novelhk Page 889
Page 889
It was placed into the barrel of the cannon.
Then, through a small hole behind the cannon...
A small hemp rope was stuffed inside.
"Brother, let's all hide behind that embankment first,"
Liu Huiniang pointed to the back of the cannons.
A retaining wall built of earth.
"This cannon was just built,"
"The power is still somewhat out of control."
"Yesterday, during my experiment, one of the cannons suddenly exploded on the spot,"
"Luckily, I had your prior instructions, brother."
"Otherwise, there would definitely have been many casualties from yesterday's explosion."
"Um,"
Everyone retreated behind the retaining wall.
A soldier was holding a long pole.
Ignite its front end.
Then extend the pole.
They carefully lit the fuse behind the cannon.
then,
The soldiers quickly shrank back into their positions.
They hid behind the retaining wall!
After a while,
A loud "bang"
It suddenly rang out!
Unlike what I heard from a distance earlier,
This time,
Their distance from the artillery position
It was only about five or six zhang in front and behind.
That enormous roar.
They immediately heard everyone's ears.
They were all buzzing and exploding.
I couldn't hear anything for a long time...
Chapter 1097 This power is incredible!
After a while,
Only then did Zhao Yuan and the others understand what the other was saying.
"It sounded like thunder from a distance."
Zhu Wu couldn't help but sigh,
"Now come closer and listen,"
"This is not just a thunderous sound, it's much louder."
"If this item were used on that battlefield,"
Even if it doesn't scare the enemy soldiers,
"It will definitely terrify all the horses."
"But we also have our own cavalry,"
Xu Guanzhong shook his head and said,
"If we use it suddenly, I'm afraid the enemy's horses won't be startled before our own cavalry is frightened."
"But if we let our cavalry get used to this sound first,"
"I'm afraid it won't be long before this thing can no longer be considered a secret."
"It's alright, we know what the government troops are like,"
Zhao Yuan laughed.
"It was the news of these cannons that got out,"
"I'm afraid the government troops won't pay much attention to it at first."
"If we don't make them suffer a great loss, the government troops won't take these cannons seriously."
"Alright, why are you bringing this up now?"
Liu Huiniang urged,
"Brother, take a look at the power of this cannon!"
Zhao Yuan led Xu Guanzhong and Zhu Wu out of the earthen retaining wall.
Then I saw,
Not far away, on the target made of thick wooden planks,
Another huge hole has appeared!
The three of them quickly stepped forward.
Xu Guanzhong reached out and measured the thickness of the wooden board.
"This board is already at least half a foot long,"
"This cannon can actually penetrate it!"
"Even if it were armored, it would probably be smashed to pieces."
"This power is far greater than the octagonal crossbows used by the government troops,"
Zhu Wu also clicked his tongue in amazement.
"But look at this cannon, it's made of bronze,"
"I wonder how many copper coins it would take to build such a gate."
"This one item cost over ten thousand strings of cash,"
Liu Huiniang introduced,
"A solid iron ball will suffice for the shell,"
"The main problem is that gunpowder is not easy to manufacture."
"Over ten thousand strings of cash? That's way too expensive!"
Zhu Wu couldn't help but say,
“I heard that the government troops got an octagonal crossbow, and a single one only costs six or seven thousand strings of cash.”
"This is still in the experimental stage,"
Zhao Yuan explained,
"We will gradually try to use iron to cast cannons later!"
"If the cannon were cast from iron, then considering its power,"
Zhu Wu laughed,
"It's really worth it."
"The main problem is that gunpowder is difficult to manufacture,"
Zhao Yuan also said,
"Especially the saltpeter,"
"We have to scavenge in places like toilets and pigsties,"
"The gunpowder we plundered from Liangshan in a month,"
"It's only enough for thirty or forty shots."
"Brother, why don't we get the town to start buying saltpeter too?"
Liu Huiniang suggested,
"Outside, saltpeter is generally used in medicine or alchemy,"
"The price isn't too high."
"Even if we buy in large quantities, it won't cost us much money."
"Um,"
Zhao Yuan nodded.
"It's not just saltpeter, but also sulfur and charcoal."
"If we rely solely on our own production in Liangshan, we might not be able to keep up when we build more cannons in the future."
"Let's take advantage of this now; the outside world doesn't know yet when this gunpowder will be useful."
"Then we'll go all out and buy in large quantities!"
"That works too,"
Liu Huiniang agreed.
"But all three of these items are flammable,"
"Brother, you must make sure to instruct the leader in charge of the acquisition,"
"Smoking and open flames must be strictly prohibited when storing these items."
"This matter is of great importance,"
Zhao Yuan looked at Xu Guanzhong.
"Then let Military Advisor Xu take charge."
"Rest assured, Chieftain,"
Xu Guanzhong laughed,
"Look at the power of this cannon,"
"Regarding the acquisition of gunpowder materials,"
"I will definitely use my experience."
"Um,"
Zhao Yuan nodded.
He then looked at Liu Huiniang.
"Oh right, what about the tiger-squatting cannon I told you about before, and the muskets?"
"How is their development progressing?"
"I've already built that kind of tiger-squatting cannon,"
Liu Huiniang said,
"And because that cannon used a small amount of gunpowder,"
"Its power is not comparable to this bronze cannon,"