I open a history tutorial class in Daming

Chapter 184 Tang Dynasty needs gunpowder!
Song Shen left Kunning Palace.

He had said everything that needed to be said. His mind was in a mess now and he had no time to think about anything else. His mind was full of things. He just wanted to go back quickly and ask Lan Yun to help write a letter to tell his grandfather everything that happened in the palace today so that he could ask for his opinion.

He was a time traveler, and he even had a hack that allowed him to check historical records, but now things were no longer within his control, and history was becoming distorted. Or perhaps, these events were not important enough to be recorded in history, so he could not find out.

No matter what the reason was, Song Shen couldn't judge whether accepting the arranged marriage was a good thing or a bad thing.

Of course, there is another plan to delay time, which is to ask Li Shanchang what he thinks in class tomorrow. After all, it is not the first time that he has pulled someone into the office, and it will be easier the second time than the first time.

He can make a decision only after considering opinions from all parties.

…………

After Song Shen left, the screen in Kunning Palace was removed.

Queen Ma looked at the three people coming out from behind the screen and drank a sip of tea:

"Don't take what I just said too seriously. Ziwei's own opinion is the most important. I am just a matchmaker. If he doesn't agree, no one can force him."

Zhu Yuanzhang almost rolled his eyes:

"Sister, I thought you were joking, but I didn't expect you to really treat him as your nephew and protect him now?"

Queen Ma sneered:
"Otherwise, you old guys are just bullying him for being blind and bullying his elders who are not in Yingtian Prefecture, and you are trying to trick him to death? I'm telling you, you can't just take advantage of him, right? Who else around him is clean and hasn't tipped you off?"

Zhu Yuanzhang touched his nose, feeling quite embarrassed.

He did capture almost everyone around Song Shen, from Zhang Wei to Xu Yungong, and then to his own identity as "Chen Guorui". The only thing he had left was to knock Song Shen unconscious and bring him back to the palace, telling him that this was his home.

What's more, he was planning to send Ji Gang to Song Shen as a bodyguard, who was obviously a spy.

After coughing, Zhu Yuanzhang changed the subject.

He looked at Li Shimin in the light screen in front of him and said:

"You see, Song Shen is indeed a member of our Ming Dynasty. We don't have any other channels. Only the Queen has more contact with him."

"Most of the information Song Shen gave me was obtained through this method. Compared to his recklessness in class, he spoke very cautiously in front of the Queen, and most of the time we had to rely on guesswork."

"Listen, don't you think that getting points by passing exams and being praised in class is much better than this?"

On the other side, the Tang Dynasty.

Li Shimin frowned, wondering whether Zhu Yuanzhang's words were credible.

This guy often talks nonsense, and it is difficult to tell whether he is telling the truth or not. Zhu Yuanzhang's square face has thick eyebrows and big eyes, which makes him look trustworthy. The problem is that they have been classmates for a while, and others don't know, but he doesn't know what kind of evil Zhu Baba is?

After thinking for a moment, Li Shimin looked at the two counselors around him.

"What do you two think?"

Fang Xuanling and Changsun Wuji looked at each other, and the former leaned close to Li Shimin's ear and spoke softly in a whisper that could not be heard on the other side of the light curtain.

"Your Majesty can believe or not believe what Zhu Yuanzhang said, but it doesn't matter."

"The important thing is that the Hongwu Dynasty must be special, and Zhu Yuanzhang must not want this to be known to everyone."

"As long as we get this right, don't worry about what he said. We just need to get what we want. Whether Zhu Yuanzhang's situation is weaker or stronger than that of the Tang Dynasty is none of our business. The benefits are real."

Li Shimin nodded in agreement.

That's right!

The benefits are eternal!
He said to Zhu Yuanzhang on the other side of the light curtain:
"Old Zhu, I won't talk to you about those empty bargains. Let's be generous and tell you the bottom line."

"I know you won't give me all the benefits Song Shen gave me, and maybe I can't get them either, but you have one thing you can give me."

"I heard that you Ming Dynasty already have some good firearms, but my Tang Dynasty doesn't have them yet."

"How about you tell me how your gunpowder and muskets are made, and I promise to keep it a secret. How about that?"

Zhu Yuanzhang stared at him with an unhappy expression.

It’s not that giving it away will do any harm to you.

Firstly, they are separated by a gap of hundreds of years in time and space. Even if the people in front changed something, it would not affect their later selves. This can be seen from the history that Ying Zheng and Li Shimin changed.

