The 1st Division has been withdrawn from Fujian to Shandong one after another, and the brigade commanders of the 1st Division who have returned to Shandong are all very curious about the new firearms of the Ordnance Bureau.

It is rumored that the Ordnance Bureau has developed a super-powerful firearm, and I heard that this firearm is still lethal at a distance of two thousand meters, and the rate of fire is extremely fast.

"Really? Can you kill someone two kilometers away? Zhao Yong asked in disbelief, everyone was also skeptical, Li Ran said, "Why don't we go to the prince together and ask." ”

"Okay!" Wang Wenyue said excitedly: "I think it's true that the Academy of Science and Technology has developed a new gunpowder." ”

A group of people arrived at Zhao Yan's office with a lot of gossip, Zhao Yanzheng was fine, seeing that they were so curious, he smiled and said, "Okay, then I'll take you to see and see." ”

A group of men followed him and rode their horses to the Ordnance Bureau.

At the weapons test site, a heavy machine gun mount was there, and sandbags were placed on the side, forming a simple fortification. Several weapons testers pried open the wooden box, revealing an old canvas bullet.

Then skillfully load the canvas bullet onto the machine gun.

"Let's get started!" Zhao Yan saw that he was ready, so he said to the test firing personnel.

"Yes." The test-firing personnel immediately pulled the trigger, only to see that when the trigger was pulled, a row of bullets was shot out with a clatter.

The wooden target placed 500 meters away was suddenly beaten to sawdust, it was all 20mm thick hardwood, under the continuous blow of this heavy machine gun, the wooden target had been destroyed in a short time, but the shooting continued one after another. Zhao Yong and the others were dumbfounded.

Hurry, it's so fast!

The ordinary musket was loaded with bullets one after another, but this machine gun was continuous, and the canvas bullets continued to move towards the machine gun under the traction of the deputy shooter, and one bullet after another shot out rapidly.

"Obediently, when we landed in Zhenjiang, we had to have this kind of machine gun, and it wouldn't be enough to pee our pants." Li Ran couldn't help but think of the Zhenjiang landing battle that year, when the strength of a battalion relied on the firepower of artillery and rockets, as well as the fortifications to block the attack of Jianyu.

If there were such machine guns at that time, a dozen of them would have killed the corpses.

"Childe, look, when will we be able to equip this heavy machine gun with our first brigade." Zhao Yong rubbed his hands and asked Zhao Yan with a smile.

"I'm afraid it's not so soon, you all have to wait for next year!" Zhao Yan said: "Now the production of smokeless gunpowder is unsafe and prone to accidents, and after a while, safe smokeless gunpowder will come out." ”

"Childe, we have such a powerful weapon, pikemen are useless." Wang Wenyue said.

"It's still useful for the time being, and when our third-generation rifles come out, the pikemen will be completely eliminated." Zhao Yan nodded and said.

"It's so fast!"

Everyone couldn't help but sigh.

When Zhao Yan took them to raise troops in Zhaojiabao, they still used spears and long bows, and in just a few years, the Shandong army already had excellent firearms.

By this time, the pikemen were about to withdraw from the battlefield.

"From next year to the year after, our Shandong Army will carry out further adjustments, and at that time, all divisions will be built into combat units mainly with machine guns and artillery." Zhao Yan said.

"Childe, our troops don't need so many cannons, it feels like a drag oil bottle." Zhao Yong said, Wang Wenyue and they couldn't help nodding.

"Artillery is indeed a drag oil bottle before there is no strong enemy, but if we do not pay attention to the development of artillery, sooner or later it will be surpassed by others, so we must not put swords and guns into storage, and our artillery must continue to develop." Zhao Yan understood their thoughts, after all, now the strong enemies around Daming have basically been swept away, and now they are dealing with some enemies with weak combat effectiveness, and the artillery is indeed useless, and it feels a bit like killing chickens with a knife. The artillery is moving slowly, and the logistical supply depends on the surname Qiang, which is indeed a bit of a drag on the oil bottle.

The French also thought that the artillery was dragging oil bottles, and as a result, they were beaten to death by the German artillery, and for Zhao Yan, who crossed over, this basic mistake would not be made.

Zhao Yan gave them a theoretical lesson on the spot, emphasizing the role of artillery and machine guns. In the future, infantry divisions will form their operational core around machine guns, and artillery will be an indispensable firepower to cover the infantry.

