Flourishing of the Ming Dynasty Novel - Chapter 139

Chapter 139 Airship Renewal (2)
Beijing, the capital of the Ming Dynasty, was located on the northern plains. As long as people broke through the strongholds in front of them, such as Shanhai Pass and Bauhinia Pass, it would be an unobstructed and peaceful situation. Therefore, in order to ensure the safety of the capital, at this time, Emperor Yongle set up a sufficient number of elite warhorses for the capital camp, that is, the three camps that had always been familiar to people.

The three camps, the Divine Secrets, the Five Armies, and the three thousand were also. Each of the three battalions had their own emphasis. The Divine Machine Battalion was good at using firearms, while the Fifth Army Battalion was good at defending the formation. Although the 3,000 Battalion had the least number of troops, even at its peak, it was less than 10,000. However, it was the most elite warrior because they were all cavalry.

Back then, Emperor Yongle had been able to win several battles in Mobei. Apart from his and his subordinate generals’ accurate judgments and commands, the more than 100,000 elites of the Beijing Camp had also played a key role. This was especially true for the Divine Secrets and the three thousand battalions. The former used firearms to break through the Mongol cavalry formation several times, while the latter could even use cavalry against cavalry to face off against the Mongol on horseback without losing out. In addition, Duoyan Three Guards, who were traitors, helped send troops together, which was why there was peace in the border area for the past few decades.

But now, times had changed, and even the situation in the army of the capital camp had changed. Although the problems weren’t as serious as elsewhere, the combat strength of the three camps had also fallen by a lot. However, all of this was concealed by the current prosperous world, and no one dared to reveal this most real and cruel side.

However, the Qi and Essence of the soldiers in the capital camp today were incomparably vigorous. Looking at the banners, they were like fierce tigers and horses, like roaming dragons. Blades and spears flickered, killing sounds shook the heavens, and they had the momentum to swallow the universe. How could they have the slightest bit of weakness? The soldiers of the Beijing Camp had displayed such a vigorous side. Of course, they had to thank Emperor for suddenly arriving. After all, their biggest boss and backer had arrived. Even the laziest people in the capital had to pretend to be energetic at this moment.

Zhu Qizhen’s face was flushed with excitement when he stood on the general platform and saw the tens of thousands of warhorses moving about continuously. “This is the elite of my subordinates! One day, I will lead them to the Great Desert and expel all Dazi who have violated our Great Ming Border. They will not disappoint the world, nor will they disappoint our ancestors!”

When the entire military drill was completed and all the troops stood under the dianjiang platform, long live all of them. Zhu Qizhen’s blood boiled even more. He chokingly pulled out his longsword and pointed it at the end of the north. He shouted loudly, “Soldiers, I, Great Ming, will one day bring the glory of the Restoration of the Great Sect. Are you willing to join me in slaughtering the enemy?”

“This official is willing to serve His Majesty to death. Even if you die, there is no grudge!” The generals in front agreed in unison. Following that, the soldiers behind also used all their strength to shout, “This official is willing to serve His Majesty to death!” The roar rushed into the clouds, causing the flying birds to stagger.

Hearing this, Zhu Qizhen’s complexion became even redder. He shouted, “Alright, I promise you, this day will not be too far off! Someone, reward!”

Seeing how the Son of Heaven and the soldiers spoke and acted like this, the important officials of the court who followed him frowned. This was not a sign. Especially Hu, he regretted luring the Son of Heaven here. He didn’t expect him to do such a thing. It was not easy to stop him from thinking of using troops on the grasslands.

Yang Pu looked at his old friend and smiled. “Now you know that things are going to be difficult, right? Hurry up and get to the point. Otherwise, I won’t save you if someone impeaches you.”

Hu smiled bitterly when he heard this. He found an opening and went forward to salute, “Your Majesty, since we have already seen the military drill, should we take a look at the airship?”

“Against the airship!” Zhu Qizhen recovered from his excitement and hurriedly nodded, “If this thing really has such a miraculous effect, it would be very helpful to me, Daming. Qian Gang, is this airship in your Divine Secrets Camp?”

“Your Majesty, the Ministry of Works did send a strange thing called an airship to the Divine Secrets Camp, but I only used it for a moment before it really flew into the sky, because if it really went up into the sky, it would be too shocking, and I’m worried that it would cause the people in the capital to feel uneasy.” Qian Gang, the Divine Secrets Camp’s Administrator, cupped his fists and replied.

“Ah, since it is a sharp weapon in the army, how can your Divine Secrets Camp hide it without using it? I said, take it out now and let me see how it goes to heaven.” The Emperor waved his hand and said.

Since Emperor had issued the decree, Qian Gang did not dare to neglect it. He hurriedly instructed his subordinates in a soft voice. That person hurriedly charged and retreated. Then, there was a commotion in the Divine Machine Camp on the side of the school grounds.

