Daming: Mixed in Dangzhi County, Beiping

Chapter 74 What difficulties do you have?
Afterwards, Zhu Di looked at Zhong Huo at the side again, "In this matter, the Iron Smelting Institute of Shangzhuang Village also contributed a lot. The stewards will be rewarded with 50 taels of silver, and craftsmen will be rewarded with [-] taels of silver!"

"Thank you, Your Highness!"

Zhong Huo knelt down directly, tears filled with excitement.

50 taels?

Now, how much food and clothing can he buy for his family?
"Okay, get up quickly and forge steel knives for this king!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

Zhong Huo responded quickly.

Immediately, he got up and walked to a room beside him. He felt that his whole body was full of energy. This time, he wanted to forge it himself.

And as Zhong Huo told the craftsmen around him about the ten taels of silver, all the generals in the entire iron smelting office became agitated immediately, and the strength in their hands involuntarily increased a little.

As for Zhu Di, he walked around the rooms with great interest again.

After a few laps, Guo An felt a little tired in his legs.

"Your Highness, it's still early in the morning. Do you want to go to sleep again, Your Highness?"

Zhu Di glanced at Guo An, "So many steel knives are being forged, can you still sleep?"

Guo An was taken aback for a moment, then turned his head and glanced at Zhu Fu who was beside him, and said hastily, "Your Highness, both the official and Zhu Changshi are still asleep."

Zhu Fu was taken aback.

Zhu Di said: "If you want to sleep, then go to sleep, my king can't sleep."

"Forehead!"

Guo An was helpless.

At this moment, Zhu Di was like a child, seeing his favorite toy, he couldn't care less about anything else.

However, Zhu Di's body could support him, Guo An didn't want to stay up all night with Zhu Di, so he couldn't help but look at Zhu Fu who was beside him.

Zhu Fu shook his head quickly, "If Mr. Guo is tired, you can go and rest for a while, I will stay here with His Highness."

Guo An shook helplessly, "I am also here to accompany His Highness."

He couldn't say that he dared not go back to sleep in that dilapidated house alone?
In this way, it has been going on for as much as an hour.

The sound of forging in the entire iron smelter gradually weakened.

Another quarter of an hour passed.

Zhong Huo came over with a steel knife in the shape of a black and shiny goose feather knife. There were some mountain and river patterns engraved on the knife body, which was extremely exquisite.

Zhu Di's whole body was shaken, looking at the steel knife, his eyes were straight.

Zhong Huo raised the saber to his head with both hands, respectfully said: "His Royal Highness, luckily the villain did not disgrace his life, the steel saber has been forged."

Zhu Di quickly took it, and leaned beside a fire, stroking his hands while praising, "Good knife, good knife!"

After speaking, Zhu Di went straight to the knife testing field.

Guo An, Zhu Fu and the others quickly followed.

Seeing Zhu Di raised the knife and dropped it, there was an extra piece of wood on the ground.

"it is good!"

Zhu Di shouted excitedly again, his interest remained undiminished, and he chopped again.

Zhu Di didn't stop until the dozen or so tree stumps in front of him were cut down to the height of his calves.

Then, holding the steel knife again, he came to the fire in the room and examined it carefully.

The blade does not have any rollovers, nor any gaps.

Zhu Di nodded in satisfaction, then looked at Zhong Huo who had been following closely behind him.

"How many of this kind of steel knives have you forged?"

Zhong Huo said: "Reporting to Your Highness, all the craftsmen in the Iron Smelting Institute are awake tonight, and all 110 steel knives have been forged!"

"Very good."

Zhu Di looked satisfied.

"Is there a scabbard?"

Zhong Huo said quickly: "Your Highness, forgive me, now there are only a dozen or so scabbards in the Iron Smelting Institute."

