After more than half a year of training, all the soldiers of the eight artillery brigades of the Tang dynasty were skilled in their skills and could hit the target more accurately. Especially after they were equipped with the advanced breech-loading cannons, with the help of binoculars, the cannons could hit the target more accurately.
However, all the artillery training and exercises were on steady ground, so it was understandable that the cannons could hit the target accurately. But if they were on the bumpy sea, how good would the cannoneers be? This was still an unknown.
At least, in Ang Lee's opinion, the cannoneers who could hit the target well on land might not be able to do so on a ship. The bumpy sea made it difficult for the cannoneers to aim at distant targets, so it was almost impossible to hit the target.
But this referred to long-range attacks. If two ships were very close to each other, the cannoneers could hit the enemy's ship without aiming, thus causing heavy damage to the enemy's ship.
Ang Lee had decided to deploy artillery forces on some of the large steam ships to ensure the safety of the fleet.
There was no need for too many. A large steam ship only needed to deploy ten advanced breech-loading cannons, and that was enough to deter the pirates. Among them, there would be one cannon at the front and back of the ship with rotating turrets, and four cannons on both sides of the ship. In total, it was the strength of an artillery team.
In the future, the Great Tang would be building more and more large steam ships, and the need for more and more cannons would increase. Li An did not plan to use up the eight core artillery brigades in the capital, so the cannoneers on the ships would be independent cannoneers. To form these cannoneers, he only needed to transfer a few talents from the cannoneers in the capital and assign them to the newly recruited cannoneers.
In any case, the eight core mobile artillery brigades of the Tang dynasty could not be damaged. They were the power to deter the whole world, the strategic mobile force of the Tang dynasty, and the honor guard of the Tang Empire.
Ang Lee had discussed with Li Longji that after the imperial court every year, a large-scale military exercise would be organized to let the surrounding countries know the strength of the Tang Empire. In the exercise, the artillery team would be a very important force and absolutely indispensable.
During the summer, good news came from Lai Zhou. The first steam-powered seagoing ship was officially completed and had been launched. The crew was conducting sea trials to determine the performance of the steam-powered seagoing ship. From the results of the experiments, the performance of the steam-powered seagoing ship was very good. When there was no wind, its speed was much higher than that of ordinary seagoing ships.
Of course, in order to save fuel and prevent the two steam turbines from breaking down, the large steam ship had also prepared sails and hundreds of large oars. Therefore, not only did it have the advanced features of a steam ship, but it also had all the abilities of an ordinary ship. It was a double-edged sword.
Because the artillery and binoculars were not in place yet, and various kinds of fuel were not prepared, the first steam ship could not sail far. It could only be tested near the bay and was responsible for training a large number of qualified seamen. There were requirements for recruiting seamen. Fishermen who lived by the sea and often went out to sea to fish were the first choice. These people were familiar with the sea and were not afraid of it. They were the most suitable for seamen. Even the captain and first mate had to be selected from these people.
After the performance of the steam turbines was confirmed, Ang Lee immediately ordered the ten newly completed steam turbines to be shipped to Laizhou. He also formulated a construction plan for the next batch of steam turbines. The number of steam turbines in this batch was more than the previous batch. There were 30 sets of steam turbines, which was much more than the first batch.
All the work was carried out in an orderly manner. Ang Lee had put in a lot of effort for this. However, as the weather became hotter, Ang Lee gradually became lazy.
The weather in July was the hottest of the year. In such weather, not to mention working, even standing still could make people hot. In such hot weather, it was natural to take good care of oneself. At the very least, Ang Lee would not work too hard in such weather.
However, the R&D Center needed him. For this reason, no matter how unwilling Ang Lee was, he had to go to the R&D Center every day. He even had to stay for a period of time to guide the various work.
In order to make himself a little more comfortable when guiding the work and to allow a large number of R&D personnel to work better, Ang Lee collected a large number of saltpeter from all over the country. In this hot weather, a large number of ice cubes were made to cool down the various R&D units, prevent them from getting heatstroke, and improve their work efficiency.
Of course, in addition to making ice cubes, various other methods were used, such as building awnings on the roof and windows of the building, and setting up a ground cooling system underground. In other words, a hollow iron pipe was buried underground. The iron pipe had two exits on the outside. With the power of the machine, air was pumped into one of the exits, and the other was the air cooled by the ground cooling system.
