open sea

Chapter 664 Military uniform
Forbidden City, East Palace.

The palace man put down the palace gauze curtain, nodded slightly to Chen Mu who was standing in front of the hall, and stepped back gently.

In accordance with the Queen Mother's edict, Chen Mu changed the python clothes after entering the palace, put on the military uniform and armor of the Beiyang Army, and met the Queen Mother in Ciqing Palace under the care of four big Han generals holding golden melons and carved bows.

Chen Mu had a premonition that Empress Dowager Li came to him this time to scold him. Last time he was fined for two years of official salary, maybe Jing Haibo's food and salary would not be able to keep this time.

There is no movement in the ear, and the four golden-armored generals stand motionless in front of the hall. You can only hear the faint chirping of cicadas in the distance. Come for some comfort.

This is Wanli's residence before he ascended the throne. Sometimes it is the Empress Dowager's Palace, sometimes it is the Tai's Palace. Now it is used as the place where the monthly Jingyan lectures.

Chen Mu stood quietly until he heard footsteps coming from the hall. Although he did not see the phoenix chariot, the palace eunuchs had already stepped forward from the back of the hall to wait on them. Behind the curtain, a figure appeared and sat down. He heard the eunuch standing in front of the imperial palace singing loudly. Name, recruit him into the palace.

"Foreign Minister Jing Haibo Chen Mu, pay homage to the Empress Dowager Mercy!"

"Exemption."

Then there was an eerie silence.

The Empress Dowager behind the curtain didn't speak for a long while, so she let Chen Mu stand upright in the hall, and he couldn't raise his eyes to look directly at the curtain rudely, and he kept deliberating in his head whether he should ask him what he was asked to do here.

At the same time, I was still thinking viciously, how would the Queen Mother call herself?
Sad family?I?Old body?

He didn't know that the Empress Dowager Li behind the curtain had been looking at the armor on him and the golden armor on the general's body with scrutiny, as if she was weighing which of the two armors was more suitable for rituals.

The four generals of the Han Dynasty have slightly different armor and armaments. Although each has a mighty body, red silk around the waist and red tasseled helmets on the top of the head, there are two types of armor, one is the commander in chief of the north The armor with silver scales and gold edges that is often worn, and the second is the golden leaf armor with mountain patterns. Strictly speaking, these two armors are actually similar to formal dresses, with emphasis on decoration, and they are different from the field armor.

Chen Mu once asked Xu Jue that these big Han generals who belonged to Jinyi are also working hard. Every day after get off work, they have to return their armor and wipe it clean before leaving the palace, otherwise they will be punished for it.

After a long time, the queen mother behind the curtain spoke, calling herself in a way that Chen Mu had never thought of, and asked a very surprising question, saying: "I never thought that even the armor of the Beiyang new army is new. ... this armor, can it block gunfire?"

予？
This is as surprising as Zhang Juzheng's letter claiming to be a servant.

"Returning to Empress Dowager Cisheng, today, as long as the distance is close enough, there is no armor in the world that can completely block the blunderbuss. If you want to block the blunderbuss, the armor must be thick enough. People with extremely thick armor cannot walk , the breastplate that I wear can block the gunshots at thirty paces, like the inner mail jacket, it can protect the gunshots at twenty paces, and there is a little possibility of survival beyond ten paces."

"This is the most suitable result between the encumbrance and protection of soldiers after calculations and experiments conducted by the craftsmen of the Nanyang Military Weapons Bureau and the Guangzhou Jiangwu Hall."

The 'possibility of survival' in Chen Mu's mouth has nothing to do with the quality of the armor, but only with luck.At such a short distance, the blunderbuss must break through the armor and penetrate into the body. The most common materials for the blunderbuss are lead and Japanese lead, that is, lead and tin. The troubles caused by not dying on the spot have caused many people to die.

Empress Dowager Li's tone was a little curious. Even though she reserved her cold voice before she finished speaking, it was still known to everyone: "Calculation, experiment?"

