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The bow she wanted was not an ordinary compound bow, but a single bow called the "Scottish longbow".

There is no need to use pressure to make the bow body arched, all you need is wood that is elastic enough and a longer bow body.

The average Scottish longbow has a range of about 200 meters and a very high rate of fire. If placed on a ship, it is enough to fire several rounds when two ships are connected.

More importantly, it is extremely simple to make. An experienced person can make two or three in a day, which can perfectly solve the problem of the shortage of long-range weapons.

It’s just that such a bow requires more effort to pull and places higher demands on the archer.

Old Man Ding was so angry that he was gasping for breath. "If you're not making a horn bow, why are you looking for me? I can't make such a thing!"

"Because Master Ding is an expert in bow making, he is proficient in all methods. If we want to develop what I said as soon as possible, only an expert can do it." Cheng Xi said frankly.

This gesture made Ding Jiu stunned for a moment. He had actually seen many foolish and arrogant superiors who only cared about their own achievements and didn't care about the lives of the craftsmen.

He had also seen some good officials who were concerned with practical matters, but no matter how much they cared about the quality of weapons, they never took craftsmen seriously.

But the young man in front of him was different. His eyes were clear and his expression was sincere. He truly believed that he could make what he wanted and had no intention of being disrespectful at all.

Behind him, his eldest son nervously called out "Dad". Ding Jiu finally came back to his senses and said to Cheng Xi with some complexity: "I have never made what you want, and I don't know if I can do it."

"Master Ding, just go ahead and try it out. Feel free to ask for anything you need." After a pause, Cheng Xi continued, "I wonder what Master Ding's original salary was?"

"Twenty-four taels!" Ding Jiu straightened his back. This value was not low in the Ordnance Department, almost as much as that of an ordinary clerk.

Unexpectedly, the young man across from him nodded and said, "If both the crossbow and the longbow are successfully developed, I will reward you with fifty taels and increase your monthly salary by another three taels."

This is more than a hundred taels in one breath! Old Man Ding was really shocked by this generosity. He opened his mouth and squeezed out a sentence with difficulty: "Making such a bow and crossbow is actually not that difficult..."

"But adjusting it to its most optimal state and figuring out a production process is not that simple." Cheng Xi understood the other party's meaning and smiled. "Master Ding should also know how much time it takes to improve a weapon. However, no matter how excellent a weapon is, it will change with the changes in combat mode, and will undergo innovation or even subversion. This crossbow and longbow are just the beginning. Who knows how many new things will be in the future. Master Ding, do you dare to take on such a heavy responsibility?"

This statement deeply troubled Ding Jiu. He was well aware of the difficulty of changing a method. Just like his family's traditional bow-making techniques, which weren't particularly impressive, he'd spent twenty years meticulously studying them to master them, earning the title of "master craftsman." But now, the young leader was asking him to discard all his hard-earned experience and start from scratch. How much time and energy would that take?

However, looking at those frank eyes, Ding Jiu finally let out a long sigh: "We are already on this island, everything will be arranged by the gang leader."

The older people get, the more stubborn they become, especially for an expert who has immersed himself in the same skill his entire life. Cheng Xi certainly knew that her request was a bit unreasonable, so when Ding Jiu gave in, she couldn't help but feel happy.

In fact, both the crossbow and the longbow are temporary transitional weapons. What she will need in the future are muskets and ship-borne cannons, which are standard thermal weapons.

However, "a single cannon shot is worth a fortune", and it will probably take a long time to achieve these goals.

After dealing with the bow maker, Cheng Xi turned around and looked at the medicine maker.

Ma Lao Er had been standing there listening for a long time, feeling utterly apprehensive and uneasy. When Gang Leader Cheng looked at him, he couldn't help but say, "This old man has something to say upfront. The bow style can be changed, but the gunpowder must not be changed! If the formula is changed, at best, people will be injured, and at worst, the gun barrel will explode. This is no joke!"

Ding Jiu couldn't help but glare at him after hearing this. What did he mean by "it's okay to change the bow"? If he hadn't been soft-hearted, he wouldn't have changed it! Ma Laoer didn't care about that. If this young man had a crazy idea and wanted to change the gunpowder again, he might as well just leave.

No matter how much money you have, it is not as important as saving your life!

Cheng Xi couldn't help but frown slightly when she heard this. She didn't expect Master Ma to be so straightforward.

However, there are some things that cannot be left unsaid. After thinking for a while, Cheng Xi said, "Now that the gang only has three small cannons, the cannon powder can naturally be made according to the original method. But in addition to the cannon powder, I also need some cans that can be thrown. Can the medicine inside be improved?"

