I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 263 A Comprehensive Review of Five Women's Twelve-Year Transmigration
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When Zhang Chun, Li Lin, Ye Shiyun, Ma Xiaojiao, and Yuan Qingcheng heard that Wanyan Aguda had rebelled against the Liao Dynasty four or five years earlier than in history, they were all as shocked as Zhao Yu.

Ma Xiaojiao asked Zhang Chun, "This must have had a significant impact on history, right?"

Zhang Chun smiled bitterly: "It's not just big, history has been completely changed. I estimate that half of the history I know is now obsolete, and the remaining half can't be fully trusted either. Hmm... historical events no longer have much reference value; the only things left to refer to are historical figures."

"Is it that serious?" Li Lin asked.

"Have you ever heard of the butterfly effect? ​​A butterfly flapping its wings in North America can cause a storm in distant South America. What's more, since we traveled here, history has changed so much. Can the historical events I knew before still happen? And if they do happen, can they be exactly the same as before?" Zhang Chun said.

The other four women thought the same thing.

Let's leave aside the distant ones and focus on those closest to them.

The emperors of the Song Dynasty transformed from the incompetent Zhao Ji into Zhao Yu, who, at least up to the present day, is considered wise, magnanimous, capable of recognizing and employing talent, and whose policies are always effective and whose armies leave no stone unturned.

Moreover, the territory of the Zhao Song Dynasty included the Western Xia and the eleven prefectures of Yanyun, which were present in addition to the territory of the Northern Song Dynasty in history.

Furthermore, thanks to the combined efforts of the five women and Zhao Yu over twelve years, the hidden dangers facing the Zhao Song Dynasty have been almost completely eliminated.

No.

not only that.

At this time, the Zhao Song Dynasty had become the most powerful Zhao Song Dynasty in history, even rivaling the Han and Tang Dynasties.

The five women were extremely confident about this, and their confidence was not blind.

Let's start with the political aspect.

Through Zhang Chun's years of efforts, all the outstanding talents of the Song Dynasty were given important positions by Emperor Zhao Yu. As for those treacherous officials in history, especially those who misled the country, such as Cai Jing, Tong Guan, Liang Shicheng, Wang Fu, Yang Jian, Li Yan, Cai You, Li Bangyan, and Tan Zhen, Emperor Zhao Yu made the most of their strengths and avoided their weaknesses, controlling and even restricting their use.

In addition, after Zhao Yu's anti-corruption campaign at the beginning of his reign, which sparked public resentment, a large number of corrupt officials were killed by the Song Jiang and Fang La rebel armies.

This brought about a clean atmosphere throughout the government and the country, with officials performing their duties diligently and conscientiously, a far cry from the rampant corruption and incompetence of the past.

As a result, the lives of ordinary people were greatly improved. Laughter and cheerful voices could often be heard in the streets and alleys, and praise for the imperial court was endless.

Militarily, the Divine Machine Army, which Li Lin helped Zhao Yu build, is now equipped with Li Lin cannons and Li Lin guns.

As the names suggest, the Li Lin Cannon and the Li Lin Gun were mainly invented by Li Lin—in fact, they were invented by Li Lin and Ma Xiaojiao together. However, Ma Xiaojiao was unwilling to put her name on such deadly weapons. The key point is that she had too many inventions, and there were countless things named after her, such as the Ma's Spinning Machine and the Ma's Papermaking Method. She didn't care about the naming rights. Therefore, these two inventions that were enough to change military history were named after Li Lin.

The Li Lin cannon was mainly a replica of the Hongyi cannon from the Ming Dynasty.

While this cannon cannot compare to the advanced cannons of later generations, it still possessed many advantages. For instance, it had a long barrel, thick walls, and a large caliber, with its overall shape gradually thickening from muzzle to breech, conforming to the principle of decreasing chamber pressure during gunpowder combustion. Cylindrical trunnions were located on either side of the cannon's center of gravity, allowing the cannon to adjust its firing angle and range according to the amount of gunpowder used. It was equipped with a front sight and rear sight, calculating the trajectory based on a parabola, resulting in high accuracy.

