Chapter 32

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"Haha! You two are finally getting married? This is great news! Don't worry, we old folks will take care of everything and make sure it's a grand event!" Zhao Yi, the logistics officer of Feiyu Company, laughed heartily. Almost everyone on Feiyu Island knew about the relationship between Long Yufei and Luo Sangui, and they all hoped for the best. Luo Sangui had contributed so much to Feiyu Island, and everyone wished her happiness. If anyone on Feiyu Island could match Luo Sangui, it would be Long Yufei.

However, some loyal to the Luo family were worried that after Long Yufei and Luo Sangui got married, Feiyu Company would fall entirely under Long Yufei's control. Even though Long Yufei was already in charge of Feiyu Company, Luo Sangui was still the nominal leader. Don't forget, Luo Sangui has a younger brother, Luo Yuhu! Traditionally, the son would inherit the father's position. Initially, Luo Yuhu was too young, so Luo Sangui took over as the leader of Feiyu Island. Many believed that once Luo Yuhu came of age, Feiyu Island should be handed over to him. However, Feiyu Island had grown into Feiyu Company, a massive organization far beyond the pirates' initial expectations. During this process, Long Yufei's achievements were well-known. Most of the high-ranking officials and the Feiyu Army supported Long Yufei. Therefore, many people remarked that from now on, Feiyu Company would bear the Long name!

Long Yufei didn't notice this phenomenon, or perhaps he simply didn't care. People are practical; whoever can lead Feiyu Company to greater strength will receive support. Long Yufei believed in his influence over Feiyu Company, and no one could threaten his position. As for his relationship with Luo Sangui, it might have started with some ulterior motives, but as Luo Sangui supported him wholeheartedly, Long Yufei's feelings for her became increasingly pure!

The wedding of Luo Sangui and Long Yufei became a major event for the entire Feiyu Company. The entire Feiyu City was filled with joy. The city's population was approaching 30,000, and with more Chinese immigrants pouring in, Feiyu Company's position on Mindanao Island became even more solid!

Luo Sangui and Long Yufei didn't like elaborate weddings and requested a simple ceremony. Therefore, the wedding was held a week later!

On December 18, 1835, the 27th day of the tenth lunar month, the wedding of Long Yufei and Luo Sangui was held in the unfinished Feiyu City. All the Chinese residents of Feiyu City attended the wedding. The ceremony followed traditional Chinese customs, and after the couple bowed to heaven and earth, Long Yufei and Luo Sangui became legally married under the supervision of the administrative officer Li Decheng.

Following the ceremony, the entire city was filled with banquets, and everyone participated. Prior to this, administrative officer Li Decheng had mobilized over a thousand people to prepare for the banquet. Given Long Yufei and Luo Sangui's status, their wedding was the most significant event in Feiyu City!

Amidst the congratulations, Long Yufei and Luo Sangui completed all the rituals and became legally married. After sending the bride to the bridal chamber, Long Yufei began toasting each table. The wedding banquet was a time of relaxation, especially for the high-ranking officials of Feiyu City, most of whom were former pirates from Feiyu Island. They were even more unrestrained at the table, making Liu Mingde, Wu Yongxing, and others, who joined Feiyu Company later, secretly wonder about the backgrounds of these people.

Long Yufei was灌得头昏脑胀, almost falling over from the alcohol. If it weren't for the fact that it was his wedding night with Luo Sangui, and everyone feared angering her, he would have been forced to drink even more. However, this also brought him closer to everyone. Especially when he toasted the ordinary soldiers of the Feiyu Army and the common people of Feiyu City, it deeply moved everyone. If Feiyu Company were a small country, Long Yufei would be its king. His lack of pretension made people feel amazed, and his support and popularity soared!

On their wedding night, Long Yufei was naturally very pleased, embracing Luo Sangui in a passionate embrace. The next day, he didn't get up early to go to the factory, and the others in Feiyu Company understood. After all, they had just gotten married, and it would be unreasonable to immediately leave his new wife to work. This was only natural!

Luo Sangui's younger brother, Luo Yuhu, also lived with them. This 14-year-old boy was tall and strong. However, he was straightforward and had no guile, which pleased Long Yufei. Having such a brother-in-law meant he didn't have to worry about internal strife. Moreover, Luo Yuhu was very interested in military affairs and constantly pestered Long Yufei to send him to the army. In the end, Luo Sangui had to intervene, telling him to wait until he was 16 before joining the army, which finally calmed Luo Yuhu down!

