After a clash of magnitude, the earth was blown to the brim, and Colonel William Einfurt kicked away a smoking six-pounder cannon shell to observe the corpses of enemy officers.

"Father, I don't understand, what age is it, these feudal knights and nobles are still wearing old-fashioned slatted armor, and they sink when they look at it."

Marquis Dali Einfurt leaned down, picked up a fragment of armor pierced by a cannonball, and said:

"Is that because the tin can is still useful, see these dents? The flintlock bullets could not have pierced the armor, and if he hadn't been hit by a cannonball, the knight would still be alive and kicking. ”

He flexed his fingers and flicked hard against the armor fragments, hearing a crisp metallic echo:

"Listen, this isn't a thin tin antique from a museum, it's a new model that's been modernized."

William picked up another piece of armor and looked at it carefully before it dawned on him:

"Father, I see!

Look at these rivets, which are double-layer composite plate armor riveted together by two layers of steel armor, with a layer of leather sandwiched in the middle to cushion them, and the overall structure is like the ham sandwich we eat in the morning.

The outermost deck uses a surface carburizing process to further increase the hardness of the armor's surface, and with the astonishing three-layer structure and thickness, it's no wonder that bullets can't shoot through. ”

"Sandwich armor...... That's an interesting description. The Marquis of Dalí nodded proudly and smiled with satisfaction:

"The analysis is clear and reasonable, and it is worthy of being a descendant of my Ainfurt family."

Marshal Ivan Mikhainovich on the side spat out a smoke ring:

"I just stood quietly and watched your father and son brag to each other."

William picked up the metal piece in his hand and compared it with Yi Wanshuai's body, and the other party avoided it with disgust:

"Stinky man, take this thing away, I don't want the dead rao armor to touch me, look, it's still stained with brains, how disgusting, how unlucky!"

"Uncle Ivan, don't dodge, don't you don't believe in evil, why are you still superstitious, I'm not playing, I'm thinking about whether our cavalry can be equipped with this new type of armor."

Yi Wanshuai reached out and grabbed William's red hair:

"Hey! You clever stink, you really follow your father, there are so many ghost ideas! I especially like your hair, it's as lively and cute as a firework!

Come to think of it, I actually wore armor, and it was when I was younger, when I drank too much at a wrestling tournament and lost a bet with someone.

That thing is still the equipment of the steppe nomads more than a century ago, the treasure handed down by my ancestors, there is a full set of plate armor parts and chain covers, and a pair of metal wings are inserted in the shoulder armor, the shape is quite handsome, the girls love it to see it, I call it a pickle girl weapon.

It's a pity that the tin can can only be used for soaking girls, and it's completely useless on today's battlefield, don't use military rifles, I can't even prevent pistol bullets, and I threw them into the box to eat ashes.

yes, I'll have to find a blacksmith to melt that armor, it's made of good steel, and I can't waste it. ”

William's eyes widened:

"Good fellow, Uncle Ivan, yours is the armor of the steppe hussars, right? That's the armament of the great nobles of the Golden Horde!

Arguably the finest medium cavalry armor of the 16th century, it perfectly balances the protection of heavy cavalry with the dexterity of light cavalry. This kind of baby...... If you don't want it, don't melt it and put it in the museum of the imperial capital! ”

"Yo he, since you like it so much, I'll give it to you when I go back, whatever you want, anyway, I'll never wear that stupid tin can again, that thing is too fucking heavy!"

William was flattered: "Thank you, Uncle Ivan!"

In fact, I've been thinking about a question for the past few years, is the armor equipped by the Knights Nation practical?

For example, in the encounter just now, dozens of knights and heavy cavalry rushed into our position in the rain of bullets and slashed and slaughtered, inflicting casualties on our line infantry, and finally I used a six-pounder cannon to launch a salvo of shotguns to defeat them.

The combat effectiveness of these knightly nobles is really not low, and it is clear that the improved armor still has a certain place in modern warfare. ”

"First of all, there is no question of cost, this kind of modern and modified armor is too heavy, it is impossible for infantry to equip it, it can't run when it is put on, it can only be equipped by cavalry, and it must be ridden on heavy military horses, and the light military horses of light cavalry can't move at all." Marquis de Dalí.

He added: "It's expensive and cumbersome, but this thing doesn't have a lot of protection against bullets!"

The enemy knights are still alive after so many guns, and if our hoplite cavalry is also equipped with some of this 'sandwich armor', and dare not dare to do anything else, the casualty rate will definitely plummet. ”

As soon as he heard the word "casualty rate", Yi Wanshuai immediately became interested:

"Then you really have to seriously consider equipping some equipment, the casualty rate of the shock heavy cavalry division has been high, obviously the standard cuirass can no longer meet the protection requirements, it's time to take out the ancestor's iron cans and use them."

