With the experience of fighting with the Tatars, coupled with the harvest of leaving the steppe, Xiao Ye deeply realized that compared with bows and arrows, firearms and crossbows are quick to use, and practice does not need to be cultivated and accumulated over many years; However, the number of firecrackers is scarce, there are no conditions for crafting, and the raw materials for crossbows cannot be found at all.

According to Wang Dali's statement, just the barrel of the fire gun, the Ming Dynasty could not find such a good craftsman to build, and the Uzi steel used in the military crossbow, he could try it if he had the raw materials.

The blacksmith shop has been built by now, and it is difficult to say anything else about repairing swords and armor, making simple cuirass, some farm tools, and others.

The cobblers also began to make leather armor and cowhide boots, and anyway, the leather goods on the mountain were enough for each sergeant to equip one.

What is lacking in the night is lead and brimstone; Sulfur is good to say, and it can be obtained in the pharmacy, but the amount is a little less.

Lead, in addition to mixing it with copper to refine alloys, how much can seals, alchemy, and lacquer paintings use, why do you want so much, refining copper coins is a big crime of stealing families and destroying people.

He was most worried about the problem of food, and sent a fast horse to urge Qianhu to pay him, and set off the next day after returning to the mountain, but the Gravel Fort was still silent.

After the Tartars plundered, they finally withdrew from the territory of Suzhou Wei, and the prefectures and counties also returned to peace.

A fast horse galloped out of the gate of the gravel fort, and the old Wu of the Huang family, who had been holding in the fort for many days, rushed to the stone pass on the first day of the opening of the city gate.

It has been nearly ten days since he received the news from the flying pigeon of the yellow steward of Suzhou Mansion, but the gate of the fort is closed to prevent Tartars, and Lao Wu has no way, in order not to be regarded as a spy of Tartars, he has stayed in the secret door Li for many days; However, the woman who sold meat for money here made him satisfied.

According to the letter of the Huang Steward, since Xiao Baihu needs sulfur and saltpeter, there must be a fire gun, or he wants to make a fire gun, so there will be transactions in the future.

The yellow steward who got the dressing mirror and the crossbow, not surprisingly, just with the dressing mirror, has caused a small sensation in the small circle of Suzhou merchants; The vanity mirror, if it weren't for the Tartar offense, might have sold for a higher price.

Ten copper-patterned glass mirrors, Huang Guan took out three of them in Suzhou, and at a price of 600 taels per side, they were snatched up by merchants in the state; For the other mirrors, he packed them and sent someone to escort them back to Taiyuan.

And the twenty repeating crossbows, although the number of short arrows is too small, but the powerful attack power within thirty steps, full of accuracy, is really a sharp weapon for guarding the house, Huang Guan did not dare to make the decision easily, and also sent back to Shanxi.

Sure enough, the old Huang family in Shanxi, after getting the two boxes of things that Huang Fugui traded, sent the third young master of the Huang family's son-in-law before the Suzhou Tartar retreated, and he could arrive at Suzhou Mansion on the same day.

The businessman's sense of smell is too keen, not only the Huang family, but even the Tian family is also moved, and the inside news is unknown.

Therefore, in the letter, Steward Huang told Lao Wu that he must stabilize this small hundred households, but if he has any requests, he should speak first, and then make a decision when the third young master arrives.

Lao Wu has been to Shiguan twice, and has long had the experience of being warned by the hundreds of households in Shiguan, and on the way to Shiguan, he bypassed the vines and grasses all over the ground from a distance, and arrived at the foot of Deshi Mountain.

"Didi, Didi," this time, the scout guarding the periphery of the stone mountain was very polite, and a thin-headed sergeant who walked out of the dark fort took Lao Wu to the mountain under the signal of Wang Meng's short-handled suona.

Five small flags, one personal guard, Xiao Ye was ruthless, equipped with a total of six telescopes, Wang Meng, who was holding a monocular, saw Lao Wu's face clearly on the mountain beam five hundred steps away.

On the path up the mountain, Lao Wu stepped on the hard road surface, and looked at the sergeant next to him with envy, "You craftsmen here, if you can make such a road, I'm afraid it will cost too much manpower,"

However, looking at the appearance of this thin and somewhat pitiful sergeant, Lao Wu still shook his head secretly, these nights are not collected, compared with the border troops in other places, it is too far behind.

The sergeant nodded and smiled, without saying a word, this middle-aged man who had just been rescued from the grassland, don't look at his almost thin bones, his spirit has eased up, and even Wang Hu can throw out two streets in an instant, and the crossbow has been playing for two days, and he is also quite skilled; The secret military order on the mountain, they were informed as soon as possible.

