Don't be a prince

Page 222

Facts have proved that people who want to get started quickly and have excellent physical coordination can do it, as can smart people.

Although Li Tai is still quite fat, but after falling a few times, he found the feeling.He was obviously a fat man, but he was skating fast on the ice. After a while, Li Ke, who was playing tricks, met his second opponent.

Although skating was fun, it was a sport after all. It didn't take long for the three of them to be covered in sweat. The clothes that were originally used to keep out the cold and protect them suddenly became a burden.

If you continue to play, there is a risk of catching a cold, so under Li Chengqian's call, the three brothers went ashore together and gave the venue back to the people.As for Zhao Yi, at this time, he still needs to be supported by others to slip slowly for a while.Simply stay and "have fun with the people".

After returning to the palace, after taking a hot bath, he came out of the bath and saw Zhang Yun holding a formal robe.

"Your Highness, the angel has arrived. It is Li Jian. Your Majesty's reply letter and imperial decree have also arrived."

"Li Jian, you don't need to wear formal clothes to receive him!"

"However, His Majesty also sent two ministers, one is Yan Liben, the chief craftsman, and the other is the clan supervisor, King Jiangxia."

"King Jiangxia?"

Hearing this, Li Chengqian dried himself quickly and asked Zhang Yun to help him get dressed. Li Jian is a domestic slave, so even if he was an angel who came to pass the decree, he didn't need a formal interview, but Li Daozong was different. Dude, even the emperor won't wait for him on the bright side.

After getting dressed, Li Chengqian hurried out to meet Li Daozong.

As soon as he left the side hall, he saw a large number of horses and chariots transporting supplies, and Li Daozong was already waiting at the door of the side hall.

Hastily going up a few steps, Li Chengqian cupped his hands and said: "Your junior is rude, and he didn't go out to greet you, King Jiang Xia, don't blame him."

Li Daozong resigned from the imperial court due to illness and entered the Zongzheng Mansion as Taichangqing, but at this time he looked pretty good, even if he had just finished his journey.

From this point of view, Sun Simiao made a move. Nowadays, Sun Simiao rarely accepts invitations from honorable and high-ranking officials, and those who can invite him to consult alone, all of them offer sky-high prices.After the old Taoist priests get the money, they will not use it privately, but directly put it into the hospital's public account to reduce or exempt the poor from seeing a doctor.

This is also a kind of robbing the rich and helping the poor.

Waving his hand to stop the carriages and horses delivering supplies, Li Daozong returned the gift and said with a smile: "Since you left Chang'an, you haven't been able to eat the mooncakes in the Eastern Palace on the August Festival. I really miss you. Now that you are caught, since you want to To apologize, then treat the old man's mouth first!"

"That's simple. I don't know where you are staying. I just arrived in Dengzhou, and I asked the cook to cook you a table of Dengzhou specialties."

After finishing speaking, Li Chengqian invited Li Daozong to advance to the side hall study.Although Li Daozong is also a member of the old Li family, he is not directly related to the royal family, so he cannot live in the palace, so he can only find a place to live outside.

After entering the study room, a brocade box was placed on the table. It was only then that Li Chengqian noticed Li Jian.This guy has always been elusive, coupled with the usual eunuch dress, if you don't pay attention, you will be startled by him.

"Your Highness, there are no outsiders in the study now, so let's avoid those common etiquettes. This is His Majesty's will. Take a look."

Opening the brocade box and taking out the imperial decree, Li Chengqian smiled wryly after reading it just once.

Li Daozong, who was sitting quietly on the side, saw that he had finished reading the imperial edict, and said: "Do you know, your letter has caused an uproar in the court. It is your identity as the prince. Otherwise, if someone else showed the intention of getting involved in gunpowder, his head would have moved. Your Majesty said that from now on, gunpowder workshops can only exist around Chang'an, Dengzhou is so far away from the pass, who dares to bring gunpowder workshops here!"

Li Chengqian smiled wryly: "Doesn't this mean that transporting gunpowder weapons from Chang'an to Dengzhou is not only dangerous, but also expensive? It's such a long journey, and I don't know how many ships and carriages will be taken up."

