In the sound of firecrackers, the spring breeze sent warmth into Tusu, and the New Year of 1911 came as scheduled. Whether you like it or not, the wheel of history is always moving forward without the slightest pause. History has turned a corner here, and a storm that will determine the fate of China in the future is about to erupt.

In the traditional concept of Chinese people, the Spring Festival is the most important festival of the year, no matter how far they go on this day, the wanderers will rush back to their hometowns in nightclubs, just for the reunion of relatives. On this day, even poor families have to steam some bean paste dumplings, and the whole family gathers around for a reunion dinner. But also on this Chinese New Year's Eve, there are also a group of young people silently packing their bags and preparing to set foot on a foreign land.

After receiving the reply from Krupp, Hu Rui did not dare to delay the search for suitable personnel in the entire new army like crazy. The artillery battalion of the patrol battalion, the 34th mixed artillery unit of the new army, and the third artillery section of the training battalion have not been left behind, as long as they are suitable for artillery, they are counted! Napoleon said that artillery is the god of land warfare, and heavy artillery is the god of war among the gods of war! As a traverser, he profoundly instructed that China's biggest enemy in the next 40 years is Japan! Behind the Xinhai Revolution is indispensable to the promotion of Japan, the confrontation between the north and the south after Beiyang came to power, and then the later warlord secession, all of which are indispensable to the black hand stretched out by this group of Dongyang dwarfs behind the scenes! In essence, a weak and divided China is in Japan's interests, and one mountain will definitely not be able to accommodate two tigers. Therefore, from the very beginning of the formation of the new army, Hu Rui regarded the Japanese army of the same period as the only imaginary enemy at this stage! Not to mention, in the future, regarding the return of the German leased land in Qingdao and participation in World War I, it will be necessary to pass the Japanese pass. Tough battles are indispensable, so even if there are great difficulties in heavy artillery, they must be made! In 1911, this is an opportunity for the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation!

After reporting the situation in Xuancheng to Zhu Jiabao in person, Hu Rui refused Zhu Jiabao's retention, and rushed back to Wuhu with the grain he received from the official treasury. After the matchmaking of the Krupp side, Hurui and the German side held many consultations. In the end, the Germans agreed to train 500 heavy artillery soldiers for the Anhui New Army at one time, but because the German garrison in the Far East was less than 5,000 and there was a lack of suitable teaching materials, these cadets had to cross the ocean to Germany. The cadets will undergo six months of intensive training in Germany before returning home with the three 105 and two 150 heavy artillery battalions of the New Army. Before leaving, Hu Rui said that he would rush back to give him a ride.

This time it's a secret training, so be sure to keep a low profile as much as possible. Hu Rui didn't dare to show off, and after changing into civilian clothes, he directly felt the dock, and he didn't even bring a guard. Under the scorching midday sun, Hu Rui stood in front of the dock, shaking hands and hugging each student on the boat one by one. This group of young people, with an average age of less than twenty-one, will still squander their youth in school in later generations. But here they have to say goodbye to their families on Chinese New Year's Eve, prepare to go to the ocean with enthusiasm, and shoulder the heavy responsibility of strengthening the country and the army with their immature shoulders! Hu Rui only hated that the time was too short, and he didn't have time to put a simple reunion dinner on the table, so as to treat this group of young people, they are all the seeds of the future of Chinese artillery!

"You must take care, please take care of everything~"

Before boarding the ship, Hu Rui held back his tears, shook hands and hugged every student who boarded the ship, and said that he cherished it.

The people of this era are very simple, as the pipe band of the mixed association and the battalion commander of the teaching battalion, Hu Rui's current identity is like a titanic existence in the new army. This parting exhortation immediately made every student present feel extremely new and respectful. Many years later, Hu Rui knew how many die-hard loyalists he had brought him with Qiao Piaopiao's words. Each and every one of them is willing to charge forward with the bullets of the reactionaries for the sake of their chief instructor and for the sake of a brand-new China!

