Lord: Start with a book of Water Margin

Chapter 260 Booming Thunder

Hu Sanniang shook her head and said, "My husband, I have armor, but it is just an inner armor that has been kept in a box. My husband has never seen it."

Zhao Zhen heard this and said, "This inner armor cannot protect the whole body. Let Hou Jian make two good ones for Sanniang. How about one each of leather armor and iron armor?"

Hu Sanniang said, "My husband, please make the decision." As she spoke, Hu Sanniang picked up the handwritten order written by Zhao Zhen and was about to take people to choose horses.

Just as Zhao Zhen was about to speak, he saw Bai Shuang, the white fox who had not been seen for many days, leading two dogs, two tigers, and followed by the dirty Li Ji, entering the hall together.

The white fox walked up to Zhao Zhen with its head held high and its chest puffed out, pointing at Li Ji and crying.

Li Ji hurried forward and handed over a piece of tree bark in his hand, saying, "Sir, I followed Bai Shuang and the other two and walked around in the fog and found this ginseng."

Zhao Zhen opened the bark and pushed aside the grass, and found a hundred-year-old ginseng. It was only of the second grade, far inferior to the one he had found earlier, but it was also a rare treasure.

Zhao Zhen first praised the white fox and asked Zhao Yuanli to have someone clean the five little ones. He also rewarded Li Ji and let him go home to rest. The fresh ginseng was sent to the medical clinic for processing and preservation.

After everything was arranged, Hu Sanniang said, "My husband, this white fox is really smart. It can even find treasures. The dog and the tiger have become its followers."

Zhao Zhen said, "The fox is the smartest, and Bai Shuang is a lucky animal. Although they can't fight as well as the two Liangshan dogs, when it comes to wit, even if all the spirits at home were tied together, they wouldn't necessarily be able to match Bai Shuang."

Hu Sanniang asked, "My husband, where do you usually keep the white fox?"

Zhao Zhen said, "It's at Madam Cheng Wan'er's residence. You've seen the two mastiffs. They usually patrol the manor and guard the house. I also raised these two tigers since they were young. Although they are bigger than these two dogs, it's a pity that they have never seen blood."

Hu Sanniang said, "My husband, how about keeping these two small dogs in my room? I have loved hunting since I was a child, and I am very fond of Wangcai. Now I have seen these two, and keeping them by my side will make it easier for me to go hunting on weekdays."

Zhao Zhen said, "Go and talk to the Madam. After all, he has been kept in her room."

Hu Sanniang rolled her eyes and said, "I'll tell you what I want to say." Then she got up and went to Cheng Wan'er's residence.

Zhao Zhen ignored it and asked Zhao Xing to take out twenty or thirty kilograms of second-level green water python meat from the ice cellar, steam it until half-cooked and send it over.

After waiting for a long while, Zhao Xing came over with a farmhand carrying a bucket of meat. Zhao Zhen called out, and the three of them also went to the house on the top of the mountain.

Baishuang, Wula, Wuna, Fulushouxi, and the seven little ones were all in the hall. Zhao Zhen asked Qingzhu to take out their food bowls and put them on the ground, then knocked on the abacus. The seven little ones raised their heads and stared at Zhao Zhen.

Seeing Zhao Zhen picking up meat from the bucket, they immediately rushed to their own food bowls and sat down. Zhao Zhen started with Bai Shuang, picking up meat and putting it in the bowl, not forgetting to praise them one by one.

This advanced snake meat is not usually given to these spirit species. On weekdays, only Zhao Zhen and his wife enjoy it every few days. There are so many heroes in the county, and they only send three to five pounds every month. Only when a banquet is held can all the heroes feast on it.

After finishing the meal of the spirit snake meat, the listless white fox instantly became energetic. It seemed that she wanted to go out and look for treasure without Zhao Zhen's urging. Zhao Zhen was watching the spirits eating and playing downstairs. There were bursts of laughter from upstairs from time to time. It was unknown what the two were talking about.