"It's a precious thing, so it's nothing to spend more on shipping. Anyway, His Majesty said, if you want gunpowder weapons, the Gunpowder Department can do its best to satisfy you, but don't think about anything else. You still have what you want." Eight oxen crossbows, sixty? Even if the eight oxen crossbows have been taken out of the limelight by gunpowder weapons, don’t you think it’s too much? How many are there in total for the military inspector? Now the young inspector of the military inspector is Lu You, what does he mean? It is impossible to transport the eight-ox crossbow, so I gave the old man a few craftsmen, saying that these craftsmen can go to Dengzhou to make the eight-ox crossbow."

"Isn't this a joke?"

Hearing this, Li Chengqian was stunned.As far as he knows, the craftsmanship of the Eight-Ox Crossbow is extremely complicated, and it may even take several years to create an Eight-Ox Crossbow from scratch.The excellence of every place leads to the appearance of every eight-ox crossbow. They are all high-quality goods, and they will not be easily damaged even in the sun and rain.

Although the eight-ox crossbow on the ship will be covered, it will inevitably be soaked due to long-term combat at sea. Once damaged, wouldn't it be necessary to send people from Chang'an to repair or replace it?

Too late!

Just about to say something, suddenly there was a knock on the door.

Zhang Yun went to open the door, and it was Yan Liben who signed up to enter.

After settling the delivered supplies, Yan Liben came over directly.

Hearing about Li Chengqian's worries, Yan Liben didn't take it seriously.

"Your Highness does not know. During your absence in Chang'an, the Institute of Engineering discovered a kind of soft steel, which can just replace wood. It is used as the crossbow arm of the eight-ox crossbow. Although the weight has increased a lot, the eight-ox crossbow made of soft steel , but the size has been reduced a lot, and the components can be used after being assembled by trained craftsmen. Unlike the previous time-consuming eight-ox crossbow, this new eight-ox crossbow is easy to produce on a large scale. Weichen heard that you want to build a ship covered with iron plates? Then you must build a smelter, and while making the iron plates of the ship, you can also make the eight-ox crossbow."

"That's right."

Nodding his head, Li Chengqian immediately stopped worrying.The gunpowder workshop will not be built if it is not built, and the same is true for the transportation from Chang'an to Dengzhou.

Take out the plan that has been changed several times and hand it over to Yan Liben and Li Daozong.Li Daozong, as Tai Changqing, appeared here as a supervisor, so he allowed the local government to do such nonsense.As a supervisor, he has the right to intervene in all matters.

By the time the two of them finished reading the plan, it was already evening.After turning over the last page, Yan Liben thought for a while before he said, "Your Highness plans to make the ship in half a year? Do you know how much labor will be spent in such a hurry?"

"As many people use as many people, the faster the better."

Thinking about the money he had prepared, as well as Li Tai and Li Ke's money, Li Chengqian didn't think half a year was too rushed.The biggest question now is whether there are enough people in Dengzhou.

After reading the plan, Li Daozong concentrated on drinking tea.Before leaving, the emperor asked him to have an audience with him, and told him not to talk too much, but to read more.He only mentioned one thing about the quarrel in the court, and he didn't plan to discuss with the prince in detail what happened.In fact, he also really wanted to know what would happen to this genius prince, who was rare in the royal family, if he was allowed to be free.

"You have also seen the plan. Let's start implementing it tomorrow. All resources are at your disposal. The materials prepared for you during this period are far more abundant than you think!"

Yan Liben nodded. He knew the prince's temper. Since he had obtained the plan, as long as it was not too urgent, he could not disturb him.

"Tired, since you have seen the imperial decree, the old man has also conveyed what His Majesty asked the old man to tell you, so the old man will go out of the palace to rest. Let's talk about the banquet tomorrow."

Seeing that Li Daozong was leaving, Li Chengqian hurriedly got up to see him off.

After sending Yan Liben and Li Daozong away, he turned his head back to the study, and Li Chengqian stretched out his hand to Li Jian.

"What are you doing, Your Highness? This servant is not holding anything from you!"

Seeing Li Jian's innocent face, Li Chengqian curled his lips: "Come on, what about private messages? Don't tell Gu, my father just gave me an imperial edict, it's a lie!"

