Chapter 405 Youyan (Thanks to book friend 49258, who cared more than a little bit for the reward!)
Youyan, Governor's Office in Yijing.

Zhao Fuqu was carefully studying the blueprint in his hand. Although he was nearly sixty years old and had a big belly, one could still vaguely see his majestic and imposing figure in the past when he was tall and strong, and galloped across the battlefield...
Although Zhao Fuqu looked carefully at this time, the contents on the drawings were very obscure to him. Since he couldn't understand anything, Zhao Fuqu simply stopped reading and looked at Hu Jian, who was bowing in front of him and asked respectfully:

"Is this the blueprint of the Liaoyang firearm?"

Hearing Zhao Fuqu's question, Hu Jian nodded and said:
"Yes, sir. This is a blueprint of a firearm called the Po Lu Gun from Liaoyang. I have seen this Po Lu Gun in person in Liaoyang. This firearm is much larger and more powerful than the bird gun equipped by our army. A single shot at close range is enough to penetrate armor, and it is also enough to penetrate a wooden board from a hundred steps away..."

Zhao Fuqu, who came from a military background and made his fortune with guns, immediately realized the importance of this firearm after hearing Hu Jian's description, and his two cloudy old eyes couldn't help but gleam with a gleam of light.

However, he still seemed a little skeptical that the Po Lu Gun was so powerful, so he continued to ask Hu Jian:

"Have you seen the power of this Broken Lu Gun with your own eyes?"

"My Lord, I will not neglect the things you have told me to do. I have personally seen and handled this Broken Lu Gun. I have even personally checked the armor and wooden boards that the Broken Lu Gun pierced and found no problems. This Broken Lu Gun is indeed extremely powerful!" Hu Jian said solemnly:

Seeing Hu Jian patting his chest to make such a promise, Zhao Fuqu was still a little hesitant in his heart, but he felt that even if he borrowed two times the courage of Hu Jian, he would not dare to lie to him, so this Po Lu gun was probably really powerful!

At this moment, Hu Jian seemed to remember something, and suddenly reported to Zhao Fuqu:

"My lord, you have a bad memory. When I left Liaoyang, Ye Mingsheng sent someone to deliver a Broken Lu gun and some bullets and asked me to pass them to you. I will have someone bring the Broken Lu gun to you now so that you can have a look..."

When Zhao Fuqu heard that there was a real object, he was already looking forward to the Po Lu Gun and said:

"What are you still doing here? Hurry up and get your things!"

"Yes! Yes! I'll go right away!"

A stick of incense later, in the backyard of the Governor's Mansion, Zhao Fuqu sat in the pavilion, and next to him was a middle-aged scholar and a sturdy man. The three of them were quietly waiting for the results of the Po Lu Gun test.
At this time, Hu Jian, who had retrieved the Po Lu gun, carefully handed the Po Lu gun and bullets to Liu Chuanbiao, the guard leader beside Zhao Fuqu.

As the leader of Zhao Fuqu's guards, Liu Chuanbiao is not only an expert in martial arts, but also a master of firearms. In his hand, the bird gun can hit whatever he points at within a hundred steps. This time, Liu Chuanbiao is naturally responsible for the task of testing this new firearm.

Liu Chuanbiao looked at the musket in his hand with some curiosity. The musket looked somewhat similar to a bird gun, but was much heavier and longer than the bird gun. His rough hands were stroking the cold body of the musket. After a quick check of the structure of the musket, Liu Chuanbiao had an idea of ​​what it was. He loaded the gunpowder and bullets skillfully, and then looked at Zhao Fuqu in the pavilion.

Feeling Wang Chuanbiao's gaze, Zhao Fuqu nodded without hesitation. After getting permission, Liu Chuanbiao took aim and pulled the trigger. The bullet shot at the armor that had been prepared within a hundred steps. Under the gaze of everyone, there was a "bang" sound, and the bullet penetrated the armor without any suspense...
Seeing this scene, the burly man Zhao Yong in the pavilion slapped the stone table and couldn't help but shouted excitedly:
"it is good!"

Zhao Yong is Zhao Fuqu's nephew and also one of Zhao Fuqu's most trusted generals in the Yan army. Youyan is the northern frontier of the Great Zhou. Like Liaoyang, it needs to face the threat of the Luobi people. Moreover, compared with the poor Liaoyang, the Luobi people prefer to plunder the relatively wealthy Youyan.

