Bi Maokang came to Jiangning Camp and served as the commander of the military commander. His official position was above Xiong Zijian, which aroused the curiosity of many people. Jiangning Camp is a very united whole. Except for Sun Chuanting, the other officers were almost all from the inside. Even Sun Chuanting had been in Jiangning Camp for a long time and had participated in many wars. It was accepted by everyone. Moreover, Sun Chuanting's ability is indeed good. He has good skills in managing and leading the army.

Bi Maokang was born out of nowhere.

After learning that Su Tiancheng was about to take out 500,000 taels of silver and hand it over to Bi Maokang for firearm research, the officers of more than a thousand households in Jiangning Camp expressed their discomfort. After all, everyone's understanding of firearms has not reached a certain level. The most important thing is that everyone has not really experienced the battle where firearms determine the outcome of the war.

In the Battle of Zhongdu, the Shenji Battalion suffered heavy losses and almost completely lost its combat effectiveness. This time the loss touched everyone a lot, so that the soldiers of Jiangning Camp believed that they should rely on cavalry to decide the situation. Even the soldiers of the Shenji Battalion had to participate in the training of cavalry and infantry every day, and constantly strengthen their bodies.

The commander of the Shenji Camp has always been Sun Chuanting. Su Tiancheng once sought opinions from Di Huaixiang, Qin Rui and others. Although these people were very loyal to him, when they mentioned that they were commanders of the Shenji Camp, everyone retreated and firmly disagreed, and even wanted to stay in the Xiaoqi Camp and become an ordinary soldier in the Forward Camp.

The soldiers of the Shenji Camp do not have a high understanding of the huge role of firearms for the time being. This cannot be blamed for everyone. Firearms have appeared for more than two hundred years, but their progress has been very slow. For example, the grenade gun has been used for so many years, and when used in actual combat, it has been too restricted, and it will explode if it is accidentally done. It is also inconvenient to operate. When facing the cavalry's rapid charge, it cannot play a big role. Once the cavalry rushed in front of them, they will only be slaughtered.

Only when a firearm with a huge and easy-to-operate function is born can the sergeant's understanding be fundamentally changed.

Sun Chuanting soon found Su Tiancheng.

"Sir, I have some opinions on the development of firearms in Jiangningying. I can't speak up quickly."

"Mr. Sun has any ideas, just say it out."

"The court established a military war and the Second Bureau of Military Equipment, which is specifically used to develop and produce firearms, and there is also a military equipment bureau in the provincial capital. If the Jiangning Camp needs firearms, it can be required to provide them. Now it is taking out the money and specializes in developing them. It is too difficult to start from scratch. Even the two major camps of Jingying and Nanjing did not do this. Besides, the imperial court is still very strict in the control of firearms. Will Jiangning Camp do this cause controversy?"

"Jiangning Camp came to Henan Prefecture. Although the family background is still solid, the conditions of Henan Prefecture are far from comparable to Jiangning County. I feel that every money of silver must be cherished. After this autumn harvest, Jiangning Camp provided 500,000 shi of grain, but the silver was not replenished. If this is the case now, the expenditure next year may be difficult. Now, to develop a firearm, spend 500,000 taels of silver at a time. I am afraid the soldiers have some thoughts in their minds."

Sun Chuanting's words represent a large layer of people's ideas. Su Tiancheng knew that he had to persevere.

"Mr. Sun, what you said is indeed reasonable. Jiangning Camp is not very abundant at present. This is indeed because the conditions of Henan Prefecture are different, and it cannot be compared with Jiangning County. However, Henan Prefecture has developed very quickly. According to my estimate, in just about a year, Henan Prefecture is not far behind Jiangning County. In other words, the expenses of Jiangning Camp can be completely guaranteed. The soldiers should not be too worried about this."

"As for the development of firearms, we must persist in this matter. This is one of the most important tasks of Jiangning Camp, which is no less than the training of soldiers to kill the enemy. Soon after, you will understand the importance of firearms. We often say that we sweat more in daily life and bleeding less in wartime. In fact, the same principle is to develop firearms. If you can prevent the enemy from getting close to you, you will eliminate the opponent, so that you can minimize casualties."

Sun Chuanting seems not to accept such an explanation.

"What the lord said makes sense, but in the Battle of Zhongdu, the Shenji Battalion suffered heavy losses and could not play a role after encountering the cavalry."

Su Tiancheng was speechless. You should know that in the battle against bandits, Sun Chuanting focused on relying on artillery and bird guns, so he later relied too much on the role of cavalry and infantry. However, when he came to Jiangning Camp, he witnessed the bravery of the soldiers and was not very interested in firearms.

