Chapter 156: Skillful Work

Outside Changmen in Suzhou, the flow of people was thick as weaving. A small four-wheeled cart parted the crowd, advancing along the bluestone street. Pang Yu sat cross-legged on the carriage frame; the carter in front was bare-armed, pulling two ropes that drew the four-wheeled cart, and he didn't seem to be straining much.

This kind of four-wheeled cart rode almost flush with the ground. One could say he was riding, but looking around, every pedestrian around him was taller than he was. At eye level he could see only a forest of legs and feet; Pang Yu felt as if he were being paraded through the streets.

A monk walked past beside him, balancing a pagoda on his head. The pagoda was fully half a person's height. Looking up at it from Pang Yu's cross-legged seated height, the pagoda top swayed back and forth, threatening to come crashing down on his head at any moment.

"Stop, stop!" Pang Yu could not endure this experience. After calling out twice, the carter immediately halted the cart. Pang Yu rubbed his legs and got off, then stood up from the ground. Guo Fengyou was instantly at his side.

They had already gone five li out of the city from Changmen, yet along the way buildings still stood in dense rows, and the pedestrians showed no sign of thinning.

"Second Brother, just how big is Suzhou city?" He Xianya was riding a single-wheeled cart. His carter had a somewhat harder job than the four-wheeled cart's, having to bear part of the weight on his shoulder.

Pang Yu had already stayed in Suzhou for three days and had walked through nearly the entire city. The overall layout of Suzhou Prefectural City was three horizontal and four vertical thoroughfares, with waterways crisscrossing the city, exploiting the advantages of water transport to the fullest. This had formed the Taihu economic region centered on Suzhou, the most densely populated area in the Ming dynasty. Thus Suzhou extended far beyond Suzhou's city walls; the dense market towns of the entire Taihu region were all extensions of Suzhou.

Today, having left the city, Pang Yu discovered that in commercial terms, the prosperity outside the city even surpassed that within. In the part Pang Yu had traversed, for six or seven li outside the city it was still a continuous urban market form. With such an enormous urban cluster, three days' time was only enough to tour the main streets.

He Xianya followed him off the cart. Pang Yu asked for directions and headed north along a river channel. Inside and outside Suzhou, streams and rivers wound around everything; boats large and small plied the waters; everywhere along the streets, grass and trees grew lush and green. Compared to small places like Tongcheng and Anqing, the greenery was actually better, with an added gentleness of the water country.

Most of the women on the road wore plain-colored, narrow-sleeved long dresses, which compared to the Nanjing marketplace had an extra touch of understated elegance. There were also some novel styles that even Nanjing had never seen.

After looking around everywhere, He Xianya said in a low voice, "In the old days, the women of Tongcheng were always talking about 'Xi-style.' Whenever any Xi-style arrived, within days it would sweep through the whole city. Now that we've come to Suzhou, I realize that Tongcheng's Xi-style was somewhat outlandish and not quite right."

Pang Yu laughed. "It's been the same from ancient times to now. Whether it looks good or not, you have to catch the trend first."

"But if we're talking about craftsmanship, Suzhou truly deserves to be first. These past two days, the Huzhou silk, books, glasses, folding fans, and such we've seen are all perfect in every detail. Compared to Suzhou's artisans, those from other places all seem slightly crude. No wonder the women of Tongcheng always ask whether something comes from Suzhou."

"Today we're going to see this — I've heard he's a famous artisan in Suzhou city, and what's rare is that he can also write books."

He Xianya said with some concern, "Then he's a scholar. I wonder if he'll give us the cold shoulder."

"He has no official rank." Pang Yu smiled smugly. "He's not even an Imperial Academy Student — he doesn't have the standing to give us the cold shoulder."

He Xianya thought for a moment, then chimed in, "Tomorrow, once you've received the Flag of Authority, you'll be the Anqing Garrison Commander. How would a mere craftsman dare give you the cold shoulder?"

"Receiving the Flag of Authority only means I'm temporarily handling affairs. Once the Appointment Certificate from the Ministry of War arrives, I'll officially be the Anqing Garrison Commander." At the mention of official rank, Pang Yu unconsciously clasped his hands behind his back and straightened his posture a little more.

Just then they reached a bend in the river channel. A small courtyard sat right at the projecting point, surrounded on three sides by the river water. A large locust tree in the courtyard was strikingly conspicuous. The lantern hanging at the gate bore the character 'Bao.'

Pang Yu walked to the gate. Guo Fengyou had already rushed ahead a step and knocked the door ring several times.

