At this moment, Chai Shao also fired his cannon, and another shell flew out, then exploded far away in the water.
The others, itching to try, had Li Shun angle the ship sideways to make it convenient for them to fire.
Although there were smaller propellant charges that could ensure the Zhenyuan would not hit the riverbank when firing while underway,
Who wouldn't want their cannonball to travel further?
Li Shimin stood at the bow of the ship, listening to the sound of the cannons, and asked Fang Er,
"Lad, when do you plan to set sail?"
Fang Er did some calculations.
The personnel had already been selected,
And the supplies were ready, only needing to be loaded onto the ship.
So he replied, "In three days, at most three days, we will be able to depart."
Li Shimin nodded, looking at the water splashes being continuously kicked up in the distance, and said no more.
Fang Er, unsure of his thoughts, stood behind him.
After the group of dukes had expended all their allocated cannonballs, Fang Er began his tests on the Wujia warship.
Full sprint, emergency stops at full speed.
The recoil from firing on one side, or both sides simultaneously, and its impact on the keel.
Fang Er, along with Li Shimin and the group of dukes, ascended to the forecastle. The top floor was a space of about two hundred square meters.
The tables and chairs inside were all fixed to the floor to prevent them from moving when the large ship swayed.
Once everyone had found a seat, Fang Er took out his walkie-talkie and issued commands to Li Shun, who was still in the engine room.
"Dong five, Dong five, this is Dong one, full speed ahead, over!"
Soon, Li Shun's reply came through the walkie-talkie.
"Dong one, Dong one, this is Dong five, command received, repeat, full speed ahead, over!"
Li Shimin looked curiously at the walkie-talkie in Fang Er's hand.
He had heard Fang Xuanling mention this device before; it could transmit sound over ten li.
"Bring it here, let朕 see your treasure."
Since he was using it in front of Li Shimin, Fang Er was not afraid of him seeing it and generously handed over the walkie-talkie.
Li Shimin fiddled with it for a while, but couldn't figure out how to use it. However, the convenience of communication greatly piqued his interest.
With this device, the efficiency of official work could be greatly improved. For instance, if he were in the Liangji Hall and needed to find Fang Xuanling, he could simply speak into this device, right?
Not only for work, but it would also be more convenient in warfare, at least the issuance of commands would no longer require couriers to run back and forth.
He looked at Fang Er with displeasure, "Why haven't you sent any of these things to朕?"
Fang Er scratched his head, "Your Majesty, this thing is too difficult to make. I only made a few to use on my estate, and I don't have the materials!"
Right, if he couldn't make it himself, he'd blame the lack of materials. Makes perfect sense!
He couldn't possibly say he bought it from the system store, could he?
Hearing him say this, Li Shimin asked, "Are there any materials that the Great Tang does not have?"
Fang Er's mind began to work. After a moment, he replied, "This material is extremely difficult to find. The merchant who sold it to me said it came from the Americas."
Li Shimin thought about the location of the Americas on the globe.
"Thousands of miles away, where the gold mountains are?"
Fang Er nodded.
At this, Li Shimin had no recourse. He couldn't possibly go there now to find this unknown material.
However, the matter was indeed put into his mind.
He looked at the walkie-talkie in his hand and reluctantly returned it to Fang Er.
Returning the walkie-talkie to Fang Er, this fellow was going to sea, and communication between ships would not be as convenient as on land, so it was better to let him keep it for his own use.
Seeing his reluctance, Fang Er chuckled.
"Your Majesty, when I encounter that merchant again, I will ask him to buy more for you."
As soon as these words were spoken, Li Shimin immediately became unhappy.
"Conquer that place for me sooner! Why buy it!"
"Hahahaha, brother, the Emperor is right. Let's conquer it, and it will all be ours!"
Cheng Yaojin said with a laugh from the side.
Li Jing, however, pointed to the walkie-talkie in his hand and asked,
"Marquis of Liaodong, besides this, are there any other ways to transmit messages through the air?"
Fang Er nodded, "Yes, it's just a concept, I haven't tried it yet."
Telephones and telegraphs, these are things that must be figured out in the future, depending on when the system is helpful enough to refresh books in this area.
Hearing Fang Er's answer, Li Jing looked at Li Shimin.
"Your Majesty, I suggest that the Marquis of Liaodong remain at home."
"As for the expedition, I am willing to go personally."
Before Li Shimin could respond, Fang Er became anxious.
If Li Shimin truly ordered a change of personnel, with these three large ships, any of the generals present could go and pacify Japan.
But what about his mission?
"Duke of Wei, it's better for this young one to go to sea. The seas are rough and the waves are high. Moreover, if the Ministry of War is without your guidance, I fear there will be chaos."
"Your Majesty, I have also been pondering the matter of transmitting messages through the air, but it is not something that can be accomplished overnight, so please allow me some time."
Li Shimin waved his hand at Li Jing.
"Alright, Yaoshi, stop competing with the younger generation for the limelight."
"Lad, listen to me carefully. I want the Silver Mountain, and I also want this treasure that transmits messages through the air."
"Tell me a timeframe, how long will it take to produce it."
Fang Er had no idea how long it would take to produce it. This thing purely depended on when the system master would grant the technology.
So, he spoke to test the waters, "Three years?"
*Bang!*
Li Shimin slapped the table, "Good! If you can't produce it in three years, be careful I don't hold you accountable!"
Fang Er: "........................"
Did I say too little?
Why does it feel like I haggled too little when buying something? It was too agreeable!