Five days later.
Zhao Gang found Fang Er holding a handgun he had made himself.
"Sir, this is what I made. Please see if there's anything wrong with it."
Fang Er took it with surprise.
In five days, he could replicate it.
Although it was a replica, it was not an easy task.
The entire handgun had forty-six parts.
Especially some of the small parts inside, which required high precision. Even a difference of half a millimeter could prevent them from being assembled.
Fang Er did not dismantle the gun.
Instead, he directly pulled the slide back and loaded a bullet.
He turned on the safety, aimed at the ground at his feet, and pulled the trigger.
Bang!
The bullet was fired successfully.
However.
The only drawback was that when the bullet was fired, a lot of fire erupted from the ejection port.
This indicated a problem with the sealing.
Fang Er took the handgun apart.
He pointed to a part inside and said to Zhao Gang,
"Look, the size of this part you made is too small, so it can't seal properly."
Then, he looked at the other parts. There were minor issues, but nothing major.
"Go back and ponder on it. Take these few bullets to test the gun."
After speaking, he handed the handgun back to Zhao Gang, along with a few bullets.
"Yes, I will work on it diligently. Thank you, sir."
Zhao Gang took the items and left.
Fang Er, on the other hand, went to the training grounds.
Luo Yi and his Yan Yun Eighteen Cavalry had also returned a few days ago.
Fang Er had been busy with the bullets and the handgun, so he hadn't had time to see them.
Now that he was free, he went to chat with them.
In the military camp beside the training grounds.
Fang Er found them still tied up.
Luo Yi's expression was the same as on the day of his execution.
There was no trace of anger.
"Prince Luo, you've been here for a few days. How do you feel?"
Fang Er pulled up a chair and sat down in front of him.
Luo Yi glanced up at him, then lowered his head again, remaining silent.
"General Fang, what do you intend to do by bringing us here?"
One of the Yan Yun Eighteen Cavalry asked Fang Er.
Although they had been confined here these past few days, they could still move around in the room.
If it weren't for Luo Yi's current state, they would have already escaped.
Through the window, they had watched the training of the new recruits in the training grounds.
They had never seen the training methods of these soldiers before.
Every day, they only did stance training and running.
Yes, to these martial artists, military posture was simply stance training, just a form of stance training they hadn't seen before.
Yet, after a few days like this, they found that.
The changes in these obvious new recruits were very significant.
When they first arrived, the military formations were not very neat.
But now.
Thousands of people standing together looked like a single line!
This astonished them greatly!
It felt incredible.
"I'm not doing anything. I said that in the Taiji Palace earlier. If you pledge allegiance to me, I will ensure Luo Yi's survival, and even allow him to return to the battlefield. How about it?"
Fang Er looked at him and said calmly.
"Don't bother. From the day I was captured, Luo has been as good as dead."
Suddenly, Luo Yi spoke.
"Heh heh."
"As long as you speak, it's easier to handle. What? Even the current Emperor is willing to overlook your treason? Prince Yan, are you unable to look past one defeat?"
Fang Er's face showed mockery.
"Stop calling me Prince Yan. This title was bestowed by the former Emperor. I was loyal to the former Crown Prince. Now that the former Emperor has been forced to abdicate, and the former Crown Prince was killed by Li Shimin, I am not worthy of being Prince Yan!"
Luo Yi suddenly looked up, his eyes bloodshot, and roared at Fang Er.
"You are indeed not worthy of being Prince Yan! But not because of the former Emperor and the former Crown Prince! It's because you colluded with Goguryeo!"
"Do you know what disaster it would bring to the Great Tang if Goguryeo were to seize the cannons!"
"Do you know that for the sake of a single cannon, I had to lead troops deep into Goguryeo, and do everything possible to destroy that cannon?"
"You are the son of Luo Rong, the former General of the Left Gate Guard of the former Sui dynasty. How many heroic bones were left behind by the former Sui in Goguryeo! By colluding with Goguryeo, are you worthy of your father who died in battle!"
The sixteen-year-old Fang Er berated the forty-year-old Luo Yi.
The scene looked quite discordant.
But even so!
Luo Yi was shamed into being unable to raise his head!
"I have nothing to say! Kill me!"
Luo Yi's voice was very soft, but Fang Er saw tears falling from his eyes, moistening the ground.
Suddenly, Fang Er asked.
"Die? Can the crime of colluding with Goguryeo be settled by your death alone? You want to die? Then die on the battlefield in Goguryeo!"
Luo Yi trembled all over.
He looked up and stared at Fang Er.
"Why do you think Luo will allow you to manipulate me? Just because of the few words you just spoke?"
"Because Fang can bring you back from the execution ground! You can die! But don't implicate these eighteen heroes behind you!"
"Do you think Fang is saving you? You're wrong! Fang wants the Yan Yun Eighteen Cavalry!"
Fang Er didn't care about the surprised gazes of the Yan Yun Eighteen Cavalry at all.
"Heh heh, hahahaha! At this point, I have no right to question whatever decision they make, so you don't need to waste your breath on me."
"General Fang!"
One of the Yan Yun Eighteen Cavalry suddenly interjected.
"What is your name, good sir?"
Fang Er asked him.
"We have no names. We were orphans adopted by the Prince. You can call us whatever you wish, General Fang. What I want to say is, if General Fang can ensure Prince Luo lives out the rest of his life peacefully, we are willing to follow you!"
"Good! Truly a righteous and loyal man! However, your word alone is not enough!"
Fang Er wouldn't believe him so easily.
His system didn't display loyalty levels.
What if he shot him in the back later?
A fatal shot? With a soaring heart?
That would be a huge loss.
The man looked at the others with a questioning gaze.
The others nodded gently.
"This is easy to arrange. We have followed Prince Luo for many years, but we are all married and have children. If General Fang is not at ease, just send people to bring our families back."
"Good! Since that's the case, let's be clear from the start. You two will go and bring them back! Everything else will be discussed after they arrive!"
Fang Er turned and walked out of the room.
He arranged for Zhu Zi to lead a hundred new recruits and fifty of the Mie Lu Army to go and fetch them.
Of course, two of the Yan Yun Eighteen Cavalry would also go with them.
Luo Yi was also released by him.
It was a gesture of respect for the Yan Yun Eighteen Cavalry.
A separate room was arranged for him in the military camp.
Within the military camp, he could move around, but he was strictly forbidden from leaving the camp perimeter.
Luo Yi said nothing about all this.
He simply sat in his room, not coming out of his door or stepping out of his courtyard, as if he had become a young lady.