The old things I repaired have become fine

Chapter 700 Don't stop me! I want to see Li Shimin's great battle at Hulao Pass!

In modern times, building a porcelain factory would be a simple matter for Shen Le; he only needed to ask, and either the Special Affairs Bureau or the Porcelain Demon Mr. Zhao would swiftly arrange it for him.

The machines, the kiln, the manpower—everything was in place. Shen Le didn't need to say a word; it would be ready in a week, or at most half a month.

Shen Le only needed to control the core aspects; everything else was handled by experienced people. Anyway, the porcelain sword that was ultimately fired was installed on Yun Kun, and Yun Kun's final voyage was also to carry out a mission for the country…

Shen Le's decision not to ask for a fee for the work was already very considerate.

However, this is ancient times. Not to mention the porcelain factory, even this porcelain kiln in front of us was built up slowly and painstakingly by Shen Le and his fellow apprentices.

He wanted machines, larger kilns, and higher production output. Only he could find a way to develop a high-speed production method using magic.
"The fertile soil carries virtue, and Huang Ning obeys the imperial decree!" Senior Brother Mingkun made a sword incantation with his hands and walked back and forth quickly under the reed shed, stepping on the Seven Stars.

As he waved his arms and performed incantations, large bags of porcelain clay rose up like white dragons, mixing with other materials to form a large ball, which then vibrated rapidly up and down.

"Heavenly True Water, Northern Emperor's Source!" Master Xuan Yin shouted, and misty water surged from all directions, seeping into the earthen ball.

Visibly, the soil ball became moist, soft, and elastic, repeatedly kneaded by an invisible hand as it sank and convexed with each hand gesture.

Finally, the porcelain blank was divided into dozens of pieces and began to spin rapidly in the air. When it reached its limit, it suddenly changed direction, from convex outward to concave inward, and began to spin again.

After seven or eight rounds of handling, the porcelain blanks slowly fell to the ground. Shen Le casually broke off a piece, kneaded it in his hand, and nodded.
"That's kneaded properly. Now, let's make the individual parts and sculpt the formation!"

"No problem! We can draw symbols on clay bricks, leave it to us!"

With Shen Le in command and magic aids, manual production did achieve half, or at least a third, of the efficiency of large-scale machine production, barely keeping up with the speed of porcelain kiln firing.

Shen Le and the disciples of the Immortal Sect devoted themselves to production. In just six months, they increased the height of the porcelain tower from three feet to seven feet, and the coverage area of ​​the porcelain tower increased from one mile to ten miles.

If a group of five, seven, or twelve porcelain towers are placed at a ley line node according to a certain pattern, the resonance between them can even cover a small mountain range or an ancient battlefield.

Then they ran into trouble.

"The Five Metals Elite is gone? -- I still need to forge at least forty-nine porcelain towers, and each tower requires forty-nine porcelain swords! Without the Five Metals Elite, what am I going to use to forge them?!"

The formula for porcelain blanks can be modified, but porcelain swords are simply not feasible! To increase the destructive power and self-sufficiency of the porcelain tower, it's impossible without elite hardware experts!

"That's all." Lou Yun sheathed his sword, his face weary, and shook his head as he landed on the ground.
“In the past few years, I’ve traveled to every place I could. I’ve walked through Liaodong three times, and I’ve practically worn out the city walls of Liaodong City. I almost lost my life at Xingluocang…”

His left hand, gripping the sword, trembled incessantly behind his back, while his right hand, outstretched, bent each finger one by one:
"Dahai Temple, Leshou, Liyang, Tongshan, Liaocheng... I've been to every battlefield. I've collected all the elite metalwork that I could. Every move I make is a battle of tens of thousands against tens of thousands..."

Shen Le looked at him with admiration and sympathy. The end of the Sui Dynasty was like this: war raged everywhere, and taking just a few extra steps could drag you into some major battle.

For disciples of the immortal sects, watching from afar and flying away on their swords at any time is fine, but if they try to rush into the battlefield, the military aura will disperse any kind of magic.

Unfortunately, if you can't find elite hardware professionals in famous mountains and rivers, you have to go to the battlefield to find them. The fiercer the battle, the more desperate the fate of both sides, the more likely it is to gather enough elite hardware professionals...

"You've worked hard, senior brother. You've really worked hard. After fighting for so many years, we should be able to reach a conclusion soon. Let's wait a little while, until the world is at peace, and then go directly to the imperial court to demand it!"

Anyway, they have plenty of time, right? Immortal sect disciples, as long as they don't die prematurely, have long lifespans. Just like them, from the Eastern Wei and Northern Zhou dynasties until now, many of them still look like teenagers.

