Germination and Growth (6)
Yi I still remembered the words the king had occasionally let slip.
'I thought you were merely speaking out of hope...'.
But it was not.
'If cannons are made this way, you can fire at the same time as aiming.' he had said.
The substance called mercury fulminate was truly wondrous and terrifying.
Merely touching it could cause a deafening explosion that scattered fingers like shrapnel.
That was precisely why Kim Ji, the head of the Joseon Weapons Research Institute, never showed him the percussion-cap workshop.
Instead, he had simply brought out small components and explained the process.
"To make a percussion cap, first, you must carefully place this mercury fulminate into the small tube. If you do it wrong, it will explode with a bang just like the demonstration, sending your fingers flying. That is why the percussion-cap workers all wear these tough leather gloves."
Kim Ji handed the gloves to Yi I.
The stitching was tight and smooth, unmistakably the work of a master craftsman.
"They look a bit small."
"There is a reason. We selected people with good hand dexterity, and everyone happened to have small hands, so we made the gloves small."
"Ah, I see."
"Yes, it just turned out that way."
Kim Ji flashed a grin and went on to the next step.
"Place this small anvil on top of the small tube you just made and press to join it. That completes the percussion cap. But the process is dangerous, so we built a special fixture to use instead."
Having run a gun company himself, Yi Yeon knew exactly how many accidents occurred when joining the anvil to the tube—far more than when simply loading the mercury fulminate.
So he had told Kim Ji to set the small tube onto a frame, lower the lever, and let a small wooden hammer strike the joint.
Like striking a coin.
But the Anju artisans had taken the device and made it far more intricate and efficient.
They crafted a long water-driven lathe from black ebony—hard as bone—whose gears rotated to produce an almost frictionless, seamless join, exactly like pressing bricks at the briquette factory.
Therefore Yi Yeon had instructed him to study loading the mercury fulminate itself.
He had sent an enormous quantity of ebony, which was expensive and hard to come by, saying, "The finished product is this, and when you insert it into the hole behind the casing, the second stage is complete."
"It is more complex than I imagined."
"The Anju artisans always say that 'the more convenient it is to use, the more complicated the inside must be.'"
"It seems that the simpler an object looks from the outside, the more effort and refined technique go into its making."
"Exactly. Only now do I understand what you mean. You truly are an excellent lord."
"The head of the institute is equally impressive. To command such superb craftsmen, one must be extraordinary indeed."
The two old friends exchanged compliments with the easy familiarity of long acquaintance.
In truth, Kim Ji understood little of the underlying principles.
He knew how they worked, but Yi I had just clarified those principles by explaining them in perfect detail.
"Now the final stage. Depending on the intended purpose, you load iron balls or lead at the tip of the bullet and seal it with wax. That completes the cartridge."
"It varies by purpose? What exactly do you mean?"
"Um... There are four types of ammunition. The '20-ball' with twenty tiny iron balls is for hunting small birds and beasts. The 'iron-ball' with nine tiny iron balls is for foxes and wolves."
"I see."
"Yes. And the 'three-lead' with three lead lumps is for wild boars and tigers. Finally, there is a bullet loaded with only one large lead lump—the 'one-shot' bullet, as it is called."
"A one-shot bullet?"
"Yes. Anything that can finish its target in a single shot. That is why it is called that."
Yi Yeon had designated the strong paper he called kraft paper for cartridges.
It remained intact even after firing, thanks to its toughness.
And he had named the large slug-type bullet the one-shot.
A large African elephant would still be felled at close range by a slug.
He had also named the slam-fire shotgun the multi-pipe gun.
Because you could load any of the various cartridges and fire it.
"Truly remarkable. Yet if everything were simply one-shot bullets, would that not be even better?"
"It can be done, but using the correct type for the purpose is far more efficient. That is why we divided them into four categories."
"I see."
Yi I tilted his head, unable to grasp the logic.
This was a weapons research institute dedicated to human combat, not a hunting gear factory.
Kim Ji sensed his confusion and asked, "Would you like to see the operation for yourself?"
"Would you mind?"
