The gunpowder left the warehouse and was transported directly to the customs, ready to be handed over to Li Ning.
However, the few officials who took the lead in transporting the goods failed to find Li Ning at the customs.
There was no one to sign for the deposit, so it was difficult to deliver the goods, so the officials quickly inquired privately.
Unexpectedly, the person who told them that Li Ning was a monk was none other than the Greek who lived next door to Li Ning.
This was the first time for the officials to deal with Greeks. Fortunately, the young Greek could speak Chinese, which avoided a lot of trouble.
"He was captured by a group of people, saying he was from a noodle shop."
"Noodle shop?" Several officials from the Imperial Song Dynasty glared at him. Li Ning was an official of the imperial court after all. How could a noodle shop like a noodle shop be qualified to arrest him?
But the other party's Chinese is not fluent, and if you want to express more detailed content, you can only speak their "dialect".
However, several high-level linguists have been very busy recently, and the low-level linguo officials cannot trust them, so they can only guess which noodle shop has the courage to do so.
"Do you think it's the one in the east of the city? His noodle shop is the largest and he has the most workers."
However, Tong Liang asked innocently: "Who are you talking about? I have no impression at all."
"Hey, how powerful can a noodle shop be? This is not Bianjing City. Although some noodle shops are also run by the Xiang army, they are not so arrogant as to make fun of the imperial officials."
The colleague thought about the water conservancy mills on the Bianhe River outside Bianjing City, and how the Xiang army working there usually deducted raw materials from the people and enriched their own pockets by entering more and leaving less, and realized that such arrogance only belonged to the capital.
In Fujian, there are very few businesses like noodle shops. After all, everyone mainly eats rice, so who is going to grind the noodles? So even if one or two mills are run by the Xiang army, those guys who can't stand up to the table will be assigned to them. Who would have the guts to arrest a court official?
What's more, the imperial court's policy of preferential treatment of soldiers is best known around Bianjing, where housing has been the largest. If it were another place, what about the military lieutenant colonel? Which common people are not the same as them, they have two treasures carrying one head. If they make someone anxious, they can still find one or two hatchets, and they can also make three or five quick kills. Who can Will the soldiers be allowed to be so rampant?
Therefore, the officials couldn't figure out which family was responsible for arresting the person.
Just at this moment, there was a burst of cheers outside the door, and a young official was sent out to check the situation. Not long after, he ran back excitedly and shouted: "Jiatou is back! He was arrested by the Privy Council people." Have you put it back?"
Several old officials were a little confused as to who the head of the army was talking about. It should be Li Ning. I heard that he had just been promoted to the head of the army.
However, according to the tradition of the Song Dynasty, people generally use larger official titles when addressing them.
It happened that Li Ning got an official title on loan from the third class, but he had not yet entered Beijing to submit his family certificate, but it was enough for strangers to use it to welcome him.
If this is the case, then why do they still use the name Jia Tou? It's too unsophisticated to say the least.
The second question worth wondering is, how did the Privy Council get involved? Shouldn't they have stayed in the bustling place of Bianjing and obeyed the emperor's orders honestly? Why did you come to Quanzhou?
After thinking for a long time, an old official slapped his thigh, as if he had discovered some big secret, and revealed the answer to everyone in a loud voice.
"Everyone, I guess which noodle shop invited Li Jiatou."
He didn't say arrest, but used the word "please". He was obviously a very particular person.
However, his colleagues knew how to praise him more gracefully, so they just kept praising him: "Which company is it?"
"Everyone heard it just now. It was from the Privy Council."
"Oh -" Some people figured it out immediately, but some people came over with dull expressions, "Hey, you are just trying to make us happy, how can the Privy Council open a noodle shop?"
"Haha." Seeing his colleagues joining in the fun, the old official was obviously very happy, "Of course the Privy Council doesn't open a noodle shop, but that Taixi Yi man doesn't know why a noodle shop doesn't exist."
