The journey of the only child of a peasant family to take the imperial examination

Zouping, Liu Sanlang, Ruan San and others all knew the seriousness of the situation and were extremely alert.

Liu Sanlang and Ruan San were assigned to be on duty the night before, and Zouping volunteered to be responsible for the more tiring second half of the night.

The patrol team also stepped up patrols around the county town at night, and deployed elite troops at the city gates and towers.

Fortunately, nothing happened overnight!

At daybreak, Zhang Pingan got up and went to the city wall to replace Zou Ping.

As the current superior of Ze County, he had to visit the soldiers and show his face to boost their morale after they had worked hard on the night stand.

The most indispensable thing on the front line is morale, that is, the cohesion of the army!

On the way to the city wall, patrol soldiers, both familiar and unfamiliar, greeted Zhang Pingan along the way.

The discipline is strict, the voices are loud, and the formation is not at all disordered.

Zhang Ping'an stood with his hands behind his back, nodding in admiration in his heart.

When we got to the second floor of the city wall, we saw Zou Ping had been on guard for half the night, his eyes were bloodshot, but his body was still straight.

Wearing armor and holding a red tasseled spear, you can tell at first glance that he is an old soldier.

Seeing Zhang Ping'an coming over, Zou Ping's face relaxed a bit and said, "Don't worry, sir. Nothing happened last night. As long as today and tomorrow pass and Lao Tu comes back, there will be no serious problems."

"Thank you for your hard work," Zhang Ping'an patted the deputy's shoulder and encouraged him.

Then he casually took out the telescope given by Green Bean Eyes from his arms, stood at the edge of the city wall, and looked around.

The surroundings are still the same, and there is no sign of any movement.

I couldn't help but feel a little relieved.

"Zou Ping, you must be tired after being on duty all night. Go back and rest. I'm here during the day, and I have other deputies. If there's anything urgent, I'll send someone to call you," said Zhang Ping'an.

Zouping was really tired after working half the night, so he nodded and said, "Okay, I'll come back in the evening!"

After saying that, he looked at the telescope in Zhang Ping'an's hand with some curiosity: "Sir, this is the water crystal telescope that came from Persia, right? It is said that it can see up to 30 miles away."

"Yes, that's right. This is a special telescope used by a good friend of mine when sailing. When he knew I was coming to the front line, he gave it to me. When the weather is good, I can see what is happening twenty or thirty miles away. At night, I can probably only see four or five miles away," Zhang Pingan said with a smile.

Zou Ping was envious after hearing this and sighed, "We have telescopes in our army too, but we can't see as far or as clearly as the telescope in your hand. They are precious and only officers of the sixth rank and above can be equipped with them. I wish we could have more of them someday. They may be small, but they are very helpful during marches and battles!"

"To be honest, my sixth brother-in-law actually works in the Ministry of Industry and likes to study these things. The musket currently used in the military camp was invented by him. I have thought about asking him to help make some telescopes before, but the lens materials are scarce, for one thing, and secondly, it requires a precise grinding process, which is very complicated, so I gave up," Zhang Pingan also felt very regretful.

In fact, although natural crystals are scarce, they are not the most difficult thing for him.

What rare things can’t the noble families get?

Just as Qian Youyi’s dowry included a piece of crystal as big as a mirror.

The main problem is the lack of current optical theory. The lens requires precise curvature, and manual grinding results in large errors, which affects imaging.

Furthermore, there is no concept of the combination of objective lens and eyepiece, and no measuring tools, making it difficult to design the magnification optical path.

Therefore, the only peepholes available in the military now are made using traditional methods, which can magnify three or four times, but the viewing distance is limited, and the edges are blurred and prone to color dispersion.

Proper telescopes can only be brought back from other countries, and they are very expensive, comparable to a modern Rolls-Royce, so they cannot be equipped to the military.

"Well, that's true. It would be great if I could find a craftsman who can make it." Zou Ping really hopes that he can have such a telescope, but it is too difficult.

"We can always figure out a way. When I have some free time, I'll ask my sixth brother-in-law to study the peepholes currently used in the military to see if there's room for improvement," Zhang Ping'an pondered.

This is one of his planned goals, but he is not omnipotent and there is no good solution now.

but……

Zhang Pingan handed the telescope to Zou Ping and said with a smile, "I'll lend you this telescope first. It will be much more useful in your hands than in mine!"

Zou Ping was a little surprised and quickly refused: "No, no, no, sir, this is too valuable. If it gets bumped or damaged, it will be troublesome!"

