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Chapter 800: The Way of Being a King
Of the more than 120 casualties, at least 100 were injured or killed on the same morning. The reason was rain! It suddenly rained heavily in the middle of the night. Even though the soldiers had sufficient training in advance and were taught how to keep the flintlock dry in the rain, problems still occurred.

The instantaneous wind in the mountainous area was very strong, and because it was located halfway up the mountain, the rain had no fixed direction at all, sometimes from left to right, sometimes from right to left. This caused many flintlock rain covers to fail, seriously affecting the firing frequency, and the enemy rushed to a relatively close place to fire crossbows and artillery.

This was the second time that the rain had delayed his work. The last time, the situation outside Xinghe City was even more dangerous. If Sun Chengzong's troops had not arrived in time, or if the rain and wind had been stronger, it would have been a question whether he could have returned to sit on the throne.

"I beg Your Majesty to restart Lord Zhao Changji's primer project. No matter how the flintlock mechanism is modified, the spark will eventually hit the ignition powder. It is difficult to make it completely windproof and waterproof and easy to carry and fire. I have read Lord Zhao's manuscripts and test notes and was deeply inspired.

If the igniter can be placed together with the propellant of the projectile, and ignited by the impact of an external object, then the musket and the cannon no longer need to be equipped with a flint device. After the projectile is loaded into the chamber, it can be ignited at any time as long as the muzzle is not poured into the rain, and there is no need to worry about the ignition powder in the powder pool being blown away by the strong wind. "

Wang Zheng did not give in to the emperor's request at all, and said clearly that it was unlikely to be done. At the same time, he also proposed another idea, as well as his own ideas and needs.

"…Others may not know how Zhao Shizhen died, but you definitely know. Drugs that become inflamed by impact are difficult to make and dangerous. One can die if one is not careful. You are still very young and still very useful to the Ming Dynasty. I don't want to lose another arm!"

Hong Tao knew very well what Wang Zheng wanted to do. He was the one who instilled the concepts of primer, firing powder, and metal fixed ammunition into Zhao Shizhen, and it was also the one that killed him.

In this era without precise chemical reagents and measuring instruments, relying on repeated test results to find the right formula is not only very unlikely, but also very dangerous. Zhao Shizhen has already died, and I don't want to lose another Wang Zheng.

Even without the primer, Ming Dynasty could still lead the world with its current weapons. However, without Wang Zheng, it would be difficult for Ming Dynasty to find a technical bureaucrat who could be both an official and do scientific research to take on the responsibility of armament manufacturing for Ming Dynasty.

"Your Majesty, I am deeply grateful for your compassion. I have no way to repay you. I am willing to risk my life. Please help me."

It is unclear whether Wang Zheng could understand the emperor's intention, but it is clear that he is stubborn. Seeing that he could not convince the emperor, he simply got up from his seat, knelt down and started to act like a rogue.

"If you can't give me sufficient reasons to convince me that you won't be blown up, it's useless to kneel until you die. Wang Chengen, escort Minister Wang out of the palace!"

Unfortunately, this trick was of no use to the emperor. Two young eunuchs stepped forward, and one of them stretched out a hand and lifted Wang Zheng up. They walked out of the Yangxin Palace slowly and unhurriedly, without caring about their relatives, and did not put him down until he was outside the courtyard.

"Minister Wang, how is it? Did we act fairly cautiously?" Wang Cheng'en followed out and stepped forward to help straighten his robe, waiting for praise with a forced smile.

"Humph...how disgraceful!"

Wang Zheng was a third-place winner after all, and even when talking to Yuan Keli face to face, he had to treat him with courtesy. He had never been humiliated like this. He didn't dare to vent his anger on the emperor, but he was not afraid of the eunuchs, and his face turned cold.

“Hehehe, Minister Wang, do you know that all of us learned our mediocre skills from His Majesty? You are so knowledgeable, and His Majesty values ​​you so much, why don’t you teach a few disciples to do those unsafe things? His Majesty is just worried about your safety, but he didn’t say that others can’t do it!”

