Chapter 250: A Thousand Golds for Horse Bones (Thanks to book friends Zi Feifei, 09801, Feng Ziqiang for the reward!)

"General, this musket is very novel in style. I wonder what it is called?"

Although he was still somewhat afraid of Ye Mingsheng, Sun Changcheng could not help but be curious about the musket and asked Ye Mingsheng carefully:

Facing Sun Changcheng's question, Ye Mingsheng subconsciously opened his mouth and wanted to say that this was an "eagle-beak gun"

But he changed his mind and thought that this was not Earth, so there was no need to give it such a crude and ugly name. Thinking that he was going to use this musket to deal with the Khitans, Ye Mingsheng had the answer in his mind and said immediately:
"This is the Po Lu Gun!"

"Po Lu Gun! What a great name! This gun is perfect for dealing with foreign races!" Sun Changcheng exclaimed.

"Master Sun, how long will it take you to complete the production of this Broken Enemy Gun?" Ye Mingsheng, full of hope, asked Sun Changcheng the most crucial question.

The honest Sun Changcheng lowered his head and thought for a moment before saying, "General, at least two months!"

Upon hearing this answer, Ye Mingsheng frowned slightly. Seeing this, Sun Changcheng began to explain:

"Sir, the production of this musket is very complicated. The first step is to make the barrel. Heat the wrought iron and take out the blank. Then wrap the wrought iron around the steel core and hammer it over and over again until it becomes an iron pipe. The thickness of the iron pipe also has requirements. It must be of a certain thickness so that the barrel is strong and can withstand long-term use."

"The second step is welding. The barrel of a long gun needs to be welded piece by piece with white copper powder. The third step is to repair the barrel, drill the barrel, and scrape the barrel. This is just the barrel..."

Listening to Sun Changcheng's narration of these steps, Ye Mingsheng's expression gradually became serious. The production of muskets in this era was even more complicated and cumbersome than he had imagined.

It seems that even if I have a more advanced musket plan, it is not an easy task to turn it into reality!

"It takes at least a month to make an ordinary bird gun. Your Broken Lu Gun needs a lot of changes. It will take me two months, but it's not too long. If you ask someone else to do it, it might take even longer!"

When he spoke of Sun Changcheng at the end, there was a hint of grievance in his words.

Ye Mingsheng nodded helplessly after hearing this. From what Sun Changcheng said, the production of the Po Lu gun was indeed not something that could be accomplished casually.

It took two months to make the first Po Lu gun. If you want to mass-produce it, it will take at least three months or even longer. This is assuming there are enough craftsmen.

I don't know if the Khitans will give me that much time...
After thinking for a while, Ye Mingsheng seemed to have thought of something good. His eyes gradually brightened. Then he found a piece of white paper on the spot and began to write quickly.

After an incense stick of time, Ye Mingsheng blew away the ink on the paper with satisfaction, then handed the drawing to Sun Changcheng and said:

"Master Sun, how long will it take you to see this?"

After carefully examining the object on the blueprint, Sun Changcheng asked in confusion, "Sir, is this a thunder bomb?"

"Almost! But I want you to add a wooden handle, and then put some flammable materials inside the wooden handle... Then, pull the fuse and it will explode!

Ye Mingsheng briefly explained to Sun Changcheng the principle and structure of the wooden-handled grenade.

After listening to Ye Mingsheng's story, Sun Changcheng thought for a moment and said:
"Sir, this thing is relatively simple. I can make a sample in seven days. However, this thing can only be thrown ten feet at most by manpower. It is far inferior to the Tiger Crouching Cannon in terms of power and range. It is a bit useless."

“Also, the ratio of gunpowder has always been 50% saltpeter, with the remaining 50% sulfur and 50% carbon. I don’t know if it will work if we suddenly change it to 66% saltpeter, 22% sulfur, and 12% carbon…”

Ye Mingsheng was not angry when he felt Sun Changcheng's doubts about his plan. After all, old craftsmen like Sun Changcheng always liked to rely on experience to do things. Although experience helps people succeed, it sometimes brings some limitations and causes people to misunderstand the emergence of new things.

"It's okay, Master Sun, just follow my plan and make the things first!"

"By the way, Master Sun, during the time you've been here, how about I give you one or two taels of silver every month? I'll give you extra money when you make something." Ye Mingsheng asked;
"Sir, what you're giving me is really too much. I work in the Ministry of Revenue's craftsmanship department, and I only get five taels of silver and some rice a year..." Hearing the conditions offered by Ye Mingsheng, Sun Changcheng was a little terrified and flattered and said:

"Just work hard! I, Ye, am always generous with my rewards!" Ye Mingsheng said with a smile:

Hearing Ye Mingsheng say this, the excited Sun Changcheng knelt down in front of Ye Mingsheng with a plop, and said with tears in his eyes:
"I will work overtime to make the product and will never let you down!"

"very good!"

Ye Mingsheng helped Sun Changcheng up from the ground and said with a smile:
Ye Mingsheng, who came from Earth, knew very well that science and technology were the primary productive forces. Skilled craftsmen like Sun Changcheng were far more valuable than an ordinary soldier. Ye Mingsheng also needed these craftsmen to turn his ideas into reality and produce them on a large scale.

Therefore, he planned to follow the example of buying horse bones with huge gold coins and give him generous treatment based on Sun Changcheng's example, so as to attract these skilled craftsmen to gather under his command and contribute to his great cause.

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Fengzhou, in an official residence somewhere in Wanfeng Prefecture.

Kobayakawa Takahide, looking at the drizzling rain outside the window, his eyes were a little blurry, and he didn't know what he was thinking about. At this time, she was dressed as a man, but under the long robe, it was still difficult to hide the plumpness of a young woman in her every move...

After escaping from the siege of the Inspectorate through the secret passage, although Kobayakawa Takahide had other hiding places, she still came to Wanfeng Mansion after careful consideration.

After all, her last hiding place had been discovered by the Inspectorate, and she was already worried that something might be wrong around her, so other hiding places were not safe. In this situation, as an ambitious woman, Kobayakawa Takahide chose to hide under the lamp and make the most dangerous place the safest place.

Kobayakawa Takahide firmly believed that Shen Jianzhong would never have thought that he would dare to stay in Wanfeng Mansion at this point!
(End of this chapter)