Thank you to the little angel who watered the nutrient solution: Liang (10 bottles);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 213 A Killing Weapon Named Changhong
Since she learned that Lan Zhi had once again gone off to the battlefield, she no longer tried to stop her. Now that the alliances between the nations were practically dead, she might as well take matters into her own hands.
Si Xitong immediately issued a military order, dispatching an artillery battalion to the delta. The artillerymen in the battalion had been personally trained by Aza for a year to achieve their current level of skill.
In addition, although Aza did not replicate all the cannons painted by Xie Lanzhi, he did manufacture a three-meter-long cannon.
This cannon was named Changhong (meaning "Rainbow").
It is called Changhong because this cannon has a range of 2,000 meters and its shells are made by adding a huge amount of gunpowder to a green paint base.
The Silver Shield has a maximum range of 1,200 meters.
Changhong has now mass-produced thirty of these cannons. In Si Xitong's secret files, they are referred to as Changhong No. 30. Now that the cannons are in service, it's no longer a secret.
Five long rainbow gates were delivered to the battlefield of Lu State.
The Ten Rainbow Gates went to the Delta. The escort force numbered over a thousand people.
Reputable escort agencies were also recruited by the imperial court, which dispatched its most skilled guards to escort cannons to the Delta. During the journey, one of the escorts was kicked out of the group by the agency's leader simply for needing to urinate and straying even half a step away.
This shows how strict they were; so strict that the security escort agencies and government offices treated their own people like enemies.
Many bodyguards and soldiers suffered greatly, as even a casual glance from ordinary people while passing by would result in their arrest and interrogation. This terrified many. Thus, the Changhong Cannon gradually acquired a strange and eerie legend.
That was because the imperial court secretly invited an evil god to deal with the Northern Xiongnu. However, because the evil god was too powerful, it required a thousand people to escort him during the day, and they had to wait for the bright sunshine to travel.
The reason for traveling on a sunny day is to use the sun to suppress the evil spirit's corpse energy, preventing it from leaving its coffin prematurely and causing trouble.
People with weak birth charts should absolutely not stare at this group of people, otherwise they may suffer great misfortune or even lose their soul on the spot.
This legend spread rapidly among the people.
The farmers in the fields were initially curious when they saw a group of people traveling together, but when a thousand people appeared carrying a three-meter-long coffin, the farmers were terrified and turned pale.
That night, the farmer developed a high fever. His mother and wife were terrified and cried until the farmer told them that he had encountered the group of people who sent away evil spirits.
The farmer's wife and mother immediately went to the Taoist priest to perform a ritual. The priest said that the coffin had encountered an evil spirit and lost its soul in the field. Soon the priest began a ritual to summon the soul back.
That night, the whole village knew that the farmer had seen the legendary coffin of the evil god. At first, everyone thought it was just a rumor and shouldn't be taken seriously, but now that they saw the farmer really acting like he'd lost his soul, everyone believed it. That night, the news spread from one village to another, then all the way to the town, and from the town to the county seat.
Before long, the residents of this area stopped going out at night. They began to consciously avoid the area.
The escort agency and soldiers who were delivering the Changhong cannon were wondering why there wasn't a single person on the way, especially at night when the streets were deserted.
If it weren't for the government's hospitality, they might have had to sleep on the streets.
However, the Changhong Cannon was sent out of the Southern Central Plains without any hindrance.
The spies who had been following them nearby, upon hearing this, all laughed, saying that the people of the Central Plains were indeed simple-minded.
Meanwhile, the legend of the coffin of the evil god also unknowingly spread in the State of Lu. After all, Lu was the state most closely aligned with the Central Plains. As long as there was any disturbance in the Central Plains, Lu would immediately be affected.
The people of Lu did not believe it at first, until a drunkard was sleeping on the street one night and when he opened his eyes he saw a long line of people carrying a coffin that was three meters long and required six people to push it.
The drunkard fainted on the spot. The next day, he was treated by kind people, and he told them about seeing the evil god's coffin the night before. Immediately, no one on the entire street dared to go out at night.
The news quickly spread throughout the State of Lu, and the people of Lu became afraid to go out at night. As a result, the business of brothels and gambling dens in various places became depressed.
