Chapter 123: Strategic Resources of the Great Xia

"Chen Mu, you are truly extraordinary!" Long Xueyao exclaimed in admiration.

In the Kingdom of Hua, Long Xueyao was the most knowledgeable researcher second only to Jiang Ziya, which was why Chen Mu had invited her to the capital of the Great Xia Empire to assist him with his research. Yet, Chen Mu’s constant stream of brilliant and imaginative ideas never failed to astound her.

Chen Mu scratched his head, replying, "It is nothing, really."

"You are far too modest!" Long Xueyao insisted. "By the way, this telephone runs on electrical energy, correct?"

Chen Mu nodded. "Exactly. Look here—this is what I call a storage battery. Its electricity is used to sustain the voice transmission, while the hand-cranked generator on the phone is used to trigger the ringer."

On the table sat a small square box with positive and negative terminals, connected by two wires to the telephone. Chen Mu explained the principles of the device and the mechanism of the ringer to her in detail.

"How far can this telephone transmit?" Long Xueyao asked, marveling at the invention.

Chen Mu smiled and nodded. "You are quite sharp; you always ask the right questions. As long as the quality of the wire is sufficient, it can transmit over longer distances. Connecting it to a neighboring county would certainly be no problem."

Chen Mu’s vision was to forgo a complex dialing system and simply connect two telephones with a single line. Since the Great Xia did not yet require a vast network, having one or two telephones in each region would suffice. By connecting the five regions of Beiqiu, Nanjiang, Xishan, Dongyuan, and Dongyue to the capital, the process of information exchange would be greatly simplified. They would only need to install one additional telephone in Dongyuan to link it with the Northeast region.

Each telephone would be equipped with a lead-acid battery. The capital could keep a reserve of charged batteries to be swapped out periodically. Since the power consumption of a phone call was minimal, a small battery could last for a long time. This would ensure that if an incident occurred at the border, news could be transmitted back within a single day. Furthermore, it would allow for real-time, two-way communication, enabling the capital to relay decisions to the regions as quickly as possible.

"Shouldn't we install one in the Kingdom of Hua as well?" Long Xueyao reminded him.

"Oh, that was an oversight on my part. We certainly should," Chen Mu agreed.

Long Xueyao smiled, knowing that even after she returned to the Kingdom of Hua, she would still be able to contact Chen Mu at any time. Once the telephones were confirmed to be working, Chen Mu began the installation process, and soon, the Great Xia would be connected.

With this task complete, Chen Mu set off for the shipyard near Beihai County in the Northeast. Armed with the steamship blueprints provided by the Kingdom of Hua, and utilizing furnaces powered by large steam engines, the Great Xia shipyard—under Chen Mu’s direct supervision—produced its first steam-powered vessel in just one month.

The ship was not large, with a capacity of only about a hundred people. However, Chen Mu’s goal for this ship was not troop transport, but rather the transport of oil. Regardless of whether oil was discovered first in the Rakshasa Kingdom or the Northeast, shipping by sea would be the fastest method. If found in the Rakshasa Kingdom, they could sail north along the coastline to collect it; if in the Northeast, they could sail south and then transport it via the great rivers to the capital of Great Xia.

Before long, news arrived from the Rakshasa Kingdom that oil had been found. Chen Mu was overjoyed and immediately called Chen Xingtian, instructing him to transport the extraction equipment to the shipyard. Chen Mu then boarded the ship, carrying the equipment with him, and set off for the Rakshasa Kingdom. Although the oil field was only two thousand miles away from the Northeast in a straight line, the complex terrain on land made transport difficult, making the sea route far more convenient.

Upon arrival, Chen Mu guided the team in installing the extraction equipment and conducted a test run. The extraction system from the Kingdom of Hua used steam power to drive a piston and connecting rod system, drawing out crude oil through air pressure. It also featured an oil-gas separation system that used distillation to isolate gasoline. While observing the process, Chen Mu noticed that the crude oil released a certain gas, and a thought struck him.

"Wait, isn't this... that thing?"

A researcher from the Kingdom of Hua standing nearby said, "Your Highness, we call this 'oil gas.' Although it is flammable, it is very difficult to collect or store, so we usually just discard it."

Chen Mu clapped his hands. "That’s it! Gas—natural gas!"

The researcher’s eyes lit up. "Your Highness, do you know how to utilize this?"

Chen Mu shook his head. "No, you’re right; with our current technology, we cannot effectively use it. But it reminded me of something else: tear gas."

The researcher looked puzzled. "Tear gas? This substance has a bit of an odor, but surely it wouldn't make someone cry?"

Chen Mu laughed. "You misunderstand. That is not what I intend to use."

The invention Chen Mu had in mind was called "tear gas," but it would not be made from natural gas; it would merely function in a similar way. In reality, tear gas is a canister-based, non-lethal weapon filled with various irritants. If the Great Xia were to produce it, the best material would be chili peppers.

Chen Mu acted immediately. After finalizing the extraction and transport plans, he returned to the Great Xia by ship and went to the Institute of Technology to begin developing the tear gas.

Several months later, most of the Great Xia’s steam-powered crawler vehicles had been converted to electric drive. Their gasoline reserves were sufficient, and a large supply of tear gas had been prepared. The time had come to retake the Black Earth Fortress.

Although it was winter, the climate worked in the Great Xia’s favor. The temperature along the route from the Great Xia to the Black Earth Fortress would not be low enough to freeze their gasoline, though the soldiers would certainly feel the cold. Fortunately, the Great Xia had down-filled jackets, which provided excellent protection. The Western Kingdom, however, likely had no such gear—not even cotton-padded clothing. Both the Kingdom of Hua and the Western Kingdom relied on furs, which could not be mass-produced for an entire army.

For this campaign, Chen Mu brought only his elite forces: four thousand musketeers and one thousand artillerymen, all veterans of the Invincible Flying Army. They were accompanied by fifty heavy cannons, two hundred light cannons, and three hundred and fifty supply vehicles.

These supply vehicles were significantly improved from the previous models. Earlier versions required vast amounts of space for fuel, but now, they had been converted to fuel-powered electrical systems. This not only reduced the space occupied by the machinery but also drastically decreased the volume of fuel required. These supplies were enough to sustain the expeditionary force for a full month.

Furthermore, the speed of the Great Xia army had made a qualitative leap. Crossing the desert, which once took seven days, now took only two. When Chen Mu led his massive army to the Black Earth Fortress, he felt surprisingly refreshed, entirely free of the exhaustion that had plagued their previous long treks across the desert through the land of the Xiongnu.

Looking at the Black Earth Fortress in the distance, Chen Mu whispered, "People of the West, I have returned."