Chapter 46

While it was still not dark, Zhao Jin, wearing a set of bamboo armor, returned home happily. This outfit looked very much like real armor, making him appear quite imposing. It seemed as if Zhao Jin had once again found the joy of wearing a military uniform and a peaked cap in his childhood.

Upon arriving home, He Cuihua directly criticized him as "wasting money" and "a spendthrift," but Zhao Zhentang was quite interested. He came forward, looked it over from all sides, and laughed, scolding him a few times, "All of Zhenxing's silver has been wasted by you, boy."

During dinner, the family's pet monkey came over and secretly put on the helmet, causing the whole family to burst into laughter.

That night, Zhao Jin lay there as usual, lost in thought, trying to recall some useful things. However, his mind was filled with thoughts of that set of armor. Just before falling asleep, Zhao Jin suddenly became more alert. He associated the bucket-like armor with a suit of plate armor, not the bamboo armor of the Japanese pirates, but Western plate armor, made up of several iron plates.

He remembered that a book his friend had read mentioned that this kind of armor, due to the application of water-powered machinery, could be mass-produced. Although the craftsmanship was simple, the protection was comprehensive. Arrows could not penetrate it, and it could withstand spears and swords. Special tactics were even developed to counter this armor, such as targeting the unarmored parts or using blunt weapons to strike. The pikes of the Swiss had spikes and hammers specifically designed to break through armor.

However, this kind of armor could not defend against musket fire, let alone cannon fire.

If he were to have a blacksmith make such a suit of armor, it would cost a fortune. The Ming Dynasty now had trade with the West, so he wondered if he could buy one from a merchant. He must write it down tomorrow; this would be useful. With these thoughts, Zhao Jin drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, He Cuihua prepared a lot of food, saying she was going back to her parents' house and had made these dishes in advance, so that Zhao Jin's father or his uncle could heat them up and eat them at noon.

Usually, when a woman goes back to her parents' house, she takes her child along, but He Cuihua seemed to have something else to do. Zhao Jin vaguely remembered that this happened a few times every year. Zhao Zhentang had already made arrangements, and the carriage outside was waiting to leave.

Thinking of his mother's parents, Zhao Jin pictured a stout old man, his maternal grandfather, He Butcher, and a simple middle-aged man, his uncle. He remembered that every time they went, he was always very happy, and his grandfather always gave him lard to eat.

Despite being massaged with medicinal oil by his uncle, the spot where Wang Zhaojing had stabbed him still ached slightly. During martial arts practice, he made a few mistakes, and Zhao Zhenxing immediately knew what was wrong. He applied more medicinal oil and did some relaxation exercises, and the morning practice was stopped.

Since they weren't practicing martial arts, Zhao Zhenxing went back to rest and tidy up. Zhao Jin took this opportunity to enter the shop, went to the counter, and took out the paper and pen hidden in the corner, recording what he had thought of the day before.

At noon, he went back to have lunch. He Cuihua had gone back to her parents' house, and Zhao Zhentang went out to drink with his colleagues. Zhao Zhenxing heated up the food and fed the monkey outside. The two of them had lunch together. Zhao Jin noticed that their family monkey was very well-behaved with his father and uncle but was lively only with him.

When Chen Sheng came to find him, Zhao Jin, wearing the bamboo armor, went to the cargo yard with them. Zhao Zhenxing specially instructed him not to participate in any duels to avoid getting hurt.

The three friends walked slowly on the way because Chen Sheng and Chen Hong were extremely fond of Zhao Jin's bamboo armor. It wasn't an exaggeration to say their eyes were shining and their mouths were watering. They were still relatively well-behaved at the Zhao family's house, but once they walked out of the street, they started clamoring for Zhao Jin to take it off so they could try it on.

However, their body sizes were too different. Chen Sheng couldn't fit into it at all, and after struggling for a while, he had to give up dejectedly. Chen Hong tried it on with great enthusiasm, but it was too big, making him look like he was wearing a bamboo basket.

Seeing their disappointed faces, Zhao Jin smiled and told them how to make it and where to get it done. The brothers immediately became excited. This was Zhao Jin's thoughtful consideration. He had already found a bamboo craftsman to make it once, so he had a set of procedures. It would be much easier to get it done again.

While they were happily discussing, they suddenly heard a commotion ahead and immediately looked over.

Zhao Jin's home was not far from Chen Sheng's, and they both lived in the northern part of Xuzhou City, a wealthy residential area. The commercial activity in this area was also very prosperous. The street where Zhao Jin and the Chen brothers were now was lined with shops, which should have been bustling.

However, the prosperity and bustle were from the past. Zhao Jin vaguely remembered that this place used to be crowded with people, and the shops on both sides of the street were open for business, with a wide variety of goods. In the past few years, probably after the opening of the Jia River, as the elders said, the entire Xuzhou had become desolate, and this street was no exception. One by one, the shops closed down, and some moved to Yutou Town in Pizhou.

Now, only about one-fifth of the shops on this street were barely open, and it was usually very quiet. The adults found it uncomfortable, but the children didn't mind. They even felt that the fewer people there were, the more it became their own world, where they could laugh and play loudly. In fact, such places existed all over Xuzhou City.

In such a quiet and peaceful street, the sudden commotion naturally drew attention.

"Master, Master, please give me a few more days," the voice of a middle-aged man was very anxious, pleading repeatedly.

"Give you a few more days, my ass! Do you plan to pay or not!" Another voice, full of vigor, shouted, and the sound of smashing and breaking came from inside the shop. It seemed someone tried to stop it but was hit a few times.

Zhao Jin and the others saw a middle-aged man, who looked like a shopkeeper, stagger out, trip on the threshold, and fall to the ground. Then they saw a clerk-like figure bowing frantically at the door, and suddenly his body bent, and he was kicked out, rolling on the ground and clutching his stomach, clearly having been kicked out.

Two people followed out, and Zhao Jin and the Chen brothers were momentarily stunned. They had heard "Master" and "Master" being called inside, and now they understood why. It was two monks.

In their impression, monks were compassionate and serene, but these two bald heads were completely different, extremely fierce, with oily faces and thick necks.

As soon as the two monks came out, the middle-aged man, who looked like a shopkeeper, hurriedly got up and crawled a few steps, his face full of sorrow, pleading, "Master Runan, all the money from this shop is tied up in the goods. Xuzhou City is so desolate now, and there's really no business..."

"Who the hell wants to listen to your rambling!" One of the monks kicked him again, knocking him down and stepping on the merchant's chest, saying, "Debts must be repaid, with interest. This is a natural law. Are you going to pay or not?"

"Master Ruying, I can collect a debt in three days, but your temple added interest at the Mid-Autumn Festival, and now the interest has compounded. I really can't afford it. Can you..."

Before he could finish, he was kicked again, rolling over. The monk Runan pointed at the shopkeeper and shouted angrily, "Making money for the Buddha, and you want to haggle!"