Now the Shandong army has been more proficient in infantry and artillery coordination, and the artillery has also developed to the extreme of the current conditions in terms of mobility, all artillery is dragged by horses, and the largest heavy artillery is dragged by 16 horses, but the number of artillery to that exaggerated level is not much.

When the yellow powder and yellow explosives are made, the power of the cannon will be greatly increased.

Yellow powder will increase the range of artillery, yellow explosives will increase the explosive power of shells, and then the shells of the Shandong army will not be so easy to bear.

The Academy of Science and Technology is stepping up research on yellow explosives, and Zhao Yan's formula has been given, and after several months of research, the Academy of Science and Technology has almost studied it clearly.

Only one stabilizer is missing.

Without the advent of stabilizers, these powerful gunpowders and explosives would not have a practical surname.

…… At the end of Shandong and Daming, the literati were attracted by the railway.

After the opening of the Railway Bureau, in order to raise funds to build roads, they began to hype up the railway in the "Daming Daily", and for many people, there was no concept of what the railway was.

The times are changing with each passing day, Shandong's science and technology are also developing, the railway is incredibly convenient, according to the current speed of the train 30 kilometers less than an hour, it only takes 30 hours from Beijing to Nanjing.

The railway bureau then broke the news that the railway will be tendered and started construction next year, and announced the railway operation plan, the railway built by private fund-raising, is still operated by the railway bureau, but the profit will be fed back to the investor, when all the investment is earned, 10% of the profit is given to the investor every year, and you can enjoy a 50-year return on investment.

Many people don't believe that there really is such a thing as a railway, but facts speak louder than words, and the train in Zhaojiabao has already begun to run.

As soon as the railway bureau's fundraising intention was announced, many businessmen came to Zhaojiabao to investigate the real surname of the train, and when they saw the train and experienced it firsthand, no one doubted the practical surname of the train.

This is a revolution in transportation, and with the presence of trains, it will be convenient to travel between the north and the south or the east and west.

Shandong "Business Daily" said: "The emergence of trains will inevitably lead to a boom in commerce, and the investment in prosperous trunk railways will surely return on good returns." ”

"Damin Daily" reported: "To build the railway next year, Shandong Zhengaxe has contracted two long railways in the north with a low return on investment." The railways with a high rate of return are let to private capital to build a foolproof investment project, which shows that Shandong political axe does not regard the railway as a tool to circle money, but focuses on the convenience brought by the railway, which is intended to encourage private capital to invest in the railway, and improve the entire railway network of Daming in the shortest possible time. ”

"Military Intelligence" reported: "The advent of railways has brought about new changes in the mobilization of troops and logistics in the war, and once we have railways, we can quickly dispatch troops and transport logistics supplies forward, which is not only fast, but also has very low losses along the way." It can be seen from the two strategic railways to be built in the north that the Shandong political axe has fully realized the military role of the railway. Once the two strategic railways in the north are completed, our Ming Dynasty will be able to move its troops to the west to resist the eastward advance of Tsarist Russia. ”

Chongzhen in the Forbidden City was miserable, and according to his recent reading of the newspaper, he finally found that he was fooled by Zhao Yan.

The so-called scientific and technological research is not at all a chaotic style as he thinks and Zhao Yan admits.

Whenever he thinks of this, Chongzhen has a kind of resentment that he has been teased, and at the same time he blushes for his shallowness.

At this time, Chongzhen was in a very dangerous situation, although the 150,000 soldiers and horses in his hands were being trained intensively, but Shandong's military strength was far beyond his imagination.

Once the railway is completed, it is estimated that if you want to attack Shandong at that time, you will die a miserable death, because the emergence of the railway can allow the Shandong army to quickly shrink its forces.

All this is for Chongzhen, and the situation is developing in an uncontrollable direction.

Sun Chuanting's attitude changed the fastest, he had completely changed into a constitutional faction, which Chongzhen disliked and was thinking about how to remove him.

Hong Chengchou, who returned to his hometown, did not plan to go out of the mountain as soon as he went back, and Hong Chengchou swore to be loyal to him before, but Hong Chengchou, an old ghost, has always valued personal interests and losses, and saw that Chongzhen had no hope of winning, so he simply lived a pampered life in the township.

Yang Sichang and Sun Chuanting were in charge of the Beijing camp, and they were also in charge of the operation of the imperial merchants.

