Shulot suddenly turned pale. He looked at Necali in shock. As the main copper producing area in the feudal country, the daily output of a thousand miners is only 3,600 kilograms of copper, and only 30% of the people can actually participate in the excavation. This kind of
The production efficiency was far lower than he expected. You know, the copper produced here not only supplies the entire feudal country, but also almost half of the world!
Seeing the king's shock, Nekali looked proud.
"Yes, Marshal. Under my management, the miners worked tirelessly and worked hard! The amount of mining per person of the diggers has reached the highest level in the Kingdom of Tarasco in the past ten years!
"
Hearing this, Shulot looked at Ezpin, who had been following him but rarely spoke.
"Your Highness, the person in charge of the mine has managed it very well. The output is indeed very high."
Ezpan looked sad as he recalled his past memories. He had stayed in this mine for a long time, and many things were deeply imprinted in his mind like instinct.
"In this mining area, it is impossible to excavate in July and August, when the rainy season is at its peak. In June and September, when the rainfall is heavy, at least half of the people are required to drain water, and in April, May, October, and November, at least 30% of the manpower is needed to drain water.
. Only in the dry season of December, January, February and March can full-scale mining be carried out, and the underground spring water must be taken into account. At that time, the output should be at the highest of 6,000 kilograms of copper per thousand people per day. And on average in the rainy and dry seasons of the year, it is basically
It’s 4,000 pounds per day for 1,000 people.”
Hulot said nothing. He lowered his eyes slightly, thinking of the mining efficiency in modern Europe, and suddenly felt dissatisfied.
"How could the output be so small? How could the efficiency be so low!"
In fact, Shulot misunderstood this time. Mining is a group work with a high degree of cooperation, which requires high technology and management. Excavation of hard copper ore is far more time-consuming and laborious than mining of coal. In
In the classical era, when machinery was lacking, the number of excavators who could actually participate in excavation in the mines was usually less than half of the total number of miners.
In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, even with high-quality iron tools and mature technology, the daily output of excavators in Yunnan Copper during the Ming and Qing Dynasties was only 20-30 kilograms of copper ore. Of course, this was also because Yunnan Copper had many poor ores and was difficult to excavate.
It's big and the quality is low.
In fact, eight of the world's top ten copper mines are located in the western Americas along the Pacific Rim, with Chile and Peru in South America accounting for six. Compared with them, the reserves and quality of Tianchao's copper mines are simply inferior to those of China's copper mines.
The emperors of money were sad and shed tears.
Shulot looked serious and did not speak, and the surroundings were silent. He looked up at the sky, carefully thinking about the film and television and written materials in his memory, and determined to improve the production facilities of the mine. After a moment, he stretched out his hand.
, the samurai commander happily sent a pen and paper.
Necali bowed respectfully and stood aside, eyes wide open, looking at His Highness's "divine revelation" in awe.
"First, go down a straight vertical shaft, and then extend inclined shafts and flat tunnels at different heights according to the direction of the rock formation. At intervals, or in unstable rock formations, wooden derricks must be used to ensure the stability of the mine structure.
.The wooden frames are riveted to each other, and sometimes the tips are nailed into the stone wall..."
Hulot first drew a simple well and alley, and then focused on the supporting wooden frames of the well and alley. He thought about the underground caves he had visited before, and emphasized again.
"The reinforced wooden frames must be neat and uniform. In the inclined shaft, the wooden frames must be nailed into the stone wall to prevent slipping. In the broken mining belt, stones often fall, so the wooden frames must be kept closed..."
Necali looked at the picture and nodded with blank eyes, obviously not understanding.
Seeing this, the king pondered for a while and said seriously.
"My warrior, these pictures contain the principles of the gods! The God of vegetation is the child of the Mother Goddess of the Earth, who bears His mercy and protects the lives of miners. The wooden frame can stabilize the underground world and is
It is the most important foundation in excavation. You must follow the diagrams I gave you and be as careful as building an altar to make sure the support is strong!"
The samurai captain's face became solemn and he solemnly promised.
"Yes, Marshal! You are a divinely inspired priest, and I will do as you say!"
Shulot smiled faintly. He then drew another vertical ventilation shaft above the extended alley.
"Only Tlaloc, the powerful god of wind and rain, can restrain the evil underground and bring vitality to the underground mines... As the mine tunnel extends, there must be a special shaft hanging down from the surface to lead to the god of wind.
