Yin Jinzhuo never expected things to turn out this way, and he was so angry that he yelled at Duke Xun.
"Father, how can you agree to give him half of the family fortune? How much money has he spent on eating, drinking, gambling, and whoring over the years? Why should he get half of it?"
And what about the family retainers? How can we give them half?
Why should I give him half of the family business I've managed for so many years?
"Does he understand military strategy? Does he know how to lead troops? If we give him our family's generals, sooner or later the morale will collapse, and they will no longer bear the surname Yin," Yin Jinzhu roared. "I disagree."
Pei Yue also started crying and said to the Duchess, "He committed such a terrible crime, yet the manor still gave him half of its property. Is causing trouble somehow considered a merit?"
The Duchess was thoroughly fed up with her youngest son and wished she could beat him to death with a stick, but she had no choice at the moment.
The Duke is right. If we don't agree to give him half of the family fortune, the entire mansion and clan will disappear.
Amidst the curses of the Duke and Duchess, Yin Jin'an went to speak with the family retainer.
Knowing that he was going to talk to the family generals, Yin Jinzhuo immediately contacted the veteran generals of the Yin family army and warned them not to choose Yin Jin'an, otherwise they would be traitors.
"Once you follow the second prince, in any future wars, I, the heir, will decide that you will not be allowed to go to war to seek merit or fame," Yin Jinzhu declared.
Xie Zhaozhao had been keeping a close eye on this side, as had Yin Jin'an. The two of them received the information at the same time and decided to outsmart the enemy.
Of the eight retainers, Yin Jin'an didn't intend to actually take half; he had his eye on two others.
Besides the eight generals under the Duke's command, there was another person: Chu Zhongtian, the weapon genius of the Yin family army.
This man was stubborn and possessed an exceptional talent for military equipment research. Whether it was metallurgy, forging, or mechanical engineering, he could learn anything he had seen simply by disassembling it once. Even with things he hadn't seen before, he could figure out many useful things.
Veteran generals who have experienced battles know just how important weapons are!
Chu Zhongtian definitely accounted for 30% of the Duke of Xun's medals.
Unfortunately, the imperial court later intended to reduce power, emphasizing civil affairs over military matters. The Yin family's military equipment department was disbanded, and Chu Zhongtian went home to farm.
His son inherited his talent for weaponry, and the three of them farmed and made many small gadgets such as mechanisms and locks to earn a living.
Xie Zhaozhao decided to personally accompany Yin Jin'an on the recruitment.
Not only did he go in person, but he also brought Gu Shaoyu with him.
Gu Shaoyu was puzzled: "You...you're planning to treat me as one of your people?"
Xie Zhaozhao chuckled and whispered, "Aren't you one of mine?"
Gu Shaoyu said aggrievedly, "You never include me in your games! You always bring your own friends along!"
"I'll bring you along this time, to use your name to win people over, is that alright?"
"It would be my pleasure to serve you, Madam!"
Human hearts are made of flesh and blood. Over the past year, Gu Shaoyu offered his purest heart without any reservations in order to coax himself out of his closed-off state. Their fates had long been intertwined, inseparable, and little by little, even stones would be warmed by the touch.
"Do you remember when I sent Bei Chen to scout out the Crown Prince's estate?"
"Remember."
"The Crown Prince is developing a new weapon! There is an extremely powerful weapon that can flatten a small mountain with a single boom."
"He developed it?"
"No! We might never be able to make it in our lifetime, but I accidentally obtained this formula, and if it can help Yin Er poach people from here, that's enough."
The Crown Prince struggled his whole life in his previous life without success, and in this life, he hasn't produced even a half-finished product yet.
Today, she's going to use Grand Secretary Gu's influence and Guan Yingying's flaunted explosive formula to help her partner plot against a weapons genius.
Chu Zhongtian was farming on his estate in the suburbs of Beijing. When Yin Jin'an and the others arrived, Chu Zhongtian was watering the crops in the field.
Yin Jin'an explained his purpose, and the other party said directly, "Second Young Master, please go back. I'm old, enjoying my grandchildren, and living a very comfortable life. I don't have any great ambitions."
"Don't be so quick to refuse," Yin Jin'an said. "Don't you like tinkering with weapons? There's a new type of weapon you wouldn't like to try?"
Chu Zhongtian's sons, Chu Keqin and Chu Kejian, are eighteen and twenty-two years old respectively, and are fanatics about weapons. But it was Yin Jin'an who came to poach them; he'd be better off farming!
Yin Jin'an wasn't angry and told Gu Shaoyu and Xie Zhaozhao to get out of the car.
Chu Zhongtian looked at Gu Shaoyu and saw his extraordinary aura, wondering who this person was.
It wasn't that he hadn't heard of Gu Shaoyu, but rather that he never expected Gu Shaoyu to be with Yin Jin'an.
"My wife and I have taken the liberty of visiting Master Chu; we apologize for the intrusion," Gu Shaoyu said politely.
Xie Zhaozhao also got out of the car and gave Chu Zhongtian a polite greeting: "Greetings, Master Chu."
Yin Jin'an cleared her throat and said in a serious tone, "Uncle Chu, this is Grand Secretary Gu and his wife."
Chu Zhongtian never expected Gu Shaoyu to visit, and Chu Keqin and Chu Kejian were extremely excited.
Chu Zhongtian bowed respectfully and asked, "May I ask what business Elder Gu has with me?"
"Shall we find somewhere to discuss this in detail?"
"Please, Your Excellency!"
The group went to Chu Zhongtian's forest dwelling.
Xie Zhaozhao handed Chu Zhongtian the explosive formula she had written herself.
This recipe was something Guan Yingying had mentioned in her previous life when she was showing off. Guan Yingying was arrogant and thought that it would be useless for a "feudal woman with bound feet" to know it, so she told her in detail.
If Guan Yingying were still alive, she would probably be kicking herself.
"Seventy-five percent saltpeter, twelve point five percent sulfur, and twelve point five percent 00."
It is unclear whether Chu Zhongtian has submitted. Xie Zhaozhao drew two "O"s on the word "charcoal".
Chu Zhongtian asked in confusion, "What kind of weapon is this?"
Xie Zhaozhao explained the name and powerful functions of gunpowder, and you can imagine how excited Chu Zhongtian was.
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