Chapter 49 (for further reading) The experiment failed
The relief and playfulness of his friends temporarily relieved Chen Ping's knot in his heart.
However, no matter how much he pretends to be nonchalant on the surface, Chen Ping cannot seriously let go of this matter completely.
Whether it is for unknown reasons, who is behind the delay in road repairs.
Or because it has been planned for many years, the repairs are finally on the right track.
Everything turned into an invisible pressure, pressing on Chen Ping's heart.
He knew that he was now in a small position and that no matter what he said, it would be impossible for Mr. Ye and Magistrate Wang to leave this vortex of right and wrong, so he decided to find another way.
A few days later, the sun was scorching.
Chen Ping wiped the sweat from his forehead from time to time, his eyes motionless, staring at the pile of objects on the ground.
After waiting for two quarters of an hour, those thin gray-black objects finally dried out in the sun.
Chen Ping rushed over first, took it in his hand, rubbed it, weighed it a few times, and then held it carefully as if he had found a treasure.
This is a great help for road repair.
He Qingxuan and Ye Chongwen also followed, looking curiously at the rough object that looked like a clay tablet in Chen Ping's hand.
As the son of a businessman, He Qingxuan has a natural interest in novel things.
He took a closer look, and despite his extensive knowledge, he still didn't see any clues.
Then he asked: "Is this what you said, a good thing that can replace the stone slab?"
"Are you sure this isn't an ugly and crude pottery slab?"
"Can it really replace stone slabs and carry carriages and horses?"
Chen Ping has not been so crazy about reading in the past two days.
Instead, he changed his mind to something crazy. In addition to studying and going to class, he just kept playing in the mud.
First, crush various things into clay powder, and then mix them together.
Then stuff the mixed clay powder into a clay pot and bake it in the kitchen stove.
After it's fired, it needs to be mixed with water, pressed into thin sheets, and dried in the sun again.
Every day, he holds a piece of yellow paper and keeps recording the mixing ratio of various materials, the time it takes to burn the paper, the amount of water added, etc.
All kinds of incredible operations are like being possessed by an evil spirit.
The two friends almost went to the mountain to invite Taoist priests to come and perform the ritual.
Fortunately, Chen Ping stopped their actions in time and gave a reasonable explanation.
It is said that as long as you successfully bake what you want and record the entire process in a book.
The cost of road construction in Yongshun County can be reduced by at least half.
From now on, not only for road construction, but also wherever bricks and stones are needed, construction costs will be greatly saved.
Hearing what Chen Ping said was so miraculous, even Ye Chongwen, who had never cared about such matters, was full of curiosity about it.
What's more, He Qingxuan, who was born in a businessman's family, has been extremely sensitive to the word "cost" since he was a child.
Chen Ping did not comment on He Qingxuan's questions, but chose to let the facts answer them.
Chen Ping stood still and put on his airs, calling for the two of them to take a few steps back.
Then he raised the mud brick in his hand, used all his strength, and smashed it against the stone in the corner.
"Pa!"
A crisp sound came, and He Qingxuan and Ye Chongwen both exclaimed at the same time and jumped a step or two back.
Only Chen Ping stared blankly at the broken objects on the stone with a disappointed expression.
After a few days of hard work, and a little borrowing of Mr. Ye's reputation, I finally got the college kitchen manager to be accommodating and allow the three of them to mess around, and then they got the "cement" made by hand.
It is so vulnerable that it has no effect at all.
Not to mention compared with stone slabs, its hardness is not even as good as thicker ceramic slabs.
Chen Ping thought carefully about all the processes and key points of cement production, but still couldn't figure out where he made the mistake.
According to what I learned from the Internet in my previous life, cement is not a high technology, and there are no technical barriers. As early as thousands of years ago in my previous life, someone made a simple version.
The raw materials for making cement, including limestone, clay and slag, are also used in large quantities.
But why is the firing unsuccessful?
Chen Ping stared blankly at the mess in deep thought, while He Qingxuan took action directly.
He Qingxuan carefully put the fragment in front of his eyes and looked at it, then tried it himself and threw it on the stone.
The result was exactly the same. Without much force, the fragments became more fragmented.
Ye Chongwen also came over, pointed at these clay tablets and said with a smile: "I think that so-called ancient book was probably the imagination of a poor scholar, and was designed to sensationalize and deceive people. How could such a thing exist in the world?" p>
"For thousands of years, many construction projects have been inseparable from stone slabs. I don't know how many capable ministers and wise officials have been frustrated by worry."
"If someone has actually made cement, which can replace slate, how could it be that so few people know about it? How could it not be widely used?"
Before firing, Chen Ping borrowed the name of an ancient person in order to convince others.
He lied that he had read a few words about cement firing methods in an ancient book in the county town library.
Now Ye Chongwen directly logically completely denies the non-existent ancient book.
Chen Ping frowned, and He Qingxuan sighed in disappointment. All the previous experiments were just for fun.
Cement does exist, and it does have many wonderful uses.
The biggest problem is that after many experiments, we can't come up with a finished product that is enough to convince the public. We can only make these crude and fragile clay tablets.
Chen Ping squatted on the ground in disappointment, thinking hard about the solution.
He Qingxuan was not as arbitrary as Ye Chongwen. He had dabbled in these things and knew that the raw materials used by Chen Ping were all needed for building materials.
Moreover, lime is made by calcining rocks, clay is necessary for firing ceramics, and slag contains residual iron slag.
Soft clay can be fired into hard ceramics. When these materials are mixed together, something as hard as rock can be fired. It is not too fantastic.
Seeing Chen Ping worried, He Qingxuan stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder, gently persuading him: "I think the cement you mentioned should exist, but we haven't found the specific method of firing it yet." p>
"If you can persevere and try repeatedly, regardless of the cost of time and materials, one day you will be able to bake cement that can replace rocks."
Chen Ping only regarded He Qingxuan's words as words of comfort between brothers.
In fact, Chen Ping is not an engineering master with strong hands-on skills, and he has never even made any industrial products with his own hands in his entire life.
The failure of this trial production has dispelled Chen Ping's previous ideas.
Since there is no way to save the emergency through science and technology, then honestly follow the rules of this world and take the road of imperial examination.
Anyway, this world is not without skilled craftsmen. When I have the right to speak in the future, I will have the opportunity to guide them to experiment with various technological creations that existed in previous lives according to their own ideas.
Chen Ping had no intention of continuing to make cement and planned to go back and immerse himself in books. However, He Qingxuan's curiosity was aroused.
After asking Chen Ping about everything in detail, I quickly found out everything Chen Ping knew about cement production.
He Qingxuan solemnly recorded these key points of knowledge and drew all the steps of trial production in detail.
Seeing that He Qingxuan was fascinated and ready to continue to devote himself to this matter, Ye Chongwen said in an old manner:
"What's wrong with you two? You're just a bunch of clay powder. Could it be that you are still as childlike as those little dolls and still have the hobby of playing in the mud?"
"We are scholars, we must not lose our ambition by playing with things."
As soon as these words came out, Chen Ping and He Qingxuan's attention was immediately drawn away from the fragments.
Chen Ping patted He Qingxuan helplessly and said solemnly.
"It's your turn!"
"Children lack education, just don't beat them to death!"