However, what Emperor Chongzhen said is indeed true.
It was the first trial production and I lacked experience in many aspects, not to mention the control of the carbon content ratio.
According to the method taught by Liu Weichao, it is necessary to quantitatively adjust the proportions until the best proportions that can be mastered by the Ming Dynasty are found, and then mass production begins.
Therefore, after Emperor Chongzhen finished speaking, in front of Sun Chuanting and Zhou Yuji, he began to give instructions to Fang Zhenghua on how to do the next thing.
With the breastplate in stock, the authority he spoke at this time was much higher than when he brought Sun Chuanting over for the first time.
Seeing Emperor Chongzhen instructing the details of steel-making and talking eloquently, both Sun Chuanting and Zhou Yuji had expressions of admiration on their faces!
They are either generals who lead troops or civilian officials who control the army. They definitely have a very high understanding of the importance of fine steel and do not have such notions of eccentric techniques.
Even if the emperor at this time was not doing his job and was talking about craftsmen, both of them still admired him endlessly!
After Emperor Chongzhen finished giving his instructions, he asked Fang Zhenghua again, asking the question he was most concerned about: "Can Daban pass this trial production and roughly estimate the cost of a pair of armor?"
He cares more about money than anyone else because he is afraid of being poor!
Liu Weichao said that through this assembly line method and with the assistance of hydraulic tools, costs can be greatly reduced.
Therefore, he told Fangzhenghua to estimate the cost from the very beginning.
At this time, when Fang Zhenghua heard Emperor Chongzhen ask this question, he was well prepared and immediately responded: "A set of body armor made of this kind of steel. The complete set includes an iron helmet, an iron face, an iron coat and an iron skirt."
, it will probably weigh about 30 kilograms."
After a pause, he said the answer that Emperor Chongzhen was most concerned about: "I estimate that a pound of fine steel produced in this way only costs 2 taels of silver, less steel only costs 1 tael, and more iron will not be smelted."
To 5 points. This piece of armor, in total, is about 10 taels of silver."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Yuji subconsciously said: "This is impossible!"
After he finished speaking, he realized that he was in front of the emperor, and he quickly confessed to Emperor Chongzhen: "I was so shocked that I was disrespectful in front of the emperor. Please punish me!"
When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he immediately laughed and was obviously in a very good mood. He said to Zhou Yuji: "It doesn't matter. You see, Sun Qing is also very shocked!"
When Zhou Yuji heard this, he turned around and saw Sun Chuanting also looking shocked.
However, he was not surprised at all by this.
Because the cost estimated by Founder is too scary!
It’s not that it’s expensive, it’s that it’s too cheap!
Not to mention cotton armor, a pair of scale armor costs nearly a hundred taels, and the best mountain armor costs more than three hundred taels. And the armor made today is stronger than mountain armor.
But the price is so cheap, only about ten taels, which is incredible!
The reactions of Sun Chuanting and Zhou Yuji made Fang Zhenghua very proud, so he explained to them in detail: "Scale armor generally weighs about 50 kilograms, and the material cost is only 10 taels, but it takes thousands of scales to be forged one by one.
It takes a lot of work and time to punch them out and string them together piece by piece."
At this point, he puffed up his chest and said very proudly: "But the method taught by Long Live Master now is to roll the steel paste into red hot steel plates, then stamp them with a hydraulic press, and then anneal them in the furnace.
It’s finally assembled. The production is very fast and doesn’t require much labor. So it’s incredibly cheap!”
When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he also said calmly: "This type of plate armor could actually be made in the past. However, the cost of making it is extremely high, and it is difficult to repair if it is damaged. On the contrary, scale armor is easier to make by hand and easier to repair.
It's cheap, but it's heavier, the material cost is higher, and the protective power is lower. Therefore, in the past, in order to save money, the military mostly made scale armor. There were very few plate armor or bright light armor."
At this point, seeing that everyone was listening to him attentively, he continued to tell them: "Now my way of making requires almost no manual work, and the bulk of the cost is just the raw materials. Even if it breaks, it will
There is no need to repair it, just replace it. We can replace the old one with a new one, and the broken armor can be directly taken back and melted, and then a new pair of armor can be made in a short time."
