Chapter 640: Displaying Merits Brings Calamity

15th Year of Emperor Jia Zhao, May 21st, early morning.

Jia Cong got up half an hour earlier than usual. His bed curtain only moved slightly, and Qingwen on the side couch had already got up.

Immediately after, the door was pushed open, and Hearing Zhi Shao, Wuer, Zhen Ying Lian, and others all entered the room.

Everyone was busy, either carrying water, ironing clothes, or washing, busy around Jia Cong, and the scene was much more grand than usual.

Lingguan led the little maids in the main hall to set up breakfast early. After Jia Cong finished eating, it was not yet the hour of the dragon, so he put on his official uniform, was full of energy, and went out of the mansion early.

At the same time, the Da Zhou Imperial Palace, a few miles away from Ningrong Street, the early morning court at Fengtian Hall was still held at the hour of the dragon, but the early morning court these two days was slightly dull.

The ministers reporting in court seemed to be much fewer, and the matters reported were all steady, all routine business.

It was completely different from the early morning court a few days ago, when Censor Sun Shouzi exposed the major fraud case and Left Censor-in-Chief Zhou Xianyang impeached the spring examination officials for improper behavior, which were sharp topics that stirred up the court.

In fact, there was no lack of such thorny officials as Sun Shouzi and Zhou Xianyang in the court. As long as they spoke with substance, Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao was quite tolerant of these officials.

Otherwise, if the Emperor listened to officials talking about routine business every day at the early morning court, not only would there be no interest, but it would also block the Emperor's ears and eyes.

However, the main culprit of the fraud case, Wu Liang, committed suicide, and seventy-three failed candidates jointly reported, casting a shadow over the entire court.

A major case that was originally intended to promote the righteousness of the imperial examination and show the prestige of the imperial court was beaten to pieces and fell into an awkward situation.

Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao has always been a monarch with deep strategy, decisive, and attaching great importance to power. Such a far-reaching imperial examination fraud case actually lost his control, and his mood naturally became extremely bad.

Since a few days ago, when the petition of the candidates' joint report appeared, twenty-one spring examination officials involved in corruption and bribery had been imprisoned.

More than twenty spring examination officials, after interrogation by the Court of Judicial Review, although they eventually escaped, all left records and confessions, and their official careers were cast with shadows.

After the whole thing subsided, these officials would be weighed by the Ministry of Personnel's performance assessment, and what awaited them would be reprimands for the light ones, and demotion, transfer, dismissal, and conviction for the heavy ones.

Originally, it was just an imperial examination fraud case. The main culprits were only Xu Liangxiong and Wu Liang, and the eleven successful candidates involved were already considered extensive.

No one expected that this was just the beginning. The spring examination fraud case went through many twists and turns, and eventually involved more than forty officials, a major event that had not happened in the fifteen years since Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao ascended the throne.

Therefore, at the early morning court these two days, Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao's face was gloomy and terrifying, as if it could condense into ice. Every official at the early morning court knew how bad the Emperor's mood was.

Therefore, even the officials who liked to show off the most and were most keen on direct remonstrance in court were very smart and acted as silent gourds at this juncture.

So as not to rashly use their tongues, annoy the Emperor, and become a vent for his anger, they would definitely die very ugly...

……

An early morning court proceeded in a calm and waveless manner. The topics reported by the officials were steady, singing and dancing, and filled with a strange taste of caution.

Originally, the early morning court ended at the end of the hour of the snake, but Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao got up half an hour early and announced the end of the court, revealing his impatience to let the civil and military officials of the court get out quickly.

When the officials who attended the court withdrew from Fengtian Hall and walked out of Wumen, they saw a large number of elite imperial guards lined up at Wumen, dense and dense, with a fierce momentum, with more than a thousand people.

Not long after, the Emperor's carriage, surrounded by people, walked out of Wumen in a mighty manner.

The people accompanying the carriage were only a few people such as Marquis Zhongjing Shi Ding, Minister of the Ministry of War Gu Yankui, and Internal Supervisor Guo Lin.

The Emperor's carriage, under the gaze of a crowd of officials, was surrounded by a thousand elite imperial guards and went straight to Hongde Gate in the east of the city.

All the officials felt fear and doubt, whispering to each other, not knowing why such a scene appeared, and what exactly happened?

Among the crowd of officials attending the court, even Zhao Wang and Prince Ning, who were close to the princes, did not know why the Emperor suddenly left the palace and where he intended to go.

