Great Song Super Scholar

Chapter 265 Goodbye to the Emperor
Two days later, Fan Ning found an old craftsman who specialized in fine-crafted utensils in Dong Er Tiao Tianshui Lane where famous craftsmen gathered, and handed him the drawings of the iron chamber and gears.

If done successfully, a strong string can be moved from the first cog to the last cog.

But if you don't say that this is a part of the crossbow, no one would have guessed that the old craftsman took over the job and asked for a price of ten guan, and the two parties agreed to deliver it in five days.

In the past two days, the county government has approved the application for the construction of a private pier, and agreed to Fan Ning's construction of a private pier on the Cai River. Fan Ning's new house is currently under construction, and the plan to move has to be pushed back and forth.

At noon, Fan Ning was eating lunch in the small dining hall. Suddenly, Jiang Jiancheng rushed in, saw Fan Ning at a glance, and was immediately relieved. He hurried forward and whispered something to Fan Ning.

Fanning froze for a moment, "But I'm still eating!"

"Oh! Come back to eat later, I'll let the dining hall cook for you alone, hurry up and follow me!"

"Senior brother, what is the hurry? " Cao Shi asked with a smile.

"The emperor called me into the palace, but I'm still eating!"

As soon as Fan Ning finished speaking, the opposite party gave him four big white eyes, just pretend!Beware of being struck by lightning.

Fan Ning smiled, got up and said, "I'm going to change my official uniform, and I'll go to the palace right away!"

A quarter of an hour later, a special carriage from Guozijian drove into the palace quickly and stopped slowly at the parking place in the palace. Fan Ning got out of the carriage and walked quickly towards Ziwei Hall.

In the imperial study room, Zhao Zhen was carefully reading the report written by Fan Ning. He had read it three times. The Song Dynasty was never a conservative dynasty. Foreign trade was extremely prosperous. The key is whether there is a chance.

Now Zhao Zhen suddenly discovered that there are such vast grasslands and forests overseas, which do not belong to any country, so how could he not be moved?

Any emperor has the ambition to open up territories. In order to compete for the Hexi Corridor, open up the Silk Road, and obtain a land for raising horses, Zhao Zhen did not hesitate to fight against Xixia with the power of the whole country, but in the end he failed, which made Zhao Zhen feel sad. It hurts so much.

But the west is not bright and the east is bright. A report by Fan Ning opened a new window for Zhao Zhen, allowing him to see another world. He has been immersed in the expansion of overseas territories these days.

There are also several maps on Zhao Zhen's imperial case, including a full map of the jurisdiction of the Heishui Dudufu in the Tang Dynasty found from the library, which clearly shows the existence of Sakhalin Island, and a copy of the Heishui Dudufu The memorial to the court contains some descriptions of it by officials of the Tang Dynasty.

"Wu said that the island has a vast territory, the northern part of the island is bitterly cold, the snow covers six feet in winter, and it melts in the late spring, but the south of the island is extremely warm, with lush forests, vast and lush pastures, and the coast is not frozen all year round."

This shows that Sakhalin Island originally belonged to the territory of the Tang Dynasty and was under the jurisdiction of the Heishui Dudufu. This proves that the Song Dynasty's seizure of this big island is reasonable and legal, and it should be called a return.

It was this map and memorial that completely dispelled Zhao Zhen's last worry, and he made up his mind to capture Sakhalin Island and Maoren Island.

But for Maoren Island, Zhao Zhen still couldn't find a corresponding map, but since the existence of Sakhalin Island has been confirmed, it should also show that Maoren Island is real.

At this time, an eunuch reported at the door: "Your Majesty, Fan Ning is here!"

Zhao Zhen immediately lifted his spirits, "Quick! Let him in quickly."

After a while, Fan Ning walked in quickly, bowed and saluted, "My minister sees Your Majesty!"

"Give me a seat!"

A eunuch brought an embroidered pier, "Thank you, Your Majesty!" Fan Ning sat down.

Zhao Zhen smiled slightly and said, "What are you busy these days?"

"Reporting to Your Majesty, I have been making money these few days!"

"make money?"

Zhao Zhen was a little strange, so he asked with a smile, "What are you doing to earn money?"

"Your Majesty, the Military Weapons Supervisor offered a reward of [-] guan to recruit a crossbow capable of shooting through enemy armor from a hundred paces away. I want to win this [-] guan reward, and I have been thinking about it these days."

Zhao Zhen's eyes lit up. This reward was approved by him two years ago. He still remembers it fresh. He hurriedly said, "Is there any progress?"

Fan Ning took out a blueprint, got up and presented it, "This is the blueprint drawn by Weichen, and some parts in it are being made by others, please read it, Your Majesty!"

Sooner or later, Fan Ning will hand over the blueprint to the Armament Supervisor, but how can he guarantee his ownership?After much deliberation, he decided that it would be best for the emperor to be the guarantee, so he always carried this blueprint with him, looking for opportunities to present it to the emperor.

