The patient lay on his side on a straw mat in a room filled with a foul smell. There is a smell of sweat, a smell of feet, and more prominently, a smell of decay.

Wang Qinian stood behind Wei Ze with a nervous expression, Wei Ze lifted a sheet covering the patient's body, and then couldn't help but close his eyes. This person is Wang Qinian's younger brother Wang Qisheng, and the two brothers also opened a shop in Guiyang Prefecture. The two of them have good crafts and a good business. The two brothers don't like to get into trouble, but when they make money, some people look at them unpleasantly. The two offended the local wealthy family in Guiyang Prefecture.

Li Qizhao, the governor of Guiyang Prefecture, was a cool official who used very cruel means to fight the local rebels. If the rich give money, it is not a matter for Li Qizhao to catch more "Diao Min". Wang Qinian saw that something was wrong and immediately ran away. His younger brother was arrested and beaten to the point of the yamen of the state city.

After Wei Ze entered Guiyang City, he released these poor people, and Wang Qinian also ran into the city and took his younger brother Wang Qisheng home. Not long after, the Taiping army withdrew from Guiyang after defeating the Qing army, and Wang Qinian was worried that the rich family he had offended would report Wang Qinian's brothers after the Qing army returned to Guiyang, and then there would be no more Taiping soldiers to release prisoners.

He took his seriously injured brother and his men to Yongxing, and his brother began to have a high fever, and the wound he was injured was suppurating badly. found a doctor for treatment, and the doctor only looked at the wound and asked Wang Qinian to prepare for the future. Wang Qinian didn't want to have anything to do with the Taiping Army, but in Yongxing, the only doctor Wang Qinian didn't go to find was the Taiping Army's hospital near the artillery casting field. Unexpectedly, as soon as he arrived near the cannon casting field, he was seen by his junior brother and distant cousin Wang Qixiu. Wang Qinian really had no choice, so he asked Wei Ze to treat his brother on the grounds of agreeing to cast cannons for the Taiping Army.

"Brother Wang, Brother Ling's injury is too serious, I can treat him, but don't expect me to be cured. If he doesn't make it, don't blame me. Wei Ze covered the injured with a sheet, turned to Wang Qinian and said. He had just touched the forehead of the wounded, felt hot like coals, and pressed the artery in the wounded's neck slightly, and the wounded's pulse was beating extremely fast. And those huge wounds were red and white, and they were blood and pus. This kind of injury, this situation, Wei Ze really can't say anything to Wang Qinian that can be cured.

This is not the first time Wang Qinian has heard this kind of words, knowing from the words that Wei Ze is willing to treat his younger brother, Wang Qinian already feels that he can't help but have some hope, "Master Wei, if you are willing to make a move, then I will thank you so much!" My brother is ......, if he can get through, it's his life, if he can't get through, it's also life! ”

Speaking of this, Wang Qinian couldn't help but cry.

That's what Wei Ze wants, this kind of injury can't last in this era. If it was someone else, Weser didn't care at all. But a craftsman like Wang Qinian, who has experience in cannon casting, has to talk about it first. If it hasn't been cured after boasting, then Wei Zezhi is counting on Wang Qinian to help. The technology industry is like a mountain, even if Wang Qinian is forcibly tied up, but if Wang Qinian is a ghost inside, Wei Ze can only stare and be deceived.

"Then let me take Brother Ling to our hospital first, and let the doctor treat him quickly. During this treatment, Brother Wang couldn't go to see Brother Ling. Weeser said.

Wang Qinian knew what Wei Ze meant, and he said, "Master Wei, I'm in a mess now, even if I go to cast a cannon for you, I can't cast it well." ”

Wei Ze laughed dryly, "This is easy to say, this is easy to say." I think Brother Wang is also tired these days, so take a rest first. Wait for our news. ”

sent someone to transport Wang Qinian's younger brother Wang Qisheng to the hospital, and Wei Ze called Lin Asheng, the director of the logistics department and military hospital, aside and told Lin Asheng about Wei Ze's treatment plan.

Lin Asheng's eyes widened, "Prime Minister! Your ...... method is so evil! ”

Wei Ze asked with a stiff face, "Don't use this evil method, do you have any other way?" Besides, if this method works, won't our brothers also have a cure? ”

Lin Asheng lowered his head and thought for a moment, and finally nodded and replied, "I'll do it now." ”

Wang Qinian asked Wei Ze to take his younger brother away, he actually wanted to follow, but his brother's injury was so serious, he also knew that he was afraid that he would not last long. Sitting there in a daze, before I knew it, Wang Qinian fell asleep on the table.

Suddenly, Wang Qinian screamed and woke up from his dream. He first subconsciously looked at the bed, but saw that there was no one on the bed at all, and he stared for a moment before remembering that his brother had been picked up by Wei Ze. Fang just had a nightmare about the death of his younger brother, Wang Qinian couldn't sleep anymore, he got up and went to the military hospital of the Taiping Army. When they arrived at the door, they were blocked by the guards. Wang Qinian said that he came to see his brother, and the guard said: "It's getting late now, outsiders are not allowed to enter or leave the hospital, you can come back tomorrow." ”

Recalling what Wei Ze said during the day, Wang Qinian also knew that Wei Ze might not be joking. He had to go back.

