Anti-Japanese War Espionage: I Have an Omniscient Perspective

"See that? That's the effect." Davis put down his rifle, his tone smug. "But there are a few things you need to be careful about. This suppressor will get hot after firing 10 to 15 rounds in a row, so you need to pause to let it cool down, otherwise it will affect accuracy or even damage the suppressor. Also, the suppressor will increase the weight of the muzzle and change the rifle's center of gravity. You'll need to get used to it when you first start using it, otherwise it will affect your shooting accuracy."

As he spoke, he demonstrated how to disassemble the suppressor. After rotating it counterclockwise a few times, the suppressor came off easily. "Also, carbon buildup is common inside suppressors. You need to clean it promptly after each use, otherwise it will clog the internal baffle, affecting the suppressor's effectiveness and even causing the bolt to jam. I have cleaning tools here; I'll give them to you later."

Lin Rui watched Davis's demonstration attentively, listened carefully to his explanation, and kept these precautions in mind.

He picked up the rifle, now fitted with a silencer and scope, and raised it again, feeling the shift in his center of gravity.

"Give me bullets," he said to Davis.

After some hesitation, Davis took a round from the ammunition box and gave it to Lin Rui.

Lin Rui took the bullet, raised his hand and pointed the muzzle at the safe area, then glanced down at the magazine cutoff switch on the left side of the receiver.

As Davis just said, gently turn the switch to the OFF position with your thumb.

A crisp "click" sound.

He pulled back the bolt, lifted the bolt handle upwards and pulled it all the way back, revealing the chamber inside the ejection port. He then steadily pushed the .30-06 bullet into the chamber, and after confirming that the bullet was fully locked, he pushed the bolt forward, rotated the bolt handle clockwise to lock it, and finally switched the safety at the rear of the bolt to Safe.

Although the whole set of movements was a little rusty, every step was precisely in accordance with Davis's instructions.

He raised the rifle again, his shoulder firmly against the stock, his cheek pressed against the gun, and his eyes locked onto the bullseye in the distance through the scope.

The weight of the silencer did indeed make the muzzle heavier than expected, shifting the center of gravity slightly forward. He adjusted his arm position slightly to stabilize the gun, and waited until the sights were completely aligned with the bullseye and his breathing was steady before slowly pulling the trigger.

With a muffled "thud," there was no harsh roar of a regular rifle, only the low whirring sound of airflow filtered by the silencer. The bullet hit the bullseye precisely, and the bullet hole was particularly conspicuous on the white target paper.

Davis stood to the side and clapped: "Good, the movements are very standard, and you adapted to the center of gravity quickly."

As he spoke, he took a metal stripper clip pre-loaded with 5 .30-06 rounds from the ammunition box and handed it over, saying, "Now try the stripper clip for quick loading."

Lin Rui put down the rifle, first flipped the magazine cutoff switch back to the ON position to ensure that the magazine was feeding, then pulled the bolt back all the way to expose the bridge clip slot on the top of the receiver.

He gripped the metal clip tightly, aligned the bottom of the clip with the slot, and gently pressed it down. The clip was then firmly fixed in the slot, with the five bullets neatly arranged and the muzzle pointing upwards.

Immediately afterwards, he placed his right thumb on the top bullet and pressed down with a little force. With a few "clicks," all five bullets were pressed into the magazine at once. The magazine's follower plate slowly sank down, and the air bridge clip instantly became loose.

He raised his hand, pulled out the empty rail clip, tossed it aside, then pushed the bolt forward to lock it, and switched the safety to the ready-to-fire position.

This time, he adapted to the change in center of gravity caused by the silencer more quickly. Raising the gun, aiming, and adjusting his breathing were all done in one smooth motion. With another muffled thud, the second bullet hit the bullseye. Then, he pulled the bolt, locked the bolt, and fired in quick succession. His movements became increasingly fluid, and each shot was precise and powerful. He quickly fired all five bullets, and the bullet holes on the target were closely arranged, almost forming a continuous line.

After the shooting ended, Lin Rui slowly lowered the rifle, pulled back the bolt to empty the chamber, and visually checked to confirm that there were no bullets before closing the bolt.

He reached out and touched the suppressor; it was indeed warm. Following Davis's advice, he placed the rifle aside and waited for the suppressor to cool down.

"I'm guessing you're a soldier." Davis walked over and handed over a small set of cleaning tools. "Remember, after these five shots, the silencer won't be too hot yet, but if you fire a few more in a row, you have to stop and let it cool down. After training, use these tools to clean the carbon buildup inside the silencer. Don't be lazy, otherwise next time you use it, not only will the silencer be less effective, but it might also jam."

Lin Rui took the cleaning tools, nodded, his gaze still fixed on the rifle in his hand.

"How is it? Does this set of equipment meet your requirements?" Davis looked at Lin Rui with a hint of anticipation in his voice. "This M1903A1 Springfield rifle, along with the 4x scope and Maxim suppressor, are all top-of-the-line equipment. You'd be hard-pressed to find another set of such fine equipment in Shanghai."

Lin Rui put down the rifle and smiled, "Very good, Mr. Davis, this is exactly what I wanted. Davis, one more question—can this M1903 be disassembled? When carrying it normally, can it be disassembled into parts and packed into a case?"

"Of course you can, and this is something you must learn, since subsequent cleaning, maintenance, and carrying all require disassembly." As he spoke, he walked to Lin Rui's side and gestured for Lin Rui to place the rifle on the training table next to him. "I'll demonstrate it for you. Remember the steps, just like loading a bullet; you can't mess up any of them."

Lin Rui immediately put down his rifle and carefully observed the situation.

Davis first unlocked the safety at the rear of the bolt, pulled the bolt back all the way, and then turned the magazine cut-off switch on the left side of the receiver to the middle position.

"See this? This is where you remove the bolt." He said, pressing the release button at the rear of the bolt with his thumb while gently pushing the bolt forward. With a little force, the bolt was easily pulled out of the receiver. "This is the most crucial component and the first step in disassembly. Once you remove the bolt, the rest of the disassembly is easy."

Lin Rui looked at the bolt carrier in Davis's hand and asked, "After it's taken off, can it be disassembled again? Like the barrel, stock, etc."

"The barrel generally doesn't need to be disassembled unless it's severely damaged and needs to be replaced. For routine maintenance, disassembling it down to the bolt and magazine is enough. So you'll need a larger case to store it."

As Davis spoke, he demonstrated the disassembly of the magazine: he pressed the latch at the bottom of the magazine and gently pressed down, and the magazine detached from the bottom of the receiver, revealing the follower plate and springs inside.

"After the magazine is removed, the internal carbon deposits and residual cartridge fragments can be cleaned more thoroughly. This is just as important as cleaning the silencer and cannot be taken lightly."

He then disassembled the bolt, dividing it into three parts: the bolt body, the firing pin, and the charging handle, pointing them out to Lin Rui one by one: "The bolt also needs to be disassembled and cleaned, especially the firing pin and the chamber inside the bolt. Too much carbon buildup will affect firing and locking, just like a jammed suppressor. Be gentle when disassembling, and don't bump the parts, otherwise it will affect the accuracy. The most valuable part of this gun is its accuracy."