"Oh -" was another long response, a sign of sudden realization, "What you always said is quite true. They don't recognize Su Mingyuan. They must have heard what others said. It is normal for them to have misheard. Anyway, their Song language is not very good."
"So, they must have misunderstood Nanmian Fang as a noodle shop."
"Ah ha ha ha!" Everyone immediately laughed in agreement, even those who already understood.
"The Yi people do not know the system of the country and the dynasty, so it is inevitable that such a situation will occur."
"Don't say that the Taixi Yi people don't know about it. Even I, a member of the Imperial Song Dynasty, only learned that there is a south-facing room in the Privy Council not long ago."
"Well, that's right." The old official took over the words once again, "The Privy Council used to have only 12 rooms, but in the second year of Ming Dynasty, His Majesty decreed the establishment of the south room."
"Oh, I've heard about this too. It seems to be related to the mysterious scholar Kouque."
"That's right, His Majesty regretted not listening to his advice very much, so he implemented every measure he took very well." At this point, the old official suddenly added mysteriously, "I have been thinking, we The reason why this armor-head gained the trust of the imperial court and successfully entered the Light Curtain Division may also be related to His Majesty's regret."
"I think so sometimes. The officials don't dare to let go of talents this time. It's a pity that I have few talents and limited knowledge, otherwise..."
"Well, that scholar Kouque is also strange. According to the temperament of an official, we shouldn't let him go so easily."
"Yes, our officials are so easy to talk to."
"No, no." Another person suddenly interrupted, "I heard that the scholar said something treasonous, so he was kicked out of the palace."
"There is such a secret." At this time, the old official could no longer pretend, "No wonder the officials drove him away, and then looked for him everywhere with such regret."
"Probably the anger has dissipated."
"Yes, yes, it must be so!"
"Why must this be so?" A voice that usually sounded colder suddenly interrupted their heated discussion.
When everyone first heard about it, they thought it was some blind person who wanted to interrupt. However, when they turned around to look, they found that Li Ning was looking at them coldly.
All the officials subconsciously felt something. After all, they had been in the yamen for a long time, so they could still detect some signs.
Presumably, this guy had suffered a lot at the hands of the people in the Privy Council, otherwise he wouldn't have a cold face.
But his question still had to be answered, so someone laughed and said: "We were just saying that the gunpowder transported can still be used on the battlefield."
"Oh, there is gunpowder. Where did you get it?"
"As for what we have accumulated in recent years, in the second year of the Ming Dynasty, the government issued an imperial edict that all roads must reserve gunpowder. Naturally, we in Fujian Road also saved some money. However, at that time, we did not know how to collect gunpowder in caves. Saltpeter. This method of Jia Tou is really great."
"Who wouldn't say it? When we were collecting saltpeter, we were all..."
"Don't mention it, don't mention it. If this kind of thing happens again in the future, just arrest some local gangsters to do it. It's a pity that we were too dedicated to our responsibilities back then. The result, alas..."
Of course Li Ning had already guessed what they were talking about? I heard that a few days ago, Shi Zhongli also complained about this method of collecting saltpeter.
It was said that the arrival in the clock did not conform to historical records, and the mysterious south-facing room made him feel extremely strange.
When he was taken away by Nanmian Fang, he had already asked about it and learned that this yamen was only established a few years ago. He knew that it was probably related to the scholar Kouqian from Pang Jiguo.
For this reason, he once asked the few servants who were doing the work, but the other party did not answer.
Fortunately, it was not a serious problem to call him over. It was just that the methods for making gunpowder and other things that he presented to Pang Ji must not be spread.
Speaking of it, he had almost forgotten about it, and he didn't know when he mentioned it in a letter, or he simply put some drafts into the envelope by mistake when writing the letter.
But this is no longer important.
Since the finished gunpowder is available, there is no need for him to work hard anymore.