Zhao Zhen opened the drawing and took a closer look. He was attracted by the five gears designed by Fan Ning. He looked at it for a while and asked, "Tell me about your thinking?"

"Your Majesty, the key to killing the enemy with a crossbow is strength. I consider lengthening the body of the crossbow and extending the teeth of the crossbow by one foot. I have calculated that the force of this shot will be three times that of the original crossbow. The strength of soldiers is absolutely unable to pull such a powerful crossbowstring.

Therefore, Weichen considered the principle of the trebuchet, designed a set of gears, and used a copper rod to pull the big gear and drive the small gear, so that the bowstring that could not be pulled apart by human power can be easily pulled apart by the gear.

Wei Chen estimated that the killing distance of this new crossbow is at least two hundred steps, and it can easily penetrate the armor of the enemy. "

Zhao Zhen nodded when he heard it. Fan Ning made a lot of sense. The trebuchet can throw tens of catties of boulders [-] steps away with just a dozen people. Crossbows can really do it.

Zhao Zhen smiled and said: "This blueprint is here with me. If it is realized, I will reward you twice!"

"With His Majesty's promise, I don't have to worry about not getting the money."

Hearing what he said was interesting, Zhao Zhen couldn't help laughing, "Your new crossbow must meet the requirements, how can the court's money be so easy to get?"

Zhao Zhen put the drawings in the basket next to him, and then turned the topic to today's main topic.

He handed Fan Ning the scrolls and maps of the Tang Dynasty that he had found, and said with a smile, "Look at this document first!"

Fan Ning carefully took the 300-year-old scroll and slowly unfolded it on the table. It turned out to be the scroll of the Heishui Governor's Mansion. He read it carefully and said happily: "It turns out that Sakhalin Island belongs to the Tang Dynasty. It is only natural for Da Song to take it back."

Zhao Zhen nodded, "I also think about it in the same way, but I can't figure it out, how can there be a coast that is not frozen all year round?"

For this reason, Fan Ning knows a little bit. Between Sakhalin Island and Hokkaido is one of the four major fishing grounds in the world. At the place where the warm current and cold current meet, it is normal for the southern coast of Sakhalin Island to not freeze due to the influence of the warm current.

"Your Majesty, it may have something to do with the water temperature. The sea water over there is warmer, so the coast is not frozen, but I believe that the most urgent task now is not Sakhalin Island, but Maoren Island and Tamna Island. When does His Majesty plan to send People go to investigate?"

Zhao Zhen pondered for a moment and said: "Two days ago, Di Qing took the initiative to ask me to open up territory for the Song Dynasty, but I considered letting him go to the south to quell the chaos outside the mountains. He recommended Zhao Zongshi to be in charge of the investigation of the two islands. I would like to ask Asking your opinion, who do you think is more appropriate to investigate?"

Fan Ning immediately understood that this must be the meaning of the Cao family. He used Di Qing to recommend Zhao Zongshi and gave Zhao Zongshi a chance to make contributions. Since Zhao Zhen deliberately mentioned him, he had obviously decided to let Zhao Zongshi go. It took a lot of energy on him, but he wanted to give the Cao family an explanation.

Fan Ning smiled and said: "After all, it is overseas to open up borders and avoid land. I agree that the children of the royal family should take the lead. In addition, I would like to recommend a deputy envoy. This person has been to Maoren Island and Tamna Island. Your Majesty also knows this person." People, he is the most suitable guide."

Zhao Zhen suddenly became interested, and asked with a smile: "Who has been to Maoren Island and Tamna Island?"

"Uncle Cao Yi!"

Zhao Zhen suddenly burst out laughing, it turned out to be his brother-in-law, of course he knew that his brother-in-law was obsessed with immortality, traveled around all the year round, and had no interest in being an official.

"Cao Yi has been to Maoren Island and Tamna Island?"

"Exactly, when the old man of the Cao family was celebrating his birthday, I heard that Uncle Cao Guo had been overseas, so I chatted with him for a long time, and it turned out that he had actually been to Maoren Island and Tamna Island, and he told me a lot about Maoren Island. Regarding the situation with Tamna Island, His Majesty can talk to him more specifically."

Zhao Zhen was immediately interested. His brother-in-law had actually been to Maoren Island, so he really wanted to ask him.

"When does His Majesty plan to send people to Tamna Island and Maoren Island to investigate the situation?"

"I plan to send a trade fleet to Silla and Japan in a month's time. Using trade as a cover, I will secretly explore Tamna Island and Maoren Island. If everything is as we judged before, then I will start preparations. Two years later, the overseas plan will be formally implemented.”

Speaking of this, Zhao Zhen said to Fan Ning slowly: "There are quite a lot of spies in the capital of Liao Kingdom, the less people know about this matter, the better."

"Wei Chen understands, and must keep his mouth shut!"

Fan Ning said goodbye and left. Zhao Zhen pondered for a moment, then picked up Fan Ning's drawing of the new crossbow, and he immediately ordered: "Declaration of my will, Xuanjun Supervisor Luo come to see me quickly!"

(End of this chapter)