The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 155 Arms
Jin Yuji curled up in the quilt, looking delicate and charming.

The streets were bustling with voices.

After a few moments of tenderness, get up and wash up.

Shaoyao prepared tea and snacks, and the two of them ate while chatting, whispering to each other, as close as a pair of shadows.

"What is the lady reading?"

"Chronicles of the Northern Song Dynasty."

"The Yang family will fight against the Liao?"

Jin Yuji stared at her husband and asked, "Have you seen it too, sir?"

Liu Zhaosun naturally knew about the Yang Family Generals. As a child, his grandmother took him to listen to Henan Opera every day. The Yang Family Generals was a key piece of the opera.

However, the plots of later Henan Opera and the Ming Dynasty novel that Jin Yu Ji read are probably very different.

"My lady knows so many stories of loyalty and chastity, no wonder she became a heroine! Hahaha! What a wonderful coincidence! By the way, what is the story of the Yang Clan Generals?"

Jin Yuji put down her chopsticks and muttered to herself like a seasoned book lover:

"Dalang replaced Emperor Taizong of Song, Erlang replaced the Nanqing Palace. Sanlang was crushed to dust by horses, and Silang was lost in the Liao State. Wulang became a monk and renounced the worldly affairs, while Liulang persisted... I hope that people today will work harder so that there will no longer be no China at Yashan."

When Liu Zhaosun heard the last sentence, he was surprised and delighted, and he clapped his hands in praise:
"What a great thing! There is no China anymore, no Yashan anymore!"

Jin Yuji's almond eyes are full of spring:
"I read all of this in books, sir. What is Yashan? I've seen it in several books."

"It is the soul of the Han people, like the bright moon in their homeland, the eternal life of the vast ocean."

Jin Yuji showed a longing look: "Okay, take me to Yashan to have a look in the future!"

"I will, I will."

Liu Zhaosun sighed in his heart: With a wife like this, what else could a husband ask for?
"My lady, you've read so many books, but have you ever thought about writing one yourself?"

"what?"

Jin Yuji was stunned for a long moment before she said, "Yes, but I can't write. I don't know where to start, and I don't know how to choose words or form sentences."

Liu Zhaosun made up his mind and said to his wife, "Tang, Song, Yuan, or this dynasty, which one do you like best?"

Jin Yuji thought for a long time before she said, "Well, I don't know."

"The Tang and Song dynasties are too far away for me to know. I heard that the Yuan Dynasty fought against Korea, but I don't like it... Why are you asking this, sir?"

Liu Zhaosun smiled complacently: "Then I'll start with this dynasty and write a vernacular novel, imitating the "Biography of the Northern Song Dynasty". You'll get the hang of it after writing it a few times. When it's finished, I'll publish it at my own expense and let storytellers all over the world tell it to you."

"Sir, do you have too much money and don't know where to spend it? Please don't waste it."

"This isn't just for fun. I really want everyone in the world to remember the story of my adoptive father and his men who aided Korea, and your deceased father. They were all heroes."

"The hateful Japanese pirates still invade Korea from time to time."

As Jin Yuji spoke, her eyes became red.

Liu Zhaosun held her hand and said solemnly:
"Don't worry, my lady. Once the situation stabilizes, the first target the Kaiyuan Army will deal with will be Japan."

He smiled and said to Jin Yuji:

"Kang Yingqian always complains that I'm not interested in women and lack a sense of worldliness, saying I'm someone who fell from the sky. Hahaha, he even drugged me on our wedding day... From now on, I should have some preferences of my own."

Jin Yuji laughed, perhaps her husband really fell from the sky, otherwise why would he love her so much.

"Hearing what you said, sir, I really want to write something."

"What do you want to write? Forget about Jin Ping Mei, hahaha! I can't write it."

Jin Yuji picked up her chopsticks and hit Liu Zhaosun on the head, her eyebrows raised in anger.

"What kind of books do you read with Kang Yingqian?"

"There were many heroes during the Imjin War. My father killed Japanese pirates in Pyongyang... I'm afraid if I don't write well, I'll be laughed at."

Liu Zhaosun encouraged:

"That's fine, that's fine. Novels are meant to entertain yourself, so you don't have to worry about what others think. My adoptive father told me many stories about the Wanli Emperor's aid to Korea. If you come across any details you don't know, just ask me."

"Is this true?"

