Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 28: Craftsman
Zhu Lang didn't notice Pang Tianshou's change. He just said something and continued to ask about the firearms situation in Haojing.
"You are going to Haojing to discuss the purchase of firearms. What is the situation of the firearms of the Red Barbarians?"

Pang Tianshou was relieved to see Zhu Lang finally asking about firearms, and he quickly said

"I went to Haojing this time. After the Hongyi in Haojing knew the purpose of my visit, they were also very enthusiastic. The next day, they took me to see the largest local artillery factory in Haojing, Bugalao."

Zhu Lang's eyes flashed with a thoughtful look. How could the Portuguese not be enthusiastic?
The Nanyang route was cut off, and they didn't know when the Dutch would attack. They were still hoping that when the Dutch attacked, the Ming Dynasty would send troops to help them. How could they not be enthusiastic about Pang Tianshou, the Ming envoy?
"The Nabgarao Cannon Factory is the largest cannon factory in Haojing. It not only forges cannons, but also makes muskets. It can forge all kinds of firearms from China and abroad."

"What are the prices of various firearms at the artillery factory?" Zhu Lang asked.

"The iron and coal of the artillery factory were all purchased from Guangdong Province, so the price of the guns and cannons they cast was not expensive, only slightly more expensive than those made by the court itself."

"The cannon factory quoted a price of five taels for a 100-jin Portuguese iron cannon and fifteen taels for a 300-jin iron cannon. The largest red-haired cannon, which is our dynasty's Shenwei Dajiangjun cannon, weighs several thousand jins and is quoted at eight hundred taels of silver."

"The above are only iron cannons. The cannon factory also casts copper cannons. Copper cannons are more durable than iron cannons, and they are less likely to explode. However, copper is expensive. For the same specifications, copper cannons are three or four times more expensive than iron cannons. For example, if the 100-jin Portuguese cannon is cast in copper, it will cost nearly 20 taels of silver per cannon."

"In addition to cannons, the artillery factory also makes muskets, which are much cheaper. The price of the bird guns made by the artillery factory is only one tael of silver per gun."

Pang Tianshou said respectfully
Zhu Lang's eyes flashed with surprise. He expected that the muskets would be cheap, because the muskets of this era did not seem to be difficult to cast. However, he did not expect that the cannons of this era would also be so cheap.

In his imagination, a cannon, the most advanced weapon, would cost at least a hundred taels each, but he never expected that he could buy one for just a dozen taels.

Zhu Lang was moved when he heard the price Pang Tianshou said.

Seeing that the Qing army was about to invade, and the price of artillery at that time was so cheap, he could buy a large number of artillery and then deploy them in key cities in Guangdong Province.

His goal for this invasion was just to repel the Qing army and save Guangdong Province.
As long as he could repel the Qing army, he could publicize this self-preservation action as an unprecedented victory, thereby winning over the hearts and minds of people at home and abroad, establishing his orthodox status, and completely controlling the court.

The Qing cavalry were brave, but could they use cavalry to attack city walls? A medium-sized iron cannon only cost fifteen taels of silver, and five hundred taels could equip a city with twenty or thirty cannons.

Five hundred taels, just one Wu Jisi
Even if he had twenty important cities in Guangdong Province and equipped all of them with artillery, it would only cost him 10,000 taels of silver.
In ancient times, the army's main concern was the food supply. Therefore, in the process of conquering cities, it was necessary to capture the pass cities along the way.
If the attacking party directly marches forward past these fortified cities, the army's subsequent food and grass will most likely be cut off by the defenders in the city.

If tens of thousands of people are on the march, once the army is short of food, there will inevitably be chaos. At this time, even if the military saint is reborn, it will be useless.
Therefore, as long as artillery is deployed in the cities along the route of the Qing army's advance, the Qing army can be forced to attack the city, and the artillery can inflict heavy casualties on the attacking Qing army. With the assistance of Li Mingzhong and other field troops, Zhu Lang has a great chance of making the Qing army return empty-handed.
In other words, Zhu Lang only needs to spend 10,000 taels of silver to buy a chance to repel the Qing army and gain an orthodox status that will make the people of the world submit. This deal is really a good deal.
Zhu Lang's eyes became brighter and brighter as he thought of this.

"Thank you for your hard work, Eunuch Pang."

"Working for the court is hard work," Pang Tianshou said immediately after he saw Prince Fang's tone slow down.
"Now I have something for you to do. If you can do it well, it will be a great achievement for the court. Are you willing to go?" Zhu Lang said in a deep voice.

"Your Highness, please give your orders."

"I will give you a handwritten letter. Go to the Guangzhou government office and look for Mr. Chen Bangyan, the director of the Military Affairs Department, and ask him to transfer 8,000 taels of silver to you."

"After you take the silver, go straight to Haojing without delay. When you get there, buy 200 cannons. Don't buy the small 100-jin cannons. Buy all the medium-sized 300-jin cannons. If the quantity is insufficient, buy as many as you can get."

