Chapter 90: Have You Ever Read Journey to the West?

…

In a remote corner of the massive agricultural research base prepared by Zhao Yu for Yuan Qingcheng, farthest from civilian residential areas.

Zhao Yu, accompanied by Li Lin, Ma Xiao Jiao, Huang Jingchen, Liang Shicheng, Accompanying Tong Guan, Li Yan, and a group of R&D personnel and personal guards, was testing the tiger crouching cannon and the thundering bomb here.

The tiger crouching cannon was a distinctive type of cannon from the Ming dynasty. Qi Jiguang, while fighting Japanese pirates along the southeastern coast, found that the arquebus was accurate but lacked power and could not repel large enemy formations, while the Portuguese cannon was too clumsy and heavy to carry or maneuver easily; thus, he planned to create a firearm stronger than the arquebus but lighter and more portable than the Portuguese cannon, giving rise to the tiger crouching cannon.

This cannon was not difficult to manufacture, especially for Ma Xiao Jiao, who thoroughly understood casting and forging techniques.

Moreover, Ma Xiao Jiao had at her disposal a large number of highly skilled artisans of all kinds.

Crucially, Li Lin, familiar with weapons from ancient and modern times, both domestic and foreign, helped fill in the gaps.

One could even say that the tiger crouching cannons produced by Ma Xiao Jiao and Li Lin were superior to those in history.

Overall, the tiger crouching cannon had a barrel two feet long from end to end, reinforced with seven iron bands, its muzzle supported by two iron claws, and equipped with an iron trigger; its total weight was thirty-six catties (approximately 21.5 kilograms in modern units), appearing like a crouching tiger, imposing and fierce.

Made of wrought iron, each firing could load one hundred small lead or stone pellets weighing five qian each, topped by a single large lead or stone projectile weighing thirty taels; its range was not great—only about three to four hundred steps—but far exceeded that of bows and crossbows. When fired, both large and small projectiles flew together, roaring like thunder, with wide area of effect and significant lethality, effectively suppressing dense enemy assaults.

Historically, during Qi Jiguang's campaigns against Japanese pirates in the south, Ming troops deployed three tiger crouching cannons per five hundred soldiers to effectively counter pirate mass charges. In the north against Mongol nobles, Qi Jiguang's cavalry battalions, each of 2,700 men, typically carried sixty tiger crouching cannons; when Mongol cavalry approached, they first fired arquebuses and other firearms, then unleashed the tiger crouching cannons; during close combat, Ming troops formed the "mandarin duck formation" to meet the enemy, and when the enemy retreated, they pursued and bombarded them.

Some superior tiger crouching cannons could also breach fortifications; during the Ming's campaign to aid Korea against Japanese invaders, they used tiger crouching cannons to fire stone or iron balls, causing noticeable damage to enemy walls and defensive works.

Of course, the tiger crouching cannon's greatest advantage was its lightness and flexibility; due to its thin barrel, it could be fired at high angles and easily maneuvered in complex terrain such as mountains, forests, and rice paddies, allowing mass deployment among frontline units, essentially serving the role of a mortar.

As for the thundering bomb, it was essentially a hand grenade.

This era already had prototypes of the thundering bomb, called "fireballs" (also known as "fire cannons"). These were made by wrapping gunpowder in multiple layers of paper, cloth, and other materials, then igniting and throwing them by hand to kill enemies with explosive flames.

The official Song military manual, the Wujing Zongyao, detailed eight methods for making fireballs, including "ignition fireballs" and "poisonous smoke balls," used for burning, smoke, or gas attacks.

Although these fireballs primarily relied on combustion, they already possessed the characteristics of hand-thrown munitions.

By the late Southern Song, Song troops had begun using iron-cased explosive weapons.

For example: the Zhen Tian Lei, with a cast-iron shell filled with gunpowder and ignited via a fuse, shattered into fragments upon explosion, significantly increasing lethality and becoming a powerful tool for siege and defense, commonly used to blast open city walls during sieges or to throw into enemy formations during field battles to inflict mass casualties.

Li Lin and Ma Xiao Jiao's thundering bombs directly replaced paper and cloth with cast iron, added wooden handles, and used the lever principle to extend throwing distance, evolving them directly into hand grenades.

Notably, to amplify the power of the thundering bombs and tiger crouching cannons, Li Lin developed the optimal granular black powder formula and the chestnut-colored propellant for firing.

In other words, these tiger crouching cannons and thundering bombs were now genuine weapons of mass destruction.

