novelraw Chapter 263: Diverting the Research Path
Chapter 263: Diverting the Research Path
Chapter 263: Diverting the Research PathJust as Li Daoxuan was busy subtly transforming the county town into a version of Gaojia Village.
A small cave a few miles beyond Gaojia Village.
Xu Dafu, firearms bureau chief, came out through the cave entrance, looking utterly exhausted.
Though his whole body seemed to have lost several pounds, his eyes shone with joy. The moment he emerged from the cave, he raised his hands and laughed heartily toward the sky: “Hahaha, I succeeded, I finally succeeded!”
He had just laughed twice when he heard a man’s voice from the slope behind him: “What did you succeed in?”
This scared Xu Dafu half to death. He turned to look and saw the masked Instructor He of the militia, only then relaxing: “Instructor He, do you want to scare me to death? Why run to this wild mountain wilderness just to frighten me?”
Cheng Xu rolled his eyes: “Who has time to scare you? I’m leading the militia in mountain marching practice. How was I to know you were hiding in this cave? What did you research that has you so excited?”
Xu Dafu glanced behind him and saw that the entire militia group was indeed there, all looking very tired and resting.
“Hey!” said Xu Dafu: “The thing I researched is exactly what your militia will use in the future. It’s fine to tell you about it.”
Cheng Xu grew interested: “Oh? Show me.”Xu Dafu opened his hand, revealing a small round ball.
Cheng Xu couldn’t make out what it was, and none of the militia on the slope could understand it either.
Gao Chuwu grinned broadly: “Is it something tasty to eat?”
Zheng Daniu said: “It looks like a big sweet ball.”
Gao Chuwu said: “I could eat two in one bite.”
Zheng Daniu said: “If you can eat two, I can eat three.”
Gao Chuwu said: “If you can eat three, I can eat four.”
Cheng Xu angrily scolded: “Shut up! What’s the point of competing? How can you eat something Xu Dafu made? It’s more likely to blow your teeth out.”
The two quickly fell silent.
Xu Dafu said: “Hehe, I was just about to test whether this thing works. Move back, I’m trying it.”
Cheng Xu waved his hand, and the militia members stepped farther back.
Xu Dafu confirmed the distance was safe, then hurled the ball forcefully at a rock ahead…
The small ball struck the rock and, with a “Bang!”, exploded. The blast wasn’t particularly powerful, but it sent up a huge cloud of smoke and dust, scattering paper scraps that had wrapped the ball all over.
Cheng Xu and the militia were all startled and recoiled, with many ducking down and covering their heads.
The two fools who had talked about eating the sweet ball immediately covered their mouths with their large hands, thinking: What would happen if they ate that?
Xu Dafu laughed uproariously: “Hahaha, succeeded, succeeded! I finally created something that explodes on impact!”
Cheng Xu cautiously peeked over: “It didn’t need igniting, just thrown, and it blows up on anything it hits?”
Xu Dafu boasted proudly: “That’s right, it explodes on impact.”
Cheng Xu exclaimed: “Goodness me! Wouldn’t that be unbelievably powerful? In battle, if each of our men tossed one of these, wouldn’t it make the enemy scream for their parents?”
Xu Dafu chuckled: “Yes, it can definitely be used that way.”
Cheng Xu said with delight: “So what are you waiting for? Make ten for each of my men, each one as big as a fist! That blast will be fierce, hahaha!”
Xu Dafu shook his head and said, “Unfortunately, it cannot be used this way. Let me ask you, how do you bring these ten balls that explode upon falling onto the battlefield?”
Cheng Xu said, “Hang it on the waist…”
He paused abruptly at these words and suddenly realized something was wrong.
Hanging it on the waist was definitely unreliable; since this thing would explode upon collision, what if one accidentally fell while marching? Wouldn’t that blow oneself up?
Cheng Xu looked embarrassed and said, “This… seems… indeed not feasible.”
Xu Dafu nodded and said, “To bring this thing onto the battlefield requires great caution. Use a large box filled with cotton, place a large ball inside the cotton, thus it can be transported to the battlefield, and only one ball can be carried per box… Once on the battlefield, before throwing it out, one must hold it carefully; the soldier holding this item must not fall and must not collide with anything… it must be brought close to the enemy as carefully as a grandson guiding his grandfather and thrown out…”
As he spoke to this point, he had a slight sense of regret and said, “With this approach, it becomes impractical.”
After hearing this, Cheng Xu also nodded: indeed not very practical.
But he immediately changed his mind and said, “Then do not use this type of bomb that explodes upon falling; use a bomb with a burning fuse. Remove this mechanism that makes it explode upon impact, replace it with a burning fuse, so there is no need to worry about it exploding along the way. Soldiers can easily bring it to the battlefield, light the fuse, and throw it at the enemy.”
Hearing this, Xu Dafu spread his hands and said, “This is the bomb; it has existed since the Song Dynasty, but it is very inconvenient to use. If the bomb is too large, it is heavy and cannot be thrown far. If it is too small, although it can be thrown farther, its power is weak, and its practicality is limited.”
Cheng Xu turned around, pointed at Gao Chuwu and Zheng Daniu, and said, “How far do you think these two guys can throw a big bomb?”
Xu Dafu’s eyes shone again and said, “I understand, hehe. With these two in place, the bomb seems workable too. I am going back into the cave; do not you come in, and also take your people away immediately; absolutely do not approach.”
Cheng Xu said, “I have no intention to come in. Your bomb that explodes upon touch is so damn dangerous; I would rather die than get near your small cave.”
The militia quickly retreated far away.
Xu Dafu thought back to what Cheng Xu had just said. He put the bomb that explodes upon touch aside, wrapped some ordinary black powder together into a mass, formed it with black oiled paper into a black ball, attached a burning fuse, mentally simulated lighting the fuse and throwing it out, and it felt quite good.
Then, considering the balance between weight and power, the bomb’s size could not be too big or too small; after careful calculation, making the bomb about big fist-sized seemed more appropriate…
“Huh?” He suddenly woke up and thought, I was clearly ordered by the Deity to research the fire cap; how did the target become sidetracked during the research?
…
Bai Shui County…
The true rebel band in Guyuan was stationed in a forest about twenty-plus li outside the county town, and Guerrilla General Li Ying was tied tightly with a rope and bound to a withered tree.
Li Ying was really unlucky: Li Daoxuan spared his life without killing him, but he ran headlong straight to the front of the true rebel band in Guyuan and was captured alive.
The leader of the rebels was a Commander, holding a fifth-rank military position; his real name was concealed, and he took on the nickname “Bei Shuilong.”
Bei Shuilong glared fiercely at Li Ying, then turned to his deputy behind him and said, “Have you scouted it out? Which side is the easiest to proceed?”
The deputy whispered, “The south is near Xi’an; if we truly attack Xi’an, it is a dead end for sure; better to head east. This useless Li Ying came from the east; since he has already been defeated by us, the east side must have no officials.”
Bei Shuilong nodded and said, “The east of Bai Shui County… Chengcheng County? Good, then let the entire army set off and go loot some military provisions in Chengcheng County.”