The last three kingdoms

Chapter 42 Breakthrough

Liu Yin had verified with old craftsmen yesterday that these organ crossbows had no production capacity in Shu, and they obviously came from other places.This is not to say that the mechanical manufacturing capability of Shu State is worse than that of Wei and Wu. In fact, it is just the opposite. Because of Zhuge Liang, a talented expert in equipment manufacturing, and Pu Yuan, a first-class craftsman, Shu State is better than Wei Wu in the field of mechanical manufacturing. The two countries of Wu are much more advanced, and Liannu is an outstanding representative work.It's just that the focus of the two sides is different. The country of Shu is narrow and poor, and its resources are limited. It only develops advanced weapons. Such crossbows, which are not widely used, have not been developed in Shu.

Feng Quan has rich experience in this area. After reading it, he said with certainty: "Yes, these mechanism crossbows are indeed not produced by our dynasty. They should be smuggled by assassins from abroad. These mechanism crossbows are easy to disassemble. It's not too difficult to smuggle through checkpoints."

Zhang Le curled his lips and said: "Even if these crossbows come from Niwei, it may not prove that those assassins must be the spies of Niwei. The clothes and knives used by those assassins are all made in Shu. Hey, how can Lord Youcheng explain it?"

Liu Yin smiled slightly and said: "What I said just now also indicates that the possibility of the assassination by the spies of Wei State is the greatest. It does not rule out the local hostile forces in central Shu and some aristocratic families who have personal enmity with His Majesty. The clothes worn by these assassins are all It was woven in the land of Shu, but from the inside to the outside, it is all made of the best Shu brocade. Although Shu brocade is a local specialty, it is expensive. I don’t think you will give Shu brocade to your family and servants. wear it?"

Shu brocade is the finest silk, and it has always been the main product of the country to export and earn foreign exchange. However, due to the high price of Shu brocade, it is doomed that it cannot become a consumer product among the people, and it is only a luxury that dignitaries can enjoy.

"Perhaps the assassins deliberately tried to confuse the public through their clothes, but they obviously ignored an important common sense. Not every Shu brocade is affordable for every Shu brocade. They tried to cover it up, but they showed their feet instead. .And this provides the most important information, this assassin organization has considerable financial capacity, not short of money. Secondly, these knives are standard weapons of the Shu army, have you noticed their special features?" Liu Yin stood up, picked up a knife casually, and showed it to everyone.

These weapons are too familiar, because they are the same as the knives that everyone is wearing now.The manufacture of swords and weapons in Shu is unique. Pu Yuan, a famous sword maker, once forged [-] knives for Liu Bei in Chengdu, and [-] knives for Zhuge Liang’s Northern Expedition in Xiegu. The knives he made could split iron beads Bamboo tube, known as the magic knife.From the legend, it can be known that Pu Yuan's main knives for making knives lie in mastering the exquisite quenching technology of steel knives.He can distinguish the influence of different water quality on quenching quality, and choose Shujiang water with high cooling rate to quench the steel knife to the appropriate hardness.

There is another rumor about Pu Yuan: Once Pu Yuan made knives and needed quenching treatment. He did not use the ready-made Han River nearby, but sent someone to Chengdu to fetch water from the Shu River.Many people were surprised, but Pu Yuan explained: "Han water is pure and weak, so it is not allowed to be quenched; while Shu River water is relatively strong, suitable for quenching knives." When the water was brought back from Chengdu, Pu Yuan tried it with a blade, and immediately Said: "This water has been mixed with Fu water, so it can't be used." But the water collector wanted to deny it, insisting that it was not mixed with other water.Pu Yuan immediately drew two strokes in the water with a knife, and then said: "The water has been mixed with eight liters of Fujiang River water. How dare you say that there is no water."It turned out that the person who fetched water accidentally fell to the ground when he arrived at Chongjin Ferry on his way back from Chengdu, and spilled a lot of water.He was terrified, fearing that it would be difficult to do business when he went back. In a hurry, he took eight liters of clear water and mixed it with it, thinking that he could pass the test without anyone noticing, but he was caught by Pu Yuan at a glance.All the people present were impressed by Pu Yuan's wonderful skills.

Although there are many famous swordsmiths in ancient China, such as Mo Xie Ou Yezi, although they have forged famous swords through the ages, it takes at least a few years or even a lifetime of hard work to make a good sword, and truly makes famous swords and swords a standard for mass production. The product, Pu Yuan, was the first of its kind in a generation, and the advent of the Hundred Refining Knife significantly raised the combat effectiveness of the Shu army by a level, making up for the disadvantages in numbers. Even in the decades-long war against Wei, the Shu Han was Maintaining a slight upper hand, from the first point of view, Pu Yuan contributed a lot.

Although Pu Yuan has passed away, the craftsmanship of the knife-making workshop in Shu has been passed down. Now the knives used by the Shu army are basically produced by the workshop.

Faced with Liu Yin's question, everyone was puzzled. No one could see what was special about this saber. Zhang Le even pulled out his saber. Compared with it, the two sabers had almost no difference in appearance. any difference.

"Exactly the same, this knife is also from the third workshop of Shudu." Zhang Le said after comparing.On the hilts of the two knives, the words "72 Lian" are engraved, and the words "Shu San" are at the bottom, indicating that the knife casting process is 72 Lian, which was produced in the third workshop of Shudu.

"Is it really the same?" Liu Yin took the two knives from Zhang Le and compared them in front of everyone, "There are many scratches on the back of Zhang Duwei's knife, and there are several small gaps on the blade, and this The knife is brand new, with almost no signs of use."

Feng Quan suddenly realized: "Master You Cheng means that the knives used by the assassins are all newly produced. As long as we trace the source, it is not difficult to find out the true identity of the assassins."

Liu Yin nodded and said: "That's right, since these knives are all newly cast knives, there must be records of the production and storage of these knives between the workshop and the Hyogo. After all, more than 30 knives are not a small number. As long as we find out how these knives flowed out, and follow the clues, it will not be difficult to find out the identity of the assassin. Feng Shidao, you stay in the mansion, and Zhang Duwei and I will go to the third workshop and Hyogo to investigate. Zhao Duwei, You lead people to secretly investigate the woman named Xue Wu inside and outside the city, remember, don’t startle the snake.”

Zhao Zhuo had met Xue Wu, and Liu Yin specially arranged for him to look for it. Although it is not clear how much Xue Wu was involved in this assassination case, only by finding her can he explain all this clearly. It is very difficult to find a woman who is deliberately hidden.

Therefore, Liu Yin still wanted to find a breakthrough in these hundred refining knives.

(End of this chapter)