On both sides of the road, blocks of one-foot-high earthy yellow stones, five steps apart in all directions, are placed next to the vine grass, which also makes Lao Wu very strange, how much manpower is needed to mine such a regular boulder.

The sergeant who didn't know anything made Lao Wu very depressed, it seems that Xiao Baihu's sergeant is not good at food and clothing, and he is not badly trained.

With the lesson of being raided by the Tartars, Wang Dali discussed with the craftsmen, and got the approval of the hundred households, mixed with yellow plaster and gravel, and then added a large number of short branches and wood, and a few wide wooden planks to make modules, and soon condensed into strong and square stones.

It's rough, but it's practical.

It is usually placed on the side of the road, and in case of emergency, it can resist the horse team from going up the mountain if it is overturned on the road. As long as the Tartars get off the horse and the combat power is reduced by half, then everyone can defend the mountain steadily.

Firecrackers, crossbows, and scimitar horn bows on the Tartars, Xiao Ye is still very sure.

Now, even the materials for building a stone house are at your fingertips. The yellow plaster, which is similar to the cement three hundred years later, has the greatest use, and has been made up by a dry craftsman.

"Wang, Wang," Xiao Ye personally came forward and received Lao Wu who went up the mountain in a newly renovated courtyard; There is no way, the height of the stone mill has not changed much now, but the width of the lower part is slowly increasing, standing in his original small courtyard, it is really an eyesore.

Wang Dali happily built houses made of yellow plaster for hundreds of households next to the small courtyard, and the courtyard walls were also thick earthy yellow stones, which looked like a miniature fortress, and it was not as strong as words.

Every night in the future, he instructed the craftsmen to add materials to the stone mill, so that he would not have to be light-handed, and he would have to be busy as a thief.

and the small courtyard next door, a small door was opened, and Uncle Kun usually stayed there.

A main room on both sides, three side rooms and kitchen stoves on the side, a square stone table in the courtyard, four stone benches, in the eyes of Lao Wu, the courtyard full of earthy yellow, let him appreciate the self-discipline of Xiao Ye's hundred households.

Wang Dali, who wanted to save trouble, even the stone tables and stone benches were made of yellow plaster, and Xiao Ye didn't care about it, it was practical.

got the mountain express, he had already arranged a small flag to prepare, today, he is going to talk to the Huang family about business, business is not good.

The refreshing courtyard would have a better atmosphere if it weren't for the tall stone walls surrounding it.

"Xiao Baihu, this time Wu came to be entrusted by the Huang Steward," Sitting on the stone bench, Lao Wu did not take the teacup, but arched his hand to Xiao Ye, "The Huang Steward thinks that Shiguantun has just been established, and there is a lot of need, and my Huang family can provide some help,"

Look, this is a businessman, and his vision is powerful, you Han Baocai is guarding in the gravel castle, and you can't make a fortune in your life, scolding in broken hearts, Xiao Ye had a faint smile on his face.

"Brother Wu is serious, just call me Xiao Ye, Brother Xiao is okay, it's too raw to call Xiao Baihu," This seemingly rough but careful houseguard, Xiao Ye still has a good impression, at least, the houseguard who knows how to save energy for the sake of his own business, he doesn't have it in his hand, they are all a bunch of soldiers who can eat and run.

"Hehe, I'm not welcome to that brother, I'm very aggrieved and crooked," Lao Wu smiled heartily, he also had a good impression of Xiao Ye, although he had seen a lot of thousands and hundreds of households, but it was the first time he had encountered a military household like Xiao Ye who could start from scratch, and a hundred households who could protect themselves by fighting with the Tartars.

There are troops that can be pulled out to fight with the Tartars, and there are also border troops in Suzhou Prefecture, but there are not many in the hundred households.

"Brother Xiao, I won't tell you, this time I came by order, you Baihu encountered Tartars twice, and the loss must be not small, but if you need it, let's talk about it first," a cup of sweet and sour herbal tea went down, and Lao Wu also called his brother; Compared to his age, he is more than one round older than Xiao Ye.

"Let's not talk about this first, let's go, Brother Wu, let's go and see my newly built workshop," the Huang family's fast news channel, Xiao Ye was envious, and now was not the time to start, and enthusiastically led Lao Wu to the workshop.

The little six sons standing behind the hundred households, in addition to serving tea and water, have been watching coldly, and the little six sons at this time were punished by the hundred households for a few days of labor in the small banner of drawing water, and finally became the leader of the pro-guards.