Li Jian chuckled, and pulled out a thick envelope from his bosom...

After receiving the envelope, Li Chengqian covered his head and went to sit at the desk.Sure enough, for the emperor, there is no option of "letting go" at all. Even if all the courtiers pass, he must ensure that everything is within his control.Li Jian was the prerequisite for the emperor to allow him to do things like this.And this letter must have imposed many restrictions on him.

Opening the envelope, ignoring the heavy and heavy paper, unfolding the letter paper first to read the contents of the letter.

"Gao Ming, my son met: I still have ten catties of meat and a bucket of rice today, so my son doesn't need to worry. Now you and I are away from the palace, take care of each other. The queen's delivery date..."

After reading the emperor's awkward words from beginning to end, Li Chengqian seemed to see a big Tsundere.This guy, obviously lonely, can't do it, but he insists on talking hard.However, it is considered that he has a heart, knowing that he is worried about his eldest grandson.

Putting down the letter and opening the folded square paper, Li Chengqian immediately clicked his tongue.

This is a map with even higher accuracy than Zhang Liang's drawings.On this map, the emperor marked how to consolidate the defense line around the Dengzhou sea area, and how to test the reality of the Koreans, Silla people, and Baekje people.Even, if possible, he didn't even let Japan go.

In the letter, Li Chengqian's irresistible eagerness to try was obviously noticed by the emperor.The courtiers were unwilling to provoke a war between the two countries, and it was impossible for them to agree to send troops to test the enemy's situation.However, if you encounter it "by chance", then everything can be explained.

For countries such as Goryeo, the emperor's attitude is obvious, that is, he will definitely do it.This is not only because of Goryeo's arrogant and ignorant attitude, nor is it just because Goryeo has always been eyeing the Central Plains.The biggest reason is the relationship between Goryeo and the Sui Dynasty.

Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty failed in his three expeditions to Korea and returned. Many times, people regarded the Eastern Expedition to Korea as the fuse for the demise of the Sui Dynasty.As for Li Shimin's successor, if he can clean up Goryeo, it will prove from the side that he is much stronger than Emperor Sui Yang.For the overjoyed Li Shimin, this was an irresistible temptation.

Because of this, while refusing to open another gunpowder workshop, he agreed to supply gunpowder weapons regardless of cost.Although outsiders don't know it, the emperor knows it very well.Transporting gunpowder weapons from Chang'an to Dengzhou, including the damaged parts due to damp, is a pure waste of money.

Close the map and lock it in the desk.Looking at the grinning Li Jian, Li Chengqian said helplessly: "Gu knows about father's plan, since you are here, when Gu goes out, he will call you, other than that, you can go to the queen mother to listen to her. "

Li Jian immediately cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty obeys! In addition, His Majesty ordered your servant to bring a lot of servants with superb martial arts skills. Does Your Highness need to transfer some here?"

A servant with superb martial arts skills?It must be someone like Zhang Yun. There is no doubt that these people are robots purely obeying the emperor's orders, and it is only fools who put eyeliner in their comfort zone!

"No need, let's arrange all of them to be with the queen mother, so that the mother can withdraw some people."

After dismissing Li Jian without hesitation, Li Chengqian turned around and ordered the subordinates of the side hall to keep an eye on those people.There is no way to refuse. The emperor is worried about his wife, so it is only right for him to send some servants with high martial arts skills to protect him.

Seeing that the New Year's Eve is getting closer, the people in Dengzhou are not in the mood to be busy with the New Year.The prince's construction site is still recruiting people, and even the twelfth and thirteen children are rushing to get them.His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is benevolent and righteous, and never deceives the people. When recruiting, he promises to pay as much as the salary, and the manager who pays the money will not deduct it privately.

The most surprising thing is that some thoughtful attempts to bribe the stewards were rejected without exception.Fairness and good reputation, this is the impression of the prince in Dengzhou people.

Working on the construction site, although tiring, but three meals a day, and wages. After taking the wages to Laizhou next door to buy food, many poor people in Dengzhou were able to eat their fill for the first time.Compared with the generous wages, although Chinese New Year is also important, but I can't take care of it!

