Chapter 688
: Undercurrents surge, a game within a game is played near Jin Temple
On the commanding heights near the Temple of Jin, in the simple tent where Zhu Gang was located.
On a quaint wooden table, a cloisonné-glazed copper paperweight firmly holds down half of the "Jin Temple Picture".
The paperweight had bright glaze, and its blue and white patterns looked like a flowing scroll, gleaming with a warm luster under the dim moonlight.
The half of the "Jin Temple Picture" has delicate brushstrokes, depicting the pavilions, towers, and landscapes of Jin Temple vividly, as if telling the thousand-year history of this ancient temple.
Zhu Gang held the monocular telescope in his hand, his thumb unconsciously stroking the cloud-thunder pattern on the telescope's body.
This telescope is not simple. It is a "rare item" that the Portuguese envoys brought from afar as tribute three years ago.
If you look closely, you can see a line of slightly quaint Portuguese engraved on the inner wall of the tube - "Para o Infante".
However, what is little known is that this seemingly exotic treasure is actually a foreign trade commodity exported by the Ming Dynasty to Portugal via Suphan Buri.
After many twists and turns, it returned to the land of the Ming Dynasty and became an important tool for Zhu Gang to observe the situation.
At this time, the mountain wind swept in with a howling sound and the wind was raging.
The copper bells hanging on the eaves of the Holy Mother Temple made clear and crisp sounds.
The ringing sound should have been clear and pleasant as it echoed in the silent night.
But in Zhu Gang's ears, it seemed to instantly transform into the distant and dull sound of camel bells on the Mobei battlefield.
That voice was like a key that instantly opened the floodgates of his memory.
Ten years ago, Zhu Gang followed Xu Da in the Northern Expedition and set foot on the vast land of Mobei.
During that arduous battle, he had experienced countless sleepless nights in Yehuling.
At that time, the same moonlight was shining on the earth, illuminating the battlefield like daylight.
In the moonlight, the flashes of swords and the shadows of sabers flashed, shouts of killing shook the sky, and the blood of the soldiers dyed the land red.
Zhu Gang still remembers the cruel war scene vividly.
Now on the hills near Jin Temple, there is a similar moonlight and similar sounds of wind.
His thoughts involuntarily returned to the war-torn years. While a surge of lofty ambitions and passions surged in his heart, he also felt more solemn and thoughtful about the current situation.
Zhu Gang was well aware of the situation in the Northern Expedition back then and the seemingly calm but turbulent situation in Jin Temple today.
Every decision concerns the life and death of countless people, and he cannot afford to be careless or slack.
"Young Master, should the saddlebag knots be in the Shenjiying style?"
At this moment, Private Wang Hu was squatting beside the third Hequ horse. The calluses on his palms made a crackling sound as they rubbed against the cowhide saddle bag.
Chang Mao raised his head and used the moonlight to see the "Xiaoqi" engraving on the soldier's wristband.
He was originally transferred from the cavalry battalion, no wonder he is so unfamiliar with firearms and saddlery.
“You want to leave three fingers’ worth of room for movement in the knot.”
He drew his sword from the scabbard and tapped the saddle. The "Chang" family crest on the sword hilt shone coldly in the moonlight.
"During the Battle of Hejian a few years ago, a centurion's thunderbolt got stuck in his saddle bag because the knot was too tight.
You are used to riding and shooting, so remember that this lump of iron is more valuable than a bow and arrow made of gold.
The fuse wick has been dipped in Sichuan pepper oil and must not be exposed to dew."
Wang Hu's throat rolled and his knuckles turned white as he clenched the thunder bomb.
"Don't worry, young master. I have seen this thing blow through the Tartar's iron carriage at Juyong Pass."
He suddenly lowered his voice and said, "I heard that the furnace is filled with the improved formula of the Dingbian Army's 'Divine Fire Flying Crow'?"
Chang Mao didn't respond and stuffed the last thunder bomb into the arms of the thinnest soldier.
The child's name is Li Zhu, he is sixteen years old, and has a half-broken ivory plaque pinned on his chest.
That was the relic of his father, Li Huotou, the former commander of the Shenjiying Camp.
