After the wolf soldiers completed their review, Cen Dalu eagerly climbed the platform, asking Zhu Ping’an for his impressions of the wolf soldiers.
“Hearing a hundred times is not as good as seeing once,” Zhu Ping’an said encouragingly, affirming their display.
Cen Dalu’s head tilted up proudly. “Heh, this was just a demonstration. In actual combat, our wolf soldiers are even fiercer.”
“Lord Zhu, we’ve long heard of the Zhejiang Army’s renown, repeatedly defeating the pirates with unmatched victories in the south. Today’s a rare opportunity. Please allow us to witness the might of your army,” Madam Wa said, clasping her hands in a respectful request.
Zhu Ping’an saw this as a chance to promote firearms and advance their development, so he readily agreed. He instructed Liu Dadao to lead the Zhejiang Army in a review, aiming to give the wolf soldiers a taste of the Zhejiang Army’s shock and awe.
As Madam Wa and Cen Dalu watched the Zhejiang Army march in perfectly synchronized steps, their faces were filled with astonishment.
They had never seen such orderly ranks. The soldiers moved as one, like walls advancing with overwhelming momentum.
“Huh? Why are they setting up so many targets? And why are they bringing out those large shields?” Cen Dalu pointed below, exclaiming in confusion.
Sure enough, as Madam Wa followed his gesture, she saw rows of targets placed haphazardly in front of the Zhejiang Army’s formation—around three hundred in total.
In front of the targets, six massive standing shields, supported by frames, were arranged in a line, forming a wall-like barrier.
“Just keep watching,” Zhu Ping’an said with a faint smile.
“Don’t be so impatient, like a monkey. Haste won’t get you hot tofu,” Madam Wa took the chance to chide Cen Dalu.
Then, when the Zhejiang Army was still over a hundred meters from the targets, they suddenly halted. Dozens of soldiers stepped forward, pairs carrying tiger squat cannons, adjusting their angles and securing them to the ground.
“Fire!”
A young officer waved his hand forcefully.
The Zhejiang soldiers ignited the cannons, and a thunderous “boom” echoed as the cannons fired in unison, smoke rising into the air.
The next moment, the massive shields in front of the targets were struck by the barrage. Heavy cannonballs whistled through the air, smashing into the shields.
The thick, door-like shields, solid as a wall, were as fragile as glass before the cannonballs, utterly shattered.
“Clang!” “Clang!” “Clang!” Amid the sounds, the six shields were reduced to fragments, and even the targets behind them toppled in a chaotic clatter.
“Hiss…” Cen Dalu gasped, his face turning pale.
Madam Wa’s expression also shifted in an instant.
“Damn, the power of these firearms is insane! Those thick, massive shields were like paper, completely useless!”
“If that hit a person, wouldn’t they be pulverized into paste? Terrifying!”
The surrounding wolf soldiers let out waves of shocked exclamations, deeply shaken.
In that moment, Cen Dalu couldn’t help but imagine himself below. If their wolf soldiers were the Zhejiang Army’s enemies, holding those giant shields, the shield bearers would be torn to pieces.
The Zhejiang Army’s firearms were ferocious!
“Look, the Zhejiang Army’s advancing again!” As Cen Dalu was lost in thought, he heard the wolf soldiers’ voices below and quickly looked down.
After firing, the tiger squat cannon crews began reloading on the spot. The Zhejiang soldiers passed them, continuing their relentless advance like an unstoppable tide.
Ninety meters, eighty meters, seventy meters, sixty meters, fifty meters…
At fifty meters from the target field, the Zhejiang Army halted. The soldiers formed three rows: the first crouched, the second bent forward, and the third stood upright—the standard Zhejiang three-stage shooting formation.
“Bang!” “Bang!” “Bang!”
A synchronized, dense volley of musket fire rang out. Amid swirling smoke, lead bullets rained down on the target field.
“Crack! Pop!”
The target field echoed with the sounds of impact as targets were pierced with bullet holes.
After firing, the first group of Zhejiang soldiers retreated to reload, and the next three rows stepped forward, assuming the same three-stage shooting stance.
“Bang! Bang! Bang!”
Another round of synchronized, dense musket fire.
The distant target field resounded with cracks and pops as more bullet holes appeared, and several targets were knocked over.
After the second group fired, the third took their place, the transitions seamless and fluid, almost like flowing water.
When the third group finished, the first had already reloaded and stepped forward again, firing once more in a continuous cycle.
After two full cycles, the Zhejiang Army ceased fire.
The target field ahead was riddled with holes, not a single target left intact. Many were shattered into pieces.
Cen Dalu stared, dumbfounded, at the devastated target field, breathing heavily, his mind unable to settle.
The wolf soldiers collectively gasped.
“This is what firearms can do?!”
“The power of firearms is this immense?!”
“The Zhejiang Army’s firearms are terrifying!”
The wolf soldiers were profoundly shaken, instinctively imagining themselves as the targets. Even with ten lives, they wouldn’t survive the Zhejiang Army’s firearms.
Initially, the wolf soldiers had felt a strong sense of superiority over the Zhejiang Army. On their way here, they’d heard of the Zhejiang Army’s fame and their repeated victories against the pirates. But they’d dismissed it, thinking the Zhejiang Army’s success was only because the wolf soldiers hadn’t arrived. If they had, the Zhejiang Army would have to step back—not just a step or two, but far back. How could the Zhejiang Army compare to them?
But after this review, the wolf soldiers no longer looked at the Zhejiang Army with disdain.
They regarded them with respect.
Caution.
And a touch of fear.
There was also a hint of relief—relief that they were allies, not enemies, of the Zhejiang Army.
If the Zhejiang Army were their opponents, they dared not imagine what it would be like to face them…
Today, the Zhejiang Army left a deep impression on Cen Dalu, Madam Wa, and all the wolf soldiers.
The Zhejiang Army’s firearms left an even deeper mark.
“What an eye-opener. Today, I’ve truly been enlightened, Lord Zhu. The might and utility of your army’s firearms have opened my eyes,” Madam Wa said, snapping out of her daze, clapping her hands in admiration.
“Lord Zhu, the power of your firearms is incredible. My eyes nearly popped out just now,” Cen Dalu finally recovered, exclaiming in awe.
Then he sighed regretfully. “The only downside is that firearms take too long to reload.”
“Not slow at all. I’ve seen government troops’ firearms, and Lord Zhu’s Zhejiang Army reloads much faster. Moreover, their formation is unique—one group fires, retreats to reload, the next group steps up, and so on, cycling seamlessly. This greatly mitigates the drawback. Truly worthy of the firearm-renowned Zhejiang Army. Hearing a hundred times is not as good as seeing once,” Madam Wa said, waving off his concern.
“Firearms can still be improved, and their future is bright. I believe the wars of the future will belong to firearms,” Zhu Ping’an said confidently.
“The wars of the future will belong to firearms? Their power is great, but their flaws are obvious. If fearless enemies charge your lines, willing to pay a price to close the distance for hand-to-hand combat, blades and swords still reign.”
“Firearms dominate at range, but in close combat, blades and swords are king,” Cen Dalu disagreed.
Madam Wa glanced at Cen Dalu approvingly, nodding slightly in agreement with his words.
This was the limitation of the era, and Zhu Ping’an didn’t blame them.
*My mission is to break these limitations, to make the Chinese value and prioritize firearms, to avoid repeating the century of humiliation.*
“Then let us wait and see,” Zhu Ping’an said with a faint smile.
