He arrived at the production workshop and handed the blueprints he had drawn to Wang Mingyuan.
The latter frowned deeply, his lips twitching a few times, and the hand holding the blueprints was trembling slightly.
After a long while, Wang Mingyuan finally looked up, his eyes carrying a hint of bewilderment as he looked at Jiang Chuan.
“President Jiang, do we really have to modify it like this?” Wang Mingyuan asked.
Jiang Chuan nodded. “Yes, modify it just like this.”
Wang Mingyuan turned his gaze back to the blueprints in his hands.
On the blueprints, the gas cylinder had been fitted with two simple brackets, along with an ignition device, a precision demolition device, and a simple remote control device.
Inside the steel pipe, a propulsion device had been added, along with two large brackets.
Judging from the modified blueprints, this indeed worked on the same principle as a mortar.
Place the gas cylinder into the steel pipe, ignite the gas cylinder, then use the propulsion device inside the steel pipe to launch the gas cylinder out, achieving long-range strikes.
Mortars work on the same principle.
But there was still a big gap between the two. For instance, a mortar’s range, its demolition standards, and various other aspects of military strikes have all undergone rigorous testing.
You also have to consider ballistics, the amount of gunpowder to add, and all sorts of other factors.
But this gas cylinder was simple—add gunpowder to the gas cylinder, then launch it out of a steel pipe…
“President Jiang, why don’t we test the effect first? Then we can see whether we need to modify everything?” Wang Mingyuan suggested.
Jiang Chuan thought for a moment, then nodded. “That works too.”
He knew the power of this thing.
But he had only heard about it. As for exactly how powerful this thing was, he really had no concept of it. Testing it would at least give him a baseline.
“Alright, then I’ll have the workers put one together as fast as possible.”
“Is it troublesome?”
“Not troublesome at all. The propulsion device, the remote-controlled explosive device—we have all of these ready-made in the military factory. We just need to find a welder to weld on the brackets, and then we can test it. An hour at most.”
“Then I’ll wait for your good news.”
…
An hour later.
In an open space near the military factory.
Jiang Chuan, Wang Mingyuan, the 141 Task Force, Jason Statham, and several workers had all gathered here.
In front of them, a steel pipe with brackets was placed at a 45° angle on the open ground, and beside it sat a gas cylinder filled with gunpowder, scrap iron fragments, and steel balls.
This gas cylinder had not been welded with brackets—this was to make it easier to load into the steel pipe, and also to save on costs.
“President Jiang, shall I begin the test?” Wang Mingyuan asked.
Jiang Chuan nodded.
Wang Mingyuan stepped forward and directed the workers to carefully place the gas cylinder into the steel pipe that had been modified into a cannon barrel, then had them quickly evacuate.
Then, Wang Mingyuan stood beside the steel pipe, took a deep breath, and pressed the propulsion device on the steel pipe.
Bang!
Accompanied by a loud crash, the gas cylinder hurtled into the air trailing thick smoke, speeding off into the distance.
Under the stunned gazes of Wang Mingyuan and the workers, the gas cylinder flew far away. Just as it was about to land, Wang Mingyuan finally snapped back to his senses and quickly pressed another remote control in his hand.
Boom!
A louder crash than before, accompanied by a rising ball of fire, reached everyone’s ears and eyes at the same time.
Wang Mingyuan’s eyes went wide as he stared at the scene in disbelief.
He clearly saw that at the moment the gas cylinder exploded, its tremendous power rapidly swept across everything around it.
He even saw several trees, because they were too close to the gas cylinder, snap cleanly and fall toward the forest.
“What’s the situation over there?” Wang Mingyuan swallowed and asked into the walkie-talkie.
According to Jiang Chuan’s requirements, at a distance of about 10 kilometers from the launch site, he had also set up a simple fortress made of sheet metal, specifically to test the explosive power of the gas cylinder.
From the walkie-talkie came a worker’s trembling voice.
“The fortress has been destroyed! All the steel plates are covered in dense little holes! Around it, around it there are no fewer than ten trees blown down! This, this power is in no way inferior to a 120mm mortar!”
Hearing the worker’s words through the walkie-talkie.
Wang Mingyuan’s eyes went wide, his mouth hanging open, staring blankly into the distance.
Now only one thought remained in his mind: President Jiang was right. After modification, this thing’s power was terrifying!
It was even on par with a mortar!
This was a very frightening thing.
You have to understand, this was just a gas cylinder plus a steel pipe. With just a little modification, it could achieve such tremendous power.
The most important thing was—this thing was cheap!
And shockingly cheap.
To produce a 120mm mortar, even if the military factory cut costs as much as possible, they could only keep it at several hundred Eagle Coins. But this gas cylinder plus steel pipe, including modification costs, might not even cost a few hundred Jiuzhou Coins.
Enormous profit! Absolute enormous profit!
Jiang Chuan stood to the side with a smile on his lips. He turned to look at the 141 Task Force beside him and said with a grin, “What do you all think of the power of this gas cylinder plus steel pipe?”
Shepherd furrowed his brow. “Boss, if you want me to be honest, the power of this gas cylinder plus steel pipe is in no way inferior to a mortar.”
“Exactly, and this thing is very portable. If we could add wheels to the steel pipe, it could be pushed around. After firing one gas cylinder, we could immediately relocate. The most important thing is, the enemy has no way to intercept this thing!” Xiao Qiang clenched his fists excitedly.
Soap laughed heartily. “I really can’t imagine how anyone could defend against this kind of weapon.”
“The operation is also very simple. It only takes one person to control a whole bunch of gas cylinders. After a round of bombardment like that, even if the enemy has over a thousand soldiers, they wouldn’t be able to hold out,” Yuri said coldly.
Jason Statham stroked his chin thoughtfully. “Actually, the key point is that it’s cheap. The cost of this thing is very low. Even if the enemy destroys it, you won’t feel bad about it. In Jiuzhou terms, it has a very high cost-performance ratio!”
Hearing everyone’s comments on this new weapon, Jiang Chuan laughed heartily. “Jason Statham is right. It’s not that mortars are bad—it’s that gas cylinders plus steel pipes have better cost-performance!”
Then, Jiang Chuan walked over to Wang Mingyuan and patted him heavily on the shoulder. “Starting today, apart from the workers making firearms, all workers in the military factory are to go all out on modifying gas cylinders and steel pipes.
Oh, and the modification plans are divided into two parts. Half the gas cylinders get brackets and propulsion devices for independent use. The propulsion devices don’t need to be top-quality—just enough to push about 2 kilometers, for short-range strikes.
The other half of the gas cylinders only get filled with gunpowder and are used with steel pipes. The range must be controlled at around 10 kilometers, but it doesn’t need to be too accurate. After all, the main selling point of this thing is randomness.”
Wang Mingyuan nodded blankly. “O-okay, President Jiang!”