Secondly, as a Han Chinese, Zhu Yuanzhang knew that the Tang Dynasty was actually the dynasty with the most powerful comprehensive national strength in history, without a doubt. He would also be happy to see the Tang Dynasty prosper.

There was no harm in it, but Zhu Yuanzhang felt uncomfortable.

He really hates being manipulated or threatened.

Especially, the other party was Li Shimin, who had always been at odds with him.

After a moment's silence, Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly laughed.

He looked at the people on the other side of the light screen and said loudly:
"Actually, I also think that we should share the methods of making and using firearms and gunpowder with the Tang Dynasty. After all, the territory of the Tang Dynasty during its heyday was so vast, and there was even a female emperor in the middle of it. Such a vast territory..."

Before he could finish his words, he was interrupted by Li Shimin.

His Majesty Li Er first glanced at Wu Ruyi, who was watching his heart, and then glared at Zhu Yuanzhang and said:

"Zhu Yuanzhang, what do you want to do? What nonsense are you talking about?!"

Zhu Yuanzhang spread out his hands with an innocent look on his face:
"What did we say? We were just chatting. Don't get excited. We read in history books that your migraine is quite severe. If you are so easily angered, don't get dizzy again later."

Li Shimin:...

Li Shimin took several deep breaths and said in a deep voice:

"What do you mean?"

This is clearly a counter-blackmail!
They are all smart people. Li Shimin knows what Zhu Yuanzhang cares about. Now, after meeting each other, Zhu Yuanzhang can also see what he is thinking.

Wu Zetian, or now Wu Ruyi, completely lost the possibility of climbing all the way to the throne from the harem after Li Shimin and others knew about her future development.

They would never allow such a thing to happen again, and after history changed, the person who ascended the throne changed from Li Zhi to Li Chengqian, which made it difficult for such a weird thing like Xiao/Ma/Literature to happen again.

But Wu Ruyi was a rare talent in the world. This woman's character, talent and brains were stronger than many men. It just so happened that Li Shimin was also a man who valued talents, otherwise he would not have reused Wei Zheng, an old minister of the hidden prince. Knowing that he was a talent, but leaving him unused or even killing him was something Li Er could not do.

Just now, Li Shimin chose Wu Ruyi to analyze things in the class, and later asked her to confront Zhu Yuanzhang directly, which was enough to illustrate his plan.

He wanted to use Wu Ruyi like a man and make her a good minister of the Tang Dynasty.

But Wu Ruyi is still too young. She has not experienced the intrigues and life-and-death struggles in the harem. She does not know what path she will take in the future, let alone that she can reach the highest position in the world. If she knew... it is hard to say whether her heart would be shaken, but Li Er would definitely not dare to use her.

Li Shimin quickly went over the matter in his mind and became even more angry and had a headache.

Zhu Yuanzhang is a bastard... Damn it, he is full of bad intentions. He is simply pickled by bad intentions!

"We don't mean anything, you think too much."

Zhu Yuanzhang, who had regained the initiative, was leisurely. He snatched the tea from Empress Ma's hand and took a sip, which earned him angry glares from both Empress Ma and Li Shimin.

He coughed and cleared his throat:

"Actually, if you want firearms or something, you can just tell me and we can talk about it. It's not like we won't give it to you if you need it."

"It's just that this kind of give and take is called human nature, right?"

"Mr. Song is testing national policy this time. You have many capable people around you to give you advice. I think your Tang Dynasty's score will not be low. If there are any good things, why not share them with everyone? What do you think?"

Before Li Shimin could think clearly, Zhu Yuanzhang added:
"Li Er, you know, there are many differences between your Zhenguan period and my Ming Dynasty's Hongwu period. Just in terms of forging technology, the Ming Dynasty was definitely much better than yours."

"This is just an example. If you change the forging method, you can't achieve everything in one go. You still have to do it step by step. How to build the furnace and how to pour the molten iron are all things that need to be changed slowly. If you bring this kind of technology to the Ming Dynasty, we can also teach you the current Ming Dynasty technology and you can develop it slowly, right?"

"As for gunpowder, it's nothing. Even if your forging technology is not enough to make large-scale firearms, gunpowder is not only used in firearms. Put it directly into a pottery jar and light it. The effect and the noise are comparable to thunder. It is definitely enough for the Zhenguan period."

