Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne

Chapter 945: Chapter 59: Prince Han’s Intentions

Deeply absorbed in the rubber experiment, Zhao Yao hadn’t returned to the Prince Mansion for several days, but Uncle Gao was already used to it. During this period, Uncle Gao hadn’t been idle either. Ever since he got a handgun, he’d been busy practicing shooting. Back when he was with He Lianfang, he’d been a well-known divine archer, just the mention of his name would cause fear in others’ hearts.

While being good at archery doesn’t necessarily mean one will be good at shooting, it does mean one has good eyesight, which greatly increases the chances of mastering shooting skills.

Zhao Yao, seeing Uncle Gao idling around like an unemployed vagabond, assigned him a task: to train the new recruits of the Divine Machine Camp.

Uncle Gao had once been an experienced general; although he hadn’t been in a battle or led troops for many years, training the new recruits of the Divine Machine Camp was still more than manageable for him.

"This Divine Machine Camp set up by His Highness is truly remarkable," Uncle Gao remarked with admiration, "If people in the capital knew about the existence of the Divine Machine Camp..." He didn’t finish his sentence, but the implication was clear.

He Lianfang calmly said, "This is just a simplified version."

"Simplified version, what does that mean?" Uncle Gao was full of questions, "Is there a more complex version?"

"Right now, the firearms used by the Divine Machine Camp are the initial version. In the future, Prince Han will improve them, making the firepower, precision, and range much better than they are now," He Lianfang knew Zhao Yao’s future plans for the Divine Machine Camp, "In the future, the Divine Machine Camp will be something that astounds the Great Zhou and foreign countries."

Uncle Gao nodded in agreement: "Blades and spears cannot withstand the bullets of firearms. When I return to Japan, I’ll set up a Divine Machine Camp too."

He Lianfang shot a sidelong glance at Uncle Gao, "Do you have firearms?"

This sharp question stunned Uncle Gao. After a while, he smiled wryly, "No, I don’t."

He Lianfang continued to throw cold water on Uncle Gao, saying, "Currently, there aren’t enough firearms. Prince Han won’t give you many. If you can get one or two by the time you leave, it’ll be quite something."

"One or two?" Uncle Gao was clearly dissatisfied, "Can’t you give me ten?"

To this, He Lianfang responded with a cold stare at Uncle Gao.

Uncle Gao slumped his shoulders, disappointment written all over his face.

He Lianfang emphasized, "Firearms are very precious right now, don’t even think about it."

Uncle Gao still wouldn’t give up: "Thick-skinned, I’ll beg His Highness, just ten would be enough, I want to establish a Divine Machine Camp personal guard."

He Lianfang replied coolly, "Then you’d better kowtow three times to Prince Han."

"If it gets me firearms, I’d kneel ten times too."

He Lianfang asked, "Have you been to the Dark Guard Camp?"

"I have," said Uncle Gao, then cupped his fists toward He Lianfang, "General, there’s truly no one like you. This Dark Guard Camp is even more formidable than ours back in the day."

"While I oversee the Dark Guard Camp, all the training was devised by Prince Han."

Uncle Gao almost spat out a mouthful of tea in shock, "What, the training was devised by His Highness, not you?"

"Not me, it was Prince Han," He Lianfang added, "The new methods for training soldiers were also his creations."

Talking about the military camp, Uncle Gao remembered something else and said in surprise, "The military dogs in the camp, were those arranged by His Highness too?"

"Yes, he said that dogs have a keen sense of smell, and during patrol duty, they can detect enemies," He Lianfang continued, "He also mentioned that Lingnan, bordered by foreign countries on three sides, needs daily patrols, otherwise foreigners could sneak into the Great Zhou."

"His Highness isn’t wrong, not only do dogs have sensitive noses, but they’re also fast and, most importantly, they have some offensive capability," Uncle Gao laughed, "Letting soldiers patrol with dogs, it’s a brilliant idea from His Highness."

"He always has many clever ideas."

"From what I saw in the military camp, the soldiers worked well with the dogs; the dogs really obey commands." Not long ago, Uncle Gao visited the Imperial Guard Camp and was deeply impressed. "General, does His Highness’s method of training soldiers exist on your end as well?"

"What, are you planning to use this method to train your men?"

Uncle Gao nodded, "Yes, this new training method from His Highness is impressive."

"I don’t have it, you can ask Prince Han for it." He Lianfang also supported Zhao Yao’s new training method.

"The Imperial Guard Camp soldiers’ posture is extremely upright, each one looks confident and full of vigor, that’s the spirit soldiers should have." Ever since seeing the soldiers from Zhao Yao’s Imperial Guard Camp, Uncle Gao had been greatly dissatisfied with his own men, who looked like they hadn’t eaten enough. "When will His Highness return?"

"He can’t come back for now," said He Lianfang, "He is currently busy with rice seedling transplantation."

"Ah, transplanting rice seedlings?" Uncle Gao, just after expressing his surprise, suddenly remembered seeing rice paddies filled with seedlings on his way back to the Prince Mansion, and with an air of realization said, "When I returned, I saw many people busy with rice seedling transplantation. So it seems, it’ll be a while before I see His Highness again."