The power. Multiple ventilation shafts can be dug at different heights to form convection under different wind pressures. You can also light torches, charcoal, and sacrificial plants under the ventilation shafts to artificially heat the air underground to create convection..."
"What, you ask what is convection? Convection is the wind that connects the underground and the surface. It is the flow of divine power that brings the vitality of the surface into the underground..."
Shulot thought for a while and once again drew a mine blast box, which was similar to the iron smelting bellows, but larger.
"It's difficult to dig ventilation shafts in some places. You can use this to blow in the air... to blow in the power of the wind god, it just takes some manpower."
Nekali nodded heavily, memorizing this mysterious knowledge into his mind and implementing it as a precept of faith.
"The next step is to improve lighting. In each group of miners, someone must wear a special wooden helmet, and a half-open pottery oil lamp is hung on the wooden helmet. This is to pray to the Lord God to bless the miners' work and prevent them from doing anything.
Fear. If the oil lamp dims or goes out quickly, it proves that there is evil ahead. You need to retreat quickly, and then use the power of the wind god to the front..."
"Yes, Marshal! But with so many religious ceremonies, should we arrange two priests in the mine? I'm afraid the miners don't have the ability to communicate with the gods."
Hearing this, Shulot's expression changed and he said with a smile.
"Okay! I will send several priests to preside over these important ceremonies. The number of miners is huge, and priests are really needed to guide their faith and appease their hearts. And with the prayers of priests, the miners can better overcome the problem of going down the mine.
Fear. Sometimes, what really scares you is fear itself..."
This chapter is not finished yet, please click the next page to continue reading the exciting content! "Then, it is necessary to build a labor-saving lifting system at certain heights in the mine. Relying solely on the backs of miners, the ore transported is slow and small. A large amount of
Manpower is wasted on transportation.”
As Shlott spoke, he drew a windlass for fetching water.
"Build a windlass in the mine to be responsible for transportation from bottom to top. The current depth of the mine is more than ten meters, and a single windlass is enough. As the mine becomes deeper and longer, graded windlass must be built later, layer by layer.
Transporting ore saves manpower to the greatest extent."
When Nekali saw this, his face finally showed a sudden realization. He naturally knew that the windlass saves effort.
"Finally, the most important thing is drainage improvement. Remember, balance the power of the God of Wind and Rain to drain away water and turn it into wind. The windlass responsible for lifting the ore can also be added with buckets to draw water. In the low-lying areas of the mine where water accumulates
, you can also build additional drainage wells. Of course, there is another useful drainage device for you..."
Having said this, Xiulote paused. He recalled the pressurized water wells in rural areas in later generations, which were simple manual reciprocating pumps, or hand pumps. The principle of this thing is that the reciprocating motion of the piston creates negative pressure to absorb water, and then
Press it out from the water outlet at the upper end. Apply the pump principle and use a bamboo tube to make a similar water diversion device, which is the "Bamboo Dragon".
Nekali braced himself and watched carefully. He watched His Highness first draw an irregular bamboo tube with an opening on one side of the upper end of the bamboo tube. Then he drew a nested movable round stick inside the bamboo tube, and finally drew another
There is a strange hand crank. The whole picture is simple and abstract, like a sacred and mysterious priest symbol.
"That's roughly the shape."
Shulot looked at his rough sketch and pursed his lips. His painting skills really needed to be improved.
"The nested bamboo tubes are easier to make, even if you don't have this labor-saving hand crank. The operation is also very simple, just lift and press to pump the water up. If there is any damage or looseness, you can use the rubber of a football
Just stick it together..."
"Okay, reinforcement, ventilation, lighting, improvement, drainage, a total of five, do it as I say! Necali, there will be priests to help you calm people's hearts. What you have to do is to improve the facilities and equipment, dig deep
We are rich in ores, and we will do our best to increase production! I will give you a small goal. First, increase the average monthly production by half, to 6,000 kilograms per 1,000 people!"
"Ah, 6,000 pounds for a thousand people?... I obey, Marshal! I obey your will and am willing to die for you!"
Necali received the order loudly and bowed to the ground, as if receiving military orders on the battlefield.
Shulot nodded with satisfaction and stretched out his hand to hold the other person's hair again. The advantage of using loyal officers as managers is that they can follow the orders of their superiors and execute them without hesitation. Their disadvantage is that they are not proficient in their professions and are difficult to
Think for yourself.
