Early the next morning, Liu Ziguang arrived at the factory and arranged a laboratory for Addison, which was both close to and within the iron factory. The technicians gifted by the emperor were assigned to Addison as assistants, and he first borrowed the iron factory.
The first task of some of the factory's machine tools, raw materials, and skilled workers is to research new aircraft and advanced weapons. The drawings of the pedal tricycle were drawn early on during the trip and have now been handed over to the iron factory for mass production.
Although Liu Ziguang is a senior manager of the iron factory, these are private jobs and require placing orders and paying in cash. Of course, discounts can be given, big discounts. Who dares not to give Vice General Liu and Premier Liu face?
But he is the most powerful general in the iron factory and the future son-in-law of Chenglong.
A large number of raw materials needed: copper, rubber, silk, cloth, wood, glass, resin, fur, various mineral salts, and rare metals were purchased in large quantities through the procurement channels of the Liguo Iron Works. If you are not afraid of not being able to buy it, just
Unexpectedly, a large number of orders were sent to all parts of the country, just waiting to be received.
The research direction is very clear: hot air balloons, airships, parachutes, gunpowder,
Liu Ziguang wrote down his ideas, and Addison followed the research and development, and was able to avoid a lot of detours. The use of electricity and the work on submarines were slightly delayed. As for the armored combat vehicles, the iron factory already had them ready, and Factory Owner Peng based on Liu
As Ziguang suggested before leaving, we have added crawler tracks, so it feels like walking on flat ground even on hard frozen ground and muddy ponds.
Liu Ziguang arranged these tasks and went out of the city to watch the soldiers training in the death camp camp. He didn't want to sit in the accountant's office and fiddle with the abacus. He could just leave the accounting to his subordinates. The great spring time was perfect for an outing.
Several company commanders rode around him on war horses, watching the performance of Zhamu and the cavalry company who were the first to appear.
Zhamuhe's cavalry company is equipped with captured Qing war horses, all of which have similar body shapes, ensuring consistency during the impact. The cavalrymen are also Mongolians and Turks who grew up on horses, and wear
Leather armor, wearing shrimp-tail helmets, each with a composite riding bow and a sharp saber, galloping on the grass, from time to time making difficult moves such as hiding under the pedals or standing on the horse. Where the bow strings are ringing, in the distance
A row of tree trunks in the grove was filled with wolf-fang arrows.
"My brothers' riding and shooting skills are just okay, a bit worse than at their peak, but they are more than enough to deal with ordinary cavalry." Zhamuhe introduced. With a proud look on his face, he managed to defeat a group of two-year-olds in just three months.
It is indeed not easy for slave prisoners of war who have touched horses to be trained into qualified cavalry. "These guys feel closer to horses than to wives. They sleep with horses every day, wash the horses, add night grass, and tickle the horses."
, when it comes to serving horses, we Mongolians are better."
"Why not be equipped with long spears and heavy armor? Why not use crossbows?" Liu Ziguang asked.
"General, our company is a light cavalry, and we must move as fast as the wind. Although the mountain pattern armor originally issued is strong, its weight affects the speed. We athletes on the grassland are used to using bows and arrows, but we are not comfortable with crossbows. As for the spear,
That's what the heavy cavalry uses when charging into battle. We don't meet the enemy face to face, so we use bows and arrows to greet them. A saber is enough."
It turns out that these 100 light cavalrymen were regarded as scouts, responsible for capturing prisoners, reconnaissance, and pursuit missions. Liu Ziguang knew nothing about army organization, so he could only slowly grow up with the help of his brothers.
"Heavy cavalry is good. In the future, we will also form heavy cavalry. They are fully armored. Even the horses are armored. They are armed with long spears. How majestic. In the future, when there are enough horses, my company will be converted into heavy cavalry." On the side.
Anthony said, "It's best to use a European heavy-duty cold-blooded horse. The horse's back alone is almost as tall as me. Put on the vest and it becomes a chariot. It's unstoppable. The lance needs to be hand-guarded, and the armor needs to be used."
He is fully armored, only his eyes are exposed, and he is not afraid of bows and arrows at all."
"Sounds good, but what effect can a hundred heavy cavalry have? With such heavy armor on your body, you have to be helped to get on the horse. We are only five hundred people in total, and we have to send a hundred people to help you get on the horse.
It’s nonsense, the light cavalry is the best.” Zhamuhe said, shaking his big head, and his little braids also shook.
"When my heavy cavalry company is completed, let's make some plans. I'm afraid you shepherds in leather armor will be so scared that you wet your pants when you see us." Anthony showed no sign of weakness.
Regarding the dispute between light and heavy cavalry, Liu Ziguang still prefers light cavalry. The maintenance cost of heavy cavalry is too high. Where can I buy European heavy horses? They also need so much armor and equipment. Wearing such heavy armor on men and horses becomes an action.
The inconvenient iron can has no mobility at all. If you want heavy breakthrough power, you still need to rely on advanced tanks.
He did not comment on the argument between the two company commanders and asked Anthony: "Second brother, how is the training of your infantry company? Pull it out and let everyone take a look."
"No problem." Anthony put his fingers into his mouth and whistled. The camp gate in the distance opened wide, and a hundred armored warriors held heavy shields and spears, striding away in a neat square formation.
