Listening to Zhao Yu's nagging story, Zhou Xian gradually understood the situation of the Zhao family. His family was originally a wealthy family in Kaifeng City, but later he offended the officials, gentry and wealthy families. After a lawsuit, he not only lost all his money, but his parents also died one after another after that incident. This ancestral home and the book shop located on West Street are the only retained property.

He was lazy and eccentric, obviously not the reason for doing business. Not only did the shop not make money, but most of the time he needed to take out financial subsidies from his family. He only paid for it but did not go in, and his life became more and more difficult. At first, he could barely support it, but as the expenses became larger and larger, he first fired all the servants and maids in the family to save money. Later, even his wife Li began to supplement the family by doing some needlework.

Zhao Yu also has the kind of character who is drunk today, without any long-term considerations. He is also very proud of his face. He goes to and from time to time with his former friends and friends in the wine shops and brothels. Except for some people who are particularly close to him, few people know that his family is in such a difficult situation. He has a good impression of Zhou Xian, and today he uses his drinking habits to say it like a bean.

Zhou Xian was curious and said to him: "Brother Zhao, please forgive me for your frankness. This mansion is so spacious and the location you are in. If it is sold, it will be worth tens of thousands of taels of silver. Brother Zhao, you are not just embarrassed?"

Zhao Yu was drunken and blurred. When Zhou Xian said this, his eyebrows were raised and he whispered loudly: "How can I, a seven-foot man in Zhao Yu, sell my ancestral property at a low price? This is my Zhao family's house, which was left to me by my parents, and I should leave it to my descendants. Although I am not good at it, I will not fall to this point."

Zhou Xian shook his head secretly in his heart. He had never had any good feelings for such people who were willing to suffer for face. But seeing Zhao Yu's indignation, it was hard to say it directly. He just advised tactfully: "Brother Zhao, in my opinion, the most important thing in the family is people, not houses, shops, etc., etc. The house is for death and the man is for man. If you are embarrassed for a while, you will eventually be in a prosperous future. When you soar into the sky in the future, how can you still look at the industry left by your ancestors?"

Zhao Yu's face moved slightly and asked Zhou Xian: "Brother Zhou, do you really think that a person like me will have a chance to soar into the sky?"

Zhou Xian smiled faintly, picked up the wine pot and poured a glass for Zhao Yu, and said slowly: "Brother Zhao, I took a look at the book you gave me, especially the printed pages. Every word is really gem, and they are all insightful. Although I am not proficient in equipment manufacturing, I still think it is very feasible after seeing it. In my opinion, maybe Brother Zhao, you are not good at doing business and not proficient in Confucianism. But in terms of making firearms, it is unlikely that many people can compare with you. As long as Brother Zhao persists, one day it will surely make you live and shine your family."

Zhao Yu's face was delighted when he heard Zhou Xian's praise, but after a moment he became dim. "Brother Zhou, making firearms is a cheap business, and those who work are all old craftsmen who are not famous. If I cannot pass the imperial examination, no matter how capable I have, I am afraid I will not be known to the world. Who cares about the idea of ​​a little craftsman!"

Zhou Xian looked puzzled and knew that what Zhao Yu said was the truth. In the late Ming Dynasty, firearms did have great development and various gunpowder weapons emerged one after another. But many of them were submerged in the long river of history, without a trace. The recorders were also the summary records of those who had been officials. Firearms were not created by them, but later generations attributed their achievements to them, while those craftsmen who really made these firearms did not know their names. In this era, without patents, no one would give you profits. Even people like Zhao Yu who were only interested in equipment thought of taking the imperial examination first and then promoting their thoughts, let alone others.

Seeing Zhou Xian silent, Zhao Yu thought he was sad for himself, so he comforted him and said, "Brother Zhou, I won't talk about this for the time being. These days, I happened to change a gun. I asked you to come for it, so you can come with me."

Zhou Xian was curious and walked towards the backyard with Li Kai and Zhao Yu, and soon arrived at a small house located in a declining corner.

It was as dark as the night, and Zhao Yu held the lamp, and Zhou Xian saw the things inside. All kinds of things were placed layer by layer, strange and chaotic.

Zhao Yu walked to the inside, took out a pistol and handed it to Zhou Xian, and said happily: "Brother Zhou, look."

Zhou Xian took it and found that the pistol was about one foot long and was cast in bronze. It was polished on the outside and was shiny and bare, which was very ugly. Zhou Xian had seen a pistol when he was in Wuyang. Although this looked much smaller, it looked no different from an ordinary pistol. However, it was indeed not easy to make it by hand alone.

Seeing that Zhou Xian did not show too much surprise, some disappointment flashed between Zhao Yu's eyebrows. He pointed his hand at the position above the bird gun and said to Zhou Xian: "Look here."

Zhou Xianning looked at him and suddenly found a gap in the place where Zhao Yu just pointed. He reached out and moved gently, and found that the place could be moved away as a whole.

Looking at Zhou Xian's surprised eyes, Zhao Yu grinned and said, "I have transformed this pistol into a flint to ignite. As long as the trigger is pulled, you can shoot the lead. Look at the piece you took, it has two compartments, one filled with gunpowder and the other filled with lead. If you prepare multiple such blocks, you will usually fill the gunpowder and lead. During the battle, after shooting one, put the other whole on, and then you can continue shooting. This can save a lot of time."

Zhou Xian nodded in surprise. The one made by Zhao Yu was like a single-shot automatic rifle. Each time he fired, he had to change the magazine. This undoubtedly saved a lot of time than loading gunpowder on the battlefield before. But the disadvantage is that the amount of magazines required for this kind of gun requires a large amount of magazines, and it was difficult to support it with the productivity of the Ming Dynasty at this time. In addition, the area that can be removed is not a whole piece, but a gap, which requires a high degree of refinement of iron or copper. If you are not careful, you will explode from there.

But Zhao Yu's idea is obviously correct, but the descendants are smaller, and they fill the bullets into it as a whole. Zhou Xian nodded with appreciation: "Brother Zhao, if this is promoted to the army, it will definitely increase the combat effectiveness of the entire army to a higher level."
Chapter completed!