"Your father once used a thunder bomb to knock down Zhang Shicheng's siege tower on the top of Jinan City." As he spoke, Chang Mao suddenly reached out and pressed Li Zhu's shoulder, "If you hear the sound of a signal cannon tonight, throw it into the shadow of the locust tree in the northwest corner.
The terrain there is low, and the shrapnel could splash onto the bandits on the platform."
Li Zhu looked up and saw the burn scar at the base of Chang Mao's left ring finger. It was left when he tried to rescue a thunder bomb that was about to explode during the defense of Peking last year.
The boy suddenly stood at attention, and the ivory plates clanged against his armor.
"Young Master, I remember you said that we should count three 'wind, fire, thunder and lightning' before the thunderbolt hits the ground."
At the same time, the toes of Gongshuqi's cloth shoes rolled over the moss, and the cork texture of the soles just happened to be embedded in the cracks between the bricks.
This was what he discovered during his third visit to the site. One out of every seven tiles on the Jin Temple floor had a secret mark left by the craftsmen, arranged in the shape of a Big Dipper.
The submachine gun linkage in his arms was wrapped in cotton cloth soaked in charcoal ash; the slight sound of metal parts rubbing against each other was masked by his deliberate cough.
"Left three, right four, wheelbase two feet seven inches."
Gongshu Qi squatted in the shadow of the eaves of the west side hall of the Holy Mother Hall, measuring along the brick joints with his fingertips.
When the triangular copper frame at the bottom of the device clicked into the crevice of the stone, he suddenly heard the sound of horses snorting coming from the direction of the east side hall.
I held my breath and counted to the seventh heartbeat before I dared to continue.
The hearing of a Hequ horse is three times more sensitive than that of a Mongolian horse. If Gongshu Qi had not deliberately stepped on a dead branch to divert attention, he would have been discovered by Chang Mao's personal soldiers long ago.
The copper wheel turned half a circle in the palm of his hand, and the aiming hole was facing the steps of the main entrance of the Notre Dame Temple.
Gong Shuqi took out beeswax from the leather bag and carefully applied it on the trigger spring.
This is an anti-jamming technique improved from that of Suzhou craftsmen, which can shorten the interval between continuous shots by half a breath.
Suddenly he heard Chang Mao's orders coming from a distance.
"The defense must be completed before 3:45 p.m."
Upon hearing Chang Mao's order, Gongshu Qi's fingers suddenly tightened, and the reeds flashed silver arcs in the moonlight.
"Where should I put the second one?"
He muttered to himself, his fingertips running over the seal script of "Gongshu" on the side of the device.
This was carved by Gongshu Qi's master, former Deputy Minister of Works Chen Xingquan, before his death.
Back in the Yingtian Prefecture Prison, the old man used his fingernails to scratch a sketch of the linkage device on his palm.
"Remember, the angle between the two guns must be 72 degrees to cover the cross-fire range."
At this moment, Gongshu Qi was looking at the roof of the east side hall, and suddenly caught a glimpse of a small reflective dot in the shadow of the tile - a telescope!
The copper ring of the telescope left a red mark around his eyes, but Zhu Gang was completely unaware of it.
In the telescope, Chang Mao was kicking Li Zhu to correct his thunder-holding posture, while Gongshu Qi's figure appeared and disappeared on the back wall of the west side hall.
He suddenly noticed the tripod at the bottom of the device - it was not the ordinary military equipment bureau standard, but seemed to be a stable structure combined with the Huihui cannon.
"Your Highness, the Shenji Battalion's thunderbolts have been deployed."
Song Zhong, deputy commander of the imperial guards, handed over the meat jerky wrapped in pepper leaves and asked, "Is it according to the plan..."
"and many more."
Zhu Gang suddenly saw Gongshu Qi taking out the second device from the leather bag, and his movements were 30% slower than the first one.
He remembered that the Ministry of Industry's archives recorded that this type of linkage device needed to be used in pairs, and the overlapping point of the shooting range was exactly the platform of the Notre Dame Temple.
If Chang Mao's soldiers threw a thunder bomb here, the blast wave would directly hit the device's fuse.
"Go tell Chang Mao to have Li Zhu's team retreat five feet."
Zhu Gang suddenly took off the jade pendant from his waist and threw it to Song Zhong, "Use my private seal and say that the observatory has predicted that the moon will hit the fort, which means there are ambushes in the southwest."
(End of this chapter)