Goose Three Kingdoms

Chapter 591: Kongming Flying Lantern
After a few more days, the black bear was about to return to Lantian and cross the Wei River.

A group of knights blocked the floating bridge, and the leading messenger was led in front of them, with a look of joy on his face: "Your Majesty, great joy!"

"Where does the joy come from?"

Recognizing that it was his promoted personal soldier, Black Bear got out of the car.

The messenger stepped forward and handed over the letter: "This is written by Mrs. Dongxiang."

Black Bear picked it up and flipped through it, his eyes lit up: "Is what you said true?"

"I have asked you to bring the flying lantern. Please inspect it, Your Majesty."

The messenger smiled broadly: "Madam has ordered someone to make a copy, and it will be sent to Lantian in a few days."

"Very good, bring it here."

The black bear was also curious. This was a flying lantern made by the hostage who stayed behind, Zhuge Liang's wife Huang Yueying.

He had some idea in his mind, but he still looked happy.

Immediately, two Dongxiang guards brought a wooden box, opened the lid, and inside was a flying lantern made of paper.

The frame is made of thin bamboo strips, on which paper is pasted. At the bottom is copper wire, and in the middle of the copper wire is a hook with cotton thread soaked in grease wrapped around it.

Fa Zheng came up and understood: "I understand. If we light a fire here, the heat will rise and accumulate in the paper tube, and we will naturally be able to fly. If we use wide and coarse silk instead of paper in the future, we can hang a hanging basket and make people fly!"

"Yes, the secret of flying is that simple."

Black Bear sighed, turned around and told Gao Jun: "Get some fire."

"Here!"

Gao Jun turned around and walked quickly to the car, lit a spare torch and took it down.

The other guards wanted to step forward and lift the flying lantern which was two feet in diameter and over three feet high but was so light, but Yang Xiu squeezed past and grabbed it with both hands and easily picked it up.

Black Bear took the torch, and after Fa Zheng and Yang Xiu held the flying lantern on the left and right, he lit the oil-dipped cotton thread at the bottom.

Flames rose, heat surged, and Fa Zheng and Yang Xiu both felt a slight upward force.

They looked at each other and let go of each other's hands. Then they saw the flying lantern slowly rising and flying towards the south bank of the Weishui River along with the slight and gentle north wind.

Black Bear put his hands on his hips and looked up at the flying lantern gradually disappearing into the distance. Dozens of knights immediately mounted their horses and headed for the floating bridge.

Fa Zheng raised his hand to cover his brows. He was overwhelmed with emotion but soon calmed down. He felt that what he had just released was not a flying lantern, but a fief of at least one thousand households.

"When this lantern points downwards and emits flames, it is called a Kongming lantern."

Black Bear said to Fa Zheng: "This is the beginning of Fei Tian's great cause. Although it is small, it is of great significance. Draft a document and submit it to the Executive Office, requesting that Zhuge Kongming's wife be made a lord and granted a fief of 500 households. You should consider the specific title and make sure it is appropriate."

"Once the Executive Yuan has passed it, it will be announced to all the counties, so that all officials and people will know about it."

"Also, pass on my decree that from June to the end of October in summer, when the weather is dry, officials and civilians are not allowed to fly Kongming lanterns during this period. Otherwise, they will be punished for arson."

There are still two months left before the no-fly period, which is enough time for everyone to figure out how to use this thing.

It's a one-size-fits-all thing, and someone will definitely start researching hot air balloons in order to seek a second round of rewards.

After experiencing the hardships of actual warfare, Fa Zheng and his men developed a keen military sense and reacted immediately. In the future, when large armies fought, they had to take precautions in this regard.

As for concealing something, there is no need to conceal such a thing.

At this time, Yang Xiu suggested: "Your Majesty, if the flying lantern is strong and large, can we use ropes to hang it on the boat and make it fly?"

When he saw Black Bear looking at him, he pointed at the steam locomotive with a clutch and running empty for more than 20 steps, and said, "The chariot is too heavy, and the ride is bumpy, which is inconvenient when crossing rivers and wading. If there are several flying lanterns, or a huge flying lantern hanging with ropes, then your chariot will not only be able to travel through mountains and rivers as if walking on flat ground, but also travel in the air."

Thinking about the future, Yang Xiu smiled innocently: "In a few decades, tens of thousands of troops will be on hundreds of flying warships. Who in the country or abroad can stop them?"

Rather than the bumpy and noisy steam chariot, Yang Xiu wanted to quickly improve the ride comfort.

It would be a great experience if you could skip the steam chariot and directly ride on a flying battleship.

The enemy's bows and crossbows have a limited range, and the benefits brought by the flying warships will bring endless benefits to the shogunate even if they can't find the gods.

