Chapter 181: A Brand New Cannon-Casting Method, Patent Holder: Qi Jiguang

The time Yin Zhengmao spent pacifying the Japanese pirates and suppressing bandits in Liangguang was from the fifth year of Longqing to the second year of Wanli.

During this period, the Great Ming imperial court was truly poor. After the Longqing Emperor passed away, the entire capital's treasury was rummaged through, and only 400,000 taels of silver were found to repair the imperial mausoleum; the final payment was only completed in the twelfth month of the first year of Wanli.

How could the mausoleum of a Great Ming Emperor be so shabby?

Yet, it truly was.

The mausoleum of the Chongzhen Emperor cost a total of three thousand taels of silver.

At that time, the Great Ming court was poor, but Yin Zhengmao had to suppress bandits and pacify pirates in the far south of Liangguang, so he had to find a way.

In the process of finding a way, corruption was inevitable. The Great Ming handed over all the regular tax revenue of Liangguang for four years to Yin Zhengmao, letting him go and suppress the bandits and pacify the pirates, ignoring everything else; anyone who could suppress bandits and pacify pirates was a good Viceroy.

Therefore, Yin Zhengmao won, but the military pay for those three thousand guest troops and the notoriety of extorting the powerful gentry were all Yin Zhengmao's crimes of corruption.

Yin Zhengmao's reply was also open and honest; he stated directly that he had raised guest troops, and after the war in Liangguang was settled, the resettlement of these guest troops became a huge problem.

At that time, one option was to follow the proposal of the court censors, disband the guest troops, promote Yin Zhengmao to be a Minister at the Southern Yamen, and strip him of his power over military, political, financial, and civil affairs.

The other option was to follow the advice of the court officials, accept the surrender of Lin Afeng, occupy Lu Song, and give these guest troops and sea pirates a place to run wild.

The court discussion, Zhang Juzheng, and Zhu Yijun ultimately chose the latter; looking at it now, the results are not bad.

"What does the Master think?" Zhu Yijun looked at Zhang Juzheng, asking for his opinion. There were two court officials in the side hall of the Zhao Wenhua Hall: one was Zhang Juzheng, and the other was Yin Zhengmao.

At that time, Zhang Juzheng had repeatedly written letters telling Yin Zhengmao not to be corrupt, but Yin Zhengmao seemed to have ignored Zhang Juzheng entirely.

Zhang Juzheng bowed his head and said: "Viceroy Yin is loyal to the Emperor and cares for the country; he has slaughtered the whales and serpents, and the region is peaceful. His merit is surely great. Leading existing troops to face sudden changes, fighting on his own ground, defending against desperate thieves, without calling for reinforcements, and finishing the campaign without delay, he led the entire army to victory—such merit is truly extraordinary. The rewards of the court are not yet enough to repay him; he is held in the Emperor's heart, and a great appointment is imminent."

If Yin Zhengmao were still in Liangguang, Zhang Juzheng would absolutely not have evaluated him so highly, but Yin Zhengmao was already in Lu Song!

The court's rewards were no longer enough to repay Yin Zhengmao's achievements. "Held in the Emperor's heart, a great appointment is imminent" meant that the past was the past; now that even the powerful masters in Liangguang were no longer being pursued, Zhang Juzheng naturally would not hold onto it either.

The interesting part is right here: when Ling Yunyi arrived in Liangguang, all the powerful gentry of Liangguang missed Viceroy Yin.

Yin Zhengmao was greedy for money and demanded without limit, but Ling Yunyi was bloodthirsty!

Yin Zhengmao knew this, because many powerful gentry in Liangguang even wrote letters to Yin Zhengmao, asking him to persuade Ling Yunyi: "You can extort if you want, you can demand money if you want, but don't cause such a stir by killing people; it's too terrifying."

"Has Viceroy Yin recruited many sea pirates in Lu Song?" Zhu Yijun asked the second question, asking Yin Zhengmao: "What is the meaning of you recruiting pirates in Lu Song? Besides financial autonomy, you also want military autonomy, right? What exactly are you trying to do by recruiting these sea pirates?"

This was also a question Yin Zhengmao had to answer.

Yin Zhengmao bowed his head and said: "Yes."

