On the barren land in Guanzhong outside Chang'an City, a fast horse came to the dust, and the post envoy on horseback whipped the horse's buttocks with the flag on his back, and galloped forward along the official road.

He galloped to a post stable, and pulled the reins tightly, and the horse's long neighing hooves were raised high, and he jumped off the horse and shouted: "The border is urgent!" Change horses!"

The postmaster hurriedly ordered the tired horses to be brought into the stables, a freshly washed horse loaded into the saddle and pulled out, and a bowl of warm water was brought to the messenger to drink.

"Dare to ask where the messenger is from?"

"The city of the East is surrendered! Not much more, the military situation is urgent, get on the horse and hurry!"

The messenger stepped on the stirrup and turned over on the horse, and waved the whip: "Drive!"

Chang'an has been in sight, the horses rushed across the Longshou Canal Bridge, the opposite Chunming Gate on both sides of the door hole has people shuttling back and forth, the messenger on the horseback shouted: "Border Pass Emergency!" Let the road pass!"

The Jinwu guards guarding the middle gate hurriedly let the road open, the stagecoach went straight through the door, and galloped to the outside of the Mingyi Gate of Xingqing Palace, the post envoy jumped off the horse and stood unsteadily and fell to the ground, and said in a hoarse voice: "Border Pass Emergency!"

The captain of the Long Wujun at the gate lowered his head and asked, "Since it is an urgent report at the border gate, why don't you send it to the official residence of Zhongshu Province in the imperial city!"

The envoy took out the document from his arms, and said with a weak breath: "Go and report to Your Majesty, An Lushan rebelled!" ”

"Help him down to rest!" The halberd chief hurriedly grabbed the document and ran wildly into the palace gate, and the two martial artists supported the Yong room on the side of the city gate, pulled out the stopper of the rice wine bag and slowly fed the wine into his mouth.

……

The old general Chen Xuanli stood outside the Dan Hall of Jiaotai Palace, his face full of anxiety. Li Longji walked out slowly with his hands behind his back, and asked with a hesitant expression: "This urgent report is coming from the Eastern Surrender City, it should be done by someone who is disgusted with An Lushan, should it not be trusted?" ”

"Your Majesty," Chen Xuanli eagerly took two steps forward, suddenly realized his recklessness, and hurriedly took another half step back, crossed his hands and said: "If Your Majesty is in doubt, the last general is willing to send people to visit the north along the various post stations. ”

The emperor looked at the ground with his head half-bowed, his eyelids drooping, and he raised his hand and waved it gently.

Chen Xuanli didn't dare to say more, and slowly retreated back with a "snort" with his crossed hands.

Gao Lishi stood aside worriedly and waved the dust gently, and the palace people hurriedly quietly withdrew from the hall? In the gloomy hall, only he and the emperor were left. Li Longji stretched out his hand and rubbed his forehead and staggered to find the Hu bed on the steps? Gao Lishi hurriedly stepped forward to help him, and sat down softly with his hands supporting the armrest? His face was haggard, as if he had aged several years all at once.

Colliers raised his sleeve and wiped the corners of his eyes twice? Holding the dust, he bent over and stopped: "Your Majesty......"

"You go down too, I want to be alone for a while."

Colliers let out a trilling sound from his throat: "Wow." He slowly retreated with the dust in his hand? When you reached the threshold, you turned around and looked back again? Quietly sighed and left.

Li Longji rests his head on the back of Hu's bed? His eyes stared vacantly into the distance of the palace gate, which was the distance he could see, but the place he couldn't see was the source of the crisis and the storm.

……

Li Siye sent people to Hedong and Hebei to spy on the news as soon as possible, pretending to be a businessman? They quickly turned back to Liangzhou after getting the news? Report to him the news of An Lushan's rebellion.

He sat cross-legged in the hall, and when he heard the report from the people below, he breathed a long sigh of relief, as if he had been preparing for this moment for a long time. Now that the news has come suddenly, all doubts have been resolved, and there is a sense of relief?

He didn't spread the news to the army, and the emperor's will soon come? But he should also be prepared in advance, and immediately ordered Cen Shen to be called to his side and asked him to write and draft military orders.