Zhao Wang Li Zhongmao looked at the distant carriage and the people accompanying the carriage such as Shi Ding and Gu Yankui, and combined with some rumors he heard recently, he seemed to have guessed why the Emperor left the palace.

Even if he couldn't be completely sure in his heart, he already felt anger and resentment, and at the same time, there was a deep fear, vaguely feeling that something was moving away from him day by day...

Prince Ning, who was on the side, also looked at the distant carriage and asked: "Imperial Brother, Father Emperor hasn't left the palace for a year. Why did he suddenly set up the carriage? Does Imperial Brother know what urgent matter it is?"

Zhao Wang's face was indifferent, saying: "How would I know about the Emperor's carriage? But looking at the direction the carriage is moving, it seems to be going to the Chengdong."

……

Shenjing, outside the Chengdong suburbs, Ministry of Works Firearms Office.

After the hour of the dragon, the Five Military Camps mobilized a large number of people to patrol and guard along the way from Hongde Gate in the Chengdong to the Firearms Office, eliminating possible risks in advance.

The five hundred elite imperial guards stationed at the Firearms Office were also bright in armor and full of energy today, strictly guarding the movement near the Firearms Office.

By the time the hour of the snake was approaching, the Emperor's carriage appeared outside Hongde Gate, surrounded by a thousand elite imperial guards, and went straight to the Firearms Office in a mighty manner.

By the time the carriage reached the workshop, except for the Emperor's dozens of personal guards, people such as Minister of the Ministry of War Gu Yankui, Marquis Zhongjing Shi Ding, and Internal Supervisor Guo Lin, the rest of the troops all stopped outside the workshop.

The area fifty paces outside the Firearms Office was surrounded by thousands of elite imperial guards and Five Military Camps elite, like an iron bucket.

Not long after, the sound of firearm shooting came from inside the workshop from time to time, and the troops outside the workshop were slightly agitated.

But immediately, the Emperor's guards came out to pass the message, ordering all troops to stay in place and wait for orders, waiting for the Emperor to return to the palace, and the stationed troops calmed down the commotion.

At this time, on the shooting range of the Firearms Office, two improved Rumi muskets and two brand-new new-style breech-loading guns were shooting at wooden targets fifty paces away at the same time.

Responsible for shooting the improved Rumi musket were two musketeers from the Five Military Camps. Loading gunpowder, placing bullets, compacting the fire strip, and firing, the movements were smooth and skillful, done in one go.

These two musketeers were elite players from the Divine Machine Camp carefully selected by Marquis Zhongjing. The two improved Rumi muskets exerted the fastest shooting rate in their hands, and it was thought that few people could exceed them.

But the gunners responsible for operating the breech-loading guns were just two craftsmen in the workshop who were familiar with firearms.

These two craftsmen were responsible for the manufacture of the breech-loading guns, so they were familiar with the operation and shooting of the breech-loading guns. Although their movements were considered skillful, they were still inferior to the two musketeers of the Five Military Camps.

But even if there was a difference in the skill of the gunners, a huge contrast appeared in the shooting effect of the two types of muskets.

The two musketeers who shot the Rumi muskets, although their shooting movements were extremely skillful, compared with the shooting method of the breech-loading guns, the shooting speed was still a big gap.

The improved Rumi musket only shot the fourth round, and the breech-loading gun in the craftsman's hand had already shot ten bullets.

This was still the gunner of the breech-loading gun, just two craftsmen familiar with firearms. If they were replaced by skilled musketeers, the shooting speed would definitely increase.

Minister of the Ministry of War Gu Yankui and Marquis Zhongjing Shi Ding, who watched the musket drill, were both people proficient in military affairs. How could they not see the huge difference between the two types of muskets?

The loading and shooting method of the breech-loading gun was like an art from outside the world to them, unheard of and unimaginable.

The two of them looked at Jia Cong at the same time, their eyes not only showing admiration but even revealing horror.

They really couldn't imagine what kind of heart the young man in front of them had, and where these strange ideas that were not of the world came from...

These two types of muskets, without comparing other power, just the huge difference in shooting speed between the two, the improved Rumi musket was no different from a useless fire stick in front of the breech-loading gun.

After the improved Rumi musket also finished ten shots, according to the target statistics, the hit rate of the two types of muskets was basically the same, and the two breech-loading guns also had one or two advantages each.