"Just a moment, Lord."
Yi Yeon nodded as Kim Ji approached.
"Anything the Science Bureau chief shows is fine."
"As you command, Your Majesty."
Once permission was granted, Kim Ji turned to his aide.
"Sound the alarm immediately and prepare!"
"Yes, Director."
The aide dashed outside and waved a yellow flag.
The man at the watchtower grabbed the long bronze horn that looked like a taepyeongso and turned the handle at the end.
It had been made even more elegantly than Yi Yeon had demonstrated.
The artisans who had come from Anju coalfield to work here—best of the best—had also invented the bellows system that forced air into the blast furnace using water power.
So sounding the taepyeongso was no more difficult for them than breathing.
The sound was oddly resonant.
—Hooeeing! Hooeeing! Hooeeing! Wheeeee...!
The alert echoed across the entire village.
Yet no one emerged.
Three short blasts followed by one long one signaled that a live-fire test was about to begin.
"Your Majesty, the weapons are ready."
"Good. Let us observe."
"As you command, Your Majesty."
The group followed Kim Ji to the test range on the edge of the village.
"How far is the maximum distance?"
"About two hundred meters, Your Majesty."
"Then the cannon is tested elsewhere?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. As you can see, the area is surrounded by mountains, making it difficult to secure space."
"Mm... Understood. Then begin."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Kim Ji donned the leather gloves and stepped forward with the multi-pipe gun.
His stance was natural, clearly honed from practice.
The wooden multi-pipe shotgun had no trigger, yet it looked every bit a real firearm.
It was not as refined as the slam-fire shotguns produced by Stephen & Kite Brothers, but it would do.
Kim Ji moved to the firing position and shouted, "Target distance fifty meters! We will start with the twenty-ball!"
He loaded the '20' bullet into the front pipe, inserted the front pipe into the rear, and shouldered the wooden rest.
Then he yanked the handle on the front pipe with a sharp pull.
—BANG!
A deafening roar accompanied by a billow of white smoke erupted from the muzzle.
Yet the body of a single jar placed fifty meters away remained unscathed.
Smoke cleared, Yi I gave Kim Ji a strange look.
Kim Ji pointed at the target and protested, "My lord, when you go look, you will see the jar is riddled with holes."
"You mean it is a hit?"
"Yes, my lord. This multi-pipe gun is entirely different from a bow. Even if you have not practiced, after a few shots you will sense the recoil and adjust instantly."
"I see."
"Yes, my lord."
"Then why is this jar perfectly intact?"
"That jar was made for testing, so it is extremely thick. That is why the twenty-ball does not break it."
Yi I tilted his head in confusion. "Then why make that type of bullet?"
"For hunting small birds and animals, my lord. At close range it can even wound a man, and at a little farther distance it can incapacitate."
"You mean it is not meant to kill, but to capture prisoners?"
Kim Ji grinned and nodded. "Correct. It is for opponents who do not need to be killed. Twenty iron balls spread out make a very easy target."
—Yi I gasped in admiration and looked at the king.
The purpose of weapons was to kill men, yet the king was developing them with a vision far beyond that.
"Next is the iron-ball."
The second jar struck by the iron-ball shattered into a thousand pieces.
"Next is the three-lead."
The three-lead hit blew a large chunk out of the jar.
"Next is the one-shot."
The one-shot left a perfect hole straight through the center, and the jar collapsed.
"Whoa...!" You said force is proportional to weight and velocity. I see it is true."
Yi I cheered excitedly, and Kim Ji laughed, waving to the man managing the targets. "Then next we will have a one-hundred-meter shot."
This time the target was not a jar but the two-piece armor.
The finest Joseon armor, layered iron plates sewn together with rivets and worn over padded clothing.
—BANG!
It had seemed a certain miss.
But the two-piece armor remained whole.
Only the support posts holding it up had cracked with a loud snap.
—Yi I's face fell in disappointment.
Unlike him, Yi Yeon nodded, as if he had known it would happen.
'The slug bullet is heavy, but with black powder that only reaches four hundred meters per second, it is not enough.'