Just as Zhao Zhen was about to go up, he saw Zhao Yuanli come in and said, "Sir, Manager Tang Long has returned and is waiting in the hall. He is accompanied by more than 20 soldiers and guarding more than 10 carriages."

Zhao Zhen was overjoyed and walked towards the meeting room at the foot of the mountain. He thought that Tang Long had invited the Golden Spear Class teacher Xu Ning.

On the parade ground, more than twenty soldiers were escorting a carriage. A woman was holding a little baby in her hands, looking around curiously.

Zhao Zhen took a look and asked Zhao Yuanli to bring some wine to quench the soldiers' thirst, and then hurried into the conference room.

Tang Long was seen talking to a big man. As soon as he saw the big man, Zhao Zhen knew that this person was not Xu Ning.

Lin Chong once said that this [Golden Spearman] Xu Ning was only six feet five or six feet tall, with a round white face, three teeth and a thin black beard, and a very thin waist and broad shoulders. This man looked quite different from Xu Ning.

After the greeting, Tang Long introduced the man, who turned out to be [Thunderbolt] Ling Zhen.

Zhao Zhen asked, "Brother Tang Long, how can we invite Brother Ling Zhen?"

Tang Long said, "Sir, I came to visit my parents and stayed with my brother and sister-in-law for a few days. My brother Xu Ning was very happy to hear that I was appointed as a captain here. He accompanied me to play around Tokyo for a few days."

"I saw my brother was enjoying himself in Tokyo, so I didn't want to say anything. So I wanted to find some unsuccessful heroes in Tokyo. I asked around for two days like a headless fly. When my brother saw me like this, he told me: It's not easy to live in Tokyo. However, this place is the most prosperous. After coming here, few people are willing to leave. He told me not to dream."

"Although I was not convinced, I inquired for two days and found that it was indeed as my brother said. I had to give up the idea. Unexpectedly, my brother saw that I was depressed and introduced many heroes in the army to me. That's how I met Brother Ling Zhen."

Ling Zhen said, "I heard from Brother Tang Long that you have nearly fifty cannons of various types and seven or eight hundred bird guns, which I have never seen before. I was not convinced, so I invited Brother Tang Long to the armory to see the mother-and-child cannon, golden wheel cannon, wind and fire cannon, car box cannon, and sky-blasting cannon that I made. I never thought that Brother Tang Long said that although my cannons can shoot far, they are not enough to kill. There are also bird guns that can be held by one person and can break armor at thirty steps."

"Although I didn't believe it, I saw that Brother Tang Long was so sure about it that I was tempted to come and see it. Originally, I was the only one who wanted to come, but Brother Tang Long said that this was a powerful siege weapon, unique in nature, and the master would never let outsiders see it. I suspected that he was talking nonsense after drinking, so I didn't care. But when I thought about the way he swore and swore, it didn't seem fake. The next day I went to Teacher Xu's house to look for him, and Brother Tang Long still said the same thing."

"I gritted my teeth and resigned from my position. Before leaving, I recruited these trusted craftsmen from outside. I also used my status to purchase the gunpowder and carefully transported it along the way."

"Sir, are there really the cannons and bird guns that Brother Tang Long mentioned?"

Zhao Zhen said, "Brother Tang Long is right. We do have three invincible great general cannons, ten Portuguese cannons, thirty mountain-splitting cannons, ten great general cannons, and five submachine guns. There are thousands of bird guns and three-eyed cannons. They are all made of copper and iron. The great general cannon shells weigh eight pounds. One shot can make a hole the size of a wheel on the city wall. The mountain-splitting cannons and the great general cannons are mortars. They can fire more than a hundred pellets at a time, and they are invincible."

"Brother, you have come a long way and have worked hard. Please take a rest today. I will host a banquet to welcome you tonight. Tomorrow I will take you to the camp to test the artillery."

As he said that, he asked Zhao Yuanli to arrange for Ling Zhen and his group to stay, and Zhao Zhen kept Tang Long in the hall to talk.

(End of this chapter)