not only strangely shaped, but there were also a few strange grooves on the bottom. There was also a piece of wood embedded in the bottom, which was even stranger.
"How do you use this? Why don't you show me? "
The Blacksmith nodded. He picked up a flintlock and poured some gunpowder into it. Then, he inserted the special lead in his hand through the muzzle, then used a strip to press the lead and gunpowder together.
"Isn't this the same as a fowling cannon? The rifled flintlocks we use now use a larger pellet and hammer it in. If you do this, the pellet and the rifling won't fit at all. Isn't it the same as a fowling cannon? What's the difference? "
Zheng Ying didn't understand.
The Blacksmith spoke: "This is where it's different, and also better than the rifled flintlocks we use now. The rifled flintlocks we use now need to hammer the pellet in with a wooden hammer. Not only is it a waste of time and effort, but it's also easy to break the bore, am I right?"
Zheng Ying nodded.
"That's true. We've broken more than 20 of them since we landed. It's painful, but there's no other way. Only a rifled flintlock can shoot farther and more accurately. In order to intimidate the enemy or to kill their commander, we can't do without this flintlock. Did you know that when the Commander-in-Chief fought against the Dongwu Kingdom, he used this flintlock to kill the enemy commander with a single shot?"
The Blacksmith nodded.
"That's why, two years ago, the general specifically ordered our Firearms Manufacturing Bureau to speed up the production and improvement of the rifled flintlock musket. He wanted to simplify it as much as possible and increase the production rate. He even gave us some blueprints, but it's too difficult. After two years, we could only do it bit by bit. We've made about 40 muskets, but we haven't been able to improve the lead.
Three months ago, after Chief Xu arrived, he brought a group of old craftsmen to make these guns without rest. He also got 100,000 taels of silver from the General to solve the problem of the lead. Now, with a group of old craftsmen, we can make these 10 flintlock muskets and these lead. These are all the hard work of our old craftsmen! "
Zheng Ying knew that these craftsmen worked very hard.
Xiao Ruxun had been telling the military how hard it was for the craftsmen to make weapons. In the past few years in Myanmar, he had tried his best to raise the status of these craftsmen. He often organized craftsmen to teach the soldiers how to use the latest firearms. This was to promote the understanding between the craftsmen and the army. At least in the Zhennan Army, craftsmen were more respected.
"Alright, I know it's been hard on you all. That's why we didn't say anything. Come, come, come, let me see how powerful this gun is. If we can use a flintlock gun that can shoot three hundred paces, then all the enemies will really be like chickens and dogs. We can even deal with the cavalry! "
Zheng Ying didn't really believe it, but he was still a little excited. He was looking forward to seeing a miracle.
At a distance of three hundred steps, normal scarecrows and targets could no longer be used. They couldn't even see clearly, so Zheng Ying placed a large shield cart at a distance of three hundred steps to give the Blacksmith a large space for him to experiment with.
Many soldiers heard that there was a new gun that could shoot 300 steps away. They couldn't help but be surprised and came over to watch.
"Alright, you can start now. That's the big shield carriage. That wooden board is big enough to see clearly. You can shoot and see if you can hit that wooden board. I don't believe you can hit something that's 300 steps away."
Zheng Ying stood beside the blacksmith. Beside Zheng Ying, there were more soldiers and generals who were paying close attention to the blacksmith.
"300 steps? Are you joking? "
"The Francis Gun can only shoot 300 steps away. Even if it's a flintlock, if it can shoot 300 steps away, then what's the point of having a Francis Gun?"
"That's right. If a flintlock can shoot that far, I'll eat my gun immediately!"
A few soldiers laughed and made a bet.
The group of people watched as the blacksmith calmly knelt on the ground on one knee. Then, he poured the primer into the fire, pulled down the flintlock, pointed the gun at the big shield cart, and pulled the trigger!
"Bang!"
A gunshot rang out, and a white gas rose into the air. Zheng Ying immediately sent someone on horseback to see if the shield chariot had hit its target. Then, Zheng Ying watched as the cavalryman rushed over and quickly returned, his face filled with an expression as if he had seen a ghost.
"General … … General … … General! That lead is embedded in that big shield cart!! "
His words stirred up a thousand ripples, and the scene instantly boiled over.
"What?!"
Zheng Ying shouted. He wanted to go over and see for himself. But before he could run out, he was stopped by the blacksmith.
"Wait a minute. Don't leave first. I will squat here. General Zheng, please test the accuracy. Get a rope and pull it from me to the shield-carrying vehicle. I will go back and report to Chief Xu." Dong Xuebing said as he looked at Dong Xuebing.
Zheng Ying saw the blacksmith's calm expression and had mixed feelings.
"Ok."
He immediately sent for a rope to be pulled from the blacksmith's position to the shield cart. He followed the blacksmith's lead, and when he arrived in front of the shield cart, he saw with his own eyes the slightly deformed lead embedded in the cart. The distance between the lead and the blacksmith's position didn't seem to be too far apart, about three to four inches.
He took out the lead bullet and looked at it. The shock in his heart was not over.
Walking back to the blacksmith, Zheng Ying passed the lead bullet to the blacksmith.
"I believe you now. I believe you now."
After Zheng Ying said this, the crowd was in an uproar again. The soldiers whispered among themselves and looked at the blacksmith and the gun in shock.
"When did you eat your own blunderbuss?"
The soldier who said he wanted to eat his own blunderbuss was asked by his comrade.
The blacksmith took the lead bullet and looked at it carefully. He nodded.
"That's why it's meaningful to spend so much money for such a long time. We're worthy of Marshal's money."
"When can we use it? I want 10,000 bolts! If you don't have enough money, I will rob for you! I will rob for you! Do you see this city? There are at least a few hundred thousand taels of silver here. It might even be a million taels. If you give me 10,000 of these flintlock muskets, I will send my soldiers to rob it for you! Brothers, right?! "
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