Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 363 Horse Armor and Growing Feed

"Second brother."

With heartfelt sincerity, Lin Dao picked up a glass of carbonated beverage and gestured, "Like I said before, just ask and take it."

Huo Qubing shook his head repeatedly, "No."

"Brother, just tell me how much money you should accept. You must not waver because of our friendship."

"If that's the case, I will surely be despised by the world!"

People in the Han Dynasty were still very simple and honest.

The act of betraying one's brothers' interests to curry favor with the emperor is something that later generations may have long taken for granted.

But in this era, they are despised by people.

If you actually do that, you'll definitely be criticized so badly you won't be able to hold your head up high.

"correct."

Huo Qubing took out several silk scrolls and handed them over, saying, "The Emperor has learned that my elder brother is temporarily residing in the Shanglin Garden."

“This area, including the forests, rivers, people, and livestock, shall be transferred to my elder brother’s name.”

"This is an imperial edict."

"In addition, there is a cavalry three-piece set as a reward."

The Emperor said, “My elder brother has rendered meritorious service to the Han Dynasty.”

"The cavalry three-piece set will be rewarded with a thousand gold pieces for each set, and I will also pay off the thousand gold pieces I owe."

"A total of four thousand taels of gold, which will be delivered soon."

Lin Dao, who was drinking a carbonated beverage, also praised it repeatedly.

"The emperor is magnanimous!"

Among the many emperors of the Han Dynasty, there were many who were stingy, but also quite a few who were generous.

But if we're talking about who's the most generous, then without a doubt it's Piglet.

The wealth accumulated over decades during the reigns of Emperors Wen and Jing was mostly used for war.

That wasn't enough; they used all sorts of methods to make money, such as the salt and iron monopoly and the White Deer Coin.

The wealth they acquired was mainly used for military expenses and rewards for military achievements.

When it comes to military equipment, the little pig is really generous.

This is why the Han army was able to consistently suppress the Xiongnu and maintain the strategic initiative.

"Since the Emperor of Han is so magnanimous..."

Lin Dao nodded with a smile, "I can't be too shabby either."

"Wait, I'll go get the good stuff right now."

After Lin Dao closed the door, a member of the Imperial Guard asked curiously, "Champion Marquis, we didn't see any smoke coming from the kitchen. How come there's hot food?"

Pointing to the chicken bones on the table, Huo Qubing instructed, "Even eating so many won't shut you up!"

He then patted the table and shook the bench, saying, "This is a good thing. Go back and have the carpenters make it like this."

What belongs to my brother is what belongs to me.

It's only natural for me to learn from and use good things.

When Lin Dao came out of the house again, he was carrying several bags of horse feed in one hand and a set of horse armor on his shoulder in the other.

'Splash~'

He placed the horse armor on the ground, the metallic clanging sound echoing continuously.

"This is horse armor."

Then he placed several bags of feed on the table.

"This is animal feed."

Unsurprisingly, Huo Qubing and the Imperial Guards went to adjust their horse armor.

Horse armor is nothing new; it appeared as early as the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods.

However, at that time, the main force in warfare was chariots, and horse armor was mainly used to protect the horses pulling the chariots, and it was mostly made of leather.

With the decline of chariots during the Qin and Han dynasties and the rise of cavalry, horse armor also disappeared along with the chariots.

It wasn't until the morale of the Han dynasty was high at the end that horse armor regained its former glory.

"This is not quite the same as what I read in the book."

Huo Qubing, who was well-read, naturally recognized Ma Kai.

He reached out and picked up the massive horse armor, shaking it. "Why are there so many? I remember the horse armor of the Zhou dynasty only had two pieces."

Lin Dao stepped forward and explained to Huo Qubing and his men.

First, he picked up a piece of iron and made a hood-like mask with eye holes. "This is a mask to protect the horse's head. Just put it on."

Then he picked up the chicken neck made of armor plates and shook it. "This is what you put on a horse's neck. Look at the feathers on the necks of those roosters, don't they look a lot like that? This is called a chicken neck."

Then there is the same iron breastplate: "This is a breastplate to protect the chest area."

"And this too." Lin Dao pointed to the horse armor in Huo Qubing's hand. "This is body armor that protects the torso. Of the complete set of equipment, this is the most expensive. It's a top-quality item made up of lamellar plates joined together."

"This is a protective cover for the horse's rear end, used in conjunction with the body armor."

Finally, what's left are some decorations, used to adorn the horse's tail, called parasites.

"Equip yourself with these things."

Lin Dao indicated, "The Xiongnu's arrows won't be able to hurt their warhorses."

"Not only arrows, but ordinary swords and spears are also difficult to injure you, unless you use heavy weapons to smash it directly."

Huo Qubing and the Imperial Guards nodded repeatedly, indicating that Lin Dao was right.

Whether it's a horse or a person, even if they're wearing heavy armor, they can't withstand the onslaught of heavy troops.

The problem is, there aren't that many elite troops who can effectively utilize heavy forces on the battlefield.

A spiked club is definitely a heavy weapon; if it hits you, it can break bones and kill you.

How many men are truly capable of charging into battle on horseback and wielding a heavy spiked club?
Moreover, these elite troops are usually the primary targets of all parties.

When they saw them, they would usually use crossbows first, followed by a group of people rushing in to kill them.

"Great!"

As a cavalry general, Huo Qubing knew all too well the terrifying impact a fully armed warhorse charging into battle would have on the Xiongnu.

He quickly realized, "If the cavalry also wore heavy armor, wouldn't they be invincible?"