To put it simply, the Li Lin Cannon is actually a weakened version of the Hongyi Cannon.

It wasn't that Li Lin and Ma Xiaojiao couldn't build more advanced cannons, but rather that they wanted to suppress the development of weapons; otherwise, if someone stole their skills, it could cause them considerable trouble.

There are three types of Li Lin guns: light Li Lin gun, medium Li Lin gun, and heavy Li Lin gun.

Even the light Li Lin gun had an effective range of over one li, the medium Li Lin gun had a range of about three li, and the heavy Li Lin gun had a range of over five li.

Li Lin's cannon was far superior to crossbows and even ballistae whose range was limited to infantry units.

The Li Lin cannon was already a long, spindle-shaped, muzzle-loading smoothbore cannon. Coupled with the Industrial Revolution initiated by the Song Dynasty, the weapons manufacturing industry utilized powered machine tools, enabling precision machining of the cannon's bore; the production of various components and shells became more standardized and precise; even the improved black powder processing technology, already invented by Li Lin, saw significant advancements; and the theory and tactics of artillery firing also developed under Li Lin's guidance. This made the Li Lin cannon the most powerful, longest-ranged, and fastest-firing cannon of its time.

The Li Lin gun was actually a Ming dynasty hand cannon, more accurately a copy of the Lu Mi gun. It weighed about seven or eight jin (approximately 3.5-4 catties), some weighing six jin, and was about six or seven chi (approximately 3.3-4 feet) long. The firing mechanism was located inside the firing mechanism. A slight squeeze would release the trigger, and the fuse would reignite. A steel blade was attached to the foot of the firing mechanism, which could be used as a sword to cut down approaching enemies. To fire, the forearm was held in front, the foot of the firing mechanism tucked behind, and the trigger was simply squeezed. The hand should not move until aiming. The sights and eyes should be positioned slightly further apart, so that the initial smoke would not be blinding or alarming. It used four qian (approximately 10 grams) of powder and three qian (approximately 15 grams) of lead bullets.

To the average person, wouldn't the invention of the Li Lin gun make it an overwhelming force against crossbows?
It's really not.

A skilled archer can fire 6-10 arrows per minute, while the Li Lin gun has a complicated loading process (requiring the pouring of gunpowder, loading of the bullet, ignition, and clearing of the touch hole), and can only fire 1-2 times per minute. The difference in firing rate is even more obvious in actual combat.

Even the scimitar could fire 2-3 times per minute, and its loading process (winding the bow and loading the arrow) was faster than that of the musket, making it suitable for prolonged battles.

Furthermore, crossbows produce no gunpowder smoke or loud noise when fired, making them suitable for ambushes or jungle warfare; and they are unaffected by rain. In contrast, the Li Lin gun is prone to misfiring in humid environments.

In addition, the bow and arrow are lightweight (the bow weighs about 2-3 kg, and the quiver carries 20-30 arrows), making it less burdensome and allowing soldiers to move flexibly; the Shenbi bow (about 3-5 kg) paired with crossbow bolts (carrying 20-30 bolts) is also lighter in weight and more suitable for maneuver than the Li Lin gun; the Li Lin gun, with its gunpowder, projectiles, and support, has a greater load, making it less convenient for maneuver, requiring more logistical transport, and the gunpowder needs to be stored in a moisture-proof and fire-proof manner, resulting in higher costs.

From this perspective, it seems unnecessary to develop firearms.

Of course, this was the opinion of the officials of the Zhao Song Dynasty.

Knowing the direction of weapon development, Zhao Yu did not abandon the research and development of guns and equipment because Li Lin's guns were not more advantageous than crossbows. Instead, he strongly supported Li Lin and Ma Xiaojiao in researching and equipping guns.