So, he gave a thumbs up to the officials responsible for escorting the transportation, and praised it in as pleasant a tone as possible: "This batch of gunpowder is well received, and you are also a model of hard work. When the battle is won, I will definitely Report your hard work to Lord Cao Si."
"It's Mr. Manager." The old official reminded him with a smile, and then led him to count the number, and then led his people back to the other side of the light curtain.
After that, Li Ning kicked open the door of the next door and said to Cleitas in classical Greek that was deliberately no longer fluent: "The weapons have arrived, and we will set off tomorrow."
"It's best to leave overnight." Cleitas' reply was fluent enough.
"No." Behind him, a young man's voice suddenly came, "Our Chief Logistics Officer, I'm afraid he has something to explain to his subordinates."
Although these words were said in Greek, Li Ning always felt that the young man in front of him wanted to show off his Chinese skills.
"Ptolemy, when did you come from Sardis City? Did that group of people communicate with you just now?"
"I came to ask you where you were. But it shouldn't be a problem if I tell the truth. As for Sardis City, I'm not actually needed there."
"Why do you say that? That traffic junction is still very important."
"So it attracted the king's special attention. Now Karas is leading a phalanx infantry brigade to be stationed there, as if to prepare for your arrival."
"That's it. Karas's talents are enough to deal with most rebellions. It seems that you are not needed there, young man. Congratulations on your freedom."
Ptolemy laughed. He hugged Li Ning, then sat back to his original position, picked up a Chinese book, and started reading in a decent manner.
In fact, he couldn't understand a few words at all. According to Li Ning's method, he should communicate more with people from the Song Dynasty so that he could quickly master Chinese, the most difficult foreign language to learn, instead of working behind closed doors and relying on books to quickly master the language. Skilled.
But Ptolemy didn't care.
This made Li Ning unable to care.
For young people, there is indeed nothing more precious than freedom.
Let him flutter in the wind. He should be like a flag on the battlefield, like an eagle soaring in the sky, like a swallow returning under the sunset. No matter where he is, he should be free.
And he's also a very considerate guy.
This time, after being invited to drink tea in the south room of the Privy Council, some of Li Ning's thoughts began to change.
Although they did not mean to harm him, the verbal and behavioral threats were enough to make Li Ning feel dissatisfied. In addition, some things should indeed be kept secret, but it was this excessive awareness of secrecy that slowed down the development of gunpowder and firearms that should have been rapid. Slowly moving toward isolation, the inventor of gunpowder was bullied by his students.
Therefore, Li Ning is ready to smash these people's backward consciousness.
This is unwise, but it is also wiser.
After returning to his own office next door, Li Ning dug out the large pile of thick manuscript paper.
He was surprised to find that these manuscript papers showed signs of being turned over, and the order of several pages did not match the order when he wrote.
"Which beast did this?"
Li Ning was so angry that he knocked on the table and even pulled out his sword.
The person responsible for his safety outside rushed in immediately after hearing the noise.
Li Ning was furious. Although he was facing someone who cared about him, his voice did not let go of his meaning at all: "Which dog came in?"
"Your student, Zhang Kai."
"who?"
"Pucheng Zhangqi, that nine-year-old child."
"Oh." Li Ning's tone softened. Perhaps the child was curious and fiddled with it twice, and the order was obviously disrupted, which proved that the other party did not deliberately conceal it, but he still asked, "What is he here for?" ?”
"I said I came to hand in my homework."
"What homework? I've never given one."
Words like handing in homework naturally came from Li Ning.
"This subordinate doesn't know."
"Okay, then go and invite the father and son over."
"Jiatou. We are already here."
Zhang Fang's voice suddenly came in, and he obviously heard Li Ning's roar.
Li Ning was not polite to him and shouted directly: "Well done, I was just going to ask, how long have you been thinking about these things?"
Zhang Fang was also obviously very angry. After entering the door, he threw his son to the ground. Then he cupped his hands and responded as calmly as possible to Li Ning's anger.
