"Tang Gong! Tang Gong! Li Xiuning hurriedly stretched out his hand and shook Tang Jian.

"Ahh Princess! Tang Jian came back to his senses and looked at Li Xiuning blankly.

"Tang Gong doesn't have to think about it, Xiu Ning didn't understand it after thinking about it for a long time! You can only see it with your own eyes. There are so many new things in Jinyang, and there are many hidden and unknown things, if you have to think about it, I'm afraid you can't finish thinking about it. Li Xiuning persuaded him.

"The minister also knows this, but with such a large amount of fish, this represents food! For a long time, we thought that food was one of the conditions restricting Jinyang, and it seems that this does not exist at all, after all, they can use fish in the sea instead of wages, which means that there are many of them, which means that they have a way to fish from the sea, how big is the sea? It's boundless, which means they have an endless supply of food! Tang Jian said a little anxiously.

"Tang Gong doesn't need to worry, I have also thought about this, there must still be conditions to restrict them, after all, in the sea, it is not so easy to fish! No matter how large the quantity is, it can't be used as staple food! Li Xiuning said with relief.

"The princess is right! The minister is too excited! It's just that this Jinyang was really underestimated before! Tang Jian took a deep breath and said.

"That's true, but in just two years, it has changed a lot, and it's been a little longer, I don't know what to do, I hope this time the news will go back, and the emperor will pay enough attention to it!" Li Xiuning sighed.

"It's hard not to pay attention to it!" Tang Jian shook his head with a wry smile and said.

The two were relatively speechless, they were really frightened by the development of Jinyang, and after a long time, the two decided to explore the new things that could be purchased in the market first, after all, Zou Yu himself promised to do business, so he would buy it openly, and observe by the way.

Of course, they didn't know that the biggest harvest in Jinyang was not from the people, but from Juntun. Because the soldiers stationed in each place need to farm the land, this is the rule of the army, even if they guard the border pass, they must also grow some vegetables and fruits to improve their lives.

This is to make the monotonous garrison work more interesting, and at the same time to make the food richer.

The things planted in Jinyang's soldiers' army tun were the yams and konjac seeds that Zou Yu had collected with great difficulty.

After careful care, the harvest of yam in the first season was more than six stones, and as for konjac, the harvest was even higher, with a yield of more than seven stones per mu, but the size was not very large, and there was a big gap with Zou Yu's impression.

This is not surprising to Zou Yu, after all, it has only changed from wild to domestic, and it is normal for the quality to be a little different. Planting a few times slowly should be changed.

Konjac is a perennial plant that allows it to grow for a few more years, preferably two years, before it is large enough; As for yams, the fertility requirements are relatively high, but the yield is sufficient, and the yield will increase if it is planted for a few more years.

Zou Yu didn't care about the envoy of Qi State, he just told Fang Xuanling and asked him to arrange someone to talk, he was busy with gunpowder. Black powder is the most elementary gunpowder, the power is limited, what is needed for more powerful gunpowder, Zou Yu doesn't know at all, but he knows that gunpowder will increase its power if it is made into particles.

Zou Yu visited Xuantian to make gunpowder, and found that the gunpowder he made was a little unparticular about the materials, saltpeter, charcoal, and sulfur materials had not been treated, so they were used, just like coal, how could the ore be made and there were some impurities.

Saltpeter, sulfur, purified, cleaned again, then milled into powder, charcoal is also the same to select the best wood, make charcoal, then use a dustpan to sift, and finally carefully selected materials, mixed into gunpowder. Gunpowder is added to egg white, and when the egg white is dry, the gunpowder is not a powder, but a granule.

The power of the elaborate granular gunpowder has increased by at least three percent, the bamboo tube is too small, and the power of making bombs is too small, so you can only use clay pots, and the advantage of using clay pots is that you are not afraid of rain, and you only need to pay attention to the leads. However, the clay pot also has disadvantages, because it is specially thickened, so the weight is not light, and it can only be thrown out with a catapult.

In order to facilitate the operation, a batch of clay pots were specially made, and the mouth of the jar was lengthened so that the palm could hold it and it was easy to throw. A kind of explosive bag was also made, that is, the gunpowder was wrapped in paper, and then tied up with a cloth outside, this explosive bag can be thrown by hand or by catapult, the key is that this explosive bag can be supported with an object and used to blow up the enemy's object.

