Neon Clothes and Iron Clothes

Chapter 942: Students

"Yes, this is indeed just a weapon!" Jumong nodded: "But this weapon is not cheap, and you can't use it right away after buying it!"

"I just hope you can quote a price!" Geng Anlu said, "Excuse me, you can't keep this weapon secret forever. Why don't you sell it for a good price before it is leaked? Frankly speaking, many people are afraid of your power. Some people even suggest making peace with the Khmer people to fight against you. This is not a good thing for you, right?"

Hearing the other party's soft and hard words, Jumong pondered for a moment: "Because of the alliance, I can let you see how firearms are used, but I'm afraid it doesn't mean much to you. As for those of you who want to break the alliance, I can only say that stupid people will always do stupid things, and smart people will always stand on the side of the winner. You should be able to see who will win in the end!"

"Smart? Stupid?" Geng Anlu laughed and said, "You Tang people are always so arrogant. I admit that your empire is powerful, but this place is too far from Chang'an! Don't you Tang people have a saying? It's beyond your reach!"

"You can draw your conclusion after watching the firearms drill with your own eyes!" Jumong said with a smile, "Hearing is believing, seeing is believing!"

"Good!" Geng Anlu nodded in satisfaction, and the two walked out of the house and came to the yard. Jumong made a gesture, and the sentry ran over and handed his flintlock to Jumong. Jumong loaded the gunpowder, wrapped the lead with cotton paper, stuffed it into the muzzle, and then tamped it with a push rod, and poured the remaining gunpowder into the powder pool. He looked around, pointed at a wooden barrel about seventy steps away, aimed slightly, and then pulled the trigger. The hammer fell, sparks splashed, and with a loud bang, a large amount of white smoke sprayed out of the muzzle.

"It's okay here, we are just practicing firearms, get out!" Jumong shouted away the guards who came over after hearing the noise, and walked to the wooden barrel with Geng Anlu. Geng Anlu found a thumb-sized hole on the barrel wall: "A crossbow that can make a loud noise!" He smiled indifferently.

"Really?" Jumong picked up the wooden barrel, and the two found another hole of the same size on the other side of the barrel. In addition, there was another hole in the rammed earth wall behind it. Geng Anlu stretched out his finger to probe, but did not touch the bottom.

"It can shoot through armor!" Geng Anlu's face didn't look good.

"Yes!" Zhu Meng casually threw the flintlock rifle to Geng Anlu: "You try it too!"

Geng Anlu tried shooting several times and soon mastered the trick, hitting the wooden barrel that was used as a target. When he checked the bullet holes on the wall, his face became increasingly uglier.

"This weapon is really terrifying. Even a woman can easily kill a warrior wearing heavy armor and experienced in hundreds of battles!" Geng Anlu muttered to himself. He thought for a moment and asked, "What do you Tang people call this weapon?"

"Flintlock, that's the name my father gave it!"

"Flintlock! I remember that!" Geng Anlu nodded: "Now I understand why you said that it can't be used right after you buy it. Isn't the key the black powder?"

"That's right!" Jumong did not hide it: "If this flintlock rifle is to be used, it must be filled with bullets. Lead bullets are simple, but gunpowder is not easy to come by!"

"I guess you won't tell me the secret of gunpowder!"

Zhu Meng smiled slightly, but did not speak, and acquiesced. Geng Anlu was no exception. If he were in the other's shoes, he would definitely not tell the secrets of the military and the country.

"No wonder you let me practice it myself so easily!" Geng Anlu sighed: "Even if I take it, without gunpowder, it's just a pile of scrap metal!"

"I'm glad you understand!" Jumong said with a smile, "In fact, even the secret of gunpowder was not kept secret by my father. He taught this subject in the school he opened."

"Really?" Geng Anlu's eyes lit up.

"Of course it's true! Otherwise, you can see that there are so many firearms in our army, and they all rely on gunpowder. Once a war breaks out, more than billions of gunpowder will be consumed. To make so much gunpowder, there must be a lot of craftsmen. With so many craftsmen, no matter how hard they try to keep it secret, they can't keep it secret!"

"That's right!" Geng Anlu was overjoyed when he heard this, but then he showed doubt again: "You told me this, aren't you afraid that I will send someone to find out the secret of gunpowder with a large sum of money?"