"Your Majesty, I am in the far south. Most of the sea pirates are desperate men. If they had any other way, they wouldn't be desperate. Desperate, desperate—they are just fleeing to save their lives. I have gathered these desperate men, which is a great taboo for the imperial court. However, there are very few Han people in Lu Song, so I came up with this method. To the Great Ming, they are sea pirates, but to Lu Song, they are Han people, and they are one of the pillars of the Lu Song Viceroy's Office in Lu Song."

Yin Zhengmao flicked his sleeves again, knelt on the ground, and said: "I am terrified; please allow me to defend myself a little."

"How can desperate men have any combat power? They are thin and weak, have no sense of shame, do not obey discipline, and gather and scatter at will—they are just a mob. My strong troops come from the recruited soldiers of Liangguang. Gathering these desperate men is, firstly, to pacify the seas, and secondly, to settle the people. It is just giving them a chance to breathe and a place to settle down."

Yin Zhengmao defended his actions. Lu Song is far overseas, and there are few Han people there, so the desperate sea pirates he recruited in Liangguang were, firstly, to reduce the gathering of sea pirates and prevent them from causing chaos, and secondly, to consolidate the rule of the Lu Song Viceroy's Office in the local area.

This was the reason he did so.

Yin Zhengmao had been pacifying pirates and suppressing bandits for so many years; how could there be so many desperate men? Most were just commoners who couldn't survive, taking risks and going to sea to save their lives.

If one looks at Yin Zhengmao's words from another angle, it is sympathizing with civil unrest, which is a great crime! Sympathizing with rebels—is this Viceroy Yin also going to join the civil unrest?

This was a matter of stance, but Yin Zhengmao still said it; he had a clear conscience.

"Viceroy Yin, in the future, you may forgo grand ceremonies during private audiences; there is no need to kowtow like this." Zhu Yijun first let Yin Zhengmao stand up to answer, then looked at Zhang Juzheng and asked: "What does the Master think?"

Zhang Juzheng bowed his head and said: "I believe that every word Viceroy Yin said is true. To achieve extraordinary merits, one must perform extraordinary deeds. Gathering a few desperate men is just to increase the number of Han people in Lu Song."

Zhang Juzheng bypassed the issue of stance and was quite satisfied with Yin Zhengmao's answer.

This involved the efficiency of the Great Ming's loose control over Lu Song. The Lu Song Viceroy's Office was highly dependent on the support given by the Great Ming court, which was good news for the Great Ming. The core of the Lu Song Viceroy's Office's rule over Lu Song was the three thousand recruited soldiers, and these people were the Great Ming's recruited soldiers. This was the root; as long as this root was not broken, the Great Ming's rule over Lu Song would not be broken.

"Indeed, it is so," Zhu Yijun said with a smile.

Yin Zhengmao was a bit confused; in his view, these two things could not be passed so easily!

His corruption in Liangguang had caused a huge uproar, and Zhang Juzheng had earnestly told him to restrain himself in every letter. The powerful gentry of Liangguang had even impeached him in their congratulatory memorials. This corruption case had actually passed so easily—that was one thing, but gathering desperate men had also passed smoothly?

This involved the issue of stance. Was the court truly not afraid that Yin Zhengmao would cause some major incident in Lu Song?

Yin Zhengmao was actually not optimistic about this trip to the capital. He was no longer a child; he knew too well what a mess the court was. Although every word he said was the truth, the Emperor and the Grand Secretary had to believe it.

The court could actually speak the truth, and after speaking it, His Majesty actually felt it made sense!

This was stranger than the sun rising in the west! Could it be that he was truly a descendant of the Zhu family lost among the people? Otherwise, this imperial favor was truly inexplicable. But judging by the force with which his father beat him when he was young, he was definitely his biological father.

Zhu Yijun looked at Yin Zhengmao's slightly shocked expression and said with a smile: "Viceroy Yin, one must read 'On Contradiction'."

Yin Zhengmao's main contradiction in Liangguang was pacifying pirates and suppressing bandits; others were secondary contradictions. Yin Zhengmao's main contradiction in Lu Song was maintaining the Great Ming's loose control; others were secondary contradictions.

So even if Yin Zhengmao was lying, these two reasons were completely sufficient. As long as the main contradiction was being resolved, there was no need to be so nitpicky about the rest.

Zhu Yijun could still distinguish between priorities.