The courtyard gate soon opened. A servant boy came out and said politely, "What business do you have, honored guests?"

"May I ask, is this the residence of Mr. Bao Yu?"

The servant boy sized Pang Yu up. "May I ask where the honored guest comes from?"

"I am a military man from Anqing. Mr. Ma of the Grand Coordinator's headquarters introduced me. I heard that Mr. Bao is manufacturing bronze cannons for His Excellency Zhang, and I have come specifically to consult you, sir." (Note 1)

The servant boy's expression relaxed. He gently pulled open the gate leaf and led the way inside.

Pang Yu strolled in. It was indeed different from an ordinary household: the garden was piled full of wooden racks, along with all sorts of saws, hammers, and other tools. Prominently placed on the ground was a bronze cannon, sitting there casually in the courtyard.

A man of about thirty was seated in the courtyard, holding a pair of glasses in his hand. He raised his head to look at Pang Yu, his eyes blank for a moment, as if he had not yet pulled free from his thoughts.

The servant boy stood beside the man and reported in a low voice. Pang Yu performed a respectful salute and said, "Latecomer Student Pang Yu, Anqing Garrison Commander, pays his respects to Mr. Bao."

Bao Yu blinked, seeming to come back to himself, and hurriedly stood up. "So it is the Garrison Commander. Have you come to inquire about the cannon?"

"I have come to seek your instruction, sir."

"Earlier, when His Excellency Zhang heard that the Roving Bandits had entered Anqing, he immediately arranged for this humble one to manufacture bronze cannons, saying they were to be prepared for the defense of Anqing city. This humble one worked day and night for nearly a month and completed one. Then I heard the Roving Bandits had withdrawn again, and there was no further word from the Grand Coordinator Yamen. I thought His Excellency Zhang no longer wanted it."

Pang Yu smiled politely. "His Excellency Zhang Guowei governs a whole region; his word, once spoken, is as good as settled. What has been made, he will certainly take. That day the cannon was ordered for Anqing, which means it is for the troops under my command to use. His Excellency Zhang asked me to come take a look first."

"Garrison Commander, come this way." Bao Yu was somewhat excited; he didn't even put down the glasses in his hand before leading Pang Yu over to that large cannon. Proudly pointing at the cannon, he said, "Garrison Commander Pang, look at this cannon. The barrel is six chi long, it fires a five-jin shot, and uses three jin of powder. We test-fired it once outside the city, and at three hundred and fifty paces it left two shell craters. If it hit a man, he would certainly be torn to pieces."

Pang Yu listened while crouching down to examine it carefully. The barrel was thick and sturdy; the trunnions were fixed to the carriage with iron bands. But the carriage was extremely low, just like the four-wheeled cart Pang Yu had been sitting in earlier. This made the cannon quite different from the muzzle-loading cannons in Pang Yu's impression.

"Mr. Bao, this cannon is very finely made, but why is the carriage so low? If it needs to move on an official road, these wheels aren't even as deep as cart ruts."

Bao Yu said confidently, "This cannon is primarily for city defense; it will all be moved atop the city wall. I went up onto the Suzhou city wall to look, and nothing there obstructs these wheels. Moreover, this form is modeled on the carriage of the Western-style Red Barbarian Cannon. It works well in Liaodong, so it can't be wrong. The barrel is made entirely of bronze, which has a great advantage: you can cast the cannon using the iron molds for farming tools, regardless of season, and without the time needed to dry clay molds."

"I see. May I ask how much this cannon weighs?"

"A little over a thousand jin."

After looking it over, Pang Yu had some idea in his mind. His knowledge of this type of muzzle-loading cannon all came from movies; the only thing he could really comment on was the external shape. At the very least, the carriage had to be improved, otherwise mobility was basically out of the question.

"Mr. Bao, this cannon is very well made, but the foremost priority for anything is meeting the need. Now that the Roving Bandits have withdrawn, I feel the purpose of cannon-making should shift somewhat. The primary concerns are weight and the carriage. It must not only be light, but also sturdy. I need it to be able to travel fifty li a day on an official road, for at least ten consecutive days, pulled by at most four horses — two horses would be best. The carriage and barrel must be easy to disassemble, convenient for loading and unloading from boats. The barrel needs attachment points for hoisting. And the price must be cheap."

He Xianya and the others all looked at Pang Yu in astonishment. They hadn't expected him to put forward such specific requirements. It sounded as if Pang Yu even understood cannons — the Stick God truly had vast and profound abilities.