When the two cannons were delivered to the State of Lu, Gongfuling saw a three-meter-long cabinet and ten boxes of cannonballs. He was so excited that he almost fainted.
It's finally their turn to fight back!
The Northern Hunnic forces launched an even fiercer attack the following day. Arna couldn't find Xie Lanzhi to avenge her, and he was well aware of her cunning.
He can only vent his anger on the smaller countries of the Central Alliance. He just destroyed the Bear Kingdom, and now it's the turn of the other smaller countries.
The Central Alliance consisted of ten small states. Excluding the three that were destroyed and the Xiong state, only six remain: Lu, Shi, Li, Hong, Qing, and Ma Liu.
Now, Arna is attacking the State of Shi, and the ruler of Shi has taken his family to the State of Lu overnight to seek political asylum.
The official ordered the man to be detained. He thought he could gain a favor from the king of Shi, which would bring him many benefits in the future. However, Shi was destroyed within three days. The reason was that Shi's general was defeated by the terrifying strength of the Northern Xiongnu after only one day of resistance.
Arna had already destroyed the Xiong Kingdom, serving as a warning to others. He then began to bribe the generals of various countries to submit to him, promising them not only that they would not be killed, but also the positions of the Three Dukes.
The only exception is the royal family, who must be exterminated.
The royal families of various countries all sought help from New Tianjing, even though they already harbored disloyal intentions. Now that they heard that Arna was not keeping any of the royal families, they had lost their opportunity to turn to him. That's why they turned to New Tianjing instead.
The distress message was intercepted by Xie Lanzhi before it even reached Tianjing.
These people brought this on themselves, and Little Phoenix doesn't need to pay for it.
In fact, Si Xitong had already cut off the channels for various countries to submit memorials to higher authorities.
Upon learning that the State of Shi had surrendered after only three days, Si Xitong deviated from her usual practice and sent orders to the other five states: as long as they resisted for more than three days, supplies and reinforcements from the new Tianjing would arrive.
The five states solemnly pledged to resist the State of Lu.
When the other four countries responded to Si Xitong, their attitudes were ambiguous, clearly indicating that they still harbored a sense of wishful thinking.
Si Xitong couldn't help but shake his head, feeling that these four kingdoms were truly beyond saving. They were already at a critical juncture of life and death, yet they were still hesitating.
She also knew that it wasn't that the royal families of various countries didn't want to resist, but rather that the generals of those countries had a strong desire to surrender to the Northern Xiongnu, and most of them simply didn't listen to the royal families' commands.
Over the years, these smaller states have had considerable dealings with the Northern Hu and Xiongnu, who have shown them favors and trained their military commanders. Many of these commanders have already shown signs of becoming influenced by the Hu people.
Xie Lanzhi learned that the royal families of the four kingdoms had been taken hostage, and those who could escape had fled to the State of Lu. Those who couldn't escape were blocked at the border by their own people and couldn't leave.
People from other countries are also unable to leave their countries.
Xie Lanzhi couldn't help but lament, "The royal family of the small kingdom is being held hostage by the military; they probably won't be able to survive."
Seeing that she still had the mood to sigh about other countries' comfort, Li Li said speechlessly, "Marshal, when are we going to see the Evil God's Coffin?"
"The Coffin of the Evil God? What does that mean?" Xie Lanzhi asked, having heard that Little Phoenix had delivered weapons to her. They had already reached the territory of the State of Lu.
Her people had already gone to pick her up. Unexpectedly, Li Li was even more impatient than she was.
Seeing that she hadn't reacted to the rumors circulating among the people, Li Li told her, "The new folk legend about the evil god's coffin, escorted by a thousand people across borders, is probably referring to Changhong."
Having said that, he was already getting excited. He believed no soldier would be uninterested in weaponry. Considering that the new Tianjing had incorporated Mohist disciples, what kind of new weapons could he possibly imagine?
It's definitely a weapon even more powerful than the Silver Shield! And its appearance is sure to be even cooler than the Silver Shield.
Xie Lanzhi wasn't as excited as he had imagined. She had seen many weapons before, and what kind of weapons the Ministry of Works would develop was all within her expectations.
The two quickly put the silver shield cannon out of their minds.
