Late Yuan Dynasty: I am the true emperor

Chapter 8 Chaohu Reorganization
Is the telescope a sacred object?

Lu Jin would not admit that he was here to promote scientific knowledge, not to play tricks, so he explained.

“It can’t be called a divine object. The light-transmitting lens of this telescope is called glass, which is made by burning sand, just like burning porcelain bowls.

"I have a few similar things, but they are too magical. If I show them to you, I'm afraid you will think I'm a god or a monster. In fact, they are nothing special. At most, they are just some exquisite things. After all, I am a craftsman passed down from my ancestors."

"Gods and monsters?"

Everyone's interest suddenly piqued. If you take out a telescope, they will at most admit that they are ignorant, but they will not regard you as a god. Then what kind of things can be called gods and monsters?

"What other treasures does Brother Lu have?"

Lu Jin rolled up his sleeves, revealing a Seagull mechanical watch.

"This is called a watch. It's used to tell time, just like a sundial or a clepsydra. It can tell the time."

Everyone looked over and could see precise gears turning under the hollow dial, with three needles rotating on it, like a Taoist compass.

It is indeed a masterpiece of craftsmanship, but it would be an exaggeration to say that they are gods or monsters. Do you really think they are fools?

Everyone looked at Lu Jin again, with an expression that said, "Don't try to fool us with this."

Lu Jin took out a flashlight and said, "This is called an electric light. It doesn't require lighting a fire, nor does it require burning oil or candles. It can illuminate objects at night as brightly as during the day."

After saying that, he turned on the switch to show everyone.

Although it was daytime, it was still dazzling to look directly at the light. This time, they finally felt something magical.

"Brother Lu, can you let me take a look?" Yu Tonghai asked curiously.

"Here, I was planning to lend it to you today so you can pick someone up in the evening."

Yu Tonghai immediately took it with both hands, then ran to a thatched house not far away. Others hurriedly followed, and the dim thatched house was suddenly lit up as bright as day, causing a burst of exclamations.

"Wow, it's so bright! I've never seen a light like this before!"

"It's really strange. There's no fire, no oil or candles burning. How does it light up?"

Yu Tonghai ran out again quickly. The others were still passing the flashlight around. Several centurions also gathered around to watch the curiosity.

"Brother Lu, this lamp is not burning candles or oil, and there is no fire, so how come it is so bright?"

"Didn't I tell you that this is called an electric light? Of course it uses electricity."

Yu Tonghai opened his mouth wide, "The lightning from the thunder in the sky?"

"Yes, that electricity." Lu Jin nodded.

"This, how can this be done? If one can generate electricity to light lamps, wouldn't that mean one is a god?!" Yu Tonghai was even more surprised.

Upon hearing this, other people also came over, and Liao Yongan looked at Lu Jin with a different look.

"Controlling thunder and lightning, isn't this the magic that only the Dragon King and the Thunder God and Lightning Goddess can do?"

Seeing this, Lu Jin explained, "This lightning is not as magical as you think. As long as you know how, ordinary people can make and use it, just like making a fire. Fire can be used to light lamps, cook, and smelt metals. The same is true for electricity, so we have this electric light."

"Then how do mortals generate electricity?" Zhao Yong also asked.

"That's not called generating electricity, it's called generating electricity. There are several ways to generate electricity. The simplest one is to pour a bowl of concentrated salt water, insert a copper wire and an iron wire into it, and an electric current can be generated between the two copper and iron wires.

"But the current produced by doing this is very weak, certainly not as dramatic as thunder. It's like a tiny light and a raging sea of ​​fire. There's no comparison."

"Can this still happen?"

Yu Tonghai scratched his head, half believing and half doubting what Lu Jin said, but the method he mentioned did sound simple, so he might find something to try it out when he got the chance.

Can humans control and use lightning? This is so subversive!

"Of course. If you are interested, I will teach you when I have time." Lu Jin said with a smile.

Liao Yongan came over again at this time, thought for a while before speaking.

"Brother Lu said that the treasure that can restrain cavalry is the method of controlling thunder and lightning?"

Lu Jin rolled his eyes at him, "Do you really think I'm a god? If I could summon lightning to strike people, I would just kill Zuo Junbi directly. Why would we train soldiers and fight wars?"

"So what did you say?"

"I also have a four-wheeled cart, made of iron, which can run as fast as flying without the need for oxen or horses to pull it. When a fight really breaks out, I can drive the iron cart into the battle and crush those cavalrymen to death!"

Liao Yongan opened his mouth and looked at Lu Jin's backpack again.

"Don't look at it. It's a car. How can it be put in a bag?" Lu Jin said speechlessly.

"Where is that?"

"I was driving by the lake and got stuck in the mud. The car was made of iron and weighed several thousand pounds. I couldn't pull it out by myself, so I had to leave it there." Lu Jin explained. "How can we abandon such a treasure in the wilderness? What if someone picked it up? Let's get the car back now?" Yu Tonghai said anxiously.

Lu Jin waved his hand.

"There is no rush for this. The beach is full of reeds, and the car is stuck in the grass. Ordinary people can't see it, and they can't pick it up even if they see it. It doesn't matter if we leave it for a few days. The most urgent thing is to train the soldiers and build weapons and armor.

"Please pick up Zhang Wen and Zhu Shou tonight, and I will take you to find a car tomorrow."

"That's fine, too." Everyone nodded.

Although Lu Jin's life experience is bizarre and mysterious, he is very serious and organized in doing things.

As long as it is something he is willing to do, he will devote great enthusiasm to it, and work quickly, well and meticulously. He is commonly known as the "paper king". People can't help but feel that he is reliable, otherwise the tutor would not bring him to the meeting.