Brothers Li Chengqian and Li Chengqian also ignored the Chinese New Year. The land of the shipyard has been cleared and the ditches have been dug. All that remains is the factory building and the laying of cement.

If the three warships were to be completed quickly, three docks had to be excavated. Even if there were many civilians who came to call, it was not an easy project to dig a dock that could accommodate the warships.

"Damn, this is too slow!"

At this time, Li Tai had already changed into a linen suit, and often when he was in a hurry, he would even move some stones by himself.The land is firm in winter, and because of the abundance of groundwater, the ground on the coast of Dengzhou is very firm.Difficult-to-excavate ground is an unexpected problem.

"What are you complaining about? You are in a hurry, and the farmers are also in a hurry. Yesterday I saw a lot of people and the stewards asking for money back. They are embarrassed by the progress of the day."

Li Ke was also dressed in sackcloth and covered in dust.Li Tai was just gesticulating, but he really participated in the work of lifting soil.

Chapter 356 The Emperor Who Pit His Son

The time is tight and the tasks are heavy, and the result is that everyone is anxious. For the first time, Li Chengqian discovered that money is not everything.

There are a lot of laborers in Dengzhou, and these people don't mix water in their work, and even take the initiative to ask for money to be deducted if the work is delayed, for peace of mind.As long as you go to work, you will go home to rest after exhausting all your strength every day.But that's it. Before a huge project, simply increasing the number of people can increase the speed at the beginning, but after the number of people is saturated, the effect is not so obvious.The construction site is so big, it is inconvenient to work if it is full of people.

Furthermore, because of the permafrost, if the workers want to save effort to dig the soil, the way for the workers is to burn fire on the ground first, and then excavate after the soil layer is thawed, which will take more time.As for planing with a hoe...the hoe made by the Tang Dynasty craft, such a barbaric use

In this case, there is only one way!

Li Chengqian and Li Tai looked at each other and nodded at the same time.

Li Ke, who attended the small meeting, saw the exchange of eyes between the two, and thought of something, and said in surprise: "No, are you two planning to use gunpowder?"

After thinking about it, Li Ke also felt that gunpowder was the most suitable way to solve the current predicament.After all, this thing can blast even city walls, so there's no reason it can't deal with frozen soil.

Li Chengqian nodded and said: "That's right, if you want to speed up the progress now, you can only use gunpowder. However, although the Gunpowder Department has research on mountain opening, so far, no plan has been circulated. Talk to the dignitaries in Chang'an again, in terms of time." It's a big problem, so..."

"So, we can only use gunpowder weapons to blow up. Hey, brothers, I need to contribute at this time. With my plan, gunpowder weapons will save a lot, and the speed of excavation will also increase."

After speaking, Li Tai stood up, patted his buttocks, and went to ask the gunpowder supervisor for gunpowder weapons.Nowadays, every batch of gunpowder weapons, even if there is only one box, will match a supervisor.The supervisor of gunpowder weapons, I don't know where the emperor found him, and everyone is stubborn to death.How should I put it, it's the type that doesn't have to be discussed, and you dare to mess around with me to light the gunpowder.

But thanks to these guys, gunpowder weapons have now been distributed to the state capitals for exercises. During this period, there has been no mistake.

However, no matter how stubborn the gunpowder supervisor is, he still has to make concessions when facing Li Tai.Li Taideng visited the warehouse in the morning, and the gunpowder weapons were transported to the construction site in the afternoon.Well, it belongs to Li Tai's shipyard.

"His Royal Highness, it is not impossible to use gunpowder weapons for engineering, but all consumption must have a receipt of your instructions, otherwise, it will be difficult for the subordinate officials to explain to the superiors when they return to Chang'an."

Seeing the supervisor with his neck as cold as ice, Li Chengqian admired Li Tai very much.Good guy, he didn't want to persecute such a person, but Li Tai actually got rid of him.

"No problem, Gu will write a certificate for you tonight, but before that, let's test whether gunpowder weapons can be used for engineering blasting."

Pushing this dead-faced guy aside, Li Chengqian curiously followed Li Tai into the construction site.