"Mr. Sun, you are the commander-in-chief of the Jiangning Camp. Your understanding can determine the understanding of many officers of the Jiangning Camp. After many conquests, it should be said that the losses are heavy every time. Fortunately, we have a unique advantage, that is, we can get rest time and get the greatest supplement. But in the future, if we go to the north and face the Eight Banners of the Manchus and Eight Banners of the Later Jin Dynasty, it is very likely that they will fight continuously, for one month, two months or even more than half a year. If we suffer a considerable loss in every battle, the combat effectiveness of the Jiangning Camp will inevitably be weakened."

"The focus of combat is to seize opportunities. As long as you can achieve the greatest victory, even if you make the greatest sacrifice, you will be willing to do so. The premise is that the enemy cannot escape or let the enemy breathe. In this case, if you can maintain your own combat effectiveness, will you have the greatest confidence to win?"

"The decisive factor in all this is that the firearms and the role of firearms has not been fully utilized. This is also because the research on firearms has lagged behind. Bi Maokang is an expert in firearms. I have talked to him. The bird gun he developed has been greatly improved compared to the past. He also has a good experience in the use of artillery. Lord Sun, don't worry, don't take long to see the effect."

Sun Chuanting nodded skeptically.

Of course, Su Tiancheng couldn't come up with more convincing examples. After all, it is impossible to move things hundreds of years into the current environment, so people would think you are a lunatic.

No matter what kind of research, it needs to have practical results.

Su Tiancheng gritted his teeth and took out 500,000 taels of silver, which was to spend a huge amount of money in terms of investment, so he could see the effect earlier. As long as the firearm was improved the greatest improvement, he had this natural advantage when facing the bandits of the Eight Banners of Manchuria and the Eight Banners of Mongolia, and they could use the smallest sacrifice to exchange for the greatest victory.

Another most important purpose is to invite Bi Maokang to Jiangning Camp for development, which is to keep it confidential.

Although the firearms developed in the Military Weapon Bureau in the capital may be technically confidential, the loss of firearms is inevitable. Some bureaucrats and gentry colluded with merchants to sell military weapons privately, gaining huge benefits. These military weapons were separated from the Later Jin Dynasty and equipped the Han army, causing the gap between the two sides in terms of firearms to become smaller and smaller.

Bi Maokang came to Jiangning Camp. All the firearms developed here can be kept confidential to the greatest extent.

There are also unknown secrets.

Bi Maokang is not only a firearm expert, but also a real money tree.

The annual expenditure of Jiangning Camp requires a large amount of silver. Although merchants such as Song Sijun and Wan Chenggui can support more and more expenses, the army is state-owned and not private. If Jiangning Camp relies too much on merchants, it will definitely be very unfavorable for future development.

If you can make a fortune in firearms, Jiangning Camp can earn countless money.

With such a small idea, Su Tiancheng operated without any problems. Without the technology outflow, it is completely feasible for Jiangningying to control the number of firearms and sell firearms to a certain extent.

Besides, when Bi Maokang went to Jiangning Camp to develop firearms, all the expenses were taken care of by Jiangning Camp themselves. The development of firearms with strong combat power was also the efforts of Jiangning Camp. If many troops in the Ming Dynasty wanted to be equipped, they would pay the money to buy them. Such a demand was the Jiangning Camp's money printing machine.

Many other officers from Jiangning Camp also found Su Tiancheng one after another. When talking about the development of firearms, it was obvious that Sun Chuanting himself had not changed his understanding and could not explain it well.

In this regard, Su Tiancheng was very patient and gave a special explanation, emphasizing the importance of firearm development.

Jiangning Camp can be said to be created by Su Tiancheng. All the officers, including soldiers, were very convinced and absolutely obeyed Su Tiancheng's request. Although everyone still had a sense of the importance of firearms, Su Tiancheng insisted, and everyone would definitely obey and would not put forward many opinions.

During this process, Bi Maokang also knew Su Tiancheng's attitude.

There are too many things that surprised him, and now it can no longer be considered a surprise.

Su Tiancheng did what he said, and 500,000 taels of silver would be in place soon. Moreover, the government office specially vacated official fields not far from the Jiangning Camp station, organized the people to build houses on a large scale. After the autumn harvest, it was already the slack season. Henan Prefecture had a bumper grain harvest this year, and farmers had hope for their lives. They tried every means to find things to do, earn more money and improve their lives, and there was no problem with the labor force.

This newly built military camp is about the same scale than the one at the Jiangning Camp. Such a large place is reserved specifically for Bi Maokang to conduct firearm research, and also produce weapons here.
Chapter completed!