Wang Chengen definitely didn't come out to see him off on purpose, Wang Zheng didn't have that much face. Of course, he didn't come out to make sarcastic remarks on purpose, Wang Zheng didn't have that much face either. But since he came out, he definitely didn't have nothing to do, it seemed like he had some hidden meaning in his words.

"...Is this feasible?" Wang Zheng was no fool, and he immediately understood what was going on, but he was not too sure. "We'll know if it works if we try. His Majesty is not a cannibal, and he will not be convicted for his words. Minister Wang should know this better than us.

Well, we still have to prepare the carriages, so I won't chat with you any more. His Majesty is really worried. The Yongdinghe Alkali Factory has had another accident. I heard that it was caused by gas, which resulted in the explosion that killed several prisoners of war.

You see, the Bo Ping Bo knows how to do things. The alkali factory exploded two years ago, killing and injuring more than 40 people. It exploded again this year, but the emperor never stopped the alkali factory, and it kept building bigger and bigger. Maybe he can become the Bo Ping Hou this year. Learn from him, Minister Wang!"

Wang Chengen continued to perfunctorily answer with a fake smile, neither saying what should be done nor what should not be done. He also did not give any opportunity for discussion. He just threw down a few irrelevant-sounding complaints and turned away.

"Alkali factory... hard labor... Marquis of Boping... Whatever, for the sake of the country, it's okay to seek fame and reputation!" But these words sounded different to Wang Zheng. With more and more industrial and mining enterprises, using hard labor to do dangerous work is no longer a new thing.

The hard labor prisoners sentenced by the court were transformed from burdens into hot commodities, and were placed wherever there was danger. Those who behaved well and survived could have their sentences commuted, and those who died were considered to have deserved their punishment, and no one would investigate them or provide them with compensation.

However, due to the special nature of the Royal Gunpowder Factory, safety had to be guaranteed, and the people employed were basically all eunuchs, palace maids, and girls from good families. They never thought of using convicts.

Today, after being forced by the emperor and Wang Chengen, Wang Zheng suddenly had an idea. Should he find a few convicts, teach them the basic techniques, and then let them go to the laboratory to conduct experiments and record the results?

Wouldn't this be a perfect solution to the emperor's request? It would not put him at risk of being killed in the explosion, and the experiment could continue.

Of course, morally speaking, this is a bit unethical. Zhao Shizhen, such a skilled and cautious expert, was killed in the explosion. The danger of releasing a few convicts who had only received short-term training can be imagined.

But the ancients stood up and spoke again at this time, those who achieve great things do not care about trivial matters! If the firing powder can be developed, it can solve the defects of muskets and artillery that are afraid of water and wind, and save the lives of many Ming soldiers in the war that will surely happen in the future. On one side are the convicts and on the other side are the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty, which one is more important?

"I hope you won't make mistakes in the future, otherwise you and your family will know what is important!" In less than two hours, Hong Tao received Wang Zheng's memorial. From the paper, it seemed that this guy did not return home, but ran to the Ministry of Public Security to borrow paper and pen to write it temporarily.

The content was basically what he had asked Wang Chengen to remind him, to restart the primer test, but to rebuild the laboratory in a remote and secluded place, and then train convicts to act as assistants, using their flesh and blood to adjust the raw material ratio time and time again.

That's right, this bad idea was thought up by Hong Tao again. But that's not right, he didn't think about it at all, it just came out of his brain automatically as soon as he had the need, and he couldn't put it back.

But Hong Tao did not tell Wang Zheng directly, but changed the way, let Wang Chengen accidentally point it out, and then let Wang Zheng automatically understand. Is it necessary to go through so much trouble? If Hong Tao was not the emperor, there would be no need to do this. Unfortunately, as an emperor, he has no choice but to protect his reputation when it is time to do so.

Put yourself in their shoes. If you were a subject, you would not want the emperor of your country to be a bastard with no moral bottom line, full of evil intentions, and as immoral as possible.

Even if one is such a person at heart, he has to pretend not to be one after becoming an emperor. As long as he pretends to be one, for most of his subjects, he is a pure and sacred example!

(End of this chapter)