Ma Lao Er shook his head like a rattle: "I can prepare the ingredients for the missiles that the gang leader wants to throw, but I absolutely cannot change the recipe!"

Seeing the other party's tough attitude, Cheng Xi was almost worried. If nothing else, just looking at the small-caliber muzzle-loading cannon, she could roughly guess the current gunpowder equivalent and the approximate attack range.

If nothing unexpected happens, it will be far behind the times.

Their current enemies were all pirates, which was manageable, but what if they encountered officers and soldiers in the future, or even sea merchants from other countries? Small-caliber guns met large-caliber guns, muzzle-loading guns met breech-loading guns, and they would be like floating targets on the sea.

If you don't try to develop more advanced weapons, are you just waiting for others to sell them to you? The only real way out is to develop weapons yourself.

But they all refused her sternly, and she really had no way to persuade them, because no one knew better than Cheng Xi the price to pay for researching gunpowder.

That could really cost her life, and now she only has this one pharmaceutical master on hand, so she can't let him get involved.

In fact, whether it is TNT or more powerful explosives, she can tell you the general formula.

But although she knew it, she was not familiar with how to refine saltpeter, or even how to extract sulfuric acid, nitric acid, and glycerin.

Could it be that in order to improve the medicinal ingredients, she still had to find a Taoist alchemist?

However, just as he was thinking about how to respond, a voice suddenly came from behind Ma Lao Er: "If the gang leader wants to improve the gunpowder, maybe I can give it a try."

Ma Laoer was shocked when he heard the voice and shouted, "A Ping, what nonsense are you talking about!"

Standing behind him was Ma Ping. At this moment, the young man had walked out of the shadows and came in front of everyone.

Cheng Xi noticed the scars on his face and the deformity on his hands and hesitated, "Have you also learned how to make artillery powder?"

"You didn't learn well enough, so you ended up like this."

Ma Ping retracted his hand slightly, habitually trying to hide the injury. However, the next moment, he paused and whispered, "But I want to understand why the cannonball exploded in the first place, and why it was so powerful..."

Before he could finish his words, Ma Lao Er, his face red with anger, punched him: "What nonsense are you talking about? Are you trying to kill yourself?"

The blow was not light. Ma Ping staggered. After he regained his balance, he slowly raised his head and said, "Dad, I don't want to be a cripple. If I never touch gunpowder again in this life, wouldn't this hand be crippled in vain?"

The hands were stretched out and exposed to the sunlight. Two fingers were missing and they were covered with scars, making it difficult to look directly at them.

Ma Laoer's throat suddenly became choked, and he burst into tears: "You evil son, don't you want me to have no descendants? Why don't you do something else? I can buy you some land and find you a wife..."

Ma Ping didn't listen to his father's words, but knelt on his knees and kowtowed to the ground. His broken hands dug into the mud, his knuckles white, as if he was using all his strength.

Ma Laoer closed his mouth, covered his face and started crying.

Everyone was frozen, not knowing what to do. After all, this was a family matter, and not everyone could persuade them. Cheng Xi was silent for a long time before he said, "If you can't fulfill your wishes after living for decades, wouldn't it be a waste? I really need better ammunition and more powerful firearms. If Brother Ma is interested in this, I'm willing to do my best to help."

When Ma Ping heard this, he couldn't help but raise his head and look into those determined black eyes.

After a moment, he moved and kowtowed again.

Cheng Xi sighed, then turned to Ma Lao Er and said, "Master Ma, no matter how the ingredients are modified, your safety is still the top priority. In the future, the workshop will also be equipped with various protective gear to prevent fire and explosion, and try to ensure that no disaster will occur."

Any attempt to develop thermal weapons carries inherent risks, let alone in an era where safety standards are lacking and a single shot could result in a barrel explosion.

But these risks cannot be avoided, time waits for no one.

Ma Lao Er didn't answer, but his crying gradually subsided. Cheng Xi didn't delay any longer and ordered people to select a site and prepare for the two future workshops.

Thus, the renewal of weapons began. A few days later, the flagship finally returned, and Yan Yuan also brought new news.

After wandering around Panyu City for more than ten days and gaining countless pieces of information, Yan Yuan felt his throat dry and found it difficult to speak when he really had to report.

After calming himself down, he said, "Miss, I've inquired. There's only one tax officer imprisoned in Panyu Prison right now. If I'm not mistaken, it should be Tian Yu, Tian Danhui. He was a Jinshi in the fourth year of Jiale. He was in charge of the finances and food supply for the rear during the army's southern expedition. He was appointed by the court, not a confidant of the army."

