A Blood-Moving Realm has arrived in the world of The Return of the Condor Heroes.

"I wonder how Guo'er has been doing on the mountain these days? He's been a bit rebellious since he was young; I wonder if he's disobeyed his master?"

Guo Jing wanted to inquire more about Yang Guo's recent situation, his expression full of concern.

Zhang Huai didn't want to waste any more words on this matter. He had something on his mind and was in a hurry to get back, so he immediately interrupted, saying, "Uncle Guo, I have something important to tell you. We can talk about Brother Yang's matter later."

"That's right, Brother Jing. And Huai'er said that Guo'er will be here in a few days, then Brother Jing can ask him himself."

Huang Rong quickly stepped forward to dissuade him. After learning about the relationship between Zhang Huai and Yang Guo, and after Zhang Huai openly addressed Guo Jing as Uncle Guo, she took the opportunity to call him Huai'er, which inadvertently brought the two closer and dispelled some of the previous misunderstandings.

"Aunt Guo is right."

Zhang Huai immediately understood the meaning behind Huang Rong's words and readily accepted the title of "Aunt Guo".

"Alright, then may I ask what important matter brings you here, my dear nephew? Why are you taking this so seriously?"

Zhang Huai did not answer directly. Instead, he walked quickly to the door, gently opened it, looked around carefully to make sure no one was eavesdropping, and then turned around and closed the door.

He then took out the blueprints from his bundle and slowly unfolded them in front of Guo Jing and Huang Rong.

"Please take a look, you two."

"What is this?"

Guo Jing looked at the unfamiliar structure on the blueprints and asked with a puzzled expression.

Huang Rong, meanwhile, frowned, her gaze fixed intently on the blueprint.

Zhang Huai explained in a deep voice, "I obtained this blueprint from the Mongols. And what is depicted in this blueprint is a battlefield weapon with extremely high destructive power."

"A weapon of war?" Guo Jing and Huang Rong exchanged a glance, both seeing shock in each other's eyes.

"I named it a cannon. This thing may not be fatal to martial arts masters, but if it is used in military campaigns, a single cannon shot can cause heavy casualties among a large number of soldiers."

Following that, Zhang Huai explained the principles and usage of artillery to Guo and Huang in detail.

"This thing is so powerful? If the Mongols manage to create it, our Great Song Dynasty will be doomed! Even with me here, Xiangyang will be lost!"

Guo Jing was greatly alarmed and said in a solemn tone.

Huang Rong, who was standing to the side, seemed to suddenly remember something and said, "Brother Jing, you and Huai'er wait here for a moment. I'll go get something."

Zhang Huai watched Huang Rong's departing figure with suspicion, wondering to himself, "What is this woman planning to do? What's her scheme?"

Not long after, Huang Rong returned, carrying a wooden box covered in a layer of dust.

"Aunt Guo, what is this?"

Curious, Zhang Huai asked.

Huang Rong smiled slightly, but did not answer directly. Instead, she slowly opened the wooden box and took out a yellowed and brittle old piece of paper.

After unfolding the old paper, Zhang Huai's pupils dilated slightly.

The object drawn on the paper was remarkably similar to the artillery blueprints he had brought with him.

Zhang Huai felt a pang of embarrassment, thinking to himself, "Could it be that Guo Jing and his wife already already possessed what I brought all this way?"

However, after careful comparison and observation, he found that the two were not exactly the same. The blueprint that Huang Rong took out was old and worn out, and its internal structure was also very simple and crude.

The one I brought is more like an improved and upgraded version of this old blueprint.

Huang Rong slowly explained, "This thing is called a cannon. A year ago, a craftsman presented me with the blueprints and the actual object, saying that this thing might be helpful in the battle."

Guo Jing looked at Huang Rong with a puzzled expression: "Rong'er, how come I've never heard of this before?"

Huang Rong gently comforted him:

"Brother Jing, please let me finish. You are busy with military affairs and various matters in Xiangyang every day, so you are always on the go. Such trivial matters will naturally be left to me to decide."

After the craftsman delivered the finished product, I tried it out briefly, but it wasn't nearly as good as he had described. Its biggest problem was its extremely short range, even shorter than that of a regular bow and arrow; it would often fall to the ground after shooting only a few dozen meters.

In addition, its power is extremely small, but its cost is astonishingly high; the cost of making one is enough to melt down and forge dozens of ordinary weapons.

The craftsman repeatedly assured me that given enough time and financial support, he would definitely improve and perfect it. But with the war raging, even soldiers' pay was sometimes difficult to obtain; where would the money come from to support his research? So I had no choice but to put the matter aside for the time being.”

Guo Jing nodded solemnly in understanding and said, "The blueprints that Brother Zhang brought seem to be an improved version of our old blueprints. Do the Mongols really possess such skill?"

Zhang Huai stepped forward, laid the two drawings side by side on the table, pointed to the drawings in his hand, and said in a deep voice, "Uncle Guo, Aunt Guo, please take a look, this is the key."

Zhang Huai's fingertip steadily touched the gun barrel, chamber, and aiming structure on his blueprints, and he clearly stated each word:

"The old cannon in Aunt Guo's hands is just a crudely made prototype. It has no sealed powder chamber, no proper rifling, and no accurate aiming method. Naturally, it has a short range, low power, and high cost, making it nothing more than scrap metal. But my cannon blueprint has already made up for all these fatal flaws."

After saying that, he looked at Guo Jing beside him and continued:

"Uncle Guo, don't forget that the Mongols occupied the northern lands, where there are countless skilled craftsmen of our Han people. Moreover, they don't care about the lives of the people at all, and it's not surprising that they created such improved weapons through cruel exploitation."

However, Uncle Guo is right; this cannon was indeed an improvement upon our old cannon blueprints. It's highly likely that these blueprints were inadvertently leaked, fell into the hands of the Mongols, and were recognized for their value by a shrewd strategist, who then devoted considerable manpower and resources to their improvement.”

"It's very likely that I didn't value this item at the time and didn't keep it safe enough, which led to the leak of the blueprints."

Huang Rong gently brushed a stray hair from her temple and continued, her face full of self-reproach:

"I see the Mongolian inscriptions on these blueprints. This object was developed in just two months and presented to Khoduan. If the original blueprints hadn't been leaked from us, even if the Mongols controlled the Han Chinese craftsmen in the north, I don't believe they could have created such an object in just two months."

"Alas, this is all my fault. If I had seen its potential back then, perhaps we would already be able to use it to resist the Mongol army."

Her voice carried a hint of self-reproach.