Yi Yeon turned his gaze to Shin Rip, who was watching in silence.
He imagined the mounted cavalry of old swinging their battle-axes, charging through mud.
'If it had not been muddy, they would have swept them clean...'
It was a pity, a deep regret.
During the wars, the Japanese arquebuses had been far weaker than the multi-pipe guns made now.
They used the same black powder, yet it could not compare to the coated version here.
The warheads had also been over fifty percent heavier than the Japanese type.
Thus arquebuses could not pierce the two-piece armor.
But rain had turned the gunpowder depot into a muddy bog, and Joseon's cavalry had fallen without ever lifting a hand.
Even close-range arquebus balls could not always pierce the armor.
Yi Yeon stood and shouted to Kim Ji, "Aim for fifty meters and try again!"
"As you command, Your Majesty!"
Kim Ji set the two-piece armor at the fifty-meter target and fired once more.
—BANG!
Smoke cleared.
A perfect hole now gaped through the center of the two-piece armor.
—Yi I let out a gasp of wonder.
Fifty meters away, even a light bow would not have been able to pierce it. Yet it had.
Yi Yeon smiled at the delighted Yi I and told Shin Rip, "Fetch me the 'kraft armor'."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
When Shin Rip brought the kraft armor made of the strong paper, Yi Yeon instructed him to hang it at the one-hundred-meter target.
Then he asked Yi I, "Do you know how to shoot an arrow?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Any Joseon scholar was expected to know archery, and Yi I was no exception.
"Then shoot at that armor."
"What? It looks like kraft paper to me. Is it not paper?"
"You will see when you shoot."
"As you command, Your Majesty."
Yi I drew his bow as hard as he could and loosed an arrow at the kraft armor.
The bow he was using was not the same, yet he hit the target at fifty meters in one shot.
But the kraft armor did not tear.
The arrow that had fluttered with a soft 'tuk' fell to the ground.
—Yi I could only stare in shock.
Yi Yeon simply smiled. "How was that? Impressive, is it not?"
"Yes, Your Majesty! Truly remarkable."
"I see."
Yi I opened and closed his mouth like a fish, swallowing hard.
If the two of them had been alone, he would have asked immediately. But with others present, he could not.
A secret, after all.
Unable to contain his curiosity, Yi I furrowed his brow like a puppy that needed to go.
Shin Rip, watching the expression, also chuckled.
"Why? You wish to know?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"It is nothing special."
"Not special, yet... how did you...?"
"Do you recall what I said before?"
"That mixing substances can make them stronger or weaker?"
"Correct. When I was making that armor, I told them to add ground eggshells to the kraft paper. I believed the hardness of eggshell would make it even stronger."
—Yi I's face lit up, bright as a man who had just finished a bout with constipation.
Yet he tilted his head again. "My lord, it still looks a bit strange."
"Strange in what way?"
"Earlier I saw it looked soft, like leather. How...?"
"That is... well."
Yi Yeon deliberately drew it out.
He found Yi I's expression endlessly entertaining, but he wanted to give him time to think.
"Did you perhaps add chicken feathers as well?"
"Similar. I did not add them directly, but when layering the kraft paper I had them insert finely chopped chicken feathers between the layers. Chicken feathers have the same keratin as hair—soft yet tough."
—Yi I's eyes widened. "So that is why it is both hard and soft... Truly astonishing, Your Majesty."
"How does it feel? If a soldier wearing this kraft armor held the multi-pipe gun in close combat..."
"He would be invincible."
Yi I shook his head vigorously.
The multi-pipe gun fired slower than a bow, yet the motion looked far easier.
Therefore, a man in kraft armor wielding the multi-pipe gun would be unstoppable in close quarters.
"Are you still afraid of the Jurchen?"
"No, Your Majesty. I am no longer afraid. However..."
* * *
Note: Chicken feathers are composed primarily of keratin, the same protein found in hair. Keratin is not only strong but also elastic, water-resistant, and insulating.
That is why the development of eco-friendly plastic using chicken feathers is progressing rapidly.
Next is the multi-pipe gun.