The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Chapter 332 Zhu Youtang's Pressure
Outside the city, the Beijing Camp Martial Arts Field.

Zhang Zhou walked in front, followed by the second-stage students of Yanwu Hall, Anyuan Marquis Liu Jing and Suian Bo Chen Shao, both of them were old fellows who had been heirs during the Yingzong period, and Liu Jing relied on the emperor's amnesty for his talent. Back in the Beijing camp, because of Liu Jing's relationship with the Queen Mother Zhou, she was given special care by the Queen Mother Zhou and made him a student of the second batch.

Compared with the rigorous selection of the first-stage students, the second-stage students are more "distorted melons and dates", and basically all of them are related households, which also greatly reduces the authority of the Yanwu Hall.

"My lord, the people you sent have already sent all the new guns, there are a hundred of them, and as for the bullets you got, it's full of boxes..."

Zhang Zhouben was still standing on the high platform of the martial arts arena chatting with Liu Jing and Chen Shao.

These old ministers, who know nothing else, are not inferior to young people when it comes to eating, drinking and having fun, and they are simply the best.

Zhang Zhoudao: "Let Sun Qianhu lead the rehearsal."

Chen Shao who was at the side asked: "Duke Lai, dare to ask, is there any difference between this firecracker and the previous ones?"

At this time, a person came up from below, and it was Wei Bin, the eunuch who was in charge of accompanying Zhang Zhou to the martial arts field today. Wei Bin is likely to be in charge of the East Factory next, and what he is doing now is more to take over Xiao Jing.

Wei Bin laughed and said: "Su'an Bo asked a good question. Our family has seen this firecracker. They said that it can be fired with just one hook of the finger, and the range can even reach two hundred paces. It is powerful, but I don't know if it can be worn. through the armor of the Tartars."

"Hehe, how is that possible?" Liu Jing laughed along with him.

Just as he was talking, Tang Yin also went up to the high platform, and the person who was in charge of transporting the firecrackers earlier was precisely Tang Yin.

Behind Tang Yin, he also brought Lin Ting, the head of the Ministry of Industry who had just returned from the Xuan Mansion, and Zhang Zhou's brother-in-law. Several generals at the commanding level, they also came to observe and study today.

"Let's start." Zhang Zhou ordered to Tang Yin who was beside him.

Previously, Wang Qiong was in charge of the daily cannon demonstrations in the Martial Arts Hall, but now Zhang Zhou can't count on any capable people, and Tang Yin has been promoted to the position of daily trainer.

Tang Yin took out the command flag and issued orders to the generals below.

……

……

"Bang bang bang..."

Arranging guns, the emphasis is on continuous.

Several baskets of standard bullets were transported at a time, and forty Jinyiwei lined up in two rows. The first row of 20 people was responsible for simulating gun discharge, and the second row of 20 people simulated loading.

In the Ming Dynasty, firecrackers often had to rely on three or even four rows to complete the firing of arquebus guns, because the window period for firing arquebus guns when facing cavalry was not long, so it was most suitable to use two rows of guns, and when the firing was over... there was no need After filling the elixir, you can basically enter the state of hand-to-hand combat.

But now it's different.

20 people lined up guns, each firing twice, aiming at a target 150 paces away.

The two rows of guns fired with very short intervals. After the firing was over, the targets on the opposite side were basically hit. Everyone on the viewing platform also used binoculars to see the actual situation.

Then 20 people retreated, the second row of gunmen stepped forward, and then two more rounds of gunners.

Wait for the second round to withdraw, and then the first round of reloading will end...

After going back and forth like this six or seven times, no matter the lords and generals who were watching the ceremony, or the ordinary soldiers who were maintaining order, they were all dumbfounded.

"complete!"

After the platoon of guns was over, Sun Shangqi personally raised the small flag, Jin Yiwei collected the guns, and afterward, people who dealt with the aftermath went to clean up the shooting range.

Wei Bin smiled and asked Liu Jing beside him, "What do you think, Marquis An Yuan?"

"It's really amazing." Don't say that Liu Jing really thinks it's amazing, even if it's not amazing, he still has to compliment it.

Wei Bin said: "If all the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty can be equipped with this kind of flint guns, the great cause of flattening the grassland will be achievable in the future."

Chen Shao asked: "If you don't ignite, why did you launch it? Won't it explode?"