Early the next morning, Wang Qinian rushed to the hospital. This time, the guards let him in, and in a ward with strange simple symbols on the door, Wang Qinian saw his brother lying straight on the bed with a cloth on his forehead. It is customary here to put a cloth on the face of the deceased. Wang Qinian thought that his younger brother was dead, and was about to pounce on him to cry, but he saw his younger brother's throat squirm and his body moved.

Only then did Wang Qinian know that his younger brother was still alive, and then look at the cloth, it was wet, and it should be used for cold compresses. Walking in front of his younger brother in three steps and two steps, Wang Qinian touched his younger brother's face, only to feel that his face was cold, and the fever had subsided. When the cloth sheet was lifted, several purulent wounds on his brother's body were red and scarred with a thin layer of scabs. It's not the pus and blood it was like yesterday.

Even if he doesn't understand medical skills, Wang Qinian knows that his younger brother Wang Qisheng is saved. sat on the empty bed opposite, Wang Qinian couldn't help but cover his face and cry.

Two days later, Wei Ze inquired about Lin Asheng and Wang Qisheng's injuries. Lin Asheng had an indescribable expression on his face, "Prime Minister! I'm convinced of you! You can come up with a way to do that, but it works! I don't believe it if I didn't see it with my own eyes, and I killed me. ”

"Alright, alright!" Wei Ze interrupted Lin Asheng's words, "Then Wang Qinian didn't say anything?" ”

Referring to Wang Qinian, Lin Asheng said angrily: "Alas! Prime Minister, I think Wang Qinian just doesn't want to have anything to do with us at all. Until now, he just went to see his brother every day, and didn't say anything else. If we hadn't entered Guiyang Prefecture, his younger brother would have been shackled to death in front of the state capital by now. Now we've cured his brother again. Even if it is a person who has a deep hatred with us in the past, after receiving such a favor from us, he must say a scene of gratitude. I heard that this Wang Qinian personally said that he would cast cannons for us, but now there is no movement, I didn't expect this person to be an ungrateful villain! ”

Wei Ze was also very helpless about this, he really wanted Wang Qinian to cast a cannon for himself, but Wei Ze didn't want Wang Qinian to perfunctory himself. In the past two days, the casting of cannons has been very unsmooth, the problem of trachoma is very strict, even if a lot of tools provided by Wei Ze are taken, there is still no way to solve this problem, a total of four cannons have been cast, and none of them can be cast without trachoma. Weeser once heard a joke about the Manchu cannon casting, saying that pouring water into the sand hole of the cannon could pour a bowl of water.

After personally participating in the cannon casting, Wei Ze realized that it was really just a joke. His own military workers and the blacksmiths involved in the cannon casting were not negligent in their duties, but they could pour a small half bowl of water into the sandhole. In the heat of thousands of degrees, if you are not careful, you will either die or be injured, in such a fire cave-like environment, who can really deliberately derelict their duties?

So Wei Ze said to Lin Asheng: "Okay, okay!" Minister Lin, everyone has their own ambitions. Besides, Wang Qinian's younger brother Wang Qixiu is now casting cannons for us, and he doesn't look at the face of the monk to see the face of the Buddha. You have to save some face for Wang Qixiu, and you tell the brothers in the hospital that no one is allowed to mention this matter. ”

After another two days, Wang Qinian's younger brother Wang Qisheng completely lost his fever. After all, he was a young man, with a strong body, and although the wound was once suppurated, the pus had not yet entered the blood vessels, and after the wound was gone, it quickly scabbed. Now I have been able to start drinking gruel.

Wang Qinian finally took the initiative to appear in Wei Ze's cannon casting field, and when he saw Wei Ze, Wang Qinian knelt down and kowtowed to Wei Ze, "Thank you Master Wei for saving my brother." ”

Half a year has passed in this era, and Wei Ze is still not used to others kneeling for him. In Wei Ze's troops, they replaced kneeling with a salute. He hurriedly helped Wang Qinian up, "Since I promised you, Brother Wang, I naturally want to save your brother." ”

The words in this are also squeezing Wang Qinian, Wang Qinian blushed slightly after hearing this, and he replied: "Master Wei, I'm going to be sorry for you!" The last time I talked about casting cannons for you, I was lying nonsense. ”

These words made Wei Ze's heart feel cold. No matter what he said about giving Wang Qixiu face, Wei Ze became more and more uneasy in his heart when facing Wang Qinian. He was persecuted by the Manchu government, and his younger brother almost died in the hands of the Manchu government, and this time he almost lost his life because of the injuries he was injured after being caught by the government. If he was a person who dared to rebel, he should have joined the army a long time ago. But Wang Qinian has not said anything until now, and he has not even fulfilled the words he has said. I'm afraid that Wang Qinian doesn't want to cast a cannon for Wei Ze at all.