"The third question: regarding the Lu Song Maritime Trade Office, the court is sending a Supervising Eunuch and a Vice Prefect of Coastal Defense to establish a Military Provisions Office. What does Viceroy Yin think?" Zhu Yijun asked about another issue that had caused the most discussion.

The Lu Song Viceroy, the Great Ming collecting taxes in Lu Song—does Viceroy Yin agree or not?

This was a core conflict of interest, a matter of interest distribution.

"It is as it should be. All matters of coastal defense, anti-smuggling, and tax auditing are the regular business of the court; I cannot oppose them," Yin Zhengmao said without hesitation.

Taking a step back, even if he, Yin Zhengmao, truly wanted to establish himself as a king, he would still need the Great Ming's support. If he didn't pay taxes to the Great Ming, why would the Great Ming support him? That five-masted ocean-going ship docked at Tianjin Wei, if it sailed to Lu Song, would definitely be showing off its power.

Moreover, Yin Zhengmao never considered himself an enemy of the Great Ming. He was the Great Ming's Marquis of Sishui, Minister of the Ministry of War, and Viceroy of Lu Song. "Minister of the Ministry of War" was the origin of the term "Butang" (Minister) for him; the Liangguang Viceroy was called "Du Fu" (Governor), but if one was a Minister of the Ministry of War governing a region, they were called "Butang." That he, Yin Zhengmao, could have today was all thanks to the Great Ming!

If you don't pay taxes to the court, are you planning to rebel?

Yin Zhengmao did not want to rebel, and the Lu Song Viceroy's Office also needed the support of the Great Ming court, so he was willing to pay taxes.

Coastal defense, anti-smuggling, and tax auditing should all have the court's power—this was Yin Zhengmao's answer.

"What does the Master think?" Zhu Yijun looked at Zhang Juzheng again, asking for his opinion. Zhang Juzheng bowed his head and said: "I request rewards for Viceroy Yin."

Zhu Yijun revealed a very happy smile and said: "Good, good, good. Feng Bao, announce the decree."

Feng Bao took a step forward, two young eunuchs pulled open a silk imperial decree, Feng Bao flicked his horsetail whisk again and said loudly: "By the order of the Emperor, the decree says:"

"Those who achieve great things must first rely on people; those who establish great undertakings must rely on geographical advantages. Just like Viceroy Yin's battle to attack Lu Song, how can one truly say that an outer island is enough to establish a foundation for ten thousand generations?"

"Opening up an unprecedented wonder of the ages, the wilderness left these mountains and rivers, creating a world for the people left overseas; experiencing a life of unavoidable encounters, returning the regrets to heaven and earth, he is a perfect man created by the heavens."

"Gathering the spirits of the mountains and rivers, he continues the orthodox calendar for the glorious dynasty; following the coast and living there, he knows that the Middle Kingdom has a sage."

"Now, respectfully informing the ancestors and heaven and earth, I bestow upon you the imperial surname, hoping you will be loyal forever. Your lingering loyalty, only heaven can witness!"

"Following the established constitution of the successive dynasties, spreading virtue and bestowing favors, I announce this to the world, so that all may hear and know."

"Respect this."

As a Jinshi scholar, Yin Zhengmao naturally understood. He knelt on the ground, bowed his head again, and said loudly: "I kowtow to thank His Majesty for his great grace."

At first, he thought it was a routine reward decree. Just as he was about to straighten his waist, the three words "bestow imperial surname" flashed in his mind. He finally understood what the Emperor had bestowed!

Didn't this confirm that he was truly a member of the Zhu family's imperial clan lost outside?

He immediately bowed again and said with a tone of fear: "I truly dare not; I beg Your Majesty to withdraw the order!"

Yin Zhengmao was stunned. He thought he would just be rewarded with some silver, silk, wine, and the like, but the Emperor had pulled a major stunt—bestowing the imperial surname!

What virtue or ability did he, Yin Zhengmao, have to receive such imperial grace?

This thing was truly the first time since the founding of the Great Ming. Bestowing the imperial surname was not rare in ancient times, but in the Great Ming, there was only one example, the Marquis of Qian, and in the end, it was changed back to the Mu surname. If he, Yin Zhengmao, took this decree, ten thousand mouths would not be able to explain it clearly!

Bestowing the imperial surname meant it had to be recorded in the imperial genealogy!

Zhang Juzheng, too bold! How dare he do such a thing?

