If you reward one person, the three armies will be brave and will be rewarded. If you kill one person, the three armies will be frightened and they will be killed.
He Xi unintentionally followed this art of war, and his kindness to the Ge family was like standing a tree at the city gate of Shang Yang. He completely captured the trust of these craftsmen. When He Xi was sleeping soundly, almost all the craftsmen were not asleep.
Sleep.
Some craftsmen wish they were the ones who died today.
They thought hard one by one, trying to find ways to perfect the method of steelmaking based on He Xi's theory.
In the same era, there are very few so-called peerless geniuses. But there are many geniuses. To put it bluntly, the strength of these craftsmen who can be selected may be slightly worse than Foreman Ge. But the determination is not much different. More
It should be between equals.
Each has strengths in different aspects.
Whatever Foreman Ge can think of, they can also think of it. Not to mention improving on Foreman Ge's plan. They all have their own ideas.
So, at the meeting early the next morning, He Xi saw for the first time the enthusiastic speeches of almost all the craftsmen.
To be honest, He Xi didn't know much about some details. He Xi didn't understand what many craftsmen said.
However, He Xi knew what he was doing. It didn't matter if he didn't understand. He asked Ge Tiangong to take notes. Then he listed all the opinions and discussed them one by one. If there was any conflict, he would choose one. If there was no conflict, he would merge them.
The discussion lasted a whole day.
Only then did we discuss two plans and implement Foreman Ge's two routes.
A timetable was also planned, and the second experiment could be conducted approximately ten days after preparation.
Don't think ten days is a long time. Among other things, build a new blast furnace. Even if you dismantle refractory bricks from the old blast furnace and use them, it will take a while until the blast furnace is completely dry. This is already the fastest.
In fact, at this time, the coking earth kiln had already started and has not stopped. Coking coal was being stored.
He Xi was also surprised by the changes in these people. He asked Ge Tiangong what happened. Ge Tiangong said: "Everyone appreciates the teacher's virtue and is willing to be used by him?"
He Xi didn't really believe this, but the emperor was not short of hungry soldiers, so he rewarded all the treasures he brought to the craftsmen with a stroke of his pen, and everyone involved had a share. Then he ordered Xu Baoer to return to the palace and report to the prince.
The prince makes money.
After all, in He Xi's view, not to mention the Hongwu period, it was the period when the Ming Dynasty's treasury was the most abundant. Even if the Ming Dynasty did not have enough money, it should not discount the steelmaking project. In this era, this project is equivalent to New China's
Two bombs and one star. It is definitely of strategic level. I feel it is a strategic priority.
Therefore, he did not hesitate to spend money at all.
As a result, the originally highly motivated craftsmen, after a rain of money, even had food and accommodation on the construction site. The progress was rapid.
First of all, in the second completed route, molten iron was introduced into a square pool and stirred. However, because the craftsmen could not control the heat well, the first few furnaces produced wrought iron. But after the third furnace, it was steel.
It's just that the quality is not very stable.
However, the steel quality requirements for the armor pieces required for iron armor are not too high. As long as they are steel.
He Xi immediately dispatched some craftsmen to start building the water hammer beside the blast furnace.
The use of hydraulic power is familiar to Ming craftsmen. However, hydraulic power has not been directly used for mechanical processing before. This requires some temporary changes. This will take time.
He Xi did not pay attention to the matters here. He was still waiting for the construction of the new blast furnace to be successful.
Ten days later, the new blast furnace was finally completed.
However, it is much smaller than the previous blast furnace, about as tall as a person. However, the air duct blower has not been reduced at all. The material is still fed from the top, and the molten steel is directly discharged from the bottom. Not enough material is fed, and what is put in is not iron ore, but pig iron.
Already.
Under He Xi's watchful eye, the second experiment began.
Originally, He Xi thought it would still take a day and a night. But by the afternoon, the craftsmen had reported that molten steel could be produced.
This time the speed was far beyond expectations.
What surprised He Xi even more was that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince arrived.
"His Royal Highness, you are here like this." He Xi said in shock when he saw the sudden arrival of the prince.
The prince led a group of attendants and said: "Brother He has not been in the palace these days. My father has been thinking about you. He has been busy with the Southern Expedition. I have free time today, so I naturally want to see you. How is everything going well?"
He Xi said: "The prince came just in time, the furnace is about to start."
The prince looked at the small blast furnace. Although it was some distance away, he could still feel a wave of heat coming in. It turned autumn into a sweltering summer. He said, "Is that just right? Look at your achievements, Brother He."
"Open the furnace------" shouted a shirtless craftsman wearing calf shorts. He aimed a long iron rod at the tapping hole under the small blast furnace and stabbed it hard. After a few seconds,
Then, the reserved opening was opened.
The red molten iron surged out from the taphole.
The molten iron gradually settled down from the channels reserved on the ground.
At the same time, someone pushed a cart and pushed carts of coke and pig iron onto the furnace mouth from the reserved slope, and then carefully added the materials into the red furnace from above. This was also a scene.
key improvements.
