65

They all left the camp together and walked for a while before arriving at a shack.

This workshop-like building was obviously newly built and was still very simple, but the smell of saltpeter and sulfur could be smelled from a long distance away.

"This is the firearms workshop. From now on, medicine and throwing jars will be prepared here." Cheng Xi introduced to everyone.

Hearing the footsteps, Ma Lao Er came out to greet them: "The gang leader is here? I just checked that small cannon, it should still be usable."

The three small cannons had been cleaned and placed outside, looking ready for test firing. Cheng Xi walked over, touched the cannon barrel, and asked, "Is this thing installed on the bow of the ship?"

"Yes, we usually load some buckshot and wait for the enemy ships to approach before firing a few shots one by one. But the gun body is not well made and cannot fire continuously. It can only fire three shots in a round at most before it stops and cools down." Ma Laoer said hurriedly.

It's finished after three shots, and they're shotguns. This thing is only slightly better than a decoration, but artillery is not the theme of today. Cheng Xi changed the subject: "Have those thunder pots and poison pots been made?"

Ma Lao Er quickly said, "I've made three cans of each, but the fuses seem too short. If I can't throw them out in time, it will be a big problem."

"Let's try it first." Cheng Xi said simply.

Ma Laoer wanted to say something, but didn't dare to say more. He sighed and brought back a few jars.

Cheng Xi took a wooden one and said, "This one is made of poisonous fire. The way you throw it is no different from throwing an oil can."

As she spoke, she lit the bamboo pot. While the fuse was hissing, she swung her arm vigorously, and the bamboo pot fell one hundred and fifty steps away. The next moment, thick smoke puffed out, choking people from a distance and making them cough.

"The thunder pot is filled with gunpowder, which can ignite enemy ships and injure the enemy." Cheng Xi took another pottery pot.

Before he could light it, Yan Yuan took it over: "Boss, let me do it."

Knowing that he was afraid of losing his grip, Cheng Xi raised an eyebrow and said, "You have to throw this farther. Do you see the straw over there?"

That was a full two hundred steps away. Yan Yuan didn't hesitate, lit the fuse, and immediately threw the can out.

Perhaps it was because the landing point was clever, the clay pot fell on the straw mat and did not break, but the next moment it exploded with a loud bang and burst into flames.

Li Fu had already realized it by now: "This is almost the same as an oil tank! Are we going to throw this away from now on?"

Isn't this a common tactic used by pirates? Throwing flammable objects to confuse the enemy, then boarding and seizing the deck.

They also threw oil tanks in the past, so isn’t it easy to change to another method now?

"It's not just about throwing projectiles. You'll also have to operate firearms, even cannons." Cheng Xi said, "Although the longbow will replace the short spear, the tasks on your shoulders will be even heavier. You must practice hard and don't slack off."

This is the future development direction of the fleet, and a gunner of a fleet is definitely the most trusted among the trusted.

Li Fu's face flushed with excitement. "As long as the gang leader thinks we are still useful, that's all! No matter what is thrown at us, we will not neglect it!"

Seeing his expression, Cheng Xi also nodded with a smile: "It's good to have such a spirit. In previous battles, we rarely encountered enemies that used fire attacks, but this may not be the case in the future. Moreover, our offense will gradually outnumber our defense. Your two teams are the outposts of the boarding battle and the key to capturing the deck. You must work together and not quarrel with each other."

If I had told him this before, Li Fu would definitely not be convinced.

But after witnessing Yan Yuan's amazing archery skills and the gang leader's careful arrangements, what else could he complain about?

Li Fu was also a straightforward person. He saluted Yan Yuan directly and said, "It is our fault that we have offended Chief Yan. I will definitely hold a banquet to apologize someday. I hope that Chief Yan will not bear grudges against us..."

Yan Yuan waved his hand casually: "We are brothers, there is no need for formalities!"

Seeing this calm attitude, not only Li Fu but also his subordinates felt relieved.

It seems that this Chief Yan is not as difficult to deal with as imagined. They are all one of us, so we have to get along well with them.

Yan Yuan glanced at the still burning straw mat again, and couldn't help feeling a little conflicted. Did the young lady really want to lead the firearms team herself? Wouldn't it be too dangerous?

But now he has learned his lesson and did not object immediately. He decided to just watch carefully from the side. If there are any problems, he can just check and correct them.

A deputy general must act like a deputy general and must never steal the limelight from the chief officer. This Red Flag Gang can only have one leader, no one else can do it!