William collected the pieces of armor on the ground into a paper bag and put them away, and said:

"I will send a sample of this 'sandwich armor' back to the Armaments Research Institute in the Imperial Capital, and try to capture more complete armor in the future battles and bring it back."

"Very good, it is very important to learn the advantages of the enemy with an open mind, so that we can continue to improve." Marquis Dalí nodded, looked at the map and said:

"Today's victory has opened a gap to the interior of the canyon, and after that, we will not encounter sporadic resistance, we will encounter a large army of the Knights Country, or even the main force, we must fight with 120,000 spirits, and we must not slack off."

Marshal Ivan Mikhainovich turned over and got on his horse:

"Let's continue to use the old method, I will send a light cavalry brigade as the vanguard, and when I encounter a large number of outposts, I will directly step on them, and when I encounter a large number of enemies, I will outflank their retreat in advance, and then annihilate them in one fell swoop when your infantry and artillery catch up."

Marquis Dalí stretched out his hand and clapped his old friend's hands:

"Happy working together, old man!"

In the afternoon, the Valstad Imperial army made rapid progress, the forward cavalry destroyed fifteen forward positions in a row, and the left and right flank troops also achieved good results.

As they passed by the side of a large city, the commander-in-chief, Marquis Dalí, stopped.

William asked, "Why, Father, are you going to take the city?" ”

"Didn't you notice, we are moving too fast, and some of the baggage convoys and heavy artillery units in the rear can't keep up, so we have to raise supplies ourselves."

"But...... Your Majesty has repeatedly ordered us to rectify military discipline and strictly prohibit us from plundering civilians. ”

"Good boy, don't be nervous, I'm not trying to rob the city, I'm just going to 'threaten' it."

"Threat?" William looked at his father with some confusion, completely unaware of what he was going to do.

Later, the Marquis of Dalí sent someone to call out the mayor of the city, wrote a list and handed it to him, which listed in detail some supplies, including bread, fresh water, cheese, jerky, vegetables, salt, etc., a total of about 300 carts.

"Give this list of things and we won't disturb the peace of the city." Dali Road.

The mayor smiled stiffly, "I'm sorry, my lord, but we're short of supplies, so can we give you half of the amount at a discount?" ”

"Dare to bargain?" Dali glanced at the other party and threatened:

"Don't play stupid, Mr. Mayor, I know very well that your knight lords have looted the nearby villages, and the warehouses in your city must be full, and they are about to burst, and I am afraid that they will not be able to eat for several years."

The mayor pursed his lips and said nothing, acquiescing to this fact.

Dalí continued: "Besides, I want this grain not only for military rations, but also for the hungry serfs outside, who are your compatriots."

Beads of sweat appeared on the mayor's head, and he stumbled: "We do have a problem, my lord, so how about I provide you with 75% of the supplies on your list?" ”

"Ahem...... It seems that in your eyes, you don't see tenant farmers as human beings at all, do you?

All right! Our Valstad Empire is a civilized country, and of course we will not enter the city and plunder, but well, I will still blast the gates of this city open with cannons, and then let the hungry people in.

They numbered at least 100,000, grumbling with hunger, carrying sickles and sticks, eyes as wide as brass bells, and living by eating rats and gnawing on the bark of trees.

Dear Mr. Mayor, think about it, what do you think these angry poor people will do when they see the fat city people? ”

The mayor was so frightened that he waved his hand again and again, and hurriedly said, "Don't ...... Other...... Don't let the serfs into the city...... I'll get the list together and deliver it to you......"

Dali glared at the other party and said contemptuously, "Hmph! You don't cry when you don't see a coffin, do you? Too slow to promise! I want double the supplies now! ”

"Good...... Well, it's up to you! Double is double! "The mayor was about to cry.

Yi Wanshuai on the side spat on the ground and scolded:

"Phew! Look at what this means, there are still supplies in the city, this old man was pretending to be pitiful just now! ”

William was adoring, and in his eyes, the figure of his father became even taller.

After successfully getting 600 carts of food supplies, William immediately sent people to distribute more than half of them to the nearby serfs and hungry people.

Now that the main force of the army is well supplied and morale is high, it is possible to continue its advance without waiting for the follow-up troops to follow.

A veteran with gray sideburns and a medal looked very excited, and he walked at the front of the line, and asked the boy from the military band to borrow a snare drum and sing while beating the drum:

“

Knock knock!

Tent flags and rifles,

Guys, get up!

The cowhide drum was pounding

An ill-fated life

It's like a game of dice

Happily enlisted in the army,

I don't know how many people have returned!

Let's walk together,

Playing the drums of war, hey

The sound of horses' hooves is audible

The military flag flutters in the wind

Returning home laden with loot

Ladies have fun!

”

(Note: This song is adapted from Die Bauernolltenfreiesein, the military music of German mercenaries in history.) ）