Zhang Zhou said with a smile: "Ignition is based on the impact of flint, but it is not very safe. It will be improved in the future. There will still be explosions, but the safety performance has been guaranteed. The cast steel pipes used are not effective. If it is modified again , you can increase the range some more, and increase the range to three or four hundred steps, which is much better than the average bow and arrow range. But it is still incomparable with the long-range cannon."

"Complement each other, complement each other. Haha." Liu Jing smiled flatteringly beside him.

Wei Bin said: "Mr. Zhang, I heard that this flint is not easy to mine, and the cost is very high. It needs to be mined in the south. It is of a higher standard than the flint used for general ignition. How can this thing be produced in the future? Woolen cloth?"

"It's just a transition." Zhang Zhou pointed to the artillery that was being pushed forward below, "In the future, I plan to use flint cannon even for the artillery, and fire it at any time to fire at any time. Strengthen the range. Let's continue to watch the artillery."

……

……

The day was little more than a routine firearms demonstration.

After reading it, each of the honored ministers and generals present had to write a "Review", which Wei Bin took back for Zhu Youtang to read.

Because the new students have to be transferred from various places, and the cold winter is coming soon, the start time of the class may be delayed. When Zhang Zhou came down from the martial arts field, he saw Zhang Rui and Zhang Lun, father and son, accompanied by Yang Mi, the right servant of the Ministry of War, to escort Bring a batch of yellow gunpowder to the martial arts field.

Because Zhang Zhou had never been to Dianmao of the Ministry of War, he and Yang Mi were just acquaintances, and there was no friendship. As the right servant of the Ministry of War, Yang Mi basically did what the left servant did.

In terms of etiquette, the two still need to be polite.

"Mr. Lai, the Ministry of War has already negotiated with the Ministry of Industry. Before the end of the year, a batch of saltpeter will be transferred from Huguang, Jiangxi, etc. to Beijing. It is said that it will be directly shipped to your private workshop, and then the Ministry of Industry will arrange it. Procurement, the mining of mineral deposits in various places has basically stagnated at present, and the saltpeter that can be handed over may not be enough..."

Yang Mi seemed to be businesslike.

Not enough, let me tell you in advance, don't say we are making trouble for you.

But in fact... the imperial court is trying every means to create difficulties for Zhang Zhou's preparations for war in the northwest.

It’s not intentional, because Zhang Zhou needs more steel, black gunpowder, and yellow gunpowder to prepare for the war. Zhang Zhou can basically produce and sell iron for himself, but the remaining scarce semi-finished products , it needs to be recruited from mines in various places, and the cost of procurement needs to be allocated by the imperial court.

Even if the emperor gave the green light all the way, as long as there is a simple reason of "insufficient local output" or "excessive transportation loss", it can get stuck in the neck of firearms manufacturing.

The card is still so righteous.

Zhang Zhou smiled and said: "It's okay, as much as you can, I plan to open some saltpeter mines around Beizhili recently, I hope there will be no shortage."

"Okay." Yang Mi didn't take it seriously.

From his point of view, if you don't like it, there is no loss to me anyway. It is best that you don't ask the court for anything, and everyone will not violate the river.

Zhang Rui asked: "Mr. Lai, I heard that there will be a battle in Liao Town in the past two days. His Majesty will often call the officials of the hearing office to discuss matters. My father has recently been ill. Will there be any major delays?"

Zhang Zhoudao: "Things on the battlefield are changing rapidly, and the capital can rarely intervene. Let your father recuperate well."

Old man Zhang was sick, no matter whether it was a real illness or a fake one. Anyway, from the emperor to Zhang Zhou, no one thought that Zhang Mao could provide any valuable help in the war between Liaodong and Duoyan Sanwei.

Yang Mi arranged manpower to send all the yellow gunpowder into the barracks.

Liu Jing and Chen Shao also came over to greet Yang Mi, but Yang Mi took out a handwritten letter signed by Ma Wensheng, Minister of the Ministry of War, and handed it to Zhang Zhou.

"Mr. Lai, there is no precedent for the Ministry of War to receive gunpowder supplies from various places. Since you usually need to use these things, and it involves dispatching and other matters, it is better for you to hand them over in person. The transportation involved Costs, accounting, etc. must also be communicated with the Ministry of Industry and Taicang, and cannot be handed over to the Ministry of War.”

Yang Mi, as the right servant of the military department who climbed up step by step, will do things in a businesslike manner.