The side hall of the Zhao Wenhua Hall was silent for a while. Zhu Yijun sighed heavily, his tone slightly listless, and said: "Is Viceroy Yin also going to abandon me?"

"I am terrified; I do not understand what Your Majesty means." Yin Zhengmao was a bit confused; the young Emperor seemed a bit sad.

"Did Viceroy Yin see the empty Huangji (Hall) outside before entering the hall?" Zhu Yijun's tone became more tragic, and he said helplessly: "They set my home on fire!"

Yin Zhengmao finally understood!

They were all officials left behind by the late Emperor, and yet some treacherous villains had become so bold as to burn the imperial palace! If Yin Zhengmao didn't accept this, wouldn't it mean that he, Yin Zhengmao, was also a treacherous official who did not repay the late Emperor's kindness and was not loyal to His Majesty's duties?

Yin Zhengmao thought it over and over again, then bowed his head and said: "I accept the decree!"

Facing the sky-high fire, how terrified, uneasy, and anxious the young Emperor must be. Suddenly hearing that a loyal official of the late Emperor had returned to the capital, hoping to get more support, he had even thought of the ancestral method of bestowing the imperial surname. The young Emperor was in great need of support; this was beyond doubt.

Look at the faces of these treacherous villains; they had forced His Majesty to this point!

Since His Majesty ascended the throne, he had never owed him, Yin Zhengmao, a single bit, and had even rewarded him repeatedly. Yin Zhengmao no longer cared about the notoriety.

"Viceroy Yin, forgo the ceremony." Zhu Yijun curled the corners of his mouth into a smile.

Zhang Juzheng sighed. Young Emperor, just keep acting. You're bullying Yin Zhengmao because he doesn't know the specific situation in the court and doesn't understand the Emperor's true face.

The young Emperor had probably anticipated long ago that someone would take risks, and had even been waiting for this day.

Zhu Yijun went to the Taiye Pool to shoot fish with a slingshot, always staying very close to the water. He was waiting for someone to push him in; he could swim! As a result, he didn't wait for falling into the water, but waited for the burning of the main hall.

In fact, changing the imperial surname in the Great Ming didn't mean removing the "Yin" from Yin Zhengmao, nor did it mean letting Yin Zhengmao completely abandon his ancestors. It was a kind of honor. It was enough to change "Subject Yin Zhengmao" to "Subject Imperial Surname Zhengmao" in the memorials.

This was a way to unite people's hearts and a further confirmation that Lu Song was Great Ming territory.

"Viceroy Yin, follow me." Zhu Yijun began to show off, showing off the results of his seven display cases.

The more Yin Zhengmao looked, the more shocked he became. The Great Ming was currently showing its contradictions. On one hand, the Great Ming was flourishing; on the other hand, the Great Ming Emperor's life was under substantial threat, looking precarious. Every item in these seven display cases could make the Great Ming better, and likewise, every item would make His Majesty more dangerous!

Some snakes, rats, insects, and flies were truly too damned!

Zhu Yijun explained to Yin Zhengmao the changes from crank to circular to reciprocating motion, completing the tour of the Zhao Wenhua Hall side hall.

Gao Gong was introduced by Feng Bao, while Yin Zhengmao was explained by the Emperor himself. The imperial favor was flourishing, held in the Emperor's heart.

"What is this?" Yin Zhengmao looked at a very strange model and asked.

Zhu Yijun looked at the model in front of him and said: "A method invented by General Qi. Looking at the model is not very intuitive. Let's go to the Bureau of Military Equipment and take a look. This is a brand new casting method."

A brand new cannon-casting method, patent holder: Qi Jiguang.

Qi Jiguang was good at winning battles, and he was very attentive to the casting of ordnance. In order to cast suitable and usable cannons, Qi Jiguang also had serious communication and exchanges with the craftsmen and found a method.

In the Great Ming: casting ten guns or cannons, if one could get two or three usable ones, they were called masters.

This refers to the Great Ming's yield rate for casting cannons and firearms. Even for skilled craftsmen, the yield rate was only 20% to 30%. Moreover, once a barrel exploded on the battlefield, the problem would be very serious. Both defense and offense would have loopholes and errors, and it would be easy for the enemy to seize the opportunity.

