The last three kingdoms

Chapter 459

Sima Zhao slumped powerlessly on the brocade mat, watching the urgent report from Guan Zhong, his mind went blank as if it had been emptied.

Chang'an fell, and Sima Wang was defeated and set himself on fire. The news was like a thunderbolt from the sky, and it really dealt a heavy blow to Sima Zhao.

how is this possible?how is this possible?how is this possible?

Deep in his heart, Sima Zhao had already asked him a hundred times and a thousand times.You know, Sima Wang was commanding 10 elite soldiers, and in just a few months, they were completely defeated. Not only did they lose all [-] troops, but they also lost Chang'an.

Chang'an?To Chang'an!Chang'an is known as a big city comparable to Luoyang. It has twelve city gates. The city wall is tall and strong. It fell within three days. Could it be that such a strong city is just a piece of paper?It's just unbelievable.

"When Liu Yin attacked Chang'an, he used an unprecedented weapon called gunpowder. It took three days to dig a tunnel under the south wall of Chang'an, and buried thousands of catties of gunpowder under the city wall. , After igniting, there was a loud noise, and the city wall of Chang'an collapsed, which is why Chang'an City was lost so quickly." Jia Chong explained to Sima Zhao in a heavy voice.

Any city relies on the city wall. Once the city wall falls, the defense system of the entire city will be useless. It is completely reasonable for Chang'an City to be lost so quickly.

"Gunpowder?" Sima Zhao has a black thread, and Liu Yin can always come up with something surprising. The former was equipped with a new style of saddle and stirrup in the battle of Jieting, and that battle was also happening. It was the beginning of Sima Wang's defeat. Cao Wei Jinqi, who was known as invincible in the world, became vulnerable in front of the new cavalry.Sima Zhao also felt the importance of technological innovation, and ordered a large-scale imitation of Takahashi saddles and bilateral stirrups to solve the problem of cavalry combat power.

However, Liu Yin's new gadgets seem to come out endlessly, and this time he actually created some "gunpowder", which is so powerful that it can blow down the city wall. This is undoubtedly a terrible weapon. The current war is all about the city. Yes, and Liu Yin's weapon will definitely break the existing balance. Just imagine, any strong city is useless in front of him, how terrible it would be.

Jia Chong took out a small paper bag from the sleeve of his robe like a magic trick, opened it, and spread it in front of Sima Zhao.Sima Zhao raised his eyes and saw a pile of black fine powder.

"This is gunpowder?" Sima Zhao looked at these inconspicuous things and asked in surprise.

Jia Chong nodded, without saying a word, but ordered his attendant to fetch a lighted candle, move the gunpowder to an open space far away from Sima Zhao, and fetch a piece of paper, roll it into a roll, and put it on the candle lit it, and then threw the open flame at the pile of black powder.

"Boom!" The pile of black powder was instantly ignited, and flames several feet long burst out. Although Sima Zhao was far away, he could still feel the impact of the detonation, and he couldn't help shrinking back. one time.

"Where did you get this gunpowder?" Sima Zhao asked with great interest.

Jia Chong said: "This is the sample that Lieutenant Qingniao of the Guanzhong Military Division managed to obtain. If it weren't for this, we really don't know what Liu Yin used to bomb the walls of Chang'an."

The Kingdom of Shu has always been in the leading position in the field of military technology. The swords cast by Zhuge Liang were sharper than those used by the Wei army. The Yuanrong crossbow designed and produced by Zhuge Liang himself is a very lethal weapon. However, the improvement of the overall military strength of these weapons is limited after all, and it has never risen to the point where it has an overwhelming advantage. For Cao Wei, who focuses on developing the overall military strength, it seems that he is not too cold about the military technology innovation of the Shu Kingdom.

However, after the Battle of Jieting, Sima Zhao also realized the importance of military technology innovation. In addition to large-scale imitation of the high-bridge saddles and double-sided stirrups of the Shu army, many military technology projects that had been shelved before were re-emphasized. , For example, many inventions made by the late Ma Jun in the incident could not be put into practice during his lifetime.

At that time, Fu Xuan, the prefect of Hongnong, recommended Ma Jun to Cao Shuang several times, but he was never reused. He was also ridiculed by Pei Xiu and others. When it came to the military, Fu Xuan had to sigh repeatedly, saying that the author of Ma Jun is a fine weapon of the country. If it is needed by the army, it only takes ten hunks of wood and two people to experiment. This disdain leads to the burial of talents and the dust of military skills.

The Battle of Jieting was a major turning point. The incomparably powerful Cao Wei cavalry was vulnerable to the Shu army equipped with new-style horse gear, and almost wiped out the entire army. Such a tragic loss greatly stimulated Sima Zhao.After learning from the pain, Sima Zhao decided to make great efforts in the innovation of weapons. Ma Jun's son, *** was appointed as the governor, and was in charge of the overall management of the weapon workshops. to the stage of experimental production.

Seeing the power of gunpowder, Sima Zhao couldn't help nodding his head frequently. It's no wonder that a few thousand catties of gunpowder can blow down the city walls of Chang'an even if such a small amount of gunpowder can produce such a great power.

"If you have a sample, then give it to the boss in the matter, and let him copy and produce it." Takahashi saddles and double-sided stirrups have entered mass production, and Sima Zhao has seen tigers equipped with new-style saddles and stirrups. Leopard cavalry, the combat effectiveness has been significantly improved, which makes Sima Zhao full of interest in technological innovation, and is also full of expectations for imitation gunpowder, and he can't wait to implement it immediately.

Jia Chong shook his head and said: "Back to King Jin, I have shown this thing to the emperor and all the craftsmen. No one knows what kind of thing it is made of. The emperor said that this thing is at least a few." It is made of a mixture of various raw materials, and it is difficult to imitate if the formula and process are unknown."

Sima Zhao also fell into deep thought. Obviously, this matter is more difficult. The Shu Han must regard the formula of gunpowder as a rare treasure, and it is definitely not an easy task to obtain it.But when he thought that the Shu army had such a powerful weapon, Sima Zhao couldn't sleep and eat. Gunpowder is a weapon that breaks the balance of force between the two sides. Being at a disadvantage, Sima Zhao absolutely did not want to see such a situation.

"Chuan Zhongguan Zhongjun, at all costs, must get the formula for gunpowder!"

(End of this chapter)