For the Chu family, this was a thrilling and fantastical journey.
As they lifted off the ground for the first time, they slowly rose higher, the houses and trees beneath their feet gradually shrinking in size. As they rose higher still, they saw the Imperial Guards rapidly approaching.
The Imperial Guards were not ordinary soldiers; they were all carefully selected. When they noticed something was wrong, they rushed over and witnessed this shocking scene.
It flew away!
The closer you get, the more breathtaking it becomes.
It was an object I had never seen before, and I didn't even know how to describe it. It was a huge hemisphere on top, with a blazing flame below it, and below that, a huge bamboo basket.
There were seven or eight people inside!
We've all seen images of burning paper rising into the air when it encounters wind, but how can it float when there are several adults below?
The Imperial Guards were dumbfounded, not knowing what to be surprised about.
Did they see someone fly away, or did Chu Jinjin run away?
"You lot, hurry and report to the palace!" The captain of the Imperial Guard reacted quickly and shouted, "Everyone else, follow me!"
The hot air balloon was flying very high, but it didn't seem to be moving very fast; you could catch up with it.
No matter how strange or unusual something is, nothing is more important than life.
The long, silent night was thus broken. The first people to wake up stared in disbelief at the enormous flying object in the sky. One person woke up one family, and one family woke up ten families. Before long, the entire capital city was awake!
Countless people stood in the courtyard gazing at the sky.
What is that?
"I see people down there."
"Could he be a deity descended to earth?!"
"1, 2... four, four in total."
"........"
Such a grand spectacle couldn't be kept secret; the news quickly spread, and by noon, it had become the rumor that Chu Jinjin had ascended to heaven, taking her entire family to the celestial realm...
But that's a story for another time.
Inside the palace.
Just as Yuan Tianyou had said, Xiao Huai went to bed early and did not have any concubines attend to him in bed. It wasn't entirely because he had Chu Jinjin in his heart; given the current situation, he had no mood to think about anything else.
Just as I was drifting off to sleep, a thunderous shout came from outside the door from Eunuch Zhao.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, something terrible has happened! Chu Jinjin has flown away!"
He didn't know what words to use to report, because he hadn't seen the plot unfold, but anyway, Chu Jinjin had left.
Waking up with a start, Xiao Huai had a splitting headache. He pushed open the door, his face contorted with murderous intent: "Who ascended to immortality?"
There was more than just Eunuch Zhao in the courtyard; there were also the Imperial Guards present, as well as Yuan Tianyou—who followed the Imperial Guards directly into the palace.
Seeing Yuan Tianyou, Xiao Huai forced himself to calm down: "Prime Minister Yuan, what are you doing here? What were you talking about just now? What happened to Jinjin?"
Yuan Tianyou calmly recounted the story, then pointed to the sky and said, "You can't see it anymore."
Xiao Huai: "......."
His first reaction was that Yuan Tianyou had conspired to deliberately deceive the emperor; how could a person possibly fly?
"Your Majesty, I am the Right Commander of the Imperial Guards. Lord Yuan is right. Chu Jinjin did indeed fly away in a hot air balloon." The Imperial Guards Commander understood Xiao Huai's feelings. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn't have believed it either. "Please, Your Majesty, give the order immediately to give chase. It will be too late if we wait any longer."
He has already sent troops to pursue them, but those men are clearly not enough.
Xiao Huai rubbed his temples vigorously: "A hot air balloon?"
Yuan Tianyou sighed: "It's a flying machine developed by Miss Jinjin. It can take off with the help of flames and can carry people and cargo."
He understands more now.
If Xiao Huai hadn't forced them, but instead clearly declared war on the Northern Desert army, then both the hot air balloons and the bombs would have belonged to the imperial court.
If my intuition is correct, there are many more unknown items.
Unfortunately, all of this was no longer relevant to the imperial court.
Xiao Huai finally realized what was happening. Without time to ask any further questions, he took a deep breath and whispered, "Immediately issue my order: the city gate guards must try to intercept them. If they can't, keep chasing them!"
The Right Commander accepted the order and left.
There were only three people left in the courtyard.
They're all on our side.
Xiao Huai said in a low voice, "Prime Minister, why were you at the Chu family? Did you know in advance that Chu Jinjin was going to leave?"
"I was tricked into going there. Qin'er wanted me to come with her." Yuan Tianyou didn't plan to talk about the saltpeter for the time being. It wasn't the right time yet. The court still needed him. He said frankly, "This humble servant is only rudimentary in martial arts and couldn't stop her. In the end, I had to threaten to kill myself to force her to stay."
Xiao Huai gave him a deep look: "What about Mu Wei's side? Any movement?"
Eunuch Zhao whispered, "The envoy from the Northern Desert has arrived at the front hall, demanding an explanation from the Emperor. He also said that Prince Mu has personally caught up with him."
In later times, hot air balloons could reach speeds of up to 100 kilometers per hour if they encountered suitable wind speeds, but for this mission, safety was the top priority. There was no wind or rain tonight, and the balloons would rely entirely on their own power.
However, the initial manufacturing process could not compare with that of later generations.
One more thing, I dare not fly too high.
The advantage is that it can travel in a straight line.
In the distance, high city walls appeared, campfires blazed, and archers crouched in a row, ready to shoot at any moment.
Chu Jinjin wasn't worried about that; who would dare to shoot?
Falling from such a height would be fatal, but of course, the height is also safe enough.
The group of women had never seen such a scene before; they had no experience and were trembling with fear.
Then, it slowly floated over the city wall.
The soldiers below looked at each other, shocked and helpless. They knew very well that this height was impossible to reach.
The newly appointed city gate commander had a similar expression. He watched helplessly as the hot air balloon floated overhead and shouted anxiously, "Miss Jinjin, the Emperor has decreed that you come back quickly—shout it out with me!"
Chu Jinjin leaned out and waved with a smile.
I won't waste my voice.
The first glimmer of light appeared on the eastern horizon.
Chu Jinjin suddenly narrowed her eyes.
The pursuers below never stopped. The warhorses were about as fast as hot air balloons, but their advantage in the air was that they could travel in a straight line.
There's a group of people acting strangely.
The hot air balloon continued to drift forward, and everyone gradually got used to it. Except for a very few people who were afraid of heights, they all enjoyed the indescribable beautiful scenery.
The sky seemed so close, almost within reach; the familiar mountains and rivers looked like this from the sky.
The Black Hawk Mountain bandits in charge of control reported in a low voice: "Miss Chu, we will arrive at Niujiazhuang in about half an hour."
Hot air balloons are powered by the heat generated by combustion, but naturally there were no hydrogen tanks or similar items in that era.
Jiedu conducted several experiments, using pine nut oil and other substances.
It was impossible to fly directly to Black Hawk Mountain Village, so the hot air balloon was scheduled to land at Niujiazhuang outside Beijing, where passengers would then transfer to horse-drawn carriages.
Dawn seems to come particularly early in the suburbs.
Chu Jinjin finally realized who it was, and picked up her bow and arrow: "Stop, lower the altitude a bit."
Even the best warhorse cannot run forever. By now, the pursuers have come and gone, the closest being the city gate guards, but they just gave up.
The pursuers below had somehow changed their tactics and started running.
There is no other possibility but zombies.
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