In addition to giving Zhang Bingkuan the trouble of mining raw materials, in terms of transportation and handover, don't expect us to help you complete a series of complicated procedures such as freight accounting and handover. Isn't Tang awesome?Do your own thing!
In this way, you will not be able to fully mine, and the transportation will not be complete, and there will be a lot of trouble when you receive it...

We are causing trouble for you in a reasonable way, and we cannot give you special orders and special approvals all the time just because you are a trusted confidant of the emperor. Could it be that the Ministry of War and other six ministries, yamen, manpower and other resources are what you want to use?
Liu Jing and Chen Shao originally thought that the meeting between the two servants of the Ministry of War should be a "friendly exchange".

After listening in for a few sentences, I realized that it was a traditional civil servant who was making trouble for Zhang Zhou, a new rich man.

At this time, they are not suitable for listening.

Zhang Zhou greeted with a smile: "Master Lin, Mr. Tang, you two come here."

Lin Ting and Tang Yin probably knew it was not a good thing, but they still walked forward as they said.

Zhang Zhoudao: "Yang Shilang said that in the future, if it involves the handover of gunpowder and other items, the Martial Arts Hall needs to send someone in person. I am usually busy with affairs, so I have to let you two do it for me."

Lin Ting glanced at Yang Mi, and reminded Zhang Zhou in a low voice: "It will take more than ten days or even more than a month to complete the handover with only six principals."

This is to remind Zhang Zhou that the two heads of the six ministries are so light-spoken that they have no ability to be considerate with the big bosses of the Ministry of Households, the Ministry of Industry, and Taicang. The handover will also be very troublesome.

Zhang Zhou leaned over to remind Lin Ting.

Tang Yin stared at it with wide eyes, even Liu Jing and Chen Shao who were beside him were curious about what it was talking about, only Yang Mi himself was not interested in Zhang Zhou's arrangement at all.

"That's it, it's settled." Zhang Zhou said, "The matter of running the army is already complicated, and sometimes I can't do it, and I will trouble the Ministry of War and other yamen."

Yang Mi cupped his hands and said: "Grand Lai is also a member of the six departments, so there's no need to say that. The Weiwu Tian Gunpowder has already been handed over, and please return to the government office to handle business sooner after the official letters are connected!"

……

……

Zhang Zhou and Wei Bin returned to the city and headed towards the palace.

Tang Yinze followed Lin Ting to Wang Gong's factory to pick up a new batch of black powder, which was used to make signal flares on the battlefield.

"It's just making some fireworks. It can be handed over to the Ministry of Industry. Why hand it over?" Tang Yin asked Lin Ting who was on the side while riding on the horse.

The two are about the same age, originally Tang Yin and Zhang Zhou were still brothers in name, and their status would not be lower than that of Lin Ting who had no achievements in the officialdom.

But because of Lin Ting's in-law relationship with Zhang Zhou, and because Lin Ting was born as a son of an official, Tang Yin felt that he still had a lot to learn from Lin Ting, and he usually respected Lin Ting.

Lin Ting said: "This batch of gunpowder is shipped to Liaodong."

"For combat use?" Tang Yin asked.

"I don't know." Lin Ting didn't know how to study it in such detail.

Tang Yin asked again: "What did the Duke of Lai tell you before? All the yamen in the Ming Dynasty are creating troubles with the Martial Arts Hall and hindering the Duke of Lai from doing things. I'm afraid there is no good way to deal with it now? It will be troublesome in the future. It's still you and me."

Lin Ting shook his head and seemed puzzled, "Bing Kuan said, we don't have to pay too much attention to these things in the future, because we will be independent from the six ministries of the imperial court... I understand that there is no way for others to set barriers. "

"is it possible?"

Tang Yin frowned.

In his opinion, his senior brother seemed too idealistic.

People go with the tide in the imperial court, and most of the time they can't help themselves. If you say leave, leave?

Lin Ting said: "Probably we still need to open mines ourselves. If all the production comes from newly opened mines, then there is probably no need to use others."

Tang Yin said: "Mining does not require manpower? Transportation also requires manpower? And if you are in the court, you will be under the control of the court."

"Bohu, you and I are just doing business, so don't worry so much. Do you want to go to Xuanfu to guard the iron mine? Or go to Datong to guard the coal mine? Now most of your colleagues and I are still in the Six Departments to watch politics. We met them I don't even know what to say...We are on duty in the court, sometimes we are caught in the cracks, but you and I are such insignificant characters, why do you care so much?"

Lin Ting was quite open to it.