This led to Li Linqiang being equipped by the Shenji Army.

Although the Li Lin gun had many shortcomings and its advantages were not much greater than those of the crossbow, it also had its strengths over the crossbow.

First, the lead or iron bullets fired by the Li Lin musket, relying on the kinetic energy of the gunpowder explosion, far exceeded that of bows and arrows, effectively penetrating armor (such as the various armors of the Liao, Jin, and Mongol armies). Bows and arrows, limited by bow strength and arrowhead design, were less effective against heavily armored targets, especially at long range. Second, operating the Li Lin musket only required mastering the loading and ignition procedures, which ordinary soldiers could use after short-term training. Bows and arrows required long-term practice in drawing the bow, aiming, and releasing the arrow, and training qualified archers took several years, resulting in higher manpower costs. The Shenbi bow, on the other hand, required soldiers to have strong arm strength, and aiming and string control required long-term practice, making the time cost of training qualified crossbowmen very high.

Furthermore, the Li Lin gun can form a continuous firepower through the "three-stage firing" tactic, and has a strong suppressive effect on dense enemy troops when in formation; although the bow and arrow can be fired in volleys, the rate of fire is limited by the frequency of drawing the bow, and its ability to break through enemy formations is relatively weak; although the Shenbi bow can also be fired in volleys, its loading speed (requiring a winch or waist-drawing to draw the string) is relatively slow, and the trajectory of the crossbow bolts is flat, resulting in a low hit rate against moving targets.

In summary, the Li Lin musket, with its armor-piercing capability, low training cost, and cluster firepower, held a certain advantage against the cavalry of the Liao, Jin, and Mongol dynasties in open field battles. However, the crossbow, due to its rate of fire, environmental adaptability, and portability, still possessed irreplaceable advantages. Incidentally, although the Shenji Army was equipped with a considerable number of Li Lin muskets, the Shenbi crossbow still served as a ranged weapon for half of the Shenji Army. Moreover, given Zhao Yu's current lack of plans to equip the army with more advanced flintlock muskets, both types of firearms would likely coexist within the Shenji Army for a long time.

—The development of flintlock muskets was actually nearing completion. However, Zhao Yu felt that the Song army's weapons were sufficient to deal with the current enemy. The flintlock muskets could be developed first, and even produced slowly, but they would not be deployed until an army with sufficient strength could catch up with the Shenji Army's current equipment.

Even Li Lin cannons and Li Lin muskets were ordered by Zhao Yu to be equipped only by the Shenji Army. Even the Four Auxiliary Armies and the Imperial Guards are currently only equipped with a batch of Tiger Crouching Cannons and a few Thunderclap Bombs that were phased out by the Shenji Army.

The Tiger Warriors, who had not yet fully gained Zhao Yu's trust, as well as the Xiang Army and the local militia, had no access to firearms at all.

Besides weapons, Li Lin also put a lot of effort into the selection and training of the Shenji Army.

In terms of personnel selection, Li Lin led the recruitment of mostly rural soldiers like "Xu Sanduo" who were physically strong, honest, taciturn, obedient, and even a little slow-witted; she did not want any cunning or shrewd individuals.

In selecting the generals and supervisors of the Shenji Army, Li Lin consulted Zhang Chun's opinion and chose those who were both skilled in battle and loyal to the emperor and the country.

In terms of ideological education, Li Lin also made full use of some of the guiding principles of our army, except that she replaced some of the content with loyalty to the emperor and serving the country.

Incidentally, it was precisely because of the Shenji Army as a trump card that Zhao Yu dared to ignite public resentment and solve the internal problems of the Zhao Song Dynasty once and for all.

Now, although Wanyan Aguda has led the strongest army of this era to rise, because of the Shenji Army as a trump card, neither Zhao Yu nor the five women are worried about the Jingkang Incident happening again.

Let's talk about the economy.

Because it triggered widespread public discontent throughout the Song Dynasty, the Song Dynasty's economy was negatively impacted.

