In the fourteenth year of Chongzhen, the twelfth day of the first month.

Li Yan, Li Zhong, Li Mou, Li You, and Li Dong came to the test firing range.

Li Mu asked, "Fourth brother, what are you going to do?" This is the twelfth time he has asked this question. Originally, it was said that he would report after fifteen, but today they were called here early in the morning.

"Wait a minute, you'll know right away." Li Yan said.

After a while, Sun Sifu came over and whispered a few words in Li Yan's ear.

Li Yan smiled and said to his brothers: "You wait, I'll come when I go." So saying, he walked into the distance.

Li Mu asked Li Zhong, "Second brother, what is the fourth brother going to do?" ”

Li Zhong shook his head, pointed to the six straw men with armor and shields in front of him, and said, "He didn't tell me either, but looking at this arrangement, it should be to test the firecracker, right?" ”

"Fire Hammer," Li You said suspiciously, "We've also seen that long Fire Gun, there's no need to be so mysterious, right?" ”

As they were talking, they saw Li Yan wearing chain mail, wearing an eight-petal iron helmet, and the horse he was riding was also wearing a vest.

"Is this going to be a cavalry charge?" Li Mu looked at Li Yan in the distance and said in a low voice.

Li Yan checked the handcuff inserted in the front of the saddle to make sure that the striking iron of the handcuff was in a safe position, and tamped the ammunition again with a strip, and then inserted the handcuff in its original position. The handcuff has a barrel diagonally upwards and the handle is inserted into the ring, so that the ammunition in the barrel does not loosen when the horse runs. There was a small iron ring under the handle, on which was a rope more than two feet long, and the other end was tied to the saddle.

When he was ready, he waved his hand to the brothers over there, and then knocked the horse's belly and let the horse slowly start running.

The horse slowly increased its speed, and it got closer and closer to the straw man. When he had approached forty paces, he drew out with his left hand a steel whip that hung on the left side of the saddle and held it in his hand. The right hand pulls out the handcuff, pulls the thumb to pull the striking iron to the firing position, and then fires immediately.

A "bang" of gunfire rang out, and a straw man with a shield twenty paces away from him fell in response.

As soon as he let go, the handcuff fell naturally and hung on the right side of the horse. Then he immediately took the steel whip in his left hand with his right hand and smashed it the second straw man, and the second straw man was also knocked down. After continuing to charge, he threw his hand back, and the steel whip smashed right on the back of the third straw man, and the third straw man also fell.

These movements take a long time, but they only happen between a few breaths. Li Zhong and a few of them in the distance heard the sound of firecrackers, and then saw the first straw man falling. Later, when he saw Li Yan waving his weapon twice, he knocked down two more straw men. After that, the warhorse quickly rushed forward, past the three straw men placed in reverse.

After Li Yan rushed out for a distance, he slowed down the war horse. Then he put away the handcuff hanging from the side of the horse, and took out the firearm that was inserted a little below, and inserted the firearm in the cloth ring underneath. He began to check the newly acquired firecrackle again, and inserted it in the top position.

He then turned his horse around and charged at the straw man again. It's still the same action, the same time in a few breaths, and cleanly knocking down all the remaining three straw men.

Li Yan let the war horse slow down, and then slowly ran in front of Li Zhong and them. He dismounted and asked, "How's it going?" Such cavalry is okay, right? ”

Li Zhong, Li You, and Li Dong did not speak, and only Li Mu had the right to speak here.

Li Mu went over, circled around the war horse twice, and carefully looked at the handcuffs and steel whips inserted on the war horse. He couldn't stop nodding and praised: "Not bad, not bad." With four handcuffs, you can fight two rounds (one round at a time). As long as there are 3,000 such cavalry, you can crush the enemy's 10,000 cavalry! ”

Li Zhong took out a hexagonal steel whip more than three feet long, checked it, and said, "This is good, no matter whether the enemy is wearing armor or not, as long as he hits it, he can't hold the knife." ”

Li Yan said with a smile: "This is forged from stainless steel, which is strong but not brittle. Even if it comes into contact with enemy weapons and armor, it will not bend or break. ”

"Fourth brother," Li You asked, "Why don't you use double whips?" You can ride and shoot. ”

Li Yan explained: "We are training ordinary cavalry, if all cavalry can train their legs to control horses, then they will have to practice until the Year of the Monkey." It is better to train the horse with one hand and the whip with the other. ”

Li Mu picked up a handcuff, looked at it, and found that in addition to an iron ring bolt rope under the handle, there was also an iron retainer on the outside of the trigger. He asked, "Fourth brother, what is this for?" ”

"This retainer was deliberately added to prevent the trigger hook from hanging somewhere, so that the striking iron could fall and the buckle spring would be opened. If that happens, the gunpowder in the medicine pool will spill out, and the gun won't go off. Li Yan explained.

Li Mu nodded and said, "Oh." That's good, give me a few first. ”

Li Yan shook his head and said, "That's not good, at most one of you will be given one." Now the production of handcuffs is not high, so let the cavalry take it for training. "Although the handcuffs can produce about forty pieces a month, the lifespan is only two hundred rounds of ammunition, and when a cavalryman is trained, one handcuff is basically useless.

"One will do." Li Mu said happily: "This is a good thing." As long as you're ready, raise your hand and hit. This power, even if you wear two layers of armor, may not be able to stop it. ”

Li Yan said with a smile: "Then you have to train diligently, otherwise if the ammunition is not tightly breathed, it will not have much power." ”

"Fourth brother, rest assured, these life-saving things, we will naturally practice from time to time." Li Mu said immediately.

Li Zhong reminded: "There are only two handcuffs on the left and right sides, and a steel whip on the left side, is there a little less insurance." If the steel whip is out of hand, and it is melee combat, it will be dangerous. ”

Li Yan nodded in agreement and asked, "How about adding another one-handed long knife?" ”

"Well, that's fine, a blunt weapon, a sharp blade, and it's easy to choose when dealing with different enemies." Li Zhong thought for a moment and agreed.

They now have more than 100 cavalrymen, but there are only about 30 war horses, and three or four people are trained on one horse. The most important thing for them now is to find enough horses first, so that at least all of their cavalry have horses.

Only Chen Yongfu was the most powerful around Qi County, but they fell out with Chen Yongfu. If it weren't for the chaos in Henan now, Chen Yongfu's task of guarding Kaifeng would be arduous, not to mention trading war horses with them, maybe he would be trying every means to clean them up now.

Li Yan and the others can only buy one or two horses from other garrisons now, and they can't solve the problem of lack of horses at all.