"You have to think clearly. The reason why the Ming Dynasty was able to gradually develop various firearms was because it was forced to do so during the war. The reason why it is constantly improving now is also because of the war. Although you are now called the Heavenly Khan and the four barbarians are subservient, there are always some who are not honest."

"Now that you have gunpowder, use it for now. It will definitely be enough to intimidate the barbarians. Wait for half a year or a year before taking out firearms. Isn't it better to crush them all the time than just taking out firearms directly?"

It was a roundabout way of speaking, but Li Shimin understood it.

Isn't this just trying to keep something in reserve, giving only gunpowder but not firearms, saying half and half, so as to avoid the apprentice starving to death?

The corners of his mouth twitched. He knew that he could not get any advantage from a veteran like Zhu Yuanzhang, so he did not bargain any further.

"Okay, then give me the formula for gunpowder."

"But let me say this first. If the prescription you gave me cannot be prepared, has no effect, or the gunpowder cannot function without firearms, today's matter will be null and void."

"I will no longer want anything from you, and don't expect me to keep your secrets for you. Do you understand?"

This was a clear threat, stating clearly that if Zhu Yuanzhang lied and this thing didn't work, Li Er would just overturn the table and no one would be able to escape.

But Zhu Yuanzhang didn't care too much.

He smiled and said:
"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll be scared to death during the first test!"

"Anyone who sees the power of gunpowder and firearms for the first time will be terrified, let alone if you use them against barbarians. They will probably sincerely think you are the Heavenly Khan."

"Biao'er, come and write down the formula of gunpowder to Li Shimin!"

"I'm a straightforward person. After I tell you the formula, if you can find the raw materials, you can try it out this afternoon to see the effect. If the effect is not good, you can tell me in class tomorrow and Biao and I will help you find the reason - is this enough?"

No matter how much Li Shimin was annoyed with him, he couldn't find any fault with him now.

Now that things have come to this, there is no point in finding fault. Zhu Yuanzhang is the one who does the talking now anyway. Everything will only be possible after the formula for gunpowder is obtained and the effects are tested.

…………

Song Shen's home.

As soon as the carriage stopped, Song Shen heard a familiar voice.

"Ziwei, where have you been? Why did you come back just now? You didn't even call me when you went out. Aren't you getting estranged?"

It was Zhang Wei’s chatter.

Song Shen smiled helplessly, bowed in the direction of the speaker, and said:

"I had something to do today, so I went to the palace."

"Why, brother, do you need me for something?"

When Zhang Weiyi heard that he was going to the palace, he shut up on the spot and dared not say anything more.

It's already uncomfortable enough for him to be a spy between His Majesty and his friends. If possible, Zhang Wei never wants to see His Majesty again in his life.

The power of the emperor is really fucking scary!

Zhang Wei said honestly:
"It's something."

"Brother, I heard that you seemed to have encountered some problems recently. Song Longmen also sent me a letter, asking me to take care of you more."

"You live on your own now. Although you and I are neighbors, there are always things that we cannot take good care of. I am really worried, so I used some connections to find a soldier who just retired from the army to be your guard."

Song Shen was stunned for a moment, feeling that this was indeed his negligence.

He originally thought that since he lived next door to Zhang Wei and in the foothills of the imperial city, the safety of his small courtyard was basically guaranteed. But what happened today made him realize that there is no absolute safety in this world.

If his ex-father-in-law Zhu Mengyan came over again and again, people would get angry and embarrassed after being turned away so many times.

The other party is a staunch member of Hu's party. Considering Hu Weiyong's ability to make things happen at the court, it is not surprising that he could do anything.

For safety reasons, you should indeed hire some bodyguards.

After thinking it through, Song Shen took the initiative to ask:

"I wonder what the origins of this little soldier are. Can he really be trusted?"

Zhang Wei waved his hand and said:

"Hey, what are you talking about? The person I find for you must be trustworthy!"

"That young man is not very old, not even an adult yet, only in his teens, but he is very good at martial arts. It's just that his family doesn't want him to fight on the battlefield, and he himself doesn't want to waste his martial arts, so he plans to be a guard."

"His name is Ji Gang, and he's at my house. How about I bring him to you to chat?"

Song Shen was stunned.

Ji Gang?

Was it the one he knew, Ji Gang, the famous Jinyiwei lackey beside Emperor Yongle in history... or was it just a coincidence with the same name?

(End of this chapter)