"Just bury the beans in the ground? Isn't this land mostly sandy? Can we still grow beans?" Sun Erlang looked at the more than one acre of new field in front of him and couldn't help but feel doubtful.

The servant hurriedly said, "Beans and pumpkins are all planted this way. Because they grow in the ground, and the sandy soil is soft, they can actually produce more fruit."

This made sense, so Sun Erlang asked, "When will the pumpkins be planted?"

"It will probably take another month. If you plant it too early, it won't be easy for the seedlings to germinate. I've been planting these for a few years now, so it won't delay anything." The other party answered cautiously, as if he was facing a tenant of the master's family.

Looking at the servants before him who had some Li ethnicity, Sun Erlang said, "Since you've come to Luoling Island, you're farmers here. If you take good care of your crops, you can get land and houses, just like ordinary people."

This is different from what happened at the Lu family. That person nodded in agreement but didn't dare to believe it.

Seeing this, Sun Erlang didn't say much. There are still too few farmers on the island, so it's not surprising that they have doubts.

Moreover, they were all sent by the Lu family. There might be spies among them, so it would be safer to keep them here and farm.

No longer fretting over the beans, Sun Erlang continued his inspection. Within a few miles of the surrounding area were designated fields. Some had already been cultivated, with millet and beans being planted, while others were still being reclaimed. The oxen and plows that Master Lu had sent were put to good use, saving him a lot of trouble.

It’s just that it’s too late to plant early rice this year. If the summer wind disaster is not too serious, we can consider planting some late rice.

Once all the fields are opened up, houses can be built around the land to build a village. According to the gang leader's plan, this village will be home to about a hundred households. While people live there, they will open up the land and form a large village, which can then be developed deeper into the island.

In the first two years, people who came to the island were not subject to land tax, and they could build their own houses and live in them as long as they built within the planned area.

With such good conditions, we should still be able to recruit some people. Once we have recruited enough soldiers, we should consider the farmers. It all depends on Li Niu's methods...

Sun Erlang walked while thinking, and it didn't take long for him to reach the river.

Seeing him and his men coming, the old man who was busy by the river shouted, "Erlang is here! The construction of the overturned car is almost done. When will you finish building the house over there? Hurry up and send people to dig the ditch. If the ditch is not repaired, how will we farm in the future!"

Sun Erlang smiled and said, "Don't panic, uncle. We can't plant rice this spring anyway, so the ditches can wait a few more days. The camp should be completed next month, and we'll send people to help you dig the ditches."

Old Man Sun gritted his teeth as he listened. He leaned over and whispered, "You're completely clueless, kid! We're going to move people in to farm the land, and how can we survive without water? Look, the Lin family has already moved in with 30 households. What a head start they've got!"

Sun Erlang shook his head upon hearing this. "There are priorities. Right now, we should focus on building the camp. Without a solid camp, you won't be safe moving here. Besides, those in the Lin family are fishermen, and have nothing to do with this place."

Linjia Village is a typical fishing village and has close ties with the gang leader, so it was the first group to migrate.

The newcomers have already settled down in Changtan and built some thatched houses to live in. In the past few days, they have discovered a big fish nest and are happily fishing.

Their village is planning to move some people here to farm. Reclaiming wasteland and building canals will definitely take more time and is not something that can be done easily.

Since the gang leader has given him the task of building the camp, he cannot let personal interests override public ones and delay the important matter.

Seeing that the boy refused to listen, Old Man Sun stamped his feet, but did not dare to say anything more.

Now Sun Erlang is one of the most powerful figures in the Red Flag Gang. The whole village is relying on him. Even the elders in the village dare not point fingers at him.

Seeing Old Man Sun's expression, Sun Erlang stopped trying to persuade him and said, "Have you surveyed the ditch? Our farmland will all be along this river, so we need to plan it properly."

Old Man Sun blew his beard in anger: "I've been farming for ten years, and you still don't understand this? You haven't even touched a hoe, and you're still complaining here, get out of here!"

Sun Erlang's face turned serious. "I've never farmed before, but this whole business is under my control. The gang leader will be involved in this in the future, so I'll naturally have to understand everything."

Hearing the word "gang leader", Old Man Sun immediately shut up and snorted, "Well, in the future, canals will be dug on both sides of the river. We'll build four canals and just move along this river..."

Sun Erlang did not feel tired and followed the old man carefully all the way and listened to him all the way until he had a thorough understanding of the scale and direction of the ditch.