"Purchase two more red cannons. After the purchase, all these cannons will be sent to Guangzhou."

"Use the remaining silver to buy another 1,000 muskets, which will cost about 6,000 taels of silver. Use the remaining 2,000 taels of silver to buy me local artillery shells and gunpowder in Konghaojing."

"Yes, I will do my best to buy the cannon for Your Highness," Pang Tianshou was delighted when he heard this, and immediately answered loudly.
At most one or two months, the Qing army will invade Guangdong Province in a big way. During this period of time, Zhu Lang will not be able to control the court, let alone organize people to produce gunpowder. Therefore, what he can do now is to buy
Since Haojing produces artillery, it must have a supporting artillery industry. Artillery is not something that can be used just by having a gun body. Once it is used, the consumption of ammunition and gunpowder is the biggest expense, so these must be prepared in advance.

As for why I bought the Portuguese machine, it was because it had a fast firing rate.
Nowadays, there are many kinds of firearms in the Ming Dynasty, and the types of artillery are also varied, but the most practical one is the Portuguese cannon. Many artillery in the Ming Dynasty are still traditional muzzle-loading cannons, but the Portuguese cannon is a rare breech-loading cannon.

The Portuguese arquebus is divided into two parts: the main cannon is the traditional gun body, and the sub-cannon is loaded with shells and gunpowder. As long as the sub-cannon is loaded into the main cannon and locked, it can be ignited and fired directly.

After firing, just take out the sub-gun and immediately load the next sub-gun to fire continuously.
The current muzzle-loading cannons of the Ming Dynasty, like the matchlock guns, require the shells to be pushed into the gun body from the front and compacted before they can be fired.

If the shell is not loaded tightly enough, or even not fired, the shell will roll out of the gun barrel by itself.
Compared with the breech-loading cannon like the Portuguese, the muzzle-loading cannon is not only complicated to operate, but also has a very slow firing rate. The two are simply a generation apart.

"According to what you said, the trade routes of the Hongyi in Haojing have been cut off at sea. The situation must be difficult at the moment. You can go and test those Hongyi when you go to make purchases."

"Just say that if you want to make this deal, you need to provide me with five skilled cannon casting craftsmen, and see how the Red Barbarian responds," Zhu Lang's eyes flickered.
"This... I will definitely try my best, but that Hongyi is also an expert in business, I'm afraid he won't agree easily," Pang Tianshou said with some difficulty.
Of course the Portuguese would not agree. It's like if someone comes to buy eggs in a hurry and asks for the hen as well, no normal person would do such a thing.

Since you want to buy eggs, why don't I keep the hens to continue laying eggs and then sell them to you?
If I give you the hens, who will come to buy eggs from me in the future? I'm afraid you will come to steal my business.
"Even if the Red Barbarians refuse, Eunuch Pang can think of other ways. How many Red Barbarians can there be in Haojing? Could it be that all the people in their artillery factory are foreigners?"

"There must be Chinese craftsmen helping with casting in those artillery factories. These Chinese craftsmen have worked in the artillery factories for a long time, and some of them must be familiar with casting. These people can also be used by our Ming Dynasty." "I will give you five sixth-rank official positions. As long as you are a master craftsman who can really take charge of a matter, as long as you are willing to come to Ming Dynasty, you will receive an annual salary of 100 taels, and you will be appointed as the head of the Ministry of Works. If you don't want to be an official, you can also let your son become an official, and you will also be a sixth-rank Jinyiwei centurion."

"This matter is as important as purchasing firearms. The Red Barbarians' firearms are very powerful. If our Ming Dynasty can recruit their craftsmen and learn how to cast them, we can cast them in large quantities to resist the Eastern Tartars. This is a major event that is beneficial to the country. Whether it can be accomplished depends on the means of Eunuch Pang," Zhu Lang said meaningfully.

"The prince has offered such a generous reward. As long as the Han craftsman in Haojing still has a bit of loyalty and righteousness in his heart, he will serve the Ming Dynasty."

"I will do my best to recruit a craftsman for Your Highness," Pang Tianshou said with a look of determination on his face.
He knew whether he could be valued by the King of Gui, so he decided to let this craftsman take charge. The purchase of firearms was a lucrative job, and the reason why it fell to him was just that he happened to know something about Haojing.
How difficult can purchasing be? It is just a matter of giving money to people. It is difficult to earn other people's money, but if you want to spend the money, anyone can do it.
Therefore, his real mission on this trip was to find a way to recruit those gunsmiths who were skilled in casting cannons from Haojing, and the more the better. Only in this way could he show his ability.

This Prince Gui obviously attached great importance to firearms. As long as he could handle this matter well, perhaps the Prince would directly hand over the matter of casting firearms to the court in the future. If he could get this position, he would not only be able to re-establish his position in the new dynasty, but also make up for all his losses along the way.

Supervising the manufacture of firearms for the entire imperial court, how much money must be made in this?