"Empress Dowager Shengming, regardless of the gorgeous decoration, the defense of the armor is related to the thickness of the steel, and the thickness of the steel is related to the weight. The same shape of the armor, the defense of sixteen catties and 32 catties should be completely different. Under the premise of ensuring that soldiers can wear armor to fight and march Try to make the armor as thick as possible, which requires a lot of calculations and careful inspection of the armor."

"I understand, let's not talk about Jiajia first, I have something to ask you." Behind the curtain, Empress Dowager Li seemed to be very curious about what she wanted to ask, and said: "I heard that the first emperor was related to Jing Haibo when he was in the capital. Now that the emperor wants to talk about the grand parade again, and when the Dagu Dongyang Army in Tianjin set sail, why did Jing Haibo insist on the emperor's military parade, which is a waste of people and money?"

"Jing Haibo has always done his best for the imperial court. Although I am a woman, I know there must be a reason for this. Why?"

Speaking of Empress Dowager Li's words of "doing my best" to Chen Mu, it really has nothing to do with Chen Mu solving the money and food problems for the court in Nanyang.

No matter how well things are done in Nanyang, it has nothing to do with the queen mother in the palace. She lives in the harem and does not do government affairs and only cares about family affairs. Even if the emperor is young, he entrusts Zhang Juzheng with all his affairs. Even if it is stormy outside, what does it have to do with the palace?

This is because Emperor Longqing had no money when he ascended the throne in the early years. Chen Mu sold coal balls from the capital, so he got a bad reputation, and finally all the money was handed over to the emperor's inner treasury. These silver taels are actually very comfortable, but Queen Mother Li remembers them.

"I was born as a veteran. I was lucky to be promoted to the army by the late emperor. Later, I became a general. When the late emperor celebrated, I kept my words light, but I went with the flow. The original intention of my minister to Nanyang was to earn some money for the late emperor to subsidize the palace expenses. I didn't know until I went to sea. The world is so big, and I want to take some territory for the late emperor, but I didn't expect to hear the news of the late emperor's death on the way."

"When the first emperor was parading, the ministers led five hundred soldiers to practice under the city. Many banner soldiers were excited and wept when they knew that the emperor was watching from the city. At that time, the ministers knew that the emperor can bring extraordinary morale and combat power to the army. Invincible courage. Later, many of those people became thousands of households, commanders, and even commanders-in-chief, commanding tens of thousands of troops for the emperor, and they were more loyal to the imperial court than any soldier."

"They know they're fighting for the emperor, they've seen the emperor."

"Although your majesty is young, your majesty is the emperor. I think the emperor controls the world and controls all power, including military power. However, this time your majesty is going to review it. I really didn't know until after the emperor made a decision, but I agree very much. This Ming monarch’s court should no longer have to worry about the calamity of Gengxu.”

Queen Mother Li listened quietly, only smiled when Chen Mu said that he was a veteran.

Ma Fang is a real veteran. You can at most say that you are a junior officer.

"Today is different from the past. Ministers go abroad to find new sources of income and food for the imperial court. Solving old problems also brings new problems. The Ming Dynasty needs many troops stationed overseas. As pioneers, they will encounter unimaginable difficulties and difficulties. Temptation, they need to know more than anyone else what the price they paid for."

"I think that letting them know that I am fighting for the emperor and Ming is more important than anything else."

After finishing speaking, Chen Mu saluted and cupped his hands, and Empress Dowager Li said with a smile: "Jing Haibo knows people's worries very well."

From the beginning to the end, Empress Dowager Li never mentioned the emperor's need to wear new clothes, but Chen Mu had already answered this question.

The crux of the problem is not at all the question of making a set of emperor's military uniform or armor. Emperor Sejong made a set of military uniforms during his reign, and Emperor Wanli made another set.

"Your Majesty is going to parade the army when Jing Haibo departs. It is very suitable for him to make this military uniform for Jing Haibo. You can go to see the emperor later, but there is one more thing."

The figure behind the curtain got up and left a word.

"The emperor can go to the court or be in charge of the government himself, but all important matters of the country should be referred to the elders, so I ask Jing Haibo to pass them on to His Majesty."

　Good morning!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)