The most important thing about gunpowder is that it is easy to make, so Zou Yu deliberately separated the raw materials for making gunpowder from the mixed gunpowder, including the people who use it, and currently only limits the 1,000 people.

Strictly controlled, but there is no intention to hide and tuck, the use of gunpowder, you have to practice, in order to find problems, and at the same time to increase proficiency. The first is to build a road, open a mountain and blow up stones, Xi Junmai took people, along the built road, blasted the mountain stones in advance, and then waited for the people who built the road behind to come up, and then directly took the pure stone and used it.

The thunder in front of the sky is rolling, opening mountains and cracking rocks, that kind of situation frightened the people who built the road, and there were originally some prisoners with different thoughts, but now they are all honest, and there are even rumors that this is the thunder god arranged by the prime minister, and the mountain and rock are blown up in advance, otherwise why can't you see people, but a mountain has been blown up? It's hard to imagine how you can do something that is not humanly possible.

The further back they went, the bigger the mountain was that was blown up, the more awe those captives were for the Central Plains, and with the appearance of gunpowder, the place that originally needed to be detoured no longer had to be detoured, just exploded directly.

In fact, this is also Xi Junmai's excitement, and he took people to bomb all the way, and the more mountains he had, the more excited he became. Of course, the experience of using gunpowder has also grown by leaps and bounds.

With gunpowder, no one doesn't want a gun, and Zou Yu is naturally not surprised, so he recruited the best blacksmith in the craftsman prison to make steel pipes.

Don't look at the ease of pouring weapons, but the steel pipe is not so easy, directly poured with molten iron, even if the mold is finalized, but the steel pipe is always unqualified, and there is always a vulnerable place to detect. However, after two years of exploration, the craftsman has a wealth of experience in how to make steel more tough and hard, adding copper to the molten iron, and the steel pipe produced in this way is not only tough, but also not lacking in hardness.

This is mainly due to the fact that the steel is not up to par, if it is really the steel that has arrived, it should not be afraid of this impact, after all, it is just a soil gun. However, there is no way to do this, although Zou Yu can put forward a lot of opinions, but he does not understand professional knowledge.

A steel pipe with copper, the butt made of wood underneath, because there is no explosive, there is no need for a trigger, so it is convenient to make, when using, first add gunpowder, and then put an iron rod into it, swing it up and down forcefully, so that the gunpowder is compacted, and then put a handful of iron beads into it, add some gunpowder, and compact it again. Because there is no explosive, only a fuse is installed at the tail, and the fuse needs to be ignited with a fire breaker when used.

From loading to launching, this process takes a lot of time, at least a minute, this time to the battlefield is too long, it can be said that there is only one chance to use, the key is this kind of earthen gun, the range is not as good as the bow and arrow, two hundred meters away, for the armored soldiers, it is difficult to break the defense, unless there is no place to defend it. The main thing is that the earth gun is a little farther away and does not have a crosshair.

If you want to talk about the benefits of the earth gun, that is, the lethality at close range is very large, after all, such a big iron ball is shot out, no matter what, it can't be dodged, compared to the bow and arrow, it must be more powerful, one person can be used as dozens of archers, it is best to use it to break dense defenses, or it is very good to use it in street fighting.

Of course, at present, the earth guns cannot be formed on their own, because they only have one chance to attack, and they must retreat and reload, but this is a new thing after all, and the room for improvement is very huge.

Zou Yu told Yan Liben and others all the knowledge about firearms in his mind, and asked them to study it according to this idea, after all, he knew what it was like in many places, but how to do it was not clear.

Just like he knew that firearms went through arquebuses, flintlock pistols, and then bullets, among which arquebuses, flintlock pistols and earthen guns were not much different, so the main research was bullets, so that there were many detours.

The bullet has a warhead, a medicine compartment, and the back is excited by a firing pin, which Zou Yu knows, but why the firing pin can excite the bullet needs to be studied.

The earth guns are in place for the time being, and there won't be much progress in the short term, but there is one thing that can be done! That's the earth cannon!

It is certainly impossible for a flowering bullet for a short time, and there is certainly no problem with a solid bullet, nothing more than a thick iron pipe, plus a large amount of gunpowder, pushing the iron egg, with the power of gunpowder, it must be far more than a catapult.

