At night, Song Yang lay in bed and couldn't sleep.
It was the first time to fight against a large-scale rogue bandit, although we achieved a relatively large victory.
But the Renaissance Army also suffered casualties.
Especially when there were three killed in action.
This is a sneak attack battle plus a defensive battle.
And this is when you have an absolute advantage on the water and the enemy has no fighting spirit.
If it were a head-on confrontation in broad daylight, even if we could win, there would definitely be huge casualties.
"What is the prince thinking?"
Xiaoqian saw Song Yang tossing and turning, so she hugged Song Yang and asked quietly.
"Things happened on the battlefield. In this battle with the bandits, three of us were killed and more than twenty people were injured." Song Yang explained.
"Didn't you say that thousands of prisoners were captured? There were only twenty-three casualties. Isn't this a great victory?"
Xiaoqian didn't understand. In her opinion, it was normal for people to die in war.
"I'm thinking, if there is another battle like this in the future, or if we encounter a stronger enemy, whether we can achieve greater results with less damage." Song Yang said with his hands on his pillow.
"Stronger enemies? Aren't we getting stronger and stronger? When there are more people in the future, we can expand the Renaissance Army." Xiaoqian turned over and lay on Song Yang's chest and said.
"It is never a good idea to rely on numbers to win. If we can create a magic weapon, we may be able to completely reverse the situation." Song Yang thought of muskets and artillery.
Gunpowder was born in the Daqian Dynasty, but gunpowder as a weapon was limited to simple equipment such as bamboo muskets.
What Song Yang needs is a musket, a serious musket.
He never thought about building modern firearms.
Defects in iron and steel cannot be made at all.
But it is possible to make a musket with current technology.
After observing the craftsmanship of the four blacksmiths in the past few days, it is not a big problem to build a steam engine or a musket.
The steam engine seems impatient now, but we can build three to five hundred muskets first.
"What magical weapon has the prince thought of?" Xiaoqian asked curiously.
"A musket is a very powerful weapon that can kill enemies from a long distance. It is easy to use and does not require arm strength like a bow and arrow." Song Yang said casually.
"Musket... I have never heard of this. Is this thing easy to make?" Xiaoqian asked curiously.
"The barrel is difficult to make. With current forging technology, it may be very troublesome to make the barrel. Well, the barrel is a component of the gun."
Song Yang explained casually, feeling worried again.
The four blacksmiths had never made anything like it.
Song Yang had asked them about the steam engine before and said that he wanted to build a cylinder.
After describing it for a long time, although the blacksmiths understood it, they were not guaranteed to be able to do it.
The most important thing is that air tightness cannot be guaranteed at all.
Under the impact of pressure, it may cause deformation or explosion.
This is true for steam engines, but the requirements for fire guns are even higher.
The cast barrel may not be able to handle the pressure.
It might be better to use a barrel clamp for artillery, but you can't use a barrel clamp for a musket.
Read the encyclopedia carefully with your eyes closed.
The records about the musket only include its components and the appearance of each component.
However, there is no introduction on how to process each component.
Song Yang needs to explore things on his own in terms of craftsmanship.
Xiaoqian watched Song Yang deep in thought and did not disturb him.
Take the initiative to massage his temples and rub his shoulders.
"How to make a gun barrel...how to make it..."
Song Yang tried his best to recall, and he remembered seeing some musket production videos on a video website.
But there was no demand at all at that time, and I basically just looked at it for a while and then left.
Even at that moment, he seemed to have no impression.
"Your Majesty, it's the end of the day, why don't we think about it tomorrow?" After another long while, Xiaoqian interrupted Song Yang who was mumbling.
Song Yang scratched his head but felt a little sleepy.
Turning over, holding Xiaoqian in her arms, she felt evil fire again.
"Your Majesty, it's too late..."
"It's not too late, it's not too late. Hey hey hey!"
Half an hour later.
Song Yang, who had just laid down, suddenly opened his eyes.
"By the way, drill the barrel!"
He thought of it!
I figured out how to make a gun barrel!
…
Early the next morning, Song Yang dressed up in a hurry and went straight to the ironworks workshop.
Four blacksmiths are already at work.
My brother Wang Jinshi is researching hydraulic mowers.
My younger brother Wang Jinyu and his two younger brothers are making sickles.
In addition, there are four young apprentices who are making fires, smelting, passing tools, and sharpening knives.
At this stage, the main production target is still sickles.
Based on one hand per person, there is still a shortage of six to seven hundred.
Each of the three blacksmiths could make three blacksmiths per day, and it would not be a problem to make seven or eight hundred blacksmiths by the autumn harvest, so Wang Jinshi, the boss, focused his energy on researching hydraulic mowers.
"How's it going? Is there any progress?"
Song Yang saw Wang Jinshi dumping a mower and some parts there, so he asked in front of the mountain.
"Your Majesty, good luck. Some results have been achieved in the past few days."
"According to your last instructions, the connection between the drive shaft and the waterwheel is not a big problem."
"The main issues are the gear fit and the power of the guillotine, which still need to be improved. However, we are confident that we will be able to produce the first version of the hydraulic guillotine within three to five days."
Wang Jinshi is full of confidence. This thing is not very technical.
And there are also water hammer, water mill and other hydraulic machinery as a reference.
It is not difficult to get a water-powered guillotine.
"Okay. Now that the water-powered guillotine is out, our livestock workers can do it a little easier."
Song Yang nodded approvingly and said:
"Master Wang, I still have something to build here. Let's go over the details and you can change your mind."
Wang Jinshi hurriedly said: "Whatever you want to build, just give me your orders."
Song Yang took Wang Jinshi back to the house.
Now the manufacturing room has been moved to the shed in the backyard, and the front room has become an office and warehouse.
With the pen and paper on the table, Song Yang drew a little bit and drew a musket.
And it’s a flintlock musket!
Although it is impossible to create an artifact like ak in one step.
But for the craftsmanship of the musket, Song Yang felt that Blacksmith Wang and the others could achieve it with their best efforts.
"This thing is called a musket. It is a weapon. This is what I want to make."
Song Yang pointed at the musket and said.
Wang Jinshi scratched his head and said with some embarrassment: "Musket? Common people have never heard of this thing."
"It doesn't matter, you just do what I say first and make a test product. It will be good if you have a reference." Song Yang said with a smile.
"Okay then. Your Majesty, please tell us how we can make this thing."
Wang Jinshi nodded, even a little eager to try it. He also had a lot of interest in exploring things he had never seen before.
"Well..." This time it was Song Yang's turn.
How to make this thing and where to start?
"Your Majesty, how about we find a carpenter and make a wooden sample first?" Wang Jinshi suggested in a low voice.
"Huh? What a good idea!" Song Yang was stunned and nodded immediately.
With wooden muskets, the size and shape can at least be determined.
So Song Yang took the sketch and Wang Jinshi and ran to Gongsun Mo again.
But Gongsun Mo was not good at making such small items.
The main reason is that he is older and his eyes are a bit blurry.