"Bang!!"

Zhu Houzhao hid his hands at the level of his eyebrows and watched the black cannonball whizz up and land on a piece of mud covered with snow, and the cannonball landed, smashing up the dirt three meters high.

"How far can this go?!"

"Back to the emperor, you can fight as far as nine hundred zhang!"

Zhu Houzhao silently calculated in his heart, 900 zhang is about 3 kilometers, and the artillery of Yongle can hit 2 kilometers, and now he can use the foreigners' artillery technology to increase the mileage to 50%, which is very good.

Of course, it is certainly not comparable to the modern kind of people who can easily hit dozens of kilometers, or even claim to be artillery even when they hit hundreds of kilometers.

Through the clairvoyant mirror, he took a closer look at the landing point, and it was obvious that there was a large round pit, and the power was still there.

The troops are all densely arranged, and it is terrible for this kind of big iron ball to be smashed down.

"You said that it was unstable earlier, is there any problem?"

"Don't hide it from the emperor, this kind of Hongyi cannon has many shortcomings, one of which is that His Majesty said that it is heavy, each cannon has thousands of catties, and it is inconvenient to transport, and the artillery position cannot be easily moved in wartime.

If it is against the cavalry of the Tatars and the Warats, it is difficult to play a role, and the steppe people have been fighting with the Ming for a hundred years, they know the tactics of the Ming Dynasty, even if it is five hundred zhang away, they can choose to be outside the artillery distance. And because the artillery is too heavy, once moved, it is easy to be scattered. ”

Zhu Houzhao nodded, "That makes sense." But as you said, it's still useful in specific combat situations, so it's still necessary to build it. ”

"Yes! The second disadvantage of this type of artillery is that it is complicated to reload, it has to go through gunpowder, reloading ... and so on, and soldiers need to be trained before they can use it. ”

Zhu Houzhao knows this, the early firearms were really troublesome, the first round was okay, and when you got it in the second round, the archers shot three or four arrows.

"In any case, it can still play a key role in positional warfare, and once our army is the defender, it will play a greater role, and it is not easy for the enemy to attack our army with artillery."

Gu Renyi nodded, "What Your Majesty said is extremely true, Emperor Taizong paid special attention to firearms back then, and specially formed the Shenji Battalion, and its combat power far exceeded that of other battalions, and it was the elite of my Ming elite!" ”

"There is also the problem that such shells are all solid shells."

Yes, the artillery at this time was actually a big iron ball. Not the kind of gunpowder that can be exploded.

“… Can we think of a way to develop that kind of explosive bullet, replace the solid bullet with a hollow bullet, fill it with gunpowder, ignite it with a fuse when it is released, and then explode, this kind of power is much more powerful? ”

Zhu Houzhao handed the clairvoyant mirror into the hands of the inner servant on the side, pulled Gu Renyi closer and said: "The cavalry of the Mongols is no longer enough, but the cavalry can't attack the city, so they have to rely on this." ”

Gu Renyi nodded, "Your Majesty understands what Weichen means, and after Weichen goes down, he will transfer the most capable craftsmen to trial production." ”

"I have set up an academy of sciences in Beijing, and you can borrow someone from them. As long as this kind of cannon is made, I will be rewarded! ”

That's basically what he said, and then he, as the emperor, summoned hundreds of craftsmen from the Ordnance Bureau for the first time.

Their role is important, but their status is not very good.

It's not interesting to talk to them about the truth, don't fool your own people, the emperor directly brought two boxes of silver over.

On the stage, the emperor said: "I know that some of you are literate and some are illiterate, it doesn't matter, I am simpler, and mainly let the silver speak." This cannon shot farther than ever, and I was happy in my heart, and I was rewarded when I was happy. Shoot farther and more powerful, and I'll have more rewards! That's it, Gu Renyi asked your people to divide the silver according to the size of the merit! ”

"Yes!" Gu Renyi waved her hand, "Why don't you hurry up and thank the emperor for the reward?!" ”

So hundreds of people knelt down and shouted long live. The momentum is quite strong.

Zhu Houzhao laughed, watching these people receive the silver, he was happy in his heart, raised his eyebrows and said to Gu Renyi: "Money can only be spent on the blade when it is spent, it is better than taking it out as a year's coin." ”

Gu Renyi arched his hand and said: "The emperor's martial arts, how can it be compared to Zhao and Song?" ”

"Well, you also have to be generous, there will always be some silver in the trial production, but it's the same as eating, you eat the third bowl and say you're full, you can't help but recognize the credit of the first two bowls, right?"

Gu Renyi was amused: "The emperor's metaphor is interesting. ”

"That's the reason. Okay, I'm back in the palace, you cannon, wait for Zhou Shangwen and Wu Wen to open their mouths to you, and then how many doors will we have to build in total. If these craftsmen really make a new artillery, it will be a waste, and I guess this cannon is not cheap. ”

"There are more than three thousand taels in each door."

"It's expensive, but it's expensive to build. There is an excerpt in the northwest, saying that the Yarkand Khanate rejected the surrender of the Ming Dynasty, how can this work? Zhu Houzhao shook his head again and again, "He is in the way of trade in the Western Regions, and if he doesn't surrender, I can only clean it up." ”

"Your Majesty, the imperial court has used soldiers again and again..."

"I understand, and I didn't say that I would fight immediately." Zhu Houzhao said brightly, "But don't delay it too long, I thought about it that day, and suddenly found that I had been on the throne for ten years, and I was twenty-five years old." If you are thirty, you will not be young, and of course you will be a hero in your twilight years, but it is better to be young. You tell me? ”

Gu Renyi couldn't help laughing: "The emperor is obviously still in the prime of his youth." Why talk about being old? ”

Zhu Houzhao was in a good mood and said a few more words, "You are a lot older." ”

"Yes, no one is young anymore, and the minister really envies His Majesty. But—" His face began to look a little tangled.

"What's wrong?"

"The minister thinks that His Majesty has a hidden worry."

"Oh? What's the concern? ”

Gu Renyi said: "The East Palace is empty. ”

Zhu Houzhao glanced at him, in fact, there was some truth, one day he would have to think about this problem.

It's not that Queen Xia didn't give birth, she gave birth to a princess.

The queen's childlessness will affect her status, although Zhu Houzhao will defend her for the sake of the overall situation, but she herself is not confident enough, and she always feels that she has no support in the future.

In particular, it is December of another year, and it is Chinese New Year's Eve, and people have to be a year old.

Zhu Houzhao picked a sunny day to go to Kunning Palace, and Empress Xia was full of joy when she saw the emperor, and she personally made a braised fish that the emperor loved to eat.

After eating, he hid on the incense bed with his warm body, his tender skin rubbed against him, and the queen's petite body burned his mind.

I still can't get tired of this thing,

"The harem is growing stronger and stronger, and I am afraid that it will take some effort to manage it, and the queen has worked hard."

"Compared with the emperor, the hard work of the concubines is nothing."

Zhu Houzhao's hand movements kept moving, making it more and more difficult for her to hold herself.