Hongwu Survival Guide

Chapter 142
Liu Lian came to Zhoushan Island in the afternoon, in order to send the Mid-Autumn Festival budget plan that Zhu Yuan explained yesterday to celebrate the great victory in Dadu. Seeing that the craftsmen were making the thermometer mentioned by the young master Yinghai Envoy, he was not in a hurry to talk about it, and watched carefully.

After the first thermometer was completed, Zhu Yuan's impression was just one word.

ugly!
Like a thin hammer for beating drums, the two ends are large and the middle is thin, and the two ends are not very symmetrical. The glass tube in the middle is not so straight, and the capillary pores in the tube are thick and thin. In short, it makes Zhu Yuan, a typical obsessive-compulsive disorder, more and more awkward.

Falling is not willing to fall.

The craftsmanship of the craftsmen in this era is actually not that bad, mainly because it is the first time to do it. Zhu Yuan believes that it will get better and better in the future.Moreover, for this thing, Zhu Yuan pays more attention to practicality. As for the appearance, try it a few times, don't be like today.

After the thermometer cooled naturally, Zhu Yuan finally picked it up.

The people around are paying attention, and everyone has already discovered that just during the cooling process, the red wine in the capillary has already shrunk a lot. According to the young master Yinghai Envoy, this is 'expansion with heat and contraction with cold'.

When Zhu Yuan picked it up, he held the body of the tube with one hand, and the round cavity full of wine liquid at the bottom with the other hand. It can be seen with the naked eye that the previously contracted liquid column rose again.

Even though they roughly understood the principle, everyone still murmured.

Zhu Yuan tried it, and seeing Liu Lian eager to try it, he handed over the ugly thermometer: "Try it."

Liu Lian took it carefully, and saw that the liquid column retracted a little in a blink of an eye, imitating his own adult's appearance and holding the bottom, the liquid column rose again, and couldn't help but marvel: "The good fortune is amazing, Hanlin, with this thing, according to your words, Build a greenhouse, and millions of poultry seedlings will be hatched."

Regarding the principle of artificial incubation, Zhu Yuan had already told them before.

The key is nothing but a 'temperature'.

Liu Lian could also see that the thermometer was obviously rough, for example, the body of the tube didn't even have a scale at the moment, but it didn't need to be too fine at all, just need to confirm an incubation temperature.

Zhu Yuan also knew it was useful, but couldn't help but dislike it: "It's too ugly. In addition, the sensitivity can continue to be improved. It just so happens that the glass here is burned out. I will draw some tools for you later, and then distill some alcohol with higher purity. The higher the purity, the higher the coefficient of expansion."

After speaking, I looked at the sky, it was already three or four o'clock in the afternoon.

tired.

So he instructed Qiao Wang and Yan Qi: "Choose the transparent glass that has been fired here, and make one or two hundred sets of liquid chamber and thin tube first. Don't rush to fill the wine. The rest of the glass that is not in the correct color should be finished." The utensils I need. In addition, you can continue to cook on the upper and lower sides of the kiln, this time... well, the time is halved. In short, you let go of your explorations and burn all the existing materials. "

Qiao Wang and Yan Qi, together with a group of craftsmen, agreed repeatedly.

After being busy in the morning until now, after Zhu Yuan explained this, he realized that there was something wrong, and yawned: "I have to go back to sleep."

Said to leave this outer courtyard.

But there was an unknown person chasing after him. It was Liu Lian: "Hanlin, the lower officials have brought a budget plan for the Mid-Autumn Festival celebration. Soldiers pay 100 Wen for each man, and civilian husbands pay 50 Wen for each person. There are also rice, grain and fresh fish. Besides, the disabled, widows and widows, Or if there are elderly people over 70 years old in the family, the lower officials also feel that they need to give extra, plus the expenses such as lighting and theater troupe, the initial estimate is 3 guan.”

Listening to Liu Lian's words, Zhu Yuan had already come to a moon gate, and Xie Yi had already waited here with a few servants, as well as his usual shoulder car.

Stepping on the shoulders, Zhu Yuan sat down, took the document from Liu Lian, flipped through it briefly, took a pen handed over by Xie Yi without opening his mouth, and was about to sign, then reacted, and asked Liu Lian: "Where are the officials?"

Liu Lian said: "The lower officials think that it is enough to treat everyone equally."

Zhu Yuan shook his head: "If you want to be clean and honest, you can do whatever you want, but you can't ask others according to your own standards, it will only be counterproductive."

After talking and thinking for a while, Zhu Yuan said: "Small flags and officials cost 200 coins, and the same is true for rice grains and other items. Upwards, each level adds 100 coins, and so on. Whether it is mine or the governor's, They must be sent over according to the rules, and no one is missing. And you, if you get it, even if you change hands, you will send it to the widowed old man, that is your business, you must not."

