Intelligence from all over the world was continuously sent to Yanzhou Valley by the Yebushou led by Wang Tiezhu and placed on Zhao Muyun's desk.
He put down the latest report about the large number of wealthy families in the capital fleeing south and the extremely low morale of the defending troops, his eyes calm.
"Boss Zhao, I'm afraid the capital city won't be able to hold on for much longer."
Shen Qian said softly, with a hint of complexity in his tone.
Wang Tiezhu is in a wheelchair and has difficulty moving around. Fan Bingbing has gone to Lingnan to pick up his father, so Zhao Muyun keeps Shen Qian by his side for the time being.
Although he had no good feelings towards the imperial court, he felt bad when he saw the capital fall, innocent people being ravaged by the cavalry, and the mountains and rivers being shattered.
"It is inevitable that we cannot hold on."
Zhao Muyun said calmly, "How can we defend a city that has lost its soul and courage? Yin Zhao and his court have already dug their own graves."
He stood up, walked to a high ground in the valley, and looked at the vast northern land in the distance.
"What we need to do now is not to fill that bottomless pit."
He said slowly, "It's about showing everyone who can truly protect this land and bring order and hope to this chaotic world."
His eyes grew sharp. "The Tartars are wreaking havoc. We can't buy peace by wagging our tails and begging for mercy."
"When the rebels are causing chaos, you can't achieve stability by compromising and appeasing them."
"Local governments are waiting and watching. Empty talk about righteousness will not win people's support."
"Only power! Absolute power! The power that can wipe out enemies, intimidate scoundrels, and make people follow you with confidence!"
Zhao Muyun's voice was not loud, but it was firm. "We don't have to use this power, but we must have it."
He looked at Chen Qian and said, "Tell Han Zhong that Shuozhou should pretend to be weaker, so that the Tartars will think that we have been forgotten by the King of Jin and the Crown Prince."
"We might even accidentally allow a few Tartar cavalry to rob us of some of our military equipment and food supplies."
"We need to convince Wuliangha that Shuozhou is no longer a concern. His focus should be on how to bypass Shuozhou and reach the capital as quickly as possible."
"Let our people spread the word that the King of Jin has actually been secretly colluding with Li Jingang of Xijing and wants to divide the world equally between the east and the west."
Shen Qian understood what he meant, that this was to continue to alienate them.
This will make the already unstable relationships among all parties even more suspicious, leaving them no time to take care of other things, and buy more time for Shuozhou's development.
"in addition,"
Zhao Muyun added, "Have your people start contacting the scholars, clerks, and low-ranking military officers who have fled from the capital, Xijing, and the war-torn areas."
"Select those with integrity, talent, disillusioned with the imperial court but with a heart for the empire, and secretly lead them to Yinzhou and Shuozhou."
"We need manpower, a lot of manpower, to manage the area, to organize production, and to govern larger territories in the future."
His vision has gone beyond the present war and is looking towards the more distant future.
Troubled times destroy the old order, but also clear the way for the birth of a new order.
While others are busy scrambling for the fat meat in front of them, he will quietly accumulate talents and lay the foundation.
Shen Qian looked at Zhao Muyun's tall and calm profile, and an indescribable confidence surged in his heart.
Their commander, the chief officer of the Pinglu Schoolmaster, seemed to always know what to do next.
Even in the deepest darkness, you can see glimmers of light that others cannot see.
Shen Qian nodded solemnly: "Yes! I will arrange it right away!"
......
In the Yanzhou Valley, the sounds of hammering, grinding and testing can still be heard.
This place seems to be another world isolated from the outside world, a world that is quietly nurturing thunder and hope.
Zhao Muyun was like a magic needle thrown into the muddy waters of troubled times. Although he did not directly set off huge waves, he had already begun to stir the direction of fate from deep within.
Fan Bingbing understood that this was an attempt to continue to sow discord and make the already unstable relationship between the parties even more suspicious, leaving them no time to take care of other things, thus buying more time for Yanzhou's development.
In the military workshop in Yanzhou Valley, the burning air mixed with the pungent smell of saltpeter and sulfur.
Lu Zhizi was shirtless, with sweat dripping down his bronze back. He stared intently at the molten iron gradually melting in the crucible, his eyes frighteningly focused.
Next to him, his son Luda and an apprentice were working hard to blow the simple bellows, and the fire in the furnace was blazing.
"Quick! Prepare the mold!"
Lu Zhizi growled hoarsely.
Two craftsmen immediately brought a pair of closed ceramic molds closer. The inside of the molds had been hollowed out into a spherical shape.
Lu Zhizi personally scooped up the boiling molten iron with a long-handled iron spoon and carefully poured it into the reserved hole.
hiss-!
The hot molten iron makes a sharp sound when it cools down, and white steam rises.
This is a key step in the attempt to cast the iron-shell "Thunder Bomb".
Although clay pots are easy to make, they are limited in power and fragile.
The idea provided by Zhao Muyun was the iron shell.
However, casting hollow iron balls, ensuring uniform thickness, and reserving holes for explosives and fuses were a huge challenge for craftsmen of that era.
I have failed countless times, either the casting is not complete or the thickness is uneven, or even the mold explodes.
This time, it seems to be going particularly smoothly.
The molten iron was poured in slowly and there was nothing wrong with the mold.
After cooling for a while, the craftsmen carefully broke the outer ceramic mold, and a black, rough cast iron ball appeared in front of everyone!
"It's done! Master! It's done this time!" a young craftsman shouted excitedly.
There was no joy on Lu Zhizi's face.
He carefully tapped the sphere with a small hammer, listened to the sound, and then picked up a ruler to measure the thickness, his brows furrowed more and more.
“No!”
He finally put down his tools dejectedly. "The thickness difference is more than three centimeters. One side is thicker, the other thinner. If you put too much powder in this thing, it will explode. If you put too little powder in it, it will be useless! Let's start over!"
The excitement of the craftsmen was instantly extinguished, and the atmosphere in the workshop became depressing again.
Not far away, Zhao Muyun watched all this silently without making any noise to disturb them.
He knows how difficult it is to start from scratch.
He can provide direction and theory, but the specific process implementation requires these skilled craftsmen to experience countless times of trial and error.
He is not impatient. As long as the direction is right, all that remains is time and investment.
He turned and walked towards another shed where experiments were being conducted on optimizing the gunpowder ratio and granulation.
Compared with casting, the progress here is smoother, and the optimal ratio of saltpeter, sulfur and charcoal has been preliminarily determined.
A method of using egg white or rice water as a binder for granulation was found, which significantly improved the combustion efficiency and stability.
"Lord Zhao,"
Seeing that it was Zhao Muyun, Lu Zhizi quickly saluted. "The new granular medicine is about 30% more powerful than the previous powdered form, and it is also less susceptible to moisture. But this is the output..."
"Don't rush, take it slow and steady. Prioritize the production of granular medicines, and switch to new medicines for paper tube mines first."
Zhao Muyun instructed.
Eat your meal one bite at a time.
The original plan was to develop heavy cavalry through the huge profits from cigarettes, but because the war of the Tatars' southward advance came ahead of schedule, the plan for heavy cavalry had to be temporarily shelved.
As for the tobacco plantation in Wohugang, it had already been closed down. A thousand soldiers under Shi Yong's command rushed to Shuozhou City, awaiting deployment.
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