Of course, this air conditioning was only about 20 degrees Celsius underground. The cooling effect was really not very good, but it was better than nothing. It was also good to be able to lower the indoor temperature by one degree. After combining the ice cubes and the awnings, the overall cooling effect was more obvious. It could at least lower the indoor temperature by a few degrees, allowing the R&D personnel to work better.
Although it was also possible to make a steam fan to let people feel the cool wind, the steam fan itself needed to burn charcoal. This would increase the indoor temperature, but the people who were blown by the wind would feel cool. Therefore, Ang Lee decided not to make a fan.
In the middle of the R&D Center was Ang Lee's office. This house was a typical square house. Ang Lee's office was in the middle of the square. After adding the air conditioning system and ice cubes, it became very cool. In winter, there would also be a burning fireplace. It was a veritable office with constant temperature all year round.
Because the weather was too hot, after Ang Lee came to the R&D Center, most of the work was done in this office. If the craftsmen didn't understand anything, they would come over to ask and take advantage of the cool environment here.
If there was a situation where he had to go to the site to guide, Ang Lee could only leave the office and take a special car. This special car was not a steam car, but a very ordinary carriage. However, the carriage and roof were designed with two layers, and there was a large amount of cooling ice inside. Sitting in such a carriage, it was almost impossible to feel the heat outside.
July and August were hot seasons, and it was during this hot season that Emperor Li Longji pulled down the last fig leaf and officially conferred his daughter-in-law Yang Yuhuan, who had been living with him for a long time, as an imperial concubine. At the same time, in order to compensate his son for being a cuckold, he ordered the daughter of Minister Wei Zhaoxun to be conferred the title of Princess Shou, so that his son would also have a companion.
At the same time, many of the Yang family's relatives and friends were also conferred titles. Yang Yuhuan's father, Yang Xuanyan, was posthumously conferred the title of Minister of War. Her uncle, Yang Xuangui, was conferred the title of Minister of War. Her cousin, Yang Qiang, was conferred the title of Junior Supervisor of the Palace. Yang Qi was conferred the title of Commandant of the Emperor's Son-In-Law.
Among them, Yang Qi married Li Mao's sister, Princess Taihua. Yang Yuhuan's three sisters were all settled in the capital and were given residences by the Emperor. They were incomparably noble.
With such a big event happening in the imperial court, it naturally became a hot topic on the streets. However, in order to not cause trouble for themselves, most people only talked about Yang Yuhuan being conferred the title of imperial concubine. As for the fact that Yang Yuhuan used to be Princess Shou, they did not dare to talk too much about it. Even if they did talk about it, they would only talk about it in small groups of friends. After all, it was not a glorious thing for the Emperor to steal his own daughter-in-law.
As the weather was too hot, Li Yu and Li Qiu only came over once every half a month to broaden their horizons. After that, they would go to Ang Lee's vegetable greenhouse to pick some fruits and vegetables before returning home. Of course, if they were in a better mood, they would also stay and chat with Ang Lee about life.
"Assistant Minister Li, do you know about the sudden rise of the Yang family recently?"
Li Yu sat in Ang Lee's office, munching on a cucumber as he spoke.
"I know. Isn't it about Lady Yang, who is always by His Majesty's side, being conferred the title of imperial concubine? Then, everyone in her family was rewarded. Everyone in the city knows about it, so how can I not know? "
Ang Lee replied with a smile. He already knew about this in his previous life, but he did not know the exact date of Yang Yuhuan's conferment.
"Assistant Minister Li, then have you heard that the people in the city are not willing to give birth to a boy and are more willing to give birth to a girl?"
Li Yu continued to ask.
Ang Lee laughed and said, "Haha! This is just the people's mockery. They only said this because they are envious of the Yang family. Even if they give birth to a girl, will she be favored by the Emperor? "
"Assistant Minister Li is right. Xiao Wang thinks so too. The reason why Xiao Wang brought this up today is because the Yang family has been too ostentatious recently, especially the three sisters of the imperial concubine. Every time they go out, they are followed by a large group of people. They cause too much of a commotion. Even Xiao Wang has to make way for them when he is riding on the streets."
Li Yu's expression showed that he was complaining, but there was nothing he could do about it. Although he was the eldest grandson, his current status was not high. Moreover, since the founding of the Tang dynasty, there had never been a precedent of the eldest son inheriting the throne, let alone the eldest grandson.
