29: Chapter 29: Gunsmithing Genius Browning Kneels in Admiration!

"Boss, you smoke this stuff too?" Allen asked, his face full of surprise.

He had never seen his young boss touch tobacco before.

Lin Tian nodded.

In his past life, he was a hardcore chain-smoker; two packs a day weren't enough, and if he didn't smoke for a day, he would feel miserable all over.

After transmigrating, due to the fragile body of a ten-year-old child, he had been restraining himself from touching it.

Now, having injected the Perfect Serum, his physique far exceeded human limits; his internal organs were tougher than steel, capable of withstanding bullets, so smoking a couple of cigarettes wouldn't damage his lungs at all.

Allen pulled out a cigarette and handed it over.

Lin Tian leaned in to the match and took a puff; the pungent smoke slid into his lungs, and a long-lost sense of refreshment instantly spread throughout his entire body.

Just as he lit the cigarette, Tom had already returned with two open-top carriages.

Lin Tian pulled Jiang Meier onto the first carriage, while the three bodyguards and the lawyer sat in the one behind.

The driver in front was an old man with a white beard and a face full of wrinkles.

After the two were seated, the old man waved his whip and turned around to ask, "Where are you two distinguished guests planning to stay?"

"First, take us to the best hotel in the county. By the way, old man, let me ask you about a place; have you heard of the Browning Gun Shop?" Lin Tian exhaled a puff of blue smoke and asked casually.

Upon hearing this, the old driver immediately perked up: "That shop opened by old Browning! It's quite famous here in Weber County, but the old man died of illness years ago. Now the shop is left to his two sons to manage."

"The two brothers don't know how to do business at all; they lock themselves in the room all day messing around with iron contraptions and don't even know how to give a smiling face to potential customers. I reckon it won't be long before the shop shuts down for good!"

Hearing the driver's complaint, Lin Tian was overjoyed.

The father is dead, the sons don't know how to manage, and it's on the verge of bankruptcy.

This is simply a gift from heaven!

If it were a big, profitable factory, how could they easily sell their shares?

Only when they are too poor to make ends meet can you throw money at them until they are completely submissive.

"First go to the hotel to drop off our luggage, then take us directly to the Browning Gun Shop." Lin Tian extinguished his cigarette butt and ordered loudly.

"Hold on tight!"

The old man flicked the reins, and the carriage moved slowly forward through the crowded street.

After settling their luggage at a three-story hotel, the carriage took Lin Tian and his party to a remote street and stopped in front of a dilapidated wooden house.

A rusty brass sign hung on the shop window, with the words "Browning Gun Shop" engraved in English.

The sign was covered in dust, obviously having not been taken care of for a long time.

Leaving the driver to wait outside, Lin Tian pushed open the dusty glass door and walked in first.

As soon as he entered, a strong smell of machine oil and gunpowder rushed towards him.

The lighting in the room was very dim.

Standing behind the counter was a white youth in his early twenties with short black hair.

The youth was wearing an old suit covered in oil stains and was staring intently at a pile of scattered firearm parts on the counter.

His brows were tightly locked, his mind entirely focused on the assembly principle of the parts, and his fingers were constantly gesticulating.

Even though Lin Tian had brought four grown men in through the door, making such loud footsteps, the youth didn't even raise his head, completely immersed in his own world.

Seeing that the clerk was ignoring them, the bodyguard Tom wanted to step forward to remind him, but was stopped by Lin Tian's hand.

Lin Tian took two steps forward and saw clearly that the counter was filled with scattered rifle parts.

There were gun barrels, triggers, and springs, all piled up in a mess.

Getting closer, Lin Tian quietly listened to the youth's intermittent mutterings:

"If only I could divert the gas energy from the chamber to use as power for automatic loading... No, how to solve the airtightness? There's too much residue; the existing black powder definitely won't work!"

"Just use Smokeless Powder."

A crisp voice suddenly interrupted the youth's train of thought.

The youth snapped back to reality, looked up, and only then realized that several people had entered the shop without him knowing.

The one who spoke was the Chinese youth standing at the front, who looked about fourteen or fifteen years old.

Due to the Perfect Serum, Lin Tian grew quickly, and his appearance was much more mature than his actual age.

"God bless, I am so sorry!"

The youth looked flustered, quickly swept all the parts on the counter into a corner, and immediately put on a bright, professional smile.

"Sir, what kind of firearm are you looking to buy?"

"Our shop has Stevens shotguns and Colt revolvers. If you aren't satisfied with those, our shop also takes private custom orders; the Browning Gun Shop is at your service!"

Lin Tian didn't answer immediately, instead scanning the inventory in the counter.

The quantity wasn't large, but the variety was quite diverse.

From antiques of the Civil War era to the latest Winchester repeating rifles, and even the obsolete foreign Baker rifles and Brunswick rifles were there.

