Zhu Yunwen was a man of action, so after making the decision, he ordered Zhang Shan to go down and manufacture a large number of cannonballs.
As for the core technology of the shells, the process of injecting mercuric fulminate into the middle was done by Zhu Yunwen himself.
It's not that he distrusts his subordinates, but if an enemy wants to obtain such confidential information, there are plenty of ways to do so.
Even the slightest possibility of it being leaked would pose a huge threat to Zhu Yunwen.
Therefore, Zhu Yunwen must treat this issue with caution. Even if it means more trouble for himself, it is worth it as long as it can avoid some of the threats that may arise later.
So in the following days, Zhang Shan ordered the mass production of artillery shells, while Zhu Yunwen injected mercuric fulminate into the middle of the shells as a detonation device.
A week later, Zhu Yunwen had probably received tens of thousands of cannonballs.
These shells would be sufficient if used by fifty cannons.
In a war, the role it can play is absolutely terrifying.
In addition, Zhu Yunwen had previously ordered Zhang Shan to mass-produce many five-strike crossbows.
So, we already have large and medium-sized weapons.
In addition, with the hundreds of soldiers trained by Zhu Yunwen who were like special forces, Zhu Yunwen was confident that even if a large-scale conflict broke out with the Japanese pirates of the Eastern Island, he could resolve the war as quickly as possible and emerge victorious.
After obtaining the weapons, Zhu Yunwen immediately issued an order to prepare for military exercises in the coastal areas in half a month.
When this news came out, the civil and military officials in the court were somewhat surprised, because they had never heard of the new term "military exercise".
I don't understand what this Crown Prince wants to do.
Of course, Zhu Yunwen had no reason to explain to anyone, since he was fully entitled to make his own decision and handle the matter entirely on his own.
Moreover, Zhu Yuanzhang almost entirely entrusted the task of dealing with the Japanese pirates on the eastern islands to Zhu Yunwen.
Therefore, even Zhu Yuanzhang did not inquire further about the matter after hearing the news.
He never doubted Zhu Yunwen, so Zhu Yuanzhang almost always supported whatever Zhu Yunwen wanted to do.
Even if they don't support it, they won't be too opposed to it.
After this matter was settled, Zhu Yunwen specifically instructed his officials to publicize it extensively.
It wasn't that I wanted the people of the Ming Dynasty to know about this; I mainly wanted to make a big fuss so that the Eastern Island Kingdom would take notice in the future.
These military exercises are meant to be performed for others to see; otherwise, why would they be called exercises?
So if you're going to put on a show, you need people to come and watch.
This military exercise was meant for the enemy, to let them know Zhu Yunwen's strength and the strength of the Ming army.
Furthermore, the Ming Dynasty now enjoys some renown overseas. As Ma Sanbao led his team on voyages to various Western countries, these countries also became aware of the existence of the Ming Dynasty.
In particular, some Western countries had sent envoys to the Ming Dynasty along with Ma Sanbao's fleet. They witnessed the abundance of resources and prosperity of the Ming Dynasty, which inevitably led some countries to have certain ideas about it.
These countries, however, only witnessed the prosperity and abundance of resources of the Ming Dynasty.
However, they had never seen the Ming army before, so it was inevitable that they would develop some ambitions.
For example, doing bad things to the Ming Dynasty, becoming an enemy of the Ming Dynasty, competing for the Ming Dynasty's resources, or even directly opposing the Ming Dynasty.
It's important to know that in ancient times, almost all countries were very keen on seizing other countries' territory.
It is true that foreign countries, having witnessed the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty, would have their own thoughts.
Otherwise, the island nation would not have been so audacious.
This island nation is just one of the many overseas countries that first revealed its ambitions and actually took action.
So, besides the eastern island nation, how many others are there?
Therefore, Zhu Yunwen's military exercise was not only intended to intimidate the Eastern Island Kingdom, but also to serve as a warning to other overseas countries, letting them witness the Ming Dynasty's strength at sea.
In fact, during Zhu Yuanzhang's reign, the Ming Dynasty's naval strength was already quite formidable.
As mentioned before, when Zhu Yuanzhang was conquering the country, he fought with Chen Youliang for territory.
At that time, Chen Youliang's naval forces and navy were very powerful, causing Zhu Yuanzhang to suffer heavy losses several times and almost suffer a direct defeat.
Therefore, after Zhu Yuanzhang became emperor, he learned from his mistakes and decided to develop maritime power properly.
Therefore, at this time, the Ming Dynasty's maritime power even surpassed the strength of its land-based military forces.
This is why Ma Sanbao did not encounter hostility from any Western countries when he led tens of thousands of soldiers and a large team to them.
The maritime power led by Ma Sanbao shocked all countries.
But such shock is far from enough to directly stifle their ambitions.
Otherwise, the Eastern Island nation wouldn't have continued its provocations even after knowing the strength of the Ming Dynasty.
Therefore, Zhu Yunwen's military exercises can also be considered a more powerful deterrent, making those Western countries more directly aware of how powerful the Ming Dynasty was.
Thus, any ambitions or ideas that may arise in one's heart are nipped in the bud.
In this way, time passed quickly.
When the day came for Zhu Yunwen to decide on the military exercise, he had already led his 500 specially trained soldiers, along with 50 small cannons and tens of thousands of shells, to a place called Blackwater City in the coastal region.
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