Zhang Yanling smiled and said: "Give me something? I should give you something."
Xu Youtang smiled and turned around to enter the house. Zhang Yanling hurriedly followed him to the corridor, but Xu Youtang turned around and said, "You are not allowed to follow me in. Just wait with your eyes closed."
Zhang Yanling was stunned, smiled bitterly and closed his eyes. Then he heard Xu Youtang searching around the room for a while, and soon the fragrant wind blew in his face and came to him.
"Master Hou, you can open your eyes." Xu Youtang's voice sounded.
Zhang Yanling slowly opened her eyes, and what she saw was Xu Youtang's big, shining eyes with a smile. Xu Youtang stood in front of him with his hands behind his back and his chest held out.
Zhang Yanling said in shock: "Where are the things?"
With a mysterious smile on her face, Xu Youtang took her hand out from behind her back. After Zhang Yanling saw what she was holding, she screamed in surprise and said in disbelief: "This... you did this?"
Xu Youtang smiled and nodded: "Yes, it is specially made for Mr. Hou. Take it."
Zhang Yanling was already dumbfounded. She reached out and took the thing from Xu Youtang's hand and looked at it carefully.
It was a short-barreled musket, about one foot two in length, and it was still a flintlock device. The black barrel was embedded in the wooden stock and was polished smooth and shiny, and the trigger cover door and faucet were also smooth and shiny. Not only that, the gun
The wood of the handle is carved with exquisite patterns. The bronze pieces are also carved with patterns. The igniting faucet is really built to look like a faucet. The whole musket is short, compact and exquisite, almost like a work of art.
"It's so exquisite, so exquisite. Miss Xu, when did you make this one? It turns out that the one we assembled today is not the first one? What a surprise to me." Zhang Yanling exclaimed excitedly.
"The musket on the Marquis is old and ugly. I have long disliked it. So I made this short musket for you. The principle is the same, but the barrel is shorter. I'm afraid it won't be the same as the long musket.
A musket can reach the same distance, but it can fire lead shot at close range."
Zhang Yanling rubbed the short-barreled firecracker and kept nodding.
"I tried a few shots, and within thirty steps it was much more powerful than an old-fashioned musket. It could penetrate a two-inch-thick wooden board. That should be very powerful. It takes a lot of effort to make this short gun. I am in the room every night.
It took me many days to polish and carve the gun to make it look good. Otherwise, how could I give it to the Marquis? With a status like the Marquis, how could he wear something that doesn’t look good. By the way, wait a minute, I
I even sewed a cowhide holster on it so that the Marquis can hang it on his waist. I'll get it for the Marquis."
While Xu Youtang was talking, he turned around to enter the house. Zhang Yanling couldn't suppress the excitement and gratitude in her heart. Suddenly, she reached out and picked Xu Youtang up, spun around a few times, and laughed: "You are really
That’s great, you’re so attentive. Miss Xu, I love you so much.”
Xu Youtang's face was red and he was at a loss. He was already ashamed to be held tightly in his arms, and when he heard Zhang Yanling say something like "I love you to death", he didn't know what to do.
"Put me down! Master Hou...please let me go." Xu Youtang shouted softly.
Only then did Zhang Yanling realize that her enthusiastic behavior was not appropriate, and she quickly put Xu Youtang down. She whispered: "I'm sorry, I'm so touched and excited. Forgive me for being rash. I didn't mean to molest you."
Xu Youtang straightened her clothes and said, "Stop talking, stop talking. I know, I know."
Zhang Yanling didn't speak for a long time. Xu Youtang thought he had embarrassed Zhang Yanling, but when he looked up, Zhang Yanling was looking at the short gun in his hand with squinted eyes and full of joy. His eyes were eager and he couldn't put it down. Xu Youtang felt slightly disappointed, but he soon recovered.
. Turned around and went into the house, took out the cowhide holster and handed it to Zhang Yanling.
The holster was also very delicately sewn and made to fit the size of a short gun. There were also several leather pouches sewn on the side, which were obviously places for storing ammunition.