However, Zhao Yu first implemented the "Equal Grain Payment by Gentry and Citizens" and "Equalization of Land Tax and Labor Tax" in the newly recovered areas such as the Longyou Protectorate, Ningxia, Gansu, Qinghai, and the eleven prefectures of Yanyun, and then implemented the two new policies in the north before finally moving towards Jiangnan. Moreover, Zhao Yu restored the economy of the northern Jiangnan region in the first instance.

This minimized the economic impact of the public outcry on the Zhao Song Dynasty.

At the same time, Zhao Yu shamelessly accepted a large amount of wealth looted by Song Jiang's rebel army, which greatly boosted the economy of the Song Dynasty, or at least Zhao Yu's own.

On the other hand, the economic reforms of Ye Shiyun, Cai Jing, and others have achieved great success.

Crucially, the Song Dynasty had already initiated the Industrial Revolution, with a large number of industrial products, especially light industrial products, being mass-produced on assembly lines. These products not only greatly improved the lives of ordinary people but also injected tremendous vitality into the Song Dynasty's economy.

—At present, the revenue of the Zhao Song Dynasty from commercial taxes and customs duties is almost exceeding that from land taxes (i.e., the two taxes).

Furthermore, the imperial court also established numerous monopolies, such as salt, iron, tea, wine, alum, vinegar, alkali, and spices, which were high-profit and in stable demand for essential or strategic commodities, as well as core, widely used, and highly profitable high-tech products like bearings, gears, and steam engines, which brought huge revenues to the court.

If we also consider the revenue generated by the more profitable maritime trade for the imperial court.

The revenue from commerce during the Song Dynasty exceeded that from land taxes.

Moreover, it exceeded the land tax that had implemented the new policies and measures.

—After the implementation of the new policies, land tax has increased significantly.

All of this resulted in the Zhao Song Dynasty's treasury becoming abundant, with fiscal cash flow alone reaching nearly 200 million strings of cash.

Even this was the result of Zhao Yu reducing taxes more than thirty times, either nationwide or in parts of the country; otherwise, the taxes would have more than doubled.

Most importantly, once Fang La's rebel army is completely wiped out, the reforms in the most promising Jiangnan region will also be completed. At that time, the economy of the Zhao Song Dynasty will definitely be better.

In terms of technology.

With Ma Xiaojiao's invention and leadership, the linked steam engine was developed, and the popularization of the steam engine completely changed the source of industrial power—from traditional water power and animal power to mechanical power, promoting the rise of the factory system and becoming the "heart" of the Industrial Revolution.

At present, steam engines have been applied in many fields such as textile machinery, mining equipment, and ships.

Ma Xiaojiao has even begun developing steam locomotives.

Currently, Ma Xiaojiao has identified two directions—automobiles and trains—both of which have been approved for funding.

It's not hard to imagine that, perhaps in less than ten years, the first Industrial Revolution would have fully erupted in the Song Dynasty.

In agriculture, thanks to Yuan Qingcheng's research and guidance, the grain output of the Zhao Song Dynasty more than tripled compared to twelve years ago.

Moreover, Yuan Qingcheng spent twelve years cultivating and improving dozens of kinds of fruits and vegetables, greatly enriching the dining tables of the people of the Zhao Song Dynasty.

Today, the people of the Zhao Song Dynasty have greatly increased their confidence in the court. Society is stable, the economy is prosperous, and the military is strong. The rice fields are golden, the fruits and vegetables are plentiful, the trade routes are bustling with traffic, and there is a wide variety of goods. It is a thriving scene, which is completely different from the impoverished and weak Northern Song Dynasty in history, which was plagued by internal and external troubles.

Under these circumstances, although the north suffered a major upheaval, neither Zhao Yu nor the five women were afraid of any challenge. If the Song Dynasty could be given another three to five years to recuperate, it wouldn't be impossible for Zhao Yu to become the ruler of the world...

……

(End of this chapter)