"Your Majesty, if you want to turn the tables, I'm afraid it can only be in recent years." Yang Sichang said to Chongzhen.

After the two of them saw the report of the railway, they both felt that time was running out, and at this moment, the longer it dragged on, the more beneficial it would be for Zhao Yan.

Zhao Yan's economic strength is definitely not comparable to the royal family.

At the same time, Zhao Yan has the money to buy all the things of the Ming Dynasty, but Chongzhen can't buy things from Shandong, and in terms of the manpower and material resources that can be mobilized, Zhao Yan is far greater than Chongzhen.

If they can't defeat Zhao Yan quickly in a tricky way, then they are finished.

"If we expand our army, we will have 300,000 soldiers and horses." Chongzhen gritted his teeth and said, Yang Sichang nodded silently.

Although there were 300,000 soldiers and horses, now the imperial merchant group had been formed, and Yang Sichang had united hundreds of merchants, as well as thousands of imperial relatives and local squires through various contacts.

In terms of financial resources, the royal family is in danger at this time, and although those royal relatives and nobles used to pick the door, it is obviously not the time to pick the door.

While Zhao Yan united a part of the merchants, he also pushed the landlord class to the side of Chongzhen.

No landlord would be naïve enough to think that Zhao Yan would not implement Shandong's tax policy after annexing other provinces, and that such a tax policy would be extremely unfavorable to them.

And those royal nobles were also pushed to Chongzhen's side.

The reason why these two groups hugged Chongzhen tightly was because Zhao Yan's seizure of the world would not even give them a piece of the scraps, and it would also cause losses.

For merchants, many merchants were landlords, and at the same time, some businessmen thought that Zhao Yan was just a rebellious minister and thief, and under the influence of some loyalty ideas, they took refuge in the camp of Chongzhen.

For some businessmen who are shrewd and can see the situation clearly, they are willing to stand in Zhao Yan's camp.

Many businessmen on Chongzhen's side also wandered in Shandong to make money in Shandong, but they had no sense of identity with Zhao Yan, and this phenomenon was very common.

At this time, the status of the royal family was critical, whether it was a merchant or a landlord, it was also a relative of the emperor, and under the persuasion of Yang Sichang, they all gave Chongzhen financial support.

At the same time, Yang Sichang also set up branches in various places and continued to attract members.

From time to time, money and grain were transported to the capital division, and the quantity was increasing. Under the publicity of the "Royal Newspaper", Chongzhen's image also began to rise.

The entire profit class of the old system of the Ming Dynasty began to gradually gather around Chongzhen, and the problem of money and food needed for military training has been gradually solved.

Although Chongzhen lost his taxes, under the operation of Yang Sichang, a new source of income appeared - donations! A semi-forced surname donation.

In addition, a respected person from all over the country served as the president, and the amount of donations was issued above, and then the president went to call on the members of the association to donate, which was still more effective for the imperial court to strengthen the ability of public opinion propaganda and brainwashing.

This is also the capital of Chongzhen's expansion of the army, and it is also the capital of confrontation with Zhao Yan. It is also where Chongzhen's confidence lies, in his feeling, the people of the Ming Dynasty are loyal to him.

…… Zhao Yan, who was in Zhaojiapu, soon received information from the Ministry of Intelligence.

"What! Chongzhen, this guy wants to expand his army to 300,000 people? Is he crazy? Zhao Yan looked at the information transmitted back and said in surprise.

300,000 people!

What is this concept?

Using the methods of the Shandong Army to build an army of 300,000 people requires at least 20 million taels of military spending every year, and Zhao Yan is planning to disarm! Chongzhen, this guy actually expanded his army.

At present, Zhao Yan has increased the number of armed police troops in various provinces, which has led to a surge in troops.

Among them, there are 5,000 armed police forces in Shandong and 15,000 policemen. There are 20,000 armed police forces in Liaodong and North Korea, and 3,000 armed police forces in Dingdong Province. There are 20,000 armed police forces in Monan, 5,000 armed police forces in Mobei and Monan, 20,000 in Shanxi, 20,000 in Shaanxi, 20,000 in Hebei, 20,000 in Henan, 30,000 in Huguang, 20,000 in Sichuan, 20,000 in Jianghuai (Anhui and Jiangsu), 20,000 in Jiangxi, 20,000 in Fujian, 20,000 in Guangzhou, 20,000 in Guangxi, 20,000 in Guizhou, and 20,000 in Yunnan.

