Chapter 698: Fire-Burning Stick
Upon hearing Zhao Xuanji's angry rebuke, the voice from the darkness fell silent for a moment before saying: "Because no one can get close, our people have only heard a little bit of noise. But since it was reported from below, it should be true."
I suppose it shouldn't be too much.
Zhao Xuance's beard and hair bristled, he slammed his palm on the table with a resounding crack, roaring, "This scoundrel, to be so disrespectful to Qinglan! This old man will surely kill him!"
After venting his frustration, Zhao Xuanji suddenly realized he was just being impotent with rage.
Even because everyone in the inner palace and Phoenix Hall was replaced, it was very troublesome for him to get in touch with Zhao Qinglan.
It takes some time to work through the joints.
Thinking of this, Zhao Xuanji got up and said, "Go make arrangements. This old man is going to the palace."
He desperately wanted to see if his daughter had really been bullied by Li Chen.
No matter how ruthless and cunning Zhao Xuanji was, as a father, his instinctive care for his children remained.
"Yes."
The voice in the dark made no comment, simply assenting with a quiet hum before fading away.
At this moment, Li Chen was in Xizheng Hall receiving Guan Zhiwei from the Ministry of Works, as well as a group of skilled craftsmen brought by Guan Zhiwei.
"Dare I ask, Your Highness, if you speak of firearms?"
Guan Zhiwei's craftsman, after listening to Li Chen's account, uttered a phrase that immediately caught Li Chen's attention.
"Now that there are muskets?"
After seeing how high-end martial arts in this world could threaten his own life safety at any time, Li Chen, whose mind was full of tech trees, now just wanted to get a couple of sprayers for self-defense.
If this era already had firearms, it would have saved him a great deal of time and effort.

"This artisan said reverently, 'This thing was invented decades ago and was very popular at first. It uses gunpowder as a fuse to fire projectiles, with the power of a crossbow.'"
Saying that, he took out an object from the toolbox he had specially brought after hearing about the prince's summons.
Li Chen looked and was greatly surprised.
Although this thing is still quite rough, the basic barrel, stock, and trigger are already taking on the shapes we associate with firearms today.
It is just a steel barrel and a wooden stock, making it seem flimsy. Due to years of neglect and lack of maintenance, the barrel is now heavily rusted.
“After some experimentation, we found that while this weapon was effective at short ranges, its power and accuracy decreased significantly beyond twenty paces. Furthermore, reloading was a very cumbersome process. Cavalry charging at a hundred paces would only have one chance to fire, and beyond twenty paces, it could not guarantee effectiveness.”
The artisan's face bore a hint of regret as he said, "In terms of both efficiency and practicality, it pales in comparison to a trained archer. Moreover, the gunpowder used is difficult to store and transport, and the projectiles are very complex to manufacture. As such, it gradually fell out of favor."
That's something you guys won't be able to use.
Li Chen walked forward, not at all disdainful of the burning fire stick in Guan Zhiwei's eyes. He took it and played with it carefully, then looked up at the craftsman and asked: "Can it fire now?"
The craftsman hesitated and said, "It's not certain. I haven't used it for over a decade."
"Try it."
Li Chen waved his hand, ordering the artisans to begin loading gunpowder and bullets.

(Editor in charge：define novel)