Liu Lian was thoughtful, but still said: "Hanlin, I think it's inappropriate..."

Zhu Yuan handed back the unsigned document and said, "There is an allusion here, Zi Gong redeems people, right? What I admire most about Confucius, an old man, is that he himself is a saint, but he does not demand others by the standards of a saint. , This is the real saint. You are... a standard fake saint, you have to work harder. Go back, draw up a new budget and send it over."

After Liu Lian received the documents, Zhu Yuan pulled the leather mattress over his body: "Let's go, go back to sleep."

Xieyi pursed her lips and suppressed a smile, and blessed Liu Lian who was standing there in a daze, and ordered the four servants to raise their shoulders and head towards the inner courtyard.

When I woke up, it was completely dark.

Sitting under the candlelight by the window was a shining figure, it was Qing Niang, with that gorgeous silver jewelry on her body.

Zhu Yuan turned sideways and said with a smile: "Aren't you willing to take it off?"

Qing Niang was embroidering at first, when she saw her petty official get up, she stood up quickly, and was a little embarrassed when she heard the words: "Slave... I will put it away tonight."

Zhu Yuan stretched out his hand.

Qing Niang immediately came over and kissed the little man, her face was blushing: "Little official, are you going to wake up?"

Zhu Yuan hummed.

Qing Niang then served Zhu Yuan to dress.

Then came supper.

After having dinner that was already much late, sitting here in the West Room, which was also arranged as a study, Zhu Yuan began to draw.

All about various laboratory glassware.

I thought of it in the afternoon.

Now that the glass is out, we can set up a chemical laboratory, and some things in memory, especially those that are not remembered clearly, can be carefully explored.

Lao Zhu specifically mentioned in his previous letter that Zhu Yuan was required to keep "Chemistry" a secret and not to pass it on to others at will.

Zhu Yuan still both agrees and disapproves.

Speaking of which, occasionally I even have some other thoughts, let those things in my memory spread out.

Then, the starting line is all here.

run!

Natural Selection.

but……

This thought has not yet come to fruition.

Inside the study.

After drawing various types of experimental vessels such as beakers, flasks, and test tubes, Zhu Yuan began to write today's diary again.

Xie Yi came over with hot tea in her hand, changed the cup of tea for her petty official, and suggested: "Little official, why don't I write it for you?"

Zhu Yuan shook his head.

Today we mainly talk about glass, and about Liu Lian's celebration plan.

Speaking of which, what Zhu Yuan most wanted to teach about the allusion of "Zigong redeeming people" was Lao Zhu.

Ancestor, you are a workaholic, but you cannot make everyone else be a workaholic too.

This will only backfire.

Just like, let alone the ministers, there was a Ming Dynasty, and so many emperors after that did not like to go to court, why?
too tired.

So much so that he simply dropped the pick completely.

Similarly, there are official salaries.

Zhu Yuan once read history and saw that Lao Zhu's ideas are very interesting. Since you have all become officials, you have already honored your ancestors and have status and status, you should not care too much about money.

This is too difficult for people.

After all, many things should have a degree.

Can't be extreme.

After finishing writing the diary, Xieyi, who had been standing by the side all the time, did not allow her petty officials to continue. Seeing that Zhu Yuan still wanted to do something more, she threatened, otherwise, she would call He Xuan and the others to persuade her.

This is too disrespectful of martial arts.

Can only go to bed and rest.

Can't sleep.

After all, I slept enough before.

Thinking about it, speaking of Xieyi, the Mid-Autumn Festival should be about making mooncakes.

Zhu Yuan has no preference for moon cakes, not to mention growing up, even when he was young, he doesn't like eating them very much.

Because rock candy.

For some reason, many of the mooncakes after hours, whether they are made at home or bought outside, contain rock sugar.

bite up...

Click!

It's downright scary.

Speaking of it, moon cakes are the same as Spring Festival couplets, and the allusions can be related to Lao Zhu, but in reality, they are already very common in this era.

That being the case, of course do it.

Any kind of stuffing is fine, if you make more, you can give it as a gift.

No rock sugar.

Then he stayed on Zhoushan Island for a few more days, and it was not until August [-]th that Zhu Yuan returned to Dinghai with Yingying Yanyan, who had a yard full of him.

The glass kiln outside the city of Changguozhou was also simply dismantled and brought back.

financial resources.

Confidentiality first.

In just a few days, the craftsman team burned more than three thousand catties of various glasses.

In addition to the thermometer and laboratory utensils requested by Zhu Yuan, the craftsmen also made some other cups, plates and saucers, and even made a small silver-plated mirror, the size of a palm, according to Zhu Yuan's prompts, and sent them to Ni Children, all of them are treated as treasures.

There are also many overseas businessmen in Dinghai.

