Chapter 10
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Chapter 10: A Heavy Burden
The peaceful school life changed dramatically with Anna’s arrival.
Anna’s presence ignited Karl’s determination, leading him to find his lifelong goal years earlier and speeding up historical progress significantly.
Of course, Leader One also played a significant role in this. The novels "1914 AD" and "1936 AD" inspired Karl and planted a seed in his mind.
During this time, Karl studied intensely, constantly refining his ideas. He not only delved into theoretical knowledge but also spent a lot of time visiting factories and fields for practical experience. They rarely saw each other outside of class.
To be honest, the two of them are slowly growing apart.
Leader One has come to realize that he and Karl are not on the same path. He admires Karl and wishes him well, but he cannot join Karl in his venture.
In the second year at Berlin University, Leader One spent more time with Anna, who was also willing to spend time with him.
It can even be said that they were entangled.
One morning, Leader One received a special letter informing him about an accident at the Prussian Engineering Institute. The Rhine Metal team and Keluobo were testing a new cannon when it accidentally exploded, resulting in one death and three injuries. Keluobo, in shock, fell from a high platform and broke his bones.
The engineers sponsored by himself were either lying in coffins or in hospitals. It was a very unfortunate accident, and Leader One planned to visit them after class.
Professor Savigny announced the end of the class, but Leader One, in a hurry to go to the hospital, was stopped by a white arm.
Anna stood at the classroom door with open arms, preventing Leader One from leaving, with an angry expression on her face.
"You’ve been distracted the whole class today. What are you thinking? I’m asking you, why won’t you tell me?" Anna questioned.
Leader One, "It’s personal, I can’t tell you everything."
During the first half of class today, Anna didn’t look at the blackboard at all. She kept turning her head to stare at Leader One’s face, wanting to know what he was thinking. Despite the teacher repeatedly asking Anna to sit properly, she completely ignored it.
Professor Savigny was so angry on stage that he nearly collapsed on the spot.
In the second half of class, Anna was sent to stand in the hallway. Now that class is over, she blocked Leader One off completely.
Leader One, "I really have something to do, I can’t stay with you today."
"What’s wrong? Why won’t you tell me? What are you hiding from me?"
"Is there someone else who wants to marry you? No way, no way. With your ordinary looks, a commoner born writing smelly novels, who would want to marry you, only…"
Leader One, "What are you talking about?"
Anna lightly scratched her forehead.
Leader One, "Why are your ears red? If you’re sick, you should see a doctor."
Anna suddenly turned away, leaving Leader One puzzled. Maybe she’s feeling unwell because of her sickness.
Watching Anna’s fading figure, Leader One shouted, "Drink more hot water!"
Then he ran to the hospital to visit the injured artillery engineers.
Upon entering, he saw Keluobo smoking heavily. The strange smell in the air made him nauseous. Painkillers in this era were very primitive, with smoking being the most common.
"How are the others?"
Keluobo put his cigarette aside. "Still in critical condition. Viktor and Hans are seriously injured, it looks grim."
Leader One and Keluobo discussed the cause of the cannon explosion, detailing the trial shot. They ultimately concluded it was their mistake.
Eager to succeed, Leader One had the Rhine Metal team and Keluobo develop steel rear-loading rifled cannons.
But now it was the year 1833, without proper support systems, it was impossible to make such advanced cannons. The manufacturing process was not up to par, the materials were substandard, and barrel burst was almost inevitable.
People were mostly using iron cannons or even bronze cannons, whereas Leader One’s suggestion of steel cannons, rifling, and breech-loading was considered too advanced for that time.
Keluobo remembered, "At that time, cannon fragments were flying everywhere. A group of us standing on a high platform fifty meters away were affected. Viktor and Hans quickly lost consciousness due to blood loss. Lukas had his skull pierced by a fragment…"
Leader One heard something unusual.
Cannons are not sealed compartments like bombs; the gunpowder does not concentrate all its energy on the barrel. A large part of it is released from the muzzle. When a cannon bursts, fragments can travel fifty meters, injuring three people. This requires high energy gunpowder, and black powder would require a large amount…
"Did you use a new type of gunpowder?" Leader One asked hastily.
Keluobo replied, "About half a year ago, we accidentally discovered that mixing nitric acid and sulfuric acid with flour could cause an explosion. We researched further and found out that the starch in the flour played a role. We recently made a breakthrough and invented a new explosive called nitrocellulose, and then…"
Leader One was surprised, "And then you used this new explosive in the new cannons?"
Keluobo nodded.
Leader One, "You are trying to mix two untested new things together, isn’t this very risky?"
Keluobo, "But the test results this time are good. Firstly, we proved that current technology cannot produce the steel breech-loading cannons you need, and secondly, we proved that the new explosive is very powerful."
Leader One was speechless and didn’t know what to say.
"Why not change to making bombs instead?" Keluobo suddenly suggested.
The development of the new cannon was not successful, but the power of this explosive for the breech is very, very strong. Why not just change to developing new bombs, such as steel hand grenades, steel landmines, and so on.
Leader One followed his line of thought and continued, "You can try carving grooves on the bombs or adding steel shavings and steel balls to the gunpowder."
Keluobo quickly took out a small notebook and wrote down, "Your Majesty, your suggestion is good."
Hand grenades in the early 19th century were quite interesting. It was an iron ball that could fit in a palm, weighing from two to four or five pounds, used by some strong soldiers in the military. This group of strong soldiers was called grenadiers, which later evolved into an honorary title given to outstanding soldiers.
But at this time, hand grenades were rarely used in field battles, too heavy and with an unreasonable shape. Soldiers without special training could not throw them very far, only limited to grenadiers in situations like assaults and defenses during siege battles and other special circumstances.
So it was necessary to improve grenades and develop new ones that are more suitable for various situations, which can greatly enhance the combat power of the army.
"I’ll draw a picture for you, and you can study the new grenade based on that." Leader One patted Keluobo’s shoulder.
In the hospital room, Leader One was drawing on the table while Keluobo was half-lying, smoking heavily. Half an hour passed…
Looking at the blueprint, Keluobo asked how to ignite this wooden handle grenade. Is it a hollow wooden handle with a fuse inside? And how to ignite this pineapple grenade next to it when there is no ignition point?
Leader One, "This is what you need to research. I can only draw the appearance for you. I don’t understand the internal structure and triggering mechanism."
The two discussed the issue of the new grenade for several hours, and it was already nighttime with a full moon hanging high in the sky.
Keluobo, "Oh by the way, Your Highness, what did you come for today?"
Leader One, "Oh.. I came to visit the patients. Is Victor and Hans done with their surgeries? Have they been saved?"
Well-trained doctor, "Both have passed away."
And so, Prussia lost two potential future military masters, and Rhine Metal’s operations suffered greatly.