Adding up to 343,000 people, Zhao Yan's soldiers and horses have reached more than 810,000 people, most of whom are compulsory soldiers, no need to pay military salaries, as long as they provide food, the equipment is relatively simple, the equipment of the armed police forces in various provinces is very sophisticated, and many of the equipment that has been eliminated does not cost much.

In terms of military spending, it is only 40 million taels.

However, this military expenditure is still on the high side, and at this time, the surrounding strong enemies have basically been swept away, and it is useless to retain so much military strength.

If it was necessary to expand, then these forces were necessary, but now smokeless gunpowder and fiery explosives are almost being developed.

When the Mauser gun, plus the machine gun, and the artillery and shells that use yellow powder and yellow explosives, then the combat effectiveness of the army will be greatly improved.

After the combat effectiveness is greatly improved, there is no need for so many people.

However, the armed police force still needs to be retained, but in the future, they will be transferred to local police, and the cost will be deducted from the local finance, which will have to wait for Zhao Yan to control the administrative power of the Ming provinces.

As for the combat troops, Zhao Yan felt that they should continue to be separated.

In addition to retaining a few main groups to remain concentrated, the other forces should be divided into regions and then dispersed into small units to fight and establish an overseas colonial system.

If the combat force does not reap sufficient benefits in terms of expansion, it should indeed be reduced. If the economy has reached a certain size, the number of combat units at this point is not enough at present, and it just depends on the situation.

The premise is the development of new weapons.

Zhao Yan began to draw large drawings, drawing drawings of the German Mauser 98k and 7.92×57mm rifle cartridges, and then handed them over to the Ordnance Bureau for development, the Mauser 98K is 1.1 meters long, the effective range is 800 meters, the power of the Mauser gun is extremely great, and those who are shot within 800 meters are either killed or injured.

If you use clay for experiments, you can make a hole the size of a bowl with a single shot. If you hit it in the head, it's basically a rotten watermelon.

With a 6x scope, you can shoot enemies from a distance of 1,000 meters, but with current technology, you can't build a 6x scope.

It is a sophisticated weapon, powerful and accurate, but with a lower rate of fire than other rear-pull bolt rifles, at 15 rounds per minute.

With the current technology, it is no longer a problem to produce Mao Shi guns, but the production line needs some time to study.

Production of Maxim heavy machine guns is currently 3 per month, which can be increased to 20 per month after three months.

With the Maxim heavy machine gun, the stronghold in the expanded area could be held with a small number of troops.

…… The eleventh year of Chongzhen was an ordinary and extraordinary year for the California colony.

Britain, the Netherlands, and France, under the mediation of the Spaniards, signed a "Reconciliation Agreement" with the California colonies, under which Britain, France, and Britain would no longer pursue the previous plundering of the Ming Navy, and the American fleet should stop plundering the ships of its three countries.

This armistice agreement was finally signed after more than half a year, mainly because the California colony received instructions from Zhao Yan to sign a reconciliation agreement with the three countries.

It was a treaty of equality, and for the American colonies they had already aroused the jealousy of the Spaniards, and they should not make enemies everywhere at this time.

As for the use of the navy to plunder merchant ships, it is not forbidden to use privateers. Privateers exist in all countries, and each country has a 'privateer license'.

Zhao Yan also issued the first batch of privateer licenses on the Ming side, which were issued to naval veterans, and he directly ordered the consolidation of ships, and selected 50 warships from the warships of the Fujian Navy Division for equipping.

The cannons equipped are all the most advanced, and Zhao Yan is not afraid that these cannons will fall into the hands of Westerners, and getting cannons does not mean that they can be made.

Before the privateers arrived, the American Fleet ceased its raids on merchant ships and focused on protecting them.

In the eleventh year of Chongzhen, there were more merchant ships coming to the Americas, and the merchant ships from Shandong arrived in California one after another, and the merchant ships in the California colonies also reached more than 80.

Some pirates made their way to the West Coast, but the American Fleet put a lot of effort into protecting merchant ships, and the fast clippers were generally not looted, because they were too fast for pirate ships to catch up. The slow merchant ships are generally accompanied by warships, and those pirates cannot take advantage of the loopholes.

(To be continued)