Please ask me to be the emperor

Zhang Shun was a little disappointed to hear that it was not "crucible steel" but "crucible iron", but after thinking about it, he didn't understand this in the first place. In any case, it was an unexpected blessing to get relevant craftsmen, iron-making technology and sulfur-making technology. .

In order to prevent being fooled by these craftsmen, Zhang Shun simply asked Zhao Lizi to send another ship over, pick up fifty soldiers, and set up a warning in the direction of Yangcheng. Then let the old man take himself and others to investigate in person.

Zhang Shun cared about steel the most, so he went to investigate the crucible iron-making technology first. The method of making iron here does not use a blast furnace, but a square furnace. Zhang Shun followed the old man into a yard where iron was being smelted. He saw a square furnace in the yard. The front and top of the furnace were open, and the sides were made of bricks and clay. A low furnace was connected to the back. A short thatched house.

Zhang Shun stretched out his head and dug inside, only to feel that it was unbearably hot inside. He looked around and saw two strong men, an old man and a young man, pulling the bellows to blow the wind. Zhang Shun couldn't see any clue, so he got out again and asked the old man how to build this furnace and how to make iron.

Although the old man thought this "thief" was a bit strange, under the pressure, he had no intention of keeping it secret and directly told Zhang Shun the general techniques and steps. It turns out that there is a blast vent connected to the bellows at the back of the furnace. The bottom of the furnace is paved with broken crucible pieces to form an air duct. Large coal blocks and small coal blocks are placed on it. Some ignition materials are piled on the coal and then put into the crucible. Gaps need to be reserved between the crucibles for ventilation, and coal blocks are placed in and on them.

As for the crucible, it is made into a cylinder, the bottom is sealed, a certain amount of ore and black soil are put in, and then it can be smelted by blast. After smelting is completed, wait for the furnace to cool down, take out the crucible, and break the bottom into pieces to obtain lumps of iron. If the slag and iron cannot be separated, the entire crucible needs to be broken into pieces to pick up the iron particles. The crucibles used to build house walls are the remnants of the broken bottoms after iron smelting was completed.

After the old man finished speaking, he selected a piece of iron that had been smelted and showed it to Zhang Shun. Zhang Shun took it with a heavy hand. It looked dark and was a semicircular iron block with a diameter of more than three inches.

Zhang Shun shook his head and saw that it weighed almost seven or eight kilograms, and he couldn't help but ask: "How many pieces can one furnace produce like this?"

"The less is more than a dozen, the more is hundreds of yuan. It depends on the demand, no more will be enough." The old man answered honestly.

"This is pig iron and wrought iron? How to use this iron block?"

"Pig iron can be used to fry mature iron or melt cast iron."

Zhang Shun shook his head secretly after hearing this. The output was too low, and asked: "How does this compare with blast furnace ironmaking? Why is the output so low?"

"The blast furnace is rarely used here. It is easy to explode, and the iron quality is too poor to be used. It is not as good as our crucible for making iron." The old man replied because he knew a lot.

"Let's go and see the sulfur refining." Zhang Shun was helpless. He didn't know much about iron refining. He only remembered that the online novels in his previous life were all about blast furnace iron refining and quicklime desulfurization. He didn't know what it was. What's going on? Anyway, I have no other choice. Let's use this crucible to make iron first, and then compare the pros and cons when the conditions are available in the future.

When we got to the sulfur refining place, the yard was filled with many large jars with small openings. When the master of the courtyard saw Zhang Shun and others coming with weapons, he was frightened and afraid, and did not dare to say a word. Zhang Shun ignored him and asked the old man how to refine it.

The old man pointed to the piles of jars and said to Zhang Shun: "Your Majesty, we in Liushan Village use these 'Heaven and Earth Jars' to smelt sulfur. These jars are small and big. During smelting, sulfur ore is stuffed into the jars." , and then place this jar upside down on top of another jar, aligning the small openings. Seal it with wheat bran mud, place broken carbon around it, light a fire and grill it, and it will be ready for a day and a night. When it cools, the sulfur will be in the jar below. .”

Zhang Shun asked someone to pick up a piece of the finished product. When he took a look, it turned out to be light yellow crystals with almost no impurities visible to the naked eye, and it also exuded a special odor. He was not professional either, but he intuitively felt that the purity of the sulfur was quite good.

In fact, this is Zhang Shun's bad luck. At this time, Yangcheng is the most popular sulfur refining company in the world, and Yangcheng is the most powerful Liu Shancun. This is the best sulfur that can be refined in the world, plus the excellent iron quality. Zhang Shun found a treasure in the crucible iron-making technology.

Although Zhang Shun didn't know that he was unlucky, it didn't stop him from realizing the value of this small mountain village. Then he discussed with the old man: "The old man has been living here for a few years and should be tired of it. Why don't we let everyone go with us and find a good place instead of suffering here."

When the old man heard this, his heart almost broke with fright. The mountain village was poor, and few things were coveted by others. He thought that this "thief" could only extort some iron tools, but he did not expect that this person actually wanted to kidnap their entire village.

Wherever the old man was willing to go, he knelt down and begged: "Your Majesty, please calm down. We are all poor craftsmen, working day and night. As long as we pay the iron parts and sulfur to the government, and sell the rest to merchants, we can only have three meals a day. Really, There is no oil or water. Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"

Zhang Shun saw that his head was broken and he couldn't afford it. He really couldn't bear to force Xin Lai to move the entire village. In addition, it was said that Yangcheng County was only about fifteen miles away, so time did not allow him to move slowly.

So Zhang took a step back and said: "Since I am so sincere, I will also take a step back. You can help me choose twenty blacksmiths, twenty sulfur makers, and ten masters. Follow me and I will How about letting your village go?"

While the old man was still negotiating the price, Zhang Shun pulled out his mace, smashed the crucible in front of him, and threatened, "If not, the whole village will lose its chickens and dogs."

The old man was so frightened that he could only guide Zhang Shun, also known as a craftsman in the village, with great trepidation. After struggling for a long time, we managed to gather fifty people. The fifty people and their families did not dare to offend Zhang Shun, so they could only curse and insult the old man who led the team.

The old man tried to explain aggrievedly, but how could he explain clearly? Zhang Shun took the opportunity and said: "It seems that my father-in-law's relationship in the village is not good. Why don't you just let me go? If you stay here and the villagers report you to the government later, wouldn't it be a sin for the whole family to be beheaded!"

The old man was full of wheat and had nowhere to go, so he had to spare a moment and returned home. He found his son, daughter-in-law and grandson, and together they packed up their bedding and followed Zhang Shun. In line with the principle of "Thieves don't steal money", Zhang Shun took the opportunity to take out some silver blackmailed from Runcheng and purchased a lot of iron pieces and ironware, planning to ask these blacksmiths to make weapons for him.

Therefore, these families who sold their ironware not only did not care about Zhang Shun's behavior of plundering young men, but instead praised Zhang Shun's "benevolence and righteousness". This is really an unjust world.