The river liner anchored, and a boatload of trainees drifted away. Looking at the chief instructor who stood up on the dock and saluted and saw him off, I don't know who started first, and the students of the whole ship sang loudly together

After a hundred years of sleep, the Chinese people have gradually woken up

Open your eyes and watch carefully

Which will be a captive to confess himself

Because of cowering and forbearance

People are becoming more and more arrogant

Speak your mouth and shout loudly

This is a place where the whole country is in the army

Historically, robbers have invaded

Eventually, he will die

The Great Wall will never fall

Thousands of miles of Yellow River water

The rivers and mountains are beautiful, and the mountains are stacked with colorful ridges

Ask me what kind of country is like being infected

Rush out of the way and wave your hand

We must devote ourselves to the prosperity of the country

Shall the land be trampled down again?

Each one takes on a mission

The Great Wall will never fall

Thousands of miles of Yellow River water

The rivers and mountains are beautiful, and the mountains are stacked with colorful ridges

Ask me what kind of country is like being infected

Rush out of the way and wave your hand

We must devote ourselves to the prosperity of the country

Shall the land be trampled down again?

This sleeping lion has gradually woken up~

Before I knew it, singing to zuihou was already a roar. The scene of more than 400 men opening their hearts and roaring together is really spectacular. The majestic singing voice soared into the sky, and it seemed to let the whole world hear it! In this era, when the vast majority of the people are still numb and asleep, there is a group of young people who have already woken up, and they are down-to-earth and use their own enthusiasm and practical actions to explore the road of saving the country and the people! You can doubt their worth, but you must not question their efforts and goals, because in each of them there is a long-awaited dream of a great power! I vow to use this blood and lifelong learning to wake up China's sleeping lion!

Sailors carrying their luggage past the deck are inadvertently attracted by the novel melody. Stopped and listened for a moment.

"Ask my country what is like a disease...... What a word! What a word! ”

Muttering to himself, he stepped off the deck, intending to have time to learn for a while.

On the way back, Hu Rui's mood was very heavy, the grain brought back from Anqing and the 200 Hanyang Zuo from the library were all ready, Wang Wenli and Li Tianxiang did not delay for a moment to bring the selection of Haode people, and immediately went on the road. These two were not the most capable of the first phase of the training camp of the new army, but they were the only trainees who had experience in mass incidents and guerrilla warfare, and they were the only people who were most suitable for this mission. It seems that he senses that the boss's mood is not quite right, and Wang Tianda and his group, who have been constantly making trouble before, and have to lead the team to fall into the grass in life or death, have been surprisingly safe along the way. No one wants to touch the head instructor at this time.

Back in Wuhu, before I had time to drink saliva, the guards reported that the technicians from the Anqing Manufacturing Bureau were here. directly asked to see Lord Xietong, saying that he was chased from Anqing and had something important.

"Quick, please come to the living room!"

Hu Rui put down his horsewhip and waved his hand in command. After tidying up his clothes, and after the orderlies had picked up the horses, he went straight to the parlor. The manufacturing bureau at the end of Anqing is the lifeblood of the new army, and if something happens to the manufacturing bureau, the entire new army will become a source of water, and those scavenged technicians are all living treasures, and they can't be slack!

"Your Excellency, the workers of China are wonderful! They're all this! ”

German technician Elsen, dancing with his hands, directly gestured his thumb and said excitedly in half-baked Chinese.

"Little Lao'er has seen the adult, the adult is in a hurry, the person sent by the manufacturing bureau to contact the adult did not catch up, Mr. Elson was in a hurry to give you good news, so he pointed to the foreign car and rushed here."