This improvement is to use the temperature of the furnace to continuously input materials so that the blast furnace can operate around the clock.
It greatly saves fuel and improves production efficiency. Unless there is a problem with the blast furnace and it needs maintenance, it can continue all the time. Even in modern steel companies, there is no power outage. This is also the reason. For no other reason, once the heating is stopped, the molten steel will
It solidified in the iron furnace and destroyed the entire iron furnace.
He Xi actually did not understand the significance of these improvements, and did not even understand the technical essentials of this blast furnace. He only proposed the principles of the promotion program, and then inspired the enthusiasm of the craftsmen. It can be said to be the integration of thousands of years of Chinese steelmaking technology.
Just achieve this effect.
He Xi did not pay attention to the craftsmen who were adding materials. Instead, he looked at the solidified steel ingots.
The prince did not check it himself. Instead, he moved slightly. A guard next to him came forward and knocked two still-warm steel ingots against each other to listen to the sound. Then his face changed slightly. He placed the steel ingots on an earthen platform.
. One leg came forward slightly, and the other leg formed a lunge. Press the knife with your hand. Squat down slightly. It seems that a force bursts out from the sole of the foot. With a clang, the knife is unsheathed and slashed down with one strike. First listen to "Beng"
", and then an unstoppable "buzzing" sound was heard.
The former is the sound of a long knife breaking, and the latter is a broken section of the handle of a long knife. It seems that it has no remaining strength and is shaking constantly.
When the guard drew his sword, the tiger's mouth had been opened and blood was flowing down.
The prince then stepped forward and looked at the steel ingot. There was only a shallow mark. When he touched it with his hand, it seemed invisible. But if he touched it carefully, he could still feel it.
The prince said: "Good steel. Really good steel."
The prince knows very well what kind of equipment his personal bodyguards are equipped with. After the prince's personal bodyguards are all lieutenant generals, everyone's armor and weapons are the best. Especially the weapons in their hands. They are all made of the finest steel.
There are not many of the best weapons in the army. They are only used by him, his father, and the generals in the army as personal guards. There are only more than 10,000 weapons in the whole country.
I don't dare to cut through the iron like mud, but I should cut into the steel ingot a few points. At least make a gap, rather than directly break.
This shows the quality of this steel ingot.
He Xi smiled softly and said: "Your Majesty, this is the preliminary result. If a few days pass, there will be something more subtle for the prince to see."
The prince said: "But, your new armor and water hammer?"
He Xi was slightly startled and said, "The prince knows."
The prince said: "Father is very concerned about you and what you are doing here. Father has people report to you every day. In fact, I came here today because I have something to do."
Zhu Yuanzhang's concern, in the prince's view, was a favor to He Xi. There were countless ministers of the Ming Dynasty who did not expect this kind of treatment. But He Xi felt a little bit bitter. However, he was mentally prepared.
.
He Xi suppressed the bitterness in her heart and said, "What are the prince's orders?"
The prince said: "How many days will it take to complete your new armor? Also, are you sure about it?"
He Xi said: "If everything goes well, the next batch of molten steel will be ready. If it doesn't go well, it will happen within three to five days."
The prince said: "Brother He, do you know what I have been busy with these days?"
He Xi said: "The prince just said that it was about the Southern Expedition."
The prince said: "We are almost ready for the Southern Expedition. We have the Marquis of Yingchuan as the commander-in-chief and the Marquis of Xiping as the deputy commander-in-chief. They will lead the army in Sichuan and Huguang. The first camp in Beijing has a total of 300,000 people. Among them, there are probably ten elites.
Everyone. Military orders have been issued in the past few days and they have rushed to various places in the southwest. And the Marquis of Yingchuan has been out of the capital for a few days. My father wants the Marquis of Yingchuan to take a look at your new armor before leaving. Do you know the meaning behind it?
."
The prince turned around and threw aside the steel ingot in his hand. He looked at He Xi with bright eyes.
He Xi was stunned, thought about it for a while, and said, "I have some guesses. I just don't dare to lie."
The prince waved his hand, and the people around him immediately took a few dozen steps back.
The prince said: "Of course you can't say these things to others, but Brother He is one of our own. My father values you so much, and I, as the elder brother, have some words to say to you. My father is the founding king of the country, and he is majestic and powerful.
The world is already under heaven, and the subjects of the world are indifferent and unsubmissive. No monarch or ministers trust him, and they are not afraid of the Marquis of Yingchuan. Hmph, the Marquis of Yingchuan is good at using troops, but can it compare to the achievements of my father, who defeated Chen Youliang in the west and defeated Zhang Shicheng in the east?"
"However, people's hearts are unpredictable, and they want both the monarch and his ministers to be harmonious. Not only must the father be magnanimous, but also the ministers must know the capabilities of the court. Don't think about things you shouldn't think about. Even if you have thoughts that you shouldn't think about, you can't do it.
