The blacksmith apprentices polished the blade of the ring-shou knife and wrapped linen cloth around the handle. It took several apprentices more than an hour to sharpen the knife, and a ring-shou knife was completed.
The leading blacksmith held up the knife with both hands and showed it to Yuan Xi and others. Yuan Xi took the knife and slashed and stabbed it a few times. He felt the weight was quite comfortable and couldn't help but nodded.
He handed the knife back to the blacksmith and said, "Let's get started."
The blacksmith hurriedly took the knife and handed it to the sergeants waiting aside.
These people were selected by Tian Yu, and they were all proficient in knife skills. One of them picked up the knife and walked to the center of the yard behind the blacksmith shop.
There were wooden stakes, iron pillars, wooden boards, and even dummies covered in iron and leather armor erected in the yard.
The man raised his ring-headed sword and slashed and stabbed it ten times at the wooden and iron pillars. After waiting for the apprentice to finish, he stepped forward with an iron ruler to measure the cutting effect and the damage on the blade.
Record it on the bamboo slips.
This is the test proposed by Yuan Xi. Whether any new steel forging method is suitable or not will ultimately depend on the data results.
After completing more than a dozen tests, several sergeants took turns slashing at the iron pillar with their Huanshou swords. After more than a hundred blows, the Huanshou sword finally couldn't withstand it and broke into two pieces with a snap.
The faces of everyone watching showed a trace of regret, but more of them were filled with joy and surprise.
What a pity is that this ring-first sword is undoubtedly a good sword, so it is a pity to have it cut off like this.
Happily, the number of chops this knife withstood was much stronger than that of ordinary knives. Although it was broken, more good knives can be forged according to this method!
You know, not everyone can afford this kind of hundred-forged steel sword on the battlefield.
For example, Cao Cao's Qingzhou soldiers had weapons of varying quality, and some even had bronze weapons. Cao Cao's generals once complained that some soldiers' weapons broke after being slashed hard several times.
Generally speaking, if you stab and slash with all your strength dozens of times, it is considered a high-quality blade.
As for the ring-shou knife just now, after applying the steel filling method and quenching method that were ahead of this era, the durability has been increased several times!
This shows that even if a soldier slashes with all his strength for dozens of times on the battlefield until exhaustion, there will be no problem with the weapon.
Enemies that are several times larger than him will face the danger of having their weapons broken.
In a duel between fully armored heavy infantry, it will be the decisive key. Everyone has armor protection. Whoever's weapon is intact can determine the life or death of the opponent.
The blacksmiths could not hide the excitement on their faces and looked at Yuan Xi together.
Yuan Xi showed a smile on his face and said: "Well done,"
"After all the tempering methods are tested and improved one by one, and the most suitable one is found, it can be applied on a large scale."
"In the future, on the battlefield, the life and death of the soldiers will all have a share of your contribution."
"When the matter is over, you will all be rewarded generously, and your children will be able to enter the free school."
After hearing this, everyone couldn't hide the excitement on their faces and said in unison: "I am willing to serve you!"
Yuan Xi is also in a good mood. The successful test of the steel-making method will also promote the improvement of the iron-making method. Steel-making and iron-making are inseparable.
From a military perspective, the improvement of iron-making can not only produce stronger and stronger iron armor, but also produce more wear-resistant axles and other transportation tools. It can also promote production activities. The most direct one is the production of iron farm tools.
Manufacturing technology will also be improved, thereby increasing agricultural production efficiency.
Stronger iron means more iron tools. For example, today's digging tools mostly use iron shovels, which are thick iron bars similar to spearheads. Because the strength of iron is insufficient, the thickness can only be increased.
With gradual improvement, by doping some steel, a shovel can be made, which is not only lighter and more effective to use, but also saves the amount of iron used.
This is the benefit of technological progress, which can promote social progress in all aspects. Yuan Xi believes that in the near future, Youzhou will definitely be as prosperous as Jizhou.
When Yuan Xi was leaving, there was an old blacksmith kneeling at the door, holding a brightly polished ring-headed knife in his hands.
He said loudly: "Your Majesty, this is the best knife we have made using the new method."
"We are all friends of Qian's father who was killed by Xu Jie, so we pooled our money together to buy good iron and made this knife to thank you!"
Yuan Xi saw it and took the knife with both hands.
He placed a wooden figure standing next to him, held his breath and concentrated, and slashed down with both hands. The sword flashed and with a hiss, the wooden figure's head flew out horizontally, like cutting tofu.
Yuan Xi put away his knife, helped the old blacksmith up, and said solemnly: "Thank you for your thoughtfulness!"
"If there are people like Xu Jie who do evil things in the future, I will use this knife to chop off their heads!"
After hearing this, all the blacksmiths knelt down and kowtowed: "Dare you die for your Majesty!"
Compared with the previous sentence of "service for one's life", this sentence of "service for one's death" has a more heart-warming meaning!
On the way back, Yuan Xi thought that the accumulation of skills was a gradual process. The reason why he was able to successfully test the steel filling method was not because of how many improvements he had made, but because the technical prerequisites for the steel filling method had been met.
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The next step of the steel filling method only requires an opportunity, and Yuan Xi just put this opportunity in front of everyone in advance.
It’s hard to make a meal without rice. If the technology of casting iron is not perfect in today’s world, then the invention of the steel filling method will naturally be a joke.
