Mo Jiuye's mind was opened up to a whole new perspective by Fourth Brother's suggestion. However, currently, the work of making bombs was not entrusted to others; it was all done by their own brothers, with their own hands.
Their brothers were skilled in handling knives and guns, and Fifth Brother was intelligent and meticulous enough to handle the formulation and production of gunpowder. Learning together to make bamboo tube bombs was not a difficult task. But the problem lay in the blacksmithing aspect, which truly puzzled Mo Jiuye.
Seeing Mo Jiuye's delayed response, Mo Qing asked, "Jiuye, don't you think Fourth Brother makes a valid point?"
"Not at all, Father. Fourth Brother's proposal is excellent. It's just that adding an iron casing to the bomb requires the assistance of a blacksmith. The fewer people who know about bomb-making, the better."
For Mo Jiuye, the matter of making bombs was of utmost importance. The Mo Family was already on thin ice, and if this matter were leaked, it would undoubtedly invite significant trouble. He would rather have shorter-range and less powerful bombs, with no risks involved.
In this regard, Mo Qing was thinking further ahead than he had expected.
"While it's true that currently only you brothers are involved in making bombs, these bombs will eventually be distributed to the soldiers. Do you think the bombs will remain a secret for long?"
Mo Jiuye was indeed not worried about this. The Mo Family's soldiers were loyal, and he would only feel at ease if the finished bombs were entrusted to them. His caution stemmed from not wanting the bomb-making methods to be revealed.
Thus, even if there were traitors among their privately trained soldiers in the future, they would only be able to take away a few finished bombs. This would lessen the threat to the Mo Family compared to the leakage of the formulation.
However, the thought of being able to make bombs with a longer throwing distance, and his father's clear intention to find a reliable person who could forge an iron casing for the bamboo tubes, crossed his mind.
"Father, this matter involves the bomb-making methods. If anyone among Tao Ran and the others is capable, then there is no problem at all. After all, their loyalty to the Mo Family is beyond doubt. But if it comes to outsiders, I would rather have our bombs with a shorter throwing distance."
In Mo Jiuye's heart, even Hu Cong wouldn't be completely trusted.
Since returning to the Mo Family, Mo Qing had realized that this ninth son of his was extraordinary. Not only was he highly skilled in martial arts, but he also had a keen mind.
"Your concerns are not without reason. That group of people, including Tao Ran, were trained by me personally. I know them well. Now that the Mo Family has been exiled here, their unwavering loyalty is beyond question."
"Father, are you suggesting that among them, there is someone who can forge iron?"
Mo Jiuye immediately understood his father's meaning.
"If my memory serves me right, Lin Hong is the person I saved in a small town not far from the western border."
He was working as an apprentice in a blacksmith shop at that time. Because he stole a steamed bun from the boss's house, he was beaten half to death on the street. When I saw how pitiful he was, I stepped in and saved him. So, I thought it would be fine to call him over and ask him. Mo Qing didn't understand blacksmithing, but he knew a little bit about it. Working with iron sheets wasn't a highly skilled job, and he believed Lin Hong could do it. Tao Ran, the group of old comrades, was someone Mo Jiuye still trusted.
"Dad, I'll go find Lin Hong and bring him here right away."
Mo Jiuye didn't take long to go out and came back with Lin Hong.
On the way, he had already inquired and found out that Lin Hong had been an apprentice for a long time and had learned a lot because he had been sent to the blacksmith shop from a young age. However, his master was harsh and bullied him because of his young age, always treating him as an apprentice, even though he was doing the work that only skilled masters could do.
With that said, there was no problem with him working with iron sheets.
But during this era, iron was strictly controlled by the government. Those who wanted to open a blacksmith shop in the city had to apply to the authorities and get approval before they could open their shops. Not only that, the amount of iron materials used by the blacksmith shops was fixed every month, and once it was used up, there was none left.
If the business at the shop was good, they would basically rest for half a month.
Therefore, the source of iron materials was a crucial issue for the Mo Family at present.
But this didn't pose a problem for Mo Jiuye. The Taobao online store in his wife's space had iron materials for sale. He just needed to find an excuse to take them out.
Since he had already decided to use iron sheets to wrap the bamboo tubes, Mo Jiuye planned to put small iron beads inside as well.
He didn't know if this would work, but he was unwilling to give up without trying.
Once it succeeded, the power of the bomb would increase significantly.
With everything settled, Mo Jiuye spent three consecutive days preparing the iron materials, tools, and the location for blacksmithing.
On the other hand, Madam He didn't plan to idle either. It was already early June, and the day Mo Hanyue and Meng Huaining would get married, June 12th, was approaching.
Madam He, being an experienced person, understood well that carrying twins made early delivery more likely.
She didn't know if it would be successful to invite the renowned gynecologist from the capital, Zhang San, to come here. Even if it was successful, considering the distance from the capital to the northwest, it probably wouldn't arrive too early.
Although her son-in-law repeatedly assured her that He Zhiran and the unborn child would be safe, she, as a mother, still worried.
It would be different if the renowned gynecologist was here. He and her son-in-law would each display their expertise, which would provide an additional safeguard for the safety of He Zhiran and the child in her belly.
Therefore, Madam He did nothing all day but stay by He Zhiran's side when Mo Jiuye was not around, fearing that she might make a careless move and harm her health.
With Madam He watching over her all the time, it was a bit inconvenient for He Zhiran to prepare something for Mo Hanyue.
There was no other way; a mother is a mother, and everything she did was for her own good. He Zhiran couldn't just push her away with a gloomy face.
She had already discussed with Mo Jiuye and prepared dowries for Mo Hanyue.
The courtyard that was built can be considered part of the dowry. Originally, He Zhiran intended to pay for it himself, but later his mother-in-law and sisters-in-law felt it was inappropriate.
After calculating the cost of the courtyard, it was divided into ten shares. The nine brothers of the Mo Family each contributed a share of money, and Old Lady Mo also contributed one share.
In other words, this courtyard was the dowry prepared for Mo Hanyue by the whole family.
He Zhiran had already stated in front of his family that it was up to him to arrange Mo Hanyue's dowry.
She had many valuable items in her space, but these possessions were all from the palaces of Da Shun and Nanjiang. She could sell them as antiques on Taobao, but if she took them out as Mo Hanyue's dowry, there was a risk of someone with ill intentions noticing something amiss, and the cost would outweigh the benefits.
Therefore, He Zhiran had planned from the beginning to purchase Mo Hanyue's dowry from the Taobao Mall.