Long Yufei's honeymoon didn't last long. Three days after the wedding, he returned to work. Feiyu Company was developing rapidly, and there was no time to waste.

On December 25, 1835, Christmas Day. This day was very important for Feiyu Company and the Feiyu Army. The high-ranking officials of Feiyu Company and all the officers above the rank of company commander in the Feiyu Army gathered at the shooting range by the sea. Today was the day to test the new artillery produced by the Feiyu Arsenal, and everyone was very excited.

After several months of effort, the first artillery piece of the Feiyu Arsenal was finally developed. Under Long Yufei's leadership, it was named the 'Pili' (Thunder) mortar! The 'Pili' mortar had a 60mm caliber, weighed 22 kilograms, and its shell weighed 1.5 kilograms. It had a firing rate of 5 rounds per minute, a range of 50 to 1000 meters, and an effective kill radius of 5 meters. This was mainly due to the quality of the gunpowder. If smokeless powder or even better explosives could be developed, its performance could be further improved.

Two mortars were set up on the shooting range, the masterpiece of the Feiyu Arsenal for this month. As the factory manager, Zhao Xingkai introduced the performance of the 'Pili' mortar to everyone. The high-ranking officials of Feiyu Company and the military officers were all excitedly looking at the two mortars. The fact that the Feiyu Arsenal could produce rifles already made them very satisfied. They never expected that it could now produce artillery, which was even more surprising. Especially for those who had recently joined Feiyu Company and the Feiyu Army, their eyes were filled with shock!

"Xingkai, stop the talk and fire a few rounds first!" the military affairs officer Niu Meng urged. To enhance the firepower of the infantry, Long Yufei led the arsenal to develop wooden-handled grenades. Although they were useful, their power was too small, and they could only be thrown a few dozen meters, far inferior to artillery. If this lightweight mortar with a maximum range of over a thousand meters could be equipped, it would significantly enhance the combat power of the Feiyu Army!

Zhao Xingkai looked at Long Yufei, and only after he nodded did he order the arsenal personnel to operate the two mortars. The mortars were already assembled, with the barrels aimed at a target 500 meters away. Several shells were placed next to each mortar. Unlike the spherical shells used in traditional artillery, the mortar shells were conical with fixed tail fins. This was all new and exciting for the high-ranking officials of Feiyu Company and the military officers.

The operators picked up the shells and inserted them into the barrels of the mortars, then immediately lowered their heads and lay on the ground next to the mortars. A "thud" was heard, and black smoke billowed from the barrels as the shells flew rapidly into the distance. The shells were loaded from the muzzle and relied on their own weight to slide down, striking the firing pin at the bottom of the barrel, which ignited the primer. This was different from traditional front-loading cannons.

"Boom! Boom!" Two explosions echoed, and two fireballs erupted on the beach 500 meters away. After the explosions, two craters with a radius of several dozen centimeters were left on the beach. Although the operators' aim was poor and they missed the target, no one cared about that. The successful test firing of the two mortars made the high-ranking officials of Feiyu Company, especially the military officers, very satisfied!

"Haha! Great! I didn't expect this thing to be so good and powerful! Xingkai, how many can the factory produce each day? We're all waiting to use them!" Niu Meng laughed heartily, clearly very satisfied with the 'Pili' mortar!

The reason Long Yufei chose to produce mortars was mainly because of their curved trajectory, large angle of descent, small dead zones, and easy selection of firing positions. They were lightweight, simple in structure, easy to disassemble, and highly mobile, allowing for close-range firing. They had a high firing rate, and each loading saved the steps of extracting the shell, closing the breech, and firing. The shells were also cost-effective, with cheaper materials and explosives. This was a perfect fit for the Feiyu Army, which was about to engage in jungle warfare. Heavy artillery couldn't be transported into dense jungles, but a 22-kilogram mortar could be carried by one person!

"Brother Niu, how many can we produce each day? You really ask that! Because the technology is still not mature, we can produce at most ten per month!" Zhao Xingkai said helplessly.

"I don't care about that! We're about to take action against the natives, and the arsenal must prepare enough mortars and shells for us!" Niu Meng said directly!

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(End of the chapter)