The most arrogant in history

Chapter 304 Technology Leak.

Lao He looked at the account book in his hand and said, "Fifty muskets can be made quickly because we have all the spare parts. But for a thousand muskets, I'm afraid we don't have enough steel..."

A musket requires fifty or sixty kilograms of steel.

Taking into account the loss during manufacturing, it would be less than 100 kilograms.

A thousand muskets and a million kilograms of steel are not a small number.

Moreover, the steel used to make muskets needs to have stable quality and must be new iron that is uniformly mined and refined. It cannot be cast with random old iron.

"Our iron ore has been in production and can guarantee the supply of steel. You can go ahead and do it without worry. Besides, I won't need these 1,000 firearms until four months later. If the iron ore supply is insufficient, I will contact Guan Bao, who is in charge of the mineral resources in the entire territory."

"That's no problem, I can complete the task." Lao He nodded.

Guan Bao reported the output of iron ore and suggested:

"If we want to ensure the output of iron ore, we have to continue to increase manpower and develop new mines. We have discovered two more pyrite mines in the Chongqing Ridge Valley, and the iron output is acceptable. The parallel ridges and valleys in Chongqing are not high, so it is easy to mine."

Ye Kun thought about it and nodded:

"I will give you another 5,000 men to develop a new mine immediately. You will be in charge and start production as soon as possible. In short, the more iron ore the better. It is as important as food!"

Guan Bao took the order, withdrew money from the treasury, and went to Chongqing to take charge the next day.

In the blink of an eye, it was November.

Ye Kun checked the government treasury, took inventory of the accounts of warehouses in various places, and the tax situation, and found that the situation was better than he expected.

The natural conditions in Yizhou are so good that if there is no war, production will recover quickly.

The intensive farming and composting techniques promoted by Ye Kun have greatly increased production.

The grain produced in the Chengdu Plain and the Hanzhong Plain alone cannot be eaten up.

Ye Kun was in a good mood. He took a batch of ironware, porcelain and glass to Hanzhong to inspect the work, mainly to check the road construction situation.

The roads are well built.

Ye Qingyang was in charge of the road construction, and he was willing to put in the effort to have those death row prisoners work hard and overtime.

Ye Kun looked at the situation and asked Guan Yong to be in charge of transporting some baggage, artillery, and some food and fodder to Hanzhong for storage by the end of the year.

In this way, when fighting after the New Year, all we need to do is transport the troops.

Some equipment has to be disassembled before it can be transported here and then assembled in Hanzhong.

As soon as he arrived in Hanzhong, Ye Kun received an urgent report: the two states of Yong and Liang had been defeated by Xiahou Chang.

Niu Yeliang committed suicide.

Niu Yeliang's general, also his son-in-law Zhong Tiankui, led 5,000 remnants to Hanzhong to rely on Ye Kun.

Zhong Tiankui, known as the most powerful general of the Dading Kingdom, is brave enough to defeat ten thousand men.

When the eighteen princes fought in Luoyang, Ye Kun once held the pear blossom spear and fought against Tian Kui together with Shangguan Jifu, Lu Kaijiang and the other three heroes.

Unexpectedly, the most powerful general of the Dading Kingdom was still no match for Xiahou Chang and became a lost dog!

Ye Kun asked Zhuge Feng and others: "My Lords, how do you think this matter should be handled?"

Zhuge Feng shook his head:

"This man is born with a rebellious nature. Everyone knows that he is a slave of three surnames. Now he is at the end of his rope and has come to surrender with 5,000 soldiers. Although he is obedient for the time being, he will definitely rebel in the future. In my opinion, it is better to refuse him entry into Hanzhong and let him fend for himself."

Xie Tong also came to Hanzhong with Ye Kun this time and said, "If we reject Zhong Tiankui, I'm afraid he will become desperate and resort to violence."

Tan Bamao laughed loudly: "We are in Hanzhong, with 20,000 to 30,000 troops. How can we be afraid of this drowned dog? In my opinion, we should just kill him!"

