Chapter 312 A Surprise from Castel
Blood Harbor, in the prince's office.
Galahad stood in the room with a gloomy face and a sharp look in his eyes that looked like he wanted to kill someone.
"So, that maid named Zoe really dragged you around the slums for a whole day?"
Galahad nodded.
"What kind of fetish is this, going to the slums to watch people suffer? Well, I have heard of such people existing. Or maybe giving money to those poor people?"
Galahad's face twitched, and he no longer cared about his image. He cursed in a low voice: "Damn it, she is not even that. That maid actually asked the untouchables about their affairs one by one in the slums, and then wrote them down in a notebook and said she would use them to write a novel!"
"Writing a novel?"
The prince was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.
"What kind of novel is she writing? A love story in the slums? Who is she writing this for? Will people who can't even afford to eat pay to read her novel?"
"Besides, who would read those stories about poor people? Hahahaha."
After laughing for a while, the prince looked at Galahad, whose face had turned as black as the bottom of a pot, rubbed his belly and said softly: "Well, besides this Miss Zoe, is there anything else to gain here?"
Galahad nodded stiffly. "Your Highness, I have sent people to check out the ship of the Castell people under the pretext of repair and maintenance. Although it looks similar to an ordinary ship and is made of wood, the inside is different."
"What do you mean?"
"The boat was propelled by two outer wheels, but unlike known outer ships, no animals or people were seen inside to propel the rotating structure."
The prince was startled, then blurted out: "Steam engine!?"
"Well, I think so. They call that kind of mechanical equipment a 'noisy machine'. Judging from its structure, it should be similar to a steam engine. You know, I had a factory before."
"Go on."
"Yes. Although the overall structure of these steam engines is similar to those manufactured by the Mechanical Temple, the details and size are very different. The navy once tried to install steam engines on ships, but failed."
"The priests of the Mechanical Temple refused to go on board to maintain the steam engine. They said that being too close to the sea would displease the holy machinery."
"Hehe, how come Castel's steam engine was installed on the ship? I didn't see that machine being unhappy." The prince sneered.
"Yes," Galahad nodded, "Another point is that although this ship looks like a wooden ship on the outside, most of the internal decks are actually made of steel."
"Steel? Building ships with steel? They're that rich? Wait, wouldn't a ship built with steel sink?"
"Only some of the inner decks were replaced with steel, not a lot, and I don't know why they made this choice."
The prince frowned, puzzled. The popularity of steam engines was still low, and only some factories in the Rhine could afford this expensive and fragile equipment. The main means of iron smelting still relied on manual labor.
This resulted in a very low output of steel, and the overall price was not low. How could this metal, which could be used to make weapons, be used to make decks? The prince could not understand it at all.
In fact, using steel to build the deck was just out of helplessness.
Hughes only intended to make do with it, so the Noisy Ones that were loaded into the boat were not specially designed to fit, but a universal model with the same style as those produced in the factory.
This means that it is not easy to fit into the hull, and a lot of the original structure needs to be removed before it can be installed.
The fixing process after installation was also a bit troublesome. Processing wood is a delicate job. Just fixing the steam engine and laying the deck back would take several carpenters half a month to complete.
Therefore, Zeus chose to use steel directly instead, since there was plenty of it anyway.
Yes, with pollution as energy, steel is much easier to manufacture than wood. It does not need to be repeatedly dried in the sun. Nini finished it by hand-rubbing it in just one morning.
Apart from anything else, it is still no problem for near-shore sailing, and the strength is absolutely guaranteed, much stronger than the outer wooden hull.
Unexpectedly, Castel's makeshift plan made the prince confused. "Forget it, let's record this and investigate it later. The main target at the moment is still the musket. We must find a way to get the musket. I know they will definitely keep a close eye on such a good thing. Just tell me what you need, whether it's people or resources, I will give it to you. I just want the musket!"
The prince walked up to Galahad and spoke to him seriously.
Galahad's expression also turned serious. He knew what this weapon meant to the Principality of Tis. Tis and the Empire would eventually have a war. The prince had brought together almost all potential allies, and it was still unknown whether they could deal with the Empire's army.
Therefore, this improved version of the musket is particularly important.
If the army of the Principality of Tis could equip this weapon in large quantities... Galahad swallowed.
"Okay, that's enough for today." The prince sat back in the armchair with a tired face, rubbing his forehead.
He raised his hand and rang the bell on the table, and soon a maid came into the room and started to tidy up.
Galahad seemed to recall some bad memories and took a few steps back, moving a lot further away from the maid.
"Move these down. Forget it, just open them and take a look."
The prince pointed to a few boxes on the table, glanced at Galahad, and said with a smile: "You brought these, Galahad, I almost forgot."
Galahad took a quick glance and thought for a while before he realized, "Is this a gift from Castel?"
"right."
The prince began to dismantle it carelessly. The Principality of Tis had many enemies and he had many troubles to deal with. This was a rare moment of leisure, so he had some time to relax.
But soon, his hands stopped.
The box was placed on the table. He took one look at what was inside and couldn't take his eyes off it.
His eyes were wide open, his mouth opening and closing, but he couldn't utter a word, like a goldfish with swollen eyes.
Galahad looked at the table in confusion.
It was an exquisite long box, made of exquisite olive wood and lined with dark red velvet.
But inside the box was an ordinary one, one that came off the assembly line.
Bolt-action rifle.
This bolt-action rifle, which the prince and Galahad had spent countless efforts to obtain but still could not obtain, was given to them by Castel in a gift box at the beginning.
While they were planning, while they were arguing, when they were at their wits' end, the gun just lay quietly on the desk, a few steps away from them.
The prince took out the card from the box with trembling hands and read the words on it softly.
"To Grand Duke Tiss - Castel is always generous to his friends."
(End of this chapter)
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