Making you a son-in-law is not about making you conquer the world.

Chapter 894 All Treasures

Lin Ping lay in Jiang Yunying's arms like a dead dog, panting heavily.

It wasn't purely because of physical weakness, but also because Jiang Yunying's chest was soft. In short, dying under the peony blossoms would be a romantic death.

This continued for a while, then Lin Ping suddenly grinned and laughed loudly.

Seeing this, Jiang Yunying frowned slightly, thinking to herself, "Has my husband been driven mad by the smoke? How can he still laugh at a time like this?"

Lin Ping was not stupid, nor was his laughter a happy one, but rather a result of the billowing white smoke.

"Saltpeter! It's all saltpeter! I'm going to be rich!" Lin Ping laughed loudly. If he weren't still very weak, he would have jumped up with joy.

He could now conclude that saltpeter had appeared in the mine, and it was this saltpeter that caused the billowing smoke and even the explosion.

Saltpeter is an essential raw material for making gunpowder; it would be strange if it didn't explode.

This is the final step in Lin Ping's trilogy. I thought I would have to wait until the Daye Dynasty was established before I could get saltpeter on Laojun Mountain in Jiangyou. Unexpectedly, there is also saltpeter in the rock salt mine in Huai'an Prefecture.

Although the reserves aren't huge, they're enough for Lin Ping to use for his own purposes.

"Husband, what is saltpeter? Why are you so agitated?" Jiang Yunying asked in confusion.

“This is an essential item for any time traveler!” Lin Ping replied without hesitation.

"A time traveler?" Jiang Yunying was even more curious.

Lin Ping realized he had let something slip and quickly explained, "Saltpeter is a highly reactive chemical substance that can burn at slightly higher temperatures and reacts violently with water, which is why water is ineffective at extinguishing fires."

Jiang Yunying nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

"To put it simply, saltpeter is an essential raw material for making explosives. With enough saltpeter, I can enable the city lord's 10,000 private troops to defeat the empire's 100,000-strong army!" Lin Ping said confidently.

Taking on ten opponents single-handedly might seem like a pipe dream, but in reality, Lin Ping was holding back.

Saltpeter can be used not only to make artillery shells, but also to make flintlock pistols. If used properly, it is not impossible for one person to take on a hundred.

Jiang Yunying had heard about the great battle in which Lin Ping defended Yingtian Prefecture, where artillery shells played a crucial role.

After all, she was a princess of the city lord's mansion, and deep down she hoped that the private army could become stronger, rather than relying on the power of the monarch.

Therefore, Jiang Yunying had always wanted Lin Ping to manufacture a batch of bombs, but Lin Ping had never brought it up, and she was too embarrassed to ask him directly.

Hearing Lin Ping mention bombs again stirred up quite a bit of emotion within me.

"Does my wife know why I didn't make bombs for the city lord's private army?" Lin Ping asked proactively.

“My husband is worth a thousand troops. What use is a bomb if my husband is there?” Jiang Yunying’s eyes showed a hint of admiration.

Even so, she still hoped that the city lord's mansion could obtain a batch of bombs.

Lin Ping shook his head. "My role is simply to unite the Lord's forces, but that is an external force and cannot last. To truly make the City Lord's Mansion stronger, we must have absolute power. Bombs are a necessary condition for making the private army stronger. The reason we didn't mass-produce them before was because we lacked an important raw material for making bombs, namely saltpeter."

Jiang Yunying strongly agreed with Lin Ping's point of view. The fact that the king is now treating the city lord's mansion with great courtesy does not mean that he will always maintain this attitude.

To ensure the City Lord's Mansion remains invincible, it must possess formidable strength.

"I wonder how many bombs these saltpeter can make?"

As expected of a private army commander, Jiang Yunying immediately thought of the most important issue.

Lin Ping also became serious. After thinking for a moment, he replied, "Although saltpeter is easily formed in alkaline soil, this place is not far from Hongze Lake. The groundwater will react with the saltpeter, resulting in a significant loss. According to my preliminary estimate, manufacturing 10,000 tons of explosives should not be a problem."

"Ten thousand tons? How many bombs is that?" Jiang Yunying was unfamiliar with this physical unit; she preferred the quantities in the job postings.

"At least a million! Enough to destroy the entire army of the Daye Dynasty!" Lin Ping replied decisively.

For a mining area, a production of 10,000 tons is not high, but its impact is enormous.

Jiang Yunying stared at Lin Ping with her mouth agape, speechless, and excitedly pulled her into her arms again.

"My husband, you are truly a lucky star for the City Lord's Mansion," Jiang Yunying said, her voice choked with emotion.

"If a private army equipped with bombs can fight against an army of 100,000, then a private army equipped with flintlock pistols can fight against at least 300,000!" Lin Ping said, making a startling statement.

"A flintlock pistol? It's even more powerful than a bomb?" Jiang Yunying's heart leaped into her throat once again.

As Lin Ping said, even if the private army was equipped with bombs, it would only be equivalent to 100,000 troops. However, the Daye Dynasty had hundreds of thousands or even millions of troops, which could easily wipe them out.

However, if a private army could stand against an army of 300,000, the situation would take a turn for the better. Even if the empire had a million-strong army, it could not mobilize them all at will, as it still had to guard against nomadic tribes on the border.

Jiang Yunying had roughly calculated that the empire could mobilize no more than 300,000 troops at a time.

In other words, with the firearms, the city lord's private army could be completely fearless of any threat and even break free from the monarch's control. How could Jiang Yunying not be excited?

"The power of a flintlock pistol is not as great as that of a bomb, but its role on the battlefield is far greater than that of a bomb." Lin Ping explained in detail: "Bombs are suitable for attacking or defending cities and are long-range weapons, while flintlock pistols are suitable for close combat within 300 meters and can be used as targets to shoot cavalry."

"Three hundred meters is considered close combat?"

Lin Ping's words completely overturned Jiang Yunying's understanding. In her view, the effective killing range of ordinary bows and arrows was only about 100 meters, crossbow bolts could reach 150 meters, and even powerful crossbows could only barely reach 200 meters. 300 meters was already considered extremely long-range, yet Lin Ping described it as close combat.

He was not lying, of course. Not to mention 300 meters, if the workmanship is good enough, the lethal range of a shotgun can even reach 500 meters.

"My lady, you'd better watch carefully." Lin Ping stood up straight, holding the flintlock pistol horizontally in his right arm, aiming at a large tree three hundred meters away.

Bang!

A flash of white light, followed by a shattering sound that reached my ears.

Before Jiang Yunying could react, the big tree had already trembled slightly and even dropped a few yellow leaves.

Out of curiosity, Jiang Yunying quickly went to the tree and stared in disbelief at the tree that had been shot more than three inches deep.

If this hits you, it will definitely cause penetrating damage.

Thinking of this, Jiang Yunying broke out in a cold sweat.