After Being Abducted by the General

chapter 80

After listening to Yuan Dan, Yuan Li and Chu Hechao didn't return to their rooms. Instead, they turned with their guards and followed Yuan Dan towards the Artifact Division.

The Artifact Division was located in a secluded and quiet area, hidden and secure, allowing the staff to work in peace. When Yuan Li arrived, he saw Cui Yan with disheveled hair, hunched over a desk, writing something.

There were scattered papers and bamboo slips all around him, and several craftsmen were busy walking around, creating things. Wood shavings were piled up on the ground.

Yuan Li had found many people for the Artifact Division, but most of them were craftsmen who could do manual work. There were only two people, Yuan Dan and Cui Yan, who had the knowledge and literacy. However, craftsmen were not inferior to intellectuals in terms of creativity. They had rich experience and often brought astonishing ideas to Yuan Dan and Cui Yan.

Yuan Dan carefully avoided the objects on the ground and walked up to Cui Yan, gently pushing him and suppressing his excitement. "Cui Yan, Le Jun has come!"

Cui Yan raised his head in a daze, with two prominent blue circles under his eyes. This scholar, who used to live a carefree life at the foot of Mangshan, now seemed completely drained of his vitality and no longer had the leisurely and comfortable demeanor he once had.

Upon seeing Yuan Li and the General's arrival, Cui Yan's eyes were still somewhat dazed. "Why have you both come?"

Yuan Dan was anxious and patted him again. "Le Jun and the General came to see the crossbow!"

Cui Yan winced in pain but immediately realized what was happening. He stood up with renewed vigor and said, "Gentlemen, please follow me."

Yuan Li and Chu Hechao exchanged a glance and followed him into the courtyard.

Two crossbows had already been placed there.

One was a large bed crossbow, while the other was a small one-armed crossbow.

Chu Hechao immediately noticed the novelty of the bed crossbow.

Underneath the bed crossbow, there was a wooden frame for support. It used three bows combined onto the crossbow, making it drastically different from the massive crossbows he had seen before.

Chu Hechao's eyes flashed with interest. He took a few steps forward to examine it closely. After seeing the long and deep arrow grooves that could seemingly accommodate spears, he looked up at Cui Yan with an intense gaze. "Is this the modified bed crossbow you mentioned?"

Cui Yan smiled shyly. "After the Governor mentioned the possibility of integrating mathematics into weapons, I was puzzled. I discussed it with the Governor, and he mentioned that there are only bed crossbows and catapults as long-range weapons on the battlefield. However, both of these weapons have their shortcomings. He believed that these weapons could be improved with precise calculations. For example, with the bed crossbow, by combining the force of several bows, the power could be increased... After the Governor explained it to me, I came up with the idea to modify the bed crossbow and improve its mechanism to enhance its power and range."

Chu Hechao raised an eyebrow, looking somewhat teasingly at Yuan Li, his lips curling up. "So, my sister-in-law is also involved in this field."

After confirming their relationship, hearing him being called sister-in-law felt extremely peculiar to Yuan Li, with a sense of guilt and forbidden affair lingering in his heart. He ignored this feeling and calmly smiled, modestly saying, "It was just a spontaneous thought from me. I never expected that Mr. Cui could actually bring it to life and make it so impressive."