Huangfu Yuchen waved to Yan Ge.
Yan Ge ordered some people to send all the gold, silver, and jewels he had acquired to the Tenglong Palace before walking over to Huangfu Yuchen.
The two exchanged a smile.
Huangfu Yuchen looked Yan Ge up and down; it was the first time he had seen him in official attire. Yan Ge exuded an air of righteousness and vitality in his official garb, which delighted Huangfu Yuchen.
“How does it feel? Not bad, right?” Yan Ge raised his head proudly.
Huangfu Yuchen nodded with a smile, “How about I grant you an official position?”
“No,” Yan Ge quickly waved his hand, “I don’t want to take up a position.”
Feeling the gazes that were fixed on them from all directions, Huangfu Yuchen tightly held Yan Ge’s hand. His baby was excellent and well-liked, and it was only natural for others to be attracted to him, but he wouldn’t allow anyone to take his treasure away.
Although Yan Ge was puzzled by his sudden gesture, he naturally held Huangfu Yuchen’s hand and smiled at him.
Huangfu Yuchen’s heart softened, and he said dotingly, “The afternoon’s program will be exciting. Let’s go together.”
“Yes.” Yan Ge nodded.
The monarchs watched the two of them interact as if no one was around and they understood one thing: it wouldn’t be easy to break apart their relationship.
The state banquet lunch was sumptuous, and the monarchs temporarily set aside national affairs to enjoy the delicacies. Until they were about seventy to eighty percent full, Wei Lie brought up the issue of cement again.
“Your Majesty Huangfu, regarding the matter of cement…”
Huangfu Yuchen waved his hand, “King Wei, savoring food requires full attention to truly appreciate its beauty. Otherwise, what distinguishes delicacies from ordinary food? It might be difficult for you to taste authentic Great Han cuisine after you return to your kiny. The matter of cement can wait. After enjoying the program in the afternoon, we can discuss it then. What do you think, King Wei?”
“Hehe, His Majesty Huangfu is right. I was too impatient,” Wei Lie raised his cup, “I toast to His Majesty. Please.”
“Please.”
After the sumptuous state banquet lunch, the monarchs returned to their lodgings to rest briefly.
As the afternoon approached, the monarchs and envoys, guided by the ceremonial officials, arrived at the military training ground.
Hui Mailong and the others exchanged glances; by this point, they should be able to guess Huangfu Yuchen’s intentions. He was likely to hold a military exercise as a warning. However, none of them took this military exercise seriously. They were well aware of the military strength and forces of Great Han Kingdom, which were not enough to intimidate them. They wanted to see what Huangfu Yuchen thought would impress them.
The monarchs remained composed and took their seats as guided by the ceremonial officials. Others also took their seats.
Yan Ge changed back to his regular clothes and sat beside Huangfu Yuchen.
Yan Jin and the young crown prince also sat nearby. Huangfu Yuchen had deliberately brought the young crown prince to experience the unique atmosphere of the military training ground.
Huangfu Yuchen said, “I remember when the late emperor was in power, all the monarchs had visited Great Han Kingdom, and he held a military exercise. Today, I’m following the example of the late emperor to conduct a military demonstration. I hope all the monarchs can witness and offer guidance, as you did back then.”
“Your Majesty Huangfu, you flatter us. This is excellent. I’m also curious to see how Great Han Kingdom’s military strength compares to my kingdom,” Hui Mailong attempted to sound humble, but a trace of arrogance inadvertently appeared in his expression, showing his confidence in his Kingdom’s military power.
Liao Chengyuan and others all concurred, but they were somewhat absent-minded.
Yan Ge gave a cold smile. He had played a significant role in the training of these Imperial Guards. He had written a comprehensive training plan for them, including daily spontaneous trumpet gatherings to train their responsiveness, daily running and weight-bearing exercises to build their physical endurance, daily practice of equestrian skills, archery, and sword techniques for targeted training. There were also sporadic simulated combat exercises and even exercises to develop their thinking ability, cultivating the soldiers’ adaptability and emergency response capabilities. He dared to say that no other kingdom’s military training could match this level of thoroughness. Since Huangfu Yuchen decided to hold this military exercise, he must have some big moves up his sleeve.
Huangfu Yuchen signaled to Deng Mande.
Deng Mande whispered something to Xiao Changzi beside him.
“The military exercise begins now!”
Upon receiving the signal, Yang Zhuo, who had been waiting outside, immediately led five thousand soldiers to march forward.
“Thump! Thump! Thump…” The uniform and rhythmic footsteps shook the ground, and the atmosphere of the training ground instantly changed, becoming solemn and majestic, enveloping the entire training ground.
Hui Mailong casually looked over, his expression unconcerned, but it suddenly turned serious. Was this Huangfu Yuchen’s army? The sturdy black helmets, the imposing black armor, the bright spears, and the sturdy boots all sent a shiver down his spine based on their appearance alone.
“Attention! At ease! Left turn, right turn…”
Yang Zhuo gave the command again, “Stab!”