Therefore, Youyan had to fight with the Luobi people almost every year. In the battles with the Luobi people, the Luobi people's heavy armored cavalry was the most troublesome existence for the Yan army. In the past, every time facing these monsters covered in iron armor from head to toe, the Yan army had to suffer heavy casualties.

It was precisely because of this that Zhao Yong was so excited when he saw that this firearm called the Po Lu Gun could penetrate iron armor so easily. With this thing, the Luobi people's heavy cavalry might no longer be their nightmare, and the Yan army would suffer fewer casualties.

Zhao Fuqu, who also saw the power of the Po Lu Gun, did not care about his nephew's misbehavior. He looked at Hu Jian at the side with approval and said:
"This gun is really powerful. Hu Jian, you have done a rare good thing!"

Upon hearing this, Hu Jian immediately smiled and nodded, saying, "I can be where I am today, all thanks to your promotion! I will do my best to satisfy you even if it costs my life..."

As soon as Hu Jian finished speaking, Liu Chuanbiao on the other side began to report:

"Reporting to the Governor, although this Po Lu gun is powerful and has a long range, it is very complicated to operate and the firing rate is not fast. In addition, the recoil is large, so it must be supported by something before it can be used!"

When Liu Chuanbiao heard Zhao Fuqu's excited expression, a hint of gloom suddenly appeared on his face, and he asked unwillingly:
“Is there any way to improve it?”

Liu Chuanbiao said honestly:
"I don't know the answer to this question, but firearms craftsmen should know about it. However, I think it would be very difficult to improve it!"

Zhao Fuqu felt a little regretful when he heard this, then he turned to look at Hu Jian and asked:
"How much silver did you give Ye Mingsheng to buy the technology to make this musket?"

Hu Jian said respectfully:
"Your Excellency, I spent fifty thousand taels of silver to buy the technology for this Broken Lu Gun. I paid twenty thousand taels of silver first. Ye Mingsheng gave me the blueprint and the Broken Lu Gun. I will send the rest of the balance later. Liaoyang will send craftsmen over to guide the production..."

"Fifty thousand taels of silver? Why is it so expensive?" Zhao Fuqu frowned and said with some dissatisfaction:

In his eyes, it was just a blueprint, a musket, and someone sent to give instructions. Just for these few things, he had to spend 50,000 taels of silver. Wasn't this treating him, Zhao, as a sucker?

Listening to Zhao Fuqu's words, Hu Jian lowered his head and said a little aggrievedly:

"Your Excellency, I had to work hard to get the 50,000 taels of silver. Liaoyang asked for 100,000 taels of silver right from the start!" Zhao Fuqu was still dissatisfied after hearing this. He said in a deep voice:
"Now that we have the blueprints and the finished product of the Po Lu Gun, can we in Youyan also make this Po Lu Gun?"

Hu Jian was stunned when he heard this, and his heart became nervous. Although Zhao Fuqu wanted to buy the technology of Liaoyang firearms, he didn't allocate a penny. Even the 20,000 taels of silver paid in advance were all paid out of Hu Jian's own pocket.
And now looking at Zhao Fuqu's intention, why does he want to break the contract and not pay the remaining 30,000 taels of silver to Liaoyang?

It doesn't matter if he breaks the contract, but it will implicate Hu Jian. He was planning to bring back ginseng, deer antlers and sable skins from Liaoyang to sell. If Zhao Fuqu breaks the contract and refuses to pay, how should he face Liaoyang?
Realizing the risk, Hu Jian suddenly became anxious, but as he was not well educated, he could only scratch his head and did not know how to talk to Zhao Fuqu.

Just when Hu Jian was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, not knowing what to do, the middle-aged scholar in the pavilion who had been silent all the time spoke.

"Sir, I think the remaining silver should be given to Liaoyang!"

As soon as these words came out, a look of hope suddenly appeared in Hu Jian's eyes, and Zhao Fuqu also turned his gaze to him and said in a gentle tone:

"What do you mean, Mr. Huang?"

Listening to Zhao Fuqu's question, the middle-aged scholar Huang Wen Ze did not answer immediately, but glanced at Hu Jian beside him. Zhao Fuqu immediately understood what he meant and said directly:
"Hu Jian, please go down! I will find you if there is anything else!"

Hu Jian wanted to say something after hearing this, but before he could open his mouth, he was chased out by the guard commander Liu Chuanbiao.