The progress of Li Tai's dock is similar to that of the other two. Even with the efforts of countless Dengzhou farmers, up to now, it has only been dug to a depth of more than three meters.In the absence of construction machinery, it is already remarkable to be able to achieve this level in a short period of time with only human power.

"Here, dig a deep pit here and bury a large grenade."

"Here, dig a deep pit here, and bury it in the same way."

"Well, as for this, first dig down along the direction of the stone. If the stone is not big, use a gantry crane to get it out. If it is too big, use gunpowder."

Following Li Tai's command, the farmers immediately started working.

After watching the kung fu for a while, Li Chengqian understood what Li Tai was going to do.He was planning, preparing to rely on the power of gunpowder to evenly blast the flat ground into pieces.After the blasting, the workers only need to lift out the chunks of frozen soil, and the job is over.There is no need to use brute force or fire, and the speed will be much faster.

In the absence of professional blasting talents, although such an approach is a bit wasteful, it has to be like this.

"Then whoever is here, send some gunpowder to Gu and King Wu, and our shipyard is about to start construction."

After greeting the supervisor, Li Chengqian also brought gunpowder to blow up his dock.

After all, it was a dangerous operation, so except for the soldiers and relatives of the Donghai Navy, after the digging was over, all the migrant workers were given a holiday.It doesn't matter if you don't let it go, the gunpowder supervisor has no idea of ​​letting civilians watch the gunpowder blast.

Early the next morning, Li Chengqian rode to the construction site without even doing morning exercises.

Some official, like the Powder Division engineer, was doing the final checks.Without a fast fuze, Li Chengqian had no confidence in even blasting.

"Your Highness, after clearing the field, there is no one within a thousand steps apart from King Jiang Xia who is in charge of lighting the fire."

Hearing the report of the sky-swapping monkey, Li Chengqian lit the smoke arrow in his hand, opened his bow and shot it obliquely.

This is the signal for ignition....

Not long after the smoke arrow rose into the air, it began to spew smoke.The sea breeze in Dengzhou was very strong, and the good smoke was blown into a mess, and the arrow did not know where it fell.But this is enough. After seeing the smoke, Li Daozong will light the fuze, and then ride away from the scene on horseback, or hide in the protective wooden houses prepared in advance around the road.

Only by making more than two-handed preparations at any time can we ensure relative safety.

Not long after the signal was sent out, Li Daozong came galloping on a steed as if fleeing for his life.Originally, this job should have been done by Chuan Tianhou and others, but Li Daozong insisted on grabbing this qualification, and no one dared to compete with him.Since he came, under normal circumstances, apart from the queen, even Li Chengqian had to give up three points to him, the King of Jiangxia.

After finally stopping the horse, before jumping off the horse, Li Daozong laughed heartily: "It's really exciting. When the old man thinks that he might be blown to pieces, his hands trembled when he lit the fire, haha."

After laughing, Li Daozong turned his horse's head and looked in the direction of the shipyard.

The guy from the gunpowder department is more skilled at timing the ignition of the gunpowder fuze than his wife's little grape.Li Daozong arrived here in less than ten breaths, and he could see a large cloud of dust rising in the distance.After a while, a series of loud noises were transmitted here.

"Good guy, it's the first time I've seen such a prodigal usage of using gunpowder weapons in construction. No wonder many people in Chang'an are rumored that His Highness the Crown Prince is a prodigal."

Looking back at Li Daozong, Li Chengqian thought for a while, but still didn't tell him the real value of gunpowder.Except for a few people such as the emperor, they didn't know the real cost of gunpowder. After the generals used it, they naturally associated its power with its value.The emperor's life thunder that can destroy a city wall at a time is invaluable, this is their common idea.

However, if you want him to say it, although black powder is very powerful, but after TNT or other things appear, this guy is also suitable for mining.

"What does King Jiang Xia think? You also think I'm a prodigal?"

Li Daozong smiled without saying a word.

After waving his hand and ordering the "Death Squad" to investigate the situation, Li Chengqian said to Li Daozong: "Since you will stay in Dengzhou, you will also observe the production of the battleship. After the battleship is completely completed, you may as well board the ship and go out to sea together to see it." , after you see the power of the battleship, you will know whether my behavior of a prodigal is worth it."