"Well, I'm going to summon Chalape when I get back and send two miners from the metal family to assist."
Shulot's thoughts changed and he looked at the samurai commander again. The facilities of the mine needed to be improved and the scale of the mine needed to be further expanded.
"Bertard, how many working men can the nearby villages provide?"
Bertard pondered for a while. There were too many villages in the Lake District, but he couldn't remember them at the moment. He took out a small atlas that he carried with him, flipped through it and read.
"Your Highness, there are seven or eight settlements within a radius of more than 20 miles, with a total population of more than 15,000. If the autumn harvest of the village is transported to the mine nearby, it can provide labor for three to four thousand people. This distance
The mountain roads are rugged, and labor must be recruited from the villages to transport grain."
Shulot thought for a moment and then ordered.
"Collect taxes and labor from nearby villages to support the Qinganbat mining area! Contact the village priests and reduce part of the tribute. Then from the resting troops on the south road, two thousand people will be mobilized to rush to the mining area. By the end of October, the mine will have three
Thousands of people are working on the excavation, and by the end of December, the copper production in the mining area will be tripled!...Necali, are you confident?"
"Yes, Marshal! The capacity of the main mine is limited and needs to be improved. There are several small mines around, and I will develop them all!"
Nekali responded loudly. Then, he whispered.
"Marshal, mining has always been regarded as a dangerous way, and the status of miners is also very low. The surrendered soldiers have held weapons, formed battalions, and some have blood on their hands. Forcing them to work as miners will be difficult to manage. These people are both
There is a risk of rebellion, and there is also the ability to rebel... Can it be replaced with a slave that is easy to use?"
Hearing this, Shulot thought for a moment and shook his head.
"Necali, what you said is right, but the people in the feudal country have already set up camps, and I don't have any slaves for you. Well, there will be officers and priests close to the alliance in the surrender army to help appease... wait and see
In a few months, the legion will be dispatched, and the canine descendants captured from the north will be sent here!"
The king thought about the organization of the surrendered army again. There may be some warriors who are good at fighting among them, so the risk is indeed not small.
"Let's do this, I will give you two more brigades, four hundred warriors! Six hundred warriors manage three thousand miners, which is exactly the limit of supply in nearby villages... Necali, do your best! From today on, I will promote you to a warrior
Battalion Commander, these people are all under your command!
"Thank you, Marshal! I am willing to be your wings!..."
Nekali was overjoyed and fell down to accept the order again. The king also showed a smile. The two agreed and agreed on the rules and requirements of the mine.
The sun sets towards the west, leaving a golden-red afterglow on the undulating mountains. The curling smoke rises from the mountains, faintly intertwined with the red clouds, like a ribbon of dancing gods. Unknowingly, it is already dinner time.
Bertard had no time to look at the magnificent sunset over the mountains. He just watched with vigilance the miners who gathered and started to light a fire for cooking. Soon, thick smoke rose from the corner of the back camp. The smoke was very thick. If the samurai pressed
Common sense is like preparing meals for three or four thousand people.
The warrior commander frowned. He said something to His Highness, then pulled out his war stick and took more than a dozen guards to check. Hundreds of cooks were busy in the back camp, preparing fragrant corn cakes for the warriors and for the miners.
Be prepared to take care of enough grains. There are several garrison warriors nearby who are supervising.
Bertard made a brief inspection. In order to ensure safety, His Highness's food was brought from the palace by the personal guards. These cakes were mainly supplied to some of the accompanying soldiers. He looked at it for a moment, nodded, and then his attention was drawn to the cooking stove.
attract.
"Come here, what is this?"
The warrior commander asked curiously. What was burning under the stove was not firewood, but black stones. The fire was very strong and there was a lot of smoke. The cook in front of him was still adding this kind of fuel.
Facing the inquiry, the cook took a step back and fell on the ground in awe. The flames of the black stone raised thick smoke, which already blackened his face.
"Sir, this is what we dug... The solidified blood of underground demons contains the death fire of the world of the dead... Although it is regarded as unclean by the priests, it can burn... Big Sire."
Hearing this, Bertard took out a black stone and examined it carefully in his hand. The texture of this black stone was relatively soft, and the powder would break into pieces when he pinched it. Soon, the black stone stained his hands black. The warrior commander
He frowned, then held the black stone and walked towards His Highness Shenqi.
