Southern Ming Rebel Army

Chapter 211 Jinling City (3)

When the news of the great victory at Dengwang Mountain and the recovery of Nanjing reached Meng Jun's rule, the enthusiasm of the people to expel the Tartars reached a new peak. Under the shogunate's decree, the gentry with different intentions were frightened, which made it possible for Meng Jun's decree to be implemented unimpeded.

When Liu Guaizi arrived in Jinling by boat, he still looked unhappy. When he saw Meng Jun, he said, "Grand Commander, why are you in such a hurry to call me back? I have some idea about the iron mold casting cannon method you mentioned last time."

Yu An, who was beside Meng Jun, reminded him, "Liu Guaizi, what Grand Commander? Now you want to be called the King!"

Liu Guaizi was stunned, smacked his lips, and said, "My Lord? So soon?"

"Let's not talk about this. Do you think the method of casting cannons with iron molds will work?" Meng Jun didn't care about the name issue, but asked Liu Guaizi.

"Yes, old man Mi and I have studied it for a long time. It works, but there are still a few problems. One is that after the molten iron is poured into the iron mold, it cools down too quickly and the gun body becomes white cast iron, which is too brittle. The solution is to either increase the wall thickness or slow down the cooling rate of the molten iron. If the wall thickness is increased, the cannon will become extremely heavy and can only be used to defend the city or be installed on large warships. As for slowing down the cooling rate, I haven't thought of a good way yet." Liu Guaizi said with a sigh.

Meng Jun was a little disappointed after hearing this. After a moment of silence, he said, "It is definitely not okay if the cannon is too heavy. It is very inconvenient for the army to carry it. Moreover, if the wall thickness is increased, the power of the cannon will be further reduced. Don't worry, just develop it slowly."

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When the Ningbo Cao family received the news of the recovery of Jinling, Cao Yin was shocked by the speed at which Meng Jun's power was expanding. Fortunately, Cao Yin believed that he had a good relationship with King Meng. After all, he did not want an official position, and he even gave a large sum of money to Meng Jun who was short of money.

Although his Cao family is also considered a large sea merchant in Ningbo City, it is the smallest family in the Jiangnan area. Among the sea merchants, the strongest is naturally the Zheng family, but the Zheng family is too strong and can no longer be considered a normal sea merchant.

As for the others, Gao, Xu, Wei, Chen and Ma are powerful at sea, each of them has more than a hundred ships and thousands of fugitives. They also have their own connections in Japan, Korea and the Southeast Asian countries. These are the five leading maritime merchant families. These families usually disguise themselves as farming and reading families or merchants in the countryside, but no one knows that these families are all very wealthy and do not show it to others.

But these families are hiding in the shadows. If it weren't for the threat from the Cao family, Meng Jun would have no idea that in this era, merchants actually dared to threaten warriors. Meng Jun ordered Meng Bian to investigate privately. Meng Bian sent people disguised as servants to sneak into the Cao family, but they could only find a few clues, that is, the Cao family had a private connection with the Chen family in Yuyao County.

Cao Yin had no idea that Meng Jun was investigating him in private. According to his thinking, King Meng did nothing and just spoke, and the man took out two million taels of hard-earned money from him and his family. How could Cao Yin be dissatisfied?

Cao Yin paced anxiously at home, thinking over and over again about a question in his mind: Now that Meng Jun has taken over Nanjing and is so powerful, should he offer something to Meng Jun?

After all, Meng Jun had just been named King of Zhou, which was a big deal! If he could send a special gift, what should he send? Cao Yin thought to himself, "Giving money is too vulgar, and maybe the king wants more. It's better to give a beauty, which is cheap and useful, and can also be used to persuade the king!"

The more Cao Yin thought about it, the more he felt that this was a good idea. Moreover, compared to giving money, beauties were obviously more tempting. It was said that the King of Zhou selected sixty-two concubines. Isn't it obvious that he loves beauties more?

Thinking of this, Cao Yin couldn't help but feel proud of himself. He felt that he was really smart, so he immediately started to prepare. This beauty must be fresh and refined, so that the king of Zhou could feel his respect.

Meng Jun never thought that in order to raise military pay, Yang En and Li Weitai bought and sold positions in the rear house and found a bunch of women for themselves, which would make Cao Yin think that he was a lustful man. Meng Jun couldn't get rid of this big pot.

At this moment, Meng Jun had also returned home to pay a visit to Madam Zhou. The old lady was now in a calmer state of mind, and devoted herself to reciting Buddhist scriptures. She did not have too many requirements for Meng Jun, except one, that he should have a child as soon as possible. It was not until she heard Meng Bian's report that she realized that the original Governor's Mansion was full of rough men, but now there were more than 200 women pouring in.

When Meng Jun returned to the backyard, he was stunned. Dozens of women gathered in the garden. Meng Jun couldn't count how many there were. They were like a colorful painting. They were wearing all kinds of clothes, playing, watching, or chatting in the garden.

These women all have beautiful faces and beautiful smiles. Some are elegant and dignified, while others are lively and lovely, full of vitality. These women, some tall, some short, some plump, some slender, all exude unique charm.

In the garden, the trees were green and the women's laughter and chatter were intertwined with the fragrance of flowers and the chirping of birds. Until Meng Jun appeared, the garden was silent as if the pause button was pressed. Yu An, who was standing behind him, saw a large group of women looking at the king. His face suddenly turned red, and he lowered his head to Meng Jun and said, "Your Majesty, may I take my leave first?"

Meng Jun glared at Yu An and whispered, "I'm here to see my daughter. As a personal guard, shouldn't I be by her side to protect her?"

At this time, a woman stood up and said to Meng Jun: "Are you the king?"

Meng Jun heard this and looked at the girl. Her eyebrows were like green feathers, her eyes were like bright stars, her lips were like painted fat, her figure was upright, and she had an extraordinary aura. Her heroic spirit was overwhelming, not the gentleness of an ordinary lady, but rather a resolute and courageous demeanor. However, her beauty was not only in her appearance, but also in her extraordinary temperament.

Meng Jun nodded but did not reply.

But the woman said something shocking, "I am Li Yu'e, and I am here at my father's command. I am willing to be the king's wife or concubine. If the king does not like it, I do not want to be a maid, and I would rather go home."

Meng Jun was slightly stunned when he heard this. He did not expect this woman to have such courage. She dared to say this to his face after only meeting him once. Some women around them blushed just by hearing Li Yu'e's words, but Li Yu'e remained calm and composed.

Meng Jun laughed and said, "Okay." Just one word in response, Li Yu'e didn't know what the king meant. After all, she was still a young girl, and her cheeks flushed involuntarily.

Li Yu'e noticed everyone's gazes and felt a little embarrassed. She tried hard to regain her composure, but the blush on her face became more and more obvious, as if the sunset was shining on her face, adding a bit of softness to her heroic look.

Meng Jun smiled knowingly, then left the garden and went to the back house to see Zhao Yuner and his eldest daughter.