Question: when did the chinese first use gunpowder as a weapon
Answer: The first possible reference to the use of fire arrows was by the Southern Wu in 904 during the siege of Yuzhang , when an officer under Yang Xingmi by the name of Zheng Fan ( 鄭 璠 ) ordered his troops to `` shoot off a machine to let fire and burn the Longsha Gate , '' after which he and his troops dashed over the fire into the city and captured it , and he was promoted to Prime Minister Inspectorate for his efforts and the burns his body endured .