Cheng Xi frowned. Yan Yuan rarely called her "Miss" in private nowadays. When he did, it was always because he was emotionally unstable. Was it worth him staying in Panyu City for so long, even losing his mind, just for a finance official who was "not a close confidant"?

Thinking of this, Cheng Xi slowly said: "Is there only this one person in the prison? Where are the others?"

Yan Yuan pursed his lips and said, "Since last year, there have been uprisings in seven provinces and bandits are rampant. Some people have been given lenient sentences and exiled to the border counties."

This answer was so unexpected that Cheng Xi pondered for a moment and suddenly asked, "What exactly is my father's crime?"

Yan Yuan clenched his fists and whispered, "Colluding with bandits and plotting rebellion."

"Can a close confidant escape such a serious crime?" Cheng Xi pointed out the key.

Treason is a serious crime that will result in the death of nine generations of the family in any dynasty. I wonder how many innocent people will be implicated. Why are some people still given lighter sentences?

The next moment, before Yan Yuan could answer, she had her own answer, "Did they also know that this was a 'false accusation', so they let those people go?"

The three words "falsely accused" hit Yan Yuan like a whip. His Adam's apple rolled several times before he gritted his teeth and said, "The general never raised an army until his death, precisely to protect us! I guess some people wanted to seek justice for the general, so they..."

Cheng Xi interrupted him and asked firmly, "Can I get it?"

"The current emperor is old and wants to pass on the throne. When a new emperor comes..." Yan Yuan couldn't continue. There was a fire in his heart that he couldn't suppress no matter how hard he tried.

He did not blame his colleagues. If the general were still alive, he would not want to implicate them.

He did not blame those brothers who continued to serve the court and bravely killed the bandits. The military taught them every day, letting them know that this was the duty of a soldier.

But he was unwilling to give up! Was it really worth it to work for that tyrant and those treacherous villains?

Looking at Yan Yuan's face, which was slightly twisted with anger, Cheng Xi sighed inwardly: "In other words, we have no hope of recruiting new people. When we become more powerful in the future, we might actually run into old friends?"

"They will definitely not make things difficult for Miss!" Yan Yuan raised his head immediately, anger bursting out of his eyes.

This answer, however, did not make Cheng Xi relax. In feudal society, was there anything more important than loyalty to the emperor? People like Yan Yuan were probably the exception.

Without dwelling on this, Cheng Xi asked another key question: "Why couldn't Tian Yu be saved?"

He told himself only one thing: it would be best not to rescue the people imprisoned in Panyu Prison. The talk of imperial appointment and not being a trusted aide was all just an excuse.

Yan Yuan knew he could no longer hide the truth, so he could only tell the truth: "There was a gang of bandits causing chaos in Huguang. The imperial court set up an ambush and captured three of their leaders. Two of them are being held in Panyu, where the security is extremely tight.

and……"

He paused, "I heard that Tian Yu couldn't bear the torture and has become mentally disturbed. Even if he is rescued, it will probably be useless."

This is a dead end. Is it worth taking the risk for a madman? Cheng Xi tapped his fingers on his knees and asked, "Why was Tian Yu arrested?"

"Someone wanted to accuse the military commander of corruption, so they arrested him." Yan Yuan's voice suddenly became low.

"Even though he was tortured to the point of going insane, he didn't give false testimony." Cheng Xi sighed softly and asked, "Is there a verdict?"

"Execution in the autumn."

Yan Yuan's head was buzzing. He and Tian Yu actually didn't get along. He thought that the man was stingy and refused to give up the money and grain all day long.

However, he had to admit that he was a rare good official who was willing to rack his brains to save people's manpower and dared to compete with local grain officials for every penny, which made him highly appreciated by the military.

Such a person, when no one in the world was willing to seek justice for the military commander, gritted his teeth and refused to admit the "groundless" slander, and was tortured to the point of madness.

If he were alone, he would break into the prison and rescue the people even if it meant death.

But he is not alone now. He cannot let the young lady go in order to save Tian Yu, and he cannot let the young lady fall into danger!

Glancing at Yan Yuan deeply, Cheng Xi said, "Mr. Lu plans to move his business to Panyu. If I'm not mistaken, he'll be leaving when the early rice in Jiaozhi is ripe. I'll go to Panyu with him to investigate."

Yan Yuan suddenly became nervous: "It's too risky! Those two bandit chiefs must be bait, and there's no telling when they might cause chaos..."

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