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The iron tongs clamped the red-hot iron bar onto the anvil and hammered it into thin slices. Then, it was sent into the furnace to be heated again. When it was slightly soft, it was stuffed into an iron tool and folded along the long edge. After folding, it was hammered again. After hammering, it was heated again and folded horizontally. This was the basic folding forging technique.
The once boiling hot air and rattling chains of the pulleys were now the only sound left in the foundry was the monotonous clanking of iron being hammered. Wang Qinian was in charge of the last step of the forging process. He hammered the iron bar into its final shape.
After hammering a bar, Wang Qinian put down the hammer and drank a mouthful of cold water from a bamboo tube. It had been ten days since he had forged the iron cannon. Wang Qinian did not expect that he would actually be doing this. Looking at the dozens of people in the cannon, Wang Qinian sighed slightly. He muttered in his heart, "Trouble comes from the mouth!"
Vézé had originally given Wang Qinian the impression that he was a reliable person. However, after the first cannon was forged, Vézé invited Wang Qinian for a drink. During the meal, Vézé tried his best to flatter Wang Qinian. Wang Qinian had never been so highly regarded by such a big shot. He was so happy that he could not help but boast that his expertise was not in forging cannons, but in making sharp knives using the folding forging method.
To Wang Qinian's surprise, Vézé turned out to be a very fickle guy. Knowing that Wang Qinian's expertise was the folding forging method, Vézé immediately asked Wang Qinian to help Vézé hammering the iron bar using the folding forging method. Vézé was now Wang Qinian's boss. Since he said so, Wang Qinian had no way to refuse. From that day on, Wang Qinian hammered the iron bar for ten consecutive days.
Whether or not Wei Ze had changed his mind, Wang Qinian would at most silently criticize him. In reality, he would not really care. However, Vézé actually asked a group of people known as "military personnel" in the Taiping army to hammer the iron bar with Wang Qinian. This was a taboo. In this day and age, if one didn't have a master to learn from, who would be willing to teach others a craft? This group of people saw Wang Qinian's method of hammering the steel sheet, so they followed suit. This was an act of stealing someone's knowledge. In the field of blacksmithing, it was absolutely unacceptable.
However, Vézé had saved their lives before, once unintentionally, and once intentionally. Vézé had paid them enough. Furthermore, Vézé's subordinates only watched without asking any questions. However, it was Wang Qinian who hammered the iron bar into the final approximate size and shape. Wang Qinian reluctantly endured it.
Apart from this, Wang Qinian did not dislike Vézé. After confirming that all the work was to hammer steel plates, the tools in the local blacksmith shop in Yongxing were enough. According to the original agreement, Vézé dispatched troops to escort Wang Qixiu's men back to You County. Wang Qixiu was full of praise for Vézé's way of doing what he said. Wang Qinian also agreed with this point.
Not only did Wang Qinian help hammer the iron bar, but Wang Qixiu and several other blacksmiths also helped. This also made Wang Qinian unable to vent his anger. Even if they did not steal from Wang Qinian, the "military personnel" of the Taiping army would not be completely blind.
After a short rest, Wang Qinian picked up the sledgehammer again and began hammering the steel sheets. In fact, he was also a little curious as to what Vézé and his men would do with these strangely shaped steel sheets. At least five or six hundred sets of these steel sheets had been hammered. In another field, there were also other blacksmiths working. Wang Qinian was also very curious as to what the things he made were used for.
At noon, Vézé invited Wang Qinian to lunch. Wei Changrong and Wang Qixiu sat with them. As usual, there was wine. After drinking a cup, Vézé said: "Brother Wang, the Manchu Qing government almost killed you. I won't talk about what a hot-blooded man will do. It's just that you can't just hide. As long as the Manchu Qing government is still the government, as long as the enemies in Guiyang are still the local gentry, you will never be able to return to Guiyang. Come with me. When we conquer the world, not only will the Manchu Qing government die, when you return to Guiyang, your enemies will also die! A real man can distinguish between kindness and hatred. Why do you have to suffer? "
Vézé appreciated Wang Qinian's craftsmanship very much, so he tried very hard to persuade him. Wang Qinian could feel Vézé's sincerity, but as a master craftsman, he did not want to participate in the rebellion. This time, Wang Qinian helped Vézé because he was desperate to save his brother. After helping Vézé, he felt that he had already repaid the favor. Therefore, Wang Qinian only responded perfunctorily to Vézé's persuasion. There was no sign that he would agree.
Seeing that Wang Qinian still did not agree, Wei Changrong said: "Brother Wang, if you think we can't kill the Manchu Qing people, you can come with us next time when we fight with the Qing Army. We can kill the Qing Army like slaughtering dogs and chickens. "
Hearing that Wei Changrong wanted to take him to see the killing of the government army, Wang Qinian hurriedly refused. Wang Qixiu, who was next to him, was very interested. He asked: "Are you going to fight with the government army soon?"
Wei Changrong smiled confidently: "The government army is so daring. How dare they approach Yongxing. If I don't teach them a lesson, they won't know how much rice they can eat."
"Then I …" Wang Qixiu said tentatively.
"If Brother Qixiu wants to see, of course we are willing." Wei Changrong replied. Although Wang Qixiu's skills were not as good as Wang Qinian's, he was still much better than the military personnel of the Taiping army. Vézé was very interested in these blacksmiths.