However, until now, since the tiger crouching cannons and thundering bombs had been developed separately from gunpowder, they had never been combined, and no one knew what their true power would be.

Yet, Zhao Yu could see that Li Lin was confident. She calmly directed the artisans to load gunpowder into the tiger crouching cannons and thundering bombs exactly as she instructed.

After loading the gunpowder, placing the one hundred small lead pellets, and capping them with a single large lead projectile, Li Lin skillfully adjusted the cannon's elevation with a quick thumb motion.

Afterward, Li Lin explained the firing precautions and safe evacuation routes to Accompanying Tong Guan, ensuring that if any accident occurred, he could swiftly and orderly retreat to a secure zone.

Accompanying Tong Guan listened to Li Lin's instructions, his eyes gleaming with excitement and anticipation.

Accompanying Tong Guan had already heard Li Lin describe the tiger crouching cannon's power to Zhao Yu.

He doubted Li Lin's claims: "Can this tiger crouching cannon really have such power?"

After Li Lin finished speaking, Accompanying Tong Guan took a deep breath, steadied his racing heart, and walked steadily toward the cannon. He gripped the lit torch tightly, his eyes showing a hint of nervousness, but mostly the eagerness to witness the new weapon's power.

Everyone around held their breath, eyes locked on Accompanying Tong Guan and the cannon. Zhao Yu even embraced Ma Xiao Jiao, covering her ears to shield her from the noise.

As Accompanying Tong Guan's torch touched the fuse, a hissing sound broke the silence, sparks racing rapidly along the fuse.

Many involuntarily stepped back several paces; Zhao Yu pulled Ma Xiao Jiao backward too, and even Accompanying Tong Guan, after lighting the fuse, hurried away—but Li Lin stood perfectly still, unmoving.

"Boom!" A thunderous explosion shattered the open testing ground; the cannon recoiled violently, its powerful recoil causing the ground to tremble slightly. Instantly, a thick cloud of smoke and flame erupted from the muzzle, and the projectiles rained down like a meteor shower toward the distant target.

At the moment the projectiles struck, a cloud of dust and shattered stones rose in the distance; the immense impact shattered the simulated enemy formation that had been erected ahead.

Everyone stared in stunned silence, then erupted into a chorus of astonished exclamations.

Even Accompanying Tong Guan, who had previously doubted the cannon's power, now widened his eyes in utter disbelief.

Only Li Lin frowned slightly, seemingly dissatisfied with the cannon's power.

Li Lin thought, "The mixture ratio is correct, the seal is intact, no moisture… hmm… perhaps the saltpeter they used is impure?"

At this moment, Zhao Yu approached Li Lin and lavished praise: "My beloved, this divine weapon is truly extraordinary."

Li Lin internally scoffed: "So now you call me 'beloved' when it's useful, but just 'Xiao Lin' when it's not."

Yet, Li Lin had no time to dwell on Zhao Yu's attitude; she hurriedly asked: "Your Majesty, with such divine weapons, could the ten thousand Gan Yong be formed into a new army?"

Zhao Yu replied without hesitation: "As you wish, my beloved. I believe that with the tiger crouching cannon and the divine-arm crossbow, this army will be invincible. Hmm… these two new armies shall be named the Divine Mechanism Left Army and the Divine Mechanism Right Army. If proven effective, they may become my personal guard; the rest we'll discuss later."

Li Lin was overjoyed and bowed deeply: "Your Majesty is wise!"

Next, Accompanying Tong Guan personally operated the thundering bomb to test its power.

The thundering bomb also left Accompanying Tong Guan deeply shaken.

After testing and summarizing, Accompanying Tong Guan found that the thundering bomb produced powerful shockwaves capable of injuring enemies within a certain radius and damaging nearby defenses; crucially, it was simple to operate, easy to learn, compact, easily carried by soldiers, silent when thrown, and, if properly deployed, might prove even more effective in combat than the tiger crouching cannon.

Accompanying Tong Guan was a discerning man—he realized that combining these two weapons with the divine-arm crossbow and others could indeed forge an invincible army.

Accompanying Tong Guan glanced at Li Lin subtly: "Where on earth did Your Majesty find this woman, who can create such divine weapons?"

After the tests, Zhao Yu ordered that the pregnant Ma Xiao Jiao be sent back to rest, then took Li Lin and Accompanying Tong Guan to Funing Palace.

Funing Palace was Zhao Yu's private residence, located behind the Chuigong Palace. Sometimes, after handling court affairs in the front palace, Zhao Yu would return to Funing Palace to continue dealing with less urgent or more private matters, such as meeting close ministers or processing internal palace documents.