"Ordered Zang Xiye to transfer all the affairs of Hunya Peak to Deputy General Li Xiaogan? Came to Liangzhou to take over as the right guard of the Chishui Army cavalry. Ordered Cangcao to join the army and the health army to transport grain and grass to the stone castle, and the amount of hoarding should be enough for the soldiers in the fort to last for a year? Giving a reward of 60 gold rings to the defender of the stone castle? This money is coming out of my personal treasury? Reward him for his dedication to his duties, and not to be taken lightly. The armies were ordered to strengthen their defense, intensify patrols, and then ordered Jiaocheng to guard and capture Baiting, and stationed people along the border to guard the beacons, and the guards were not slackened day and night. That's it. “

Cen Shen put down the pen and rubbed his hands, and asked him, "Doctor, what's going on?"

Li Siye turned his head to look at him and smiled: "It's okay for the time being, send out the military order, and follow me to Qingliangguan and the artillery battalion formed outside the east gate to have a look."

……

The casting workshop on the side of the Qingliangguan is in full swing, and the shirtless men pour the smelted copper and iron juice into the clay mold through the pottery funnel. On the other side, several craftsmen held frosted stones in their hands and rode on the cast cannon body to polish it carefully, and one person held a long rod in his hand to put the gravel rod into the barrel of the cannon, rubbing it back and forth.

Zhao Zheng wore a leather apron around his body, and explained behind Li Siye: "Now the craftsmen are much more familiar with their craftsmanship, and they can complete a Xuanwu cannon in an average of five days......

Li Siye suddenly turned around and asked him: "How many artillery pieces are there in the artillery battalion that have passed the test now?"

"This," Dao Chang Zhao rubbed his hands and said embarrassedly, "There are only thirty-two gates." ”

"It's too slow! Didn't you follow my instructions and cast them separately according to the process?"

"Poor Dao has already done what the doctor instructed, but there are really few craftsmen who understand technology, there are not many foundries, and the defective rate of cannon barrels cast is too high, and we are now overstretched."

Li Siye turned around and raised his finger and said: "Can you do it if you recruit people to build a foundry in Liangzhou City, and send an official document to recruit blacksmiths in the entire Hexi, and you want to cast eighteen more doors for me within a month?"

Zhao Zheng bowed down and asked suspiciously: "It's just that our casting of artillery is only carried out in secret, if we issue an official document, wouldn't this be a big fanfare?"

"It's all at this time, who can take care of so much."

The Taoist chief didn't dare to ask about the situation, and immediately crossed his hands and said, "As long as there are enough people, Poor Dao will definitely be able to complete the doctor's orders!"

He nodded affirmatively, strode to the stable, took the reins of the mount from Yan Xiaosi's hand and handed it to Zhao Zhengyi: "Let's go, follow me to the shooting range of the artillery camp." ”

The four of them turned over their horses, beat their horses and galloped out of the east gate of Liangzhou, and came to the flat shooting range of the artillery camp.

The artillery battalion was temporarily under the command of Yan Xiaosi, with 5,000 people serving 32 Xuanwu heavy artillery. The cannon body is supported on a three-foot-high wheel base, there are brackets at the front and rear to maintain balance and angle, the back of the cannon is decorated with a wooden turtle shell, and the top of the muzzle is cast with snake eyes.

Li Siye turned over and dismounted, and instructed Yan Xiaosi: "Call one person to test shoot a cannon." ”

Yan Xiaosi crossed his hands and said, "Doctor, please let Xiao Si take charge of the cannon himself." ”

Five or six gunners pushed the guns up to the emplacement, and an earthwork ramp was dug in the rear to cushion the recoil. One person fills the twist to seal the mud, two people fill the gunpowder, and the last person fills the projectile into it, one end of the fuse is facing inward, and finally it is hammered with a wooden pestle.

Yan Ya personally stepped forward with a torch in his hand, lit the twist at the end of the cannon, and all the gunners covered their ears and closed their eyes and waited.

"Ryo!" Flames and smoke erupted from the muzzle of the cannon, and the cannonballs were thrown under the wooden plaque in the distance, waiting for nearly a breath before exploding and tearing the wooden plaque apart.

Li Siye set up a pergola and looked at it from afar, the range should be about 800 steps, although it surpassed the Fuyuan crossbow, he hoped to reach a thousand steps or more.

He turned to Zhao Zhengyi and praised: "Very good, although the fuze delay needs to be improved." ”

Zhao Zhengyi and Yan Xiaosi bowed together and crossed their hands: "Poor Dao, the last general should do his best." ”