"Ever since you said you wanted to live like the sun, this little brat has been thinking about it. But like many people, I didn't guess what you were going to do at first. Later I heard that you need to consume a lot of paper every day, so I thought I wanted to take a look in your study. So, I found the pile of manuscript papers..."
"That's why you came up with the idea of becoming a disciple, right?"
"I don't know about that. But it was indeed Quanzi's own decision to accept you as his master."
"So it was premeditated."
Zhang Fang stopped talking, and after a long time he said indifferently: "I'm sorry for my humble position, but I can't defend myself."
His official position is higher than that of Li Ning, but he still uses the word humble.
But what Li Ning cares about is not this, but his bachelor demeanor.
Yes means yes, no means no, admit it frankly even if you can't defend yourself.
This made Li Ning's face calm down slightly.
Zhang Fang seemed to have the courage to plead for mercy because of this: "But Kato, I believe that Quanzi has absolutely no ill intentions. I'm afraid he only has admiration for you."
"The south room of the Privy Council..."
"That was not a secret from me. They must have known it from Pang Ji."
Zhang Kai suddenly got up from the ground, holding his neck and started to defend himself.
Li Ning was slightly surprised. This child had been silent just now, with a posture of letting himself be dealt with. Why was he suddenly defending himself now?
But this matter involves Pang Ji, so we must deal with it carefully.
So he asked without showing his appreciation.
"How do you know you got the news from Mr. Cao Si?"
"Because I secretly stuffed some of the important contents into the letter you wrote to Mr. Cao Si."
Li Ning burst into laughter.
"Oh it's you."
Everyone present immediately heard that the tone was wrong, and when they went to see Li Ning again, they found that he was laughing heartily.
"Okay, okay, well done. With this, I can finally spread my knowledge to the world."
Zhang Wen was immediately stunned. This young man, who looked to be in his 20s, actually called himself an old man in front of him. He must have been led astray by that guy Pang Ji.
By the way, this little brat of mine actually called Lord Jinglue by his first name in front of others. He really should be taken back and given a good beating.
As for him calling it this way in his heart, then no one will blame him if he doesn't know, and no one will blame him if he doesn't know.
However, his son's mentality did not become relaxed because of this: "Teacher, do you really not blame me?"
"I don't blame you, it's impossible, but if you want to know anything in the future, you can ask me. You are my student and you shouldn't do such sneaky things."
"But the teacher is often not here."
"That's because I'm busy with something, but you're only nine years old, so it's not appropriate to take you around the mountains and fields with me."
"The teacher cares."
"Actually, it's my fault. Since you have become a disciple, you should know what I have experienced. How about this? From now on, you come to me every evening and I will tell you about my daily energy."
Zhang Wan's eyes immediately popped out. He had never heard of such a teacher.
Judging from the way he reports his work, he seems to regard the students as his superiors.
This is really funny.
The funny things are yet to come.
Shi Zhongli suddenly ran in from outside the door, knelt down in front of Li Ning with a plop, and shouted: "Students also want such a teacher, why don't you just accept me?"
Li Ning didn't recognize him, so he wondered what kind of thing this was. Was he insane?
But Pang Ji's voice suddenly came from outside: "My cousin, stop joking with him. Tell him the news of Mr. Boya's arrival quickly. This guy wants to catch all the geniuses in the world."
"Mr. Boya is here, well done! I was just about to see who it was that made him so famous in Bianjing City."
"That's right." Zhang Kai took over the words, "If you can make what I put into the teacher's mind, maybe you can come and be my junior brother."
As he said that, he looked at Shi Zhongli, causing everyone to burst into laughter.
However, a roar suddenly came from behind him: "Little bastard, I don't think I can bear to go home and beat you again!"
Immediately afterwards, there was a burst of more intense laughter, and the father and son chased each other into a ball, which developed into a grand scene of chickens and dogs jumping around.