He can't afford the compensation even if he sells it!

"If it's broken, it's broken. Things are meant to be used. Just use them with confidence." Zhang Ping'an waved his hand, stuffed the things into Zou Ping's arms, and urged: "Go back and rest!"

Seeing Zhang Ping'an's eyes that didn't allow for rejection and that he really wanted to borrow it, Zou Ping smiled heartily, a rare smile of his, and said with a cupped hand: "Thank you very much, sir. I will definitely take good care of it!"

"I know the military is full of rough guys, and there aren't that many rules. I'm a military officer now, so I should adapt to the local customs. You don't have to be so polite when you speak. Okay, let's go!"

Zouping smiled and bowed before leaving.

At this moment, his feelings towards Zhang Pingan became more sincere, and it was no longer just superficial courtesy.

Nothing happened during the day.

Ruan San relaxed a bit during dinner that evening and said casually, "I don't think those rebels will come towards us. They are badly injured and haven't recovered yet. We have enough manpower here and the city walls for defense. If they come over, wouldn't that be like hanging yourself to death?"

Liu Sanlang ate silently without responding. After he finished, he reminded her, "Whether they come or not, we just need to do our part and not be careless!"

Zou Ping said with a serious expression, "It's not easy for those rebels to survive until now. Their behavior cannot be judged by common sense. As long as we have food, we will inevitably be targeted."

Ruan San scratched his head awkwardly after hearing this: "That's just what I said. Don't worry, I will definitely be on my guard."

Zouping was a steady and responsible man, but he was still a little worried, so he arranged, "Tonight, you two will take the first half of the night, and I'll take the second half."

Liu Sanlang was a little embarrassed: "Why don't we switch today? The two of us will definitely keep a close eye on it tonight."

"Forget it, you guys can take up the second half of the night shift after Old Baldy comes back. It's only a one-night job, otherwise I won't be at ease," Zou Ping shook his head and refused.

According to his experience, if there really is a night attack, it usually happens in the second half of the night, when people are the most sleepy.

But Zouping didn't expect that this time the other party would really take an unconventional approach.

After he went back to rest, Liu Sanlang and Ruan San, together with another deputy, took up duty all night.

It was the end of the month when the moon was hazy and only the stars in the sky were emitting faint light.

It was quiet up ahead.

Seeing that it was almost time to take over, Ruan Sancai secretly yawned and said, "I'm so sleepy, I really want to go back to sleep!"

"You guys are still young and inexperienced. You won't feel sleepy if you wait a while longer," the deputy joked with the look of a veteran.

"When I first started on night duty, it was a hot day, with mosquitoes flying everywhere and cicadas chirping and frogs croaking non-stop. I could even fall asleep while standing up, and our captain would kick me awake countless times throughout the night. Now I don't do that anymore, I'm used to it!"

"Hahaha, but it seems to be okay today. I hardly hear any frog sounds at this moment," Ruan San said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, the deputy listened carefully. It was the fourth hour of the night and there were no frog croaking sounds. Only the hoarse "cawing" of crows and the shrill cry of owls could be heard from time to time.

"Something seems wrong," the deputy said with a serious look on his face.

But looking into the distance, it was pitch black and I couldn't see anything at all.

Liu Sanlang and Ruan San also became nervous when they heard this. Liu Sanlang was much taller than the others and had better eyesight, so he could see farther. After observing carefully, he frowned and said, "The fog is so thick ahead, I can't see clearly!"

The deputy cursed, "Damn it, there must be something wrong. The weather has been great these past few days, with such bright sunshine during the day, so how could there be such thick fog at night?"

After saying this, he solemnly ordered the two men, "One of you will go to guard the city gate, and the other will go to the county government office to call over Lord Zou and tell him that we suspect an enemy attack!"

Liu Sanlang immediately said, "I'm strong, so I'll guard the city gate. Ruan San, you're fast, so you go to the county government office!"

After saying that, he walked down the city wall.

The atmosphere was very tense for a moment.

However, the deputy's vigilance was correct. Zou Ping hurried over and as soon as he got onto the city wall, he quickly took out the telescope that Zhang Pingan had lent him and looked forward carefully.

After a while, I saw some people on the trees in the distance. Although I couldn't see people under the trees, there were definitely quite a few of them.

"Damn it! This isn't fog, this is smoke!" Zou Ping couldn't help cursing and ordered his men, "Blow the horn quickly! The enemy is attacking! All troops, be on alert!"