May 12th.
The artillery practice range in the west of the city was extremely heavily guarded that day. Zhang Zhou accompanied Zhu Youtang to personally inspect the artillery practice.
Zhang Mao, Zhu Hui and other nobles, as well as Ma Wensheng, Minister of the Ministry of War, also came with them. Wang Qiong, a doctor from the Ministry of Household Affairs and a lecturer at Yanwu Hall, represented Zhang Zhou and Yanwu Hall to confront Zhu Youtang and others. Give a lecture on artillery.
"Your Majesty, this kind of cannon is the sub-cannon that has shown its power in Ningyuan, Liaodong. Here is the cannon body. If you want to change the ammunition, you can directly remove the sub-cannon and replace it and ignite it. It is ignited with a fuse."
"All long-range guns can bloom, which can be divided into two types: ground blooming and aerial blooming. They are also called shotguns and blooming bombs in the military."
"This is a heavy cannon that Zhang Shidao has just found someone to cast."
Because it was just an inspection, everyone, including the emperor and Ma Wensheng, only wanted to see how the cannon looked like first. We will have to wait a while for the demonstration.
Zhu Youtang asked "What is a heavy artillery"
Wang Qiong looked at Zhang Zhou and said, "You invented it, it's better for you to explain it in detail. I'm just trying to imitate a cat." Essence.
Zhang Zhou smiled and said, "Your Majesty, look at this kind of cannon. The barrel is very thick and long, the barrel is heavy, and the range can reach five or six miles."
It's not "so far" yet. When Zhu Youtang said something, Ma Wensheng on the side frowned and questioned.
"Mabutang, the average Shenwei cannon weighs three to four hundred kilograms, and this kind of heavy cannon, the cannon body alone weighs more than two thousand kilograms, and the shells can also weigh more than thirty kilograms and five meters away. Outside, a temporary city wall has been built for testing. We might as well see how powerful it is later."
Zhang Zhou still attaches great importance to this kind of heavy artillery.
It couldn't be made before because of a serious shortage of steel production. However, as Xishan Coal Mine began to produce coal and steelmaking has made great progress, materials are no longer the biggest limitation.
This kind of cannon is similar to the "Red Yi Cannon" that became popular in the wars of the late Ming Dynasty. In fact, its structure is more similar to the "Armstrong Cannon" and its range is farther than the Red Yi Cannon. It is more powerful, mainly using yellow gunpowder, and can also achieve the effect of blooming on the ground.
The artillery show has begun.
The emperor and his ministers all went up to the viewing platform on the hillside, and watched the artillery performance below from an almost vertical angle.
The telescope was also handed to Zhu Youtang by Xiao Jing. Zhu Youtang held the telescope in one hand and pointed it through the aperture of the battlement with the other hand and asked, "Bingkuan, is that the city wall over there?"
Zhang Zhou said, "Yes, Your Majesty."
"It's at least five or six miles away." Zhu Youtang sighed with emotion.
Ma Wensheng originally thought that Zhang Zhou would make some lies about distance and other parameters, but after he personally looked at the distant city wall, he found that there was no such doubt.
Zhang Zhou handed a small flag to Zhu Youtang and said, "Your Majesty, it is up to you to order the firing of this first shot."
"Okay"
< p>Zhu Youtang is very happy and has neverHe was still very sick, and for the first time he felt like he was going into battle to kill the enemy in person. Then he raised a small flag and waved it.A signal flare was launched immediately next to it.
The people responsible for the artillery performance below have become Wang Qiong and Zhu Feng. They need two "professionals" to take charge at critical times. As for Baoguo Gong Zhu Hui and others, they are just standing by. On the viewing platform.
"Boom"
A shot was fired.
A dark cannonball drew a wonderful parabola and accurately hit a temporary city wall about 13 meters high, 50 meters wide, and 45 meters thick five or six miles away.
The fire came first, but when the shells went down, black smoke rose up along with the fire. The surrounding city walls were not blown down, but directly blown away. The surrounding bricks and dust rose up. The mushroom cloud of the trumpet, and just when the people watching the ceremony were still surprised by the power of this heavy artillery, the sound of "rumbling" came.
The mountains and the ground seemed to be shaking.
Zhang Mao exclaimed from the side, "It's like thunder from the ground."
Everyone looked at Old Man Zhang.
I was thinking, why are you so talented here?
Zhu Youtang felt a little panicked, then he supported the battlements and stood still. After calming down a little, , facing Zhang Zhou’s face full of surprise, “Very good.”
No need for too much evaluation.
Even Ma Wensheng, who had previously accompanied the Holy Master out of the city to watch the artillery demonstration, now lost his temper at all.
