Chapter 95

"Good guns don't just explode, either the craftsmanship is poor, or corners have been cut!" Qiaofu muttered softly.

Unfortunately, Old Man Zhao had excellent hearing. His brows immediately furrowed, and he struggled to sit up, panting as he said, "My family has been making guns for three generations. Whether it's the three-barreled gun, the rapid-fire gun, the matchlock, the musket, or even the latest Rumi gun, I can make them all. I won't say I'm the best in the world, but at least in Liaodong, my skills can rank in the top three!"

Old Zhao spoke with determination, not like someone who was lying or boasting. Zhang Ke was greatly surprised. To be able to make so many types of guns, he was truly a remarkable talent! Xu Dianqian, that fool, actually made such a person dig coal, it was a waste of talent! If this old man were under his command, the development of firearms would have hope.

Zhang Ke squatted down and said with a smile, "Old Mr. Zhao, the problem with making good guns isn't with you, but with the court, with corruption, and with exploitation. Am I right?"

The old man sighed and nodded weakly.

"A good matchlock should use about six pounds of fine iron, which requires about forty pounds of raw iron to forge. Add in the cost of iron, carbon, drills, and the food and clothing of the craftsmen, and it would cost at least three to five taels of silver to make a good gun. However, the court only allocates a little over two taels for each gun, and after layers of deductions, we only get about one tael. With such a small amount of silver, we are still required to produce a sufficient quantity, so we can only use raw iron instead of fine iron!"

As Old Zhao spoke, tears streamed down his face, and the veins on his temples bulged.

"The Jurchens broke through Tieling, and all the city's soldiers and civilians either died in battle or were massacred. I was captured at the time, and they made me clean up the bodies. Young men lay in pools of blood, and I saw a young man, about sixteen or seventeen, who died with a gun in his hand, gritting his teeth, his eyes filled with anger! But the gun didn't fire; it exploded. His face, chest, and arms were all wounded! That gun was made by me! I am powerless, I deserve to die! I caused the soldiers to be unable to kill the enemy, I caused my hometown to fall, and my fellow villagers to be massacred! What am I, what face do I have to make guns!"

Old Zhao clenched his withered fists and pounded the ground, his black hands turning dark red!

Zhang Feng and Qiaotieshan, who were listening, unconsciously clenched their fists, their teeth grinding.

The Ming Dynasty was not short of brave warriors who died for their country, but they were betrayed by a corrupt and rotten bureaucratic system. The desperate cries of the soldiers seemed to echo in their ears. They fought bravely, regardless of life and death, but died from their own guns. This was the greatest irony!

Zhang Ke silently clenched his fists, his nails digging into his flesh, a drop of blood trickling out.

"Old Mr. Zhao, the guns I want to make are for protecting the country and the people. The ones using the guns are all my fellow villagers and brothers, and even I myself. I absolutely cannot allow any shoddy work. I will provide whatever money and materials are needed. Moreover, I can guarantee that all the gunmakers, as long as the guns pass inspection, will receive a stipend. Of course, if the work is poor, there will be punishment, and even the revocation of their qualifications!"

Old Zhao listened to Zhang Ke, his brows furrowed, and finally couldn't help but laugh self-deprecatingly, "Sir, you might not know, but craftsmen are the least valued. Once a craftsman, your descendants are like cattle and horses, and losing your qualification might even be a relief!"

"Ha ha ha, that's elsewhere. Under my command, each craftsman who obtains a master craftsman qualification will receive a monthly salary of five taels, with the highest level receiving thirty taels, not including the stipend. Can you say this salary is not valuable?"

Not only can you not say it, it's like a step to heaven!

The actual salary of a first-rank official in the Ming Dynasty was only a little over two hundred taels. If one became a top-level master craftsman, they could earn 360 taels a year, equivalent to two first-rank officials, so much that everyone thought Zhang Ke had gone mad!

Zhang Feng reached out and touched Zhang Ke's forehead, but it wasn't hot!

"Second brother, did you say it wrong? If it's really thirty taels a month, I'd want to be a craftsman too!"

Zhang Ke looked at the surprised crowd and smiled, "If the soldiers have a good gun, on the battlefield, they might kill one more enemy and save their own lives! A Tartar's head is worth fifty taels, and if fewer brothers die, the compensation will be much less. You can save money in any area, but not on the equipment of the brothers. I, Zhang Ke, will never joke about the lives of my brothers!"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone was stunned, and for five seconds, there was complete silence. Suddenly, someone led the way and knelt down.

"Sir, your benevolence and virtue are etched in our hearts. We will follow you through fire and water, and we will not hesitate to die for you!"

"Ready to die for you!"

Hundreds of soldiers roared together, their voices especially loud.

Old Zhao looked at these young soldiers and then at Zhang Ke, his fists tightly clenched.

"Sir, you are a good official. Meeting you is my good fortune. I promise to make the best guns for you!"

...

With Old Zhao and Ouchongyuan joining, Zhang Ke's team was taking shape. These two were treasures, and he couldn't afford to be careless. Zhang Ke quickly had Ma Biao escort them back to Dacheng Fort to rest, and Doctor Zhou also went with them, but Ouchongyuan refused.

The reason was simple: Xu Dianqian had not been captured yet, and there might still be a battle. It was more important for Doctor Zhou to treat the soldiers.