The oldest mechanic in the manufacturing bureau, Lao Huang bowed and saluted. Lao Huang is fifty and two years old this year, and he was already making gunpowder and ammunition in the workshop of the official faction when he made a spear twist, and he was extremely familiar with all kinds of rifles and artillery equipped by the Qing army. Since leaving Hanyang and arriving in Anqing, the old mechanic has been treated with unprecedented courtesy, and his salary of 12 yuan a month can also be divided into a single dormitory. Every day at work, those half-grown elementary school apprentices have a Master Huang, not to mention how affectionate they are. The factory works overtime and overtime pay and manages the night meal, and the steward on the top is also kind, hello haode will never trouble you when you work. After a lifetime of dealing with guns, I can get this treatment when I am old, and I have an urge to cry when I think about it. So for this co-ordinator, who is about the same age as his own two boys, Lao Huang is respect in his heart.

"Hitchhiking? Aren't all 10 Ford trucks at the Manufacturing Bureau going to break down?! ”

Hu Rui beckoned the two to take their seats and asked casually. Previously, he bought 100 Ford trucks from the United States in one go to prepare for the heavy artillery battalion that was about to return home. Of the first batch of 40 trucks delivered, 10 trucks were allocated to the manufacturing bureau to facilitate transportation and procurement.

"Back to the adult's words, today is the Chinese New Year's Eve, and the mercy of the steward has given the brothers below a holiday. The few masters who drove the foreign car saw that it was okay and went back to work for the New Year first. ”

Lao Huang hurriedly replied.

"Your Excellency, please come with us! We bring you the most haode New Year's gift! ”

Elson, who didn't care about greetings and politeness, directly pulled Hu Rui and ran towards the backyard.

"The caliber is 50 mm, the full length of the gun is 413 mm, the length of the barrel is 260 mm, the weight of the whole gun is 2.7 kg, the weight of the barrel is 1.6 kg, the length of the barrel foot is 170 mm, the weight of the barrel plate is 1.1 kg, the height of the foot plate is 60 mm, the width of the foot plate is 67 mm, the maximum firing range is 700 meters, and the effective firing range is 500 meters. Your Excellency, the Chinese workers are all good! It took them less than a week to build! This treasure is perfect and can be operated by a soldier after training. ”

Elson lifted the waterproof canvas, and a small cannon with a two-legged bracket and a wide concave base appeared in the sun, and it was a Type 89 grenadier equipped by the Japanese army invading China on a large scale!

"Nima, this is not scientific!"

Someone couldn't help but burst into foul language, but when he visited the mortar production line, he mentioned it in passing, and then spent a few sketches, but he didn't expect it to be made in less than a week......

"It's so brutal......"

Touching the cold cannon body, Hu Rui sighed with tears streaming down his face.

After getting along for a long time, whether it is the workers on the production line or the technicians, they have long been accustomed to some strange words that their bosses come out of from time to time that they don't understand, Elson shrugged his shoulders, and Lao Huang on the side laughed silently.

"How's this thing being produced? How cost-effective is it compared to 60 mortars on the production line? ”

Coming to his senses, Hu Rui hurriedly asked. Strictly speaking, grenadiers belong to light mortars, with a caliber of no more than 50 mm, which is roughly equivalent to modern gun grenades. During World War II, Germany, Italy, Britain, Japan, and China were all equipped with this recommended type of small mortar. However, compared with the products of the same period, the performance of the 89-style grenadier in small Japan is the most haode. The German 36-year 50-mm mortar weighs more than twice as much as the 89 grenadier and has a maximum range of only 500 meters, not to mention the cost performance. For a long time before World War II, the Japanese Army has been shooting weapons and equipment in accordance with the environment of the Chinese battlefield, and the 38 big cover, the 92 infantry run, and the bean chariot are the most haode examples. The Type 89 grenadier is in the hands of a skilled hand, and it can almost be said that it can be said that it will hit machine guns and other targets within 400 meters, and an inconspicuous small grenadier will not know how many Chinese soldiers and civilians fell under its muzzle.

"Your Excellency, you can't believe it! We've improved your original design by changing the firing mechanism from a pull cord to a pushbutton, and a fully enclosed structure to prevent a bore from blowing up after multiple shots. A bipod was also installed, and a larger and wider base plate was used to reduce the backseat and improve shooting accuracy. But that's it, the zuihou price of each gun is less than half of the Mauser 98 rifle! The structure of this little guy is very simple, and it can produce 50 doors per day in a semi-manual way without occupying other production lines! ”

Elson's brown mustache shook with excitement.

