After Xu Shou left, Zhao Mu and Lü Jia sat facing each other.

"Prime Minister, do you think Li Jingang can defeat Zhao Muyun?" Zhao Mu suddenly asked.

Lu Jia remained silent for a long time before slowly saying, "Li Jingang has soldiers and provisions, and controls the Central Plains. He seems to be very powerful. But Zhao Muyun... this man's actions are often unpredictable."

"I heard that in the Battle of Youzhou last year, 80,000 Northern Di cavalry were defeated by their firearms; and in the Battle of Xijing this spring, Yang Chao's 10,000 elite troops were also completely annihilated."

"What's even more frightening is that he was not only good at fighting, but also good at governing—encouraging agriculture, promoting industry, and training a new army, he took every step solidly."

"So, Li Jingang is in danger?"

“Not necessarily.” Lü Jia shook his head. “Li Jingang also has his advantages: his troops are several times larger than Zhao Muyun’s, his food supplies are more abundant, and he is the legitimate ruler of the Central Plains.”

"As long as no major mistakes are made, dragging things out will eventually bring Zhao Muyun down. The key is... who makes the first mistake."

Zhao Mu seemed to be deep in thought.

The chirping of cicadas could be heard outside the hall; the early summer in Lingnan was already quite hot.

"Let's take a look first."

Zhao Mu finally said, "Let Li Jingang and Zhao Muyun fight to the death. We in Lingnan... will sit back and watch the tigers fight."

......

While Li Jingang's relationship with the forces in Lingnan was ambiguous, the Military Equipment Bureau in the west of Xijing City was about to experience a breakthrough.

Inside the huge workshop, more than twenty craftsmen surrounded a newly cast divine cannon, each holding their breath in concentration.

Lu Da, son of Lu Zhizi, was the blacksmith who delivered the triangular dagger to Zhao Muyun on horseback.

He was shirtless, covered in sweat and coal dust, and struck the cannon one last time with his hammer, producing a crisp "ding" sound.

"Grand Commander, it's done!"

Zhao Muyun stepped forward.

This cannon is different from the previous ones—it is shorter, only four feet long, but the barrel walls are thicker, and the muzzle is flared.

Most notably, the gun carriage was equipped with wheels, allowing it to be pulled quickly by two horses.

"Test the cannon," Zhao Muyun ordered.

The cannon was pushed to the firing range. The target was two hundred paces away, a mud-brick wall.

Load the propellant, fill the shell, and ignite.

"boom--"

The deafening roar caused the cannon to recoil violently, but the wheel frame design absorbed some of the recoil, and it only moved back a foot or so.

In the distance, the earthen wall collapsed with a crash, and smoke and dust filled the air.

The craftsmen cheered.

Lu Da said excitedly, "Grand Commander, according to your blueprints, this 'field gun' is half the weight of the siege gun, but has about the same range, making it most suitable for mobile warfare!"

Zhao Muyun nodded, but his gaze fell on a tiny crack on the cannon: "It still exploded."

Wang Tiechui's smile froze. He leaned closer to examine it and, sure enough, found a hairline crack at the breech of the cannon.

“This… cast iron won’t do, we need to forge it with wrought iron, but that will take too long…”

“Use steel,” Zhao Muyun suddenly said.

"Steel?" Wang Tiechui was stunned. "Grand Commander, steel is even harder to forge than wrought iron, and this is such a large piece..."

"No need for the whole piece."

Zhao Muyun squatted down, picked up a stick, and started drawing on the ground. "Look, the cannon barrel doesn't have to be solid; it has to be hollow."

"The inner layer is made of wrought iron, and the outer layer is wrapped with steel hoops. It is forged in sections and then connected. The steel hoops provide strength, and the wrought iron inner cavity is resistant to ablation."

Lu Da stared at the sketch on the ground, his eyes growing brighter and brighter: "Layered forging... interlocking... brilliant! This way, we can ensure strength, save steel, and also..."

"We can also standardize production," Zhao Muyun added. "For cannons of different calibers, we use standard-sized steel hoops, which can be replaced if they break. The cannon barrel is forged in sections, so whichever section breaks is replaced."

The surrounding craftsmen all gathered around, listening with rapt attention.

“And there are shells.” Zhao Muyun continued drawing. “The current solid shot can hit city walls, but it’s not very effective against crowds. We need to make exploding shells—the shell body is left hollow, filled with gunpowder and scrap iron, and a time-delay fuse, so it explodes upon landing.”

A young craftsman asked timidly, "Great Commander, how do you make this time-delay fuse?"

Zhao Muyun thought for a moment: "Use hemp rope soaked in saltpeter, and control the time by adjusting the length. You can figure out exactly how long it should be through trial and error."

He stood up and looked at the group of artisans whose eyes were full of curiosity: "I know these things sound unbelievable. But that's okay, we have plenty of time to try them out."

"If you blow up a cannon, build another one; if you fail ten times, try eleven times."

"I only ask for two things: First, every cannon and every shell must be recorded—the materials used, the process, the test firing results, and the problems."

"Secondly, all craftsmen, regardless of whether they are masters or apprentices, can propose ideas, and those who succeed will be richly rewarded."

Lu Da led the way by kneeling down: "Rest assured, Grand Commander! We will work without eating or sleeping to create these divine artifacts!"

Zhao Muyun helped him up, then looked at the other craftsmen: "Remember, you are not only making weapons, but also ensuring that thousands of brothers will not die in the future. The hammers in your hands are heavier than a thousand troops."

The craftsmen looked solemn.

After leaving the Ordnance Bureau, Zhao Muyun went to the neighboring "Fire Oil Field".

The place smelled pungent. A dozen large earthenware jars were placed on the earthen stove, with bamboo tubes attached to their mouths. Liquids, some clear and some cloudy, dripped from the other end of the tubes.

This is the simplest distillation apparatus, used to separate different components from crude oil.

The owner of the farm was a lean old man surnamed Jiao, known as Jiao Laohei.

"Grand Commander, as you instructed, we have successfully tested it."

Jiao Laohei pointed to several pottery jars, "The lightest one is as clear as water, it catches fire easily but burns quickly; the middle one is more viscous and burns for a longer time; the heaviest one is like ointment, it burns wherever it sticks and cannot be extinguished by water."

Zhao Muyun picked up a small bottle of "clean oil" and smelled it—it had a pungent smell, but it was much better than crude oil.

"This kind can be put into a ceramic jar and used as an incendiary bomb."

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