"of course."

~~~~~~
After the wedding, Ping Liaohou was as busy as a bee again.

He has the final say on everything, including the training of new recruits, the development of military farms, the development of weapons, and the expansion of shops.

One day in early April, at dawn, Liu Zhaosun took his guards to the military camp to check on the training of the new recruits.

Qi Jin and Qin Jianxun had already been training their troops in the Wengcheng training ground.

The 4,000th headquarters recruits quickly formed into neat square formations at the sound of bamboo whistles from the captains of each battalion.

After two months of training and screening, these more than 3,000 new recruits have undergone rigorous assessment and become the fresh blood of the Kaiyuan Army.

Spearmen are practicing their thrusts.

The Qi family's spearmanship was primarily derived from the Yang family's spearmanship of the late Song Dynasty, known at the time as the "Pear Blossom Spear." The essence of the Pear Blossom Spear lies in its mastery through practice, resulting in a seamless and unforced perfection.

Qi Jiguang summarized and evolved the pear blossom spear to form his own Qi family spear technique.

Liu Zhaosun watched their moves, the opening and closing, the precise and fierce thrusts, and knew that Qi Jin had worked very hard these days.

When the two instructors saw General Liu inspecting the camp, they hurried over to salute.

"Mind your own business." Liu Zhaosun patted Qi Jin on the shoulder and told him to continue concentrating on training the troops.

He brought his guards to the musket camp and found the captain to ask about the trial of the new musket.

The new muskets have only been equipped to the battalions for over a month, and are said to have made great improvements.

The commander of the Fire Gun Battalion was named Gu, and he came from Xuanda Town. He had dark skin, was taciturn, and even more dull than Lin Yu.

Liu Zhaosun asked a few questions but didn't get the point.

So he simply picked up a musket and prepared to try the new weapon himself.

The new flintlock rifle was designated the Type 20, a designation similar to the year in which various Kaiyuan firearms were named. It was a dog-lock type, using a spring-loaded sear instead of a clevis, and had internal rifling for improved accuracy.

Specifically, a small hole is opened behind the hammer, and inside the hole is a sear with a sear spring that is linked to the trigger.

After the hammer is pulled up to the sear brake position, hold the hammer to prepare for firing, then pull the trigger to cause the sear to retract and release the hammer. The hammer releases the kinetic energy of the main spring to strike the fire curtain downward to produce hot iron filings, which trigger the black powder in the primer pot to burn, and ignite the black powder in the ignition port next to the primer pot, which is transmitted to the explosion chamber to explode and expand, thereby ejecting the projectile.

"General Liu, this is the data obtained after multiple experiments in the workshop. Please review it."

Lei Jiangtou, who came rushing over after hearing the noise, stood nearby and explained while wiping the sweat from his forehead.

Liu Zhaosun took a piece of rice paper with densely marked small characters, but did not look at it immediately. Instead, he asked the civil affairs officer Xie Yang who was following behind him.

"Director Xie, what was the workshop's budget last month?"

Xie Yang took out a small notebook from his sleeve, flipped through a few pages, and replied:
"Your Excellency, in March, the workshop spent 7,532 taels and 5 cents of silver on purchasing copper, iron ore, timber, and other materials. It also consumed 13,000 kilograms of coal, 32 stone of rice, and 565 kilograms of pork..."

Liu Zhaosun listened carefully and his expression gradually became solemn. The Kaiyuan Army was expanding rapidly and three thousand headquarters would be added this year.

Whether it is to make swords, armor or muskets and cannons, a huge amount of iron ore and iron materials are required.

Not to mention the explosive growth of settled households, the civilian households urgently needed a large number of iron tools for farming and logging.

According to Li Sanguang's report, the iron mines around Kaiyuan are now in a state of over-capacity mining. Even if thousands of manpower are invested, it is not enough for the entire Kaiyuan military and political system.

Therefore, a considerable portion of iron ore and coal now needs to be purchased from outside, or to be more precise, from our hometown in western Liaoning, and the price is naturally much higher.

Liu Zhaosun sighed softly, "The army is really a money-eating beast. They consume so much in just one month."

Kang Yingqian came closer and whispered:
"General Liu, you must hurry back to your father-in-law and ask North Korea to supply us with iron ore, otherwise the workshop and garrison will not be able to hold on."

Liu Zhaosun smiled bitterly and nodded to General Kang.