Once the world is at peace, the ruling dynasty will naturally have the need to appease the people and eliminate evil spirits, and will naturally be willing to cooperate with them, won't it?

Lou Yun let out a sigh of relief and relaxed slightly. Shen Le mentally reviewed the places he had walked, then suddenly remembered something and couldn't help but ask:
"By the way, what stage are you at lately?"

"What stage?"

Lou Yun gave Shen Le a blank look. Shen Le shrugged:

"Exactly, how many factions are still fighting each other now?"

"Ah this..."

Lou Yun tried to think about it, tilting his head back:
"Great Xia, Great Zheng, Great..."

He counted on his fingers, rattling off five or six names in one breath. Shen Le felt dizzy and covered her head, waving her hands:

"Wait, wait, wait! Just tell me who their leader is!"

Who remembers which of their self-established names was which?

He has the memory in his head, he doesn't need to use it for this!
"Oh, Wang Shichong, Dou Jiande." Lou Yun smiled, not taking offense.
"Luo Yi, Du Fuwei, oh, and the Li family of Taiyuan..."

"Li Shimin?" Shen Le perked up immediately. He had finally heard what he wanted to hear!

When Li Shimin appeared, he knew exactly how far the great battle for the throne had progressed!

"What stage are Li Shimin, Wang Shichong, and Dou Jiande at now? Quick! Tell me!"

"Ah, their fighting was so boring." As he said this, Lou Yun's back slumped, and he slumped down completely.
"Last year—it was last year, wasn't it? The Tang army besieged Wang Shichong in Luoyang, and they've been besieging him ever since. Dou Jiande led his troops to his aid, and the two sides have been locked in a stalemate day after day."

I've been wandering around that area for months, hoping every day that they'll start fighting, fight, fight so I can collect the Five Metals Elite, but they just won't fight!

"They haven't started fighting yet? That's great!" Shen Le jumped up. He grabbed Lou Yun's arm, his eyes practically shooting light.

"Take me there! Take me there! I absolutely must see this great battle!"

"Are you crazy?" Lou Yun frowned and took a step back, reflexively shaking off Shen Le's arm: "What's so interesting about such a dangerous place? We Daoist disciples shouldn't rush into such dangerous places so recklessly!"

"This great battle is the one that will determine the fate of the world!" Shen Le held onto him tightly.

"Hurry up! If you're not taking me, I'll go by myself!!!"

"No, no, no!" Lou Yun was terrified. He barely managed to get Shen Le to sit down on the ground, then rushed back to consult the sect leader. Unexpectedly, the sect leader readily agreed:
“It’s good to go out for a walk. Mingde has worked very hard in the mountains all these years. Besides, we Taoist disciples are always caught up in the mundane world, which hinders our spiritual practice. Occasionally going out to observe things from the sidelines can broaden our horizons and benefit our cultivation!”

Lou Yun: "..."

He had no choice but to obey the order and accompany Shen Le out of the mountains. From Zhongnan Mountain to the vicinity of Hulao Pass, where Li Shimin and Dou Jiande were facing off, it was nearly a thousand miles away. He was not in a hurry to fly on his sword, but instead took Shen Le over mountains and valleys, taking shortcuts along the land route.

As they walked, he held onto Shen Le, repeatedly giving her instructions:
"You must listen to me when you get there! You are not allowed to go anywhere I tell you not to go, and you are not allowed to wander off in any direction I tell you not to go!"

"Both sides have tens or even hundreds of thousands of troops, with camps stretching for dozens of miles. If we just barge in recklessly, we'll be caught and killed!"

"Uh-huh-huh-huh!"

Shen Le nodded repeatedly. Of course he wouldn't run off! He still wanted to see Li Shimin's hundred cavalrymen defeat ten thousand troops and capture two kings in one battle!
He was killed by the chaotic army before he even saw it; he really lost out! Even if it could be restarted, could Senior Brother Lou Yun restart it? Senior Uncle Xuanming, Senior Brother Mingxin, Senior Brother Mingli, could they all restart it?

Even if he could reopen it, he would never want to go through the ordeal of mixing mud, firing the kiln, trying again and again, and failing countless times before finally firing a porcelain tower!

They crossed seven or eight mountains, bypassed Luoyang, and headed east along the Yellow River. After more than a day, they finally arrived near Hulao Pass. Lou Yun grabbed Shen Le:
"We can't go any further! Look, the soldiers' morale is soaring!"

Shen Le squinted as he looked ahead. To his left, the Yellow River surged and rolled eastward; ahead, the Sishui River flowed like a ribbon into the Yellow River.

