Chapter 140: Divine Crossbow

Jiang Mingyu's face beamed with a relaxed, joyful smile, brimming with affection for Liu Yi.

His eyes were bright and sharp, shining like stars, impossible to look away from.

"What's wrong?" he asked gently.

His voice carried a calm, soothing rhythm that put one at ease.

Since Liu Yi's expression showed no sign of urgency, he did not grow overly anxious.

Liu Yi, the woman whose cheeks still flushed pink, slowly set down the blueprint and spoke softly.

Her voice was like spring wind brushing willows—melodious and tender.

"Everything's nearly ready for the early stage. But what are those sands for? Building a house?" she asked.

Her eyes sparkled with curiosity, for Jiang Mingyu's blueprints made no mention of the sand, so she had to ask directly.

Jiang Mingyu smiled lightly, his laughter like a clear spring flowing—sweet and moving.

He reached out and pinched her cheek gently.

"Little fool, these sands are for making new porcelain." he explained.

"You may not know, but if you melt these sands together with borax and lime at high temperature, you get a new kind of multicolored porcelain—I call it liuli."

Jiang Mingyu watched Liu Yi's shy expression, warmth filling his heart. He spoke softly, detailing the process of making liuli, his gaze never leaving her every movement.

Making this porcelain required exquisite craftsmanship and endless patience.

First, mix the sand, borax, and lime together, then melt them in a high-temperature furnace.

During this process, the lime and borax react chemically with the sand, forming a new substance. After cooling, this substance becomes multicolored porcelain—liuli.

Then he said excitedly, "Once it's done, I'll give you one as our token of affection, alright?"

Liu Yi lowered her head, her long eyelashes casting faint shadows on her cheeks.

A faint smile curved her lips; her hands unconsciously twisted the hem of her robe.

When Jiang Mingyu mentioned the token of affection, a blush spread across her face; her watery eyes swept over him, then quickly looked away.

Liu Yi asked shyly, "How did you even learn this?" Jiang Mingyu's detailed explanation had sparked deep interest in her regarding the process of making liuli.

Jiang Mingyu smiled and replied, "I came across it accidentally in an ancient book. I had a sudden idea and wanted to try making it." His words brimmed with spirit of adventure and exploration, revealing his wisdom and courage.

"If what the book says is true, just this alone could make us a fortune." His eyes gleamed with cunning, as if plotting a grand scheme.

Here, he gazed tenderly at Liu Yi, a faint smile lingering on his lips.

Liu Yi nodded shyly, her blush deepening.

Yet Liu Yi's interest in gold and silver paled beside her reliance on and trust in him. She merely smiled, saying nothing.

Then she murmured, "I'll go arrange the workers to prepare." With that, she hurried off.

Yet Liu Yi's interest in gold and silver paled beside her reliance on and trust in him. She merely smiled, saying nothing, then replied, "Alright, I understand. I'll have people prepare and resume work right away."

Then Liu Yi turned and left, leaving Jiang Mingyu alone.

After leaving Jiang Mingyu, Liu Yi's cheeks still bore a lingering blush.

She lightly touched her burning cheeks, unable to suppress the smile on her lips.

Every word, every expression Jiang Mingyu had uttered was deeply etched into her heart.

Jiang Mingyu gazed at her retreating back, his heart filled with joy and tenderness.

Though they had not yet formally married, their hearts were already aligned—waiting only for the completion of the liuli token to entrust their lives to each other.

Thinking of this, Jiang Mingyu smiled inwardly, looking eagerly toward the glowing liuli workshop. Then, picking up his brush, he doodled for fifteen minutes before calling over a clever-looking apprentice from the workshop.

"Once Liu Yi starts production, make this quickly—and remember, don't let Miss Liu find out."

He blew on the still-wet ink of the blueprint before handing it to the apprentice.

The apprentice dared not delay the superior's order; he bowed respectfully and turned to leave.

Jiang Mingyu was just about to sip tea and relax when a soldier strode in. "My lord, Master Zhuge asks you to come to the city defense camp at once."

The soldier said.

"What's happened? What's wrong?"

He asked urgently.

The soldier stood at attention and replied crisply: "Report, my lord: Master Zhuge says your Divine Crossbow is finished. He asks you to come and inspect it!"

"So soon?" Jiang Mingyu was surprised.

