Zhao Zhen looked at the snowflake texture on the kitchen knife in his hand, and made a kitchen knife out of 100 steel, only Cai Ji would be so extravagant.

Cai Boli rushed from a distance, followed by a group of craftsmen in official uniforms, and Zhao Zhen saw that they were gray and black, and a good and dignified official uniform was worn into work clothes, I am afraid that there are only Cai Ji's craftsmen.

This is considered to be wronged, these craftsmen have just changed into clean official clothes, but walking through this forge will be stained after a while, not to mention that they have putty on their hands that cannot be washed off all year round.

It is estimated that a few craftsmen have just obtained the official body not long ago, and after seeing Zhao Zhen, they still knelt down according to the habits of the people, and covered the stains on their bodies with their hands uneasily, but how could they cover so many stains.

Cai Boyu patted the hand of the craftsman beside him, and explained to Zhao Zhen with a smile: "Your Majesty, most of them have only just obtained official positions, and they have been working in the forge for a long time, so they ...... Hey hey ......"

Zhao Zhen rolled his eyes: "Of course I know, don't forget that every appointment to the craftsman's official body is approved from my imperial case, and the master craftsman serves the country with his own body, and he is not informal, and he is not informal!" ”

Personally helping up the craftsmen on the ground is regarded as a corporal of Lixian in the eyes of others, but Zhao Zhen knows that only if he tells them in person, they will know that they don't have to kneel when they see the emperor in the future, they just need to bow down and salute.

Cai Boyu watched Zhao Zhen talk to the craftsmen cordially and was about to slip away, but he didn't expect that before he could take a step, Zhao Zhen reached out and grabbed the back neckline of his clothes: "You're going to run away?" I've just arrived, so let's explain it to me, don't always think about going to Bi Yaxuan's garment factory to meet Miao Yuan privately! ”

The back collar was caught by the officials, and Cai Boyu said with a wry smile: "I don't know much about this forging factory, mainly the masters are responsible for production, and I, Cai Ji, only provide raw materials and daily management." ”

"Then don't leave, I came this time not only to tell you about the forge, but also about you and the princess, tomorrow I will announce your marriage to Miao Yuan in the court, the princess is still busy with you...... Remember that you can't have a private meeting with the princess before the wedding, and now there are a lot of people staring at you in the court, so don't give anyone a handle again. ”

Cai Boyu hung his head and said: "Your Majesty knows ......"

The forge is slightly simpler, requiring only skilled craftsmen, while the steel mill is much more complex than the forge factory.

In front of the huge earth blast furnace made of bricks and stones, Zhao Zhen watched the craftsmen put pig iron ore into it, and added some other things.

Under the explanation of the craftsman, Zhao Zhen knew that the raw materials added later were actually some combustibles, which were equivalent to the accelerants added in steelmaking in later generations.

Steel is iron with a carbon base, while steel is refined steel.

The steel produced in the earthy blast furnace would be sent to the forge to make swords and iron crossbow arms, and now the Eight Ox crossbow arms of the Great Song Dynasty have all been replaced from wooden to iron.

This is the credit of Cai Ji, and because of this achievement, the craftsmen who participated in the transformation of the Eight Bull Crossbow received a collective award from Zhao Zhen.

Knocking on the huge steel pot like a cauldron, Zhao Zhen turned his head and said, "What is this for?" ”

Cai Boyan opened his mouth and closed his mouth, stretched out his foot and kicked the craftsman next to him and said, "The official family asked you!" You mean! At the beginning, I said that your method is not good, and you have to do experiments, but now you don't say anything when the official asks. ”

Zhao Zhen looked at Cai Boyan's words, a man as strong as a hill lowered his head and said nothing, looking at the muscles on his arm, Zhao Zhen could feel the strength of his arm, even if he was kicked by Cai Boyan, it didn't hurt, but he just looked up slightly and Zhao Zhen quickly lowered it.

Zhao Zhen frowned and said: "Raise your head, such a strong man is like a little lady, what kind of physique, if you have anything to say, I will support you if I understand!" ”

The strong man raised his head suddenly, and said with his eyes shining: "Really?!" ”

Zhao Zhen was depressed and speechless, and Chen Tong on the side drank: "Presumptuous, the official family is golden, and the export becomes a constitution, can you still be tricked?!" ”

"Your Majesty, this is a small steel frying furnace built to study the changes in molten steel and different ores......"