How to improve the yield rate and reduce barrel explosions became something Qi Jiguang thought about. Qi Jiguang had been observing and summarizing experience, and finally found the problem with the Great Ming's cannon-casting method.

The Great Ming's cannon-casting method was generally divided into two types. The first was sand molding, where the sand-casting workers added clay and water to the sand, constantly stirring and ramming it, and finally forming a mold. A sand mold for a Great General Cannon took at least one month and up to three months. Coupled with the terrifying scrap rate, sand mold cannon casting had disadvantages such as long time and inability to cast in large quantities. The lost-wax sand mold cannon-casting method was the same.

The second type was iron mold cannon casting. Iron mold cannon casting had several advantages: casting iron molds from mud patterns and then using iron molds to cast cannons meant changing the mold from sand mold to cast iron model. In this way, there was no need to waste construction time, cannons could be cast in large quantities, and the cannon mold could be used repeatedly to reduce mold-making costs; there was no need to wait for the mold to air-dry like a mud mold, which greatly improved production efficiency.

Since iron mold cannon casting was so good, why improve the process?

Iron mold casting was not a new technology; it had been widely applied as early as the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. There was nothing that only had advantages and no disadvantages.

The biggest problem with iron mold casting was barrel explosion, so the cannon wall had to be constantly thickened to prevent barrel explosion. Later, this cannon was cast larger and heavier, which was contrary to Qi Jiguang's purpose of using artillery for field battles. A seven or eight thousand jin cannon could only be loaded with twelve jin of gunpowder. After firing two shots, the barrel was shaken and cracked. What else was there to fight with?

The biggest problem with iron mold cannon casting was rapid cooling from outside to inside. The inner wall of the cannon barrel would appear with a large amount of hard and brittle white-mouth cast iron. Being hard meant it could not be ground, the inside of the cannon barrel could not be bored smooth, and being brittle meant it would break due to explosion.

The method commonly used in the Great Ming with a relatively high yield rate was: double-layered iron cannons with inner forging and outer casting.

The inside was wrought iron, and the outside was cast pig iron. The Great Ming's artillery looked very ordinary, with a large number of sand holes and pores on the outside. Sometimes when the artillery was fired, a piece would fall off. It didn't matter if it looked ugly, as long as the performance was good.

Falling off a piece didn't hinder the artillery from continuing to fire, and it could be repaired later. This was all because of the wrought iron cannon core forged by hundred-refining.

The cannon core was forged from hundred-refined wrought iron, so the outer cannon body was damaged, while the inner cannon body remained intact. Because the outer pig iron only served to reinforce the inner forged iron cannon barrel, the craftsmen who cast the outer layer became unscrupulous, and if it fell off, they would just patch it up.

Therefore, as long as the inner forged iron cannon core of the Great Ming's artillery was not broken, it could be used continuously.

And Qi Jiguang's method was different from sand molding, iron molding, and inner forging and outer casting. The method he used was obtained by the collective wisdom of the craftsmen of the Great Ming Bureau of Military Equipment.

Zhu Yijun arrived at the Bureau of Military Equipment. The eunuch in charge of the Bureau of Military Equipment received the news too late, and the cleaning was not finished when His Majesty arrived.

"Heaven-class No. 27 Great General Cannon." Zhu Yijun arrived at the warehouse, asked people to pull away the covering tarpaulin, and said with a smile.

Heaven-class is imperial manufacture, with the Emperor personally supervising the work. No. 27 cannon doesn't mean it has 27 brothers; it means it was the 27th time the Great Ming's new cannon-casting method successfully cast a cannon, and it was successfully fired multiple times.

According to the official rank, there were a total of 257 characters on the cannon body from top to bottom, from the two characters "Imperial Manufacture," Duke of England Zhang Rong, Duke of Dingguo Xu Wenbi, Earl of Qian'an Qi Jiguang, all the way to the names of the craftsmen, all were on the cannon.

Zhu Yijun stood in front of the cannon, looked up at the eight-jin gunpowder cannon, and said with a smile: "This cannon is seven feet two inches and three-tenths long, with an inner diameter of three inches and three-tenths, an outer diameter of eight inches and one-tenth, a cannon body doubling diameter of 24, weighing 1800 jin, and a range of about eight hundred paces."

