Li Yuan's intelligence was extremely important.
Shi Jian frowned deeply.
In the past, the Gao Family Village militia had always fought bandits and rebels either in open terrain or from defensive positions.
Flintlock riflemen were exceptionally well-suited for defense. They could hide behind walls or barricades, line up neatly, fire a volley, and then watch enemies collapse in waves.
Fighting in open ground was even simpler. With their range advantage, it often became little more than target practice—one shot, one kill, from hundreds of meters away.
But this time, the situation was different.
Completely different.
Now, the enemy actually had a city.
The roles of attacker and defender had been reversed.
If the bandit soldiers hid behind walls and fortifications, the flintlock riflemen would be unable to hit them at all.
What about grenades?
That idea was quickly dismissed.
Throwing grenades meant exposing the grenadiers. Against arrows raining down from city walls, that would turn into a one-sided slaughter. The risk was far too great.
Especially during the final stage—once the city gates were breached and fighting spilled into the streets—the advantages of flintlock riflemen would almost completely disappear. Casualties would skyrocket.
Of course, flintlock riflemen were equipped with bayonets.
But…
Charging with bayonets meant abandoning their greatest strengths. It was a method to be used only when absolutely forced—never a preferred choice.
Shi Jian was still pondering this dilemma when a head suddenly popped out from the side.
It was Zheng Gouzi.
"Old Shi," he said casually, "if we're dealing with a siege, why don't we just bring out the cannons? Blast that damn old fortress apart."
Shi Jian's eyes immediately lit up.
"That's right!"
Having spent so long fighting defensive battles, he had almost forgotten that Gao Family Village possessed artillery.
They had always fought mobile rebels, never proper sieges. As a result, the cannons had been left gathering dust.
Shi Jian straightened and gave orders decisively.
"Have Qichuan Ferry send the cannons by river. Once they land, switch to horse-drawn transport and move them to Wangjia Fork. We'll blow that place to pieces!"
Zheng Gouzi laughed.
"Once the cannons fire a few rounds, the bandit soldiers inside won't have the nerve to keep hiding. They'll either run or surrender. No need for street fighting at all."
Li Yuan, who had overheard everything, stood there dumbfounded.
"Uh… General Shi," he asked hesitantly, "do we… do we really have cannons?"
Shi Jian grinned.
"Of course we do."
Li Yuan wiped a bead of cold sweat from his forehead.
"Are we… really that powerful?"
Shi Jian and Zheng Gouzi both burst out laughing.
"Just wait and see, kid," Shi Jian said. "You'll realize we've got a lot more tricks than you think."
—
Earlier, when Wang Jiayin had dispatched his navy to attack Qichuan Ferry, Bai Yuan had once used cannons as if they were oversized firearms to repel the assault.
That battle made him realize something important: cannons could not be deployed casually. They required specialized personnel.
As a result, at Bai Yuan's insistence, Gao Family Village officially established an Artillery Battalion.
Thus, the so-called "coldest" battalion was born.
Despite mastering the most advanced weapons available, they were genuinely cold.
Cold because they had nothing to do.
Day after day, all they did was train.
Training, drills, repetition—endless repetition.
Their schedules were packed solid with practice, with no combat missions in sight.
None of the commanders—Cheng Xu, Xing Honglang, Bai Yuan, Shi Jian, or Wang Xiaohua—had ever found a chance to deploy them.
And it wasn't negligence.
There simply hadn't been a suitable opportunity.
Rebels moved too quickly. They fired a shot, scattered, and vanished into the countryside. When would cannons ever have a chance to roar?
So when Shi Jian finally requested the artillery battalion…
The entire artillery camp at Qichuan Ferry exploded with excitement.
"We've got work!"
"Do you know how long I've been waiting for this?!"
"Brothers, it's finally our turn!"
The atmosphere was livelier than a festival.
Years of training paid off immediately. Once the order was given, everyone knew exactly what to do.
Some hitched horses to the cannons.
Others carried cannonballs into crates.
Powder charges were prepared and counted.
From receiving the order to being fully ready to move, the entire battalion completed its preparations in astonishing speed.
Large boats carried the artillery battalion upstream along the Yellow River.
The artillerymen were brimming with energy, singing loudly. Gongs and drums rang out nonstop, filling the river with noise.
When the transport ships docked at Dragon Gate Ferry, Li Yuan—waiting on the pier—initially thought a troupe of performers had arrived.
But when he looked closer, his heart nearly jumped out of his chest.
One massive cannon after another was unloaded.
And they came in two clearly different types.
One type gleamed with a silvery sheen—stainless steel cannons personally bestowed by Dao Xuan Tianzun from beyond the box.
The other type was dark and dull—bronze-iron alloy cannons cast by the people of Gao Family Village themselves.
Li Yuan stared, counting under his breath.
"One… two… three… five… ten…"
He froze.
"There's more? Still more on the boats?! Are you serious?! We're only dealing with a small band of rebels!"
The artillery battalion commander leapt off the boat, face glowing with excitement, and grabbed Li Yuan's hand tightly.
"Comrade! Are you our guide? Please give us plenty of guidance when the battle begins!"
Li Yuan wiped another cold sweat from his brow.
"That old fortress is tiny," he said hurriedly. "Three to five cannons should be enough. Breach one wall, and the enemy will surrender."
The commander stared at him as if he'd heard a joke.
"Three to five?" he said incredulously. "Are you kidding? My brothers haven't had a real mission in years! We finally get an assignment, and you want only three to five? What about the rest of them? Let them sit at home with cold stoves?"
Li Yuan fell silent.
The commander suddenly grabbed Li Yuan by the shoulders and shook him enthusiastically.
"The enemy has a huge fortress, right? It needs the entire artillery battalion, five days and five nights of bombardment, a thousand shells to flatten it—right? It must be true! Just say it's true!"
Li Yuan could not say a word.
Shi Jian walked over at that moment.
"Li Yuan," he said calmly, "just how big is that old fortress? Don't exaggerate just to comfort the artillery battalion."
Li Yuan coughed awkwardly.
"It's really not big. Three to five… ahem… maybe five or six cannons would be enough."
"Aaaargh!" the artillery commander cried out in despair. "You can't do this!"
Shi Jian raised both hands helplessly.
"Alright, stop howling. Six cannons it is."
The commander immediately pressed his advantage.
"Considering misfires, road damage, and transport losses, how about eight?"
Shi Jian laughed bitterly.
"What is this, a marketplace? Haggling? The more cannons we bring, the more horses we need, and the heavier the logistics. There's no need to waste resources. Honestly, you didn't even ask before dragging all these cannons here—that alone was already unnecessary effort."
The commander drooped, looking utterly crushed.
At that moment, the cotton-embroidered Dao Xuan Tianzun on his chest suddenly burst into hearty laughter.
"No worries, no worries! This wasn't a waste at all. Receiving intelligence, mobilizing the entire artillery battalion, assembling swiftly, and traveling smoothly from Qichuan Ferry to Dragon Gate Ferry—this itself is an excellent training exercise. A textbook example of effective deployment!"
The artillery commander's face lit up instantly.
"Dao Xuan Tianzun is truly benevolent!"
Shi Jian sighed helplessly.
"Ah… Dao Xuan Tianzun really does spoil you."
Only Li Yuan remained completely stunned.
He pointed at the embroidery, his voice trembling.
"It… it spoke… Didn't you find that strange? It actually spoke…"
Shi Jian corrected him seriously.
"That is Dao Xuan Tianzun. Calling him 'it' is extremely disrespectful."
Li Yuan let out a shrill cry.
"Dao Xuan Tianzun truly exists?! Aaaah!"