Chapter 698: Chapter 692-693: Compound Bow Completed 2

"What’s there to argue about, you’re all the same," Chen Mo said.

Although this was somewhat against the rules, rules were made for ordinary people, and for Chen Mo, it was nothing more than adding a few positions as Side Princess Consorts. After all, they were just concubines, it just sounded better when mentioned.

"What does this even mean..." Xia Zhining muttered. Originally, there were only two of them, but now there are many, and she instantly lost her sense of superiority. However, she also knew that bringing this up pushed her sister into the spotlight, and it wouldn’t be good to keep arguing.

The other ladies didn’t really have any objections. After all, it was a matter of you having or not having it. Now that they all had it, there was no need to yearn for it.

Chen Mo did not linger on the topic, took out a letter from his pocket, and asked Han Anniang beside him to pass it to Chu Juan, saying: "Juan’Er, this is a letter your mother wrote to you."

Chu Juan took the unopened letter and her heart inexplicably sank, her eyes reddening: "Husband, my mother, she?"

Chu Juan thought her mother was no longer alive.

"She’s fine," Chen Mo said.

"Then why doesn’t she come to see me?"

"She doesn’t want to cause us unnecessary misunderstandings and troubles. She’s currently at the Li Family’s ancestral home. If you miss her, you can visit her when you go to the Capital," Chen Mo said with a smile.

"Misunderstandings?" Chu Juan was initially stunned, then quickly understood, and couldn’t help but look at Chen Mo.

Chen Mo smiled and said, "Don’t worry, she and I are innocent."

Upon hearing this, Chu Juan breathed a sigh of relief, then opened the envelope to read.

Since the children were still present, Chen Mo did not act inappropriately, and asked, "When I mentioned Yang Qingqing earlier, I noticed your expressions weren’t right. What happened?"

Chen Mo hadn’t asked in detail before since Nalan Yiren was present, and now he needed to understand the situation.

"She was very rude and had no manners, and she even brought a big cat from the Shu Residence and kept it in the courtyard, scaring us with it..." Yi Shiyin huffed angrily.

"Sister Xiaolu was right. She was also disrespectful to Ms. Mi and contradicted her many times," Nangong Ru said.

"Recently, she’s been playing the pipa every night, keeping us from sleeping well..."

Although the ladies felt that speaking ill of someone behind their back was not good, Yang Qingqing’s behavior really displeased them.

And among them, apart from Han Anniang and Song Min, who didn’t come from a privileged background? Once or twice was bearable, but over time, who would put up with that?

Chen Mo frowned deeply. If it were only one or two people complaining, it could be considered a personal conflict. But if all the ladies had issues with Yang Qingqing, then there was a problem with Yang Qingqing herself. After all, the ladies had good hearts and had no reason to unite against someone unjustly.

Chen Mo then looked at Wu Mi to see her opinion.

"Qingqing is indeed somewhat spoiled," Wu Mi said without being too direct.

Chen Mo frowned even tighter. If even Wu Mi said so, it seemed Yang Qingqing had indeed angered everyone.

"Don’t worry, I’ll handle this," Chen Mo said. His household was always harmonious, and he didn’t want Yang Qingqing disrupting it.

If necessary, he wouldn’t mind dismissing her.

"Husband, handle it gently," Wu Mi suggested.

Just as Chen Mo nodded, a maid quickly walked in and said, "Prince, there’s someone named Bai Quanmin outside the residence asking to see you, saying that you asked him to come."

"That’s right," Chen Mo stood up and said, "Take him to the study, I’ll come in a moment."

"Yes," the maid replied.

Chen Mo then looked at Nangong Ru: "Ru’Er, your father-in-law has also come to Xiangyang. You can have a good talk with him later."

Then his gaze moved to Wu Mi: "Mi’Er, your brother-in-law has also come and wants to see you and Jia’Er."

Nangong Ru and Wu Mi both showed expressions of joy, especially Wu Mi, who had never returned home since marrying into the Chen Family. It wasn’t that she was unfilial, but rather because the world was unstable and unsafe.

...

Study.

