Chapter 204: Scheming, Demonstration

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"No." Wang Che's mouth curled with a hint of coldness, "We gave him the drawing of that No. 2 machine that Han Wei saw. It's a machine we eliminated five years ago, a sample used just for display."

"That machine can work, but it has a ton of problems. Its coal consumption is three times that of a new machine, while its output is only half. Moreover, the crucial alloy formula, the manufacturing process for pressure‑resistant pipes, the core differential device… none of these appear on the drawings."

"The people we send will help them build the machine. But they will never be able to build a second one, let alone figure out why it works. All they get is a moving lump of iron, an iron ancestor that only our Wang family can tend to!"

Everyone only then realized that this young family head's mind was incredibly meticulous; he had planned everything long ago!

Wang Che's gaze finally landed on Wang Hao.

"Uncle Hao, as for your post as prefect…" He paused, stepped forward, and personally helped Wang Hao to his feet.

"This is a thorn the emperor has driven between us uncle and nephew. He hopes this thorn will make us suspect and guard against each other. But we won't let him have his way."

"From today on, you are the Yangzhou Prefect appointed by the court. Your job is to watch over me, the Marquis of Investigating Things, for the court. Over at the Maritime Trade Office, Han Wei isn't he wanting to inspect our ships? You, as prefect, go inspect them yourself—inspect them even more thoroughly than he does!"

Wang Hao stared, stunned: "I… I'm supposed to inspect?"

"Exactly!" Wang Che's eyes flashed with sharp light, "You go inspect personally, you register personally. Then you hand the ledgers to Han Wei, to the emperor in Kaifeng. He wants to see? We'll give him plenty to see! Let him see the account books we want him to see!"

"As for me…" Wang Che laughed, that smile carrying a touch of youthful exuberance.

"As the newly appointed Marquis of Investigating Things, I ought to prepare a great gift to welcome the Princess of Yongning and the court officials sent by the emperor, right?"

He turned, faced the chief of guards at the door, and issued an order.

"Convey my orders! Starting tomorrow, the First and Second Guard Battalions and the Artillery Battalion are to cancel all leave!"

"Bring out all the newest, finest gifts from our armory and clean them up!"

"Tell them, for the next month, right outside the city, drill them into the ground! The bigger the commotion, the better! I want the sound of our Wang family welcoming the court's envoys—like firecrackers—to be heard ten li away!"

One month later, on the official road outside Yangzhou's north gate, dust rose.

A massive troop was marching mightily toward Yangzhou. At the vanguard were hundreds of armored, sharp‑wielding Imperial Guard cavalry, each with a haughty bearing, their glances exuding the particular dignity of the Capital's Imperial Guard.

At the center of the troop stood a huge phoenix palanquin carried by sixteen people, its surroundings draped in bright‑yellow curtains; even from afar one could feel the oppressive royal aura. Seated inside was naturally the emperor's cousin, the future wife of the Marquis of Investigating Things—the Princess of Yongning.

Marching alongside the palanquin were several officials in scarlet robes. Leading them was the newly appointed Deputy Commissioner of the Yangzhou Maritime Trade Office, Han Wei, together with a few officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Works responsible for escorting the princess and handling the transfer of the Institute of Investigating Things.

Han Wei sat on his horse, gazing at the imposing Yangzhou city walls not far off, his heart a tumult of feelings.

A month ago he fled from here in disgrace back to Kaifeng, his mind full of suspicion about that sort of "divine‑demonic" ability. But today he has returned, bearing the emperor's edict and the royal princess, and he feels he has regained the confidence of a court official.

Even if the Wang family is formidable, can it outmatch the imperial house? No matter how capable Wang Che is, when he sees the princess and sees himself, won't he just have to kneel and kowtow obediently?

He had even already figured out how, when he later meets Wang Che, to put on the airs of a court official and how to knock some sense into this clueless youngster.

Just as his thoughts swirled in myriad directions, a deep, uniform rumbling suddenly came from the direction of Yangzhou.

"Boom——boom——boom——"

That sound was like tens of thousands of giants hammering the earth with mallets; even the horse beneath him began uneasily pawing the ground.

"What sound?" asked a Ministry of Rites official, bewildered.

Han Wei also furrowed his brow, leaning in to listen; the sound drew nearer and louder, carrying an oppressive feeling that made one's heart pound.

Before they could react, an abrupt change occurred!

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"

A series of earth‑shaking explosions erupted without warning not far ahead of the troop!

Within the troop, the well‑trained Imperial Guard warhorses instantly lost control, neighing, rearing up and flinging their riders to the ground.

The entire troop instantly descended into chaos.

"Guard the carriage! Guard the carriage!" shouted the chief of the Imperial Guard, scrambling over to the phoenix palanquin.

Han Wei was terrified out of his wits, clutching the horse's neck tightly so he wouldn't be thrown off. He lifted his head in terror, looking toward the source of the sound.

Only then did he see, on the open ground beside the road, rows of soldiers in black tight‑fitted uniforms appearing out of nowhere. Though they numbered only about a thousand, they were arranged in a grim formation he had never seen before.

At that moment they were shouldering black, hollow iron tubes. The earth‑shaking blast just now came from those very tubes!

One could see the soldiers moving in perfect unison, swiftly pulling paper packets from their waist pouches, biting them open, pouring the black powder into the iron tubes, ramming in an iron rod, and finally placing a small iron bullet on top.

The whole process flowed smoothly, so fast it dazzled the eyes.

"Present arms!"

At the command, the five hundred soldiers in the front rank simultaneously leveled the iron tubes on their shoulders—what the Wang family calls a "firearm"—pointing the black muzzles at a huge target ship far out on the river.

Han Wei's heart leapt into his throat. He saw clearly that the soldiers were not aiming at them.

"Fire!"

"Bang bang bang bang bang——!"

A denser, more terrifying barrage of explosions joined together!

Five hundred bursts of flame exploded before the ranks, thick white gunpowder smoke instantly enveloping the position, the acrid sulphur smell making eyes water.

Han Wei's eyes widened as he stared fixedly at the distant target ship.

That target ship, three stories high and built of sturdy timber, instantly had holes of all sizes blasted into its hull! Wood chips flew everywhere, as if some invisible force had violently plowed through it!