Zhao Zhen's face changed and said: "Frying steel method?!" ”

The strong man was frightened by Zhao Zhen's words, and his body suddenly stiffened, and he said, "Your Majesty...... Your Majesty is also ...... Know this?! ”

Zhao Zhen nodded slightly: "I have heard of it, I heard that this is a secret method of steelmaking that has existed since the Han Dynasty, but unfortunately it is too exquisite, and it has almost been cut off from the inheritance in my Great Song Dynasty, do you know?" ”

The strong man bowed down violently and said: "Your Majesty, the minister's surname is Gongye Famous Iron, his family lives in Sichuan, Shaanxi and Luzhou, and he has been smelting iron for generations!" This method of frying steel is left by the ancestors, and the minister intends to use this method to smelt the best steel in the Great Song Dynasty! ”

Cai Boyu said with a smile: "Official, he is an idiot who smelts iron, and he can't do anything else except smelting iron." ”

Zhao Zhen suddenly shouted: "Okay! Good! Good! I am short of such talents in the Great Song Dynasty, Gongye Iron will be rewarded if you want to practice good steel, and I have one thing to remind you, you might as well try to refine the ore put into the molten iron first, maybe there will be unexpected effects. ”

Gongye Tie's eyes were a little contemplative and then said excitedly: "Your Majesty Xie instructs, but in this way, the cost will be higher." ”

Zhao Zhen laughed and said: "Compared with the new steel, what is this investment?" I naturally thought that you can ask Cai Ji for anything you need in the future, and Cai Ji will meet you, and I will also build a special laboratory in this iron smelting plant, no matter how much pig iron is consumed, I want you to develop the characteristics of all kinds of steel, and record it, and the court needs that kind of reliable hand. ”

Although Gongye Iron didn't know why the officials wanted so many kinds of steel, in his mind, didn't the more flexible the steel was, the stronger the hardness, the better?

But Gongye Iron knew that the official's proposal must have a deep meaning, in his opinion, it was already a miracle for the official family to know the steel frying method, this method was known to no one in the Great Song Dynasty except himself, and the official family could know that this was simply born!

In the admiring eyes of Gongye Iron and a group of craftsmen, Zhao Zhen carried Cai Boyu away, if he didn't go, he couldn't go, he should show his stuffing if he continued.

He only knew the approximate method, but the specific experiment still required the exploration of the craftsmen, and there was no detailed record of the specific steelmaking in the Imperial Encyclopedia or his memory.

But the general direction is absolutely right, as long as these craftsmen continue to practice, it is a matter of time before they can refine the steel required by the Great Song Dynasty.

By the time they had smelted the steel, the Great Song Dynasty would be able to produce the sharpest weapons and armor of the era.

The strength of the plate armor is known in Zhao Zhen, Napoleon, who swept through Europe, used the iron hooves of the cuirassier to ravage the whole of Europe, and the cuirass is a derivative of the plate armor.

In the era when muskets have been popularized, cuirass still has such a high protective power, not to mention in the era of cold weapons in the Great Song Dynasty.

Zhao Zhen, who got into the carriage, pointed to the towering chimney and said to Cai Boyu: "In my eyes, these are the real war machines, you must protect them, if the craftsmen and factories have any mistakes, I will ask you!" ”

Cai Boyu had never seen an official say such a harsh word to him, so he nodded vigorously and said: "Don't worry, even if the minister dies, the factory and the craftsmen will not be harmed in the slightest!" ”

A booklet was thrown to Cai Boyu by Zhao Zhen: "You send someone to produce the above things, and after they are made, contact the Black Hand and the Armaments Division, and naturally someone will come and transport them away, you don't care about what it is, don't ask, just make it according to the above drawings, and it must meet the requirements!" If the quality is not up to standard, it must be destroyed and rebuilt, and it must not be shoddy, which is related to the lives of the soldiers! ”

Cai Boyu opened the booklet and looked at it, and what was recorded on it was not the steel-arm ratchet crossbow he had guessed, but a black and thick cylindrical type, with wheels underneath.

"What is this thing?"

Zhao Zhen stretched out his hand and gave him a violent shudder: "I told you just now not to ask, why don't you have a long memory?" The requirements for this thing are all written on it, and you send craftsmen to make it according to the pattern, and you must not leak it out! ”

Cai Boyu touched his head: "The minister obeys the order!" ”

To be honest, Zhao Zhen was a little apprehensive when he gave the design of the artillery, and it is unknown how much impact this kind of product that crosses civilization will bring to this era.

Anyway, the Pandora's box of gunpowder has been opened, and there is no less than one artillery, but unfortunately I don't know when it will be built, and the requirements for steel for artillery are the most tested.