Xiao Xun felt heartbroken. He found the chief designer of the aircraft and asked, "Why is that place a seat ejector?"
The chief designer, who only reached Xiao Xun's thigh, said in a very wronged tone with his head lowered, "Your Highness Swain, your drawing indicated a seat ejector. For research on suitable springs, my team conducted countless experiments before finding that metal with extremely poor memory."
Did someone tamper with the drawings? This was Xiao Xun's first reaction, and then he thought that perhaps the prompt from his sunglasses was inaccurate.
"Very well, the aircraft as a whole has no problems. For the buttons on it, label them with our text, print them into a manual, and distribute them to these trainees."
The chief designer quickly agreed, "Yes, Your Highness!"
Just then, Xiao Xun asked again, "Do we have any spare aircraft for test flights?"
"No more, this one was manufactured by us working overnight."
Xiao Xun waved his hand, "Continue mass production with this process, with strict requirements and high standards."
These words were like a royal decree, signifying that the aircraft production line could officially be put into operation.
After test-flying the aircraft, they had a simple lunch and test-drove the magic tank in the afternoon.
Because it was wartime and winter had set in, prices had soared, especially for food. If not for the universal conscription, many people might not have survived the winter.
While eating, Xiao Xun overheard the goblins discussing this matter. Especially when he remembered the sight of thousands of starved bodies in the small country of Midoya, he felt he had to find a way to solve the food problem. Otherwise, even without the Heavenly Disaster Legion pressing down, his side would collapse due to internal affairs.
In the afternoon, they tested the tank, a tracked armored combat vehicle with a turret. The gun barrel was copied from "Justice on the Meuse River." Although it was powerful, the shells required a separate production line.
The first problem to solve was gunpowder. Why not use magic cannons? Because Xiao Xun felt they wouldn't be very effective against the Heavenly Disaster Legion, whereas black powder could inflict irreversible permanent damage on the Heavenly Disaster Legion's combat troops.
The difficulty in developing black powder in this world was the absence of materials for its creation. Apart from charcoal, no substitutes could be found.
While driving the tank, Xiao Xun was thinking about whether it was possible to grow vegetables in greenhouses.
Although most people in this world ate meat and grains, mainly wheat and rice, followed by beans and millet, vegetables were rare, and cultivated ones even rarer.
Despite being from a rural background, Xiao Xun had never invested in farming skills. He had only seen greenhouses covered with plastic films, and he had relatives who grew vegetables in them. However, he could directly search for information online; that was easy. The only difficulty was that there was no such high-molecular-weight polymer as plastic in this world.
However, since the Heavenly Disaster Legion possessed this item, it indicated that it could be manufactured. He had previously instructed the border arsenal to research it and didn't know the progress. So, he wrote a letter to Delvana.
The main point was about plastic. If they hadn't developed it, they should send back some samples, and he would have people here research it together.
Towards evening, he found Scales and Lorgard to inquire about the research progress. As soon as he entered, he smelled that pungent acidic odor, the same as he had smelled in the magic academy.
Xiao Xun pinched his nose and said, "I forgot to ask you that day, what is this smell? Why is it so choking?"
Lorgard and Scales, wearing 'gas masks' similar to those worn by the Heavenly Disaster Legion's assault troops, said to Xiao Xun, "This is a new potion I've developed that can dissolve metal, but I haven't come up with a name for it yet."
At this moment, Xiao Xun's sunglasses issued a warning message: "Warning, strong nitric acid components detected in the air. This component is flammable and explosive. Please be cautious and move away quickly."
Upon hearing the warning, Xiao Xun burst into laughter, leaving Lorgard and Aries Scales dumbfounded.
"Your Highness, are you alright?"
Xiao Xun grabbed Lorgard, "What you've developed is the nitric acid I need, nitric acid for making black powder."
Lorgard was startled at first, then lowered his head in disappointment, "So, this thing already exists in the world, and someone has already named it. I thought I had invented it myself."
Xiao Xun comforted Lorgard, "A pharmacist doesn't invent, they discover. All substances in this world exist, people just haven't discovered their uses yet. And pharmacists are meant to discover the uses of these things."
Then he looked at Scales, "Since nitric acid has been discovered, the rest is for you to get me some glycerin."
Lorgard asked curiously, "What do you need glycerin for?"
Scales had fewer questions; he only obeyed.
Soon, a barrel of glycerin was brought over. This was a byproduct of the raw materials used to make soap in Saint Roman, making it readily available.
Xiao Xun asked Aries to find an iron barrel and poured the glycerin and strong nitric acid into it.
He said to everyone, "Step back fifty meters."
Lorgard, though not understanding, complied.
He asked Aries to cast a fire-element spell and throw a small flame into the iron barrel. For accuracy, Aries used spatial magic in conjunction with fire magic to throw a fireball into the barrel.
As the fireball slowly descended, the iron barrel exploded with a "boom," its power immense. Shards of iron flew everywhere. Scales immediately activated his absolute domain, shielding Xiao Xun.
Xiao Xun was deeply moved, "How does this power compare to the black powder cannons of the Heavenly Disaster Legion?"
Aries said, "It's more than a hundred times stronger."
Xiao Xun excitedly said to Lorgard, "Mass-produce these two items, as many as you want. We will win this war." He had already decided to return to that world tonight and replicate the blueprints for conventional bombs, which would allow for mass production. Then, both aircraft and tanks would use these shells.
To ensure the smooth development of strong nitric acid without any accidents, Xiao Xun had Lorgard write down the manufacturing process and required materials, as well as make several copies to be stored in different locations as a precaution.
Lorgard initially disagreed, but under pressure from Xiao Xun's status, he wrote it down. However, he soon felt at ease, realizing that this invention was not his private property but a national weapon belonging to the entire human race, safeguarding them from foreign invasion.
By the time Xiao Xun returned to the castle, he had missed dinner. However, he wasn't in the mood to eat. He asked the kitchen staff to prepare something for Aries, and he was eager to return to his bedroom to report today's events to Mu Jiahe.
Unexpectedly, before Xiao Xun could share his joy, Mu Jiahe preempted him by recounting her morning's experience. "After you spoke with those people yesterday, they went back and reported to their respective rulers. Those rulers all expressed their willingness to pay a hefty sum to rent areas in Saint Roman, and they agreed to our sending troops to protect their safety, with all expenses for the garrison covered."
Xiao Xun hadn't expected these people to be so shameless. "How did His Majesty handle it?"
"How could I handle it? You had already said so much, so I had to give them some land, after all, they are paying for it."
Xiao Xun excitedly asked, "Which piece of land did these people choose?"
"They wanted Moqi Town, which I refused. I gave them the area near Pinorsk."
Xiao Xun asked curiously, "What kind of place is that?"
Mu Jiahe described it roughly, "It's an open space in a valley with only one entrance and exit. I've established a watchtower above the valley. If they make any moves, our army will trap them inside like closing a bag."
Hearing this, Xiao Xun was relieved.
"What were you busy with today?"
When Xiao Xun heard this, his smug expression was undeniable. "I flew an aircraft in the morning, drove a tank in the afternoon, and watched a gunpowder explosion in the evening."
Mu Jiahe said calmly, "Your day was quite eventful! The first aircraft crashed into a mountain, the tank had no shells, and I'm not sure about the gunpowder. Where did you get it?"
Xiao Xun wasn't surprised at all. "That's why you're the Empress. You know everything that happens in Saint Roman. The gunpowder was developed by a tutor in the magic academy. The dean expelled him for neglecting his duties. It was my keen eye that spotted his talent and brought him under my wing to serve Your Majesty."