Four days later, the caravan sailed away from the dock.
Thassa, along with a hundred soldiers of the First Army, set off for the capital.
These days, Roland and Margery have reached an agreement that Thassa can withdraw any amount of golden dragons from her shop. This fee will be deducted from the sales amount of the steam engine. In addition, Roland needs to pay an additional % one interest.
This time, the saltpeter and ore ingots brought by the other party were almost twice as many as the last time, but with the addition of the deposit for the transformation of the two river boats, Roland still received more than 2,200 golden dragons in his account. It is an unimaginable number, even if the ore sold for a month is only three hundred golden dragons.
After the caravan left, it was time for Maisie to leave Border Town temporarily.
According to the agreement made with Ashes, she will go to the Fjord Islands and bring news about the Western Territory.
Roland specially wrote a long letter to her. In addition to expressing an attitude of mutual assistance and cooperation, he also hoped that the Fifth Princess would send some auxiliary witches to assist him. In the letter, he did not identify himself as a brother, but negotiated the matter as the lord of Border Town and the ruler of the Western Region. Although the possibility of the other party agreeing to him is very small, he still has to give it a try. It won't take much effort to write a few more words.
The farewell place was in the backyard of the castle, and all the witches had arrived.
Nightingale gave her a small bag of dried fish; Lightning gave her a packet of pepper.
The other witches stepped forward and stroked her feathers with reluctance, and hugging and saying goodbye to her was like a farewell.
"Don't worry!" She raised her head and said, "I'll be back soon, goo!"
"What if Tilly doesn't let you come back," Lightning said worriedly.
"Gu..." The pigeon shrank its neck and thought for a while, then shook its tail feathers, "Then I'll sneak back in Gu!"
"Then we agreed," the little girl promised earnestly, "if you come back, I will personally catch a bunch of birds and bake them for you. And the hive we found last time, keep it for you to come. Take it out together."
"Goo!" She nodded again and again, "It's done Goo!"
What else can I say? Roland was overwhelmed with emotion, and in just one month, he completely turned Maisie over to his side. Well done, Lightning!
"Then, goodbye, everyone!" Maisie spread her sturdy wings, ran on the ground for a while, and then slowly flew up. After circling for two laps, she gradually disappeared in the southeast.
"She can arrive smoothly." Roland looked at the slow movement and couldn't help sweating for her.
"No problem," Lightning said without hesitation, then tilted his head, "Should… right?"
After seeing off Maisie, Roland quickly returned to his busy daily work.
This time, he wants to draw a complete set of design drawings for the two ships to be transformed left by the Crescent Moon Bay Caravan, and they will also become the world's first steam-powered paddle steamers.
Due to the use of a single power source, it is possible to directly connect the steam engine power shaft to the paddle wheel without a gearbox. Use multiple intake pipes to control the intake air volume, thereby controlling the speed of the boat. When you want to slow down or stop the boat, simply close the intake pipe and let excess steam escape from the exhaust. At this time, the fire is still burning, and it is convenient to increase the speed again.
The principle is not difficult, and Roland quickly drew a rough model. If you want to get an accurate production drawing, you have to go to the site to measure the specific size.
At this moment, Anna walked into the office with a book.
"What's wrong?" He put down the quill and couldn't help but smile.
"I've finished this book," she put the book on her desk. It was the "Theoretical Basis of Natural Science".
Roland's smile suddenly froze on his face. This is too exaggerated, isn't it? He has read all the mathematics and physics at the high school level in just a few months? He didn't ask the other person if he understood it, because Anna's reading meant complete understanding, otherwise she would definitely read it repeatedly or ask herself.
"Do you want to use steam engines to replace sails to power the ship with these drawings?" Anna's attention was quickly attracted by the sketches on the table, "But..."
"But what?"
"These two wheels are similar to paddles, right? They can generate thrust when they turn, but half of them are exposed, which is equivalent to wasting some of the power. Why not bury it all in the water?"
"..." Roland was stunned, not knowing what to say. It is impossible for people who are born with knowledge to exist, that is to say, she made the above judgment based on this momentary impression alone? He suddenly became interested, "Then what do you think is better?"
Ana thought for a while, picked up the pen, and began to draw on the paper.
Roland supported his chin, admiring with interest the bangs that slipped from her hairpin while she was drawing seriously, swaying back and forth with her movements, her slender eyelashes twitched from time to time, and her fair cheeks revealed a natural rosy look. Although only the side face can be seen from this angle, under the background of the light, the contour from the bridge of the nose to the chin and then to the neck forms a perfect and soft curve.
"Want to eat fish fillets?" Nightingale leaned over and inserted her hand between the two of them.
"Well," Anna nodded, holding the snacks handed by the latter, "Thank you."
Roland, whose vision was blocked, coughed twice, and had no choice but to move his gaze back to the paintings on the table.
At first, Anna tried to completely immerse the paddle wheel in the water, but this would make it difficult for the boat to observe the position of the runner when docking, and it would easily hit the pier or trestle.
Then she put the paddle wheel to the stern. This is also a common practice, but the transmission setup is much more complicated. After all, the bulky steam engine does not fit at the end of the hull, so the drive shaft and gearbox will occupy a considerable part of the hull. .
And when Roland saw the new drawings she drew, he couldn't help but marvel at the sharp thinking ability of the other party.
The sketch Anna is thinking about is infinitely close to the arrangement of a single-shaft propeller. The steam engine is set at the bottom of the hull, and the drive shaft extends out of the hull from below the waterline. The end is connected with four square blades, which looks a bit like a windmill.
"I don't know if this is possible," she hesitated. "It stands to reason that as long as the paddles are kept at an inclination angle, a horizontal component force can be generated, but I have reduced a paddle wheel, and the four paddles alone may not be able to push it. hull."
"Of course you can, just make some modifications." Roland took the quill in Anna's hand and drew the original appearance of the propeller, "Compared to the shape of a windmill, this shape of the propeller is more suitable for spinning in water. Your idea is completely That's right, but the contract requires it to be transformed into a paddle steamer, so we still follow the first method, which has nothing to do with technology, but a business strategy." He paused, "I'm going to measure the hull data now, Do you want to come with me?"
Anna blinked those azure blue eyes, "Yeah!"
After mastering the theory, verifying it in practice is the best way to learn.
…
"nightingale?"
When Anna followed the prince to the door, seeing that Nightingale was still looking at the blueprints on the table, she couldn't help but said.
"Ah, you go first, I'll be right there."
After repeatedly comparing the sketches in her hand, she came to the conclusion: Isn't the place where the wheels are placed in a different position? (.)