When the official received the cannon, he was quite excited, just like a military enthusiast who, upon encountering his favorite weapon, could only boast about its power.
When the escorting officers and guards opened the cabinet containing the cannon barrels, Gong Fuling saw what was inside, his eyes widened, and he froze.
Li Li arrived even faster than Xie Lanzhi, eager to witness the new weapon firsthand.
The new weapon must be a more powerful and imposing cannon than the Silver Shield!
Only by using cannons against cannons can an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth be earned.
When Li Li arrived at the unpacking site with a look of excitement, he asked, "Where are the weapons Your Highness transported?"
"Let me see."
Seeing that the King of Lu was already quite cunning, he was the first to open the box. Li Li immediately squeezed forward, his handsome face excitedly leaning forward, only to find a thick, long, dark cannon barrel, bigger than a human head, right in front of him. The outside of the barrel was rough like a callus, and it looked very heavy, like a pillar.
Li Li's face looked ashen, as if a house had collapsed.
Xie Lanzhi saw the two people standing at the wooden cabinet, dumbfounded. Curious, she went closer and saw the black-barreled cannon. She thought it was simple and unadorned, not flashy at all, but obviously a powerful new weapon.
Her eyes lit up immediately: "Great! What a divine cannon!!"
Li Li glanced at her, her expression indescribable. "Is the Marshal's eye alright?"
Gong Fuling looked away in disappointment. Hearing the marshal's praise, he wondered if the marshal's eyes were alright.
The soldiers were also very curious, and they all gathered around to admire it. They found that the wooden cannon was thick and strong, like a burly man inside a cannon. Then they looked at the silver shield, which was a world apart in size. It was like a short man among tall men, a skinny man among strong men.
The soldiers really liked the cannon and kept praising it as they surrounded it.
Li Li and Gong Fuling silently stepped back a line, glanced at each other, and then looked at Marshal Xie and Xie Bing, who both looked excited.
The two sighed in unison: "The Xie family simply lacks popular aesthetic sense."
They not only lack popular aesthetic sense, they're practically primitive.
Even Marshal Xie was like that. If it weren't for the fact that Marshal Xie had a beautiful wife at home, who was also his superior, Gong Fuling would really doubt Marshal Xie's judgment.
Xie Lanzhi quickly ordered the five Changhong cannons to be assembled. She also gave special rewards to the security escort agency and the soldiers.
Xie Bing's men were the fastest to get the hang of the Changhong cannon, while the border guards were still watching from the sidelines. Xie Bing's men had already assembled a Changhong cannon.
Xie Lanzhi was also eager to test the cannon, and she even asked the officers and soldiers about its range. The officers and soldiers handed her an instruction manual.
She looked around and found that the longest distance at Changhong was 2,200 meters. The stable level was 1,500 meters, and the superhigh level was around 2,000 meters.
Two kilometers. Xie Lanzhi thought of a good place to set up the Changhong Cannon. That was Niliubei!
She and Artu fought their final battle in the Daping Valley of Niliupei. In fact, Niliupei was not a flat valley; it was surrounded by mountains on all sides. In particular, there was a high mountain to the east, with a watchtower set up by the State of Lu.
The cannon can be positioned right there.
Xie Lanzhi looked at the cannon, which was three meters long and weighed two tons. Although it was heavy and difficult to move, the Type 94 cannon could be used for both long-range and close-range attacks, mutual support in defense, and clearing the field based on the terrain.
It's an absolute ground-based weapon of mass destruction.
Most importantly, it can be mass-produced!!
Chapter 214 Xie Lanzhi's Psychological Tactics
Even the most advanced cannons cannot be deployed in war if they cannot be mass-produced. Therefore, in the current situation, quantity is more important than quality, rather than superiority or inferiority.
Striving for excellence is a good thing, but it also depends on the current situation.
Two of the five cannons were positioned on the eastern mountain, while the other three were located within the borders of Lu. Lu was currently very safe, but the outside world was rife with war and turmoil. People from the four states were leaving their homes and flocking to Lu. Fearing that the northern Xiongnu might take advantage of the situation, Lu kept its people in the mountain valleys, forbidding them from approaching any closer.
Actually, the mountain valley was much safer than the land of the four kingdoms. No Xiongnu soldiers dared to attack.