Zhu Di said: "It's okay, first take it out and put it on for me, the scabbard of the steel knife is left, and you can make it for me within five days!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

Zhong Huo breathed a sigh of relief, these craftsmen would continue to work tomorrow, and if they continued to make scabbards overnight, those craftsmen would definitely not be able to bear it.

Within a moment, ten steel knives with scabbards were sent to Zhu Di by Zhong Huo.

Dozens of surrounding houses also returned to silence.

Zhu Di who was looking at the steel knife didn't know what to think of, and told Zhong Huo: "No one is allowed to disclose any information about these steel knives, or even the giant iron-making furnace!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

Zhong Huo, Guo An and others responded quickly.

"In addition, after the scabbards of the remaining [-] steel knives are finished, the king will send someone to take them away, and these steel knives are not allowed to be disclosed."

"Yes, Your Highness!"

"Okay, the king is fine, you can go down and rest!"

"The villain is not sleepy!"

"what ever!"

Zhu Di waved his hand casually, looked up at the sky, and asked, "Is it the fourth watch?"

"His Royal Highness, it's already halfway through the fourth watch!"

Zhong Huo quickly replied.

"It's halfway through the fourth watch, when the king returns to Beiping City, the city gate has already opened!"

Zhu Di murmured, and gave instructions to Li Wang who was holding a steel knife in his arms.

"Li Wang, hurry up and gather a group of guards, and follow me back to the city!"

Li Wang quickly said: "Your Highness, the sky is not yet bright, and the road at night is not safe."

Zhu Di said: "Why is it unsafe? Is it possible that the army of the Northern Yuan Dynasty sneaked into the vicinity of Beiping Mansion?"

Li Wang immediately lowered his head, not because he was afraid of being ambushed by the Yuan army on the night road, besides, it is impossible for the Yuan army to appear near Beiping Mansion.

What he was worried about was that the night was so dark that he couldn't see where he was going, and the road was full of potholes. If something happened and Zhu Di was injured, it would be a serious crime.

However, he couldn't disobey Zhu Di's order in this matter.

Seeing this, Guo An saw something, and quickly stepped forward to suggest: "Your Highness, it is still so dark that the horses can't see the road clearly. Wouldn't it be more dangerous for me to sit in the carriage? If the horses pull the carriage , fell into the ditch on the side of the road, and spread the word, His Royal Highness's first name..."

Zhu Di scolded directly: "Shut up, you thief officer, I can't spit ivory out of a dog's mouth..."

Guo An just shut up.

Zhu Fu said again: "What Guo Zhixian said is not unreasonable. I'll wait for another half an hour, and the sky will begin to brighten! There is no rush to go back and forth. The Tieye Institute is also very important to His Highness now. , Your Highness can also take this time to learn more about the Iron Smelting Institute and see what difficulties the Iron Smelting Institute still has?"

Hearing this, Zhong Huo's eyes lit up, and he looked at Zhu Di expectantly.

Zhu Di pondered for a moment, then turned to Zhong Huo and asked, "I want the Iron Smelting Institute to smelt 60 jin of steel within three months. If you have any difficulties, you can tell me now."

Zhong Huo hurriedly said: "Your Highness, as long as the Iron Smelting Institute builds ten more giant iron-smelting furnaces, the villain will definitely be able to smelt 60 jin of steel within three months.

However, to smelt so much pig iron within three months, more coking coal and iron stone and iron sand are needed.

At present, the supply of coking coal and iron ore in the iron smelter is completely insufficient. "

Zhu Di waved his hand, "I will send you as many people as you want!"

Zhong Huo hurriedly bowed his hands and saluted, "Thank you, Your Highness!"

Zhu Di asked again: "Are there still difficulties?"

Zhong Huo glanced at Guo An hesitantly, and then continued to report to Zhu Di.

"His Royal Highness, it is raining a lot in Beiping now, and the villain is worried about the heavy rain. There is no room to cover the giant iron-smelting furnace, so we cannot continue to smelt iron in heavy rain!"

……

(End of this chapter)