NovelPantry Chapter 1419 One Life?
Chapter 1419 One Life?
Zhu Yuanzhang's expression changed drastically, and Zhu Qiwu felt the design blueprints in his arms burning hot. Had Chen Youliang, an opponent even more terrifying than the Yuan Dynasty, finally lost his patience?
"Send the order!" Zhu Yuanzhang strode toward the palace gate. "Xu Da will lead the army to defend the river, Tang He will lead the navy to meet the enemy, Zhou Dexing..." He suddenly turned back, "Qiwu, you come with me to the Longjiang Shipyard."
Zhu Qiwu stroked the design blueprints for the Divine Might General Cannon in his arms and suddenly laughed. "Chen Youliang, let me show you what a time traveler's dimensional reduction attack really looks like!"
Inside the Longjiang Shipyard, steam filled the air as craftsmen busied themselves assembling new warships. Zhu Qiwu stood at the bow, watching the workers attach thick bamboo tubes to the hull.
"Is this what you called 'the fire dragon emerging from the water'?" Zhu Yuanzhang touched the fuse on the bamboo tube. "How far can it fly?"
"Three hundred zhang." Zhu Qiwu lit the fuse. "Watch closely!"
Suddenly, flames shot out from the bamboo tube, trailing a long plume of black smoke as it soared into the sky, tracing an arc across the river before crashing into Chen Youliang's naval camp. The explosion shook the river, causing it to churn, and the sails of several warships burst into flames.
"Excellent!" Zhu Yuanzhang clapped his hands and laughed, "Create fifty more! No, a hundred!"
"Fourth Brother," Zhu Qiwu grabbed him, "Chen Youliang's warships are too tall for our muskets to reach. We need to use the Divine Might General Cannon."
"Where's the cannon?"
“It’s being cast.” Zhu Qiwu pointed deep into the shipyard, “but it will take time.”
Zhu Yuanzhang was silent for a moment, then suddenly turned around: "Zhou Dexing, melt down all the bronze Buddha statues in the city! Xu Da, take men to dismantle the bronze bell at Chaotian Palace!" He looked at Zhu Qiwu with burning eyes, "Seven days, I'll give you seven days!"
Seven days later, Chen Youliang's navy had approached Longjiang. The sixty-foot-tall warships resembled mobile castles, with the "Han" character flags fluttering on their masts, obscuring the sky. Zhu Yuanzhang stood on a high platform by the river, clutching the Western pocket watch given to him by Zhu Qiwu.
"Fourth Brother, it's time to set off." Zhu Qiwu was wearing newly made chainmail, with three flintlock pistols hanging at his waist.
"You stay on shore." Zhu Yuanzhang pressed down on his shoulder. "Chen Youliang's assassins..."
“I want to go with Fourth Brother.” Zhu Qiwu smiled and held up the design drawings. “Besides, the Divine Might General Cannon needs my debugging.”
Zhu Yuanzhang stared at him for a long time, then suddenly burst into laughter: "Good! Today, let us brothers fight our way to a peaceful world!"
On the river, twenty warships equipped with the "Fire Dragon Emerging from the Water" weapon were lined up in a goose-like formation. Chen Youliang stood on the deck of one of the warships, looking at the insignificant Ming army on the opposite bank, and sneered contemptuously: "Zhu Chongba, with these dilapidated ships?"
"Release!" Xu Da's roar pierced the river mist. Hundreds of "fire dragons emerging from the water" soared into the air, trailing flames across the sky. Chen Youliang's laughter abruptly ceased—the bamboo tubes had actually turned in mid-air, heading straight for his flagship!
"Get out of the way! Get out of the way!" He frantically waved his command flag, but it was too late. Explosions rang out one after another, the flagship's sails burst into flames, and a large hole was blasted in the hull.
"Zhu Chongba!" Chen Youliang drew his sword. "All troops, charge! Crush them!"
