Three days later, Gastens greeted the Sixth Prince, Eliot Gibson, outside the Los Angeles crossing. He brought only one company of guards, each with a new type of steam rifle, which was not the Type 27, Eliot, or Glory rifle, nor the Thundering Steam Submachine Rifle used by the Sharp Knife Company, but a weapon that was more like an improved version of the Glory Rifle.

Prince Eliot, who had gotten out of the carriage early, and was standing and waiting on the side of the road, saw the weapons from a long distance, and when Gastens and his team approached, he looked at them more carefully before taking Gastens' hand.

"I really didn't expect that a dying small serf back then is now also a hegemon."

"His Royal Highness the Prince praised me falsely, no matter what I am, I remember that His Royal Highness the Prince pulled me out of a puddle of mud, and I will never forget this."

"That's because you are talented, even if you don't meet me, you will emerge when you meet others, please rest assured."

Eliot was polite and Gastens was personable, and the two stood in the place where the battle had taken place some time ago, and talked for ten minutes before they walked to the reception booth on the outside of the crossing and talked about the battle they had fought a few days earlier.

"Cross told me that you have a very powerful weapon that hits them. This is the first time I've heard of a weapon of this power in the days when there were no magisters, so I wonder if it's true. ”

"I have already made that clear in my letter to Your Highness," Gastens invited Prince Eliot to sit down, calmly, "We have a new rifle, but it is not so powerful. At the time of the clash that day, I had a full 600 men at the Luoshan crossing, all of whom were using this new type of rifle. Only in this way can Pal Close be prevented from entering Elena. After all, I thought at the time that if it was really His Highness's intention, it wouldn't embarrass me, right? ”

"Haha, you really know me", Elliot smiled politely, but he didn't think so. If it weren't for his own vigilance, how could this Gastens not even let him enter the door, but set up the place where he would meet guests outside the Luoshan crossing? You know, you are the most important person he can have today!

"So, that new rifle, but is this one used by these soldiers?" , not much nonsense, and Elliot didn't bother to talk nonsense with a subordinate who had already made it clear that he wanted to support his own troops, "I wonder if you can introduce me to Gastens?" ”

"Yes, it's my pleasure, Your Highness," Gastens reached out and took a rifle from Ivan and handed it to Elliot. Elliot took it and took a general look, and with his knowledge reserves, he could only see that this was also a steam rifle, but there was a small device behind the barrel, and the structure of the gas cylinder did not seem to be quite the same. He handed the rifle to the weapons experts at the Royal Academy of Weapons who had come with him, and looked back at Gastens.

"This gun looks very powerful, I wonder if Gastens can introduce me to it?"

"Your Highness, this is my honor", Gastens also knew why the other party came, not to mention, this gun was originally intended for the export of the six princes, so naturally he had to introduce it with all his might.

"This gun, I named it the Brave, and the model is Type 1. In the design of this gun, I used some weapon concepts that have never been seen in this world at the moment, and judging from the actual effect of the last battle, it is really good. First of all, its barrel, unlike all previous steam rifles, is rifled—"

"Well, what is rifling?" , the weapons expert who stands behind Elliot is old, but his curiosity is not small. He interrupted Gastens' introduction, ignoring that this was a formal occasion for negotiations between the Six Princes and Gastens.

"I forgot to introduce it, this is Tara Mendelsohn, a researcher at the Royal Academy of Arms Studies, who has been working on steam rifles for more than twenty years, and is an old expert."

Prince Eliot didn't seem to mind Mendelson's faux pas, and introduced him to Gastens. Gastens nodded at Mendelsson in a friendly manner, and explained patiently.

