I see.
Xia Fan immediately understood the other party's method of distinguishing steel - judging toughness and hardness through bending plasticity and steel hammering. Pig iron is easy to break, while wrought iron is too soft. Only the characteristics of steel can satisfy these two points at the same time. Both tough and strong.
When carbon content cannot be determined, the blacksmith's experience is the most reliable criterion.
"All the iron in Jinxia City was smelted in one go. If this news reaches the Ministry of Industry, those old guys will definitely scare their jaws off." Mo Yun is also quite excited. She has specialized in machine manufacturing for more than ten years. Naturally, we know the meaning behind mass production.
"I think their first reaction was to refuse to believe it and think we were deliberately deceiving."
Ning Wanjun replied with a smile.
She was also very happy, but for slightly different reasons. In addition to being able to produce a large amount of steel in his own territory, another thing is that he is proud of his old friends. After all, being able to come up with a plan in front of the listener and gain the other party's approval is probably very rare in Daqi. Before the machine beasts were mass-produced, this furnace could be regarded as Mo Yun's first official achievement after coming to Jinxia City, and she would naturally be happy about it.
Only Xia Fan was the calmest.
In his opinion, it is completely unknown whether this batch of molten iron is considered steel, and there is no guarantee that the same result will be obtained by melting the second furnace in the same way.
After all, its quality depends entirely on the available pig iron and wrought iron ingots, so it is not surprising that the carbon content fluctuates greatly. In addition, no impurities were removed during the entire smelting process, and the quality of the finished product was still far from Xia Fan's ideal "steel".
Fortunately, this is just the beginning.
As he had envisioned before, this batch of crude steel of varying qualities would become the starting point for rapid advances in smelting technology. Based on more professional and reliable equipment, it is only a matter of time before steel with controllable quality and superior performance is produced.
As filled stone molds continued to be delivered, Mo Yun had already begun to select the best batch of raw steel for his new machine manufacturing bureau.
Looking at the other party's concentration and endless enjoyment, Xia Fan always felt that she was not picking out hot steel, but browsing the commercial street during the new product launch season. At the same time, he couldn't help but feel a little emotional - it turned out that the woman with a cold expression and sharp eyebrows was... He will also show such an expression.
At this time, a guard walked up to Ning Wanjun and said, "Your Highness, there is a visitor who claims to be the new prefect of Jinxia who wants to see you. His name is Hong Siqi, and he has all the documents, appointment and dismissal orders and other items."
Hearing this, the princess couldn't help but frown, "Have you given it to Eunuch Li for inspection?"
"Yes, it has been confirmed. It is not a forgery."
Xia Fan saw obvious impatience and boredom in Ning Wanjun's eyes.
He even suspected that it was not impossible for the other party to say something like "Catch this man and put him in jail as if he had never been here" the next moment.
But she finally restrained her emotions and replied in a deep voice, "Bring him here."
"Yes." The guard took the order and left.
"What is supposed to come has finally come." Ning Wanjun sighed with some disappointment, "Although I knew that the imperial court would not let Jinxia City become an empty area without people's jurisdiction, but they sent people here so quickly, I can only say that the officials There are so many officials who have nothing to do."
Xia Fan fully understood how the princess was feeling at this moment - she had finally overcome all obstacles and obtained the complete Jinxia City, but now she had to be interfered with by the imperial court. Even if the other party failed to succeed in the end, this process was quite disgusting.
"Isn't this something that has been expected a long time ago?" He comforted in a relaxed tone. "The General Affairs Bureau was set up for this situation. Your decision is correct. If you arrest him or hide him behind closed doors, the official will The department will definitely be aware of it, so it would be better to put him in the government office, which would be regarded as breaking the truth."
"You are right," the princess nodded, "this city no longer belongs to the imperial court."
…
"Your Highness, if you have any instructions, I will do my best and never shirk!" Hong Siqi said loudly after saluting, not caring about the looks of people around him, "If you think I am still capable, If you have any doubts, I am willing to prove myself through the reserve officer training of the General Affairs Bureau!"
Xia Fan and Ning Wanjun looked at each other.
The two imagined many situations, but they did not expect this one.
The new governor made his attitude clear immediately after introducing himself. He had absolutely no intention of saying "Jinxia City should be managed by the government", let alone any dissatisfaction or resistance to the Secretariat.
When they reach the position of prefect, most officials have begun to pay attention to their words and deeds. Even when facing the royal family, they will not be too groveling for fear of leaving an impression of lack of integrity in the eyes of others. Even if you seek refuge with someone in power, you still have to find a private environment and be subtle and careful before revealing your true feelings.
Hong Siqi seemed to have no worries about this at all.
Such a straightforward declaration of effectiveness left the princess at a loss as to how to answer the question.
While the two were silent, Hong Siqi was also quietly sizing up the two... and the scene on the beach.
Not to mention Princess Guangping and the Prime Minister of the Privy Council. Their common feature is that they are young. However, he had inquired about them before submitting the invitation, so he was not too surprised.
But the furnace on the beach is more eye-catching.
He noticed that red liquid was constantly flowing out from the bottom of the furnace, which must be smelting some kind of metal. After so many years as an official, he has seen what a smelting site looks like: not only is it smoky, but there are shirtless charcoal burners everywhere, and there are many small stoves standing all over the ground like tree roots.
This was the first time Hong Siqi had seen such a giant furnace.
More importantly, he didn't see the black smoke rising from the charcoal burning at the scene, but the metal flowed out in an endless stream. It was completely unclear how they could smelt so much ore at the same time and still maintain it. The inside of the furnace is hot.
But he was certain of one thing.
From today on, Yancheng will produce more than just salt.
Hong Siqi vaguely realized that all the differences he saw had a common cause - past experience could only play a minimal role in this city. What he saw in front of him confirmed If he didn't make his decision more decisively, he might not even have the chance to meet the princess.
Who to work for is not a question he needs to struggle with.
The key is how to get more benefit from it.
What do you think
Ning Wanjun asked Xia Fan with her eyes.
Xia Fan nodded his chin slightly.
The princess immediately understood what he was thinking, turned to the new prefect and said, "Master Hong, the government suffered too much losses in the last disaster, and I'm afraid it will be difficult to recover for a long time. If you are asked to work with the governor, will you? It would be too unfair for you—"
"Not aggrieved, not aggrieved at all. Only the capital of a state has a privy council house. The prime minister is essentially the same as a state shepherd. How could I feel aggrieved?" Hong Siqi raised his hands directly to Xia Fan and said, "Master Xia, Please take care of me more in the future."
"Each other, each other." Xia Fan cupped his hands in return.
"I saw that there were many people in front of the Secretariat, and the receptionists were overwhelmed. I guess the manpower in the mansion must be quite tight." He did not regard himself as an outsider and said, "If there is anything I can do to help, please feel free to ask .”
Xia Fan pondered for a moment, "Actually, there is something urgent, but I can't find anyone to do it for the time being."
"Oh? I'd like to hear the details."
"I heard that Leizhou seemed to have suffered a military disaster. A large number of people fled eastward. Some of them have already crossed the border of Shenzhou. If no one takes them in, they will probably reach the vicinity of Jinxia City soon."
"You want me to disperse those refugees?" Hong Siqi said without hesitation, "Don't worry, I know a lot about this -"
"No." Xia Fan interrupted him in a solemn voice, "I hope you can assist the Secretariat in taking them in and settling them properly."