"Not appropriate." Ye Kun thought for a moment and said:

"If I want to compete with Xiahou Chang for the world, I must recruit heroes from all over the world. Now Zhong Tiankui has taken the initiative to join me. If I refuse him, I am afraid that the heroes of the world will laugh at me for being intolerant."

Zhuge Feng said: "Then keep him temporarily and keep him under strict surveillance. If Zhong Tiankui makes any unusual moves, we will take the initiative to deal with him."

Ye Kun nodded: "Let's do it. Mr. Zhuge, on my behalf, go and meet Zhong Tiankui."

Zhuge Feng took the order and went to meet them with his men.

The next morning, Zhong Tiankui led his troops into the northern part of Hanzhong.

The five thousand survivors were all in a miserable state, cold and hungry.

Ye Kun asked Wang Meng to mobilize 10,000 soldiers and horses and prepare for battle, also to let Zhong Tiankui see the military might of Yizhou.

Zhong Tiankui rode forward and clasped his fists towards Ye Kun on horseback:

"General Ye, I am a defeated general. I have come to you to make friends with you. From now on, I am willing to follow you and serve you like a dog and a horse!"

This guy is quite arrogant. He said he was going to surrender, but he refused to dismount.

Or rather, he still looked down on Ye Kun in his heart.

After all, Ye Kun came from a humble background and was just a carpenter.

Ye Kun didn't care and returned the greeting with a fist: "The general's reputation is known to the world. In the future, with the general's help, I will be even more powerful!"

"Thank you, General Ye!"

Only then did Zhong Tiankui dismount.

Ye Kun also got off the horse, took Zhong Tiankui's hand, and entered the small town of Xincang.

Xincang City was the latest city built by Ye Kun and was used to store food and fodder.

When we attack Chang'an in the future, this place will be the bridgehead.

Zhuge Feng also arranged food and fodder to support Zhong Tiankui's 5,000 remaining troops.

In the lobby, Ye Kun set up a banquet to entertain Zhong Tiankui.

Zhong Tiankui ate voraciously.

While entertaining the guests, Ye Kun asked about the situation in the two states of Yong and Liang.

Zhong Tiankui got drunk and started bragging:

"I was fighting outside and was about to defeat Xiahou Chang. Who would have thought that my father-in-law would listen to the villain's words, lose territory one after another, and finally commit suicide. I fought back, but was powerless due to lack of food and grass."

Ye Kun asked again: "How are Xiahou Chang's weapons?"

Zhong Tiankui sighed, "General Ye, don't mention it. Xiahou Chang's army has many pulley crossbows, which are said to be modeled after those in Yizhou. They are very powerful and suppressed our archers. Otherwise, how could I lose?"

Ye Kun shrugged: "I can't do anything about this. The pulley crossbow is not a complicated thing. Xiahou Chang can make it if he puts some thought into it."

In fact, the technology of the pulley crossbow was leaked because of Shangguan Jifu.

When he was trapped in Jingzhou, some of his pulley crossbows fell into the hands of Xiahou Chang.

There are even a few cannons!

The cannon was seized by the enemy, but Ye Kun was not worried because the gunpowder technology had not been leaked.

It was not easy for Xiahou Chang to develop gunpowder. First, the formula, then the proportion, and then the granular black powder, the screened granular black powder, and the fixed gunpowder.

It would take Xiahou Chang more than ten years to figure out this process on his own!

What gave Ye Kun a headache was that after the pulley crossbow was seized, Xiahou Chang gained the ability to copy.

The surrendered soldiers here would describe to Xiahou Chang the chariot pulley crossbows, barricade wire and other equipment.

With the economic strength and skilled craftsmen of the Central Plains, Xiahou Chang would deploy a large number of pulley crossbows and wire chevaux de frise.

Zhuge Feng asked tentatively: "Does Xiahou Chang have a telescope?"

This is also an issue that Ye Kun is concerned about.

Zhong Tiankui was stunned: "What is a telescope?"

Ye Kun smiled and asked Tan Bamao to take out the telescope to help Zhong Tiankui broaden his horizons.