The Empire will continue to win

"I've been preoccupied with state affairs lately, so busy that I haven't thought about these things. Your reminder is very true, sister." The Empress Dowager's tone was perfectly normal. "Supervisor Shen, you should return to Nanyuan first. Tomorrow morning at eight o'clock, the offering of the sacrificial vessels at Xishan must be carried out without fail."

"Your humble servant obeys."

Shen Moqing left the Hall of Mental Cultivation with his tail between his legs, but he was secretly pleased. It was good that the royal family was fighting amongst themselves. The more intense the conflict, the better. Only when things were in chaos would he have a chance to take advantage of them.

As they walked along the Gongzi Corridor of the Hall of Mental Cultivation, they happened to meet An Dehai, who was carrying a copper basin, and their eyes met.

"Hmph~"

Dead eunuch!

dog of a man~

They cursed inwardly and passed each other.

Shen Moqing was secretly on guard; he had inexplicably offended Xiao Anzi today. Those eunuchs, those creatures without testicles, were more petty than a pinhole; sooner or later they would trip him up.

Arrive at the Gate of Nourishing the Mind.

I ran into an acquaintance again, that beautiful Jianzhou cat.

meow~

It's clear the cat is in a good mood; it actually walked up to me, stretched out its body, and closed its eyes slightly, waiting for its owner to pet it.

Cats are creatures that particularly love a man's big hands!

However, men are extremely rare in the Forbidden City.

Half a minute has passed~

Jianzhou Cat never saw those big hands again. When she opened her eyes, she was stunned. That scoundrel had already walked more than a hundred meters away.

Meow!

Meow!

The insults were very vulgar.

.........

Outside Donghua Gate.

Shen Moqing ran into an acquaintance again.

"Brother Zhang Xun, what about your face?"

"I...I was scratched by a cat." Lieutenant Zhang Xun of the Imperial Guard, who had just finished his shift and was about to go home, covered his face, looking very uncomfortable.

"Is it a palace cat?"

"...My own cat."

After walking a few steps side by side, Shen Moqing suddenly laughed. What cat? It's clearly a shrew at home.

Zhang Xun's face turned even redder after that smile.

I walked another dozen or so steps.

Zhang Xun: "Where did Brother Shen go?"

"I'm going back to Nanyuan."

"Then we're going in different directions. I'll go to Dongzhimen North Street."

"I live in Zhenxian Hutong."

"Really? Then we live very close by. I just moved here; I used to live in the south of the city."

"Bought or rented?"

"I bought a small courtyard house for over 1000 silver dollars." Zhang Xun's expression was strange, seemingly happy yet also in pain.

No matter the era, buying property in the capital is never easy. Recalling what Li Lianying had said last time, Shen Moqing had a general idea of ​​what was going on.

Zhang Xun, a young man from another province, got married, bought a house, and accumulated a mountain of debt. Coupled with a shrewish wife at home, his life was definitely not very comfortable.

"By the way, Brother Zhang, are you on duty the day after tomorrow? I'm getting married the day after tomorrow."

"Congratulations! I'll definitely come to your house for your wedding."

"It's a deal!"

The two parted ways, one heading north and the other south. Half an hour later, Shen Moqing arrived at the Nanyuan Gun Factory.

.........

The door was closed tightly.

There were barricades outside the gate.

Four militiamen, each with a revolver at their waist, stood on either side. When they saw their superior arrive, they exchanged glances, seemingly unsure of what to do.

Shen Moqing reined in his horse and slowly walked towards the gate, the horse's hooves clattering.

"Show me your badge!" A young militiaman suddenly took two steps forward, put his hand on the handle of his gun, mustered his courage, and shouted loudly.

"Um."

Shen Moqing took out a gold waist token, and only after seeing it did everyone move the barricades and open the gate.

"You did a good job. Rules are rules." He said this as he entered.

"Yes."

Everyone was relieved and continued their guard duty.

