In the largest and emptiest workshop in the No. 1 Machinery Factory, more than one person tall, on the edge of a machine made of steel, workers are cutting for defects in gears with files.

"That thing in the cylinder, can it be done?" The director asked the person with the wrench next to him.

"Uh... Factory director, you know, His Majesty didn't ask for time for this thing, really, we've never heard of this kind of ...... in our lives," the worker let go of his wrench and snapped to the ground.

"Ugh..."

The factory director was very unhappy, but there was really no way, the technician in front of him was the only technical backbone of the factory, and he was the only one who could feel the slightest detail.

Helplessly, the factory director could only ask people to arrange a safety range to ensure that the emperor would not be touched after an accident and explosion.

Since the addition of a condenser and the addition of thermal insulation to the cylinder, the efficiency of the steam engine has been greatly improved. But three days at two ends, either the machine lying in the nest, or the parts are scattered, rumors in the market, this factory has become a man-eating devil's cave--- all day long to lift people, recruiting people to pay four dollars a day, but almost catch up with half of the county master! Isn't this a meal for people to eat with a severed head?

After the beginning of spring, the lifting of people finally stopped, and the wages given gradually decreased, but some people were found to come in, most of whom were blacksmiths after bankruptcy, and they had two brushes in their hands, and the production of the factory gradually returned to normal.

Of course, behind this, Zhu Youlang is also dead under the pressure of the cabinet, allocating thousands of taels of "precious" silver to the factory every month---- there are only more than 100 people here! If it was placed at a time when the emperor's power was weak, this "tricky and ingenious" thing might have been abandoned! Is there less regret caused by the disbandment of personnel and the sealing of drawings?

Two days later, the emperor came here for the fourth time to inspect it, and he was almost followed by the Manchu civil and military forces. In addition to Li Dingguo, Gao Wengui and others remained in Yunnan, and even Dou Mingming, who was about to transfer south, was notified to follow in advance. This time, the entourage almost came to watch the ceremony. As a traverser, Zhu Youlang knows the importance of the first train, but it's a pity that the first train can't run in China.

Thinking of this, Zhu Youlang smiled dumbly, "It's all come to this point, can Myanmar not be the land of China?" "He has also seen China on the globe, one more Myanmar, and now that China has not recovered, this extra red is basically done, what a mistake!

The director of the factory, who had seen the emperor many times, was no longer so flustered, snapped his fingers, and the three of them got into the carriage behind the steam engine, which dragged six carriages stuffed with various supplies. Of the three, one person acts as the driver and controls the front of the car, while the other two are responsible for filling the coal. This steam engine had 15 horsepower, which was enough to tow 6 carriages.

Zhu Youlang walked down from the high platform, and then went up to cut the ribbon in person. After cutting the ribbon, two guards escorted him back to the stage quickly.

Seeing the emperor walking away, the factory director ordered to drive. The subordinates have to take the blame for the leader, if the car suddenly stops or even explodes, then the emperor has just ordered to drive, but it is a bit of a flag.

With a whistle, the connecting rod was pushed and rotated, and the soot-emitting iron horse dragged six carriages out of the factory slowly. When the train passed Zhu Youlang's line of sight, the emperor was the first to applaud.

"Good!"

Even after learning that the front of the car had been made for three months, Zhu Youlang was still happy. "Standardization, we must standardize, we must standardize the production of every part as much as possible! I hope you can get a safe train sooner, and when the time comes, I'll be the first to get on it! ”

Saying that, Zhu Youlang asked his subordinates to give a reward in person, which can be said to be a share of the audience.

After looking at the various equipment in the factory and learning about the changes in the factory, Zhu Youlang was about to leave, and when he walked to the door of the workshop, the train turned out to be back.

"Very good, very good! This track went back and forth for almost ten miles, and it was driven back without any fault. Zhu Youlang shook hands with the three people on the train excitedly, and didn't care about the soot and oil stains on their hands.

With a steam engine, can you still lose?

As soon as the steam engine comes out, it can better connect the iron ore and coal mine together, and the machine that uses steam to do the work smashes out more steel embryos, parts, and machine tools can also be cut more forcefully, compared with manual work, it is a heaven and an underground! In this way, more and more blast furnaces and reverberatory furnaces can be produced, more steel ...... No, not only these, but those machines that are rare in the modern history of Europe and the United States, and which are rare in modern China, can gradually appear under the rule of their own courts!

Agriculture had steam tractors, harvesters, seafaring ships, transportation trains, armies steel and smoother, lighter artillery, and developed industry and commerce capable of generating tens of millions of taels of revenue for a population of five million... The Ming court became a huge machine that devoured raw materials, markets and labor...

……

If the Qing court knew that its greatest threat was not Zhu Chenggong, who was stuck in half of the Yangtze River, but Yunnan, which was thousands of miles away, it was estimated that it would immediately replace its flintlock pistol at all costs and then mobilize at least 50,000 field troops to attack Yunnan. However, the Qing court, unaware of the danger, still maintained a siege of Jiangning.

"Alas, it's been half a year, how many times have we touched the shadow of Jiang Ning?"

In the barracks a few miles outside Nanjing, a Qing soldier on duty complained.

"Yes, it was said that as long as you dig the tunnel and blow up the walls of Jiangning Mansion, you can enter it. But it's been half a year, why is it still like this? ”

"I heard that there have been several times in the city, and I don't know how many people have died, and I haven't even climbed the city wall. I heard from the surviving people over there that the city wall of Jiangning is seven or eight zhang high, and it is almost to the zenith. ”

"Alas, we people can ride horses or shoot arrows, but we need artillery to attack the city, but here... How the cannon exploded! Fortunately, there is still a group of minions for us to use as cannon fodder. ”

A cannon rang out in the distance. An iron ball flew from the city and landed not far in front of them.

"Well, this place is at least three miles away from the city wall, how did the pirates' cannons get here? Let's get closer. "As soon as the few Qing soldiers patrolling nearby are combined, it is better not to die here in vain.

Inside the city, several large workshops are rushing to make cannons day and night, and the inexhaustible supply of bronze and steel is piled up in the yard for ready use.

And the source of these iron materials, in addition to the inventory of the Zheng family's fleet and purchased from Japan and other places, there are also guns that have been blown up or are about to be blown up, and it is difficult to recover the artillery of other cities that are about to be blown up, but in this huge city of hundreds of square kilometers, these thousands of catties of metal can still be reused.

(End of chapter)