Pang Tianshou was just thinking about how to trick the craftsmen back to Ming Dynasty after he got the money from Guangzhou. But he suddenly realized something and was shocked.

He was not surprised that the King of Gui asked him to buy artillery, and he had even expected it on the way here. But what really shocked him was that the King of Gui could mobilize the silver from the Guangzhou treasury.
Before he came, he already knew that the Gui Wang family had fled from Guangxi Province to Guangdong Province. Before he was enthroned, he was just an ordinary vassal king.
But now the King of Gui asked him to go to Guangzhou to transfer silver. What does this mean?

This shows that the King of Gui has unknowingly established a foothold in Guangzhou, and no one in the court is aware of this.
He knows the foreign language, is familiar with the situation in Southeast Asia, and now has secretly laid a base in Guangzhou without telling anyone. How many things is the King of Gui hiding?
Now, based on a few words, people can judge that the situation of the Hongyi in Macau is not good.

On the one hand, he was allowed to do business, but on the other hand, he was asked to cut off the source of funds, secretly recruiting the Red Barbarian cannon casting craftsmen, and cutting off the foundation of the Red Barbarian Cannon Factory. This was really a cruel move.

Zhu Lang did not expect Pang Tianshou to have so many ideas in his mind in a flash. In fact, he had no idea whether Chen Bangyan could convince Su Guansheng.

If Su Guansheng refused to enter the court, the money in Guangzhou would be gone, and Zhu Lang's plan would be just talk.
Nonsense, without money, who will do things for you? Do you really think Pang Tianshou will be loyal to the country and sacrifice his life for it?
But Zhu Lang didn't care. Even if he couldn't withdraw the money in Guangzhou, it would only make Pang Tianshou go for nothing. It wouldn't cost Zhu Lang a thing.
What's wrong with Zhu Lang ordering an eunuch to do something? Pang Tianshou should be thankful to Zhu Lang for employing him.

Zhu Lang was thinking about something, and when he glanced down casually, he saw the remaining shock on Pang Tianshou's face. His mind turned, and he became alert instantly.
He ordered Chen Bangyan to return to Guangzhou to persuade Su Guansheng to join the court, but this is still top secret.
Before Su Guansheng enters the court, no one must know about it. Otherwise, even if Su Guansheng wants to join Zhu Lang, he will never be able to enter the court.
Just now, I didn't pay attention and let Pang Tianshou go to Guangzhou to withdraw money. Pang Tianshou is also a smart man. Obviously, he also realized that I had arranged something in Guangzhou.
This person can't stay in Zhaoqing anymore. A cold light flashed in Zhu Lang's eyes.

"This matter is urgent. After Eunuch Pang goes down, I will have someone escort him out of the city directly. This matter cannot be delayed. Thank you for your hard work, Eunuch Pang." A hint of coldness flashed in Zhu Lang's eyes.

"Working for the prince is hard work. I will leave the city and rush to Guangzhou soon. I will not delay the prince's important event."

Pang Tianshou didn't know why Zhu Lang's expression suddenly changed, and he didn't dare to disobey, so he spoke directly
Zhu Lang took the letter from the table and quickly wrote a decree ordering the Guangzhou Treasury to transfer 8,000 silver taels to purchase firearms. Then he took the King of Gui's golden seal and stamped it with a snap.

Zhu Lang handed the letter to Pang Tianshou, and told him to wait, and then called in Li Chengzhi who was guarding outside the door.
"Chengzhi, send a reliable person to go to Guangzhou City with Pang Tianshou."

"Be careful to hide, don't let anyone find out that this person left my house."

"Also, tell the person accompanying you to keep an eye on Pang Tianshou."

"Don't worry about anything else. If Pang Tianshou wants to escape before reaching Guangzhou, capture him right away. Don't let him return to Zhaoqing. If you can't capture him...if you can't capture him, don't hold back. Just kill him directly."

Zhu Lang's eyes flashed with hesitation, and then his face became stern again, and he gritted his teeth and said

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. He is just an eunuch. If he leaves the city, he will never be able to return to Zhaoqing."

Li Chengzhi looked at the cold-looking young prince, and a hint of surprise flashed through his heart, but his face remained calm and he said in a calm voice:

"Also transfer one more person from the army to make up for the 20 guards in the palace. You have just arrived in the palace, and there must be people watching you. If you suddenly lose one person, it will definitely be noticed by those who are interested," Zhu Lang reminded again.

"Don't worry, my lord. I understand."

Li Chengzhi was stunned at first, and then he seemed to think of something, a cold light flashed in his eyes, and he said coldly

"Go ahead, thank you for your hard work"

Zhu Lang patted Li Chengzhi on the shoulder, Li Chengzhi bowed and went down to make arrangements.

Zhu Lang looked at the figure going away at the door, then sat back at the table, rubbing his brows with his fingers, his face full of fatigue.

Four thousand words chapter
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(End of this chapter)