The musketeers who shot the improved Rumi musket were elites selected by Marquis Zhongjing Shi Ding from the army. Their skills were specialized, and the two workshop craftsmen were difficult to compare.

Everyone watching the drill on the spot, not to mention experts like Gu Yankui and Shi Ding, even Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao could see that the accuracy of the breech-loading gun was steadily above the Rumi musket.

Jia Cong ordered people to move the wooden target to a distance of eighty paces. The reason why it was not moved to a hundred paces away was because at a distance of a hundred paces, there was no difference between blind shooting and aiming for the Rumi musket...

Immediately after, the two types of muskets each fired ten shots, and the shooting speed between them widened the gap, appearing even more disparate.

Because, the Rumi musket fired more than ten shots, and one of the Rumi muskets stopped shooting because the barrel was overheated to prevent the barrel from exploding, and continued shooting after cooling down. And the paper-wrapped bullet and firing pin firing mode of the breech-loading gun made the barrel overheating have little effect on continuous shooting...

After the ten shots of the two types of muskets were completed, more than half of the breech-loading guns hit the target, and the improved Rumi muskets only hit two or three shots respectively.

Given the disparate difference in shooting skills between the musketeers and the musket craftsmen.

Everyone on the spot could understand that the breech-loading gun, whether it was power and accuracy, or the ease of gun control, could not be mentioned in the same breath as the improved Rumi musket.

……

After the musket drill ended, Minister of the Ministry of War Gu Yankui was excited.

He stepped forward and reported: "Reporting to Your Majesty, the new breech-loading musket developed by Earl Weiyuan is ingenious, powerful, and is truly a divine weapon of the country!

Compared with it, the improved Rumi musket is crude and difficult to match.

Currently, there are storms in the Nine Frontiers, the sea borders, and the Dian region. Preparing a strong army is the foundation for the peace of the four seas.

I think we should manufacture breech-loading guns in large quantities, replace the improved Rumi muskets of each army, and make them form an army and show their power as soon as possible!"

!

Marquis Zhongjing Shi Ding was still immersed in the shock of the breech-loading gun drill. He looked at Jia Cong on the side, his heart surging. He couldn't remember how many things Jia Cong had done in the past few years that surprised him.

He even felt regret and jealousy in his heart. The Rongguo Jia family had already become a centipede, but unexpectedly raised a genius like Jia Cong, which was truly a great blessing.

Since the Emperor ascended the throne, he has been ambitious and ambitious. Jia Cong's initiative to advocate firearms is, for the Emperor, a wish fulfilled and a tiger with wings.

This time, Jia Cong developed such a wonderful and sharp firearm as the breech-loading gun, which will definitely be esteemed by the Emperor more and more.

He is at such an age, his official rank is precious, his achievements are constant, and it is limitless...

Shi Ding thought of the Shi family to his generation. His eldest brother was originally a genius, but unfortunately died young. His second brother Shi Ding's talent was mediocre, and even keeping the family was difficult.

Although he relied on the merit of following the dragon to make the Shi family have the glory of two marquises in one family, the scenery was in front, but it was already showing weakness.

The descendants of himself and his second brother Shi Ding are all mediocre. In another ten or twenty years, the decline of the Shi family's power and luck will be inevitable.

Shi Ding looked at the elegant Jia Cong, and couldn't help but feel hot in his heart.

Thinking that his wife went to the Jia family to walk around recently, saying that Xiangyun, the girl, is reluctant to return, and now she is proud of living in the Jia mansion, and Cong Ge'er is quite accommodating and doting on her daily, and the two have a deep friendship.

Shi Ding thought of these, and felt a little regret in his heart. He was also very clear about his aunt's thoughts, but Cong Ge'er observed filial piety for three years, and really delayed all good things...

……

Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao watched the breech-loading gun drill, and was full of praise for its novel firing mode, powerful firepower, and accuracy.

The full of frustration and anger accumulated due to the ups and downs of the fraud case in the past few days seemed to have temporarily vanished. Listening to Gu Yankui's remonstrance, his mood was even more comfortable.

He said: "Jia Cong has already reported the strategy for the manufacture of the breech-loading gun. I will let the relevant offices fully assist in this matter."

Shi Ding on the side reported: "Reporting to Your Majesty, the manufacture of the breech-loading musket is ingenious and powerful, and it is truly a heavy weapon of the country.