Zhang Yanling tied the holster belt around his waist, inserted the short gun inside, walked a few steps with dignity, suddenly turned around, quickly pulled out the short gun, turned it around in his hand a few times, and quickly put it back into the holster. The whole action was done in one go.
"Aren't you handsome?" Zhang Yanling asked with a smile.
"Extremely handsome!" Xu Youtang had stars in her eyes like a little fan girl. That was not an unintentional echo, she really thought Zhang Yanling was extremely handsome when she played with a short gun.
"How should I thank you?" Zhang Yanling said with a smile.
Xu Youtang waved his hands and said: "Thank you for what? I wish the Marquis would not be angry with my father. Besides, the Marquis trusts me so much and spends so much money to let me do these things. I should thank the Marquis. Originally, I
I am also very interested in these things, and no one has ever trusted me so much since I was a child."
Zhang Yanling smiled and said: "Miss Xu, you deserve my trust. In my opinion, you are the most powerful master craftsman in the world, and you will definitely surpass your father in your achievements. Money is nothing, as long as you want to study firearms, I will give you as much silver as you want."
Duhua. You are a priceless treasure, and money is nothing."
Xu Youtang blushed, waving his hands and saying: "Master Marquis, don't praise me like that, it's such a priceless treasure. I'm going to find a crack in the ground to burrow into it. Master Marquis likes to make these firearms and so on, and I also like to study them. What we call this is everyone taking what he wants."
Need, like-minded.”
Zhang Yanling pointed her finger and praised: "That's right. We have the same interests and the same goals."
Xu Youtang chuckled. Zhang Yanling waved her hand and said: "No, I can't let such a big treasure like you run away. Let's do this, Miss Xu, I solemnly invite you to be the smelting consultant of my Jianchang Marquis Mansion. You see
how?"
Xu Youtang pursed his lips and smiled: "What is the official position of a manufacturing consultant?"
Zhang Yanling said: "That's it...you can build whatever you want, and I will tell you any ideas you have. Let's study together and realize some wonderful ideas. I will fully support whatever you want to build. I have human, material and financial resources."
I fully support you. You don’t have to worry about anything, you are only responsible for researching and studying these things. It’s just like your father is the steward of the imperial court’s Yu Heng Qing Li Department, but instead of working for the imperial court, he works for me.”
Xu Youtang raised his eyebrows and said, "Seriously? Is there such a good thing? I can do whatever I want?"
Zhang Yanling said: "Of course, I, the dignified Marquis of Jianchang, can't I lie to you, a little girl? How about I make an oath?"
Xu Youtang shook his head and said: "There's no need to swear. I just don't know what else to do. I'm not a master. I'm far behind my father."
Zhang Yanling said with a smile: "You can do whatever you want, or you can do what your father wanted to do but couldn't do. In short, there are no requirements or pressure. It's okay if you just idle around every day. By the way, I'm here
I will officially hire you and I will give you a reward. Let’s do it like this, a monthly salary of one hundred taels. What do you think?”
Xu Youtang stared with big eyes and said: "One hundred taels? Too much, too much. My father's salary is only a few dozen taels. I don't dare to ask for it."
Zhang Yanling waved her hands and said: "No more, no more, I don't think it's enough. I'll add more later. You have to eat, dress, and ride in the car, right? Why don't you buy some nice clothes and jewelry and dress up beautifully? Besides, don't you?
Well, you have to spend money at home, right? Your parents lived in poverty, so you can use the money to supplement the family income. In short, it’s settled."
Xu Youtang thought for a moment and smiled: "Okay, I'll listen to you."
Zhang Yanling said happily: "Then it's settled. Miss Xu, you are now my personal manufacturing consultant. I have no restrictions on you here. There is only one requirement, which is what we do here."
You can’t tell anyone else about anything, anything that will be built in the future. You can only build it for others, it can only be me. Is that okay?”
Xu Youtang winked and laughed softly: "I understand. Anyone who makes firearms privately will be beheaded. We have to do it secretly."
Zhang Yanling winked and said: "Yes, work secretly, not the one who shoots."