The weather was getting colder and it was snowing in Tokyo. The snowflakes flew wildly in the wind, mixing with the black smoke from the chimneys of the earthen houses in the Zaojiafang, looking like ash.
Zan Jurun and a few others walked into a room, closed his umbrella and shook off the snow on his robe. He immediately frowned and covered his nose with a handkerchief. A choking smell of burning and heat came to his face.
The house was very noisy, the noise made my ears buzz and was very uncomfortable.
The Bian River had frozen over, and it was the dry season. But the donkey in the basement was pulling the huge wheel, making a creaking sound, driving a whole row of blowers to blow air into the furnace. The blast furnace outside was made of bricks and mud, and was the main source of heat for the high temperature in the room. In addition, there was the clanging sound of the blacksmith swinging his hammer and hitting.
Zan Jurun looked over and saw several blacksmiths with bare upper bodies, their golden muscles covered with sweat, swinging hammers and hammering hard.
Soon, a big man in a thin, ragged linen shirt came over, wiping the white ash off his face with a towel. An official in front said: "Report to the assistant governor, he is Xu Sheng."
The big man also clasped his fists, bowed and said: I pay my respects to Regent Zan.
Zan Jurun looked him up and down and said: You said you can improve the barrel of a firearm.
The big man named Xu Sheng answered loudly, otherwise he couldn't hear him. He said: I don't know yet. It would be better if Zan Fuzheng came two days later. We have to wait until the iron is melted. There is no blast furnace in Beiyuan, but there is one in Zaojiafang. I will come over to try it.
Xu Sheng was a blacksmith at Beiyuan Firearms Workshop. It was only when he asked to come to the Bianshui Workshop that Zan Jurun heard about what he was doing. Beiyuan Firearms Workshop was a small workshop that specialized in testing new firearms. The Bianshui Armor Workshop had a huge demand for iron materials and built its own blast furnace. Xu Sheng asked for a blast furnace, so he came here to test it.
Zan Jurun attached great importance to this matter.
The royal family allocated a piece of land in Beiyuan to the Military Equipment Bureau to test and manufacture firearms. It cost a lot every year to maintain so many people. However, after several years of research and development, they failed to come up with any idea for making the shrapnel bomb. They actually had to drill a hole in a whole stone and launch it with a catapult, which was really useless.
In the past, whether it was the method of removing impurities by dissolving and filtering saltpeter to granulate gunpowder for faster combustion, or the bronze musket and mortar, they were all ideas proposed by Guo Shao himself, and the Firearms Workshop only executed them.
Now that the end of the year is approaching, Zan Jurun has to summarize the achievements of the various offices of the Military Equipment Supervision Bureau this year. When writing the memorial to the Beiyuan Firearms Workshop, should he write that it wasted money and grain and had no effect
This made Zan Jurun feel very embarrassed. Fortunately, this craftsman recently gave him some hope.
Can we try it? Zan Jurun asked.
Xu Sheng hesitated a little and said loudly: Anyway, the gun barrel is cast, so the hole must be large and the body must be thick; if the gunpowder leaks and the gun cannot shoot far, it must be forged.
With a cold stick as the core and an iron plate wrapped around it, it's not possible to try it.
Xu Sheng said: "Yes, wrought iron is too soft and will be deformed when it is blasted; it is slightly hard and brittle and will crack when it is blasted. But I have thought about it and found two problems. One is the iron material and the other is the gunpowder."
Zan Jurun turned around and said to a clerk who was accompanying him: Please write down what he said.
Here. The clerk quickly took out his pen and ink from his bag and prepared.
Xu Sheng added: "The gunpowder we used was too strong, and it burned too quickly, which easily burst the iron pipe; there was little smoke, and the bullet could not go far in the chamber. That gunpowder is good for blasting things, but it is not very useful for firing lead bullets. I re-adjusted the ingredients and added more charcoal."
In addition, the iron used to forge the gun barrel is too soft and becomes brittle when hardened. I have tried many methods, and adding limestone can improve the situation. However, I used to add limestone powder while hammering the wrought iron, and the slag was all hammered into the iron. Now I have a new idea, adding limestone powder to the molten iron in the furnace.
Zan Jurun asked: What is the reason
Xu Sheng looked confused: I don’t know, my family has been blacksmiths for three generations, and it’s all based on experience.
He pointed to the hot furnace behind him and said: After the molten iron is recast into a block, I repeatedly heat it up and forge it into wrought iron. Then I use this wrought iron to reforge the gun barrel.
Zan Jurun said: If you succeed, I will reward you with 100 strings of cash.
Xu Sheng's eyes widened: Zan's words were binding upon the government.
Zan Jurun said decisively: As long as you succeed, I will reward you even if I have to use my salary.
However, it would take at least a month to test this thing, and Zan Jurun could not wait any longer. More than a month later, it would be next year, so he would submit a memorial to the emperor about the information he had collected, which was better than writing that it was a waste of money and gained nothing.
That day, when Guo Shao walked into the study in the East Palace, he saw many memorials on the imperial desk. Most of them were advising to change the country's name. They had been classified, so he threw them aside without approving them and rejected them all.
He had to make a strong gesture. If he took the initiative to change the country's name and become the founding emperor, it would be very embarrassing. He had to get many people to support him and do it reluctantly, although Guo Shao himself was also keen on founding a country and becoming emperor.
Besides, Guo Shao still had some things to think about, so he couldn't be too hasty.