After Hu Jian left, Huang Wen Ze said without any worries:

“Sir, this Ye Mingsheng is a young man in his early twenties. The reason why he was able to drive away the Zhenwu Army was that in addition to the Cui family’s help behind the scenes, he relied on his firearms. This time he is willing to take out his trump card and sell it to us. Sir, Ye Mingsheng’s intention is worth pondering…”

Huang Wen Ze's words immediately whetted Zhao Fuqu's appetite, but before he could open his mouth to ask, his nephew Zhao Yong directly said:
"Master Military Advisor, can we please stop beating around the bush and just say what we want to say!"

"Zhao Yong, don't be rude to the military advisor!" Zhao Fuqu frowned and scolded.
Zhao Fuqu, who had only had a few days of education, became the general of Yuyang because of his daring and fearlessness in his youth. He also unified the Youyan area step by step and became the governor of Youyan.

But the real reason that allowed him to secure his position was that although he himself had little education, had not read many books and only knew how to fight and kill, he was willing to respect scholars and was good at selecting and appointing talented people. He recruited a series of talented people headed by Huang Wen Ze. With the help of these people, Zhao Fuqu step by step built his power into one of the most powerful vassal states in the Great Zhou Dynasty.

In response to Zhao Fuqu's rebuke, Zhao Yong lowered his head in dismay, while Huang Wen Ze waved his hand indifferently and said:

"My lord, General Zhao speaks quickly, it's okay..."

"From what I can see, the reason why Ye Mingsheng is willing to sell us the firearms technology is that he is trying to show his goodwill to you, sir!"

"Although Ye Mingsheng is a little young, he is very smart. It is no secret that you want to send troops to expand, and Liaoyang is very close to Youyan. If Song Wenhui was here before, Liaoyang could still pose some threats to Youyan from behind."

"Now it's Ye Mingsheng's turn to take the throne. He's a young boy in his twenties and can't control the situation in Liaoyang at all. The things in Liaoyang right now are enough to make him anxious and overwhelmed. So what he fears most now is that you, my lord, will invade Liaoyang and drive him off the throne!"

"That's why he took the initiative to show goodwill to you, sir, hoping that you would not attack Liaoyang. To this end, he not only wants to sell his firearms technology to you, sir, but I also think he plans to reduce the garrison in Guangning Prefecture and is preparing to cut half of the current Liaoyang army!"

Hearing this, Zhao Fuqu seemed to have heard something unbelievable, and asked in confusion:

"Is Ye Mingsheng crazy? Why did he lay off so many soldiers?"

In Zhao Fuqu's view, the world is in chaos now. As a local prince, it is natural to recruit soldiers and horses to compete for the Central Plains. Even if you don't want to fight for hegemony, you should recruit soldiers and horses for self-protection to enhance your own strength and prevent being annexed by other princes. Therefore, in Zhao Fuqu's eyes, disarmament is simply an unreasonable act and is no different from suicide...

Facing Zhao Fuqu's doubts, Huang Wenzhe explained with a smile:
"Sir, Ye Mingsheng is certainly not crazy. He certainly wants to recruit soldiers, but Liaoyang is a poor place. Now that the civil war has lasted for such a long time, Liaoyang's finances are simply not enough to support Ye Mingsheng to support so many people!"

"If Ye Mingsheng insists on not reducing the military, Liaoyang will be hit by a severe famine, and at least tens of thousands of people will starve to death. Therefore, Ye Mingsheng's reduction of the military is a helpless choice!"

"Humph! This kid surnamed Ye is really too soft-hearted. In this chaotic world, the least valuable thing is human life. He actually took the initiative to reduce the army just to prevent a few poor people from starving to death. He is really kind-hearted. In my opinion, a waste like him will be driven out in a few years!" Zhao Yong, who was standing aside and heard Huang Wen Ze's explanation, said disdainfully:

Huang Wen Ze ignored him and continued:

"Sir, there are two reasons why I suggest you give the silver to Ye Mingsheng. The first reason is that as far as I know, Ye Mingsheng has more than one good firearm, the Po Lu Gun, he also has the Wei Yuan Gun and the Zhen Tian Bomb!"

"The Po Lu Gun is so extraordinary, so the Wei Yuan Gun and Zhen Tian Lei must not be much different. Ye Mingsheng can sell the Po Lu Gun to us, so I think he will not be stingy with the Wei Yuan Gun and Zhen Tian Lei. We have to play the long game and catch the big fish. We can't give up other firearms just for the little profit in front of us."

“Besides, my lord, you have decided to send troops to Yunbing and Jinyang, so we have to stabilize the rear. Although Ye Mingsheng does not have the courage to take the initiative to attack, it is not bad to spend 50,000 taels of silver to buy peace of mind in the rear…”

(End of this chapter)