There were many pedestrians walking on the road leading to Zhaojiayu. Most of them were refugees who fled to Lingqiu to find work in Zhaojiayu, but compared with before, there were much fewer people.
The thin-faced Jinyiwei came up to Jinyiwei Baihu and whispered, "Sir, it seems that this tiger-character flag is very good at winning people's hearts. Even the people in Lingqiu are talking for them."
"This tiger-character flag must not be left behind." Jinyiwei Baihu said in a cold tone.
The thin-faced Jin Yiwei nodded in agreement.
Jinyiwei Baihu continued, "Tiger Character Banner is just a business in Datong, and the proprietor behind it is just a businessman. But when you come to Lingqiu, have you noticed those cavalry, those four-wheeled carts and The guards are more like elite soldiers than the elite of our Ming Dynasty's border army, and only those personal soldiers and servants can compare with them. Such a business is simply a poisonous sore of our Ming Dynasty. We must not keep it and eradicate it as soon as possible."
"That's what your Excellency said." Slim-faced Jin Yiwei said, "This tiger-character flag can also win people's hearts. There are droughts everywhere, but Lingqiu is rich and has tricked refugees from all over the country to come to Lingqiu. This shows that the tiger-character flag has something to do with it. The Lord has evil intentions.”
"He wants to rebel." Another Jin Yiwei said.
There are droughts everywhere, and the production of both spring and autumn grains has been reduced. However, the banner of the Tiger Flag is attracting refugees from all over the country who have no food to eat. Coupled with the powerful force of the Tiger Flag, it is inevitable that people will not think of rebellion.
"Before I came here, Master Luo, the commander-in-chief, said that there was banditry here in Lingqiu. Now it seems that it is more serious than what Master Luo said." Jinyiwei Baihu said with an ugly expression.
"Sir, after going to the Tiger Character Flag's workshop, we can also go to Xujiazhuang to have a look. I heard that it is the busiest place in Lingqiu and the hometown of the Tiger Character Flag. Maybe we can see something." Slim-faced Jin Yiwei reminded. road.
Jinyiwei Baihu nodded and said, "Let's go to Zhaojiayu's workshop first."
Half an hour later, the group arrived at Zhaojiayu. As soon as they approached the village, they heard the clanging sound of iron.
boom
Suddenly there was a loud noise, like a thunderbolt from the blue, which made people's ears tremble.
"What's the sound? Thunder"
The thin-faced Jin Yiwei was startled and looked left and right in a panic.
The other Jin Yiwei's expressions were not good-looking either, and they were startled by the thunder.
Similarly, many refugees who came to Zhaojiayu Workshop to find work were also frightened, and some were so frightened that they fell to the ground.
"The sun is so bright, why is there thunder?"
"Thundering on a sunny day means Grandpa Thunder God is angry. This is not a good omen."
"The thunder was so loud, it was like ringing in my ears."
A group of refugees whispered, all shocked by the thunder just now.
Jin Yiwei Baihu said with a gloomy face, "This is not thunder, this is someone firing artillery."
"The sound of gunfire" The thin-faced Jin Yiwei was stunned for a moment, and then his eyes widened.
If it is really a cannon, and the sound was so loud just now, it means that the cannon is near Zhaojiayu, and Zhaojiayu is the workshop of Tiger Flag, which is enough to prove that Tiger Flag is making cannons.
When I saw the powerful cavalry and infantry of the Tiger Flag before, I just suspected that the Tiger Flag was a giant bandit, but now that there are artillery, it is enough to prove that the Tiger Flag is rebelling.
Artillery is an important weapon of the country. If a company dares to make cannons privately, even if it has not rebelled, it will be treated as a traitor.
Several Jin Yiwei looked at the Jin Yiwei Baihu.
They came from the capital to investigate the banditry in Lingqiu. Unexpectedly, they discovered that the Tiger Character Banner was not a banditry at all, but a giant bandit that could rebel at any time.
Now the evidence is conclusive. As long as they return to Beijing and bring the news back, the imperial court will definitely send a large army to suppress it. Or they can go to Datong Mansion, tell the governor and the general soldier about the matter, and borrow troops to put down the rebellion.
However, the credit of these two methods is different. If it is the second method, they will get almost all the credit. If it is the first method, they will get a small part of the credit at most, and most of the credit will go to the adults. On the body.
"Hey, you guys, are you here to find work in the workshop? Come over here."
In a courtyard not far away, a young man walked out and waved to several Jin Yiwei.
This frightened several Jin Yiwei, thinking that their identities had been discovered by the people of the Tiger Flag, and they almost turned around and ran away. Fortunately, they heard what was said behind them and did not make any move to escape.
"What are you doing here in a daze? After you sign the paperwork, you can have lunch, white flour steamed buns and pork belly." The young man in front of the courtyard waved to the Jinyi guards.
When several Jin Yiwei heard this, their Adam's apples squirmed involuntarily.
On the way from Yuzhou, all we ate were dry pancakes. When I heard about white flour steamed buns and stewed pork, my mouth almost watered. Even in the capital, these two things are rarely available.
Fortunately, the few Jin Yiwei knew what they were doing and did not move.
Jin Yiwei Baihu winked at the thin-faced Jin Yiwei.
The thin-faced Jin Yiwei swallowed his saliva and said to the young man at the entrance of the courtyard, "We are no longer looking for work in the workshop. Thunder on a sunny day is a bad omen. We have to go back."
The young man at the gate of the courtyard smiled and said, "What kind of thunder is this? This is a cannon test at the gun range. Don't worry. If you stay here and work in the workshop, you will hear the sound of cannons every day. Sooner or later you will get used to it." .”
"Then we won't stay here." Slim-faced Jin Yiwei shook his head vigorously and said, "We should go find work elsewhere. I heard that there is plenty of work here in Lingqiu. As long as you are willing to work hard, you will not be hungry."
"Okay, if you don't want to stay here in the workshop, you can go to Xujiazhuang, where they are recruiting miners. If you know how to farm, you can also go to Lizhuang, there are jobs there."
After the young man in front of the courtyard finished speaking, he ignored these people and started looking for other refugees.
"The sound of gunfire came from the direction north of Zhaojiayu. Let's go over and have a look." Jin Yiwei Baihu said to several other people in a low voice.
Several Jin Yiwei looked for the direction where the sound of the cannon came from.
"This is a four-pounder, right?"
Liu Heng looked at the artillery in front of him with a happy face.
Since sending away Li Guozhu, Tang Ruowang, Louis and others began to forge cannons.
The technology for casting four-pound cannons is very mature. For Tang Ruowang and Lewis, it is not difficult to re-cast a new four-pound cannon. This is just because the barrel is prone to bursting during the cooling process and the scrap rate is high. Otherwise, it would have been half a month ago. New cannons have been cast.
Today was the first time the gun range tested the four-pounder.
"Yes, this is a four-pound gun. After the gun is cast, the barrel is drilled with a hydraulic drill to make the inner bore smooth and consistent in caliber, which improves the firing capability." Tang Ruowang introduced.
The shot he just fired made Liu Heng very satisfied.
Although the four-pounder cannon is considered a small cannon, its power is already comparable to the general cannon on the top of the border fort, and its range is even greater than the range of General Pao.
Compared with the general cannon, which is bulky and inconvenient to carry, the four-pounder has a special gun carriage and is not as heavy as the general cannon. It can be pulled by one horse and two horses are enough to move it over long distances. .