When he ascended the throne, he did not confer titles on his meritorious officials, but now that he is founding a country, he should consider it. Moreover, the current system of imperial guards' military power is suitable for frequent large-scale wars, but it is not conducive to ensuring the safety of imperial power. This is an indisputable fact.
In history, Zhao Kuangyin released the military power with a toast because he saw the risks involved. Guo Shao wanted to follow suit and release the military power with a toast, but he rejected this approach because his military philosophy was completely different from Zhao Kuangyin's and the court did not have enough money to redeem the generals' military power according to that approach.
Guo Shao decided to wait a little longer.
At this time, a memorial from the Military Equipment Bureau caught Guo Shao's eye. He sent most of his other memorials to the ministers of the Political Affairs Hall and the Privy Council for discretion, but he was very interested in the memorial from the Military Equipment Bureau. The ancient scholars did not attach much importance to technology, but Guo Shao's concept was different after all.
In the memorial written by Zan Jurun himself, he mentioned a craftsman named Xu Sheng who tried to improve the barrel of a musket.
Guo Shao was very absorbed in watching it and felt that it made a lot of sense. In his impression, the musket did not seem to be made of golden copper but an iron pipe. He had tried to use an iron pipe many times before but failed, so he made a musket that looked weird.
What is the principle of adding lime powder to iron materials
Guo Shao pondered for a long time but still couldn't understand it. He picked up a pen and scribbled some chemical equations on the paper. Unfortunately, his chemistry knowledge was limited to middle school, and he had forgotten most of it. If he had studied metallurgy, he might have understood it now, but unfortunately he didn't. Guo Shao was also a half-baked person, and he only had a partial understanding of many things.
Fortunately, he had worked as a blacksmith to make a living before, so he had some understanding of the craft at that time.
He couldn't understand the craftsman's principle, and guessed that the iron ore contained too much sulfur or some impurities that affected the strength of the metal, and the additives added could remove the impurities.
No matter what, we must encourage craftsmen who can innovate. When Guo Shao picked up his pen, he remembered that Zan Jurun was in this study.
Guo Shao raised his head and said: Zan assists in the administration.
Zan Jurun hurriedly stood up, walked over, bowed and said: I'm here.
Guo Shao returned the memorial to him: If Xu Sheng can really make an iron gun barrel, tell him that he will be rewarded handsomely with a house in Tokyo, a piece of official land in Kaifeng, and one thousand strings of cash.
Zan Jurun was a little surprised, after all, he was just a small craftsman.
However, Guo Shao was always generous about his concerns. After a moment's silence, he said: Find a vacancy in the Military Equipment Bureau and give him a promotion.
Zan Jurun couldn't help but say: This man is a craftsman, I'm afraid he can't even recognize a few big characters.
Guo Shao said: This matter is of great significance. If Xu Sheng can make a contribution, he will be rewarded even if he is just a craftsman. I also want him to be a model. Talented people are not just good at writing.
Zan Jurun had no choice but to bow and say: Your Majesty is wise.
After a while, Guo Shao accidentally found another very interesting memorial on the imperial desk: it was written by Fan Zhi.
It turned out that the memorial was to persuade Guo Shao to found a new country and become emperor. Because there were too many people advising him to do so, and the memorials were classified, Guo Shao almost didn't notice it. Fortunately, Fan Zhi's memorial was placed on the top, so it was easy to see. It was probably because several cabinet regents paid close attention to Fan Zhi's memorial and did it on purpose.
To be honest, Guo Shao personally dislikes Fan Zhi.
He stood up and walked outside the screen. The four cabinet officials all stood up. Guo Shao turned to look at them and asked: What do you think about reinstating Fan Zhi
Several people looked at each other in bewilderment. Zuo You clasped his fists and said: "Before the Northern Expedition, Lord Fan strongly opposed it and shamelessly said that Your Majesty could not win. But now that Your Majesty has returned victorious, you are very tolerant of Lord Fan, which is exactly the mind of Donghai."
In fact, Fan Zhi disobeyed Guo Shao at the beginning and opposed Fu Jinzhan's rule, which caused a lot of trouble. It's just that Zuo You didn't mention it.
Moreover, Zuo You advocated the reinstatement of Fan Zhi for reasons other than what he said. The most crucial reason was not easy to state openly.
Fan Zhi's identity is very special. He is an old minister of the previous emperor, and has never been accepted as a confidant by Guo Shao. At this moment, many old ministers of the previous dynasty will take a wait-and-see attitude. After all, a new emperor chooses new ministers. If Fan Zhi, who is as rebellious as a dragon, is fine, do the old ministers of the previous dynasty still need to worry about their own positions and interests
Since they were all officials and were not aliens ruling the Central Plains, as long as their own interests could be protected, Guo Shao put himself in their shoes: if he were such an official, he would definitely be an official and would not want to oppose the emperor's founding of a country and becoming emperor.
As for what reasons Zuo You gave, it was not important. His attitude was the most important. I guess Zuo You and others also saw this point.
As expected, Huang Binglian and the other three also said: "Your Majesty is magnanimous, and the people of the country are at peace. I think that Prime Minister Fan Gong is very lucky to be forgiven by Your Majesty."
Guo Shao was also very efficient in doing things. Hearing that the four people had the same attitude as him, he turned around and said: Come on, go to Fan Mansion and convey the order, asking him to be on duty in the government hall tomorrow, and do what he was in charge of before.
The eunuch on duty was Cao Tai, and his voice sounded a little weak: I obey your order.