"Didn't I say to let General Tu and Miss Zhang test it first and see how it performs? Why do I need to go myself?"

He was puzzled.

The soldier explained: "Master Zhuge says the Divine Crossbow, though ingenious, still has flaws. After discussing with Miss Zhang, they've improved it and ask you to review it."

Flaws? Improvements? Jiang Mingyu frowned. His Divine Crossbow was a labor of blood and sweat; it concerned city defense security and could not afford the slightest error.

"Alright, if that's the case, I'll go with you." Jiang Mingyu stood and strode out the door.

He had full trust in Zhuge Yu and Zhang Jiani's abilities. Perhaps they truly could enhance the Divine Crossbow's power. Jiang Mingyu arrived at the city defense camp with eager anticipation, keen to see what new improvements they had made.

Jiang Mingyu rode his horse to the city defense camp and found Zhuge Yu, Tu Kesiluo, and the haughty Zhang Jiani waiting for him on the training ground.

As Jiang Mingyu dismounted, he noticed Tu Kesoruo and Zhang Jiani exchanging glances—he thought, this dark-faced Yama sure knows how to charm, and Zhang Jiani, this tigress, clearly falls for it.

Jiang Mingyu looked up and saw Tu Kesoruo holding an iron crossbow; his interest sparked: "Is this your improved Divine Crossbow? Hand it over. Let me see it fire two shots."

Tu Kesoruo said nothing. He stepped to a target five hundred paces away, drew the crossbow, and with a sharp "whoosh," fired an arrow that struck the bullseye with perfect precision. But that wasn't all—the arrow pierced the target and flew several zhang farther before landing.

Jiang Mingyu's eyes widened. The power was terrifying—except for heavy iron armor, no armor would survive it. In an age without guns or cannons, this weapon was a catastrophic force on the battlefield.

Jiang Mingyu quickly asked Zhuge Yu: "How did you manage to modify this?"

Zhuge Yu smiled and handed the crossbow to Jiang Mingyu: "Master, your original design was already nearly perfect. We merely improved the bow's flexibility and increased the string's tension—that's all."

Jiang Mingyu examined it closely: the bow was twice as wide as the prototype, and the string had been replaced with stronger hemp cord. These three had clearly put in great effort. Yet Jiang Mingyu still found it hard to believe: "Just these minor changes achieved this result?"

Zhuge Yu looked at him seriously: "You think it's easy? Finding the right materials took us tremendous effort. Also, I designed another giant crossbow based on the Divine Crossbow—requiring three men to draw it, entirely forged from pure iron. Its power is double that of the Divine Crossbow—perfect for both battlefield and siege warfare."

At this, Zhuge Yu's eyes lit up with the fervor of a war fanatic obsessed with heavy weaponry.

Jiang Mingyu was delighted. As the two men chatted eagerly, Zhang Jiani interjected: "You two men spend all day studying these killing tools. I say forget it—what's the point?"

Jiang Mingyu replied: "Studying them is for the people's safety. In war, good weapons reduce unnecessary casualties."

Zhang Jiani rolled her eyes: "Sure, right. You men are all womanizers—do you even know romance? Don't pretend you care about the people."

Zhuge Yu spread his hands: "Words are dangerous, brother. Women's greatest weapon is their tongue. We do our work—why bother with all that?"

Tu Kesoruo chuckled. Zhang Jiani kicked Zhuge Yu and Tu Kesoruo in the buttocks. The three bickered back and forth.

Jiang Mingyu listened to their banter, watching Zhang Jiani and Tu Kesoruo's subtle glances, thinking: When did they become so close? They're grown adults—why act like children?

But this kind of life was truly good.

Jiang Mingyu nodded: "Good. Prepare quickly. Equip the archers with the Divine Crossbow as fast as possible. Have Miss Zhang train them well. Also, make the giant crossbow as soon as you can. You know my intentions—hurry up."

Zhuge Yu grinned: "Master, don't worry. Miss Zhang has already trained the archers to near perfection these past few days."

"With General Tu and Lord Murong, plus Wu Xiao, it won't take long to get them ready."

"My array is nearly complete too—just a few more days and it'll be fully finished. After the New Year, we'll be fully prepared—waiting only for the Western Xia to come!"

Zhuge Yu's eyes burned with determined battle-lust. Jiang Mingyu said coldly: "If they dare come, Shangmu will be their grave."