Zhang Zhou said, "Your Majesty, the next step is to demonstrate the long-range cannon. However, Your Majesty, compared to the heavy artillery, no matter how far this long-range cannon is, it can only be so much."
"Haha. "Zhu Youtang smiled and said, "I won't give the order to fire, you come."
Zhang Zhou then picked up the command flag, circled it in the air a few times, and made a gesture to fire.
The multiple cannons were the biggest weapon used to win the previous battle in Ningyuan, but with the power of the heavy artillery in front, the three multiple cannons fired out shells. After they landed, there were flowers and flames, and there were scarecrows all around. The mess
is very powerful.
But with Zhuyu in front, everyone watching the ceremony found it a bit boring.
Zhu Youtang was very excited when he saw it, his eyes were shining and he said, "That small long-range cannon has such great power."
Zhang Zhou said, "Your Majesty , the coverage area of long-range artillery shells, especially shotguns, is far less powerful than heavy artillery. However, it has an excellent blocking effect when the enemy attacks the city with cavalry and infantry. ”
"What about heavy artillery?" Ma Wensheng next to him questioned, "Such power will also pose a certain threat to our Ming Dynasty Fortress."
He almost wanted to say that Tatars don't like to build very much. Fortress, if you use such powerful artillery on the battlefield, it will not be effective in defeating the enemy invaders, but it will be imitated by the enemy and used to deal with the Ming Dynasty Chengguan Fortress.
Zhang Zhou smiled and said, "Ma Butang asked well. The heavy artillery is so powerful that it can be used as a fortress to control the pass. The Ming DynastyIt is impossible for each city to cast dozens or hundreds of these heavy artillery. In this way, the defensive range of the Ming Dynasty Guancheng is expanded to five or six miles. For the performance of the Ming cavalry, there will be depth to advance and retreat. Di Yi in the north is afraid It will be difficult to approach our Ming Dynasty city gate in the future."
Ma Wensheng knows military skills after all, so he can only nod in agreement.
If it is like before, the Ming Dynasty's artillery can only cover 200 people outside the city. A large iron ball was sent out within a meter range, without much coverage. It was actually difficult for the Ming Dynasty's cavalry to fight the Tatar cavalry with their backs against the city wall.
It was impossible to "advance, attack, retreat, and defend." ".
But if there are multiple cannons, the cavalry no longer need to huddle in the city to look for opportunities. Instead, they can go out of the city. After attacking and harassing them, they will immediately retreat. The Tatars will not easily dare to reach the city fortress. Within a range of two to three miles.
If it is replaced with heavy artillery, the effect will be even better.
This kind of heavy artillery will have no effect on the Tatars, as ordinary civil servants fear. The effect was only a threat to the city gates of the Ming Dynasty. Even Ma Wensheng seemed to see it. It was quite difficult for the Tatars to imitate this kind of heavy artillery. It would not be possible with ordinary craftsmanship. Ma Wensheng had seen a lot of artillery. I still haven’t figured out how it was cast.
“No wonder the prince came to see the artillery show last time and told me when he went back that it was very powerful. I also understood it after seeing it myself. "Zhu Youtang sighed with emotion.
Only then did Ma Wensheng know that the prince had come to see the artillery demonstration earlier than the emperor.
On the contrary, it was the civil servants of the DPRK who knew Zhang Zhou's invention of artillery. It still remains on paper.
Ma Wensheng also sighed in his heart, how could the Tatars be undefeated with such artillery and no knowledge?
“Well, time will come. It's early and it's time to return to the city. I can't disturb the errands of the various government offices. "Zhu Youtang said, "I've been out for a while, so I shouldn't waste any more time. The British Duke and Ma Qing's family, let's say goodbye. ”
What the emperor means is that we are neither coming together nor going back together. We are just saying goodbye here. You can go back whenever you like.
I am nominally going back to the palace. , but don’t ask too much about where he is going.
Zhang Zhou accompanied Zhu Youtang down the hillside. Before Luan came to the front, Zhu Youtang asked, "Bingkuan, didn't you say there will be a meeting today?" Arrange it? How to arrange it?"
Zhu Youtang is not willing to ask about the artillery now. It seems that he also feels that as long as Zhang Zhou is here, everything can be taken care of. He is only responsible for acceptance. The results are enough, and the Tatars can even be used as actual combat acceptance. He will only be responsible for listening to the results report.
Save time and effort.
Zhang Zhou smiled and said, "Your Majesty, you know, this is too much." Arrangements by the Queen Mother. I have to obey orders. "
"Understood. "Zhu Youtang was also laughing, "If the imperial grandmother hadn't said it, I might not have taken it too seriously. Are you going to Qingyunhou's Mansion or Changning Bo's Mansion?"