In the past, the improved Rumi musket showed its power on the Liaodong battlefield, so it was coveted by unpredictable people. The theft of firearms in the Liaodong army eventually led to the disaster of private manufacture of muskets in Jiangnan.

Such a divine weapon of the country, once it falls into the hands of the small, the consequences are unimaginable. Do not forget the past, the teacher of the future.

I think the manufacture and equipment of the breech-loading gun must be taken seriously and carefully to prevent unexpected things."

Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao heard Shi Ding's words, and his face became solemn, saying: "Minister Shi's words are a plan to prevent the future, cautious and experienced.

For all the offices assisting in the manufacture of the breech-loading gun, I will let the internal office investigate and screen, and must use the most loyal people to participate in the work.

For the covetous and treacherous actions, it is necessary to kill one to warn a hundred, not to wrong or let go, and never tolerate!"

Jia Cong heard this, his heart couldn't help but jump, and a bad premonition arose...

Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao stopped talking, and Jia Cong said slightly: "Minister Jia, I will send another five hundred elite imperial guards to the Firearms Office to strengthen internal and external guards.

The manufacture of the breech-loading gun is fully coordinated and presided over by you. Before the first batch of breech-loading guns is officially equipped by imperial decree, no breech-loading gun can leave the Firearms Office, so be heavy and cautious!"

Jia Cong's face was solemn, and he replied: "I follow the imperial decree!"

Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao finished his previous words, his face eased slightly, and said: "Minister Jia's talent is outstanding, his work is effective, and he has manufactured the heavy weapon of the country again. I am very comforted, and his merit should be displayed.

Add the rank of General Xinwu of the fourth grade, reward one thousand taels of gold, ten square of tribute wine, twenty pieces of tribute satin, and when you pass the Jinshi exam, I will add another heavy use."

Jia Cong hurriedly knelt down to thank him, and Gu Yankui and Shi Ding on the side were both moved.

Last time Jia Cong solved the major case of the Guard in Jinling, he was promoted by Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao to the rank of General Xuanwu of the fourth grade.

Now that it has not been a year, he was promoted again by the Emperor, skipping the rank of General Xianwu, and directly added the rank of General Xinwu of the fourth grade.

A fifteen-year-old boy, the military rank has reached the peak of the fourth grade. Looking at the entire Da Zhou, except for the royal nobles, who were specially added, it is difficult to find a second person.

When the palace examination list is announced and Jia Cong passes the Jinshi exam, he will no longer be limited by the Da Zhou official system.

With the Emperor's reliance on him, the fifth-grade real rank that has been silent for several years will mostly be promoted...

……

Ningrong Street, Earl's Mansion.

After the Firearms Office drill was completed, Jia Cong and Gu Yankui, Shi Ding, and others respectfully sent Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao back to the palace, and he returned to the Earl's Mansion.

By the time the hour of the goat was approaching, Yuan Jing, a sixth-grade duty officer of Qianyang Palace, brought the palace's ceremonial guard to the door to announce the edict and read the imperial edict of promotion.

Accompanied by two large carts from the Imperial Household Department, filled with gold, imperial wine, tribute satin, and other precious things rewarded by the Emperor.

After Jia Cong sent Yuan Jing away, the entire East Mansion was full of joy, and someone had already gone to the West Mansion to report the good news.

The sisters in the mansion knew the news and all went to Jia Cong's courtyard to congratulate him.

Yingchun arranged for the old woman and maids to move Jia Cong's fourth-grade General Xinwu seal, Kirin gift clothes, jade belt, official boots, and other things to the main hall for display.

Because the space in the main hall was limited, only a part of the gifts, several squares of imperial wine, and stacked tribute satin could be placed.

According to Yingchun, these things are the glory earned by her own brother, and it is good to put them in the main hall for a few days to recruit blessings and good luck before entering the warehouse.

The sisters were all smiling, playing with the dazzling gifts in the main hall, and looking at them as a rarity.

Daiyu smiled at Jia Cong: "Third Brother, it has been less than a year, and your promotion and wealth are too diligent. Others will be jealous when they see it."

Jia Cong smiled slightly when he heard this, thinking of the conversation between Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao and Shi Ding at the Firearms Office just now, and a trace of solemnity arose in his heart.

He said: "I am promoted and wealthy, I am afraid that others will mostly suffer..."

Daiyu heard this, her expression was confused, and she asked: "What are Third Brother's words? Such a good thing as your promotion, how can it harm others?" (End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 641 =====