"Cuckoo, do you think they'll be able to develop a rapid-fire shotgun?" Zhang Xiaobao didn't answer Li Longji's question directly. Instead, he continued to ask Cuckoo.
"That's impossible. The blueprint we sent them didn't call for a gun to be loaded with bullets from the back. Instead, they first pressed the gunpowder from the front, then pressed the bullets, and used a paper cannon as a primer at the back.
If they were to really follow the blueprint, they would need to use a rod to clear the gun chamber after firing a couple of shots. Otherwise, if they continue firing, who knows where the bullets will end up? "
Wang Juan didn't say anything earlier. She knew that Zhang Xiaobao was doing it on purpose. He didn't want Li Longji to disturb their time together.
"Your Majesty, it's impossible," Zhang Xiaobao replied to Li Longji.
"I heard you. If it's impossible, why would they be willing to produce it? Besides, even if they do produce it, they'll still be good at hunting. Aren't you worried that they're from another country? "
Li Longji turned his head to glare at Zhang Xiaobao. Unfortunately, Zhang Xiaobao's back was facing him, so he didn't see it.
"I just hope that they're from another country. Otherwise, what's the point of me and Cuckoo's previous series of internal affairs and military arrangements? They came to cause trouble, so if I don't cause trouble for them, wouldn't that be letting them off too easily? "
Zhang Xiaobao said casually. He picked up a corn and brought it to Wang Juan's mouth. "Cuckoo, eat one."
Li Longji tossed the paper aside. "Xiao Bao, can you still respect me? Let me ask you, if they make a bunch of guns, won't they be very useful at critical moments, such as charging? "
Zhang Xiaobao turned his chair around and sat up straight. With a reporting look, he said, "Yes, even if it's a shotgun, it has its uses. Not to mention a shotgun with gunpowder, even a slingshot has the same destructive power.
However, if there are those who can make guns out of steel, why don't they make bows and crossbows? This subject hopes that they are from another country, as long as they dare to follow this subject's train of thought.
First of all, they had to find iron ore. Without iron ore, where would they find ironware? I can even use other means to teach them the method of prospecting.
"Secondly, they can't keep buying firecrackers from Great Tang. It's inconvenient to transport them. When the firecrackers are transported over in humid conditions or on rainy days, the gunpowder inside will be damp. Tearing apart the paper outside will cause a lot of damage.
Therefore, they can only search for gunpowder on their own. It's very simple, saltpeter, charcoal, and sulfur. As for whether they can purify it well, it's not up to this subject to decide. Perhaps they can even create a more powerful gunpowder. "
Seeing Zhang Xiaobao speaking so seriously, Li Longji felt very uncomfortable. Thinking about it carefully, it turned out that he was already used to Zhang Xiaobao's way of speaking.
Thinking of this, Li Longji smiled, "Speak properly, just like before. Do you know that you're encouraging them to research on their own? What if they learn something?"
"They won't be able to learn it. As long as they search for ores, this subject will be able to relax. Searching for ores is very tiring. Cuckoo and I can roughly pinpoint the location of the various ores in Great Tang. As for the other ores … I don't remember much. I only remember two. One is oil, and the other is natural gas.
Great Tang has its own mines, and for the sake of the railway, it's currently undergoing a large-scale steelmaking process. The technology there is already outdated, and the losses in various areas are extremely high. Every time a piece of ore is excavated, I feel as though a piece of flesh is being cut off from my body.
After the railway is completed, I'll immediately seal off all of the mines and forbid anyone from digging them. Anyone who digs them will be a sinner of Great Tang and be punished according to the crime of treason. I'll leave them for my grandson, and the grandson's grandson's grandson … many grandchildren.
I'm not sure about the other ores. It's too tiring to search for them. Let them search for them. Once they've found them, we'll occupy them. This saves us a lot of effort. "
Zhang Xiaobao's body went back to its original position as he lazily talked about his plans.
Wang Juan nodded. She was also distressed that Great Tang's ores had been excavated. When she was in school, her geography textbooks would also introduce the country's resources.
However, most of the time, what she saw was what was written in a certain place, what was the function of the ores, what was discovered in a certain place, what was the reserves, and when were the ores completely mined.
When she thought about why the ores were mined and what were the ores that were mined in exchange for money, Wang Juan felt extremely vexed.