This sentence let Zhang Zhou know that in fact, Queen Mother Zhou had become anxious recently, and some of her words had been revealed to Zhu Youtang.
Zhang ZhouHe said, "No, I'm just watching a play in a theater owned by Chief Ning Bo in the city. Just treat it as a way to change your mood after Your Majesty left the palace and watched the artillery show."
"Okay, you Come and make arrangements."
Zhu Youtang had no objection to going out of the palace to see the customs and customs of the people.
Now the old lady is anxious for him to have a concubine, and he has gradually accepted the idea of "let nature take its course" in his heart, so he naturally calms down and just follows Zhang Zhou's arrangements. Just think of it as going out for fun.
Zhu Youtang and his party entered the city, and under the strict protection of Jin Yiwei, they arrived at Changning Bo Zhou Yu's "theater garden" in Huanghuafang in the east of the city.
"The place is not small."
After entering the shop along the street, Zhu Youtang discovered that there was a "special cave". He set up a courtyard in the courtyard surrounded by pavilions on all sides of the garden. The stage was fully protected by palace guards, and no one was seen waiting around.
Zhang Zhou said, "Uncle Changning used to run a chess club here for people to drink tea and have fun, but it was not managed well. Now it has just been renovated into a theater, and all the people invited are the Southern Opera Troupe from the south." ."
As they spoke, the monarch and his ministers, accompanied by Xiao Jing, Mou Bin and others, went up to the second floor and entered the box in the middle prepared for them.
From the window, you can directly see the scene on the stage downstairs.
Zhu Youtang asked "What play?"
Zhang Zhou looked at Xiao Jing aside, Xiao Jing smiled and said, "I asked, is it Farewell My Concubine, what are the actors and musicians? Everyone has been checked."
"Yes."
Zhu Youtang sat down and was about to watch the show.
Before watching it, I did not forget to sigh, "If the emperor's grandmother just let me come out to watch the play, I would be relieved."
This play was naturally arranged by Zhang Zhou of.
Zhang Zhou's intention is also very simple, which is to let Zhu Youtang try to contact "women" from different angles.
Listening to the opera is just a way to see if Zhu Youtang and the female actors will call and whether they will be integrated into the atmosphere on and off the stage. The actors, especially the female actors, have also been carefully selected. Some of the actors chosen were not professional actors. They were pretty but had little background.
This is in line with the needs of Queen Mother Zhou.
What Empress Dowager Zhou hates the most is her relatives messing up the government. If the Zhang family continues to be punished, and the Li family and the Sun family appear later, she will be stealing the chicken but losing the rice. .
The best thing is to only give birth to children to the emperor without asking about their origins, but you can't just send women of unknown origin to the emperor casually, so you need to make a careful selection of people.
The Ming Emperor’s concubines were different from previous dynasties. They basically did not engage in marriages. They all married women from small families. Many of the concubines were raised directly from the palace maids. , the more famous ones in the past two generations are Concubine Wan Gui and Zhu Youtang’s biological mother, Queen Mother Ji. In the Ming Dynasty, as long as they are the emperor’s descendants, there is no distinction between high and low, even if they are just the children of palace girls.A son can still be a prince or an emperor, and there is no distinction between concubine and concubine.
On the stage, the performance was performed with the beating of gongs and drums.
A "Southern Opera" transformed by Zhang Zhou began to be staged.
Zhu Youtang is not a fan, and has no great interest in dramas, but as the play progresses, Zhu Youtang still likes to watch it.
This is because after Zhang Zhou's transformation, this play is no longer just a Nan opera with the same old-fashioned singing of Enen Yaya, but has the shadow of the later Peking Opera, and the singing has become more harmonious. , the plot also tends to be more "dramatic", and the stage props, scenery, and costumes have all been transformed.
At least Zhu Youtang blended in and watched with relish.
Occasionally Zhang Zhou would explain a few sentences of the plot.
When it comes to watching a play, the first time you watch it is usually just to watch the excitement. Fans generally like to read a play over and over again, so that they can feel the fun of it.
Zhang Zhou obviously could not let the emperor watch a play many times, and he had no intention of cultivating Zhu Youtang into a drama enthusiast. His intention was very clear to highlight the charm of the female actor. Doing a little more work and stage work to make the emperor feel interested is only to the point of interest, and there is no way for the emperor to accept the person directly.
Another point is that Zhang Zhou should also try to stay out of the situation.
Watching a play is watching a play.
If the audience is interested in the actors, it is also a chemical reaction. If someone has ulterior motives to blame, it should be the Queen Mother Zhou and the two brothers of the Zhou family. I, Zhang Zhou, am just a theatergoer and a "victim." ".
After "Yu Ji" appeared.
