Chapter 1207 New Ideas
Graycastle, Neverwinter City.
Due to the inconvenience of transporting the fortress artillery, when the artillery battalion took turns to go to Wolf Heart and Everwinter to implement His Majesty's population relocation plan, the artillery battalion was rarely free. In addition to daily training and helping with the autumn harvest, non-duty teams can return home and spend this precious free time with their families.
Fanner is no exception. Now that he is the battalion commander, it is difficult for him to apply for leave, so he naturally cherishes such an opportunity. In addition to spending time with family and visiting neighbors, gathering with old friends is also an essential activity. After all, drinking is not allowed in the military. If you want to enjoy a drink, you can only wait until you are on vacation.
After these years of development, the commercial prosperity of Neverwinter City has long surpassed that of the old royal capital. The commercial street plan advocated by His Majesty at the beginning, that is, any house facing the street should be built into a two-story shop for rent, has also become a commercial street that no one cares about. It's so popular right now. Foreign businessmen have moved in, either selling specialty goods shipped from various places, or converting them into hotels, restaurants and wine shops. If the convenience market provides the necessities of life, then these shops are the supplement to enrich life.
Walking on the streets with people coming and going, Fanner couldn't help but sigh with emotion at His Majesty's foresight. Even though there were shouts of hawking all around him, the roads in the city were not congested at all - traders would not pile up their shops all over the streets, and everyone would shuttle between them. On the dedicated stone walkway, carriages ran on the black road, and everything seemed orderly.
He remembered that when the construction team first laid out lines and built roads, many people did not understand why the streets should be built so wide, especially because the separation of people and carriages seemed superfluous and unnecessary. Now it seems that this plan was just right, as if His Majesty had foreseen this scene in advance.
After crossing two main roads, the "Lucky Cannonball" pub appeared in front of Fanner, which was also the destination of his trip.
As soon as I walked into the store, someone limped out from behind the bar and said, "Sir, you are here!"
"Sir, that's the name in the army. You are no longer in the First Army. Just call me Fanner." He smiled and hugged the visitor, patting him on the back hard. "The latest business How about it, it should be pretty good, right?"
Compared with the opponent's name, the nickname Tieguai impressed Faner more - that fierce battle on the night of Tower 1 more than half a year ago, in order to regain the artillery position occupied by the devil, Tieguai, who was still serving in the artillery battalion, led the team He charged at the enemy, but was struck by a spear from his abdomen to his legs, and he lost consciousness on the spot. Although Miss Angel saved his life afterwards, due to too many missing parts, he could not fully recover in the end. The entire right leg had to be temporarily replaced by an iron rod, and the nickname "Iron Crutch" was passed down.
After retiring, Tieguai received a subsidy, and together with his accumulated salary, he opened the "Lucky Cannonball" pub in Dongcheng District, which can be regarded as a regular gathering place for the First Army during their vacations.
"The rent is reduced or reduced during the period of injury, which is enough to support the family." Tie Guai said while rubbing his hands, "Of course it would be better if you could come here a few more times."
Fanner felt a sense of relief in his heart, "Then you have to wait until I quit, or become like you. By the way, have the Rona brothers arrived?"
"It's all upstairs. I'll take you there."
"No, no, no, no, no, no, you need to work on your own business first, and then come up and have a few drinks with everyone when there are fewer guests."
"Okay, then it's settled," Tieguai responded cheerfully.
Fanner walked upstairs and immediately saw the old guys sitting around a round table. Pomelo, Cat Claw, Rodney, Nelson... When the artillery battalion was first established, they were just a group of young guys who were in the same artillery group. They would be frightened when they saw the knights charging. Now, they have basically become the core backbone of the artillery battalion, each with their own subordinates. If it weren't for such a special holiday, it would be difficult to gather together as before.
Afterwards, there was a happy time of drinking and drinking. A group of people toasted and drank, talking about everything. However, the most talked about was the army itself and the battle of divine will that it would face in the future.
After all, according to His Majesty, the scale of this war is unprecedented, and the entire continent will be involved. It is really unknown how many people will be able to sit together and drink together after the war is over.
"Actually, we are lucky. At least we don't have to deal with those monsters head-on." Rodney took a deep breath after drinking down the ale in his glass. "If all the artillery positions are lost, it will basically be equivalent to a complete defeat. "
"The question is, who knows what new tricks the devil has... Wasn't Tower No. 1 caught off guard?" Cat Claw shrugged, "I just hope that when that time comes, my soldiers will still be able to fight back. Ability, instead of just waiting for the guys from the Musketeers Battalion and the Special Tactics Squad to come to rescue him."
These words resonated with everyone, "Yes, it would be great if we also had powerful repeating weapons. The revolver rifle is okay against knights, but it is really not enough to suppress the devil."
"Save it, I heard that the army has plans to completely replace it with bolt-action rifles. Soon you won't even see revolvers anymore."
"No way... Battalion Commander, is this true?"
Seeing everyone looking at him, Fanner nodded and said, "In fact, the first and sixth squads have been replaced with new weapons. It's just because of production problems that it will take some time for other squads to make up."
Youpi frowned, "I have also tried the new gun. The accuracy and power are good, but the speed of firing and pulling is really not suitable for use as a melee weapon. Can't the artillery battalion continue to use the original weapon?"
"I'm afraid not, this is a decision from above." Fanner pointed to the top of his head, "The revolver uses old-fashioned black powder, and the bullets look almost the same. It is definitely more cost-effective to save these workers to make new bullets."
"Then... let Master Iron Ax tell His Majesty how about designing a new weapon for us?"
"Don't even think about it," Nelson sneered, "If there is such a good thing, why don't you let Bright and the others snatch it away?"
"That's right, it's enough for the artillery camp to have cannons," Catpaw imitated Bright's tone and said, "Don't you always say that the thicker the pipes, the better? Let us keep these small water pipes in the artillery camp - man Let’s keep drinking!”
Everyone laughed and raised their glasses, but found that Fanner did not respond. Instead, he stared at the wine in the glass motionlessly, as if thinking about something.
"battalion commander?"
Fanner touched his chin and said slowly, "What if we make it ourselves?"
"What are you building? A new musket?" Cat Claw raised an eyebrow and asked, "Battalion Commander, you're not drunk, are you?"
"Come here! I don't know if you have noticed that whether it is the shotgun used by the special tactics team or the Mark I heavy machine gun of the musket battalion, repeated shooting is achieved through an air tube." Fanner thought about it while thinking about it. He said, "I have seen many weapons that were scrapped and then dismantled and recycled. Although the structures are different, the principles are almost the same."
"Uh...really? Why didn't I know?"
"So he is the battalion commander, not you." Rodney curled his lips and said, "But even so, it still requires a lot of manpower and materials. The factories that produce weapons are not under the control of Master Iron Ax."
"No, when I say manufacturing, I mean making improvements on existing guns." The more Fanner said, the more clear his thinking became. "There is no need to trouble the weapons factory, and it will not increase the burden on the administrative office. As long as there is a Just give it a try with the help of skilled workers.”
The other three people looked at Youpi in unison.
The latter sighed, raised his hand helplessly and said, "My brother works in the industrial area, but he is responsible for the processing and assembly of steam engines. I will take you there tomorrow."