Just like now that Yuan Xi has moved all the encyclopedias from his previous life, he will not be able to invent steam engines and explosives for a long time. Because of the lack of advanced technology, it has not been perfected yet.
For steam engines, the key bellows technology is currently lacking, and this would not appear until the Tang Dynasty at the earliest.
Of course, it would not be completely impossible if the bellows were invented early and existing technology could be used to build something similar to a steam engine in several years or even decades.
Because the technology required for the original steam engine was really not difficult.
British scientist Joseph Needham once made a famous conclusion: steam engine = water row + bellows.
He wanted to use this formula to show that without the technological achievements of ancient China, the steam engine, the heart of the modern revolution in the West, would not have been invented.
Because from the perspective of the key structure of the steam engine, the bellows solves the problem of double-acting valves, while the water drain provides a conversion device between linear motion and circular motion. The combination of the two is the earliest steam engine.
The bellows was invented in the Tang Dynasty or Song Dynasty, and later spread to the West. It was widely used in Europe in the 18th century, while the water pump appeared in my country more than 2,000 years ago, and is clearly recorded in "Book of the Later Han·Du Shi Zhuan".
When Watt invented the steam engine, the iron and steelmaking technology used was not even as good as the quality of steel produced in China at the same time.
From this perspective, my country's ancient advanced technology has laid the foundation for the invention of the steam engine.
However, the Chinese who were the first to invent the bellows and water drain did not create a steam engine for nearly two thousand years. This is very worthy of deep thought.
Yuan Xi has been thinking about what key factors are missing?
He thought a lot and finally came to an immature conclusion.
After Confucianism was distorted from its original intention, became a tool of control, and became an almost dogmatic existence, it ran counter to its original intention.
Although it formed a class social system that stabilized society, ensured the operation of ancient Chinese society, and guaranteed life and production in peaceful and prosperous times, the disadvantage is that it was used to suppress and eliminate different voices and ideas, which was detrimental to
Technological innovation is quite repressive.
The reason why later generations abandoned Confucianism was not simply because of some of its ideas that were behind the times, but because it could easily be exploited by people with ulterior motives and become something that harmed the interests of the working people.
But in every era, there are people with ulterior motives who always want to pick it up again.
In the history of China for thousands of years, people have actually invented something similar to the steam engine several times, but either they were not taken seriously, and they were not continued to be improved and applied, or they were lost after the prototype appeared, just like the legendary wooden cow and stray horse. Is this such a thing?
Did it really exist? If it is true, does it have something in common with a steam engine?
Just like the steam engine, even though advanced technology has appeared, it has not improved at all in the past 1,500 years. Just like the level of steelmaking in the West has not changed for more than 1,000 years, future generations will wonder when they think about it.
I feel incredible.
That's why Yuan Xi wants to see if he can push the wheel of history a little bit and embark on a different path from his predecessors, will the world become a better place?
After he returned home, the joy in his heart had not dissipated, but he heard a piece of news that made him feel bad.
Guo Jia fell ill. Although Hua Tuo prescribed medicine for him, he wanted to talk to Yuan Xi about his condition.
When Yuan Xi hurried to Guo Jia's house, the whole house was filled with the smell of medicine. Guo Jia's four concubines, two were boiling medicine and the other were carrying water to wipe their faces.
Hua Tuo sat by the bed and said this to Guo Jia.
Yuan Xi thought to himself that Hua Tuo had just told Guo Jia about health maintenance a few months ago. Guo Jia was doing well and bought two more dancers before leaving. This was really seeking death.
When Hua Tuo saw Yuan Xi coming in, he quickly stood up and said, "I've met the envoy."
Yuan Xi sighed: "Thank you for your hard work, Mr. Yuanhua. How is Mr. Fengxiao's health?"
Hua Tuo said helplessly: "I have tried to persuade him several times to be more restrained, but in the end he neither quits sex nor alcohol. If this continues, it is not the way to live a long life."
Guo Jia stood up and muttered: "It's impossible to quit smoking. You can only cut down on sex twice a day at most."
"Let alone quit drinking. Besides, it's cold in the North. How can I survive without drinking?"
After hearing this, Yuan Xi apologized: "It's my fault for bringing Mr. to such a bitter and cold place."
After hearing this, Guo Jia felt a little embarrassed and said, "Young master, you are out of touch when you say this. Life and death are matters of fate. Jia has already taken it lightly."
Hua Tuo sighed: "Your fellow villager from Yingchuan, Cao Cao's mastermind of the play Zhicai, passed away years ago."
"I think if you continue like this, it could be five years at least or ten years at most. I'm afraid you won't be able to get over that hurdle."
Seeing how serious Hua Tuo said, Yuan Xi felt a little heavy, but Guo Jia laughed and said, "Five years is a little short, but ten years is a lot."
Yuan Xi felt helpless, thinking that this was the path Guo Jia chose, and he couldn't persuade him.
Guo Jia then sighed: "But I only have one regret."
After hearing this, Yuan Xi hurriedly said: "Sir, please speak."
Guo Jia said: "I think Mr. Yuanhua has many disciples. I am afraid that someone will inherit what he has learned."
"I am alone and have no disciples. Originally, I had the intention to accept that boy Sun Li as my disciple, but that boy is not very enlightened and does not like to use his brain, but only likes to use his hands. This really makes me speechless."
"I am now thinking that if I can find an apprentice and inherit what I have learned, I will have no regrets."