Scholars in the courtyard

When everyone arrived at the brigade headquarters, Mr. Xia and Mr. Tao put aside their concerns, walked aside, and then asked each other about the purpose of their visit.

After some exchanges, the two knew each other's purpose.

Knowing that he was not here for Yang Xiaotao, Mr. Xia was obviously relieved.

Knowing that he was here for the steam engine, Old Tao also laughed.

Afterwards, the two of them smiled at the same time as if they understood.

They even got together and whispered.

"Old Tao, what do you think? If this thing is done, your Ministry of Agriculture will also benefit."

"Let's just talk about the current form. You know more about what we have developed than I do. If there is such a coal-burning tractor, it will be of great use."

"What's more important is that as long as we master the technology of steam engines, we can produce them in large quantities. We don't need to look at the outside world and rely on imports like KouKouSouSou."

Mr. Xia said with excitement. The guy in front of him was a leading figure in the Ministry of Agriculture. If he could get his help, then this matter would be more certain.

After Tao Lao heard it, he was not in a hurry to speak. He also thought silently in his heart.

Agricultural issues are about stability.

It is their greatest responsibility to keep people full.

But providing food for this populous country is not just about sitting in an office and making a decision.

The current form of agriculture has led to many places being starved of food.

How many farmers don't have enough to eat themselves, so they give the food they save to the state and to the workers.

He felt sour when he heard it.

But there was nothing he could do. After all these years, there was only a slight improvement.

This is why he places special emphasis on high-yielding corn.

If agricultural construction could be strengthened, he would definitely agree.

But asking him to make a decision now is really a bit rash.

At his position, any decision needs to be made carefully.

"Lao Xia, this can't be accomplished with just a few words. Are you confident?"

"It's not that I look down on steel rolling mills. The factories that make tractors are either well-established or have accumulated experience and invested heavily in doing so."

"What about you guys? With no plan, no preparation, no experience, just relying on passion and impulse, thinking that it can be done by a group of fitters?"

"Lao Xia, do you think this is reliable?"

Mr. Tao said politely, and Mr. Xia was not angry either.

"It depends on people. Besides, we are not unprepared."

"Just like this well-drilling machine, isn't it made from scratch?"

"If this can be done, then why can't tractors do it if we have a steam engine?"

"The most difficult thing has been done, so what else are you afraid of?"

"And, my soldiers, I have confidence."

After saying that, Mr. Xia stood up. Mr. Tao was silent for a moment and then stood up as well.

"Then let's see it with our own eyes before it's too late!"

While several people were talking, the sound of cars was heard again outside the village. Someone ran to the brigade headquarters. Yang Dazhuang quickly took people out to check.

Then I realized they were cars from a steel rolling mill and a cement factory.

Liu Huaimin and Li Zhixing came to the brigade headquarters and met Mr. Tao and Mr. Xia. They were both more nervous than excited.

Seeing that the cement pipes were in place, Yang Xiaotao and Yang Dazhuang discussed and sent the cement pipes up.

It just so happened that the two leaders were asked to inspect the well drilling machine and water press.

After the discussion, Yang Dazhuang went to report the situation, and then asked the car to come to Bei Slope. Mr. Yang also led everyone to Bei Slope.

When everyone arrived at the north slope, Zhou Kui was leading people to the new well digging place.

The place just now has been laid. Since there are no cement pipes, we can only try the next place first.

The villagers who followed the well diggers had a smile on their faces. They had completed two wells in one morning. At this rate, there would soon be enough wells on the north slope for them to water their fields.

It was time to go back for dinner at noon, but news came from the village that a leader was coming to inspect and asked them to wait for a live demonstration.

Zhou Kui and others looked at the two old men who came. After knowing that they were leaders, they were a little nervous.

Yang Xiaotao went to help in person, and everyone became quiet.

Mr. Tao looked at the well-drilling machine. There was still soil on the drill bit.

Mr. Xia was staring at the steam engine on the groundcar. Liu Huaimin and Yang Youning were explaining, and Mr. Xia kept nodding.

"Mr. Tao, let's give it a try."

Gao Yufeng asked, Mr. Tao nodded and moved away.

Yang Xiaotao understood, and then Zhou Kui began to operate. Wang Jun looked at the pressure of the steam engine and added coal at any time.

The drill drilled rapidly on the ground, and balls of soil flew around.

Zhou Kui was a little nervous and lowered the drill bit too quickly.

There were noises all around, and several people stared without speaking.

In the brigade headquarters, Ran Qiuye was busy with the women in the village, folding the rolled out noodles one by one. Women had already cut the noodles one by one with kitchen knives. The gray-white noodles were kneaded so hard that they immediately fell into pieces after being cut. Shrink, pull away from each other.

After cutting one piece, the woman pinches a handful of flour with her hands and sprinkles it on top. Then she shakes it again and the noodles spread out, shakes in mid-air, and then puts them aside on the grate.

Ran Qiuye was cutting potatoes on the side, and Yang Dazhuang's family was cutting pig skin on the side.

Several women were talking about today's events together. They were well-informed and knew that the people coming this time were not simple, and they also knew who they were here for.

"Teacher Ran, your man is really awesome."

A woman was playing very fast with a kitchen knife, looking at Ran Qiuye with envy and happiness on her face.

"Hongye Mom, that's not just Teacher Ran's man, he's also a young man from our village."

The woman who was boiling water on the other side smiled and teased Ran Qiuye, "We have such a handsome young man in Yangjiazhuang, and you kidnapped him. You have to make up for it."

"Hahaha"

Ran Qiuye smiled and said, "Third Aunt, how do you want to compensate for this?"