After finishing his business, he saw that Old Man Sun was still a little annoyed. He thought for a moment and said, "If you're interested, you can go see how those Li people grow beans and pumpkins. The gang leader is very concerned about these things. If you can also learn how to grow them, it will definitely be beneficial."

These words finally softened Old Man Sun's expression. He nodded thoughtfully, "Okay, I'll go back and take a look. If there's anything else I can grow on the island, I'll try it out."

He is not stupid. The rice harvest on the island is definitely not good.

Now the gang leader is paying attention to the fruits and vegetables that have been delivered one after another, and he must be hoping that the island can produce more food.

This land will be theirs in the future, so he has to think of some other ways.

Seeing that Old Man Sun had a plan in mind, Sun Erlang finally felt relieved and said goodbye. The construction of the canal was a big deal, so he had to report it to the gang leader as soon as possible.

After looking at the sky, Sun Erlang did not go to the training ground, but turned around and walked towards the newly built firearms workshop.

The gang leader has been staying there for the past few days, saying that he wanted to mix new ammunition and train the guys in the javelin throwing team.

Sun Erlang was quite looking forward to this. After all, for the boat gang, having cannons and not having cannons were completely different.

Since the gang leader can get a master who can make cannon powder, he has to practice hard.

The only problem is that saltpeter and sulfur are not cheap. Maybe when we build toilets in the future, we can consider scraping some saltpeter. The more we can save, the better...

I walked quickly to the door of the workshop, but before I entered, I heard two "boom" sounds from inside, followed by a scream.

Sun Erlang's face turned pale, and he rushed inside, shouting, "Boss! Are you okay?"

The words got stuck in his throat. He stared blankly at the yard and saw a group of people gathered in a circle. Some of them covered their ears, some squatted on the ground, and a few looked at him stupidly.

The small cannon was still smoking in the distance, but there were not many people standing nearby.

What's going on?

Cheng Xi heard the shouting and saw that it was Sun Erlang coming, so he explained: "It's okay, we just changed the gunpowder and everyone is not used to it yet."

Sun Erlang finally put his mind at ease and walked forward cautiously: "Changing the medicine so soon, won't there be any problems?"

This remark immediately resonated with Ma Laoer, who rushed out, "I knew it was inappropriate! How dare you randomly switch the medicine? If the barrel explodes, you'll be crippled if not dead!"

Sun Erlang's eyes widened when he heard this: "Boss, why don't you let someone else try it and stop worrying about it."

He had seen Old Man Ma's son before. If he got hurt in the explosion, it would be fatal. Anyone in the gang could take risks, except the leader!

Cheng Xi shook his head: "At least I know a little bit, so it's safer to keep an eye on it."

Sun Erlang was about to say something, but Li Fu had already come running back, excitedly holding a target. "Boss, that shot was really powerful! Look, the planks are cracked. If the cannon was bigger, it might have blasted a hole in the boat!"

A true naval gun is one that can directly sink an enemy ship. But forget about it now. Not only can we not afford to build one, but even if we did, we would have nowhere to put it.

With today's ship types, large-caliber guns can only be placed at the bow or stern. Placing them anywhere else may cause the ship to become unstable or even capsize due to recoil problems.

Only by improving the ship type, placing heavy guns inside the ship and firing through the portholes, can it be considered a true sailing battleship.

Of course, she absolutely can't afford to play it now.

At this time, Ma Ping came up with a red face and said, "Boss, this ingredient is stronger than the original one! You don't need to put so much in it, it will shoot farther and harder!"

"Gunpowder is the essence of artillery. The current formula is not good enough. You have to keep exploring. Remember to keep data every time you test the gunpowder. There must be ratios, the amount of gunpowder to be filled, and the accurate range. Nothing can be neglected." Cheng Xi was really satisfied with Ma Ping. This kid was smart. He dared to think and act, and he would not be bound by "established rules."

With this spirit of exploration, combined with what she knew, improving the artillery would naturally be much easier.

No matter how little she knew about mixing medicine, she knew the old saying in "Land Mine Warfare": "One nitrate, two sulfur, three charcoal." This is not just an abbreviation of the chemical formula, but also includes the ratio of the amount of medicine. Although it is measured in kilograms, it is very close to the standard black powder formula.

There are some differences in the ingredients of gun medicine and cannon medicine, and the purification effect is still imperfect, so more experiments are needed.

