One Piece of Song Dynasty

Old man Zhang nodded and said: "Okay, Master, I understand."

The cannon casting method that Li Xin taught Old Man Zhang was the iron film cannon casting method. The iron mold cannon casting method was invented by Gong Zhenlin, the former Prime Minister of Jiaxing County in the Qing Dynasty. The early cannon casting method was to use clay molds. After the clay molds were made, they needed to be cast. It takes a long time to dry completely. It takes about a month from the start of construction to the release of the gun. This method is time-consuming and the caliber of each gun produced will be slightly different and inconsistent, so the ammunition needs to be customized separately.

The characteristics of the iron mold are that it can be cast in multiple molds, with low cost and less working hours, which reduces the workload of surface cleaning and boring and milling of the inner bore; the mold does not contain moisture, has fewer pores, can be stored after use, and is easy to maintain. If it is wartime, Urgent, can be put into production quickly to meet urgent needs. In fact, China is the first country in the world to use metal mold casting. As early as the Warring States Period, iron films were used to cast pig iron agricultural tools and tools in batches. The iron film casting method was developed and innovated by Gong Zhenlin on the basis of metal mold casting technology.

Li Xin instructed: "Uncle Zhang, these drawings mentioned by XX are all on the drawings. You can think about it carefully. If there is anything you don't understand, come to XX."

Old man Zhang nodded and said: "Okay, sir, don't worry, I know, I don't know how big the cannon is going to be."

Li Xin said thoughtfully: "First try to make two styles, both about nine feet long. One weighs about kilograms, and the other weighs about kilograms. One is three inches in diameter, and the other is three inches in diameter." Left and right.Net"

Li Xin planned to build six-pound cannons and twelve-pound cannons first, and when these two were successfully manufactured, he would then build larger artillery such as eighteen-pound cannons, twenty-four-pound cannons, and thirty-two-pound cannons.

Old man Zhang said: "Yes, Master, can I ask the Master what this caliber refers to?"

Li Xin scratched his head and looked at a bowl next to him. He picked up the bowl with an idea and said: "From the drawing, it seems that the muzzle of the cannon is as round as the mouth of the bowl. The caliber refers to the size of the mouth of the bowl."

Old man Zhang nodded and said: "Okay, I understand."

Li Xin continued: "After these two kinds of cannons are finished, we need to make two wooden gun mounts. The gun mounts should have four wheels, and the guns should be tied to the gun mounts with two iron chains. These pictures are all there. , Uncle Zhang, just look at the picture and do it." The recoil of the front-loading smoothbore cannon is still very large, and a gun mount is necessary, otherwise the gunner will be in danger when firing.

Old man Zhang replied: "Okay, does the master have anything else to say?"

Li Xin thought for a while and suddenly slapped his head and said: "Uncle Zhang, I forgot to mention it just now. You have to make another kind of cannon. This cannon is called the Tiger Crouching Cannon. It is two feet long, two inches in diameter, and has a whole body." There are seven iron hoops, the cannon head is supported by two iron claws, and there is an iron trip, with a total weight of about thirty-six kilograms. "

This tiger crouching cannon is famous in Dameng. It is a small cannon equipped by the famous Qi Jiajun. It is specially used for infantry. In order to facilitate shooting, the cannon is placed in a fixed posture, much like a tiger squatting, so it is So named, the Tiger Crouching Cannon is not very powerful. It is similar to the mortars of later generations. It is an artillery that mainly shoots in a straight direction. It can be fired at a large elevation angle and has a range of one mile. It is suitable for use in mountains, forests and paddy fields where the mobility of the cannon is hindered. combat area.

Old man Zhang clasped his fists and said: "Okay, I know, the master will wait for the good news from the little old man."

Li Xin finally gave instructions: "Uncle Zhang, I would like to say one last thing. Whether it is a sword or a cannon, don't be afraid of wasting materials. As long as you can make these two things, you can make them at any price."

Old man Zhang replied: "Well, I understand my master's determination. Don't worry, I will definitely create them all."

Li Xin nodded and said: "Okay, then you can start, I will leave first."

If you have a cannon, you must have ammunition and an ammunition workshop.

Li Xin went back to his home and dug out the ammunition blueprints and went to find Zhao Fei. Zhao Fei was now Li Xin's largest workshop manager. He was in charge of several workshops. Li Xin planned to let him take charge of another ammunition worker. Square.

Li Xin approached Zhao Fei: "Recently, are the production conditions in several workshops normal?"

Zhao Fei replied: "As far as I'm concerned, everything is normal."

Li Xin nodded and said: "Well, you still have to find someone to build an ammunition workshop, specifically used to prepare gunpowder. This workshop is not located in the city. It will be built next to the dock outside the west gate of the city."

Zhao Fei nodded and said: "Okay, Lang Jun, I understand."

Li Xin instructed: "This ammunition workshop must avoid fire. Here are some ammunition drawings. You can show them to the craftsmen and ask them to pay attention to safety when making them." With that, Li Xin handed over the ammunition drawings. Gave it to Zhao Fei.

Zhao Fei cupped his fists and said, "Well, Lang Jun, I remember."

Making cannonballs requires black powder, and the raw materials for black powder are nothing more than saltpeter, charcoal, and sulfur.

Li Xin had collected a lot through his job before, but sulfur was not as easy to obtain as charcoal and saltpeter, so the quantity of sulfur was not as sufficient as charcoal and saltpeter. Fortunately, according to later records, in the area of ​​Datun Mountain on the north side of Xinghan City It is a large sulfur mine, with sulfur reserves said to be more than two million tons.

When the population of Xinghan City increases, Li Xin will start to develop the mineral resources of Xinghan Island. The mineral resources of Xinghan Island are still good. Among them, coal resources are the largest, followed by gold and copper. It is distributed in the north. According to later records, the Ruifang area to the east of Jilong City is one of the main producing areas of coal mines. The Jinguashi area further east of Ruifang is the producing area of ​​gold, silver and copper. It can be said that the Xinghan City area occupied by Li Xin is a Treasure land.

Li Xin has started all the work he can. He has begun trial production of ships, artillery, swords, and ammunition. All that is left is to wait for the results. There is no rush for the musket for the time being. He will start developing the musket after the artillery is mature. In addition, there is something more important waiting for Li Xin to do, which is the cultivation of talents.

After Liu Yi took the Confucian scholars to divide the fields, Li Xin planned to give them the knowledge he wrote from later generations, let them digest it slowly, and while digesting it, he would teach the children as a teacher, Xinghan Island In such a large place, Li Xin plans to build fifteen cities. In the future, the entire island is expected to accommodate a population of four million people. It will take a lot of talent to manage such a large number of cities and a large population. With what Li Xin currently has on hand, Dozens of Confucian scholars are not enough.

Before Li Xin smoothly took over the Song Dynasty, talents could only be cultivated by Li Xin himself. Fortunately, Li Xin had plenty of time. Besides, Li Xin already had more than a hundred orphans under him who had studied for more than a year. They had good academic skills. , learn things quickly and are diligent. They wait for the Confucian scholars to receive new knowledge before teaching them. They can learn faster than ordinary children who have never read. In this way, they can also help the Confucian scholars teach other people who have not read. After all, there are thousands of children on the island now, and dozens of Confucian scholars alone cannot teach them all. Of course, more children will come to the island in the future.