In less than half an hour, a large carriage loaded with something soft and collapsed came over. At this time, not only Emperor, but also the officials who followed him, even the soldiers of the three camps also stretched their necks and looked at the object, wanting to see what it was.

Although the conversation between Hu Ying and the Emperor had only been clearly heard by a few people in front of him, it was still quickly passed down. Now, the tens of thousands of soldiers in the school grounds already knew that there was such a thing that could ascend to heaven. Naturally, it was a curiosity, wanting to see its true appearance.

However, when they saw this soft thing in the car, their faces revealed expressions of doubt and disbelief. They really couldn’t connect this thing to such a miraculous saying as flying into the sky. Some officials even sneered in disdain, wanting to rely on such a thing to ascend to heaven, this was truly a fool’s dream.

Zhu Qizhen, on the other hand, seemed to be very patient at this moment. After glancing at the item, he said, “What exactly is this made of? Do you know Mr. Hu?”

“Your Majesty, I heard that this airship is sewn from sheepskin and a bamboo basket is below. Don’t look at it inconspicuously, you’ll know its miraculous properties in a moment.” As he spoke, he winked at Wang Jin from the Ministry of Works. The latter hurriedly nodded his head and signaled for the people from his yamen to step forward.

Very quickly, the craftsmen from the Ministry of Works and a few military craftsmen from the Divine Secrets Camp arrived in front of the carriage and started to work. With the efforts of these ten plus people, the things in the car were removed one by one. Only then did people realize that this soft and collapsed thing was indeed made of leather made of nitrate. Moreover, it seemed to have something painted on it. However, because the leather fluctuated, they could not tell what it was. In addition, there were ropes under the leather that hooked up to a large bamboo basket, but it was unknown what use it was.

After arranging the items, the craftsmen called over dozens of soldiers from the Divine Secrets Camp to completely open the leather. Then, one of them took out the torch he had prepared and lit the fuel in the bamboo basket.

Suddenly, a few feet tall flame burst out, causing many people to be shocked. Afterwards, they were somewhat puzzled, not knowing which song to sing.

Soon, however, the answer was revealed. As the flames rose, the heat continued to rise, filling the entire leather. Its enormous sphere was completely exposed to the crowd.

This airship was several times larger than the one Lu Zhen had in the Broad Spirit Camp that day, so the impact it brought to the crowd was even stronger. When the sphere was filled to the brim and slowly floated upwards, the officials and soldiers in the surroundings let out bursts of exclamations of admiration at the same time.

This was far beyond their expectations and imaginations. What kind of mind and power was this to create such a miraculous thing?

Emperor, on the other hand, stared blankly at the strange ball that was constantly rising. Even his breathing became chaotic, “This … can it really ascend to the heavens?”

The answer came very quickly. Under the buoyancy of the air, the huge hot air balloon quickly rose to the height of one person. At this time, the craftsmen of the army who had already operated it once entered the bamboo basket along the soft stairs. After bowing to Son of Heaven, they gestured to release the anchor rope beneath them.

After the anchor rope that was holding the airship’s momentum loosened, the huge balloon flew upwards at high speed. Only at this moment did everyone see clearly what was on the sphere. It was actually a line of words-Great Ming Wansheng! Long live His Majesty!

Everyone who had been shocked by this miraculous scene couldn’t help but exclaim. Immediately after, many people shouted, “Great Ming Wansheng! Long live His Majesty!”

At first, there were dozens of people, then there were hundreds or thousands. Finally, everyone on the school grounds began to shout. Long live His Majesty’s voice rang out like a mountain howl and a tsunami in the school grounds, spreading in all directions!

Zhu Qizhen’s body trembled with excitement. Even though he was Emperor and rich, he had never seen such a miraculous and exciting scene. This sentence caused his mood to surge, and he was truly delighted with the Dragon Heart.

Seeing the emperor’s extraordinary pride as if he had eaten a ginseng fruit, Yang Pu unconsciously glanced at Hu Ying and said, “The words on this were also written by you, right?”

“It wasn’t me, it was the idea that Lu Zhen came up with. He said that if it could make the Son of Heaven even happier, then he would be more confident.” Hu replied softly. Now that the effects had been fully displayed, the Son of Heaven’s expression could not be falsified in the slightest.

“Hey, this kid really dares to do anything.” Yang Pu couldn’t help but shake his head. He really didn’t know how to evaluate it.

While everyone was stunned by the magical scene in front of them, Wang Zhen, who was accompanying Emperor, gritted his teeth. Evidently, he knew that Lu Zhen would definitely not be able to move this time.

However, when Zhu Qizhen withdrew his gaze, Wang Zhen’s expression was filled with joy. “Your Majesty, with such a divine object, why should I worry that I won’t be able to step on the grassland desert?”

“Yes.” The Emperor nodded deeply, and then he remembered something, “Mr. Hu, I forgot to ask you, who exactly made this thing? Such a good weapon, I must reward him heavily!”