Zhang Zhou also deliberately observed Zhu Youtang's reaction and found that Zhu Youtang did not show much interest and did not even look at it more.
Zhang Zhou was thinking in his mind.
Perhaps it is better to have a "fairy match", or the emperor is more interested in the drama of fairies falling in love with mortals, or the story of fairies falling from the sky with their coercive clothes fluttering is more interesting. Interest
The scene ended with Wu Jiang committing suicide.
The movie viewing of Zhu Youtang and Zhang Zhou is also over, and the experience is just that.
"Bingkuan, it's good." After watching the play, Zhu Youtang looked back and said to Zhang Zhou with a smile.
Zhang Zhou smiled and said, "I just want to complete the task assigned by the Empress Dowager. Your Majesty said to that actor"
"Haha." Zhu Youtang said, "Just a few glances, Do I want to accept her as a concubine? I understand that the imperial grandmother has made so many arrangements, but I hope that the queen can do more for the royal family. The former emperor had many concubines, but what happened?"
Zhang Zhou. nod.
In addition to physical weakness, psychological resistance is also a big factor in the emperor's refusal to accept concubines.
The emperor of the Ming Dynasty was once a victim of court struggles, but Zhang Zhou felt that the emperor's behavior was a bit "overkill."
"Your Majesty"
The monarch and his ministers are hereTalking about the important events of Long Si.
Over there, Mou Bin stood at the door, cupping his fists and saluting.
Zhu Youtang said, "What's the matter?"
Mo Bin looked embarrassed, but he looked at Zhang Zhou first, and Zhang Zhou knew that there was nothing good going on.
"Caught an assassin." Mou Bin said.
"Assassin"
Not only Zhu Youtang was surprised, but even Zhang Zhou felt baffled.
It was really on the stage, accompanying the emperor to watch a play, and someone came to assassinate him
Mo Bin was not sure how to explain it, but Xiao Jing came running all the way, panting and saying, " Your Majesty is a woman named Ning. She forced her way in without informing her of her origin, and even asked to see Mr. Zhang by name. "
Ning Tong.
Zhang Zhou almost wanted to hit someone.
This is not part of his plan, but it is probably understandable. Recently, Ning Tong and Chen's daughter have been completely isolated. Ning Tong wanted to discuss the bidding with him through Zhu Feng, but he also rejected it. I was put off by something.
He was really busy recently, but he didn’t expect Ning Tong to come looking for him.
When Zhu Youtang heard that it was a woman who came to see Zhang Zhou, he smiled and asked, "Bingkuan, did you arrange this too?"
"No." Zhang Zhou was very direct. The answer was, "It was purely an accident."
"Then bring that person up."
When Zhu Youtang heard that he was just an unarmed woman, he naturally had no vigilance and instead ordered Someone bring it up and show it to him.
Ning Tong was escorted upstairs. When she reached the door, she said with disdain, "Are you so rude to guests?"
"Haha."
p>Hear his voice before seeing him.
Zhu Youtang couldn't help but laugh.
Zhu Youtang must have never seen such a unique woman.
Ning Tong was then escorted into the room by the guards in casual clothes. She was still dressed in plain clothes and Jing Chai, but she looked elegant and refined. Zhang Zhou was also wondering in his mind whether women after divorce would unconsciously emit... A gaze that attracts the opposite sex
Could it be that you rather someone is determined to enter the palace?
I really underestimate you.
"Kneel down"
Jin Yiwei scolded.
Although Ning Tong saw that they were all soldiers, she was not afraid.
She originally came from a military household. She married into the Duke of Chengguo's palace before, and later she could see Jin Yiwei around Zhang Zhou every day.
Who is Miss Ning afraid of?
"I just came to see Zhang Zhou. I want to talk to him about something."
Ning Tong glared at Zhang Zhou. Maybe he was also worried that Zhang Zhou was meeting some "big shot".
But she is not even afraid of Mrs. Cheng Guotai. The biggest person in the capital is only the Duke. Is it possible that there are still princes who can enter the capital?
I can’t see Zhang Zhou and that person again. They were equals and like friends, so she wasn't even worried. She expected that he was just a member of the Governor's Mansion with a few soldiers under his command.
"Mr. Zhang, what I promised before, is it time to cash it in?" Ning Tong glared at Zhang Zhou.
Zhang Zhou covered his mouth with his hands and did not get up. He leaned over to Zhu Youtang and explained; "I just told Zhijie Heli, the former Mrs. Anbianhou. "
"Haha. ”
Zhu Youtang was about to get angry and reprimand, who woman doesn’t understand the rules?
But after hearing the background of this woman, Zhu Youtang couldn’t help it anymore Smile. Please remember to bookmark, the latest and fastest website without anti-theft and free reading