Chief Armaments Master of the Ming Dynasty

In the evening, the team set up camp on a barren slope.

No one had an appetite.

But their bellies wouldn't listen, and some people still silently took out their dry rations and forced themselves to chew.

Lin Fan sat by the fire, staring at the flickering flames, without saying a word.

Han Jinhu walked over and handed him a multigrain pancake.

"Brother Lin, have something to eat."

Lin Fan took the pancake and took a bite.

The rough bran scraped against my mouth, leaving almost no taste.

He chewed and swallowed.

"Brother Han, tell me..." His voice was very soft, "What were those people thinking when they were eating people?"

Han Jinhu was stunned.

He opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.

"I'm thinking," Lin Fan continued, "maybe they didn't want to eat at first. Maybe they watched their children starve to death, watched their parents starve to death, watched their wives starve to death. Then, someone died, and they were so hungry, they..."

He couldn't continue.

Han Jinhu remained silent for a long time before finally saying in a hoarse voice, "Brother Lin, don't think about it anymore. Thinking too much will drive you crazy."

Lin Fan did not speak again.

He knew Han Jinhu was right.

In this chaotic world, thinking too much will drive you crazy.

But some things, once seen, can never be forgotten.

---

A few days later, the team arrived in Ningxiang.

It was a county town even smaller than Xizhou, with low city walls and few garrison troops.

Li Zicheng did not launch a full-scale attack.

He sent out scouts to find out the situation in the city—

The garrison numbered less than two hundred, consisting mainly of local militia, and their fighting strength was weak.

The county magistrate was a timid and cowardly man. When he heard that the "bandits" had arrived, he was so frightened that he lost his composure.

"We can fight," Gu Jun'en concluded.

Li Zicheng nodded and began making arrangements.

He did not allow Lin Fan to participate in the siege.

"Your men stay behind," Li Zicheng said. "You'll be busy once the city falls."

Lin Fan understood.

Only after the city falls will he truly be able to make a difference.

Collect iron, find craftsmen, and use the city's resources to forge more weapons.

---

The siege began one early morning.

It wasn't as disastrous as I'd expected.

The local militia of Ningxiang were already trembling at the sight of Li Zicheng's army.

As thunderclaps roared beneath the city walls, as rockets streaked across the ramparts, as the dull thud of battering rams pounded the gates—

The will of the defenders collapsed.

The city gate was smashed open.

Li Zicheng's troops poured into the city.

The county magistrate hanged himself in the county government office.

The resisting local militia were killed, and those who surrendered were taken prisoner.

Ningxiang fell.

---

Lin Fan followed the rest of the group into the city.

The city was in chaos.

The soldiers were searching for the remaining enemy and collecting spoils of war.

Some houses were broken into, and cries and shouts could be heard.

Lin Fan frowned.

He knew that looting after a city falls was commonplace in this era.

The peasant army was not a benevolent force; they needed food, money, and an outlet for their frustrations.

Although Li Zicheng tried his best to control his men, it was impossible for all of his several hundred men to obey him.

He can only control himself.

"Brother Han, take our men to the county treasury and the blacksmith's shop," Lin Fan said. "Don't worry about anything else."

Han Jinhu nodded, beckoned the team of craftsmen, and headed towards the center of the county town.

The county treasury has been taken over by Li Zicheng's personal guards.

Lin Fan showed Li Zicheng's warrant and entered the warehouse.

The warehouse contained some grain, cloth, iron, and a small number of weapons.

Iron!

Lin Fan's eyes lit up.

Although the quality was average, the quantity was considerable, enough to last them for a while.

"Move everything out," he ordered.

Next, they found the blacksmith's shop in the city.

The shop owner, an old blacksmith in his fifties, was hiding in the house, trembling with fear.

"Old man, don't be afraid," Lin Fan tried to keep his tone gentle. "We don't kill civilians. Are you a blacksmith?"

The old blacksmith nodded shakily.

"I need help. Come with me, I'll provide meals, you won't be working for free."

The old blacksmith hesitated for a moment, looked at the soldiers with knives behind Lin Fan, and finally nodded.

He had no other choice.

Lin Fan then found several craftsmen hiding in the city—a carpenter, a leatherworker, and two apprentices.

He took them all away.

These people are his true wealth.

With them, the efficiency of weapon manufacturing can be greatly improved.

---

For the next few days, Lin Fan was extremely busy.

He found a spacious place outside the county town and rebuilt the blacksmith shop—this time on a larger scale, increasing the number of furnaces from five to eight.

The old blacksmith, surnamed Sun, was quite skilled. Although he was initially reluctant, after working for two days, he found that Lin Fan did not mistreat people and even gave him food, so his attitude gradually softened.

More importantly, he was attracted by Lin Fan's "homemade methods".

"Master Lin, why is the water you're using for quenching lukewarm?" Sun the blacksmith asked curiously.

"Quenching with warm water makes the knife less prone to cracking," Lin Fan explained. "Especially the iron we're using now, which has many impurities. If it's quenched with cold water, three out of ten knives will crack. Although warm water makes the knife less hard, it has better toughness and is more durable."

"However, if only partial quenching is needed, ordinary well water can also be used," Lin Fan added.

Sun the blacksmith was skeptical, but after trying it a few times himself, he found it to be true and couldn't help but look at Lin Fan with new respect.

"Master Lin, who did you learn your skills from?"

"I saw a lot on the way to escape famine, and figured it out myself," Lin Fan said vaguely.

Sun the blacksmith didn't ask any further questions.

In this chaotic world, everyone has their own secrets.

Asking too many questions is actually not good.

The carpenter's surname was Zhao, and he was a taciturn middle-aged man.

Lin Fan put him in charge of manufacturing arrow shafts and spear shafts.

We used the city's stock of timber to cut, sand, and straighten it.

The cobbler's surname was Ma, and he was lame.

Lin Fan put him in charge of making scabbards, quivers, and leather armor.

The materials were cowhides and sheepskins found in the county warehouse.

With everyone working together, efficiency was greatly improved.

Every day, new swords, spears, and arrowheads were produced in the blacksmith's shop and delivered to Li Zicheng's soldiers.

Li Zicheng visited several times and was always very satisfied.

"Master Lin, you are a treasure I found." He rarely made a joke.

Lin Fan smiled but didn't say anything.

He knew this was just the beginning.

Ningxiang is too small to support an army.

Li Zicheng will eventually have to leave this place and continue his mobile warfare.

He must use this limited time to forge as many weapons as possible and build up his wealth.

---

A month later.

The situation around Ningxiang began to change.

After suffering a defeat in Xizhou, Hong Chengchou did not continue to pursue Zhang Xianzhong. Instead, he mobilized a large force to begin suppressing various peasant armies in Shanxi.

Zhang Xianzhong suffered a setback in Fenzhou and incurred considerable losses, forcing him to retreat to the mountains.

The other peasant armies were either wiped out, scattered, or surrendered.

The encirclement by the officers and soldiers is tightening.

Li Zicheng knew that he could no longer stay in Ningxiang.

"We have to go," he said to Gu Jun'en. "Where to?"

Gu Jun'en unfolded the map and studied it for a long time.

"Head north, cross the Lüliang Mountains, and enter Shaanxi."

"Back to Shaanxi?" Liu Zongmin frowned. "We finally escaped, and now we're going back?"

"Times have changed," Gu Jun'en said. "Shaanxi is now vulnerable. Hong Chengchou has taken his main force to Shanxi, and there aren't many troops left to defend Shaanxi. If we fight our way back, we might have a chance to survive."

After much deliberation, Li Zicheng made his decision.

"Back to Shaanxi."