The strongest devouring system in the Three Kingdoms

You old rascal, you're wicked! I don't believe a word you say. Those who don't follow the rules either get noodles or wonton noodles, right? And you're saying you're asking me to go back? You're kidding me!

Thump thump thump, the target practice continued over there, but Mao Wenlong had no interest in watching anymore. With a strong output and a stable team, there would be plenty of opportunities to watch later.

"This is feasible, but I can't guarantee that the imperial court will agree to this arrangement. Would Young Master Li still be willing to help me then?"

"Absolutely. Even if nothing else happens, we absolutely have to help with the attack on Zhenjiang."

Chen Er unconsciously used the Northeastern accent from the original timeline, but he also made it very clear that if he couldn't get the job of guarding Lushun, whether he would still form a group in the future was another matter.

"Let's go back then. We need to discuss this matter more carefully."

Mao Wenlong carefully put the binoculars into the deerskin bag that Chen Er handed him. After looking around, he thought for a moment and then hung the bag around his neck.

"Come on, let's have a look at the gifts we brought you before we go to eat."

Once ashore, Chen Er took Mao Wenlong to see the gifts.

"There really is a gift?" Mao Wenlong had always thought that Chen Er invited him over as a show of force.

"That's necessary."

Looking at the gleaming sabers and spearheads inside the pried-open wooden crate, Mao Wenlong was momentarily stunned. 500 sabers and 2000 spearheads—what a generous gift!

Picking up a waist knife, Mao Wenlong tapped it with his fingers, then scraped the blade with his thumb. It was a knife made of good steel.

"Are all the sabers and spearheads in this room the same kind?"

“Yes, all of them. Come on, bring out the armor.” Chen Er answered simply and decisively.

One hundred sets of long-sleeved chainmail and one set of full plate armor were brought out.

"It's too precious, too precious..."

Even though he was already a high-ranking military officer, Mao Wenlong was still taken aback by Chen Er's extravagant display. Swords and spears aside, high-quality steel was certainly a good thing.

But these suits of armor were completely different. Nurhaci, the chieftain of the slaves, rose to power with only 13 sets of armor.

In ancient times, chainmail was a high-class item, and only important generals or fallen soldiers could wear it. If you wore a leather armor over it, you would be basically immune to swords and arrows.

Not to mention this suit of armor, Mao Wenlong stroked it while muttering to himself.

"Commander Mao, why don't you try on this armor?"

If you're going to put on a show, you have to go all the way; if you're going to give a gift, you have to give it properly. This full suit of plate armor was custom-made for Mao Wenlong based on the description in Dong Xian's letter.

"Good good."

Mao Wenlong walked around the warehouse wearing plate armor, shouting praises as he went. This set of plate armor was a prototype from the workshop.

When discussing what armor to use for infantry combat, Chen Er expressed his opinion. The Ming Dynasty people naturally strongly advocated iron-leaf leather armor, but Chen Er had a deep impression of full plate armor.

Since everyone has different opinions, let's follow the old rule and make them all and compare them to see who has the better opinion.

The defensive effect of plate armor is undeniable, but its disadvantages are quite significant upon comparison.

First of all, plate armor is very heavy. Even after being hammered down to be very thin, the prototype steel full plate armor still weighed 36 kilograms. This weight is acceptable as a vest, but too heavy for foot armor.

Secondly, the manufacture of plate armor is very complicated. Many connecting parts need to be riveted together, and since everyone's body proportions are different, if you want to move around freely after wearing it, almost everyone needs a different size.

Leaf beetles are different. Once the dimensions are determined, anyone can drill the leaf blades; just start hammering. Drilling is simple now too; a few strokes on a drill press and it's done. It's the weaving that's more troublesome, but women can do all of that.

The modern-day Chen Er finally gave up his dream of establishing a plate armor legion. Not only was it too costly, but such soldiers could mostly only defend, and they would get tired after walking a few hundred meters.

No wonder only noblemen in Europe could wear it.

"Commander Mao, how about we try out this armor's defense?"

Seeing the excited Mao Wenlong, Chen Er decided to show him the defensive value of plate armor.

"Come on, come on, go ahead and try."

Mao Wenlong was undoubtedly a fierce general. If he weren't brave, he wouldn't have been able to lead a hundred or so men to attack the Later Jin fortress.

If he weren't brave, he wouldn't be able to lead his subordinates to attack the heartland of the Later Jin every year, because Chen Er vaguely remembered that Mao Wenlong had once led troops to raid Anshanwei as far as possible.

Chen Er turned around and took a waist knife from the wooden box. When he turned back, he saw that all of Mao Wenlong's men were staring at him.

Mao Wenlong was eagerly anticipating seeing the armor's defensive capabilities, but then he saw Chen Er holding a waist knife without making a move.

After lifting the mask and looking around, Mao Wenlong roared.

"All of you, step back. What, my words no longer carry weight?"

Mao Wenlong's men looked at each other, then took a few steps back. Taking advantage of this moment, Chen Er stepped forward and delivered a diagonal upward slash, followed by a downward chop.

Squeak... Crack. Two teeth-grinding sounds rang out, and everyone, whether they were Chen Er's men or Mao Wenlong's men, couldn't help but frown and turn their heads away.

That sound was absolutely awful.

After using his sword twice, Chen Er threw it back into the wooden box. Mao Wenlong was in a hurry to have someone remove his helmet, as he couldn't take it off by himself without help.

Everyone gathered around, because apart from Chen Er, no one else had ever witnessed the armor's defensive capabilities.

Hiss. The crowd that had gathered around gasped; there wasn't even a mark on the armor.

The room was full of men who were used to fighting. They all understood what Chen Er had done earlier. Veterans always slashed with their knives like that. Chopping was something only greenhorns could do. They would run out of strength after a few blows.

Mao Wenlong was still very interested in calling for more people to continue the experiment, but Chen Er stopped him.

"Commander Mao, you've been busy all morning. The banquet is all ready. Let's go eat first. This armor is yours. You can try it on however you like when we get back to the manor."

"Yes, yes. Come here, Chenglu, help me remove the armor."

The tall but lean Mao Chenglu quickly stepped in to help, while the short but fair-skinned Shang Kexi also assisted from the other side.

How did he become a traitor? Probably because he was afraid of death. I wonder where Kong Youde and Geng Zhongming are?

“Young Master Li, let’s not mention the matter of exchanging Liao people for grain. Just send people to recruit as many people as you need. I’m also troubled by appeasing them.”

Having received such a generous gift, Mao Wenlong knew that Chen Er truly intended to help him.

The previous discussion about capturing Zhenjiang was just a transaction; everyone got what they wanted. But giving away so many weapons and armor would have been completely unnecessary if it weren't for genuine sincerity.

"Commander Mao, what are you saying? Business is business, and personal relationships are personal relationships. We should do things the way they should and not mix them up."

Chen Er didn't just want a few hundred or a few thousand people. If things went smoothly, he wanted to take over the hundreds of thousands of Liao people in Dongjiang. If he didn't offer something in return, Mao Wenlong might also have his own ideas.