They came out, their steps were neat, even though there were only a hundred people, they still stepped out with a majestic momentum. When they walked to the open space in front of the camp, they suddenly shrank into a tight square. The heavy shield hit the ground and was raised above their heads, forming an arrow.
A turtle formation that no arrow can penetrate.
Antony urged his horses to come to the front of the battle and roared
"Stab!" As soon as he finished speaking, a row of spears stabbed out from the gap between the shields in the formation, which was five meters long. The sharp spear heads were pointed at the sky. If there were cavalry from the opposite side, they might not get any advantage.
The entire battle formation looks like a cross between a turtle and a porcupine, leaving people with nowhere to eat.
Anthony shouted "Attack!" again. The battle formation moved forward slowly. Although the speed was slow, there was an unstoppable momentum filling the air. The soldiers' strong arms held their shields in front of them and moved forward firmly.
The comrades behind had their spears placed on the shoulders of the people in the first row, facing the front. The shields above the formation were raised forward into a clear space. Hundreds of crossbow arrows rushed out like a swarm of wasps, piercing a few blocks in the direction of the team's advance.
An open space a hundred meters away.
"Such a strong heavy infantry, as well as fire suppression. If there are 10,000 people instead of a hundred, I'm afraid the Manchu cavalry can't do anything to them. Second brother, please tell me the mystery of this infantry." Liu Ziguang was impressed.
interest.
Anthony, who was praised, glanced at Zhamuhe and said: "My infantry company has taken reference from the strengths of the Roman Turtle Formation and the Macedonian Spear Formation. The first row of soldiers in the front and left use large rectangular shields that can cover the whole body.
The main body of this kind of shield is made of hardwood, covered with cowhide on the outside, and the frame and edges are made of fine steel. It is lighter than an all-iron shield, saves physical strength, and can prevent the enemy from slashing at close range, not to mention protecting against bows and arrows.
There are retractable brackets and wheels at the bottom of the back, so you don't need to hold them with your hands when defending, and you can push them when moving forward to save energy. There is also a small lookout hole above, protected by an iron net, so that soldiers can observe the road and the enemy's situation.
The weapons used are heavy swords that can cut and stab, and two daggers. The task of the soldiers on the outside is to protect the pikemen on the inside. The soldiers on the inside use a smaller full-iron shield, which is usually carried on the left side of the body.
When necessary, they can be raised above the head or placed directly on the head. Their weapons are two long spears, each nine feet long. When used alone, they can be used as fighting guns or long-range javelins, or even placed on the bed crossbow to fire.
The tail ends of the two spears can be combined with a metal tube to form a zhangba spear specially used in battle formations. The spears in the second to fourth rows face the front. In addition to long spears, the soldiers behind are also equipped with small spears.
Repeating crossbows can fire a covering rain of arrows when the battle formation moves forward to cover the advance of the troops."
"Yes, it's really a moving iron mountain." Even Zhamuhe couldn't help but admire, "But infantry is infantry after all. It's okay to fight in positional warfare, but there is still no chance of winning against our light cavalry. We can't charge.
Damn, I can’t shoot you to death, but I can consume you to death.”
"So I have to create a heavy cavalry force." Anthony said angrily.
"Duncan came with me to the capital. I'm afraid his company has no one to lead the training. I don't know what's going on." Liu Ziguang said.
"Fortunately, while I was away, several platoon leaders led the brothers to practice mountain climbing, tree climbing, and trap traps in the old woods nearby. Not only did they improve their physical strength, but they also gained a lot of combat experience in mountainous and wooded areas." Duncan said.
His subordinates include Annan people, some sailors from the Zheng family in Fujian, Miao people from western Hunan, and some students from Taiwan and Java. They are experts in jungle warfare.
"That's good, how is the training of Captain Zhong's crossbow car company? Let's bring it out and show it for a while to open everyone's eyes." Liu Ziguang said looking at Captain Zhong Shouyong of their fire support company.
"Reporting back to the general, our chariot team now has more assets. Not only does it have ten crossbows, it is also equipped with two artillery pieces!"
"What? Artillery! Wait, did I hear it correctly? It's an artillery? An artillery that can fire shells." Liu Ziguang was shocked, how could there be an artillery so quickly?
The company commanders looked at him triumphantly, with expressions like "You're new here, little guy."
"Reporting back to the general, this is a horse-drawn artillery cart that can fire artillery shells. The old man who owns the factory has just created it. The Iron Guards are not even equipped with it. He first gave us two of them as a test." Zhong Shouyong said.
"Quick, pull it out and fire a cannon." Liu Ziguang was very anxious. This factory owner Peng was really amazing. He actually invented the cannon so quickly. Needless to say, gunpowder was also available. At this rate, it won't take long for the musket to be ready.
You can equip your troops.
Two cannons were pulled out by the carriage. The long barrels were black and shiny. Behind them was a cylinder as big as a gasoline barrel made of brass, which was placed on the carriage. Some pipes were coiled on it. There were also
A funnel-shaped object, as well as pressure gauges, thermometers and other instruments.
"Is this a cannon?" Liu Ziguang became even more suspicious. It was more like a tea stove.