Chapter 477: Chen Yan: You Are the Worst Cohort I've Ever Trained

I had thought that by abandoning the things I once treasured above all, and accepting Princess Gao Yang's condition, I could occasionally stay by his side and help him within my ability.

Xu Lianyue thought she was gradually getting closer to him, but she didn't expect that today's conversation between Chen Yan and Du Gou once again made her realize the gap between them.

Coming to Weinan County required her to abandon her dignity, but Weinan County is only a brief stop for him.

Now he is about to head to Chang'an, destined to reach the pinnacle, to become above ten thousand yet below that one person; what price must I pay to keep up?

Or rather, can she still have a chance in this life to catch up?

Xu Lianyue doesn't know, and doesn't dare to think deeply.

That single mistaken thought at the beginning created all this; no one can be blamed.

"Alright, then I'll go ask my father later; if you want to return to Chang'an, His Majesty probably doesn't decide alone. If His Majesty discusses with my father and them, maybe I can get some information and arrange it then."

Du Gou felt a bit regretful, but was not in a hurry.

Having a background makes one this willful; at worst, we can just redeploy later.

Chen Yan nodded, having no objections to Du Gou and Fang Yizhi still wanting to follow him.

Both of them are not lacking in future capability, and more importantly they know how to take it easy; plus they're all peers, so they're more familiar with each other.

If we return to Chang'an, having a team under one's command is ultimately beneficial.

"By the way..."

After that, Chen Yan carefully asked about the situation in various parts of Weinan County and how far the previously set plan had been implemented.

Du Gou answered each question.

In short, everything is developing in a good direction; even if Weinan County doesn't change a day, it's not far off.

By now, actually, Chen Yan no longer needs to pay attention everywhere; he has done everything he can.

The rest, Du Gou and Li Yifu, can handle themselves.

After a brief discussion, as Chen Yan was about to stand up and leave, Du Gou stopped him: "Brother Chen, in a few days I'll set up two tables at home; then everyone can come over to celebrate. We've been toiling in Weinan County for so long, and we still haven't had a proper meal together."

"Hm?" Chen Yan was momentarily stunned, then readily agreed.

"No problem, just tell me the exact date later, and I'll be there."

"......"

Leaving the Xianlya, Chen Yan was still worried about Li Tai, so he hurried home to see if Li Tai had set any traps for him.

Fortunately, Li Tai seemed to have learned his lesson, perhaps after being blown up by explosives last time, so he was cautious while researching the cannon.

All protective measures were well done; even when something needed testing, he sent subordinates instead of doing it himself.

This pleased Chen Yan, and he patted the excited Li Tai's shoulder, "Brother Qingque, you finally grew up; my beating you last time wasn't in vain."

Li Tai: "......"

"If I recall correctly, I think I'm older than you, right? And you're also my brother-in-law."

"That's irrelevant!" Chen Yan waved his hand, "Do we still talk about that?"

"Without that familial tie, there's no need to doubt our relationship!"

"From now on, just call me big brother; the brother-in-law is too distant, acting as if I didn't marry your sister, as if we have no relationship."

Li Tai twitched the corner of his mouth and stared at him quietly.

Are you treating me like a fool?

"By the way, Brother Qingque, any progress on the cannon?" Chen Yan cleared his throat and quickly changed the subject.

"I was just about to tell you, I've run into a problem; come over quickly and give me some guidance!" Li Tai said, his voice tinged with regret before excitement returned.

Li Tai hurriedly explained the problem he faced.

In short, he feels the current gunpowder can't support making a cannon, because ordinary gunpowder doesn't provide enough kinetic energy to launch a projectile.

Even simpler, the current gunpowder is too weak; the energy generated upon combustion is insufficient, so even if it can fire a projectile, it won't travel far.

Li Tai tried many methods to no avail; he can only hope Chen Yan will solve it.

"Brother Qingque, you can't always turn to me whenever you hit a snag!" Chen Yan said earnestly, "Actually I'm not omnipotent; you're the true genius in this area!"

"If I could do it, why would I have gone through all that trouble to seek you out in the first place?"

"You agree, right?"

Li Tai blinked and nodded slowly, hesitating, "So... Brother Chen, you also can't solve this problem?"

He was somewhat disappointed, having thought that once Chen Yan returned, all his difficulties would be resolved.

"That's not the case!" Chen Yan shifted tone, "I just want to remind you not to rely on me too much. What I can do is mostly teach you the knowledge in my head; many other things are beyond my power."

"Of course, this problem excluded."

"Regarding the insufficient kinetic energy from gunpowder, I do have some insight on that."

Li Tai: "......"

He wanted to vent, but didn't know where to start.

"You damn know, just say no and it's done!"

"Why drag me into a whole bunch of stuff?"

Li Tai helplessly said, "Alright, alright, I get it. I'll try not to rely on you in the future. Now tell me, how should we solve the gunpowder issue?"

Chen Yan put his arm around his shoulder, led him to an opened bag of gunpowder, and pointed, "First, you need to understand why the gunpowder's kinetic energy is insufficient?"

Without waiting for Li Tai to reply, he continued, "Because the current gunpowder is still in powder form, a physical mixture with low density and many gaps between particles; when ignited, the flame rushes through the gaps, burning too quickly, almost like a detonation."

"Thus its burn duration is short, and thrust is insufficient!"

"If you truly want to make a cannon, you must find a way to optimize the gunpowder, alter the shape of its powder form, increase its density, turning the originally 'explosive' reaction into a 'propulsive' one!"

"Only then can it meet your requirement for long-range fire, understand?"

Li Tai, with a look of dawning comprehension after pondering for a while, asked with a flushed face, "So, how exactly do we change the powder's shape, increase its density, and turn the 'explosive' reaction into a 'propulsive' one?"

"I don't understand!"

"Huh!" Chen Yan exclaimed disdainfully, "You truly are the worst batch I've ever taught; I've explained it so clearly, yet you still don't understand?"

"Since the powder form won't do, let's condense it into granules!"

"Exactly the kind that's one piece each, like tiny pill‑like granules!"

"Got it?"

"Oh! Oh! Oh!" Hearing that, Li Tai instantly understood, a flash of insight.

"Yeah, why didn't I think of that before?"

"Brother Chen, it still has to be you..."

"No, then how do we make the gunpowder into granules?"

Chen Yan: "......"

"......"