To the right, mountains rise abruptly from the riverbank, their towering peaks leaving only a narrow path winding forward, facing the vast plains on the opposite bank of the Si River—

The saying goes, "Two cliffs and gorges bind the surging waves, heroes have fought for Hulao Pass since ancient times." A formidable pass stands right in the middle of the passage. Whether the army wanted to travel along the Sishui River or advance westward along the Yellow River, it could not bypass the Hulao Pass nestled in the mountains!

"It would be great to be able to enter Hulao Pass and take a look!" Shen Le flew through the air on his sword, looking down into the distance. Just as he was about to lower his sword, Lou Yun pulled him back.
"No way! What did you promise me when we came? To watch from afar, from the outside!—How do you know the Tang army is guaranteed to win?!"

"Well, I'm from the future, I've read history books." Shen Le looked at her senior brother with a mournful expression, but dared not tell the truth.

Having no other choice, I secretly landed in an open space, grabbed a random twig, and used it to trace the surrounding terrain on the ground:
"Look, senior brother, Li Shimin is guarding Hulao Pass, while Dou Jiande is dozens of miles outside the pass. Given this terrain, either Li Shimin will come out of the pass and defeat Dou Jiande in one fell swoop, or Dou Jiande will launch a strong attack on Hulao Pass."

"In short, we're near Hulao Pass, so we'll definitely be able to see the outcome of this battle. We just need to find a good spot to watch!"

"No!" Lou Yun grabbed him and wouldn't let go:

"It's too dangerous! This mountain isn't very high, and there are people stationed on it. If we rush over there rashly, we'll be surrounded and finished!"

"Why rush over there?" Shen Le stared at him with a strange look.
"Let's get some identities. We can say we're wandering Taoist priests—no, Taoist priests aren't safe enough. How about we say we're herb-gathering healers? No matter which family we go to, they won't refuse a doctor!"

He pulled his senior brother and flew straight down. They didn't approach Hulao Pass immediately, but stayed far away, finding a small county town where they bought two old medicine chests, two sets of worn but clean medicine spoons, a medicine knife, needles and thread, a thick stack of gauze, various wound medicines, splints, and other items.

I packed a bag, slung it over my shoulder, and started climbing the mountain:
"Don't worry, leave it to me. I can handle the simplest external wound treatment; that'll be enough to fool these soldiers!"

Lou Yun tried several times to stop him, but to no avail, and had no choice but to grit his teeth and follow Shen Le forward. The two of them meandered and climbed several mountains before finally being stopped by the soldiers.
"What?"

Shen Le calmly picked up the medicine box...

The soldier saw that he was well-mannered and seemed knowledgeable, and when he opened the box and smelled the medicine, he didn't make things difficult for him.

He carried it to a nearby camp, where a veteran came over and examined it carefully. There was nothing valuable in the medicine box—just dandelions, honeysuckle, willow bark, and the like. Shen Le smiled and let him rummage through the herbs without getting angry.
"These all need to be boiled before use, so feel free to flip them around. —Hey, don't touch those white cloth strips! If they get dirty, we'll have to wash and dry them again when we bandage the wound!"

"You can heal wounds?"

"When traveling in the mountains, you need to know a little bit about everything." Shen Le stood tall and proud, full of confidence.

"If any of your comrades are injured, I, in my humble opinion, will do my best to help—"

He was quickly dragged into the military camp. With a long-term garrison and constant outposts, there was never a shortage of wounded soldiers. Shen Le, drawing on his experience repairing armor, rolled up his sleeves and worked with practiced ease:

Boil a large pot of water and make a decoction of dandelion and honeysuckle. Have them wash each wound clean. If there are no serious ulcers, wrap them in clean white cloths and send them away.
The wound was festering, so I had to heat the dagger until it was red-hot and carefully slice away the rotten flesh, then clean and bandage it again. What? Mafeisan (a type of anesthetic)?
No, it doesn't exist. Give him a twig to chew on!

Even so, after removing the arrowhead, cleaning the wound, and stitching it up—the entire procedure—Shen Le was still considered a quack doctor from the mountains.

His skill level is not high enough to warrant being sent to the general. He's better suited to treating nobles and taking care of these lowly soldiers.

After three to five days of medical treatment, Shen Le was even given a separate tent outside the military camp:

"We'll leave the wounded soldier with you. Please take good care of him! The whole unit is deeply grateful!"

"Don't worry, leave it to me!" Shen Le patted his chest confidently. Although he didn't have medical skills, he could at least maintain cleanliness and perform basic disinfection, which could save many lives.

Back in Nightingale's time, there weren't many effective drugs available, were there?

"By the way, where are the herbs? Not enough? Okay, give me some time, I need to go up the mountain to gather herbs!"

Taking a trivial matter as a pretext, Shen Le actually set up a small camp on Guangwu Mountain outside Hulao Pass, which was just the right place to overlook the pass...

(End of this chapter)