Shen Moqing reined in his horse and proceeded slowly. The factory area was quite large, with workshops, warehouses, canteens, bathhouses, and dormitories—everything one could need. Finally, they arrived at the playground.

The playground and the shooting range are together.

At this time, militia training was in full swing.

Gunfire continued.

Dolona served as the shooting instructor, with the target set up 100 meters away.

How many bullets does one person have?

"Report to the supervisor: 10 shots each in kneeling position, 10 shots each in prone position, and 10 shots each in standing position, for a total of 30 shots."

"Let's continue."

"Yes."

Shen Moqing wasn't bothered at all; the military factory had plenty of rifles and bullets anyway.

Dorona shared his experience with everyone without reservation:

"Breathing is key when shooting. Maintain normal breathing and never hold your breath when pulling the trigger. Your finger is also key. Aim intentionally and fire unconsciously. The Type 30 rifle has a very light trigger pull, making it particularly suitable for precision shooting."

bang~

The target was broken.

The crowd erupted in cheers.

Shen Moqing nodded in satisfaction. After walking a little further, he saw Yuan Weiting and Miao Peilin each carrying a short stick to inspect the formation training. If they saw anyone who couldn't stand steadily or kick straight, they would step forward and hit them with the stick.

They would hit whatever was wrong, all while cursing.

"Are you blind? Did you stuff your eyeballs up your mother's crotch?"

"Sigh, with those hunched shoulders, were you a tortoise in your past life?"

"Stand tall and straighten up, even the women in the Eight Great Hutongs stand taller than you."

"Hey, Lao Lu's style is just so rough and doesn't follow any scientific principles," a senior naval officer on horseback remarked.

"Report to the supervisor: The militia is training."

"What's going on?"

"This morning, three troublemakers refused to be disciplined and tried to beat up the instructor in public," Yuan Weiting said righteously, without blushing.

"and then?"

"I broke the arm of one of the troublemakers and locked the other three in the basement as a warning to others."

"Very good! Continue."

"Yes."

Throughout the entire process, Yuan Weiting did not smile; a graduate of Baoding Military Academy, he was quite professional.

Wang Wu is more professional.

He was teaching assassination techniques in a corner.

"The bayonet is the easiest to learn, better than any other sword. Just remember one thing: attack, attack, and attack again. Push off with your back foot, lunge forward, push your arms forward with all your might, and thrust the bayonet tip straight at the enemy's waist and above."

"It must be powerful and vigorous, and as fast as lightning."

"Don't be afraid, don't hesitate. In the world of martial arts, speed is the only way to win; whoever is faster wins, and whoever is slower dies."

"kill!"

The crowd roared in unison, "Kill!"

Shen Moqing was very satisfied, feeling that he had taken another step closer to becoming Marshal Shen.

Some might ask, if you want to be a general, why not just join the army? The answer is simple: you can't go ashore if you join the navy, and you'll be ostracized as a traitor if you join the army.

Even more critically, the war had already begun, and the first wave of troops to the front lines suffered extremely high casualties.

Therefore, Shen Moqing chose a roundabout way to achieve his goal, serving as a favorite of the Empress Dowager while working as a big shot in the military factory, thus quietly developing his power in the rear.

But things are unpredictable, and often things don't go as planned.

It's like you always want to be a good person, but society forces you to be a bad person.

.........

Old Man Shen Zheng has arrived.

In front of everyone, he complained, "Qing'er, your wedding is the day after tomorrow, how can you be so busy? You can't work like this even when you're serving the court."

"Father, I will never forget your loyalty to the country."

What a pair of award-winning father and son!

After several arguments, Shen Moqing sent his cousin Shen Lian back to help with household chores.

The lights in the R&D workshop remained on all night.

He and his key personnel worked through the night, checking each prototype gun and conducting live-fire tests to ensure everything was perfect, so that they could make the emperor proud the next day.

The next morning.

The sky was just beginning to lighten.

A squad of Imperial Guards arrived at the factory gate: "By imperial decree, escort the gun factory supervisor Shen Moqing to the Xishan Camp."