Just then, a deafening roar suddenly came from the bottom of the river. Six Divine Might General Cannons emerged from the water, their muzzles flashing with fire. Zhu Qiwu personally lit the fuses, watching as the iron balls, coated in gunpowder, hurtled out and exploded in a spray of blood among Chen Youliang's fleet of warships.
"What...what is this?" Chen Youliang stared at the mast that had been cut in half, his face ashen.
"These are cannons," Zhu Yuanzhang's voice came from the smoke and dust. "Chen Youliang, do you know why the Yuan Dynasty was defeated so quickly?"
As the smoke cleared, twenty Ming warships had already approached the fleet. Each ship was equipped with flintlock muskets at its bow, and the gunfire erupted like popping beans. Chen Youliang's soldiers fell into the river one after another, their blood staining the surface red.
"Impossible..." He staggered backward, "Zhu Chongba was just a cowherd..."
“But his brother,” Zhu Qiwu’s voice came from above, “is a man who can change the world.” He stood atop the mast, his flintlock pistol pointed at Chen Youliang’s forehead, “Surrender, or die.”
Chen Youliang suddenly burst into laughter: "You think you've won? I'm already in Yingtian Prefecture..."
Gunshots rang out, and blood bloomed on Chen Youliang's forehead. Zhu Qiwu blew away the smoke from the muzzle and watched the body fall into the river. A system notification sounded in his ear: "Killing an important historical figure, reward: a complete copy of 'Tiangong Kaiwu', 20 catties of potato seeds, and 10 Western muskets."
Zhu Yuanzhang walked up to him and asked, "What did he just say about Yingtian Prefecture?"
Zhu Qiwu took out sweet potato seeds from his pocket: "Fourth Brother, we should go back to the capital. There are some people we need to get rid of."
As the sun set, Ming warships cut through the waves. Zhu Qiwu stood at the bow, watching the wreckage floating on the river, when he suddenly heard a system notification: "Host has been detected to have altered a major historical event. Hidden feature unlocked—Time-Space Shop."
A blood-soaked breeze swept over him, and Zhu Qiwu gripped the gunwale tightly. The setting sun dyed the river blood-red, and the wreckage of Chen Youliang's flagship bobbed in the waves, the half-dragon flag hanging on the mast already charred black by musket fire.
"Seventeenth Five!" Zhu Yuanzhang's voice was tinged with a metallic rust. "What exactly happened in Yingtian Prefecture?"
Zhu Qiwu pulled a paper packet from his pocket, inside which were three sweet potato seeds, still covered in soil. He deliberately let the packet rustle in the wind: "Fourth Brother, do you remember those strange vines I had Chang Yuchun try planting in Yingtian last autumn?"
Xu Da's sword suddenly struck the deck, making a crisp metallic sound. The usually silent general stared intently at the paper package in Zhu Qiwu's hand, his Adam's apple bobbing: "That stuff really yields thirty shi per mu?"
"Thirty shi?" Tang He's laughter was like a broken gong. "Has Seventh Brother been blown mad by the river wind? Even the most fertile paddy fields in Jiangnan only yield three shi of rice."
Zhu Qiwu suddenly raised his hand, and the sweet potato seed arced into the river. Amidst the gasps of the crowd, he stared at the newly appeared words "Time-Space Shop" on the system interface: "What Yingtian Prefecture is currently planting is a treasure that can yield sixty shi per mu."
The deck fell silent. Zhou Dexing's pipe lay at his feet, oblivious to the scorch marks left on his hemp shoes by the embers. Zhu Yuanzhang's pupils shrank to pinpoints. He suddenly grabbed Zhu Qiwu's wrist with a grip so tight it seemed to crush bones: "Say that again?"
"Fourth Brother, do you still remember the Persian merchant I rescued outside Hezhou City three years ago?" Zhu Qiwu let his brother hold him, his gaze sweeping over the astonished faces of the crowd. "Before he died, that man gave me half a scroll of the 'Complete Book of Agricultural Administration,' saying it was left behind by some... some kind of time traveler."