Back in Funing Palace, Zhao Yu immediately began reviewing memorials, neither mentioning the tiger crouching cannon nor the thundering bomb, nor explaining why he had brought Li Lin and Accompanying Tong Guan here—he seemed to be ignoring them entirely.

Li Lin was confused and anxious.

She had eagerly returned with Zhao Yu hoping to discuss how to establish the Divine Mechanism Left and Right Armies, yet after returning, Zhao Yu had spent all his time reviewing memorials, showing no intention whatsoever to consult her.

Li Lin watched Zhao Yu, growing increasingly impatient. She wanted to ask, yet feared provoking his displeasure, risking her fall from favor—or worse, banishment to the cold palace—losing all her hard-won progress and any chance to realize her value and dreams, doomed to a meaningless, sorrowful life in the harem.

So Li Lin could only wait patiently, hoping Zhao Yu would remember her and initiate the discussion about the Divine Mechanism Left and Right Armies.

But she waited—and waited—until night fell completely.

Only then did Zhao Yu finally finish reviewing the memorials. Yet, instead of discussing the Divine Mechanism Left and Right Armies with Li Lin, he didn't even glance at her—as if he'd forgotten she was there—and turned to retire.

Li Lin was utterly baffled. She felt Zhao Yu must have some deeper intention, but she couldn't grasp it.

Accompanying Tong Guan glanced at Li Lin, then left as well.

Zhao Yu left, even Accompanying Tong Guan left; Li Lin couldn't possibly stay alone here—she could only walk back by herself.

What is Zhao Yu's intention?

What did Accompanying Tong Guan's glance mean?

Li Lin didn't return home; she went to Zhang Chun's residence. She wanted Zhang Chun to help her analyze what Zhao Yu was really up to.

To Li Lin's surprise, Ye Shi Yun, Ma Xiao Jiao, and Yuan Qing Cheng were all at Zhang Chun's place.

Seeing Li Lin return, the four women were slightly startled; Ma Xiao Jiao bluntly asked, "Sis Lin, didn't you go to serve him?"

"She must still be undecided, unwilling to serve him, and Zhao Yu didn't force her, so he let her come back," Ye Shi Yun said.

"Zhao Yu is genuinely decent—he never pressures us. Since I took over the agricultural base, as long as I don't seek him out, he never comes to me. If I have an issue, I just tell Liang Shicheng, and it's resolved quickly," Yuan Qing Cheng also had a good impression of Zhao Yu.

"For a man like the Emperor, women of our looks are countless—there are plenty prettier than us, and they all long to cling to him. Why would he need to force us?" Ma Xiao Jiao said.

"The Emperor treats us well because he knows we're useful—he respects our abilities. Whether or not to serve him is entirely up to personal choice. So, Qing Cheng, you don't need to avoid him; if you don't want to, he won't touch you. Look at Sis Lin—she's by his side every day, and nothing's happened, right, Lin?" Ma Xiao Jiao asked Li Lin.

The four women turned their gaze to Li Lin, who had entered without uttering a word.

To the four women's surprise, Li Lin didn't mention serving him at all—she simply blurted out, "Help me figure out what Zhao Yu really means."

"???"

The four women were utterly baffled.

"Tell us," Zhang Chun said.

Li Lin recounted everything that had happened in full detail.

After listening, Zhang Chun looked at Li Lin and said, "Are you stupid?"

Li Lin was confused: "What do you mean by that?"

Zhang Chun rolled her eyes: "Have you ever read Journey to the West? When Patriarch Bodhi was about to teach Sun Wukong the Seventy-Two Transformations, he tapped his head three times—bang, bang, bang—then closed the front door and left. Sun Wukong went to find him through the back door at midnight and learned the true art. Some things require insight."

Li Lin frowned: "Insight?"

Seeing Li Lin still didn't understand, Zhang Chun refused to waste another word on this utterly dense straight woman: "Whoever has patience, explain it to her properly."

Yuan Qing Cheng, who was closest to Li Lin, said, "Sis Lin, haven't you ever wondered why Zhao Yu took only you and Accompanying Tong Guan back?"

Hearing Yuan Qing Cheng's words and recalling Accompanying Tong Guan's final glance, Li Lin suddenly understood: "You mean Zhao Yu wants me to discuss building a new army with Accompanying Tong Guan? No—Zhao Yu probably wants me to teach Accompanying Tong Guan the tactics for the tiger crouching cannon and thunder bombs?"

……

(End of Chapter)