Cheng Yaojin let out a hearty laugh, retrieved the spent shell, and reloaded.
Another shot rang out.
Damn it!
A monster!
Fang Er thought to himself, if this thing were in his hands.
This one shot would at least have his tiger's mouth split open!
But this fellow acted as if nothing had happened.
Yuchi Jingde also felt a strong urge.
After Cheng Yaojin fired a few shots consecutively, he snatched the gun from his hand.
He imitated Cheng Yaojin’s actions.
And fired two shots himself.
"This won't do! Brother! You can't be biased! You have to get me one too!"
Fang Er was stunned!
"No, with such immense recoil, don't your hands hurt?"
"What is this? Back in the day, I blocked Yuanba's double hammers with my own twin maces!"
Yuchi Jingde's words left Fang Er petrified.
Yuanba?
Li Yuanba?
Holy cow!
His double hammers must have weighed at least several hundred catties!
Did he block them without breaking his arm?
Now he truly understood how amazing the physical constitution of these generals was!
Returning to the workshop, he fashioned another one according to the previous specifications.
Cheng Yaojin and the other man, armed with their hand cannons, had a blast at the firing range.
They continued until the target was riddled like a fishing net. Fang Er had prepared twenty rounds of ammunition for each of them, and only after they had all been fired did the two finally stop.
"Heh heh, brother, such an awesome thing, only twenty rounds of bullets, not enough!"
Cheng Yaojin slung the hand cannon at his waist, swinging it as he walked.
"I said, making these bullets is quite troublesome! Can't we be more sparing?"
Fang Er shot him a sideways glance.
As a result, the fellow dragged Yuchi Jingde along, and the two of them began to complain.
Fang Er couldn't refuse, so he made fifty more rounds for each of them.
He also specifically instructed them to collect the spent shells.
Only then did he send the two off.
As fate would have it, three days later, on the eighteenth of the twelfth lunar month.
Li Shimin, who had been busy all year, invited all military officers of rank three and above stationed in the capital for a hunt in the imperial gardens.
And so, Cheng Yaojin and Yuchi Jingde, using their hand cannons, completely overwhelmed everyone else!
It was a complete down-ranking strike.
The others would draw their bows and aim carefully.
But Cheng Yaojin would raise his hand cannon and fire at the prey.
He didn't aim precisely; as long as a spread of fire was unleashed,
There were always a few steel balls that would hit.
These two were the center of attention.
Their mouths were stretched so wide they almost reached their ears with joy.
A few of their usual good friends, such as Chai Shao, Zhang Gongjin, Li Jing, and Changsun Wuji, upon learning that Fang Er had made them again,
As soon as the hunt ended, they dispatched their sons, carrying gifts, to Fang Family Village.
Thus, Fang Family Village welcomed a group of special guests.
A few boys of similar age, led by Cheng Chumo,
Found Fang Er, who was playing with a dog.
"Brother Fang, let me introduce some brothers to you."
Chai Shao sent his eldest son, Chai Zhewei.
Zhang Gongjin also sent his eldest son, Zhang Daixiang.
Li Jing sent his second son, Li Dexiang.
Changsun Chong needs no introduction.
After introducing the four of them,
He pulled a small child from behind him.
"This is unbelievable!"
"Li Er brought Li Chengqian over."
"Big brother, this is the Crown Prince. The Emperor said the firearms are sharp and wants him to see more."
This left Fang Er somewhat speechless.
"This is unbelievable!"
If these guys got together, and something really happened, the entire Tang Dynasty would probably become lively.
These were top-tier second-generation officials!
And one legitimate third-generation royal!
"So, what brings you young masters to my humble village?"
"Heh heh, brother, my father also wants a hand cannon like Uncle Cheng's."
Changsun Chong was not polite, he sidled up behind Fang Er and pretended to give him a massage.
Zhang Daixiang and Chai Zhewei looked on with their mouths agape.
"This is unbelievable! kanshu伍.ξà"
"The Emperor's own nephew is doing this?"
"Go away, go away! Let's be clear between brothers! If you want one, bring money."
Fang Er couldn't let him rub his back.
If this got back to Changsun Wuji, would he have a good outcome?
"No problem! As long as Brother Fang names a price, this brother will definitely not bargain!"
Changsun Chong patted his chest and said.
Money.
He didn't care about such things!
It was just a number!
As the heir to the Changsun family, who monopolized seventy percent of the Tang Dynasty's iron trade,
He never cared about whether the friends he made had money!
After all, none of them had as much as he did!
Including his cousin, the current Crown Prince Li Chengqian!
"Hmph! A pauper!"
Fang Er looked at the others, and they all nodded in agreement.
These people's families, more or less, had some business dealings.
"Then I'll name my price?"
"Let's calculate. This hand cannon weighs twenty-three catties and requires two hundred and thirty catties of pig iron, which is two shi.
Chong'er, your family sells me pig iron ingots for one tael and five qian of silver per shi. The materials alone cost three taels of silver.
Of course, it's not enough to just have materials. Your brother here also has to support artisans, provide food and lodging, and pay wages, right?
Let's say the labor cost is one tael of silver per hand cannon.
There's also the technology usage fee, hmm, let's say two taels of silver per firearm.
And machine wear and tear, let's also say two taels of silver.
So, this hand cannon is eight taels of silver, hmm, a very fair price.
Then, there are the bullets. Making these is too troublesome, and it's dangerous, it could even cost a life!
Therefore, let's set the price for bullets at fifty wen per shot, how about that?"
Fang Er calculated while counting on his fingers.
Changsun Chong began to listen and nod.
Fang Er's calculation was very fair.
But as he listened, he started to feel something was wrong.
What were technology usage fees and machine wear and tear?
But then he thought about it, eight taels of silver, not expensive!
"Brother Fang is righteous! This price is fair. Then this brother wants ten of them! Here are ten taels of gold, the rest is for the bullets."
Changsun Chong took out a small, golden yuanbao from his chest and placed it directly on the table next to Fang Er.
Fang Er froze.
"Holy cow!"
"Are they this generous?"
"They don't even bargain?"
"A ten-year-old kid, carrying gold yuanbao, what is this!"
However, Zhang Daixiang and the others seemed accustomed to Changsun Chong's ways.
Chai Zhewei took out two silver ingots, each weighing twenty-five taels.
"Commander Fang, I'll buy five of these for my father. The rest, consider it for bullets."
Zhang Daixiang and Li Dexiang also bought three and five respectively.
From this, one could also gauge the financial status of these individuals.
"Good! Fang will accept this money. Pick up your guns at Zui Xian Lou in seven days."
Fang Er decided to set the delivery date for the day of the auction.
He happened to use these second-generation officials to command Zui Xian Lou.
After settling the matter of the hand cannons, Fang Er led them to the blacksmith's workshop.
Under the leadership of Cheng Chumo, the semi-local figure, the young men found Zhao Hu, took a few Yun Yi style firearms, and went to the firing range to have fun.
Fang Er then retreated back into the workshop.
At the same time, he also called Zhao Gang over.
The structure of the hand cannon had many differences from the Yun Yi style and the Dragon Tooth.
These all required hands-on teaching.