Although it didn't "level a mountain" as Guan Yingying claimed, the new weapon it created was already incredibly lethal.
Chu Zhongtian, Chu Keqin, Chu Kejian, and the two geniuses they recruited then demonstrated the "Cloud Piercing Arrow".
A paper tube filled with gunpowder was lit, the fuse was lit, and with a "whoosh," it flew into the sky and exploded high in the air.
At night, even in a remote mountain valley, a keen observer could see it from dozens of miles away.
It is many times faster than the harpoon's alarm efficiency, flies higher, and has a stronger warning effect.
Traditional harpoons are too restrictive, requiring the user to carry a bow and arrows. The sound travels much farther than light, requiring reinforcements with excellent hearing, as they could easily miss the signal.
The place where the gunpowder exploded was blackened, with a crater. Many tree trunks nearby were cut in half or had nails or pieces of iron driven into them.
Chu Zhongtian said excitedly, "Madam, Grand Secretary Gu is simply a genius! Without his discovery, we would have been pondering this for a long time."
Grand Secretary Gu pointed out that its principle relies on the intense combustion of gunpowder to rupture the container, causing immense damage from the fragments. This humble general immediately understood.
It must be said that some people are born geniuses.
Gu Shaoyu was not good at weapons development, but he was well-versed in various books and his knowledge was integrated. He quickly grasped the principle of explosives' lethality.
Explosives were a completely new weapon. When Chu Zhongtian obtained the formula, he, like the Crown Prince's ordnance bureau, believed that the destructive power lay in the explosives themselves, so he went astray from the start.
However, after pondering for a few days, Gu Shaoyu pointed out that what was harmful was not the gunpowder itself, but the fragments produced by the immense impact of the gunpowder.
After Gu Shaoyu's questioning and guidance, Chu Zhongtian seemed to have his Ren and Du meridians opened up, and everything became clear.
Once the direction is right, progress is made rapidly, and that's how "Heavenly Thunder" was quickly created.
Yin Jin'an was excited and proud. He said to Xie Zhaozhao, "Our new weapon is done! I want them to work day and night to produce a batch. On the 16th, I will take this great weapon to the north."
Xie Zhaozhao possessed this formula in both her lifetimes, yet she had no idea how this weapon's power was achieved.
So, it's all thanks to her family's great intelligence; otherwise, they would have been like the Crown Prince's side, unable to make any progress for decades.
Guan Yingying is probably like Xie Zhaozhao; she can only memorize the formula but doesn't understand the underlying principles.
"Iron containers are the best because they produce the most fragments after an explosion. However, iron is too expensive and its availability is limited. Earthenware pots are a better option because the fragments are far less lethal than those made of iron."
Chu Zhongtian said sincerely, "Thanks to Grand Secretary Gu's good thinking, he told us to put sugar, nails, iron scraps, and pebbles in the earthenware jar, which increased its power dozens of times."
Chu Zhongtian said that the performance was still unstable and needed to be improved before a powerful weapon could be created.
However, this was already quite amazing, and Xie Zhaozhao and Yin Jin'an were extremely satisfied.
Before leaving, Xie Zhaozhao took a clay pot with her.
Back at Qingpu Garden, Waguan Lei was handed over to Beichen, who was instructed to take great care of it.
She said to Moyan and Yuanyuan, "Let's go see the Second Miss."
“She’s determined to kill you, Miss. Why would you want to see her?” Yuan Yuan and Manman both objected. “This servant would love to stab her with a knife.”
Xie Zhaozhao chuckled and said, "I need to take care of my nephew's wife."
Yuan Yuanman didn't understand, and Xie Zhaozhao didn't explain either.
The carriage stopped in Chiyu Lane, and Yuanyuan knocked on the door.
When Xie Xiangxiang saw Xie Zhaozhao coming over, her eyes instantly swirled with emotions: surprise, confusion, disgust, and venomous hatred!
She glanced at the door several times, then circled Xie Zhaozhao once, and said sarcastically, "What wind blew Madam Gu here today?"
"Long time no see!" Xie Zhaozhao walked into the living room without looking back, and Yuanyuan immediately found her a chair to sit down.
"You're quite the friendly one, aren't you? Aren't you afraid I'll poison you?" Xie Xiangxiang said sarcastically. "So, what brings you here today?"
Yuanyuan touched her waist.
A soft sword was tucked at his waist.
“I’m here today to tell you that your mother went to Huguo Temple to pray for your third sister, but she accidentally fell off a cliff. The funeral has been held, and now you have no mother.”
"Xie Zhaozhao, my mother's blood will not be shed in vain. I will make the executioner pay for his crime in blood."
Xie Xiangxiang was filled with utter hatred, tears streaming down her face.
Xie Zhaozhao laughed: "Xie Xiangxiang, your mind has always been strange. Your so-called blood debt must be related to your mother's death, right?"
"You think you can say it has nothing to do with you? Xie Zhaozhao, you're always plotting and scheming, you killed my mother. I will never forgive you in this lifetime."
"It's as if you were very kind to me in your past life."
Xie Zhaozhao gently pressed her hands down and chuckled, "Shh, don't get agitated. Your mother didn't fall off the cliff and die on her own; you killed her! You instigated her to steal a confidential letter from Father's study, and that letter led to the downfall of several families, didn't it?"
Xie Xiangxiang's eyes darted around. What did Xie Zhaozhao mean by that?
How did she know I wanted my mother to steal the letter from the study? Did my mother confess?
"You're talking nonsense!"
"Xie Xiangxiang, we know everything! You wanted to kill Fifth Brother, frame me, my elder brother, or the Princess, provoke Aunt Qu to poison Father, steal the key to the study, and ultimately obtain the secret letter to kill the entire Xie family, right?"
Xie Xiangxiang was terrified: "Are you really Xie Zhaozhao? How do you know all this?"
"I also know that you once seduced someone and used the same method to steal letters, harming the Prince Jing's mansion and even trying to harm the entire Xie family!"
It wasn't just the Xie family that was killed; the Jing Prince's Mansion, the Liu family, the Xu family... their homes were ransacked and their families wiped out. So much blood was spilled, staining the capital city red.
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