"Haha!" Zhu Meng laughed and said, "Go ahead, I'm just afraid you won't go. If you are interested, I can even write a letter of recommendation for you to go to my father's school for a few years and learn all the knowledge of making guns and gunpowder!"

When Geng Anlu heard what Zhu Meng said, he was both happy and suspicious. He was happy that he could obtain the knowledge so easily, but he was suspicious that there might be a trap. He thought for a moment and asked, "Aren't you afraid that I will learn these knowledge and use them to deal with you Tang people in Java?"

"Haha!" Zhu Meng laughed twice: "Do you know? My father once said this: If someone really learns all these knowledge, he will be a thorough Tang person!"

"If I learn these knowledge, I will become a Tang person?" Geng Anlu fell into deep thought. He was born into one of the noblest families in Java. Unlike other chieftains, Geng Anlu loved learning since he was a child. Java happened to be an important node in the East-West maritime trade route at that time. As long as merchants from the East and the West brought precious books, he would spend a lot of money to collect them, hide them in his own palace, and study them carefully in his spare time. As his knowledge increased, his thoughts on pursuing knowledge became deeper. He often thought that if he had not shouldered the heavy responsibility of the family, he would give up power and wealth and go to Athens, Constantinople, Cairo Baghdad, Khorasan, Nalanda Temple (all of which were famous learning centers at that time) and other places to pursue knowledge. But this time was different from the past. The pursuit of knowledge and the prosperity of the family were combined. If he could really learn the secret of firearms from the Tang people, his family could soar to the sky with this alone, completely overwhelm other families, and become the king of the entire Java Island.

"Okay!" Geng Anlu nodded. "Give me two days to go back and make arrangements. I will go to Datang and study at your father's academy!"

Zhu Meng did not expect Geng Anlu to agree so readily. He was slightly stunned, then smiled and said, "Okay, then it's a deal!"

Geng Anlu returned to Iselapura and first summoned all the Javanese leaders. In front of everyone, he handed over the sword and necklace that represented his family to his younger brother and said, "Everyone, I will go to the Tang Dynasty in two days to pursue knowledge. The position of the family leader will be handed over to my younger brother. Please be a witness here to avoid disputes in the future!"

"Brother, have you been bewitched by the Tang people? Why did you suddenly say such a thing?" Geng Anlu's younger brother, Ai'erlangjia, was startled by his brother's sudden action and hurriedly said, "Quickly ask the monk who accompanied us to come and chant sutras for my brother to drive away the spell!"

"Aierlanga, I am very sober, I am not under any spell!" Geng Anlu smiled and said, "You all know that I have loved learning since I was a child, and I always wanted to leave home to pursue learning. However, after my father died, the family needed me to take responsibility, so I stayed until today. Now that you have grown up, and I have encountered a good opportunity, so I did this!"

Ai’erlanga is fifteen years younger than Geng Anlu. Although they are brothers in name, he was actually raised by his elder brother as his father died early. He has always respected Geng Anlu. When he heard Geng Anlu say this, he was angry and painful, and fell to the ground and cried, "Brother, you still say that you are not under a spell. You left behind the wealth and honor of your family to pursue knowledge in the Tang Kingdom thousands of miles away. Is this something a normal person can think of? Those books must be cursed by evil wizards, otherwise how could you do such a thing? When I go back, I will definitely burn all the books in your palace!" "Shut up, Ai’erlanga!" Geng Anlu scolded, "How can you do this? "How can I do this? I have spent countless efforts to collect those books. They are wisdom from all over the world, which can be used by our descendants. I plan to go to Tang not only to pursue knowledge, but also to find the secret of gunpowder! This is not only beneficial to our family, but also important to us Javanese!" After that, he recounted everything that happened during his meeting with Jumong, and finally said: "I have seen the power of Tang people's firearms with my own eyes. Although it is not the power of gods, it is definitely not something that bows and crossbows and armor can resist. But firearms alone are useless without gunpowder. So I plan to go to Tang to learn about gunpowder!"

"Could this be a trap?" a Javanese chief asked. "The secret of gunpowder is so important, why would it be taught in an academy, let alone given to foreigners like you and me?"