"Haha! Isn't it just making way for the Yang sisters? This is a small matter. If I were to meet them, I would make way for them too. Moreover, I would make way for them willingly. Making way for others is a virtue. Don't be so calculative. "
Ang Lee appeared very calm. He did not feel that making way for others was something to be aggrieved about. Perhaps it was a matter of time! There were many overbearing people in the future whose thinking was still stuck in ancient times. They always felt that the road belonged to their family and that everyone should make way for them and let them go first.
Li Yu was not comforted. He rolled his eyes at Ang Lee in dissatisfaction and continued to eat his cucumber.
"Hehehe, sister …"
"Hahaha. Sister … "
At that moment, the playful voices of women came from outside. Moreover, the voices were very loud and very pleasant to the ears.
"Men, go and see what's going on. Why are women entering the R&D Center so casually?"
Ang Lee was very angry. Was this a place where women could enter casually? Although he had brought women here before, he was still the boss here. Without his orders, how could women enter the R&D Center?
"There's no need to look. It's the Yang sisters. Their voices can be recognized by Xiao Wang even when he's asleep."
Li Yu spoke to stop them and looked at Ang Lee beside him.
Ang Lee frowned and listened carefully to the voices outside. He nodded and said, "That's right. That's Yurou's voice. It's really the Yang sisters. After not seeing you for so many years, Yurou's voice is still so sweet and sexy."
"Why? Assistant Minister Li knows the Yang sisters?"
Li Yu suddenly stood up from his chair and looked at Ang Lee in surprise.
Ang Lee nodded and said, "Of course I have. Don't you know that I led the Dragon Troop to escort Prince Guichang back to Dongnu Province? After that, I went to Cuandi to quell the rebellion. On the way, I passed by the Yang family and met the Third Sister of the Imperial Concubine. This woman is slightly thinner than the Imperial Concubine, but she's still quite beautiful. Her personality is hot and bold. When she was alone, she actually dared to pick mushrooms in the forest.
"Wow! Assistant Minister Li, you even got such a good opportunity to be a hero and save the beauty. Tell me honestly, have you and the Third Sister of the Imperial Concubine already … "
Li Yu and Ang Lee had known each other for a long time and their relationship was not ordinary. Gradually, he learned bad things from Ang Lee and dared to say anything. Of course, he only dared to say anything in front of Ang Lee. Normally, when he met other ministers, he still had to put on a straight face.
"What! Gwangbyeong Of Gojoseon is thinking the wrong way. "
Ang Lee quickly denied.
"Xiao Wang doesn't believe it. Assistant Minister Li even took care of Prince Guichang. At that time, the Third Sister of the Imperial Concubine was just a village woman. With Assistant Minister Li's ability, how could he not take care of her?"
Li Yu looked at Ang Lee with a strange look, as if he wanted to see through Ang Lee's heart.
"Gwangbyeong Of Gojoseon is thinking too much. Think that I, Ang Lee, am such an upright person. How could I take advantage of other people's difficulties and bully a village woman? As for Prince Guichang, it's because of the unique customs of Dongnu Province. You really can't blame me. "
Ang Lee would never admit to something that he did not do.
"Where's Ang Lee? We want to see him. "
Yang Yurou's loud voice came from outside.
Ang Lee and Li Yu looked at each other and said softly, "Gwangbyeong Of Gojoseon, come with me to welcome him!"
Li Yu nodded and smiled helplessly. "The Yang Clan is so favored. How could Xiao Wang not welcome him? Let's go!"
When the two of them arrived at the entrance, they saw three women chatting happily with a man. The three women each held a parasol, while the man accompanied them by the side like a little attendant.
One of the three women was Yang Yuhuan's third sister, Yang Yuhuan. The other two were probably Yang Yuhuan's eldest sister and second sister. As for the middle-aged man, Ang Lee had seen him before. It was Yang Zhao, whom he had met in Central Sichuan.
"Welcome to the three madams for inspection. Adjunct Yang is also here! Please come in. "
Ang Lee invited them in very courteously. Li Yu also welcomed them with a smile.
"Assistant Minister Li, long time no see, long time no see!"
Yang Zhao knew that Ang Lee was a popular person by the emperor's side, so he hurried over to curry favor with him. He was even more enthusiastic than when he saw his own father.
"Assistant Minister Li, long time no see."
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