Steel Dynasty - Chapter 124

[Chapter 124 Dilemma]

Barbarians may invade in autumn.

In addition to Pang Yukun, military generals such as Lu Fei also quickly received the news.

“Your Highness, as long as the equipment and weapons can keep up, it is not a problem to defend Cangzhou City. But up to now, the equipment in the Qingzhou camp has not been found. See if you can urge Chen Wenlong.” Lu Fei glanced sideways. Chen Wenlong was so angry that his teeth itched with hatred.

Chen Wenlong has a calm personality, while Lu Fei has an impatient personality. It is naturally wrong for the two of them to be together. He said: “Colonel Lu, it is not easy to produce this plate armor. It is good to be able to produce a thousand sets of plate armor in a month.”

“But His Highness clearly said that one hundred sets can be produced in one day, are you lying to me?” Lu Fei asked with his chest bandaged and his eyes wide.

Now it was Xiao Ming’s turn to blush. When the hydraulic forging hammer was used in the steel workshop, he was confident that he could produce a hundred sets of plate armor a day.

Later, the actual situation slapped him in the face. This was not because he had made a mistake in estimating production capacity.

It was because iron ore was simply not in supply. Only now did he understand that it was easy to make iron and steel, but mining was really not easy.

After the shallow ore was excavated, the mine became deeper and deeper, and then every rainy day, the mine was filled with rainwater and turned into a pond.

Then the weather cleared, and the water in the mine had to be drained first before mining could continue.

At the same time, the deepening of the mines has made it more difficult to transport ore from the mines. The supply of iron ore from the three iron mines in Qian Dafu’s hands continues to decrease.

Coal mines are mentioned at the same time as iron mines, and the same problem is happening.

In the past, there was no large-scale production of steel in Qingzhou, and the shortage of coal cakes and iron ore did not show up even in the rainy season in spring.

But now, the steel workshop not only produces weapons and armor, bearings for bull-wheel vehicles, but also produces farming tools for civilian use, etc.

Chen Wenlong glanced at Xiao Ming and said to Lu Fei, “Your Highness is frowning now. It shows that I am not tricking you.”

“Your Highness, what is going on? If so, there will be at most eight or nine thousand people in half a year.” They are worthy of use. These soldiers who have only been trained for half a year are no match for the barbarians who are naturally good at riding and shooting. If they no longer have the advantage of armor, they will suffer heavy losses.”

Xiao Ming covered his forehead and sat down on the chair. , “Do you think I don’t want to equip all the new army with plate armor? The fact is that the king is helpless.”

The plate armor can’t keep up with the production, and now he has to build artillery. Xiao Ming is really a The first two are big.

Only then did he understand why it was so laborious for a country in ancient times to raise a standing army of 100,000 people. The food, drinks and toilets of the army cost money, and weapons and equipment such as plate armor also needed maintenance.

The cavalry is a big spender. A cavalry is not only equipped with four horses, but also has an auxiliary to serve the cavalry.

The role of this auxiliary soldier is equivalent to that of the Western knight’s retinue, specializing in serving the cavalry equipment and horses.

And this war horse is not a fuel-efficient lamp. The forage it eats is very particular. It must be high-quality forage, and it costs a lot of money.

The workshop area is a big moneymaker and a big spender. All the food and clothing of the slaves in the workshop belong to him, not to mention the mine where Qian is rich.

All in all, he earned a lot during this period, but he also spent a lot. Most of the money was invested in production, but in agriculture, he invested a lot in cattle, farming tools and the like.

Lu Fei suddenly became speechless.

Chen Wenlong comforted him: “Captain Lu, don’t worry. If there are enough materials, this will naturally be a military matter.”

“That’s right, you can just train with peace of mind. I will figure out a solution for the armor and weapons.” Xiao Ming said .

Lu Fei had no choice but to give up.

Letting Lu Fei go back first, Xiao Ming said to Chen Wenlong: “Nowadays, the supply of minerals in Qingzhou is insufficient. It seems that we can only purchase them from outside.”

“That’s fine, but in this case, Your Highness, be careful of the slander from the government.” Chen Wenlong reminded.

Xiao Ming frowned. Although he was a vassal king, it didn’t mean he could do whatever he wanted. He still had to be restrained by the court.

This iron ore has always been extremely strictly controlled in the Great Chongqing Kingdom. Generally speaking, other vassal kings rarely purchase iron ore from outside and only supply it internally.

Because once it involves the purchase of large quantities of iron ore, this can only mean one problem. This vassal king is mass-producing weapons and armor.

This matter is rather sensitive to talk about. There is no war in the Great Yu Kingdom now. A vassal king does not have enough ore in his own fiefdom, so he has to buy it from outside. What is his motive?

“I know well that this matter will never be reported to the imperial court. During this period, you have to balance production and try your best to meet the needs of the Qingzhou Army.” Xiao Ming sighed.

Now that he is still young, he cannot act willfully, otherwise he may not be able to save his life, and the hard work of the past six months will be in vain.

“Yes, Your Highness.” Chen Wenlong nodded.

Qian Dafu was also in the main hall. He remained silent. After Chen Wenlong left, he said, “Your Highness, how should we deal with the water in the mine?”

“I will ask the Equipment Department to prepare a few more sets of bull-powered rollovers for you. Since the mine is temporarily unable to produce, you should focus on searching for ore, especially wolframite ore, followed by tin ore and lead ore,” Xiao Ming said.

The reason why Xiao Ming searched for the latter two minerals was to prevent the failure of cast iron cannon production, and finally used bronze cannons. After all, cast iron cannons have a high chance of bombing.

He really can’t afford pure copper cannons. This is real money. Copper coins are still used in the country of Chongqing.

Qian Dafu nodded.

The three men were told about the matter of dealing with the barbarians. Xiao Ming wrote in his own hand the matter of the barbarians and sent them to the inn to quickly go to Chang’an.

And he went to the Equipment Department to find Chen Qi to discuss the casting of the artillery.

Chang’an.

At this time, the palace was full of vigor and green willows were blooming, peach blossoms were in full bloom, and Queen Zhao was strolling in the back garden with her concubines.

Concubine Zhen is following Queen Zhao. In the past six months, the concubines in the palace have clearly felt that Queen Zhao and Concubine Zhen are getting closer and closer.

Some smart concubines have already seen the clues and dare not show any slight to Concubine Zhen.

A few days ago, King Zhao came to Beijing to meet the emperor. Xiao Wenxuan personally went out of the city to greet him to show his respect for King Zhao. If it hadn’t been for King Zhao’s help, Xiao Wenxuan would not have been able to sit on the throne anyway. Later, King Zhao’s daughter became the current Queen Zhao. Not surprising.

Nowadays, the crown prince’s position is in turmoil, and it is self-evident that King Zhao has come to Beijing. However, it can be seen from the prince’s sharpness in the court these days that the prince is proud.

And this Concubine Zhen seems to have been paid more and more attention by the emperor in recent days, but the palace is a well-informed place.

What Qi King Xiao Ming did to the local wealthy families in Qingzhou has already been rumored in the palace.

(End of chapter)