Zou Yu didn't think about making the best earthen cannon once, the first generation of artillery was a bronze cannon, he knew this, the first cannon copper, naturally try to make it thick, so as not to explode.

The first barrel is nearly four meters long, the thickness of the wall tube is also 20 centimeters, the barrel is large, the weight is more than 3,000 catties, the front is thin and the back is thick, this is to facilitate the explosion of gunpowder and push the shell.

Under the barrel is a large iron frame, which is to facilitate the adjustment of the angle, because only the iron frame can withstand the weight of the barrel, as well as the power of firing the cannon.

Li Jing and the others had already seen explosives bags made of gunpowder, so they didn't doubt whether this kind of copper cannon could be used, but they were still skeptical about its power, after all, the fist-sized iron ball wanted to be as big as a few hundred meters away, and there was no need for a catapult.

"Lord Qiqi! You're all set! Xi Junmai hugged his fist excitedly. From explosives packets to muskets, he felt like he had found a new purpose in life, and he fell in love with this weapon of violence.

"Fire!" Zou Yu nodded and ordered, and then waved his hand to let the guards protect the generals with shields, he didn't want to lose his generals because of the explosion.

"Ignition! Fire! Xi Junmai held a flag, shouted excitedly, and then waved the flag down with force.

The gunner, next to the bronze cannon, immediately took a torch and lit the lead at the tail of the barrel.

In the expectant eyes of Zou Yu and others, the lead burned into the barrel of the cannon, and then there was a loud "boom", and everyone only felt a shock on the ground, and then saw a burst of smoke rising from the barrel.

"Let's go, go over and have a look!" Zou Yu took the lead and walked towards the mountain five hundred meters away, as for the war horses, even if they blocked their ears, they couldn't accept this kind of noise.

Zou Yu didn't force it, because every time he just took the war horses far away, so that they gradually accepted the process.

The 500-meter mountain was just concentrated in a stone, and I saw that the stone had been knocked out of a spider web-like trace, and the cracks were all over the stone.

"It's... This kind of power, if it is an earthen wall, I am afraid it will not be able to withstand a few cannons! The Yin Master said in surprise.

"Nope! This kind of cannonball is too wasteful to use to hit the earth city wall, and the effect is not good! Zou Yu shook his head and said.

"Why?" The Yin World Master asked puzzled.

"Earthen walls are not as hard as stones, so this kind of iron egg can break through the earthen walls, but they can't knock them down." Li Jing helped explain.

"Li Shangshu is really discerning, it is true, the earthen wall is more suitable for direct blowing, this kind of solid bullet is the best for attacking fortifications; The effect is quite good against a strong city wall, if there are more artillery, there is no city wall that cannot be breached; And against the dense crowd, the effect is also quite good, one shot over, absolutely open a bloody path, more powerful than crossbow arrows! Zou Yu proudly introduced.

"It's more powerful than a catapult, and the point is that it's much farther away than a catapult! But this weight! Special ammunition is also needed, which is okay for defense, but it is a little difficult to siege the city! Returning to the original place, Li Jing sighed.

"There is always a disadvantage to a gain and a loss." The Yin World Master nodded in agreement.

"This is just the first generation of artillery, and the next Craftsman will use different materials to make the barrel to reduce the weight and increase the power as much as possible!" Zou Yu said with a smile.

Then Zou Yu asked the craftsman who was inspecting the barrel, "How is it?" Has there been any change in the barrel? ”

"Back to the prime minister, the barrel has not changed, but it is still the same! To open a shot, you need to clean the barrel! The craftsman hurriedly introduced.

Zou Yu understands this, because in order to ensure the tightness of the cannonball, it is necessary to fill some straw into it, so that when the gunpowder explodes, a good sealing can ensure that there is enough force to push the cannonball out.

"Keep firing! Look at the limits of the barrel! What is the most suitable thickness to estimate if the weight of the barrel is reduced? What is the right length? Try to make as many models as possible to find the most suitable for defending and besieging cities! Zou Yu said to the craftsman.

"Whoa!" The craftsman hurriedly agreed, and the other person also recorded it with a pen, which is also the habit of Zou Yu's subordinates, meetings need to be recorded, and experiments must also be recorded!

The first barrel, just to ensure that the artillery can be used, how to be suitable, of course, only non-stop experiments, siege, defenders, there must be a difference, or the difference in materials, these Zou Yu does not understand, of course, only professional craftsmen slowly experiment.