Immediately, a member of the Imperial Guard shook his head, saying, "It's too heavy."

The Imperial Guardsman, carrying a bunch of horse armor parts, weighed them in his hand and said, "These add up to at least several dozen kilograms."

"If the cavalry also wear heavy armor, there won't be many strong horses that can carry them."

There are certainly strong horses available.

A full set of horse armor weighs several tens of kilograms, a cavalryman's armor weighs over a hundred kilograms, plus the cavalry's helmet weighs several tens of kilograms.

Strong horses capable of carrying two or three hundred pounds of load into battle are few and far between. After all, in this era where fodder and soybean cakes were the main food source, such robust horses were usually exceptionally gifted.

And being exceptionally gifted means being rare.

Middle-earth has always followed a large-scale military model.

The elite knightly route of Europe is not the mainstream in Middle-earth.

The large-scale army model implies a huge demand for numbers.

Lin Dao called out, "Look here."

He patted the bags of horse feed on the table.

"These are good things that can make horses strong quickly in a short period of time, probably within a year."

Huo Qubing and the others looked at the bag on the table.

The label reads "Sports Horse Feed," "Mature Mixed Horse Food," "Horse Weight Gain Feed," and so on.

Of course, they couldn't understand most of the characters and the way they were written.

"These are all special feeds."

Lin Dao patted the feed and explained, "It's rich in growth hormones, steroid hormones, antibiotics, and so on."

"No matter how nicely I speak, it's useless. Go back and choose any horse to raise, just observe the changes."

Huo Qubing didn't waste any words and immediately responded.

"Brother, I will take these things back and present them to the Emperor."

Liu Che, who was over thirty years old, was at the peak of his life.

He was very satisfied with the horse armor that Huo Qubing brought back, and immediately ordered someone to bring a strong imperial horse to equip it.

The horse armor, made entirely of iron instead of leather, was very conspicuous when worn.

In particular, the parts of these horse armors were all purchased by Lin Dao from modern machine shops and had been polished.

It's the kind of thing that's very eye-catching at first glance.

After circling the imperial horse twice, the little pig walked back and reached out its hand.

The Imperial Guards handed over bows and arrows.

With practiced ease, he drew his bow and nocked an arrow, which whistled through the air and struck the horse's armor squarely.

With a metallic clang, the arrow flew off without any mishap and landed on the ground.

The horse shook its neck and looked around, not overly surprised.

"it is good."

The little pig, dressed in a long robe with wide sleeves, nodded in satisfaction.

Being immune to arrows is a huge advantage on the battlefield.

He looked at several Imperial Guards and said, "Go."

The Imperial Guards obeyed the order, stepped forward to approach the horses, and brandished their weapons, such as daggers and short spears, at different parts of the horse armor.

Amidst the clanging of metal, the horses panicked, circling and kicking their hind legs.

Despite continuous attacks, the defense remained unbroken.

It wasn't until the Imperial Guards brought out heavy weapons like spiked clubs, hammers, and axes that Little Pig finally called a halt.

He was not an ignorant emperor.

"This is excellent!"

The little pig was very satisfied and immediately summoned the prime minister, "Make it with all your might!"

Sensing Huo Qubing's gaze, the little pig laughed, "Don't rush to give me your brother's reward. Let's see what kind of feed this is and how effective it is."

"I am not a petty person!"

To verify the effectiveness of the feed, a slightly thin horse was specifically selected as the test subject.

The feed was finished in just a few days, and there were no noticeable changes.

Huo Qubing made another trip, this time bringing back a large truckload of various kinds of growth feed.

Time flies, and two months have passed in the blink of an eye.

"His Majesty."

Gongsun Hong reported to Xiaozhu, "Both the armory and the inner palace are unable to meet the required number of horse armors to be manufactured. Please forgive us, Your Majesty."

Since this involves military equipment, the little pig is taking it very seriously. "Why is that?"

"Weren't the cavalry three-piece set made very well before? Why can't the horse armor be made?"

"His Majesty."

Chancellor Gongsun Hong cleverly shifted the blame to the Arsenal Director, who was in charge of arms manufacturing, and the Imperial Household Department, which was directly under the control of the royal family.

These professionals all expressed their opinions.

"The cavalry three-piece set is not difficult to make; any blacksmith can forge it."

“But horse armor is different; it’s no different from battle armor.”

"Moreover, it is even more difficult to manufacture than armor."

"Even if we rack our brains, we cannot create armor plates as sturdy as those of the original armor."

"Especially its luster and smoothness, no matter how much it is polished, it is not as good as the sample nail."

"The craftsmen have exhausted all their methods, and there is really no other way."

Just follow the instructions; it's not difficult at all.

But they wanted both the hardness of the original and the smoothness and gloss.

Given the smelting capabilities and technological level of that era, the gap was enormous.

In the modern world, things machined by machines are not easy to replicate.

When Lin Dao provided the samples, his intention was to get them to make large-scale purchases of the raw materials.

After all, simply selling technology can't compare to making more money by continuously selling parts.

The little pig thought about it carefully, and then asked a question after a moment.

Where is the Marquis of Champion?

"Feeding the horses at the stables~"

Upon hearing this, the little pig's face turned somewhat pale.

“My Marquis of Champion spends his days not reading military books, but instead tending horses.”

"Hey!"

There was no doubt that the pig was angry.

Without wasting words, he helped the man with his sword onto the carriage and led everyone straight to the second district of the horse stables.

(End of this chapter)