"The method of inner forging and outer casting is actually very good, effectively improving the yield rate, but there is still a huge problem, that is, it cannot be cast in large quantities, the production capacity is limited, the casting of a cannon core takes several months, the production efficiency is low, and at the same time, the maximum inner diameter is six inches, and it cannot be larger."

"This prompted the birth of this artillery."

"Iron mold inner water-cooled cannon-casting method."

Long-term practice of cannon casting found that the most important and fundamental reason for the high scrap rate of cannon casting was the cooling speed difference between the inside and outside of the cannon barrel. Both sand molding and iron molding had this problem, so the cannon core was a compromise method.

Moreover, the larger the caliber of the cannon barrel, the thicker the cannon barrel wall, and the more obvious the difference in cooling speed inside and outside the cannon barrel. Due to this difference in cooling speed, many cannon barrels with poor material and unevenness would produce cracks in the cannon body during cooling due to thermal expansion and contraction.

Cracks in the cannon body meant scrap.

And the most critical point was the difference in cooling speed inside and outside the cannon barrel. Some cracks were invisible on the surface, but inside the metal of the pipe wall.

Therefore, the cannons made at that time all needed a first test firing. That was to fill the cannon barrel with gunpowder but not load the cannonball, and fire it once. Those without cracks in the pipe wall were qualified. This was called test firing, but often the cannons that passed the test firing would still explode or the cannon body would break on the battlefield.

Because the cracks caused by the difference in cooling speed would not be exploded once, but twice or three times.

This was also the reason why ginseng iron could be used as a gift by Li Chengliang, Earl of Ningyuan.

Guangning Wei had a cannon named "Yaowei Great General Cannon," a double-layered ten-thousand-jin iron cannon, which could use forty-seven jin of iron balls and twenty-three jin of gunpowder. The cannon body was 15 times the inner diameter and weighed more than ten thousand jin. It was powerful, but a ten-thousand-jin cannon was inconvenient to transport and could only be used as a city defense cannon.

The Great Ming did not have widespread ginseng iron, so improving the process was imperative.

Qi Jiguang and the craftsmen of the Great Ming Bureau of Military Equipment gave the answer: iron mold. Iron mold could be cast on a large scale. The problem that needed to be solved was the accumulation of white-mouth iron on the inner side caused by the cooling of the outside of the cast cannon being too fast and the inside cooling too slowly.

The craftsmen chose water cooling, inner mold water cooling technology.

After 27 trial productions, the research and development of the iron mold inner water-cooled cannon-casting method was finally completed. The rate of internal water cooling was a result obtained after more than 20 practices, which greatly accelerated the speed of cannon casting while greatly improving the yield rate.

Yin Zhengmao clicked his tongue in wonder around the cannon and soon understood the application scope of this new technology. He said with slightly rapid breathing: "Doesn't this mean heavy cannons can be built?"

"Yes, the Bureau of Military Equipment designed a type of naval cannon," Zhu Yijun nodded and said: "It has an inner diameter of three inches and five-tenths, while the outer diameter changes from thick and heavy at the tail to thin at the head. The cannon body is about nine feet five inches and one-tenth long, weighing about 2000 jin, with a range of over eight hundred paces. It can be loaded with solid balls or explosive shells weighing more than nine jin, and can effectively penetrate four-inch-thick wooden decks within three hundred paces."

"Regrettably, it hasn't been built yet."

Yin Zhengmao was in the navy, so he naturally cared about naval cannons. The current powerful Great General Cannons had too many shortcomings. One cannon weighed at least five thousand jin or more. If this load was changed to grain and fresh water, it could effectively increase the endurance. The new cannon-casting method could effectively reduce the weight while increasing the power of the artillery.

The naval cannon was still in trial production. He didn't know if he could receive this more powerful and lighter artillery on his return voyage.

Yin Zhengmao followed the Emperor's footsteps, looked at the factory building where the Bureau of Military Equipment cast cannons, and especially had questions about water cooling and the thickness of the cannon wall weight.

Zhu Yijun explained: "The explosive power at the tail is the greatest, so it is the thickest and heaviest. Likewise, the head is light and the foot is heavy, which can also maintain the center of gravity and make the artillery more stable. The reason for this design is because of this chart, the explosive power curve chart."

"This is the result of 'Dushu Pangtong' (comprehensive understanding of degrees). The specific measurement method is like this."