However, the existing results are already pretty good. You should know that the garrisons now prepare artillery ammunition according to the "Five Elements", and the resulting recipe is a strange 2:1:1, which is only slightly better than fireworks. How can it be used in actual combat?

Ma Laoer, standing aside, had a long face and was speechless.

He was also an experienced doctor, so how could he not know the power of a single shot? He had never imagined that such a drastic change in the recipe could increase the firepower.

More importantly, Gang Leader Cheng is not a careless and reckless man. The test of the gunpowder is divided into seven or eight steps, and the dosage is added little by little. The actual loading is not done by directly poking the red-hot iron pin into the gun hole, but the fuse is pulled out every time. The person testing the gun is asked to stay far away and wear heavy armor filled with sand to avoid any problems.

This is much better than those officials who don't care about the lives of craftsmen, and it is difficult for them to complain.

After all, my son has just cheered up and no longer looks half-dead as before.

Having said that, the hurdle in my heart is not easy to get over. I just hope that we can come up with a solution as soon as possible so that he won't have to worry anymore.

But Ma Ping didn't care about his father's opinion. He nodded excitedly and said, "Don't worry, boss. I will try other ratios, but I think it will only be minor adjustments, not major changes. I also have an idea for the granulation method. I'll give it a try in a couple of days!"

It is also necessary to granulate the gunpowder and reduce the combustion rate to avoid accidents caused by excessive chamber pressure.

Of course, there are also methods of waterproofing and anti-static such as waxing and rolling graphite, which also need to be tested step by step.

Cheng Xi smiled and said, "Take your time. Don't rush. From now on, the ammunition must be packaged in fixed quantities. We must not allow for explosions due to operational problems. We also need to take into account the differences between cannonballs and shotgun shells. The more refined, the better."

In daily training, it is best to treat soldiers as fools, standardize all weapons, stick to standards, and regulated movements. This will form conditioned reflexes and avoid mistakes on the battlefield due to various problems.

The same is true for firing cannons and dropping bombs.

Then she turned to look at Li Fu and said, "When you're training, you have to be alert. Even if you're not using live ammunition, you can't let your guard down. I'll have Master Ma improve the mine can, but no matter how much it's improved, it's still a mine can. If you can't throw it, the ones who get hurt are our own people."

Not to mention this era, even in modern times there are still recruits who are not careful and cause bombing errors.

If she can't learn it, she really has to consider using incendiary bombs instead of grenades.

Li Fu immediately said, "If anyone dares not to be serious, I will whip them! This thunder pot is a good thing, we must practice it!"

After several days of training, Li Fu gradually understood the power of firearms.

The cannon is definitely the most powerful, and the next is the thunder pot. This thing will explode when thrown over. If you fill it with some iron sand, it will really blow up a group of people. The movement can also scare the enemy. It is much more powerful than the poison fire pot and the oil pot!

Of course, he now also knows the power of gunpowder. Master Xiao Ma, the medicine maker, is by his side every day. His scars and broken fingers are more effective than any warning.

Because of this, several guys in the team were scared and applied to be transferred to the crossbow team.

Li Fu didn't care. His team didn't accept cowards. They had to be brave and careful men. Those cowards would be accepted by Yan!

After giving a few more careful instructions, Cheng Xi walked aside with Sun Erlang and listened to his report.

Knowing the peanuts had been planted and the sweet potatoes would be ready soon, she breathed a sigh of relief. "We need to pay attention to both of these; maybe the island will depend on them in the future. As for the other fields, we'll still have to rotate them. The soil is too weak, so the harvest may not be ideal. But we should grow more vegetables, and we can raise some sheep and ducks. Free-range farming on the island shouldn't be too much of a problem, and it can also provide some meat."

Sun Erlang immediately took note and continued, "The camp will be mostly finished next month, and we'll need to deploy some people to dig the canal. The canal is almost planned, and we'll need to set up some more diversion vehicles..."

He recounted everything he had heard in detail, and Cheng Xi nodded. "I'll draw up a blueprint later and consult with some people. Irrigation is a big deal, and we also have to consider the island's water supply. By the way, has the doctor I needed arrived?"

"I heard that the next batch will be delivered soon." Sun Erlang said immediately.

"That's good." Cheng Xi also breathed a sigh of relief. "Medicine is life-saving and cannot be neglected. In the future, we can open a medicine garden on the island and grow some medicinal herbs."

Of course, these are just a cover to some extent. What’s important is that she has prepared another way out for the women’s camp. It just depends on whether she can achieve her wish.