Five thousand soldiers thrust their spears forward, shouting “Kill!” in unison with a chilling aura.
Yang Zhuo then commanded, “Slash!”
The soldiers all drew their swords at the same time, once again shouting, “Kill!”
“Fire arrows!”
“Kill!”
“Defend!”
“Kill!”
“Defend!”
“Kill!”
…
It had to be said; the momentum was intimidating, and the killing intent was shocking. However, the monarchs were self-confident that their own armies could achieve the same level. They couldn’t help but feel puzzled. Was this what Huangfu Yuchen wanted to show them?
Yan Ge blinked at Huangfu Yuchen.
“Don’t worry, baby,” Huangfu Yuchen chuckled and whispered, “I did it on purpose. Although the purpose of this military exercise is to impress them, we can’t reveal all our cards. Let’s start with these basic exercises and test their patience. When they become impatient, we’ll unleash our trump card.”
“What’s the trump card? Can you tell me?” Yan Ge was extremely curious. He could tell that Huangfu Yuchen was in a very good mood.
Huangfu Yuchen smiled, “You’ll know soon.”
The military training continued.
At first, Hui Mailong and the others watched attentively, but as time passed, their patience waned.
After nearly half an hour, Huangfu Yuchen seemingly casually brushed Yan Ge’s hair.
Across the training ground, a palace maid lifted her head and then lowered it, seemingly intentionally or unintentionally.
Upon seeing this, Yang Zhuo loudly shouted, “Five Tigers and Five Sheep Formation!”
The five thousand soldiers quickly and neatly dispersed to form a “V” shape, all lying down.
“What are they doing?” Hei Zhentian wondered.
“Who knows,” Wei Lie muttered.
Yang Zhuo shouted, “Throw!”
Suddenly, a soldier in the front row pulled something from his waist and threw it forward. The object hit the ground, and with a loud “boom”, dust and smoke billowed, churning in the air.
“Throw, throw, throw!”
“Boom! Boom! Boom!”
Three more explosions followed.
Hui Mailong and Liao Chengyuan’s expressions changed drastically. They stood up in astonishment, looking at the rolling smoke and dust in the training ground.
What was that just now?!
Yan Ge widened his eyes in surprise. “Yuchen, that was…”
“It’s impressive, isn’t it?” Huangfu Yuchen hugged him and explained, “Recently, our troops stationed at Qingxi Mountain accidentally discovered a colorless smoke that easily explodes when ignited. I thought of using this smoke in military matters. It has proven to be effective.”
Yan Ge gaped in shock. ‘Isn’t colorless smoke an odorless and colorless gas? Could it be methane? Methane is widely distributed in nature, a simple organic compound, odorless and colorless, known as natural gas, marsh gas, pit gas, etc.’
“Why didn’t you tell me about this?”
Huangfu Yuchen held his hand, “Baby, I didn’t intend to hide it from you. This smoke is too dangerous. Many soldiers sacrificed their lives when it was discovered, and we lost more than a dozen men during the military department’s experiments with these ‘explosive bottles.’ I was afraid you might want to experiment with it, so I kept it from you.”
Yan Ge was both angry and helpless. “This gas is indeed very dangerous! That’s why you should have told me. Did you personally experiment with it?”
Huangfu Yuchen quickly shook his head, “No, the military department’s people were also concerned about its dangers and insisted on not allowing me to observe it.”
Annoyed, Yan Ge said, “After dealing with the matters here, I’ll settle accounts with you.”
“Baby…” Huangfu Yuchen appeased him, gently squeezing his hand.
Yan Ge glanced at the training ground, ignoring him.
“Your Majesty…,” Luo Yousong of the Youji Kingdom had an expression of shock and horror. He urgently asked, “What was that just now?”
Huangfu Yuchen replied indifferently, “Oh, that’s a new weapon invented by our Kingdom, called the ‘Bottle Explosion’.”
“Bottle Explosion?”
Hui Mailong and the others looked at each other, remaining speechless for a long time.
Huangfu Yuchen casually continued, “According to the people from our military department, this thing has tremendous killing power. If you confine one hundred chickens in a chicken coop the size of a room and throw an explosive bottle inside, it can kill all one hundred chickens. I haven’t personally witnessed it, so perhaps their words are exaggerated.”
Hui Mailong and the others understood and all had shocked and horrified expressions on their faces.
Huangfu Yuchen gestured for Yang Zhuo to take the soldiers back and looked at them puzzled. “What’s wrong with all of you? Please sit. By the way, about the cement, this is how it is: our kingdom’s cement production is indeed not much, currently just enough to meet the needs of the capital city. However, I believe the production will increase in the future. Our kingdom has always upheld the principle of friendship and exchange with other nations. I can promise you that as long as the cement production increases, I will definitely sell cement to all of you. You can rest assured about this.”
Hui Mailong, Liao Chengyuan, Hei Zhentian, and Wei Lie, who had previously considered using force to threaten Huangfu Yuchen to sell them cement, had no trace of arrogance on their faces now. It seemed that they had lost all confidence in their kingdoms’ military strength in an instant.