Working with Zhang Zhou, it seems that my current official position is not beyond the scope of an official position that a new Jinshi can hold.

But at least the future is better than others, coupled with being qualified to serve the court, it can be regarded as realizing the ideal... Concerned about so many intrigues... By the way, the two new scholars are still entangled in the issue of the court party?

Lin Tingdao: "Recently, I saw those of the same age. They all asked if they had the opportunity to enter the Martial Arts Hall. There are many people who want to do things that you and I don't want to do. Whether you can gain a foothold in the court depends on your ability. It also depends on attitude... Bingkuan is also doing things for the court, and he did nothing wrong after all."

"Oh." Tang Yin nodded.

I still feel that Lin Ting is looking for psychological comfort forcibly.

It is also difficult to convince Lin Ting, and Tang Yin has no choice but to accept the reality of fate.

I don't want to get on this ship, and I sail on the ocean with this ship, there is no way out.

……

……

"Bingkuan, I just learned that the little Tatar prince has withdrawn from Ningxia West Road, and there seems to be signs of moving eastward. Qin Hong told me that maybe Batu Mengke once again violated the border from Pianguan and so on. There are signs, and it is said that it may enter the Hetao..."

Zhang Zhou and Wei Bin entered the palace and saw Zhu Youtang, and Zhu Youtang hurriedly brought the battle report he had just received to Zhang Zhou.

Zhang Zhoudao: "Your Majesty, now that winter is coming, Tatar's activities should also slow down. Now we should pay more attention to the affairs of Liaodong."

"Oh!" Zhu Youtang sighed, "Everywhere in Beiguan, whenever there is some news, I tend to think too much. Sometimes I want to connect everything together, but I don't know the point."

As he said that, Zhu Youtang acted like a bride waiting to be married, fidgeting.

Xiao Jing, who was standing beside him, smiled and said: "The little Tatar prince withdrew his troops, this should be a good thing for Daming."

Zhu Youtang said: "But he still took away six people and hundreds of livestock... There are already people in the court who are participating in the impeachment of Duke Cheng. Even you, Bingkuan... were criticized by them."

This is called taking advantage of the problem.

The Dayan tribe dispatched [-] cavalry and took away six people and hundreds of livestock. It sounds like a lot, but compared to the loss of the Tatar troops this time, the loss is actually within a reasonable range.

After all, in such an open area, it was impossible to capture only six Ming people even if they were hunting rabbits.

Moreover, strictly speaking, whether or not these six people are regarded as the border residents of Daming is still up for debate.

After all, in Ningxia and other places, there are also many small tribes who have taken refuge in Daming. This time, Batu Mengke wanted to give these small tribes more prestige.

"Your Majesty, according to my analysis, the withdrawal of the Tatar troops may also be due to the fact that Huoshai's troops have entered Hetao, and there are signs of continuing westward." Zhang Zhoudao, "At present, it seems that the little Tatar prince and Huoshai will be in Ningxia, Outside of Yansui and other places, there is a battle, and the affairs of Liaodong are ignored, which will help the advancement of the Liaodong war."

"But there is still no news. In the court hall this morning, Mr. Li Ge also mentioned to me that if Daming enters the grassland and cannot find the main force of Duoyan's three guards to fight, it is better to withdraw troops earlier and wait until the spring warms next year." Fight again. I was a little angry at the time, and my tone was a bit aggressive, telling them that if there is no result in a preparation for a battle, the morale of the soldiers will be greatly damaged, so I must gain something. The ministers in the court will definitely think that I am too extreme .”

Zhang Zhou felt the pressure Zhu Youtang was under.

Sending troops is not within the scope of the imperial court's recommendation. It can be regarded as the decision of Zhu Youtang and him. If the sending of troops goes well, the minister is understandable.

But as time went by, the war did not come and there was no result. In the eyes of the ministers, it was a waste of people and money. The emperor said that he didn't care, and turned his head to teach those ministers who sang against it, but how could the emperor not feel it? The pressure exerted by those courtiers?
Xiao Jing asked eagerly: "Mr., when the matter is approaching, you should calculate it. Did this war happen? What was the outcome? Didn't you say that the closer the matter is, the more accurate your calculations will be?"

If personnel affairs fail, I want to obey the destiny.

Zhang Zhou said with a smile: "According to the time calculation, the three guards of Duoyan should move westward in the next few days, and the ambush will also take place within the next few days. The shortest is four or five days, and the longest is ten days. There will be results of the battle. Your Majesty install."

(End of this chapter)