"I have my own arrangements. Going to North Korea is a big deal."

After Liu Zhaosun finished speaking, he opened the flintlock rifle blueprint and read it in a low voice.

"...projectile mass: one ounce, gun weight: nine pounds and two ounces, maximum range: two hundred steps, effective maximum range (single shot): one hundred to one hundred and fifty steps, optimal range: eighty to one hundred steps, within 30 steps (can penetrate three-inch armor or six-inch wood)"

Liu Zhaosun turned to the back and saw the record about the firing rate of the flintlock rifle.

"Optimal rate of fire: three to four rounds per minute, practical rate of fire: three rounds per minute."

If the data is true, the new flintlock rifle has significantly improved in both loading speed and firing rate compared to the first generation.

"Whether it's a mule or a horse, take it out for a walk! Give it a try."

Jin Yuji finished reloading quickly.

Liu Zhaosun aimed at the target eighty steps away and pulled the trigger.

The hammer struck the flint, igniting the gunpowder and sending up a cloud of white smoke.

As expected, it missed the target.

Everyone pretended not to see and turned their heads away.

Liu Zhaosun was used to cavalry hacking and killing - cold weapons were what men loved most - but because he hadn't touched firearms for a long time, his hands were a little rusty.

He handed the musket to Jin Yuji and said sternly:

"Captain Jin, you try it."

Jin Yuji held back her laughter, took the flintlock, picked out a good flint and clamped it, then took out a fixed bullet from her ammunition bag and loaded it skillfully.

Liu Zhaosun watched her movements and couldn't help but marvel at them:

"Captain Jin is truly worthy of being the number one guard under my command."

Jin Yuji pursed her lips and smiled.

After loading, she held the musket horizontally, with the barrel resting on the fish-scale armor on her shoulder, her eyes facing the Mars sight, forming a straight line with the distant target.

The musket exploded, and the lead bullet hit the center of the target.

There was a burst of cheers all around.

Chief Craftsman Lei quickly added, "General Liu, workshop tests have shown that this gun has a misfire rate (out of 100 shots) of approximately to percent, which is quite accurate."

Ping Liaohou nodded slightly.

Seeing Shangguan's affirmation, Master Lei was overjoyed and continued:
"Last year, the workshop was staffed with new personnel, and now we have enough people to drill gun barrels. The new flintlock rifles have rifling grooves, making them more accurate and capable of firing farther. During testing, a craftsman was able to shatter a helmet from a hundred paces away with one shot."

"Alright, next time we face Huang Taiji's archers, we won't be at a disadvantage like last time. The workshop will be well rewarded for its good work. Each person who participates in the development of the new flintlock rifle will be rewarded with 100 taels of silver. The salaries of all team leaders and foreman will be increased by one level."

Master Lei was overjoyed and was about to thank him when he heard General Liu continue:
"You just said there's someone in your workshop who can shatter an armored helmet from a hundred paces away? Call that person over here. It's a shame to have such a good sniper stuck in the workshop drilling gun barrels. What's his name?"

"My Lord, this man's name is Yang Tong. He was originally a musketeer of the 2000th headquarters. After the Battle of Hunhe, he was transferred to the workshop as a guard..."
Zhang Dong suddenly leaned close to Ping Liaohou's ear, interrupted Lei Jiangtou, and whispered:

"Thirteenth Master, two of Song Yingsheng's craftsmen have escaped! Our informant says they defected to the Qing army!"

~~~
Liu Zhaosun was worried and asked Zhang Mazi to check all the craftsmen in the workshop and arrest and interrogate immediately those who had any connection with Lu's uncle and nephew.

The new Divine Fire Flying Crow has entered the debugging stage and is expected to take off in the next few days. Liu Zhaosun is full of expectations for this new weapon.

As March approaches, the coup d'état agreed upon by Ayano-kun is not far away.

The Korean allies waited for Ping Liaohou to lead his troops across the river and provide them with assistance.

Liu Zhaosun was very impressed by the Koreans' ability to play both sides. His only concern now was the supply of food and fodder for the army.

Kaiyuan has enough troops to send a thousand-man army into North Korea.

However, how to transport food and supplies for thousands of people to Dandong and across the Yalu River is still a big problem.

North Korea has made it clear that it will not provide any food supplies, including food transportation, to the Kaiyuan Army.

It’s not that we don’t want to give it, it’s just that North Korea is too poor.

North Korea has long been known as the "country of gentlemen."

A gentleman should be poor.

At this time, Liu Zhaosun finally understood the conflicted feelings of Emperor Wanli when he aided Korea.

(End of this chapter)