Chapter 536

“General, why do you belittle yourself after decades of battles?”

Xiao Ming did not expect Luo Quan to decline his offer at this moment.

“Your Highness, I am not belittling myself. Ever since the last battle in Jizhou, I have been pondering this matter. Qingzhou’s firearms and cannons have made me realize that war is no longer what it used to be. Relatively speaking, Luo Hong will be more receptive to musketeers than I.” Luo Quan said with a sigh.

Seeing Luo Quan’s firm stance, Xiao Ming nodded. He said, “Since that is the case, I will not insist, General.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.” Luo Quan seemed relieved.

Fiji’s eyes flickered. The army was different from the bureaucracy. Luo Quan’s decision was well thought out. He had discussed it with him on the way here. Even if he had accepted Xiao Ming’s request, the soldiers in the army might not have supported him.

Most importantly, if he entered the army, the Firearm Battalion from Chang’an or the Jinwuwei who would later defect to Qingzhou would look to him for leadership, which would undoubtedly create factions within the army.

Officials could bicker with each other, but the army had to maintain unity. Considering this, he decided not to wield military power anymore. And with Niu Ben’s qualifications, he was sufficient to suppress these soldiers from Chang’an, so integrating the army would not be a problem.

Having initially resolved the issues of officials and generals, the discussion then turned to Pengzhou for a while. This time, Fiji’s diplomatic mission to Jinling City meant that since the Prince of Wei had ambitions for supremacy, he would not hold back.

Moreover, Fiji had also hinted that King Qi had inherited the great succession, but the Prince of Wei still ignored it, which was simply a betrayal of the royal family.

After settling the matter of annexing Pengzhou, everyone dispersed. However, Niu Ben left Xiao Ming with a dilemma before leaving: which army would be responsible for attacking Pengzhou.

Currently, the Youzhou Army was guarding Shanhai Pass and naturally could not be moved. A portion of the Qingzhou Army was in Yunzhou defending against the Prince of Zhao’s and barbarian attacks, and another portion was on Ryukyu Island.

The Dengzhou Army, on the other hand, had to guard against possible attacks from Goryeo and Japan. After much thought, he could only mobilize the Cangzhou Army, Yizhou Army, and Laizhou Army to attack Pengzhou. However, because these three armies were not stationed at the borders like other prefectures, the combined strength of the three prefectures’ armies was only fifteen thousand, and they had almost no equipment.

However, during this period, these three armies had been training in the firearm troop formation. Since the army had training firearms, they could quickly form into an army once given equipment.

Thinking of this, he felt a headache coming on. It was again the problem of equipment. What he lacked most right now were firearms and cannons.

At the same time, a sense of crisis arose in his heart. Although Qingzhou’s industry far surpassed Great Yu Empire’s, the population shortfall was still fatal.

Human wave tactics were enough to destroy everything he had built.

As he was worrying about equipment, a servant from the royal residence suddenly reported that Lin Wentao requested an audience.

Hearing this, Xiao Ming was delighted. The person he most wanted to see right now was Lin Wentao. The speed of equipment production depended entirely on him.

“Let him in,” Xiao Ming said excitedly.

The servant left, and Lin Wentao arrived at the main hall, looking excited.

“Your Highness, I and Zhang Liu have resolved the problem of one steam engine driving multiple machines. Using crankshafts and connecting rods, the steam engines in the machine tool workshop can now drive a row of twelve drilling machines. We have now installed five more steam engines, so now a total of seventy-two drilling machines use steam power.” Lin Wentao said excitedly.

Pausing, Lin Wentao continued, “During this period, the steam engine workshop produced a total of sixteen steam engines. According to Your Highness’s request, six were given to the machine tool workshop. Of the remaining twelve, four were given to the textile workshop, and the remaining six will be given to the firearm workshop in the military factory for rifling the barrels of rifled guns.”

“Good, very good.” For Xiao Ming, this was undoubtedly a timely relief, because with insufficient population in his fief, what he could truly rely on was the steam power provided by steam engines.

Now Lin Wentao had successfully overcome the problem of one steam engine driving multiple machines, which would save him a lot of labor.

Moreover, once Lin Wentao mastered the problem of one steam engine driving multiple machines, it meant that the technical difficulties of steam locomotives had been initially resolved.

Lin Wentao was naturally very excited. He said, “Your Highness, although the steam engine is performing well now, there is still a drawback: the degree of piston leakage is still somewhat serious. I saw something called ‘rubber’ in the books Your Highness provided. It is said that rubber pistons are soft and can ensure airtightness, but I am unsure what this rubber actually is?”

“Lu Tong knows about this rubber, but this material is not found in Great Yu Empire. It only exists along the southern coastlines. However, I have already started trading with the Dutch, and I will find a way to obtain some rubber.”

“Yes, Your Highness.” Lin Wentao said happily.

Xiao Ming was a little helpless. This was the importance of colonization. Without colonization, potatoes, sweet potatoes, chili peppers, and tomatoes would not have spread to Europe and Asia. Without colonization, rubber would not have been discovered and applied to industry.

What frustrated him was that he was preparing to sail to the sea, but unexpectedly, such chaos occurred domestically.

For him, this internal strife was no less than the Thirty Years’ War and the Great Northern War in Europe.

Sighing, Xiao Ming said to Lin Wentao, “By the way, these steam engines are not just single-cylinder steam engines; there are also twin-cylinder steam engines and even four-cylinder steam engines. With some improvements, this steam engine will have enough power to drive more machines. You need to delve deeper into this and research it. Also, you should also study the steam locomotive in the books, as the principles won’t differ much.”

Xiao Ming threw out so many tasks at once that Lin Wentao was somewhat stunned. He said to Xiao Ming, “Your Highness, these tasks are too many. I am afraid I can’t handle it all. I humbly request Your Highness to allow me to select some students from Bowen Academy to establish a steam engine workshop laboratory, how about that?”

“Of course you can.” Xiao Ming smiled. This Lin Wentao had finally seen the light, finally understanding that working alone was not enough; research required more people.

Lin Wentao nodded, “In that case, I will go to Bowen Academy to select students.”

With that, Lin Wentao bowed and walked out.

Watching Lin Wentao leave, Xiao Ming felt a wave of relief. How effective would the steam engine’s implementation be? Among these, what he was most concerned about was the rifling in the firearm workshop.

If the steam engine made rifling simpler, then he could mass-equip the army with rifled guns.

Thinking of this, he eagerly headed towards the military factory. During this time, he had been so overwhelmed by the chaos in Chang’an that he had neglected military production. Now, to prepare for the attack on Pengzhou, he had to personally push for it.