Inside the military tent, the generals stared blankly at the two new items in Liang Xiao's hands.
One resembled a "long stick," but its base appeared transparent.
The other consisted of two "short sticks" connected by a bracket. The distance between them could be adjusted via the bracket to match the interpupillary distance of ordinary human eyes.
"Marshal, is this glass?" asked Lü Changhe, a man of extensive knowledge.
Liang Xiao explained, "A telescope. This year's Ministry of Works is truly efficient!"
"Telescope?" The generals, unable to grasp the meaning, resorted to literal interpretation. "Is it a treasure that can see distant things?"
Liang Xiao nodded and led the generals out of the tent to a high ground, handing them the telescopes to try.
"What?!"
Lü Changhe, the first to use the telescope, nearly suffocated.
Things that had been unclear in the distance now seemed within reach!
However, the surface of the lenses still had some imperfections.
After eagerly trying them, all the generals were astonished.
"This is truly a divine artifact! If scouts are equipped with this, they can discover enemy movements in advance, greatly enhancing reconnaissance capabilities and personal safety! Guard posts can also detect enemy activity faster. The artillerymen of the Divine Martial Cannons can also fire more accurately!" 138 Reading Network
"This telescope can probably see clearly up to seventy zhang away, right? If officers of all units are equipped with this, they can also understand the enemy situation more quickly!"
Liang Xiao nodded and smiled, "This is a treasure from the Ministry of Works, sent via urgent express from the capital. The craftsmanship still needs improvement, but it can be immediately put to military use. We might not have enough telescopes for this battle, but we will certainly have enough by the time we recapture Jiaozhou! This is because the workshops in Yuzhang have received technical guidance from the Ministry of Works and are rushing to produce them."
As he spoke, Liang Xiao winked at the Shadow Guard who had delivered the telescopes. The guard immediately took ten telescopes from his satchel.
"Including these two, the Ministry of Works has sent a total of one hundred telescopes, fifty of each type. Some will be sent to General Shi as soon as possible, and the rest will be given to guard posts and front-line scouts first."
The crowd looked at the pile of telescopes, extremely excited. "As expected of the Marshal, he always comes up with strange and practical treasures!"
From early longbows, Zhuge repeating crossbows, Shenbi bows, bed crossbows... to the current Divine Martial Cannons and telescopes, all have brought qualitative improvements to the combat effectiveness of the Great Qian army without exception.
And beyond the military, there is white sugar, movable-type printing...
In the eyes of the soldiers, Liang Xiao had long become a god sent from heaven, as their Emperor also believed.
Only Liang Xiao still felt regret.
These were already the best telescopes that the Great Qian Ministry of Works could produce at the moment.
Polishing and grinding the lenses was quite difficult in this era, as the glass produced was not yet of the highest quality. Being able to make them at all was a tremendous breakthrough.
Battlefield vision is an extremely important aspect. If fierce generals like himself, Achilles, and Zuo Wuji did not have superior eyesight, they would not be able to understand the enemy situation in time and might be overwhelmed by enemy forces.
If Yue Qingtian and others could have sufficient understanding of the distant battlefield situation before the battle, they could choose the best time and position for engagement based on their combat experience, greatly enhancing safety and practical combat capabilities.
According to his knowledge, there were many capable individuals in the Central and Western Asian regions.
The Huihui siege engine was developed by the Huihui people found by Kublai Khan. The geographical environment of Central and West Asia also made it easier for people there to produce high-quality glass, which meant that the Tianri tribe might also have mastered glassmaking technology and then imitated telescopes.
Telescopes must be equipped as soon as possible to seize the initiative!
A group of cavalry took twenty telescopes and galloped away from the camp,绕过山头 (went around the mountain), and delivered them to Shi Liuyun, who was detouring to the southwest.
The remaining eighty telescopes were equipped to sentries, scouts, the Divine Martial Cannon regiment, legion commanders, and front-line commanders.
As it was impossible to guarantee that there were no spies within the army, news about this new item, which allowed people to see distant situations, was not immediately spread throughout the camp.
Soldiers and ordinary officers only knew that some of their comrades could see farther than before, greatly improving command and reconnaissance efficiency.
After the scouts received the telescopes, they patrolled outside the mountains.
If they encountered enemy scouts, they would immediately engage and kill them.
If they discovered enemy cavalry units, they could also quickly withdraw from the scene, reducing casualty rates.
Yue Qingtian took Liang Xiao's Setting Sun Bow, and flew on horseback with Nan Jiyun and others to the foot of the mountain. Based on the night wind and reports from the scouts, they selected the areas where Jiaozhou soldiers were most concentrated.
Each person's satchel was filled with arrows and surrender proclamations printed in advance by the army in Yuzhang, including several that were urgently copied today.
"The Tianri tribe disregards human life, harming five thousand citizens of Great Qian. You are all people of Jiaozhou, citizens of Great Qian. Why must you seek skin from a tiger! Surrender to Great Qian, and you will be rewarded, not punished!"
"Marshal An Guohou Liang Xiao, by order of His Majesty, hereby informs the officers and soldiers of Jiaozhou: Surrender and be spared; those who resist will be killed without mercy! Those who voluntarily surrender will be rewarded with at least ten taels of silver, not a single copper will be deducted!"
A large number of silk proclamations, with similar content, mostly simple text, to avoid parts of soldiers who were not literate from not understanding the content and failing to inform their comrades in time.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!"
The horses ridden by Nan Jiyun and others were all top-grade steeds captured from the barbaric kings, as well as precious horses gifted by Lü Yi and Gongsun Ye. They galloped outside the mountains, evading enemy ballistae and bed crossbows, shooting arrows in all directions.
Each arrow carried a silk proclamation, all shot into the enemy encampment.
Yue Qingtian, possessing innate divine strength, drew the Setting Sun Bow on horseback. The arrow that flew from the string even penetrated into the enemy encampment and was picked up by the surrounding soldiers.
"What did it say?"
The soldiers asked their literate comrades.
Some officers and generals remained silent after reading the content.
However, a few officers and generals, after reading the content, looked around to confirm that they were all familiar comrades before quietly explaining the content to them.
"The Jiaozhou captives are in Luzhou responsible for logistics, with food and lodging provided! The Great Qian court truly treats us as citizens of Great Qian!"
"His Majesty and Marquis An Guo are willing to accept us Jiaozhou people as members of the Qian clan?"
"The citizens of Great Qian have long been members of the 'Qian clan,' with unity between the army and the people..."
The consequence of troop concentration was that any rumor could quickly spread throughout the army.
Three hours later, almost all the officers and soldiers knew about Liang Xiao's surrender offer, and even understood most of the content of the surrender.
Whether it was the reward for surrender or becoming a member of the Qian clan, it was a great temptation to these fearful Jiaozhou soldiers.
In comparison, the three taels of silver previously distributed did not seem as attractive.
After all, Xiao Chang and the generals could use various excuses after the battle, and this silver might be consumed for "bribes" or "filial piety to superiors." Given the style of the rulers of Jiaozhou, this was not impossible!
The leaders of Jiaozhou also received the news of the surrender offer.