Chapter 321 The Purpose of Discipline (VII)
Where did the Manchus come from? How many people did they send?
Gao Pang was very concerned about this. They had already reached the Governor's Mansion in Zhenjiang. If it weren't for the effective defense, they would have lost a lot of manpower. Whenever he thought of this, Gao Pang felt uncomfortable.
Seeing Hu Yue's unfathomable solemnity, and not showing any intention to really join the war, Gao Pang was even more unhappy, and asked: "Hu Shuo, what do you know? Can you explain it clearly!"
"I don't know more than you. I just heard from the governor that the Qing Dynasty had the ability to manufacture flintlock rifles. I didn't expect that the Qing Dynasty actually made them." Hu Yue said as he picked up the pistol on the table and fiddled with it in his hands.
"Is this musket very powerful?" Gao Pang knew his limited military level and asked Hu Yue directly.
Hu Yue frowned, "I've only heard about it, why don't we go and give it a try together."
Since people of Gao Pang and Hu Yue's level were going to the shooting range, the defense was quite strict. Gao Pang had only used matchlock guns and Chinese imperial rifles during military training. After firing a few rounds with a flintlock gun, his face became very ugly.
Hu Yue has a nickname called "Hushuo" because he is outspoken and often dares to say things that others dare not say. He dares to talk nonsense in front of Huo Chong, or it can be said that Hu Yue just likes to talk nonsense in front of Huo Chong, which is why he got the nickname "Hushuo".
Gao Pang was surprised to see Hu Yue obeying the rules so well. After waiting for a long time, Hu Yue said nothing. The officers and other personnel were all whispering about the trial of the flintlock rifle.
Seeing that Hu Yue didn't say anything, Gao Pang had no choice but to put down his weapon and invite Hu Yue into the interview . "Old Hu, what do you think?"
"Mr. Zhuangyuan, don't you have any ideas?" Hu Yue looked unhappy.
Gao Pang was a little nervous and could only express his opinion, "This musket looks like it can be used for sneak attacks. Suddenly get close and launch a sneak attack."
"Well. And then?" Hu Yue asked with a gloomy look.
Gao Pang was surprised and could only try his best to respond: "Others... I think it's faster than the matchlock gun. But I don't know how much faster."
"Mr. Zhuangyuan, I can only tell you that a flintlock is stronger than a matchlock, but in a real fight, it is only so strong. The real power of this weapon is the first shot. After all, it does not require a matchlock, you can use it right away. Mr. Zhuangyuan, you must be careful."
"You mean assassination?" Gao Pang was a little scared.
"Yes." Hu Yue nodded. "I'm telling you this. You have to follow the rules and not tell anyone. We will be worried and scared, and the thieves may have learned something from us."
Gao Pang didn't know what to say. If he said he wasn't worried, he would be lying to himself. Finally, Gao Pang asked, "Can you catch those thieves? How long will it take?"
Hu Yue shook his head. "I don't know how long it will take. The criminals are not stupid, how could they just be killed? Governor Gao, I will tell you about this incident, please don't spread it around. When it comes to assassination, the criminals can't compare to us. Let's not scare ourselves."
Gao Pang didn't know what to say. Hu Yue was right about not causing unnecessary panic. But he was a little worried when he thought that the Qing Dynasty was not complacent.
Hu Yue was indeed not talking nonsense here. After testing the gun with Gao Pang and others, he immediately began to organize people to eliminate the enemy. Those captured would naturally be severely tortured, but Hu Yue called the leaders of each unit and said, "I think the troops were beaten like that because they were stunned. I didn't expect the enemy to use flintlock rifles. All units must speed up training and gain more experience."
Seeing that Hu Yue had no intention of pursuing responsibility, everyone was very surprised. Then they heard Hu Yue sigh: "There will be another war next, everyone should not fall behind. This time the Qing Dynasty is going to fight to the death!"
Huo Chong had also received the news. In the past winter, the troops in the north of Henan discovered that a cavalry had been entrenched in the north of the Yellow River, and it seemed that they were planning to cross the Yellow River.
Afterwards, the Qing troops at Hulao Pass did not seem to be very peaceful and seemed to want to move.
When the news of the flintlock rifle reached Linzi, the committee had a sense of "understanding". It should be that after the Manchus had such a guy, they had the courage to fight the Chinese army.
Huo Chong felt that this was not without reason, but Huo Chong really did not want to put pressure on everyone, so he asked: "Do you really think so?"
Everyone was puzzled when they heard this, "Commander-in-chief, isn't that right?"
Although he thought that the Qing Dynasty might only have this much insight, Huo Chong laughed and said, "The Qing Dynasty is not stupid. Don't they know that this thing is actually useless? The flintlock is much more useful than the matchlock, and it is completely different from the percussion cap gun."
After hearing what Huo Chong said, all the committee members were relieved. Lei Hu smiled and said, "Governor, maybe the Qing Dynasty has lost its percussion cap and there is no way to make a comparison. Maybe you forgot it?"
Huo Chong laughed, and the others also laughed at Lei Hu's words. Qian Qing just raised the corner of his mouth, that's all. When the meeting made the decision to fully implement land reform in Henan, Qian Qing asked when the meeting was adjourned: "Sir, are you not afraid of this at all?"
"No worries. The current discipline is very good. What I'm actually afraid of is that the Qing Dynasty will find out our percussion cap formula through some channel. Then our equipment advantage will be gone."
Qian Qing nodded. Since Huo Chong had already expressed his concerns, Qian Qing didn't want to say anything more.
At the same time, the firearms bureau in Xi'an City exuded a pungent smell of spices. The temperature even passed through the wall and reached outside the wall. The eunuch who came to inquire about the progress smelled the smell and couldn't help sneezing several times.
Entering the firearms bureau, the eunuch walked to the research area with familiarity. There were many things such as wormwood, fennel, and mugwort piled outside. Someone was making something with bottles and jars.
After the eunuch entered, he smelled the aroma of wine and knew that these people were trying to find the formula of the flint in the cap, so he tried every means to find out what strange things Huo Chong used. The best way is to find out what unique objects Huo Chong bought, so as to find out what Huo Chong did.
"My Lords, how is the progress?" the eunuch asked politely.
The faces of these people were a little ruddy, as if they had drunk two cups. The leading R&D officer replied helplessly: "The flint used by Huo Chong should have nothing to do with these wormwood and fennel. This thing must be used to brew absinthe."
The eunuch didn't know whether to be happy or disappointed. At least until now, this group of people did find a problem. Previously, many people in the palace and the court really believed that wormwood and other things could be used to make wonderful flints.