"Less than half the size of a rifle...... What about the yield? ”

Hearing such a low price, Hu Rui couldn't help but ask. In essence, whether it is crossing money or after crossing, he is an out-and-out ** silk, small money is really sweet, and if you can save it, you can save it.

"It's very low, the first batch of 150 has been produced so far, and only two are unqualified. Everyone in China is this! ”

The German Elson waved his thumbs without hesitation.

"Well done! Everyone has worked hard, I will send you red envelopes for the Chinese New Year this year! Elson, when the holiday is over, you will immediately take charge of the production of the little guy, the production of 60, 82 mortars and 70 curved infantry guns is insufficient, give this little guy priority, first keep an eye on the mortar seat. ”

Someone with a smile on his eyebrows bared his teeth and stroked the grenadier and commanded with a smile.

The cost of the grenadier is very low, and the process is not complicated. At this stage, the new army and patrol battalions are being expanded, there are gaps in all kinds of artillery, and grenadiers can be used as a cheap alternative. According to Hu Rui's concept, in the future new army, the grenadier will be at the level of the Phuket squad platoon, at least 2 guns per platoon! World War I is the world of trench warfare, the machine gun is the backbone of the entire company, a large number of equipped grenadiers in the engagement, is definitely a nemesis of the machine gun (before the late stage of the Anti-Japanese War, the grenadier in the hands of Japanese veterans hit as high as 95 percent, the applicability is also very good, and the thigh can be hit. The threat to the machine-gun bunkers and firing points of civil engineering in the field environment was surprisingly large. Coupled with the bending of the trajectory, there is also a great threat to living targets on anti-cline positions. )。

This Spring Festival is destined to be extraordinary, and the Qing Dynasty staggered to the 1911 Xinhai Year in the stormy weather. Unable to rest assured that the stalls in Anqing and Wuhu were not at ease, Hu Rui went to the telegraph office and sent a telegram to Mr. Hu who was far away in Shanghai. Thousands of words are sprinkled, and the words are sincere and sincere, in short, it means that this year's New Year's children are not filial to stay in Anqing, and the military affairs are in the body and can not go home for the New Year, so I will give you a New Year's greeting in advance. In this way, the long telegram draft turned into radio waves under the eyes of the operator and was transferred to Shanghai. In those days, telephone was still very unpopular, and telegraph was the most cost-effective means of communication. Telegram drafts are counted by the number of words, even the punctuation. Therefore, the telegram that is retrieved is often short, not short, and strives to make things clear with the fewest characters. For example, "Mother's disease, return quickly." ”

A telegram played with Hu Rui's entire ten oceans, this time the price is cheap, ten oceans is enough for you to go to the restaurant for a big meal. Gritting his teeth and settling the bill, Hu Rui burst into tears and missed the modern mobile phone text messages.

"Young master, you don't have to be like this, master, he must understand your distress. This telegram is no match for a letter from home. ”

Uncle Shan arched his hand and said with a smile to the eldest young master of the Hu family who looked distressed.

"You're a girl, why didn't you say it earlier......" someone burst into tears.

Tonight's Chinese New Year's Eve dinner is eaten at Sanniang's Mochizuki Pavilion. Last time, after Tai convulsions and led people to besiege Mochizuki Tower with weapons, after the fifty-plus or so ruffians and Bahu children who caused the accident were all shot on the spot by the new army, Sanniang was completely unable to mix in Anqing. Hu Xietong was angry and rushed to the crown to become a red face, and the story of leading the heroes to save the beauty was widely praised in the streets and alleys of Anqing, and was even compiled into a commentary. made such a fuss, even the more bullish womanizers shrank back. That's Mrs. Hu, and Mochizuki Pavilion has also become the property of Lord Xietong. Therefore, if you don't go home for the New Year, you can only go to Mochigetsu Pavilion for Chinese New Year's Eve dinner.