"Don't worry, we will have that day eventually."

Black Bear was in a really good mood: "I am very happy today. I will issue another decree. All slaves and prisoners will have their sentences reduced by one year!"

"Your Majesty is benevolent and virtuous." Fa Zheng took the lead in bowing, and the others quickly followed suit, shouting: "Your Majesty is benevolent and virtuous."

Fa Zheng then said, "Your Majesty is feared by all quarters, admired by the whole nation, and grateful to you. Now that a divine artifact has been discovered, it is evident that the will of heaven is clear. In my opinion, you should be promoted to a higher position to fulfill the will of heaven."

"The traitors in the southeast have not been eliminated, and Cao Cao and Yuan Shang are causing chaos in the north. My achievements have not been fully realized, and the late emperor has been gone for less than three years. This is not a good opportunity."

Black Bear smiled and refused, saying, "Please warn the officials everywhere not to persuade them again."

Then he said to Gao Jun, "Order the chariots to cross the river."

"Here."

Gao Jun wanted to persuade him again, but he felt that he was not qualified, so he took a hesitant step to pass the order to the chariot.

As he waved the flag, Black Bear also controlled the Taoist soldiers in the steam locomotive, shifted the gears to connect to the power, and the chariot slowly accelerated.

When accelerating, the Taoist soldiers inside also blew the whistle, whistling a few long sounds.

But you can't drive at full speed when crossing the bridge, so the front of the car still releases steam from time to time.

At nightfall that day, the steam chariot slowly drove into the Wangchuan River Valley.

At the shogunate's residence, the whistle blew long and long, and a large amount of steam was released to relieve the pressure when the distance was three or four miles.

At the same time, the soldier in the front of the car pulled the lever inside the car, first the clutch power, and then pushed in the brake pads to make them fit and rub against the wheel hub.

Amidst the noise, the steam chariot slowly stopped in front of the gate of the shogunate residence.

The guards stood in line holding torches and waiting, covering their ears. After this trip to the Guanzhong steam engine exhibition and inspection, he had begun to dislike this new guy.

Perhaps we can refer to Yang Xiu's advice and make improvements to the compound power.

In the future, a hot airship will be added to the chariot, and a warship with wheels will be hung under the airship, and sails will be fixed on the warship; at the same time, steam power will be placed in the bottom of the cabin to provide power and steering force for the wheels and rudder.

If you hang a wooden Land Cruiser under the Kirov, even if it can fly for dozens of meters, it will be difficult to die as long as it does not go to areas with changeable and strong winds.

But before that, we need to develop personal air gliders and parachutes.

I have a vague feeling that this year might be the year when the first record of someone dying from a flying fall will be set.

As long as the motivation is in place, there will never be a shortage of warriors.

Even if Fei Tianshou died after falling, many scholars still rushed to the front, for fear of dying a step slower than others!
I'm just afraid some idiots will try wingsuit flying...

Black Bear was fantasizing about the future, and the accompanying shogunate officials could no longer wait, and soon they started making dozens of flying lanterns of different sizes.

The remaining shogunate officials were also confused as to what was going on. After the flying lanterns slowly rose into the sky and drifted northward along the river valley and mountain winds.

This is how the name of Kongming Lantern came into being. It is so vivid and appropriate.

When Zhuge Jin heard the word "Kongming Lantern", he thought it was just a coincidence, but he soon realized that it was not a coincidence.

His second brother's wife became the first person in the entire family to obtain the shogunate title.

A group of Kongming lanterns flew northward, and officials such as Zhong Yao and Zhou Yu in the nearby buildings of the shogunate were also alarmed.

Zhou Yu spent more than three months at Chang'an University, during which time the most discussed issue was the feasibility of the Feitian Project.

Regardless of their intentions, the vast majority of people considered the plan dialectically from all aspects and felt that it was absolutely feasible.

But I didn't expect the results to appear so quickly.

However, many of the Kongming lanterns were short of fuel and fell after flying four or five miles. This made Zhou Yu's eyes light up.

It was as if I saw tens of thousands of Kongming lanterns floating down with the wind over the densely packed enemy warships, falling with hot oil and igniting a sea of ​​fire.

But his eyes soon returned to normal. What he could think of, the rebel could also think of.

Unless it is kept secret all the time, the fact that such a bright light is suddenly released tonight shows that the shogunate has no intention of hiding it.

Unlike Zhou Yu, Zhong Yao felt a strong sense of happiness.

He succeeded in flying to the sky during his lifetime. Even though he did not find the immortals, he was luckier than other scholars of the same age.

Compared to his peers who died in the turbulent times, he was much luckier than his peers because he could enjoy peace for the rest of his life, as well as the affluent life provided by the shogunate, and gain more novel knowledge.

(End of this chapter)