Thus, she was the same as Zhang Xiaobao. She treasured her country's ores very much. If she could avoid using them, she would avoid using them. Otherwise, many years later, her children would see the same things that she saw in her textbooks.
She hoped that future generations would see the world's geography in their textbooks and say that there was something in a certain place, but it had already been mined out by Great Tang. If they wanted to see the real thing, many countries would send people to Great Tang to buy specimens so that their children could use them in their lessons.
When she wanted to see it, her children would see in their textbooks that there was a lot of oil in a certain place. Then, a cubic meter of oil could be exchanged for a large plastic bag from Great Tang because Great Tang had advanced technology.
However, in order to build railways, Great Tang had carried out the same mining as the Great Leap Forward. She wanted to end it quickly so that she and Zhang Xiaobao could seal the ores and never mine again.
"Oh, right. It's not easy for us to find ores in other places. We agree to let them find it themselves, and then we'll go and occupy it. It's best to teach them more methods. We realize that Great Tang is too poor, and we can't continue to squander it."
Li Longji nodded in agreement. He didn't feel the heartache of mining other people's ores. Furthermore, he had heard from Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan that Great Tang's ores weren't that good, and there were better ores in other places. Not only was the output high, but the proportion of iron was also high.
Thinking of this, Li Longji started to worry. He asked Zhang Xiaobao, "Xiao Bao, previously, you and Cuckoo told me that you want to bring back the good stuff from other countries. A portion of it will be used first, and the rest will be stored later. I suddenly thought of something. Where should I put the good stuff after we bring it back?
Also, if you let the merchants go overseas and other places on the mainland to help with the transportation, wouldn't that create a large number of rich merchants? If a person has too much money, they won't just be chasing after money.
People like you and Cuckoo who are earning money for Great Tang are different. After they earn money, they might have other thoughts. For example, they might find a place outside and never come back. What should I do then?
After all, they are people of Great Tang. They can research the things they use and grasp the technology. When the time comes, they might run to a faraway place and rebel against Great Tang with the locals. Should I send troops to attack them? I won't be able to. "
Li Longji thought of the key problem, and that was long-term stability. How could there only be one Great Tang for generations?
Zhang Xiaobao felt a headache. Who knew what would happen in the future? Perhaps he would encounter a prodigal upper echelon of the political class. At that time, anything could happen.
In the past, the sun never set in Great Britain. Later on, didn't the colonies become independent one by one? If he didn't colonize them, they would develop slowly. If he colonized them, they would become independent. The human heart was hard to predict.
"Cuckoo, what do you think we should do?" Zhang Xiaobao couldn't think of a good idea, so he could only ask Wang Juan.
Wang Juan was also confused about this problem. It was said that when the world was divided for a long time, it would unite, and when united for a long time, it would divide. Even if all the other races in the world were wiped out and only the people of Great Tang were left, when the Great Tang's land couldn't handle the population, it would still have to be moved out.
When the time came, there would inevitably be ambitious fellows who wanted to obtain more power and encourage the local people to become independent.
For a moment, the three of them fell silent. Wang Juan and Zhang Xiaobao were doing their best to think, but Li Longji couldn't even think about it. It was too far away, and his experience was far inferior to Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan's.
After a long while, Zhang Xiaobao spoke up.
"I think that we should have the merchants not bring their families with them when they go out. Also, when the soldiers go to other places in the future, they can't bring their wives and children with them. This way, they can avoid leaving them outside as much as possible.
Furthermore, there should be some restrictions. For example, three years is a period of rotation. If you stay outside for three years, you have to come back. Otherwise, they'll think that you're trying to rebel and send soldiers to arrest you. "
Wang Juan had a different opinion. "What if someone outside takes a liking to a local and intends to start a new family? What will you do?"
"Arrest them. Three years. If they don't come back by then, it won't work even if they start a new family." Li Longji still agreed with Zhang Xiaobao's words.
Wang Juan frowned. "In my opinion, it's still too early to worry about this matter. The reason why others can become independent is because Great Tang's martial prowess can't reach them when the time comes.
At the same time, the technology of that place has also reached a certain level. As long as their martial prowess can't keep up, Great Tang's army can rush over as quickly as possible.