Dressed in a half-worn mandarin duck battle jacket, wearing a red-capped military felt hat, a piece of iron cuirass on the leather armor on his chest, barbed wire cowhide boots, iron mesh skirt pants, a scimitar on the left side of his waist, and a military crossbow on the right, it is already the standard dress of a sergeant.

The head of more than forty pounds, if it weren't for a foreigner, he would just have a waist knife on his body, and the eight-petal iron helmet with a pointed tip was still lost in the wing.

Of course, if he could hang a cowhide box, carry a stone fire gun on his back, and carry a telescope, he would be even more vigorous. It was Xiaoqi, scout's equipment, and Xiao Ye didn't have any extra to give it to him now.

The workshop for making leather boots and leather armor, and the blacksmith shop for making cuirasses, Lao Wu didn't care, he had seen the bright armor and chain mail, and he still laughed at such a small scene.

However, the dozens of war horses encircled in the pen behind the Land Temple, and the carts dismantled by several carpenters, made him feel shocked and stopped.

"Brother Xiao, what are these?" Pointing to those war horses that were obviously not very well taken care of, Lao Wu was not calm.

"Tartar's war horse, I led the team to the grassland a while ago and grabbed it back," Xiao Ye said with a smile in the corner of his eyes.

"You went to the prairie? Rob? Lao Wu's mouth grew in shock, and he became more vigilant about Xiao Baihu, who was quite bold.

"Yes, the Tartars dare to come to our territory to loot, why can't we also go to Lishang?" Xiao Ye's slightly mature face flashed hideously, but it startled Lao Wu.

Shiguantun's biggest weakness is that he can't feed himself on the spot, and the population is also scarce, if he doesn't make Shiguan a hedgehog, the Tartar will come if he wants to, and eat it in one bite, sooner or later Shiguantun will wither.

"The Tartars attacked Shiguantun twice, and almost every military household and artisan household on the mountain wore filial piety, and the official couldn't sit still," as he spoke, Xiao Ye took Lao Wu, who was a little stunned, out of the wall and towards the mountains in the distance.

The distance of ten miles, during which there was a place for pouring molds to make stones, a training ground, and a busy quarry, which made Lao Wu see the other side of Shiguantun's bustle.

A long row of orderly tombs, the soil of Xinpei, let the old Wu standing beside Xiao Ye, sigh, the Jingguan standing in front of the tomb, the hideous face on it, made him feel more emotional about the military households in Shiguantun and the hundred households of this young man.

On the side of the mountain, there are seventy or eighty unplugged wooden plaques in the densely packed new tombs; Damn, which Xiaoqi did it, Xiao Ye scolded in his heart, but his face was lonely sadness, "Brother Wu, the casualties of Shiguantun are too miserable, and if you come again twice, it will not be enough for my military household to die,"

The tender skin earlier, after more than two months of training, has become thicker and thicker, and I am not panting when I lie.

"This time I went to the grassland, brought back some Han slaves, and asked them to join the military households, which was a last resort, and I didn't report to the thousands of households," Xiao Ye's next words, Lao Wu suddenly realized, Lian Liandao should be, if necessary, you can ask Huang Guan to go to Commander Wei to talk to the envoy.

Returning to Baihusuo, that is, Xiao Ye's new home, Xiao Baihu solemnly proposed to Lao Wu that the heads of the tartars that were sacrificed to the victims be exchanged for sulfur and lead that were lacking on the mountain, and that horses and cattle and sheep could be exchanged in the future.

This made Lao Wu very embarrassed, he had never handled such a strange business, and Huang Guan had never encountered it, there was no precedent for this matter.

The firecrackers on the sergeants' backs, although Lao Wu was curious, but the reputation of the firecrackers was not welcomed, he still cautiously did not dare to try it, presumably the Huang family did not look down on it.

You must know that the craftsmen in the Huang family's reserve are invited from Jingshi at a great price, and the fire guns that are made are not willing to buy the expensive tartars.

The purpose of this trip, the mirror and the crossbow, Lao Wu is bound to win, and those war horses can also be eaten, and the price is negotiable.

Xiao Ye agreed, but the price of ten taels of the Tartar head was also stubbornly sold by him, and it was the price that was handed over to the thousand households, and Lao Wu, who had no choice, endured the heat on the inner thighs again, and quickly rode towards Suzhou.

Five days later, Lao Wu came back, not only brought back a long team of pack horses, but Shiguantun also ushered in the third young master of the Huang family, Huang Changzu.