At the beginning, his wife came to him, and he became rich by selling kidney treasures.

"Of course I'm special!" Ren Hao looked straight at Xu Qing.

"I told you that before you take advantage of me, you'd better consider whether you can still survive."

Xu Qing smiled and said in a deep voice: "It's really rare to see a lunatic like you."

"But I think we can still sit down and talk about a fair deal."

Hearing what Xu Qing said, Ren Hao nodded slightly, then retracted the compound crossbow.

What he wants is fairness, not the other party standing on the commanding heights to exploit and plunder him.

After refilling the tea, the two of them sat facing each other.

"If you want a compound crossbow, I can give you one." Ren Hao said.

Xu Qing shook his head: "No, one is not enough, I want a thousand!"

Ren Hao's face twitched, and he looked at Xu Qing helplessly and said, "Do you think it can replicate automatically? Even if it can, it will take several days."

"Just one, if you want it or not."

Xu Qing sighed, his face slightly solemn, and said in a deep voice: "Do you know how many troops I, Gu Han, have in the War God Pass in the north?"

Without waiting for Ren Hao to speak, he continued, "Seventy thousand!"

"And the ancient Wei in the north has a full 200,000 men! They are on guard day and night. Over the years, I don't know how many times they have tried to attack the War God Pass, but they were blocked by the 70,000 soldiers of the ancient Han. They can't take a single step beyond the line!"

"But every year, at least tens of thousands of people died in the defensive battles, so the court continued to recruit soldiers, but it was still difficult to maintain."

"Moreover, the national treasury is empty now, and we are unable to maintain more troops. 70,000 people is almost the limit."

Hearing this, Ren Hao couldn't help but frown: "Seventy thousand people? How many soldiers and horses does the entire ancient Han have?"

"Three hundred thousand!" Xu Qing had a strange look on his face. "This is even including the Imperial Guards and local city defense forces. Ancient Han has a vast territory, but only has a mere three hundred thousand troops. Sigh..."

puff!

Ren Hao spat out a mouthful of water.

Three hundred thousand?

It’s amazing that ancient Han has not yet perished!

"With only 300,000 people, how did the ancient Han Dynasty survive until now? Besides the ancient Wei in the north that you mentioned, what other enemy countries are there around it?" Ren Hao asked.

Ren Hao really doesn't know much about Gu Han's situation.

As an ordinary citizen from a remote village, Ren Hao didn't know much about the imperial court, let alone the situation of ancient Han as a whole.

Hearing this, Xu Qing said in a deep voice: "In addition to the occasional rebellion by some natives in the south, there is also the ancient Shu in the west and the ancient Wu in the east."

"When the barbarians in the south start a rebellion, we only need one brave general to go there and destroy them."

"The ancient Wu in the east is ambitious. It is just a small country, but it dares to covet our great country in the Central Plains. Its people are cruel and vicious. They have never launched a large-scale attack. Most of the time, they come in small groups, slaughtering local people and stealing gold and silver. The court has also collected them many times, but they run as fast as rabbits. It is useless to capture or kill dozens of people."

"Moreover, the treasury is empty, and there is no extra military pay to cross the sea to attack the tiny country of Gu Wu."

After hearing Xu Qing's words, Ren Hao immediately understood.

The most important reason why the ancient Han Dynasty had to recruit soldiers year after year and the people lived in poverty was that they had no money.

There is no money for war, no money for development, and no money for anything.

It’s all because of poverty!

"Then you want a thousand compound crossbows to enhance your strength?" Ren Hao asked.

Xu Qing nodded: "Yes, I have a direct lineage of 3,000 people in the War God Pass, including 1,000 archers. If they have your compound crossbow, their combat power will definitely be far greater than it is now."

"Well, it's not impossible." Ren Hao said with a frown.

Xu Qing's face lit up immediately, but before he could laugh, Ren Hao continued, "I definitely can't give you the production method, but I can help you produce it."

"You are responsible for the necessary materials. You don't need to pay for the labor. Just consider it as my compensation to your sister."

Hearing Ren Hao's words, Xu Qing's face darkened: "Can't you buy the materials?"

"I'm afraid the cost of your compound crossbow is only a hundred copper coins, right?"

"One thousand swords only cost a little over a hundred taels of silver. How could you calculate it so clearly?"

Ren Hao shook his head: "That's not the case. If it's just the quality I have, of course there's no problem. But I'll make it clear to you in advance that this quality is barely usable, but it will definitely break down after a few days on the battlefield."

"Neither the bow nor the bowstring is made of the best materials. If you want a good compound crossbow, it's better to get some fine iron and well-made beef tendons. I can't get these things."

Hearing Ren Hao's words, Xu Qing couldn't help but frown. He knew that the materials used to make military bows and arrows were strictly controlled. The bows and arrows used by ordinary people for hunting were all crudely made. They didn't even have iron arrowheads. They only used bamboo arrows.

When I think about it this way, I really have to do it myself.

Thinking of this, he said, "Well, I'll do these things. How long can you finish them?"

Ren Hao pondered for a moment and said, "At the fastest, it will take seven days!"

"Five days! I will stay here for seven days at most. After seven days, I will go back to the God of War Pass." Xu Qing said.

"Okay, I'll try my best." Ren Hao nodded.

Since I don't have to worry about the materials, all that's left is to find the villagers to do the work and set up a few simple assembly lines. It won't be a big problem to produce a thousand compound crossbows first.

"I'll send someone to get it right away, and it will be back within two days at the latest." Xu Qing said, standing up.

Seeing Xu Qing leave, Ren Hao also returned to the room.

Sisters Su Wan'er and Su Ling'er are learning to read and write from the little girl Qian'er.

In this feudal era, there were very few women who could read and write.

There are already very few men who read, and even fewer women.

So Su Wan'er cherished the opportunity very much and has been studying hard.

"Husband, are you done?" Su Wan'er stood up: "I'll pour you a glass of water."

"Don't worry." Ren Hao waved his hand and sat down at the table.

"Yang Si and his men are injured. Count out some copper coins, thirty per person. Then go find Xu Hu and bring Xu Hu to each of their homes to greet them."

"Okay, I'll prepare it right away." Su Wan'er nodded obediently.

Qian'er came over with a glass of water and put it on the table: "Master, drink some water."

"Thank you for your hard work." Ren Hao smiled.

While drinking water, Ren Hao kept his eyes on the pulp outside the window.

He had to use these two days to finish the pool, and once Xu Qing's materials arrived, he would start production by working overtime.

The next period of time should be my busiest time.

time flies.

Two days later, Ren Hao looked at the rough swimming pool that was refilled with water and burst into a smug laugh.

At least it looks like a mansion now, and all the effort I put in was worth it.

Just then, Xu Qing arrived with a few people and a carriage.

"Here it comes!" Ren Hao's eyes lit up!