If the people of Great Tang want to live together with the locals outside and fall sick, they will naturally think of Great Tang's medical standards. "
"That's right. The speed of technological development is faster than the speed of the colonies, so they won't dare to become independent. Otherwise, how can they think of becoming independent when planes and soldiers are dropping bombs that can cause small islands to disappear? Furthermore, with the appearance of all kinds of communication tools, they can communicate with each other.
The more advanced the means of transportation, the smaller the world will become. Without distance, it won't be possible for them to become independent.
Thus, we can't colonize them now. We have to wait until the technological development reaches a certain level. I still believe in the people of Huaxia. Many colonies eventually become independent because they don't have any hope of returning to their homeland for many years.
They can only reproduce locally. If the transportation is convenient, they will naturally be able to travel back and forth. Just like that, we will continue to strengthen the technological development. "
Zhang Xiaobao went along with Wang Juan's words.
Li Longji could understand at times, but at other times, he was confused. From the words of Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan, it seemed like the two of them had experienced this before. Could it be that that powerful country had already run into trouble? This world was truly large. Hopefully, the more trouble their country ran into, the more they wouldn't immediately attack Great Tang.
Once Great Tang caught up, it would be too late to attack them.
"We understand. We will issue a decree telling the merchants that they are not allowed to find local women to do that kind of thing, and they are especially not allowed to have children. If they really do have children, they have to report it immediately. After going through the procedures, they can be allowed to come to Great Tang with their descendants.
But the army definitely won't allow such a thing. Anyone who doesn't stay in the barracks will be executed on the spot. We will issue the decree first, even if such a thing doesn't happen yet. "
Li Longji said to Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan. He wanted to hear their views on this idea.
"Alright, Your Majesty, go ahead. Cuckoo and I will definitely support you." Zhang Xiaobao was about to turn his chair back to bask in the sun again.
Seeing Zhang Xiaobao's attitude, Li Longji stood up and walked towards his cabin. When he was about to turn a corner, he suddenly stopped and shouted to Zhang Xiaobao, "Xiao Bao, We plan to have an all-fish feast tonight. You better prepare early."
"I really owe you in my previous life." Zhang Xiaobao said angrily when he saw Li Longji disappear. He then instructed the people in the inner courtyard, "Why are you still standing there? Go and catch some fish. Tonight, the entire ship will eat this. I will use a spade to cook a big pot of rice. "
*****
Three days later, in the morning, after Xiaobei's group slowed down, they were still some distance away from Jiangzhou.
Zhang Xiaobao's group had already entered the boundary of Hangzhou.
In order not to disturb the people, Li Longji had someone inform the local government in advance. No one was allowed to come out to welcome them, and the local officials were also not allowed to ask the people to deliberately clean up. Everything was as usual. The places that should be green were green, and the places that should be yellow were yellow. Whoever dared to paint a tree with green paint would be caught and beaten with a plank.
This was what Zhang Xiaobao thought of. People could already paint mountains. What if the officials became smarter because of improved technology and thought of painting trees?
The local officials really didn't dare to paint trees, but the Emperor's decree gave them a new idea. So it could be done like this. In the future, when welcoming the officials, could they draw inferences about other cases?
For example, when the officials inspecting livestock and poultry came down, they could temporarily buy some from other places and put them in the people's houses. When the officials left, they would take them back.
Zhang Xiaobao didn't know what the officials were thinking. Anyway, in the future, the capital would send several groups of inspectors. If the local officials could afford to do so, they would do so.
Zhang Xiaobao was thinking about whether he should appear together with Li Longji or appear first. If it was the former, his grandfather would probably be in a difficult position when facing him. Once he wore an official's uniform, his status would be lowered. If he chose the latter, what would happen to his godfather?
Should he go with him first? It was hard to get a good identity.
"Cuckoo, what should we do? You should have experience. "Zhang Xiaobao asked Wang Juan for advice.
"You are yours, and your godfather is your godfather. It's not like your grandfather doesn't know Gao Lishi. He has his own connections. Let's go down first and change boats. It's also good to leave one hour earlier."
Wang Juan didn't care about this at all and said casually.
"Okay, sigh! I have to kowtow again. Li Longji, we don't even kowtow. We have to kowtow to a grandfather that we haven't seen for many years. " As Zhang Xiaobao spoke, he followed Wang Juan and changed boats. The two of them got a small boat and asked someone to row it. Like an arrow, they flew towards Hangzhou's pier.
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