Hearing this, Zhou Yuji stuttered a little: "Your Majesty, then... doesn't that mean that even ordinary... ordinary soldiers... can afford to use this... this kind of armor?
"
According to Emperor Chongzhen's description, this extremely low-cost armor is even stronger than the Shanwen Armor. It can be made in large quantities. If nothing else, it is estimated that both Yongwei Camp and Jingying Camp can use it.
Such a beautiful scene is really unimaginable for Zhou Yuji, a military general. It can even be said that he can't even dream of it!
Imagine if he brings such an armored army in the future, it is really possible for him to be invincible!
At this time, the more Zhou Yuji behaved like this, the happier Emperor Chongzhen felt.
However, on the surface, he still maintained a calm expression and said calmly: "Yes, after I become familiar with the entire manufacturing process, I will order to increase production. At least before Jianlu enters the customs,
I plan to equip all the Brave Guard Camp!"
When Zhou Yuji heard this, he immediately knelt down on one knee, raised his upper body, clasped his fists with both hands, and shouted loudly to Emperor Chongzhen: "Your Majesty, I am willing to be the vanguard, and I will definitely kill him!"
Even in the original history, at the end of the fifteenth year of Chongzhen, when he heard that the Jianlu invaders were invading, he was fearless and ambushed the Jianlu in Yangliuqing and defeated the Jianlu in a field battle.
It's just a pity that because it was the last years of Chongzhen and then the Qing Dynasty, his achievements were downplayed, and many people didn't even know that there was such a victory.
Now, with the confidence of the Iron Army, Zhou Yuji is naturally more confident. He said that he would kill Jianlu and make him a loser. He was definitely not just shouting slogans!
Emperor Chongzhen liked this beloved general very much. Seeing him like this, he stepped forward and helped him up personally, and said with a smile: "Please don't be too happy too early, what else?"
Sun Chuanting and Zhou Yuji were stunned when they heard what he said.
Don't be too happy too early. What does this mean?
Is it possible that there are other negative aspects that I haven't thought of?
Thinking like this, they looked at Emperor Chongzhen's face, but they didn't notice any change in Emperor Chongzhen's face?
Just as they were wondering, Emperor Chongzhen said: "Think again, these good steels will also be used in the manufacture of other weapons, such as swords, guns, swords and halberds, firecrackers and artillery!"
He himself was excited in his heart, but he remained calm on the surface and said: "The equipment of the imperial army, both offensive and defensive, will be greatly improved!"
Hearing this, Zhou Yuji, as a general who was used to fighting on the battlefield, almost fainted with happiness!
What Emperor Chongzhen said is absolutely correct.
This good steel is the key. Now that it can be obtained in large quantities, it can be used not only to make armor, but also to make offensive weapons. In this way, the combat effectiveness of the imperial army will definitely be greatly improved!
Really, as a general leading troops, he was so blinded by armor that he forgot that other weapons could also be improved in the same way!
Although he was thinking this in his heart, Zhou Yuji could not suppress the smile on his face, because he knew that from now on, he would be able to win more battles!
Sun Chuanting, who has always been famous for his coldness, has completely lost his cold face at this time, and is always smiling. After Emperor Chongzhen finished speaking, he continued: "In the future, not only military use, but also iron tools for civilian use will also get a lot of benefits."
Improvement. Your Majesty's method of smelting fine steel is actually a basic method that benefits the country and the people!"
When others heard this, they all respectfully said to Emperor Chongzhen: "Your Majesty is wise!"
Listening to their words, Emperor Chongzhen's heart was filled with a sense of accomplishment. He could no longer maintain that indifferent expression and said with a smile: "This is science. Later, when you watch, I will let you
You’ve seen more good stuff!”
As he spoke, his decision to promote science in the Ming Dynasty was once again greatly deepened.
As for the magic of Liu Weichao's world, he knew that it was all caused by science. Even if he couldn't do it in this life, he would let the Ming Dynasty in the future achieve it.
At this time, Sun Chuanting and others once again heard Emperor Chongzhen mentioning "science" and couldn't help but be very curious.
Naturally, I heard Sun Chuanting ask: "Your Majesty, what exactly is this science?"
"Science is the law of all things. If you learn it and use it, know what it is, and then know why it is so, you can use it to benefit all people!" When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he was naturally happy to answer it and immediately replied.