Of course, the premise is that he is willing to do it and is interested in it, otherwise he will be better off than a salted fish.
At this time, the generals of Chaohu witnessed Lu Jin's enthusiasm for the rebellion.

He personally helped the Chaohu generals to eliminate the old and weak and reorganize the army. Even the organization of each squad required his personal approval.

Lu Jin was organized strictly according to the method described in Qi Jiguang's "True Record of Military Training". Those who were around 40 years old, with a calm personality and amazing physical strength could be used as wolf-whip weapons, those who were around 30 years old, strong and courageous could be used as spear killers, those who were in their 20s who were smart and courageous, or had a sense of responsibility, could be used as squad leaders, and the rest were selected to be boring and rake weapons and cooks.

According to the four-four organization he proposed, there are 12 people in a squad, four squads form a platoon, plus the platoon leader and deputy platoon leader, a platoon has 50 people; a company plus the company commander, deputy company commander, messengers, and flag bearers, a total of 200 people; a battalion plus officers and auxiliary soldiers, a total of 850 people, and each thousand households will be laid off about 150 people.

This means that the former thousand-man army has now become a battalion commander, with more than 800 men each, and the gap in strength between Lu Jin and them has been narrowed.
There will be no regiment above the battalion level for the time being, and all matters will be decided at the battalion level meetings. This is in line with the fact that the Chaohu generals currently have no clear leader, and it is also convenient for Lu Jin to deepen his influence and prepare for seizing leadership later.

In the appointment of military officers, Lu Jin tried his best to use the generals' former subordinates so as not to arouse resistance from these people.

In just one day, Lu Jin reviewed the 7000 main forces of the Chaohu Navy, reducing the number of troops from 5950 to 6800. With the addition of Lu Jin's battalion, the total force now totals people, divided into eight battalions, which is actually not much less.

The 1000 old and weak soldiers who were laid off were organized into a logistics unit and handed over to the old man Liao Wang, who was in charge of various miscellaneous tasks.

After he compiled rosters for each battalion, calculated the food supply standards and the weapons shortages of each battalion, and issued production tasks to the logistics commander, the Chaohu Navy, which was originally unorganized, undisciplined, had no morale, and was defeated repeatedly, was quickly regularized.

By dinner time, all the thousands of soldiers in the army had already known Lu Jin, the new captain, and they generally felt that he was capable and his word was his. Even the previous captains seemed to listen to him.

This is of course the result of Lu Jin deliberately trying to make his presence felt.

After dark, when others were resting, he was still sharpening bamboo whistles by the campfire, drawing diagrams with a notebook, and formulating military flags and sound signals for units at all levels.

The Chaohu navy was so poor that they didn’t even have a few musical instruments, so how to establish a command system was a problem.

"Brother Lu, are you still awake?"

Liao Yongan came to Lu Jin's side at some point and asked as he saw him still writing and drawing.

"Oh, Brother Yongan, didn't Tonghai go to pick up Zhang Wen and Zhu Shou? I'm worried and want to wait until they come back before I go to sleep, and by the way, study the golden drum flag.

"This is a bamboo whistle I made. It's easy to make and the materials are cheap. I can give one to each squad leader. What do you think?"

Lu Jin handed over a bamboo whistle the size of a finger and taught Liao Yongan how to use it. Sure enough, he could blow out a sharp "beep, beep, beep" sound.

"This is a good thing. I didn't expect you could make this."

"Small idea."

"Oh, Brother Lu, I'm really sorry for the trouble. You've been busy all day, and you still have to think about organizing our flags at night. I used to be very incompetent when I led everyone, and I couldn't beat Zuo Junbi, and I didn't have as many ideas as you."

Liao Yongan really admires Lu Jin now, not only because he knows a lot and has ideas and thoughts, but the key is that this man really works hard after he comes. It seems that he is more active than those who started the rebellion first. He is so damn ambitious.

"Brother Yongan is too modest. It is not easy for you to guard this place with tens of thousands of people without worrying about food and drink." Lu Jinshang boasted to each other.

Liao Yongan waved his hand, signaling Lu Jin not to flatter him. He said that family members know their own business. If Lu Jin really had the ability, he would not have stayed on the island in the middle of the lake and dared not go ashore. He thought for a moment before speaking again.

"Brother Lu, are you sure you can beat Zuo Junbi?"

Lu Jin said lightly, "I have never taken Zuo Junbi seriously. A small Luzhou is nothing."

Liao Yongan's eyes lit up, "Have you figured out how to lure him out?"

Lu Jin shook his head. "I'm not familiar with the situation here. Even if I have an idea, I must discuss it with you. But it's not difficult to lure him out. Isn't Zuo Junbi forcibly requisitioning food everywhere? How about we lure him out with food?"

"How to seduce?" Liao Yongan became interested.

"Spread a piece of news to Zuo Junbi that we are short of food, and then spread a false news that we have collected some food in a certain village and will transport it back to the lake on a certain day. Tell him the amount of food, the number of people transporting the food, and the transportation route. Do you think he will come?" Lu Jin suggested.

Liao Yongan frowned and thought for a while, "This is a good idea, but I'm afraid he won't believe it. When we started the rebellion last month, although we were constantly suppressed by the government troops, we also snatched a lot of food from the landlords. We can't finish it in half a year. Zuo Junbi should know this.

"It's only been a month. There's no way we're running out of food right now."

Lu Jin shook his head. "It doesn't matter whether we are really short of food or not. What matters is to make Zuo Junbi think we are short of food!"

"Then what should we do?" Liao Yongan asked puzzledly.

"Hide the truth!"

(End of this chapter)