Xu Da's scabbard clanged against the ship's side: "A time traveler?"
“People like me, who came from outer space.” Zhu Qiwu pulled a pocket watch from his sleeve, the inside of the cover engraved with “Made in the Yongle Reign of the Great Ming Dynasty”—an item he had just redeemed from the Time-Traveling Shop last month. “That senior said that the Yuan Dynasty’s fate was sealed, but for the Han people to truly rise up, swords and spears alone are not enough.”
Tang He suddenly lunged forward, his fingers trembling as he touched the pocket watch: "What...what is this? How can it move by itself?"
“Western clocks.” Zhu Qiwu closed the clock case. “Yingtian Prefecture now not only has sweet potatoes, but also iron horses that can travel three hundred li a day, glass lamps that can illuminate half the city, and…” He paused deliberately, “a secret weapon that can turn Chen Youliang’s cannons into scrap metal.”
Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly released his grip, turning to look at the river. His silhouette appeared exceptionally tall in the setting sun. "So, what Chen Youliang meant by 'Yingtian has sorcery' before he died?" "He only saw the tip of the iceberg." Zhu Qiwu opened the Time-Space Shop interface, a dazzling array of goods flashing on his retina. "Fourth Brother, we should return to the capital. But before we do," he suddenly raised his voice, "where is Chang Yuchun's vanguard now?"
Xu Da untied a leather pouch from his waist, poured out the beans, and spread them out on the deck: "According to the sand table simulation taught by Brother Qiwu, General Chang should have already captured Taiping Prefecture and is heading towards Caishiji."
His words were interrupted by the sudden sound of cannon fire. Everyone turned their heads at once, and saw several Yuan warships turning around on the river three miles downstream, their iron-clad rams gleaming coldly in the setting sun.
"Perfect timing." Zhu Qiwu licked his chapped lips. "Brother Tang, give me that musket at your waist."
Tang He instinctively clutched his waist: "I bought this from Lü Zhen for twenty taels of silver!"
"Twenty taels?" Zhu Qiwu dragged a box of Western muskets out of his system inventory. "Ten muskets for one broken cannon, are you in?"
A chorus of gasps rose and fell on the deck. Zhou Dexing's pipe finally went out completely. He stared at the box of firearms engraved with "Made in Frankish Style," his voice trembling: "These...are they all for us?"
Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly turned around, his gaze piercing: "Seventh Five, tell me honestly, how many of these divine weapons do you still have?"
"Enough for Fourth Brother to unify Jiangnan." Zhu Qiwu opened the musket case, took out a flintlock pistol, and handed it to Zhu Yuanzhang. "But there's a condition."
"explain."
"After returning to the capital, I will take charge of the Directorate of Works," Zhu Qiwu said, staring into his elder brother's eyes. "All new weapons must be manufactured under my personal supervision."
Zhu Yuanzhang stroked the carving on the gun barrel with his thumb, then suddenly laughed: "You little rascal, finally showing your true colors?" He abruptly raised his gun and aimed, the Yuan warships on the river instantly becoming clear. "Deal. However..."
"But what?"
“If these ‘divine weapons’ are not as miraculous as you claim,” Zhu Yuanzhang pulled the trigger. Sparks from the flint ignited the gunpowder, and the gunshot made everyone’s eardrums ache. “I’ll hang you on the city gate of Yingtian Prefecture and let the whole city see what it means to spread heresy.”
Zhu Qiwu watched as the Yuan army masts, struck by the arrows, collapsed on the river, a smirk playing on his lips. "Fourth Brother, don't worry," he said, "you'll only see the people kneeling at the gates of the Imperial Workshop, begging to plant sweet potatoes."
Three days later, outside the city gate of Yingtian Prefecture.
Chang Yuchun's vanguard stood in formation, their armor gleaming bluish-gray in the morning light. But what truly astonished the people were the ten strange-looking chariots at the front of the formation—each one was wrapped in thick wooden planks, with only a dark, gaping tube visible, and a bronze mirror mounted on its roof, so bright in the sunlight that it was impossible to open one's eyes.
