After completing the test production of the bearings, the bearing workshop begins mass production of bearings.
There are ten craftsmen in the bearing workshop. These ten craftsmen work together and can produce ten rolling bearings a day. By June 29, the workshop had produced more than one hundred bearings.
These more than one hundred bearings are the treasure of Fanjiazhuang and must be used in the most critical places. Li Zhi hired several carpenters to first equip these bearings on the six-pound gun, replacing the original wooden shaft frame of the gun carriage.
The eighteen 18-pound cannons for Fanjiazhuang City Defense were all built on June 15th. Later, several more six-pound cannons were cast in the artillery workshop. Currently, Li Zhi has eighty-four six-pound cannons.
Installing bearings on these six-pound guns will greatly increase their maneuverability.
In the past, the six-pounder gun carriage required four horses to move it. When defending the city, the space on the city wall was narrow and it was difficult for the horses to maneuver. It was inconvenient to move the artillery on the city wall. With the bearings, the friction on the artillery carriage axle was greatly reduced.
, the gun carriage is much easier to move. Six gunners and a few civilians can fully pull the 375 kilogram six-pound gun for short-distance movement. Therefore, the six-pound gun can be quickly moved on the city wall and can be supported at any time.
Going to the enemy's main attack side is a great benefit for city defense.
If the artillery could not move, the eighty-four light cannons would be evenly distributed on the four walls, and only twenty-one cannons could be deployed in each direction. Now that the artillery carriages can maneuver quickly, most of the artillery can be concentrated in the direction of the enemy's main attack to bombard the enemy.
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However, Li Zhi was still worried about the city's defense. During the Chongzhen period, the Jurchens broke into the capital several times to plunder. Li Zhi could only rest assured if he arranged Fanjiazhuang more tightly. In March, he hired a thousand people nearby to set up one or two people outside the city wall.
Numerous large and small potholes were excavated hundreds of meters away. These potholes were two or three meters deep, small ones were ten meters long and wide, and large ones were dozens of meters wide. They had several layers from outside to inside, and were dotted around the outside of the city wall. By June
, these potholes have all been completed.
If the enemy's infantry attacks, these pits will force them to make a detour. Within the range of the Mini rifle, every additional meter the enemy detours will bear more pressure of death. If the enemy builds chariots to attack the city, these pits will force them to take a detour.
Holes can directly stop chariots. Only by filling these gullies can chariots continue to move forward.
For the infantry who left their chariots to fill the ravines, the minion rifles on the city wall would become their nightmare.
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On the first day of July, it was midsummer, and the scorching sun was baking the earth, making all animals and plants dehydrated and listless. The high temperature made people reluctant to move, and they were covered in sweat after taking just a few steps, making them uncomfortable. In addition to the loud noises in the wilderness,
The cicadas were chirping all around, and no other sounds could be heard.
However, even on such a day, Li Zhi did not relax his defense and still let the soldiers train under the scorching sun.
Li Zhi came to the school field to review the training of the Selection Team and the Polu Team.
The eighty musket craftsmen recruited by Li Zhi quickly mastered the manufacture of flintlock muskets, and they only served as apprentices for one month before leaving the profession. With their joining, the production speed of the rifle workshop was significantly increased. By the first day of July,
The rifle workshop has produced a total of 4,016 rifles. Excluding the 130 scrapped rifles, there are 3,880 usable rifles, enough for Li Zhi's 3,700 musketeers.
A rifle.
On the school grounds, 3,700 musketeers lined up in a long queue with rifles in hand, practicing how to face the enemy head-on.
Three hundred gunners on horseback simulated the enemy, galloping 300 meters away from the musketeers, trying to get around to the side and rear of the musketeers' formation. The musketeers' officers needed to adjust each company and platoon according to the enemy's strength ratio in different directions.
The frontal direction allows the appropriate troops to face the appropriate enemy and prevents the enemy from going around to the rear where no one is facing it.
The three hundred cavalrymen initially circled around the left wing of the musketeers. Li Xing and various officers issued orders to the musketeers to rotate counterclockwise, turn the left wing into a frontal position, and face the cavalrymen who circled the left wing head-on.
The three hundred gunners failed, and then changed their strategy, dividing their troops into two groups, one heading north and one heading south.
The officers of the Selection Regiment and the Polu Regiment shouted orders, and the orderlies rode horses and ran in the team, passing the orders quickly. The Selection Regiment on the north wing turned ninety degrees clockwise to face the cavalry in the north.
, the Polu regiment lined up on the south wing turned ninety degrees counterclockwise to face the cavalry in the south, not allowing the cavalry simulated by the artillery battalion to get through at all.
Seeing that the musketeers were coping well, the cavalrymen of the artillery battalion changed their tactics again. They dispersed their troops and galloped back and forth 300 meters away from the riflemen, threatening the musketeers in all directions like running circles.
The officers of the Musketeers responded to the call and formed a circular formation to guard all directions.
The cavalry gradually stopped circling and gathered on the east side of the musketeers.
Li Xing and other officers immediately ordered the musketeers to break off the circular formation from the west wing, stretch out the two semicircles in the north and south, and once again face the cavalry gathered in the east.
The cavalry simulated several cavalry tactics, but the musketeers always maintained the appropriate strength to face the cavalry head-on. The cavalry had to circle outside the range of the musketeers, walking much more roads than the musketeers who directly rotated the direction of the team. As long as
The musketeers reacted quickly to adjust their front. The cavalry could not go directly behind the musketeers and were always facing the musketeers head-on.
What Li Zhi asked the musketeers to train was also the basic skills of the musketeers in fighting the enemy. Once they mastered this basic skill, the cavalry could not simply attack the musketeers' flanks and rear. On a real battlefield, they could only use a large number of infantry to contain the musketeers' front, and the cavalry
Only then can they get around to the side of the musketeers and launch an attack.
Li Zhi watched the training for half an hour and found that the musketeers had basically mastered the method of facing the enemy head-on. He was very satisfied. Now that the musketeers have mastered this set of tactics, they will not be able to face the rear golden cavalry in the future.
After exposing the side, you can always face the enemy's main force with the front.
Li Zhi asked the soldiers to rest on the spot and summoned several officers to his place.
"How is the training of the Polu Group going?"
Li Xing patted his chest and said: "No problem! You can go to the battlefield! I asked the Selection Group several times to pretend to ride on horseback and attack the Polu regiment's front line. The Polu regiment has become accustomed to standing firm in front of the charge of the cavalry group!"
Li Zhi nodded and asked, "How was the shooting result?"
Li Xing said: "Get on the human target steadily in one hundred and thirty steps!"
Ming people probably used 1.5 meters as one step, and 130 steps equaled 200 meters.
Li Zhi and the officers were discussing training there when they suddenly saw a servant in the distance rushing towards them on a fast horse.
Everyone stopped their discussion and looked at the servant who was galloping over.
The servant rode nearby, jumped off the horse, led the horse and ran to Li Zhi, half-kneeling and shouted: "Sir, the Tatars are coming!"
Li Zhi was stunned for a moment, and then he saw clearly that this servant was a soldier he sent to Tianjin Guard City to collect intelligence.
"The Tatars are coming?"
The servant raised his head and said loudly: "Sir, I heard from Deacon Sun in the governor's office that the news came from the capital this morning. On June 27, the Tatars broke through the Dushikou and entered through the Diaoyu Fort.
The Chang'an Mountains have already reached the capital."