At this time, Vézé's army had basically finished the production of the logistics equipment, because the looted materials were almost used up. Vézé paid the wages of the carpenters, silversmiths, and coppersmiths, and then tried to persuade them to join the army. Some blacksmiths chose to join the Taiping army, and some wanted to follow the army, but they were still employees. Vézé basically agreed to both requests.
What Vézé really cared about were the blacksmiths who were still working on the project, especially Wang Qinian, who was skilled in craftsmanship. Vézé really hoped that he could stay in the army.
After lunch, everyone went back to their own work. Vézé returned to the headquarters set up in the county government office to prepare for the upcoming battle. Since Yongxing was conquered on the 20th of August, it was now the 16th of September. Vézé's 5,000 troops had become much more powerful after training.
The Qing Army also adjusted their attack on Chenzhou and Yongxing after a series of redeployments. He Chun brought 9,000 troops to Chenzhou, while De Liang and Zhang Guoliang brought 4,000 soldiers to rendezvous with Chang Lu, who was originally stationed to the east of Yongxing. This 7,000 troops were under Chang Lu's command. Cezanne's stance was that he wanted to attack Chenzhou and Yongxing at the same time.
Defending the city had never been Vézé's first priority. Since the Qing Army had split up, Vézé thought it was a great opportunity. With 5,000 troops against 7,000 Qing Army, Vézé's forces were at a disadvantage. But in Vézé's eyes, it was not himself that was at a disadvantage, but the 7,000 Qing Army.
When they arrived at the headquarters, Vézé asked about the Qing Army's recent movements. "Has Qing Yao attacked us yet?"
Wei Ze's troops and the Qing army were in a standoff at the Ling Mu Bridge. Both sides had been staring at each other for seven or eight days. Wei Ze's troops had been rotated three times, but the five thousand Qing army on the other side still did not make any move. Vézé was prepared to deal with this Qing Army.
"Prime Minister, are you really not going to forge cannons?" Hu Chenghe asked.
"Not anymore. There are better weapons available, "Vézé replied. No matter how good a three-pound cannon was, it couldn't compare to a six-pound cannon, and a six-pound cannon couldn't compare to a twelve-pound cannon. But in a field battle, flintlocks had an overwhelming advantage over matchlocks.
"That new gun … Is it reliable?" Hu Chenghe was in charge of the battle plan, so he had to be cautious.
"Have you tried it?" Vézé asked.
"Yes! But isn't it too careless to lure the enemy with only 500 men? Qing Yao has 5,000 men. "Hu Chenghe was very worried.
"You can't trap the wolf without sacrificing the child. If you want the Pure Demons to move, you have to set a good bait for them. Besides, if we prepare well, Qing Yao won't be able to break through our camp so easily. "Vézé made up his mind.
Since the supreme commander had given the order, Hu Chenghe could only choose to obey. He took out a copy of the battle plan for the Shrine Bridge. "Prime Minister, this is the general staff's plan."
Vézé took it and read it carefully. Even though the plan was according to Vézé's plan, Vézé didn't dare to skim through it. Sure enough, Hu Chenghe had changed a very important part.
"Minister Hu, why did you let the training brigade attack Qing Yao from the back? The original plan was for the training brigade to attack Qing Yao from the side. "Vézé asked.
Hu Chenghe explained, "If we attack the Qing Army's retreat, it'll be easy for us to defend against Qing Yao's counterattack."
Vézé stared at Hu Chenghe and said loudly, "If we attack Qing Yao's retreat, how can Qing Yao fight? Counterattack? They'll run away immediately! At the very least, they'll retreat into their camp to defend. Change this back and attack the Qing Army from the side. "
Hu Chenghe wanted to argue, but Ke Gongyu said, "Minister Hu, you don't have to worry that we can't hold them off. With Qing Yao's ability, they won't be a match for him even with a spear. "
Seeing how brave Ke Gongyu was, Hu Chenghe could only follow Vézé's plan.
On the 17th of September, the Qing Army discovered a 500-strong army leaving the Shrine Bridge and setting up camp three li away from the bridge. Five hundred men were only one-tenth of the Qing Army's strength. Such a brazen move gave the Qing Army an opportunity. Chang Lu immediately ordered De Liang and Zhang Guoliang to lead 4,000 Swift Warriors to attack the audacious Taiping army.
The moment the Qing Army moved out, another Taiping army unit followed suit. Zhang Guoliang was on the right flank of the Qing Army. This Taiping army unit, also consisting of 500 men, circled around the Taiping army's encampment. First, they marched in column formation, then formed a formation in front of the Qing Army's right flank. They were facing Zhang Guoliang's unit head-on.
Zhang Guoliang was no fool. With one look, he could tell that this was the Taiping army's plan. Although the two 500-strong Taiping army units added up to 1,000 men, compared to the 4,000 Qing Army, they were at an absolute disadvantage. Zhang Guoliang didn't understand. What was the Taiping army up to?
At this moment, the Taiping army opposite Zhang Guoliang suddenly sang in unison, "The upper class owes me money, the middle class has to sleep, the lower class follow me, it's better than renting cows to plow the fields!"
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