Bao Yu was stunned for a moment. His mouth moved several times without making a sound to interrupt. Hearing this, he finally couldn't help saying, "For this cannon I made, I only received the initial one hundred and fifty taels of silver. The iron mold alone cost one hundred taels, and the price of copper is expensive..."

"Whatever the shortfall, I will make it up. I'm buying this cannon." Pang Yu patted the ice-cold bronze cannon. Though the external appearance wasn't very attractive, it was at least a usable cannon, far better than those Hundred-Subcannon the Anqing Prefecture issued to Tongcheng.

Bao Yu's mood lifted considerably. He rubbed the back of one hand with the hand holding the glasses and said, "Then I shall find a boatman and ask how to ship it to Anqing Prefecture."

With the purchase of the bronze cannon settled, the relationship between the two men drew much closer. The cannon was secondary to Pang Yu; he cared more about the man who made it. As he listened to Bao Yu speak, his gaze fell on the glasses in Bao Yu's hand. They were actually rimless glasses with ear hooks; the ear pieces were made of copper, and where they connected to the lenses, they were shaped like flower petals. Not only was the craftsmanship superb, but they were also exquisitely beautiful.

Pang Yu recalled Fang Yizhi's talk of grinding telescope lenses and couldn't help asking, "Mr. Bao also makes lenses?"

"This item has many uses. Many people come to me to make them; I must deliver a batch every few days."

"Then can you, sir, grind lenses for a telescope?"

"Naturally, I can." Bao Yu looked around and suddenly remembered they were still in the courtyard. He hurriedly invited Pang Yu toward the back, but did not enter the house. After skirting the building, there was that large locust tree. Beside the locust tree was a bamboo pavilion, right next to the riverbank, dotted around with some emerald bamboo. Though small, the pavilion had an artistic mood.

Bao Yu sent the servant boy to brew tea, turned around, and went into the house, bringing out a copper tube. In front of Pang Yu, he extended the copper tube — it was actually a three-section collapsible telescope, over a meter long when fully extended. He Xianya and the others waited outside the pavilion; seeing such a thing was an eye-opener for them. The collapsible tube alone was high technology for this era.

This collapsible telescope was nothing like the simple wooden tube Fang Yizhi had; its craftsmanship was far finer, and it was much more convenient to use.

Pang Yu took it in his hands. It felt quite heavy, apparently also made of copper. He asked Bao Yu, "In Nanjing, I saw a young gentleman making a telescope, referencing Tang Ruowang's 'Telescope Treatise.' I wonder if Mr. Bao does the same."

"In that 'Telescope Treatise,' the part concerning the method of making a telescope is no more than a hundred-odd characters, and its optical path diagram has many errors. If that young gentleman followed that method, I'm afraid he couldn't make one. Garrison Commander, you may try looking outside."

Pang Yu raised the telescope and looked toward the river channel on the left. A moment later he asked in surprise, "Why is the image in this telescope you made, sir, inverted?"

Bao Yu shook his head. "I use two convex lenses, so the image comes out inverted. But what is made by this method can see farther, with better magnification. Westerners mostly use telescopes to observe stars; an inverted image is still usable."

Pang Yu held the meter-long telescope and examined it for a moment. "I can think of a way to flip the image right-side up."

This time it was Bao Yu's turn to be astonished. "Garrison Commander, you understand telescopes?"

"I can even draw the optical path diagram. However, it's too rushed here; I would need to spend some time on it after returning to Anqing."

"Then, my lord, could you send me a copy when the time comes?"

"To make a lens is the utmost skill; to use a lens is the art of adaptation. To grasp a fixed method amidst the unfixed — it absolutely requires face-to-face instruction to fully understand. If one relies solely on a book, there will inevitably be errors."

Bao Yu stared at Pang Yu in astonishment. "A Garrison Commander has actually read the Telescope Treatise with his own eyes… I can scarcely believe it."

Pang Yu gave an inscrutable smile. He had merely flipped through it at Fang Yizhi's place; it was just that his memory was good, and he happened to have remembered this passage.

"This Telescope Treatise, as Mr. Bao said, contains many errors. I was originally a scholar and had already entered the Imperial Academy. Because I saw many common folk who had trouble with their sight, I spent years delving into optics, intending to bring benefit to the people — who could have known the realm would no longer be at peace." Pang Yu shook his head with deep sorrow. "In the whole vast Jiangbei, there was not room for a single quiet desk. In my indignation, I turned my focus to military studies, ballistics, and cannon-manufacturing studies, waiting for the day I could serve the country. I resolved to cast aside the brush and take up the sword. By chance, I quelled civil unrest and broke the Roving Bandits at Tongcheng, earned the regard of Grand Coordinator Zhang, and am about to assume the post of Anqing Garrison Commander."