He didn't say that this was a craftsman's study, which was too low-end, so he changed his words and used the words he heard from Liu Weichao that he felt were the most appropriate.
When Sun Chuanting heard this, he suddenly realized: "It turns out that knowledge is obtained by studying things. No wonder, the sages have already made it clear. Your Majesty is really profound about this way, and I admire it!"
Hearing his compliments, Emperor Chongzhen was a hundred times happier than hearing the compliments from Fang Zhenghua and others. He immediately smiled without saying a word and his heart blossomed with joy.
He increasingly felt that in other aspects, he could not compare with these ministers. However, in terms of science, he could crush these ministers.
It seems that in the future, I still need to ask Liu Weichao for more advice and strengthen my strengths!
The initiative to learn science was thus reflected in Emperor Chongzhen.
After the monarch and his ministers were happy for a while, suddenly, Zhou Yuji lost his smile and said to Emperor Chongzhen: "Your Majesty, when marching and fighting, two things are most important. One is people. The ordnance and equipment built by your Majesty will be led by the last general.
There is no problem when it comes to people; however, the other thing is food, which is also a big deal and cannot be careless!"
In the past few years, he has been leading troops to fight wars and put out fires, so naturally he felt it the most deeply.
The problem of food and grass was a very big factor limiting the imperial army.
His side is the Yongwei camp, and the supervisors are the eunuchs in the palace and the emperor's personal guards. The local people dare not delay their food and grass. Only in this way can they maintain strict military discipline and just fight with their heart.
However, other armies do not have such convenience. The local government basically does not care. While fighting, they have to raise food at the same time. Many imperial troops resorted to robbing food. The military discipline of the imperial army was corrupted, and the imperial court actually had some problems.
responsible.
Zhou Yuji saw that Emperor Chongzhen had perfectly solved the problem of sophisticated ordnance, and naturally he thought of another very important factor that affected the army's fighting.
Sun Chuanting listened and nodded and said: "If there is food, we can recruit more soldiers, and we can also recruit and neutralize some thieves. If there is food, the number of bandits will not be so large!"
At this point, he remembered something and added: "Your Majesty, the price of food in the capital has increased a lot now. It has a great impact on the people's livelihood in the capital, and it will also affect the rectification of the capital camp!"
When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he immediately frowned and said, "Isn't the land of Gyeonggi still stable? How come the price of food has risen again?"
"Wei Chen feels that His Majesty has been spending too much money recently, and those profiteers have been raising prices!" Sun Chuanting heard his question and told his guess.
As soon as he heard this, Emperor Chongzhen immediately became angry, he was a profiteer again!
He is truly a businessman and a traitor!
Damn, damn, damn!
Thinking of this, he said coldly: "Let them raise the price, and I will turn around and confiscate all their homes!"
Today's Emperor Chongzhen really likes to confiscate homes more and more!
But he was just talking. No matter how much he hated profiteers, he still knew the truth.
If all merchants' homes are confiscated, there will be no merchants left. Then the circulation of goods will be greatly hindered!
Of course, Sun Chuanting knew that what the emperor said was just an angry word, so he came up with an idea: "Why not choose one or two of the profiteers and kill one to serve as a warning to others!"
He also has no sympathy for businessmen, because businessmen only have money in their eyes, so they deserve to be punished.
It is not unreasonable for scholars, farmers, industry and commerce, businessmen to always be ranked last.
When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he immediately thought of the eight "imperial merchants", nodded and said to Sun Chuanting: "Don't worry, I will deal with them severely in a few days!"
After finishing speaking, he looked at Zhou Yuji and said to his beloved general: "The cavalry sent by the Yongwei Camp a while ago were sent for food. I also know the importance of food; I have already been there a long time ago.
Don’t worry about this anymore!”
"Your Majesty, your Majesty!" When Zhou Yuji heard this, he couldn't help but be very happy and immediately said respectfully.
In his heart, Emperor Chongzhen is becoming more and more sage!
Unknowingly, half a day has passed. Before Emperor Chongzhen left, he issued a decree to keep secret the smelting of fine steel. If possible, it would be best to give Jianlu a warning when he ambushes him.
Big surprise, that’s the best!
Afterwards, he took Prince Zhu Cihong back and immediately thought of contacting Liu Weichao.