Mainly from Nanyang, they took advantage of the summer monsoon, arrived in Guangzhou, and continued northward to Mingzhou. They are expected to return after the north wind blows.

Qiao Wang brought some glassware to contact some sea merchants and brought back the results. One of the sea merchants who came all the way from Persia hoped to buy a thousand catties of glassware. The price was calculated as one tael of glass and one tael of gold.

Rich and powerful!

Qiao Wang came back to report and said that the price could be raised a bit more.

Zhu Yuan is even more curious. This Persia...is like many countries in the Far West still call China "Qin". In short, what is Persia like now?
Let Qiao Wang inquire in detail.

Qiao Wang simply brought the man over.

This is the day after the lively Mid-Autumn Festival, August [-]th.

The name of the sea merchant was Sanawuluo.

During several communications, Zhu Yuan knew that some time ago, the original Persia... was actually the Ilkhanate.

This also affected some of Zhu Yuan's memories.

It is probably one of the four great Khanates established by the descendants of Genghis Khan in the Eurasian border area as later generations said. However, the Ilhan Kingdom fell apart more than ten years ago, and the current Persian region, which later became Iran, is also in the stage of separatist disputes .

Zhu Yuan also happened to remember this passage, and after that, it was the Timur Khanate.

The Timur Khanate did not last long, only a few decades, and soon fell apart. One of them unified India and established the Mughal Empire.

The state of the Mughal Empire was relatively long, and it existed for about 300 years until it was destroyed by Western colonists.

I went to see the coin-making workshop in the morning, had lunch, and rushed to the foot of Chenshan in the afternoon.

In order to check the construction progress of the Mingzhou Maritime Academy and the preparation of housing for naval soldiers, Qiao Wang brought a middle-aged man with obviously foreign clothes over at about three o'clock in the afternoon. He was about 40 years old, but he didn't have a beard. Tall, looks very capable.

Sending Liu Lian who accompanied him to continue his work, Zhu Yuan turned to this sea merchant named Sana Wuluo.

The middle-aged man looked polite, took two steps forward, bowed to Zhu Yuan and saluted: "Cana Wuluo has met Mr. Yinghai Envoy."

He speaks Chinese with a weird accent, but he can still hear it clearly.

However, seeing the middle-aged man in front of him like this, Zhu Yuan shook his head: "That's not right."

Said and signaled Qiao Wang: "Take him down, and come back after learning the etiquette."

Then he walked to a workshop where tile embryos were being made.

As for building brick and tile houses for naval soldiers, Zhu Yuan decided that it would be easy, but after implementing it, he realized that, in a word, it was too resource-intensive.

The last is a compromise.

Such as burning bricks.

The best bricks are the ones used in the imperial palace. One kiln takes nearly a month to burn, and some bricks are used by ordinary rich and noble families, and it takes about half a month to burn them.

The kiln mouth here...but it only burned for three days.

Zhu Yuan has seen the effect.

The green bricks fired are of course much better than adobe houses, but the quality is really mediocre.

The problem is, except for Zhu Yuan, everyone around is very satisfied.

Even the soldiers around Zhu Yuan felt that it would be nice to have such a house.

In fact, there is no way.

A large kiln with 2 yuan of bricks, burning firewood, would burn five carts a day. If we follow folk standards, it will burn for seven to ten days... I dare not think about it.

Three days of fast burning is already a luxury for most people in this era.

The soldier also told Zhu Yuan that the village where he lived before he joined the army, of course ordinary villagers would not dare to think that even the landlord's family had saved up for two years to build a new house for his son who was about to marry a wife and divide his family. firewood, dare to build a kiln to fire bricks and tiles.

In this day and age, brick houses are really not a common thing.

Therefore, the standard here, three days of fast-fired blue bricks, and seven days of fast-fired large tiles, have already made many people greedy.

That being the case, it can only be so.

In the final analysis, it is the limitation of productivity.

Zhu Yuan watched the craftsmen making tile embryos, probably, rolling out the clay tube, and then dividing it into two pieces, which became two large tiles.

Slow enough to make people anxious.

The efficiency was too low, and I was thinking of ordering Yao Feng to try to make some pressing molds, preferably iron pressing molds, which would definitely be much faster than making tiles purely by hand, when Liu Lian came over.

As he bowed his hands to Zhu Yuan, Liu Lian tentatively asked, "Hanlin, did you offend that maritime merchant just now?"

Zhu Yuan didn't answer, but asked instead: "Do you know each other?"

Liu Lian nodded, and said calmly: "Cana Wuluo has lived in Mingzhou for more than a month. After visiting the lower officials, we get along very well, and we are considered friends."

Zhu Yuan was noncommittal and said, "I just said that the etiquette is wrong, and that's the problem."

(End of this chapter)