"Greetings, Your Highness," Bai Quanmin saluted Chen Mo.

"At ease,"

Chen Mo raised his hand slightly and looked at the crossbow in Bai’s hand, saying, "This is the compound bow I asked you to make, right?"

"Yes, it is,"

Bai Quanmin presented the compound bow to Chen Mo with both hands and began to explain the manufacturing process and the materials used for the bow. Finally, he smiled and said, "Your Highness is indeed extraordinary. This bow is powerful; even an ordinary person using it can pierce through iron armor within ten steps. Its power is even greater than that of the Divine Arm Crossbow, and its production cost is only half of the Divine Arm Crossbow, possibly even less if produced in large quantities."

Chen Mo examined it closely, then drew and tested its quality and weight, and then took an arrow from the quiver in the study and walked outside.

Bai Quanmin quickly followed.

Chen Mo reached the courtyard outside the study, looked at the locust tree less than ten steps away, stepped back a few steps, and then nocked the arrow and drew the string.

The pulley mechanical principle of the compound bow made it very easy for Chen Mo to draw the bowstring, yet it generated greater power.

After ensuring there was no issue with the pulley, Chen Mo aimed at the trunk of the locust tree not far away. He neither used Innate Spiritual Qi nor activated the Sun-Shooting Arrow as assistance, and he only mobilized a fraction of his physical strength.

A few moments later, with a release of Chen Mo’s two fingers, the arrow shot forward steadily, and in an instant, a dull "thud" sounded as the arrow struck the locust tree, embedding halfway into the trunk, shaking down a few green leaves.

"Good, Your Highness is a Divine Shooter!" Bai Quanmin immediately applauded.

Chen Mo was also very satisfied, but considering his strength, even when suppressed, there was still a personal strength addition, so it couldn’t perfectly demonstrate the compound bow’s power. Therefore, Chen Mo had Bai Quanmin try it.

He also had a suit of iron armor brought over and tied to the trunk of the locust tree, saying, "Aim for the Heart Protection Mirror on the armor to shoot."

Bai Quanmin was just an ordinary person, and his archery wasn’t very skilled; he missed the first three shots, but barely hit the target on the fourth shot, the arrow piercing through the armor and embedding into the tree trunk behind it.

"Good," Chen Mo applauded.

It’s truly powerful if it works well for an ordinary person, then the compound bow is truly strong.

Chen Mo patted Bai Quanmin’s shoulder: "Chief Engineer Bai, you’ve really given me a big surprise."

Bear in mind that the compound bow Chen Mo was holding was the initial version with no optimization, yet it showcased such impressive power, which speaks volumes of Bai Quanmin’s excellent craftsmanship.

"It’s all thanks to Your Highness; without Your Highness’s blueprints, I wouldn’t have been able to create this strong bow." Bai Quanmin didn’t dare to claim credit.

"Hey," Chen Mo waved his hand, "I reward and punish accordingly. You deserve a reward, and Chief Engineer Bai, you need not refuse. I’ve decided to appoint you as Vice Minister of the Vermilion Bird Guard, with the salary of a Seventh-Grade official."

"Thank you, Your Highness," Bai Quanmin said excitedly. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

As Vice Minister, he was the third-in-command in the Vermilion Bird Guard, below the minister in charge of firearms manufacturing — Tian Sheng, and the overall commander — Xia Zhining.

"No need to thank me, this is what you deserve."

Chen Mo returned to the study and discussed a few aspects of the compound bow that needed improvement with Bai Quanmin. Once these areas were improved, large-scale production could begin.

According to Bai Quanmin, the production cycle for a compound bow was much shorter than that of the Divine Arm Crossbow.

...

Shortly after Bai Quanmin left, Sun Meng arrived and reported: "Your Highness, there are two people outside claiming to be your disciples who wish to see you."

"My disciples?" Chen Mo was puzzled, unable to recall.

When Sun Meng mentioned that one of them was this round’s Imperial Examination Champion, Guo Ning, Chen Mo realized.

This time the Imperial Examination wasn’t held by the Court, as both the local and palace exams were held on his territory, so the listed candidates were indeed his disciples.