Zhang Ke did not forget about Xu Dianqian. Now, he not only had over a hundred soldiers but also about a hundred miners. With such a large force, they marched towards Zhenyi Fort.

By this time, Xu Dianqian had already fled back to Zhenyi Fort. Of his fifty cavalry, only a dozen remained, and of the two to three hundred soldiers he had taken, only thirty to forty returned. An arrow was still stuck in Xu Dianqian's shoulder, causing him to grimace in pain.

He suddenly turned around and saw Lanhanshen hiding in the crowd. Xu Dianqian, furious, grabbed Lanhanshen by the collar and lifted him up.

"It's all because of your stupid ideas, I'll kill you!"

"Don't! Don't! Sir, I didn't know Zhang Ke was so powerful. The most urgent thing now is to think about how to defend the city. Otherwise, if Zhang Ke breaks in, none of us will have a good end!"

Xu Dianqian knew the situation was dire. He threw Lanhanshen to the ground in anger.

"Speak, what ideas do you have? If you can't come up with anything, I'll kill you!"

"Yes, yes!" Lanhanshen hurriedly replied, "Sir, I think we should first defend Zhenyi Fort and then send someone to Yizhou for reinforcements, saying that Zhang Ke is rebelling and slaughtering his comrades. Since you and he are both defenders, Zhang Ke won't dare to kill you!"

Xu Dianqian clenched the knife in his hand, fuming. After much thought, he had no other ideas.

"Do as you say!"

Suddenly, someone ran over in a panic and shouted, "Sir, it's bad, the soldiers from Dacheng Fort are attacking!"

"Too much!" Xu Dianqian threw the teacup to the ground and rushed out.

"Tell every household to send one person to defend the city with me. If anyone doesn't send someone, I'll exterminate their entire family!"

Xu Dianqian made a fierce threat, raised his knife, and led his trusted men to the city wall. Looking out, he saw that two to three hundred people had already surrounded Zhenyi Fort.

A young man stood among the soldiers, young, imposing, and full of killing intent. It was his archenemy, Zhang Ke. Xu Dianqian gritted his teeth and suppressed his anger.

"Zhang, we are both officials of the Ming Dynasty. Are you not afraid of being accused of rebellion for attacking my Zhenyi Fort?"

Xu Dianqian's voice was loud, but it couldn't hide his fear.

Zhang Ke sneered, "Xu Dianqian, since you know we are both Ming officials, why did you plot against me and drive so many civilians to Dacheng Fort? Do you think I don't know your evil intentions?"

Xu Dianqian knew he was in the wrong and quickly said, "Sir, this was a mistake on my part, but you have already occupied Shuangshan Platform and killed so many of my men. Isn't that enough? Killing is just a matter of a nod. If you really want to break ties, I'm not a pushover. With just a few hundred men, you can't take Zhenyi Fort!"

Xu Dianqian was right. Zhang Ke lacked artillery and siege equipment like shields and ladders. More importantly, the soldiers from Dacheng Fort hadn't been trained for sieges. Climbing a wall two to three zhang high and engaging in battle would result in heavy losses.

Seeing Zhang Ke hesitate, Xu Dianqian thought he was afraid and quickly added, "Sir, if you let Xu Dianqian off, I will offer three hundred taels of silver as compensation!"

"Ha ha ha, ha ha ha!" Zhang Ke suddenly burst into laughter, leaving everyone puzzled.

"Xu Dianqian, you are right. We are both defenders. There's nothing we can't talk about. As long as we can live in harmony and help each other, we can still be good friends..."

Xu Dianqian immediately relaxed, thinking that Zhang Ke was inexperienced. If he could survive this, he would definitely report him and bring him down.

The miners who came with Zhang Ke looked at each other, puzzled. Just a moment ago, Zhang Ke had sworn to kill Xu Dianqian, but now he was making peace. It was clear that officials protected each other, and none of them were good!

At this moment, Zhang Ke's expression suddenly changed, and he said sternly, "Xu Dianqian, I can forgive you, but the people cannot. For years, you have done evil, reducing so many innocent civilians to miners. Who doesn't have a family, who doesn't have a wife and children? When you mistreated them, did you ever think of the day you would face retribution?"

As Zhang Ke spoke, he suddenly waved his hand, and Qiaofu and Yue Zixuan led over a hundred captives to the city wall. They trembled and formed two rows.

"Look up, do you see any of your relatives on the wall? Tell them that Xu Dianqian has done too much evil. If they can rise up and eliminate this villain, I will not hold them accountable and will reward them. If they remain stubborn, they will be treated as accomplices of Xu Dianqian!"

Zhang Ke's words left everyone speechless. At this moment, a few miners understood and ran to the city wall, shouting, "Third brother (Second brother), listen to Sir Zhang, kill Xu Dianqian, take revenge and earn merit!"

With a leader, it was easier. The captives and miners shouted, "Sir Zhang is kind, we won't suffer under Xu Dianqian anymore!"

As hundreds of people shouted, the civilians on the city wall were stunned, then began to think. Xu Dianqian suddenly realized that Zhang Ke was playing a psychological warfare game!

Xu Dianqian was so angry that he trembled, at a loss. Suddenly, someone shouted from below, "Sir, it's bad, the city gate has been opened!"

...