"The so-called rifling is a groove carved on the inside of the barrel that spirals forward at a certain angle. These grooves are able to guide the bullet spin, reduce air resistance, and increase the stability of the bullet's flight. After rifling and special lead bullets, the bullets fired by the brave have a flight rate of less than 2% at 20 centimeters and less than 5% at 100 centimeters within a distance of 100 meters. ”

"This ...... It's just impossible! ”

Mendelsohn made no secret of his surprise that "existing rifles simply cannot achieve this accuracy of hit." If、If there is such an accuracy rate, then the soldier can aim before shooting in actual combat, and the starting hit rate will also increase significantly! ”

"Your sensitivity to actual combat is still good", although he is young, Gastens is neither humble nor arrogant when talking about weapons, "After solving the rifling process problem, the brave rifle we produced became the first rifle in the world that can shoot accurately, and we also relied on this feature of this gun in the battle with Lord Cross, which greatly improved the hit rate." ”

Although he was a little upset that Gastens was constantly mentioning the sad battle that Cross had waged, Elliot knew what to do. He waited for Gastens and Mendelsson to fully communicate the benefits of rifling before proceeding with the question.

"Gastens, you must have something else to tell us besides rifling, right?"

"Of course," Gastens smiled, "by improving the airtightness of the ventilation lines and switching to high-pressure cylinders as propulsion, our Valiant rifles were able to achieve breech loading and burst fire." Combined with our matching magazine, it is capable of firing ten rounds in one go, providing a high-density firepower projection in a short period of time, crushing enemy charges. ”

"Ten rounds?" Although he didn't know much about rifles, Eliot could see from Mendelson's reaction how shocking Gastens's rifle was. He watched Mendelsson and Gastens discuss the technical details enthusiastically, and watched them take a Valiant rifle, put it on his waist and pull the trigger, firing ten rounds in one go, kicking up a small dust on the ground not far away.

"Your Majesty, it's ten rounds", Gastens remembered Elliot's question, "to shoot ten rounds in one go, and there is no longer a need to stand up and reload." With this rifle, you can easily crush enemies lined up to shoot, and in short charges, you can overcome the weakness of steam rifles that are inferior to broadswords and machetes. At present, the situation in Chang Province will also be greatly improved. ”

Hearing Gastens mention the Long Province, Elliot raised his eyebrows, "Do you still know the Long Province?" ”

"Your Highness, the civil war is the country's top priority, although I am only a small citizen, but I also know that I care about national affairs."

"Okay, okay, I know," Elliot said, "I know why you have the confidence to fight Cross when I see you." But do you know that if I really want to destroy you, no matter how good your weapons are, they won't save your life? ”

"Of course I know that," Gastens admitted, "Elena's biggest problem right now is manpower and capacity. Although this gun is easy to use, it is produced from waste labor and waste, and it is impossible to make three or five guns a day. Compared to the Glory Rifle, the production is much lower. Moreover, there are less than 10,000 people in total, and if you send an army of 60,000 people, one person will spit and eat our Elena, and the little one will know this. ”

"It's good to know", Elliot nodded lightly when he saw Gastens' acquaintance, "Since you fought with Cross, you are no longer my person, and don't act in my name." If I find out, I'll kill you, you know? ”

"Please rest assured, Your Highness, the little ones will never dare."

"Also, the things you got in the territory, Your Majesty doesn't know it. I helped you block it before, and no one bothered you. In the future, you have to be careful, if something happens, don't blame me for not helping you. ”

"That's nature."

Gastens nodded again.

"Very well, now let's get down to business", Prince Elliot smiled only then, "This Valiant rifle, you told me so much detail, how much are you going to sell it for?"

"600 crowns a handful, including a matching steam backpack and a magazine, with special buckshot counted. However, the production of lead bullet is simple, you can find another factory to produce it, we don't mind. ”

Gastens opened his mouth to the price. And Elliot and Mendelson, who heard the price, grew their mouths at the same time.

It's a robbery!

"Now a Type 27 rifle costs 40 crowns, a Glory rifle costs 80 crowns, and your brave man sells for 600 crowns??" , Prince Elliot was angry, "Do you really think I'm wronged, ah?" Stretching your neck to slaughter you? ”

"Your Highness, you have wronged me", Gastens had already prepared a reply, "This brave type, I don't plan to take it out, it turns out that I want to keep it for my own use." For the sake of helping me out of the quagmire and pulling me up by the hand, I will give you an exclusive price, 600 CZK. Although this price is expensive, but, do you think about it, is it the money that matters, or the victory or defeat of the Chang Province and the Ronninger rebels? Isn't the merit of having this weapon in your hands to break through the enemy's iron shield line in minutes and defeat the Ronninger rebels worth more than a few hundred thousand crowns? ”

Elliot was silent, knowing that Gastens was telling the truth. And, more importantly, he knew he couldn't take Gastens for the time being. Now the situation in Anken Rein is precarious, and the country cannot afford to produce another rebel. Moreover, this rebel army also has powerful weapons that can greatly increase the combat effectiveness of the army. Instead of pushing such a person to the opposite side of himself, it is better to spend some money and draw him to his side.