"Yes, Geng Anlu, could it be that the Tang people are using your love of learning to set a trap?"

"I am just one of the many Javanese leaders. Why would the Tang people set a trap to deal with me?" Geng Anlu asked, "If he doesn't want to tell me the secret of gunpowder, he can just refuse. We can't do anything to him."

"Tang State is very far away from here, and it's also very dangerous!"

"But the Tang people have also come here, and our merchants have also been to Tang territory. Merchants can travel across the ocean in pursuit of treasures, and for knowledge that is a hundred times more valuable than treasures, why can't I take risks?" Geng Anlu said, "Don't say anything, I have made up my mind. No matter what you do, I will go to Tang to study!"

Seeing that Geng Anlu had made up his mind, everyone could only tell him to be careful on the road. After Geng Anlu finished explaining the family affairs, he took two servants, changed into ascetic clothes, and rode a donkey to the city of Balatiba. Seeing this, Jumong was shocked: "What's wrong with you? Did something happen at home?"

"Since I am going to study in Tang, I will naturally leave all family affairs to my family. Now that I have given up the honor and responsibility of the secular world to pursue knowledge, I naturally cannot wear gold and silver like I did in the past!"

"I just mentioned it casually at the beginning, I didn't expect you to actually do it!" Seeing this, Zhu Meng also admired Geng Anlu's determination: "But don't worry, the study is definitely true. I will write a letter of recommendation for you immediately and let you go to Fanyang to study!"

"Thank you very much!" Geng Anlu waited happily for Zhu Meng to finish writing the recommendation letter, put it away and leave. Two days later, when there was a ship bound for Jiaozhou, he boarded the ship and went all the way to Jiaozhou.

————————————————————————————

Fan Yang.

"Father, Sutuo is back, and with him is Heba Yun, Zhen'e and the others!" Huliang whispered.

"Oh!" Wang Wenzuo opened his eyes and saw his son's worried look. He smiled slightly and wanted to get up from the bed. Huliang quickly stretched out his hands and hugged his father's shoulders.

"My body is not in good condition. I can't even get up from the bed!" Wang Wenzuo pushed his son's arm away and sat up with difficulty. A sharp pain rose from his lower abdomen and spread to his right chest. He couldn't help but open his mouth and put his hand on the painful spot!

"Doctor, doctor!" Hu Liang shouted hurriedly.

"That's enough. The doctor can't do anything for my illness!" Wang Wenzuo raised his legs with difficulty, put them down, and asked the maid to put on his shoes for him: "It's good that Suda and the others are back. What about Jumong and the others? Are they all well?"

"Jumong?" A trace of anger flashed across Huliang's face. He hesitated for a moment and said with difficulty: "He didn't come back?"

"Jumong didn't come back?" Wang Wenzuo's body stiffened for a moment: "What happened? Is he injured or sick?"

"No, no!" Huliang shook his head quickly. He could feel his father's concern, but this made him even more angry: "Jumong and the other four did not come back. They are all healthy. It's just that Suzhenla had a good opportunity, so they went on a ship to fight!"

"You mean Jumong and his four other brothers went to war?"

"right?"

"Did they know about me before this?"

"Really?" Hu Liang lowered his head in shame: "Father, don't worry, I will definitely punish them severely for their evil deeds! Please don't be angry!"

Wang Wenzuo did not speak. He sat on the bed with no expression on his face, but this frightened Huliang even more. He knelt down on his knees and said, "Father, please allow me to go to Jiaozhou and bring them all back!"

"No need!"

"Ah?" Hu Liang raised his head in surprise: "Father, are you going to expel Jumong and his family from the family? Please think about it again and again. Although he is unfilial, he is still your flesh and blood after all. Even if you deprive him of his territory and imprison him to make him reflect on his mistakes, it would be fine!"

"When did I say I would kick them out of the house!" Wang Wenzuo said coldly.

"So what do you want--" Huliang asked carefully.

"Let's go for a walk in the yard first!" said Wang Wenzuo.

"Yes, sir!" Huliang pushed a wheelchair over and helped Wang Wenzuo sit on it, then pushed the wheelchair into the yard. The fruits on the orange trees in the yard had almost all been picked, and most of the leaves had fallen, leaving only a few half-yellow leaves, which looked very depressed.