After getting out of the car, Liu Yongnian and Deng Baoji looked at the carriage curiously, and then went to the front of the car together, looking at the steam engine that was whirring and panting, and looked around, front and back, left and right. After looking at it for a while, Liu Yongnian said: "Yun Juan, let's go up together to see how coal is burned." ”

Du Zhongxiao smiled: "Okay." However, the fireworks above are unbearable, so you can't stay long. ”

The three of them got into the front of the car together, and several stoker soldiers rushed to salute together.

As soon as I got in the car, I felt the heat wave hitting people, and my whole body was warm. Liu Yongnian said: "It's very warm here, much more comfortable than the back, how hard to bear!" Wouldn't it be better for us to stay here on the way! ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Yanei, now that the fire is slowly extinguished, the road is much hotter than now." Now the weather in early spring is not uncomfortable, but in summer it is sad. The stove burning here is hot and tiring, and the work is the hardest. ”

Liu Yongnian disagreed, although the space here was cramped, the environment was not too bad. To be honest, the work at the front of the car is nothing in this era, and it is much more decent than most jobs. However, the whole train is just a poor working environment.

Let the soldier open the chamber door, looking at the red coal in the furnace, Liu Yongnian asked: "Yun Judgment, is it from here to fill in the coal and burn, and the car will go?" What is the reasoning behind this? Isn't there a monster in the world that eats coal like cows and horses eat grass? ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "When Yanai says so, it is also an image. In fact, it is like this, when coal is filled in from here, the water in the large jug over there is boiled and becomes water vapor. There's a plug inside, and the vapor pushes it forward and backward. And so, with the wheels of the car behind him, he turned it around, and the car went forward. As long as the water vapor is inexhaustible and the coal fire is not extinguished, the car will keep moving forward. ”

"Wonderful!" Liu Yongnian looked at it again and again, and could only get a general impression.

got off the car and walked for a while, Liu Yongnian suddenly said: "Yun Juan, your car is similar to a car and a boat." It is also to boil the water in a large pot with coals to make the wheels spin. The car and the boat are wheels pushing the water, and the car is the wheels driving the road. ”

Du Zhongxiao said with a smile: "That's the case, what Yanai said is good. A water journey and a land route are the same thing. ”

Liu Nian nodded, thought about it and said, "But the car and ship have been used for many years, how can this car be made?" - What's the name of the car? ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Because it is a fire to move forward, it is called a train." The machines used on the ships are much larger than those used on the cars, and they are not as powerful. Like a car and a ship, the car is too heavy, and the cargo pulled is too small to be cost-effective. For so many years, it is to make this machine smaller, more powerful, and easier to repair. ”

Deng Baoji, who was on the side, listened to it and said, "If that's the case, wouldn't it be possible to use this kind of machine on the car and ship?" ”

Du Zhongxiao nodded: "That's true." Moreover, the current machine is smaller than the original machine, which is also easy to repair and maintain, and much more convenient. ”

Deng Baoji said: "Since last year, we in Yingzhou have also used vehicles and ships to cut off slender men, but the capital can't produce machines." If you can do it here, why don't you buy a few from the iron prison and go to the ship, and you don't have to wait for the capital. ”

Du Zhongxiao was stunned for a moment, and then said: "This matter still has to wait for the third division to plan." Now the car I make here is not used on the road for repair, and there is no leftover. If you want to use it on a ship, you have to wait for a year or two. ”

Yingzhou, Caizhou, Chenzhou, there are rivers in the territory of navigation, with a lot of slender men. Now the cars and ships are popularized to the main stream routes, and they don't know that they will wait until the Year of the Monkey and the month of the horse. These states have idle fields, and the slendermen who have been laid off can farm on the spot and increase the number of households. These are obvious political achievements, and the magistrates are not concerned. However, the steam engine used by the car and ship is more complex than that of the iron supervision, and the processing method is not good, and the output in a year is not much. The unified deployment of the three divisions naturally gives priority to replacing the machine side with a large number of fiber pulling vans.

There is another reason why Du Zhongxiao did not dare to admit it, the steam engine made by Han Jiang in the capital was tested on the ship from the beginning, and many places were designed for the environment. The steam engine of the Iron Supervisor was to be used on the ship, and it had to be modified accordingly.

When I entered the iron prison, I looked at the flat and tidy road surface, which was paved with slag, the surrounding buildings were neat, there were flowers and trees on the roadside, and everything was in order. The huge iron prison could not hear the noise of people, and there was no rooster or dog barking.

Liu Yongnian praised: "The judgment here is very neat, I have managed the army many times, where have I seen this kind of military camp!" ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "It's different, this is the iron prison, the place where iron is smelted. Everything has a charter, and there is no room for noise. ”

In fact, the barracks are the place where the army is managed, and it is more required to be neat and orderly. However, in this era, I am used to everything being messy, and suddenly entering this environment feels awkward everywhere.

When they arrived at the Yamen, Du Zhongxiao ordered tea to be served, sat with the two of them, and gossiped some gossip.

For Liu Yongnian and Deng Baoji, the train was just a novelty, and they still didn't know how many things it could carry and how fast it could run. After a few conversations, the conversation moved on to something else. Coal-burning trains are not a big deal, the cars and ships have been used for a few years, but the number of sergeants has been reduced, and nothing else has changed much. Even though the train is running on the road, so is it.