Zhu Yijun explained the concept of chamber pressure. Drilling holes in different parts, filling them with lead pellets, after the cannon exploded, the lead pellets were shot out, and the depth of penetration into the wooden board was the specific embodiment of chamber pressure.

The chamber pressure at the tail was high, so the cannon wall was thick and heavy; the chamber pressure at the front was small, so the cannon wall was light and thin. The purpose of doing this was to reduce weight without affecting the performance of the artillery, especially the service life.

Yin Zhengmao was shocked to numbness. His Majesty had truly spent a lot of effort for the sake of strengthening the military.

Yin Zhengmao would stay in the capital for half a month, mainly to participate in the court discussion and determine the plan for the county-level administration of Lu Song. Before Yin Zhengmao entered the capital, Zhang Juzheng had already sent a letter to Yin Zhengmao, explaining it in detail.

Viceroy Yin returned to the capital and stayed at the Quanchu Guild Hall. He was of the Chu Party, Zhang Juzheng's direct descendant, and Zhang Juzheng's winning trump card to defeat Gao Gong.

That night, Zhang Juzheng specially opened a bottle of "Guojiao" (National Cellar), sweet potato shochu, which was wine brewed by His Majesty himself, a distilled spirit. After Zhang Juzheng filled Yin Zhengmao's cup, he said: "Brother Shiting, this cup of wine is to honor a hero."

Yin Zhengmao was twelve years older than Zhang Juzheng.

Zhang Juzheng admired Yin Zhengmao very much. A Jinshi scholar leading troops to fight was a thankless job. If you lost, you died; if you won, under the public opinion of promoting literature and suppressing martial arts, you won on the battlefield but lost in the court. Therefore, Yin Zhengmao personally leading troops to fight was a hero.

"Brother Shiting, return the waist tag of the Quanchu Guild Hall to me tomorrow," Zhang Juzheng drank it all in one gulp and said with a smile: "Anyway, Viceroy Yin is now the 'Guoxingye' (Lord of the Imperial Surname), so the rules cannot be broken."

"I sent several letters to Guangzhou in a row before, repeatedly urging the Viceroy to restrain himself a bit, but the Viceroy refused to listen. Now he can only go to sea and cannot come back."

Yin Zhengmao drank it all in one gulp, shook his head, and said: "I cannot restrain myself. He who travels a hundred miles covers ninety as half. Seeing that the merit of pacifying the Japanese pirates is about to be achieved, I must be rewarded even more. The greatest achievement of my life, Yin Zhengmao, is pacifying the Japanese pirate scourge in Liangguang. As for attacking Lu Song, it is just finding a way out for the guest troops I raised."

"The Great Ming has no place for them, so going to Lu Song is just right."

"Indeed, there was Zhu Wan before and Hu Zongxian after. I, this Liangguang Viceroy, pacifying sea pirates, may not necessarily have a good ending. Sometimes I think that dying on the battlefield is better than winning on the battlefield but losing in the court. But being in the southeast and seeing the misery of the world, I cannot help but pacify the Japanese pirates."

Yin Zhengmao could understand the protection in Zhang Juzheng's letters, but since he took the job of pacifying the Japanese pirates, there was only one path he could take: kill all the Japanese pirates who dared to invade. This was his only path.

"Who burned the imperial palace?" Yin Zhengmao asked with a frown.

Zhang Juzheng was silent for a while and said: "Zhang Siwei, Wu Dui, and Fang Fengshi were the leaders. The clan members involved in Shanxi alone exceeded twenty-four people, including Yang Bo's relatives and Wang Chonggu's relatives. The number of people sentenced to be beheaded is 1728."

"So many?" Yin Zhengmao was stunned for a moment and said: "The Grand Secretary is afraid he will bear the notoriety."

"If I have to bear some notoriety, then so be it," Zhang Juzheng shook his head and said: "Some grievances, His Majesty cannot suffer. It is not a big deal for a subject to bear some notoriety."

"I don't think so," Yin Zhengmao disagreed with Zhang Juzheng's statement. He said quite solemnly: "Grand Secretary's new policy will be a specific breakthrough point. With the Grand Secretary here, naturally, there is no need to say much; but when you are gone, it will definitely be the beginning and breakthrough point for counter-reckoning."

Yin Zhengmao clearly knew Zhang Juzheng's ambitions.

Requesting monthly tickets, Aowu!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(End of chapter)