Pang Yu's face was full of compassion for the world, and his words brimmed with righteous spirit. Bao Yu listened, his own face full of admiration.

Bao Yu suddenly clapped his hands. "Pang Squad Leader — the Pang Squad Leader of Tongcheng, the very one who quelled the civil unrest single-handedly! No, it is Lord Pang now. For a lord who was an Imperial Academy Student to cast aside the brush and take up the sword — one may truly call him a talent complete in both civil and martial arts, and his talent and virtue inspire even deeper reverence. I, Bao, think just as you do, my lord: every skill I possess is for the benefit of the common people, and I tolerate not the slightest carelessness. In all the hundred crafts and skills, I personally involve myself in the work, and my learning is quite broad and varied. But this 'ballistics' you just mentioned, my lord — what sort of discipline is that?"

Pang Yu waved a hand and said, "It is the specialized study of a cannonball's flight trajectory. It requires the use of sine, cosine, and so on…"

"So Lord Pang understands sine and cosine as well!" Bao Yu let out another exclamation, which actually startled Pang Yu. He had assumed these trigonometric functions did not exist in this era and had just casually tossed them out to dazzle Bao Yu — he never expected Bao Yu to react like this.

"In my humble work, On Measuring the Heavens at Sea to Know the Sun's Distance, I make frequent use of sine and cosine. I ordinarily discuss them with friends from the Society of Jesus, but among those in officialdom who understand them, Lord Pang is the very first. And what you say, my lord — that sine and cosine can be applied to cannon firing — I have never heard of that before."

Pang Yu coughed once and said, "Mr. Bao flatters me. However, I have indeed conducted deep research into mathematics and geometry. The cannonball trajectory I mentioned just now involves not only sine and cosine, but also muzzle velocity, air humidity, altitude, wind direction and speed, elevation difference, and the Earth's rotation. Any one of these factors will affect the cannonball's point of impact. What is muzzle velocity? It is the speed of the cannonball as it leaves the barrel…"

The more he spoke, the wider Bao Yu's mouth gaped. Some of what Pang Yu said sounded strange, yet upon careful thought seemed to hold reason. Though very vague, it was like a window had opened onto some unknown path.

By the time Pang Yu had exhausted the ballistic knowledge he had gleaned from sniper films, Bao Yu was utterly bewildered, yet felt a strange, inexplicable admiration for Pang Yu.

"If Mr. Bao is interested in these matters, you could come to Anqing to study them together with me. It would both advance your learning and allow you to craft instruments for the nation — truly killing two birds with one stone."

Bao Yu showed a troubled expression. He frowned and thought for a long while before saying, "It is hard to leave one's native soil, and I still have many projects unfinished. This… the light-path diagrams, the ballistics — I do wish to learn them all. Going for a short while should be no harm. Allow me to plan, allow me to think it over carefully."

Pang Yu did not press him. He chatted with Bao Yu about other implements until around noon, then took his leave. Bao Yu bade him a reluctant farewell, accompanying him a long way down the road before turning back.

He Xianya had been unable to get a word in since they entered. Now that they were out the door, he finally could not hold back. "Second Brother, when did you ever study light-path diagrams, military studies, and ballistics?"

"I didn't."

"Then…" He Xianya lowered his voice. "When this Mr. Bao comes to Anqing and asks you to teach him these things, what will you do?"

Pang Yu said indifferently, "The bronze cannon and the telescope are both things I need. As luck would have it, this man knows how to make them. I'll trick him into coming first, then we'll talk."

……

Note 1: Bao Yu, a skilled craftsman of Suzhou in the late Ming, personally built an armillary sphere, water cannons, land mines, ground crossbows, and more. When the Roving Bandits entered Anqing, he was commissioned by Zhang Guowei to manufacture bronze cannons. His written works include Investigations of Things, Illustrated Explanation of the Armillary Sphere, Illustrated Explanation of the Simplified Armillary Sphere, Illustrated Explanation of Fixing Stars with the Peeping Tube, On Timing with the Sandglass, On Measuring the Heavens at Sea to Know the Sun's Distance, and A Discrimination of the Heavens Being High in the North and Low in the South. He was especially skilled at making telescopes. The telescope made by Bao Yu was a three-section extendable Keplerian type. As late as the 1950s, a Wangyuanjing made by him still survived in the world; inspection at the time showed it produced an inverted image, indicating that Bao Yu had not yet solved the upright-image problem of the Keplerian telescope.