The amount of iron used in the railway is indeed shocking, but everyone thinks that this is the beginning of the iron prison, and the steel has been refined too much, and it cannot be sold, and it is just an expedient measure. When it comes to marketing all over the country, which one is willing to pave the road with iron? There are too many places in the world where iron is used.

The people from several states left one by one, and Liu Yongnian and Deng Baoji had to wait for others to evacuate before they could return, and temporarily lived in the iron prison. For a few days, the two of them were extremely bored, and they went around several factories. Everything was well organized here, and things were done that had never been seen before, which was an eye-opener for the two.

On this day, the two went to the shop on the edge of the ferry to buy gifts to take home. This shop is opened by the Iron Supervisor, and there is everything in the Iron Supervisor's products. The reason why it is opened here is not only close to the bustling area, but also the role of sample display.

With the enrichment of the products of the Iron Supervisor, more and more merchants came to sell. Most people come here by word of mouth to buy iron and steel ingots. After arriving, I learned that the products of the Iron Supervisor were so rich, and I couldn't help but sell some more.

In addition to profiles such as ingots and steel bars, enamel products are now the most popular. Cups and bowls can be replaced by porcelain, and the basin is really attractive, no matter where it is, this is a good commodity to sell. Iron prison eight times a money, go back can be sold fifteen times, this thing is particularly convenient to transport, the profit is huge. Anyone who comes here, even if they don't sell it, will buy a few and send them back to relatives and friends.

Liu Yongnian and Deng Baoji just wanted to buy dozens of each of them and go back to give gifts.

Liu Yongnian's grandfather Liu Meiben was the ex-husband of the Empress Dowager Liu, and the Empress Dowager Liu was favored by Zhenzong, who was then the crown prince, and after making a career, he recognized him as his brother, and the Liu family has been prosperous since then. Everyone knows about this, but there is no taboo, in this era, there is nothing for women to remarry. Empress Dowager Liu died, the Liu family was implicated, and many relatives were demoted. However, in the end, he was once a top wealthy family, and Liu Yongnian himself was loved by the emperor, and he was either rich or expensive. When you see this rare thing, of course, you should buy more and give gifts in the future.

Deng Baoji is an internal servant, who has entered the palace since he was a child, and is an old minister of the Zhenzong Dynasty. A servant with a certain status like him has a family, and there are many relatives and friends. Moreover, they have been eunuchs for generations, although they are bound by the laws of the imperial court, they do not have much contact with foreign officials, and they do not have many clansmen, but they have a lot of contacts with other inner families and princes, and they need the same.

Most of the internal servants of the Song Dynasty were extended from the Five Dynasties, and there were many families. After achieving a certain status, according to the regulations, you can buy a house outside, marry a people's daughter, and take a people's child as an adopted son. Like officials, there are places of grace, and many of them have been sent to the palace by their families since they were young. Even the wives of some chamberlains will be awarded the title of the imperial court, which is no different from the officials of the outer courts. There are also those who do not enter the palace and become officials in the outer court. For example, Zhang Maoshi, the adopted son of Zhang Jingzong, was an official in the outer court, and his official fortune was prosperous, and he was another person who was rumored to be the emperor's illegitimate son.

Liu Yongnian grew up in the palace when he was a child, and he couldn't be more familiar with Deng Baoji, and they did these things together.

After entering the shop, the two looked around and discussed with each other that they should buy some pastries and go back. Coaxing your own children and giving gifts to others are all excellent things. I want to buy halva for the farmland, this thing has become famous in the capital, and since I came, I must bring it. Of course, the most important thing is the enamel washbasin. This thing is new, only sold here, and the picture is fresh.

The basin in the shop is not like the one when the iron prison was issued, there is not even a package, and many of them are stained with dust. If it hadn't been wiped with a cloth before hair, it would have made people frown. The washbasin in the shop is placed on a specially made shelf, which is extremely delicate. There is a place to put soap on one side, and a hand towel on the other side, which is pleasing to the eye.

The two stepped forward to look at it, called the supervisor, and said, "We want fifty of each of these pots, and you can prepare them quickly." ”

The supervisor was stunned for a moment before he said, "Captain, there are only more than ten in the small shop, and this matter is a little difficult to handle." ”

Liu Yongnian said with a smile: "I know that you are here in the shop of the Iron Prison, and there are not enough in the store, so you can go to the Iron Prison and get it." It was said that Liu Dujian and Deng Dujian would buy it, and let the iron supervisor press the other goods for a day or two, and give it to us first. ”

The supervisor hesitated, and after a while, he said: "Taiwei buys, and the little one naturally doesn't dare to slack off." But, these days—"

Liu Yongnian listened to it and was a little unhappy: "What, a few basins, won't they be sold to us?" ”

The supervisor hurriedly said: "Don't worry, Tai Lieutenant, the small one doesn't mean that." It's just that a maritime merchant came yesterday and bought too many of them, and the stock in the shop was all bought. Not only that, but they also set the pattern and let it be burned in the prison. Now what is burned in the prison is all their style, and they are going to be sold overseas, but I am afraid that the captain will not like it. ”