Soldiers' lives were most precious

"For His Crown Prince!"

A first-term cadet from the Paris Police Academy, wearing Sergeant's insignia, looked at Joseph, patted his chest, and responded loudly, as if Crown Prince were conducting a routine inspection at the Police Academy.

"For His Crown Prince!"

"For His King!"

"For glory and for France!"

The other wounded soldiers immediately disregarded their own pain and joined in the shouts, their voices echoing throughout the Battlefield Hospital.

According to their conventional thinking, given the medical conditions of this era, injury is basically equivalent to death.

They will suffer from wound infections, and within one to two weeks, they will die from a feverish coma.

Although Doctor Perna repeatedly assured them that at most two out of ten would die from the infection, the soldiers took it as just a way of comforting themselves. Therefore, they treated His Highness the Crown Prince as if it were their last meeting, and bravely bid him farewell.

Of course, some young people also curled up dejectedly in their hospital beds, but they gritted their teeth and didn't utter a single complaint.

The pursuit of honor by the current Royal Guard Legion has become a consensus and a habit, making them unwilling to show any cowardice.

The General Staff officer following Joseph then read out the list of those who had performed meritorious service and received awards, which immediately drew cheers. It seemed that death was not a big deal in the eyes of these young men.

The Luxembourg who were helping around them couldn't help but stare, wondering why these dying soldiers were acting "mad."

This scene would occur every time Joseph passed a tent or a Farmhouse.

More than half of the wounded were cadets at the Paris Police Academy Police Academy, whom he often saw and could even name some of them.

But seeing the blood-soaked bandages around their missing limbs filled him with sorrow.

In fact, these wounded soldiers had already received initial treatment. Yesterday, many soldiers were still groaning in agony from amputations, their blood-stained Military Uniform scattered everywhere, a far more tragic scene than what is happening now.

These unsung young people, with their blood and youth, upheld the prosperity and stability of France. Yet, they spent the rest of their lives with disabilities.

After leaving the last tent, Joseph turned to Chief of Staff Berthier, who was following behind him, and whispered, "Increase the casualty Pension by 20%. Try to place wounded soldiers in government positions. The living allowances for the families of wounded and injured soldiers should also be improved accordingly."

"Everyone must know that the sacrifices made for France were worthwhile, and that France will not forget them!"

"Yes, Your Highness!" Berthier nodded and noted it down, without mentioning the tight military budget.

As Joseph left the Battlefield Hospital, he was deep in thought, pondering how developing bulletproof vests for future generations could greatly reduce soldier casualties.

In fact, there were primitive bulletproof vests in this era—chest armor.

However, this thing was made of pure iron, and against increasingly sophisticated Flintlock Gun, it had to be at least 2 millimeters thick to be effective in saving lives.

The problem is that the weight is completely uncontrollable.

A proper breastplate weighs between 20 and 25 pounds. This weight may not seem exaggerated, but it's important to know that this is extra weight added on top of carrying weapons and personal baggage. Moreover, it must be worn continuously during combat, and even the most physically fit soldiers would find it difficult to endure for half a day.

In addition, there's the price. A regular breastplate costs over 120 Livre, and there's no upper limit for a high-quality one.

This resulted in only a portion of cavalry engaged in frontal assaults being willing to equip themselves with this thing—after all, the weight was borne by the horse, and cavalry equipment was very expensive, so the cost of one more cuirass wouldn't matter—this is how the famous Cuirassier came to be.

As for Infantry, only a very small number of "supermen" are equipped with breastplates, mainly to intimidate enemy Infantry.

Therefore, is it possible to improve the breastplate using some technologies from later generations?

Joseph quickly shook his head slightly.

Neither alloy smelting nor Kevlar fiber are technologies that are feasible in this era.

However, simply using steel forging cannot significantly reduce the weight...

Even after returning to his temporary office, Joseph was still at a loss. Perhaps improving the level of medical care and hygiene would be more practical.

Just then, he inadvertently caught sight of the Luxembourg soldiers—actually Police maintaining order—standing at the street corner, their uniforms adorned with gray squares. His eyes lit up immediately. "That's it! How did I fall into that misconception!"

Who says you need armor to protect yourself from bullets?

Joseph recalled that later statistics showed that gunshot wounds to the torso accounted for 70% of all soldier casualties. In other words, protecting the torso could prevent most injuries.

This is also an important reason why breastplates became popular.

Joseph also knew of a simpler and more convenient way to protect the torso— Bulletproof Insert.

Later, Taobao sold hundreds of millions of these life-saving gadgets to soldiers all over the world, and they proved to be very effective on many battlefields from Africa to Eastern Europe.

The so-called Bulletproof Insert is basically a thin plate about the size of a tablet computer. When in use, it is inserted into the "pocket" in the chest or abdomen of the Military Uniform. It is lightweight, has good bulletproof effect, and can be inserted only in the front of the body, regardless of the back, depending on the battlefield situation.

In this way, the overall weight can be kept to within 10 pounds.

Joseph recalled the structure of the Bulletproof Insert —a layer of metal, a layer of Kevlar, a layer of ceramic, and another layer of Kevlar, all bonded together; the manufacturing process was very simple.

Of course, Kevlar didn't exist in this era, but silk could be used as a substitute. In ancient times, military officers wore multiple layers of silk clothing to protect themselves from arrows, as silk has excellent resilience and was quite effective.

Although silk is not as strong as Kevlar, it only needs to withstand Lead Bullet fired from Black Powder, so its strength should be sufficient.

Special ceramic processes are definitely not feasible, so we can only use ordinary hard ceramics.

Similarly, due to the limited power of the enemy's weapons, this can also be replaced.

As for the adhesive, Joseph was a little unsure and could only ask Lavoisier for help.

If they can develop such a "youth version" Bulletproof Insert, the unit price would not exceed 5 Livre. If a soldier is issued 5 inserts, that would be 25 Livre, which is completely affordable.

He hurried back to his office, jotted down the ideas for the new equipment, and was about to write to Lavoisier when Eman knocked and entered, bowing slightly, saying, "Your Highness, General Leo wishes to see you."

Leo Joseph smiled; the Commander had finally arrived. He nodded and said, "Please let him in."