"You take private custom orders?" Lin Tian withdrew his gaze, looked up, and asked.

"No problem! We have our own blacksmith workshop in Ogden Town!"

The youth agreed readily.

Although he was very puzzled about why a wealthy-looking young Chinese gentleman would come to the remote Weber County,

but in business, as long as the customer can pay, he would welcome anyone with a smile, let alone a Chinese person, even if it were an Indian.

"Can you manufacture Germany Mauser rifles?" Lin Tian continued to ask.

"The latest Mauser?" The youth was somewhat surprised.

"Yes." Lin Tian nodded.

The youth was silent for a while, carefully sized up the lineup of bodyguards behind Lin Tian, and said through gritted teeth:

"We can! But sir, you should be aware of the risks of private firearm manufacturing; we are not responsible if anything goes wrong. Also, how many do you intend to order? If the quantity is too small, we won't take the job!"

"Put the quantity aside for now; look at this first!"

Lin Tian didn't pick up the conversation, instead waving his hand backwards.

The white lawyer Paul, carrying a black leather briefcase, immediately stepped forward, clicked the box open, pulled out a document bag, and handed it over.

Lin Tian took the document bag and pushed it toward the youth.

The youth, full of suspicion, untied the string and pulled out the papers inside.

At just one glance, he was stunned.

What met his eyes was a very detailed firearm blueprint.

It was marked with the dimensions and style of every part.

As long as one polished according to the blueprint, any small workshop could assemble the finished rifle.

However, what truly shocked the youth was the design concept on the blueprint.

As an expert, he saw at a glance that this was an improved version of the Germany Mauser rifle.

The person who could draw such a blueprint was definitely a rare firearms genius.

The youth read the entire document from beginning to end carefully before looking up to ask:

"Are you asking me to manufacture this modified Mauser?"

"Don't call it a modified Mauser; I prefer to call it the lin-style 1882 rifle, because I drew the blueprints myself," Lin Tian corrected him.

Hearing this, the youth was full of surprise, then nodded and praised repeatedly:

"This design is indeed excellent! The improvement of the magazine, the adaptation for 7.62mm rimless cartridges, and the downward-curved bolt handle make the whole rifle more convenient to carry."

"However, at its core, it is still a Mauser; it still uses a bolt-action mechanism, and no one can change that!"

Facing the youth's blunt critique, Lin Tian shrugged and didn't argue.

No matter how it was modified, the lin-style 1882 rifle was indeed derived from the Mauser, which was an undeniable fact.

But Lin Tian had been prepared for a long time and waved to Paul behind him again.

Paul pulled a thick piece of cardboard out of the briefcase and respectfully handed it to Lin Tian.

When Lin Tian slapped the cardboard in front of the youth, the youth's expression changed instantly.

On the cardboard, a line of large English characters was clearly printed: "Smokeless Powder Patent Certificate".

In the patent owner column below, "Bruce Lin" was written neatly.

"You invented Smokeless Powder?!"

The youth widened his eyes, simply unable to believe his own eyes.

Lin Tian nodded, returned the certificate to the lawyer, and said with a smile:

"Not just in the USA, I have already fully entrusted Lawyer Paul to apply for international patents!"

Paul chimed in from the side: "Absolutely correct! I have already submitted applications in various European countries; it won't be long before my boss, Mr. Lin Tian, becomes the sole global patent holder for Smokeless Powder!"

Shock!

Nothing but shock!

The youth looked at Lin Tian, his mind a complete blank.

Smokeless Powder was a century-old problem that had stumped chemists all over the world; for decades, countless major powers had invested heavily without success.

Who could have imagined that this world-changing problem had actually been solved by a teenage Chinese boy.

"Good heavens! Mr. Bruce, you are simply amazing!"

The youth was so excited he was incoherent; just as he wanted to reach out to shake hands, he suddenly realized his hands were covered in machine oil.

He awkwardly wiped them hard on his dirty suit, and only then did he extend his hand again:

"Let's formally introduce ourselves; I am John Moses Browning, it is an honor to meet you!"

"Hello, Mr. Browning!"

Lin Tian didn't mind at all, grabbed the other man's rough hand, and the smile on his face grew even wider.

Just at the moment their hands clasped, Browning suddenly reacted as if struck by electricity, widened his eyes, and exclaimed:

"Wait! Bruce Lin... Could you be the Miracle Boy that the newspapers are competing to report on?!"

Lin Tian rubbed his nose and admitted with a smile:

"That's right, it's me."

"My God! You invented Smokeless Powder when you were ten! Before, when I read the newspapers, I always thought the reporters were just blowing smoke; today, I finally understand what a true miracle is!"

Browning was so excited his face flushed red, and he gripped Lin Tian's hand tightly, unwilling to let go for a long time.