The third aunt said happily, "No need for anything else. When your boy grows up, he can marry my second daughter."

"This means that the wealth does not flow to other people's fields. Our own village has solved the problem."

After saying this, several other women around him were unhappy and said, "Her third aunt, your calculations are making a lot of noise, and now you've started to keep an eye on her."

"That's right, Teacher Ran, please don't agree."

"Isn't that right? Third aunt just thinks too much."

Several women gathered together to attack, and the third aunt couldn't stand it any longer. "I said, "Why are you so anxious? I just said, look at you, it's like you've eaten me."

"Don't think I don't know how careful you are."

"If you ask me, this teacher Ran can still give birth. If you stand in the back, you can always catch a golden turtle son-in-law."

After everyone heard this, they laughed again. One said that the third aunt was right, and the other asked Teacher Ran to quickly make two more, which made Ran Qiuye's ears turn red.

These old ladies dare to say anything.

But she didn't refute what they said. She also wanted to have a few more children so that they could spread their wings for Yang Xiaotao.

"Out of the water."

As Yang Youning's excited voice sounded, several people around him came over to check, regardless of the dust.

The leader came closer, reached out and squeezed a handful of mud, "How high is this?"

"Eight meters."

Liu Huaimin accurately reported the number, and he started to remember it when he added the tube just now.

"for how long?"

"Thirty-two minutes total."

This time it was Gao Yufeng who answered.

Mr. Xia and Mr. Tao came over, looked at it for a while, and both nodded.

Yang Xiaotao asked Zhou Kui to continue, select the correct position of the drill bit, and work again.

Mr. Xia and his superiors came to the ground train and looked at the steam engine again.

"Is this a pressure gauge?"

The leader asked. Wang Jun, who was operating on the side, was so nervous that he could not speak. Yang Youning wanted to go up to explain, but Liu Huaimin pulled him back and asked Yang Xiaotao to go up.

Yang Youning understood and winked quickly.

Seeing this, Yang Xiaotao didn't show any modesty. He designed this thing, so there's no pressure to talk about it.

"Chief, leader. This is a pressure gauge, which mainly represents the pressure inside."

He walked to the pressure gauge and explained, "This pointer returns to zero when it is not working, and the working pressure is usually at the middle position."

"This red line represents the limit. If it exceeds this limit, it means the risk increases and you need to be careful."

The two looked at each other and nodded. Xia Lao smiled and said, "I didn't expect that a pressure gauge could reflect so many problems. Did you design this?"

"No, I found this pressure gauge from the steel rolling mill. I need to borrow it."

Yang Xiaotao said seriously.

"Well, as long as it comes in handy."

The superior leader nodded and said, "Comrade Yang Xiaotao, do you know the maximum horsepower of this steam engine?"

"This, I don't know."

"How big do you think it will be?"

Yang Xiaotao looked at Liu Huaimin. They should know, but no one told him. Could there be something wrong?

Immediately he said the answer he had calculated in his mind, "It should have fifteen horsepower."

Hearing this, Mr. Xia laughed with his superiors.

Mr. Xia walked aside and found a piece of grass to sit down on.

Several people from the steel rolling mill gathered around, and Mr. Tao from the other side also led people over.

After a while, everyone formed a circle.

Yang Xiaotao was pushed forward by Yang Youning and sat in front of Mr. Xia.

"You don't know, the horsepower of this steam engine has reached 30, it's unexpected."

"thirty?"

Yang Xiaotao was startled, then looked at Yang Youning aside, and when he saw the other person nodded, he realized why Mr. Xia and Mr. Tao were back.

If it were a simple well-drilling machine, it would at best play a role in agriculture.

But a powerful steam engine can be very useful.

"How about it, our designer must have exceeded expectations."

Tao Lao laughed, and the people around him smiled knowingly.

Yang Xiaotao picked up a small stone on the ground and pinched it, "This is indeed a bit unexpected. However, it is also expected."

"Oh? Tell me what was expected?"

Mr. Xia became interested, and Yang Xiaotao nodded immediately.

He casually drew on the ground with stones, and soon the general structure of the steam engine was drawn.

“The principle of the steam engine is very simple, and anyone with some educational experience will understand it.

"We know that there are cylinders, pistons, etc., but how to combine them to reciprocate? How to combine connecting rods, valves, pipes... to make them work?"

"What the cylinder should look like, its volume, and the cross-section of the piston all need to be calculated."

“Without calculation and understanding of the efficiency of steam expansion, we cannot make the most suitable steam engine, and we cannot use the maximum power of the steam engine.”

Yang Xiaotao pointed to the structure on the ground and said, everyone on the side was attracted to Yang Xiaotao whether they understood or not.

Liu Huaimin, who knew a little about it, understood what Yang Xiaotao meant after he finished speaking, "You mean, your design can maximize the efficiency of the steam engine, so that's why it reaches thirty horsepower?"

After hearing this, Yang Xiaotao nodded first and then shook his head.

"Secretary, the fact that this steam engine can reach thirty horsepower is indeed related to precise calculations, but the steam engine I designed is not optimal."

Several people were surprised. It was so much better than other steam engines, and it was still the best?

How much horsepower can the optimal steam engine get?

However, Yang Xiaotao knew that when the steam engine was originally designed, the system's evaluation of the design was only good, and did not reach the excellent level.

"There are many factors that determine the quality of a steam engine. The design, materials, component processing, fuel used, machine maintenance, and the use of other safety components will all affect the efficiency of the steam engine."

After hearing this, Mr. Xia glanced at Mr. Tao. Both of them could see in their eyes that Yang Xiaotao was very knowledgeable in this area.