Now listening to Wang Qinian personally admit that he had told a lie, Wei Ze guessed that Wang Qinian was going to say that he couldn't promise to cast cannons. Although he was very unhappy in his heart, Wei Ze didn't want to persecute it too much, he smiled dryly: "Brother Wang, if you refuse to help me cast a cannon, it's nothing." Do people have their own aspirations......"

"Master Wei, it's not that I don't want to cast a cannon for you!" Wang Qinian hurriedly argued.

Wei Ze laughed dryly twice, but there was no interface. Things have come to this point, and he really wants to hear what reasonable words Wang Qinian is going to say.

Wang Qinian said slowly: "Master Wei, when I followed my master to cast cannons, it was more than ten years ago, and I was only 15 years old at that time, so I could only give my master a hand. As for what was so particular about casting the cannon, I just heard from Master at the time. I haven't cast a cannon for more than ten years, and I've almost forgotten it. At that time, I told Master Wei that I was willing to cast a cannon for you, but at that time I was anxious, so I could only pick up what you liked to hear. In the past few days, I have been thinking about what Master told me when I was casting the cannon more than ten years ago. Now I feel that I can think of it and remember it, so I dare to come to Master Wei. ”

Wei Ze thought that he had mistaken Wang Qinian, and he had illusions about Wang Qinian's mistake. After listening to Wang Qinian's truth, Wei Zexian may not have mistaken Wang Qinian's personality, but he was wrong from the beginning. Hearing that Wang Qinian had cast cannons, Wei Ze thought that Wang Qinian was proficient in the art of casting cannons in this era. That's where Weeser went wrong.

Wei Ze couldn't help but smile and said, "Then Brother Wang can go to cast cannons now, right?" ”

"I'm willing to cast a cannon for Master Wei!" Wang Qinian replied seriously.

Although Wang Qinian may have forgotten about the technology of casting cannons for a long time, as a blacksmith, his skills are not blown. When he arrived at the cannon casting field, Wang Qinian's whole person looked different.

Wang Qixiu hurriedly handed Wang Qinian a pair of smoked glasses, which were the products that Wei Ze and they prescribed. Headglasses are not popular in China these days, but they are not particularly rare. Although these smoked lenses are not as good as sunglasses, they can also be worn to observe molten iron.

"It's a nice thing!" After Wang Qinian put it on, he first praised it, and then said, "But it's a little dizzy." ”

Flat glasses are not popular in this era, and glasses with prescription will naturally make people with normal vision feel uncomfortable.

Skilled craftsmen know how to observe molten iron, and can distinguish what kind of molten iron has been practiced from the color and brightness. In Weeser's time, the technicians of the steel mill may still have this ability, but this ability is because they have seen too much molten iron, and they really do not rely on their eyes to test the composition of molten iron.

Wang Qinian stood in front of the molten iron furnace and regularly observed the color and brightness of the molten iron. Wei Ze felt that Wang Qixiu was able to endure the high temperature, but compared with Wang Qinian, this was a superior argument. Wang Qinian didn't seem to feel the heat at all, and his attitude was much more focused than Wang Qixiu.

And for the crane and pulley block designed by Wei Ze, Wang Qinian only watched it once, and he was able to operate it very skillfully, as if it was designed by him. Such a standard surprised Wei Ze even more.

On the same day, Wang Qinian presided over the casting of cannons twice, and both times they cast quite qualified products. The color of the gun body is uniform, and there is no trachoma. Even a few small holes are extremely shallow, which does not affect the quality of the artillery at all.

At this point, the technology that Weeser was able to provide was finally put to use. Weize let the cannon melt down again, and put the newly cast iron cannon into a circular furnace heated with coal outside, so as not to cool it quickly. Weeser then put a cooler with internal circulating water into the still red barrel of the iron cannon from above, this cooling device does not touch the barrel, but only takes the heat away from the barrel by air exchange.

The circular path on the outside of the barrel is continuously heated, making the outer wall of the cannon hotter than the inner wall. This is the Rodman cannon casting method developed by the Americans in 186o, which is said to create a certain self-tightening effect of the barrel, which greatly improves the life of the barrel.

When the muzzle of the cannon changed from red-hot to ordinary temperature, Weeser removed the circular furnace on the outside, and this time the iron cannon bore wall was very thin. Weeser wrapped two layers of iron bars clockwise and counterclockwise around the outside of the cannon in the same way that he used to make the Zuò Migne rifle. Even with such safety measures, the guns were very light.

It was a three-pounder gun with five times the barrel, and it could be loaded on wheels and marched with the troops. If you encounter a place where the wheels cannot travel, there is no problem with leaning on the back of the person. In the American Revolutionary War of 1776, this three-pounder gun showed its skills, and in 1846, the United States completely abandoned the three-pounder gun and adopted the six-pounder gun.

But for a force like Weizer, who was accustomed to field warfare, the three-pounder cannon that could move swiftly in the mountains and water networks south of the Yangtze River was precisely the weapon that the troops needed most.

Casting the cannon he hoped for, Wei Ze immediately carried out the full gunpowder loading of the barrel. The artillery withstood the test, the shells were fired, and the barrels were unharmed.

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