The truth is that both Gastens and Eliot know it. Elliot was unhappy that he was powerless to resist Gastens' bid. He and Gastens are both smart people, and smart people know how to walk the way of life. So, he had no choice.

"You kid, I really underestimated you at the time."

Elliot leaned back and cursed with a smile. He pressed the index finger of his left hand against his jaw, thought for a few seconds, and made a decision.

"That's it!"

"Thank you, Your Highness," Gastens smiled even more happily, "Now that we are partners, since we are doing business, we are doing business." I won't hide it from you, my factory has limited production capacity now, and the task of the Glory Rifle was pressed down by His Majesty the Emperor, and there is no room for delay. In addition to the Glory Rifles, I only produce ten Valorant rifles a day, and I have to keep four for myself. I can only give you a maximum of six sticks a day, can you see it? ”

Elliot rarely touched on such detailed negotiations. Usually when he encounters this kind of problem, he will blame the matter on his attendant. But Cross was killed by him in a fit of rage. The other two attendants, one in Long Province and the other in Roseville, could not quench their thirst. There was no way, he could only suppress the unhappiness in his heart and start bargaining with Gastens.

"Garth, six rifles, only a hundred a month, what can you do? I'm going to break through the enemy's iron shield breastwork defense, and I need a division's strength. A division is 10,000 people, and if you give me 100 rifles, how can you divide them among me? How can this battle be fought? ”

"My lord, it's not that I don't give it", Gastens looked sad, "I'm really limited in manpower." Otherwise, I'll keep what I keep for myself every day, two sticks, and give you eight sticks a day, you see, okay? ”

"Eight? How long does it take to get 10,000 sticks? The daylilies are cold! Elliot was furious, "You must solve this capacity problem, otherwise, our business will not be able to do it." ”

"But my lord...... This man is ......"

Gastens stopped talking, and Elliot waved his hand and gave a promise.

"What's the problem with manpower, how to solve it, what conditions do you have, you say!"

"Then thank you, sir", Gastens's sad face turned into a bright smile for a second, "Now that Enspan Province restricts serfs from entering Elena, I want you to tell Lord Yarrow Ross to lift this ban, we have people, even if it is three shifts, we have to increase the production capacity of the Valorant rifle to you!" ”

"It's easy to say, I'll go back and say hello to him, how much production capacity can you guarantee me?" Elliot didn't think it was a big deal, he waved his hand and agreed, and began to care about his own production.

"If there are enough manpower and after a certain period of training, I can increase the daily output to about fifty, and I can give you four regiments of equipment in about two months. There are four regiments, and you can use them to charge at the top of your hands, which is definitely enough for the enemy to eat a pot. ”

"Okay, that's it."

Elliot slapped the table and stood up, "Is there anything else?" ”

"That...... Your Highness", Gastens turned into a flattering smile again, "we don't take credit. ”

"You ......"

Elliot was about to be mad, he was a dignified six princes, did he look like a person who would pay his debts?

"Alright, pay as you go!"

After saying this, Elliot really didn't want to say more, and left without looking back. Gastens escorted him to the carriage and watched him leave respectfully, before he straightened up and breathed a sigh of relief. Ivan stepped forward from behind him and asked softly.

"Head, how are you talking?"

"He's a little fox, so he doesn't necessarily have to be blinded, but the manpower problem should be solved. Although the show achieved the expected purpose, it also put us on the bright side. Hurry up and develop, there is not much time left for us. ”

There was not much joy on the face of Gastens, who had won the negotiations. He looked at the van that was drifting away, and fell silent.

The spring sun shines on this bloodstained land, rendering the red and yellow ground into a colorful oil painting.