The study in the Xu'en Hall is simple and rustic. There is an orange-yellow wooden couch in the room, but the color is not painted, but the color of the golden nanmu tree itself. The smooth wooden surface looks a little old, as if it is severely worn, but because of this, there is a beautiful luster in the texture.
Guo Shao sat down on the couch and reached out from his soft and delicate yellow robe to take out a wooden model. It was the matchlock gun mechanism submitted by the Military Equipment Bureau.
He held it in his hand and looked at it over and over again. He already understood the general structure, but he still calmed down and continued to look at it carefully.
As long as you observe something patiently, time will allow you to see many things clearly. This is Guo Shao's life experience. He touched the mechanism from one end, while trying to figure out its transmission in his mind.
Guo Shao soon discovered a problem. Pulling the trigger and pressing down the end of the fuse to ignite the gunpowder was a problem, but the gunpowder had to push the bullet out of the barrel, which was a problem.
Airtightness. In order for the matchlock to accurately ignite the gunpowder in the hole, the opening of the hole must be very large; the hole dug in this model is also very large. How can such a large hole without airtightness generate chamber pressure
Not long ago, Zan Jurun was asked to cast a physical object for test. With this design, he couldn't fire the bullet even after a hundred attempts.
In the past, there was no such problem when using open flame to ignite directly, because the fuse could be made very thin, the fuse hole was not much larger than a needle eye, and the chamber pressure would not disappear.
Guo Shao pondered for a long time and felt that it was not possible to ignite the propellant directly with a fuse; he had to add a primer pot on it and use the burning primer to ignite the gunpowder that launches the projectile.
Soon he discovered another problem: this ignition method could cause the passage to become clogged and cause misfires. The barrel would be difficult to clean. Perhaps the rear of the barrel should be made into a part that is easy to disassemble and clean.
Guo Shao used to think that the gunpowder gun was a very crude and backward weapon, but only now discovered that it had many problems.
From the matchlock gun to the arquebus, the components suddenly became more complicated; and the matchlock-ignited musket was still of little use, so there was obviously no motivation to progress to a more complex matchlock gun, and it should have been a slow process.
But Guo Shao knew that the matchlock gun was more advanced without any reason, and his will alone forced this development forward.
Guo Shao stood up, walked to the table, put down the wooden model, picked up the brush and began to describe with pictures and text the problems he had found, as well as some ideas for improvement.
At this moment, the light at the door dimmed slightly and he felt someone coming in.
Guo Shao glanced sideways and found that the person who came in was Dong Sanmei.
Guo Shao didn't say anything and continued writing in detail.
Guo Shao buried his head and heard a slight sound. When he looked up, the teacup was already on the table, the lid was opened, and the water in the cup was swaying from side to side. He glanced at Dong Sanmei again and saw that she looked frightened.
What's wrong? Guo Shao asked.
Dong Sanmei suddenly knelt down on the ground and said: I, your servant, heard that Your Majesty’s Dayi is the reincarnation, and I am very scared.
Guo Shao immediately put down his brush, stretched out his hand to help her up, and said kindly: "It's a rumor that most people would believe easily if they haven't seen me, but why do you still believe me, third sister? Look at me carefully, I'm not a monster at all."
Dong Sanmei lowered her head.
Guo Shao spoke a few nice words in a gentle voice. Since he showed no signs of being angry, Dong Sanmei really looked up and looked at him carefully. It was extremely rude for Guo Shao to look at the emperor in the eye, but Guo Shao obviously didn't care about the rules here.
Dong Sanmei looked at him for a while, and Guo Shao smiled and said: Am I the same as others
Dong Sanmei blushed and said: It's all my fault for being stupid and disturbing His Majesty from doing something important.
No. Guo Shao looked at her patiently, and seemed to be listening to her. He felt that if he took a little time to take the people around him seriously, he might be able to create a different atmosphere, especially for a young girl like Dong Sanmei, who might not be able to withstand high psychological pressure.
Dong Sanmei whispered: Your Majesty is so kind to me, I am lucky to have met Your Majesty
The next day, Guo Shao strode into the meeting hall on the east side of the Jinxiang Palace. He looked around carefully and felt that the generals' demeanor was different from before. They looked like they were worshipping Buddha. However, Guo Shao believed that those who could become generals were all knowledgeable and would not believe those inexplicable rumors.
He sat down upright on the chair at the top and said: Everyone, get up and sit down to discuss the matter.
At this time, Wang Pu turned his head and looked up. Guo Shao glanced at him and said: Today we are discussing military secrets. No one except those present here may leak the information.
Everyone responded.
Guo Shao fell silent and looked at Wang Pu. Wang Pu stood up and bowed, saying: The Privy Council is planning to capture the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun in accordance with the order of Your Majesty. All of you may express your opinions and state your reasons.
Before he finished speaking, Shi Yanchao said: "Your Majesty, when do you want to fight?"
Wang Pu was stunned and looked at Wei Renpu beside him in surprise.
Shi Yanchao said: I don't believe there is a battle that Your Majesty cannot win. Please be the vanguard.
Yang Biao pulled a horse face and looked at Shi Yanchao coldly. Without saying a word, he turned his head to look at Li Chuyun, who had the highest military rank.
Li Chuyun then spoke: The morale of the officers and soldiers in the Palace Front Department is very high, and I have no objection to continuing to use the troops.
Yang Biao then said simply: "Wherever your majesty says to fight, we will go there."
Han Tong, Gao Huaide and other generals all advocated war. No one gave any detailed reasons, but no one opposed the use of troops. This scene surprised Guo Shao a little. He determined the result, which was to go to war with the Liao Kingdom. The imperial guards had no reluctance. The overall system of the Great Zhou Dynasty continued the situation of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. Military affairs took priority. As long as the army supported it, there would be almost no substantial resistance to launching a war.
Guo Shao has always been in the habit of independent thinking, but the people around him still affect his judgment. Because he believes that these high-ranking civil and military officials are not simple-minded people. The generals have survived the battlefield and experienced the fierce power struggle in the Central Plains. Most of them have been generals since the Later Han Dynasty. Without some ability, they would not have secured their current positions.
At this time, Wei Renpu stood up and bowed and said: I have something to say.
Guo Shao maintained a fast but calm tone of voice: Deputy Envoy Wei, please feel free to speak if you have anything to say.
Wei Renpu said calmly: The Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun originally belonged to China and we will take them back sooner or later.
Although Wu, Yue, Han, etc. are no longer a threat to the Great Zhou, they are still unwilling to surrender. People in the world still do not really understand the military strength of the Great Zhou, and many local issues are still unresolved. Perhaps it is because we have not really fought against the strongest Liao army at this time.
Attacking Youyun first would kill two birds with one stone. The Great Zhou Dynasty would shock the world and conquer it with a single edict, thus completing the great cause of unifying the world more quickly.