"Is this the 'Red Barbarian Cannon' that Brother Qiwu mentioned?" Xu Da circled the chariot three times. "Can it really blast open a city wall three miles away?"
Zhu Qiwu, who was adjusting the gun mount angle, didn't even look up when he heard this: "If Brother Xu doesn't believe me, he can stand on the city gate tower and try it."
"Get lost!" Xu Da laughed and kicked the wheel. "These iron wheels are quite ingenious, much sturdier than our wooden wheels."
"The iron wheels are just the beginning." Zhu Qiwu stood up, dusting off his hands. "Once the rubber trees arrive from Southeast Asia, we'll be able to build iron carts that don't need horses."
Tang He suddenly emerged from the crowd, holding up a piece of paper: "Seventh Brother! I've brought all the craftsmen you asked me to find! But," he lowered his voice, "aren't some of them from the Yuan Dynasty's Ministry of Works reliable?"
"We only use them if we can't rely on them." Zhu Qiwu took the list, his gaze lingering on a certain name. "Where is this Kuai Xiang now?"
“He’s staying at the inn in the west of the city.” Tang scratched his head. “That kid’s very stubborn; he said he won’t come unless he sees you in person.”
Zhu Qiwu laughed: "Interesting. Let's go meet this future founder of the 'Fragrant Mountain Gang'."
West City Inn.
Kuai Xiang was drawing something on paper with charcoal pencil. Hearing the door open, he didn't even look up. "I already said, I'm not seeing Zhu Yuanzhang's brother."
"What if I told you I could let you meet Lu Ban, the legendary master carpenter?"
Kuai Xiang's pen paused, and a blot of ink immediately spread across the paper. He slowly looked up and saw a young man in a strange short shirt standing at the door, twirling a silver object in his hand.
"Who are you?"
"Zhu Qiwu." The young man pulled up a chair and sat down. "You can also call me the time traveler."
Kuai Xiang's pupils suddenly contracted. He lunged forward, his fingers gripping Zhu Qiwu's wrist tightly: "You...you really came from the future?"
Zhu Qiwu winced in pain as the system interface flashed before his eyes—Kuai Xiang's favorability rating had instantly soared to 80. He withdrew his hand and pulled a scroll of blueprints from his backpack: "I heard you're researching a new method of mortise and tenon joints?"
Kuai Xiang's eyes lit up. He took the blueprints, his fingers trembling as he traced the structural diagrams of the "dovetail joint" and "corner joint": "Who made this? It triples the load-bearing capacity of the mortise and tenon joint!"
“A man called ‘Anonymous Craftsman,’” Zhu Qiwu said, picking up his teacup. “He said he could pass on this technique to you, but you have to do me a favor.”
"What kind of help?"
“Help me rebuild Yingtian Prefecture.” Zhu Qiwu put down his teacup, his gaze intense. “Not this dilapidated city surrounded by earthen walls, but a future city that can accommodate a million people, with sewers, running water, and streetlights.”
Kuai Xiang's breathing quickened. He suddenly grabbed a charcoal pencil and frantically scribbled on the paper: "You have blueprints? Complete construction blueprints?"
"Yes," Zhu Qiwu said, opening the Time-Space Shop, "but you'll need to exchange your entire life for it."
"lifetime?"
“Yes.” Zhu Qiwu stood up. “From today onwards, you will be the chief craftsman of the Imperial Workshops of the Ming Dynasty. I will give you the best materials, the most brilliant apprentices, and—he paused—…the opportunity to make your name known throughout history.”
Kuai Xiang's pen snapped in two with a "crack." He stared at Zhu Qiwu, then suddenly burst into laughter: "Fine! I'll do it! But—" He suddenly leaned closer, "You really came from the future? Does the Ming Dynasty still exist in that future?" (End of Chapter)