Xia Wanchun smiled and said: "Mr. Lu, before this general joined Rong, he also had a little study of the knowledge of Gewu Zhizhi, and after joining the army, he did not slack off, your steam locomotive, I am afraid that it will weigh five or six thousand catties, right?" ”

Lu Liuliang nodded and said: "General Xia is right, most of this steam locomotive is cast in steel, the weight is not light, once traveling, it will also carry two thousand catties of coal, which is used to provide power, and when it is fully loaded, it weighs about six thousand catties......"

Xia Wanchun nodded and said: "In this case, with the weight of the steam locomotive, it is bound to be impossible to install wooden wheels, ordinary wooden wheels simply cannot bear such a large weight, and they will break if they don't go far, but if you use iron wheels, such a heavy weight, have you ever thought about it, what kind of road can bear such a heavy weight?" Unless it is an official road, even if it is an official road, when it is muddy on a rainy day, I am afraid that it will be deep in the mud and difficult to pass; And the destructive power brought by the iron wheel to the road is too great, I am afraid that if the steam locomotive goes on a hundred and ten times, this official road will be abolished......"

Lu Liuliang's face turned red, Xia Wanchun is really an expert, and his words are to the point, but all inventions and creations, put practicality first, if there is no way to provide help for people, it is a useless thing, and the creation is gorgeous, and it is also a waste!

"Thank you General Xia for your advice, the students have also taken this problem into account, and are trying to improve it, I heard that the south produces oak trees, which can produce rubber, with excellent elasticity, and the students plan to apply it to steam locomotives, so that with the help of the elasticity of rubber, the vehicle will be much lighter......"

Lu Liuliang replied.

Xia Wanchun said with a smile: "Also, Mr. Lu, how far can the two thousand catties of coal loaded on your car support the steam locomotive?" Three hundred miles? Five hundred miles? The water on the car is easy to solve, but now the territory of the Ming Dynasty is thousands of miles, and there is not coal everywhere, once the coal is interrupted, you steam locomotive, I'm afraid it will take a few horses to be able to pull it away, right? Have you thought about this fuel interruption problem? Also, such a car is only suitable for carrying goods, and it is impossible to sit on people, and the movement is too big......"

Lu Liuliang's sweat has come down, but he didn't expect to meet an expert today, and he is an expert in the army!

Xia Wanchun continued: "Also, once this steam locomotive is promoted, it must be used to transport large quantities of goods, and now he pulls the locomotive to run on the smooth and smooth road, but we are running around in the war, going anywhere, if you go up the mountain, don't say the sheep intestine path, even if it is an ordinary mountain road, your steam car can drive up?" The salaries and materials of our army cannot be delayed for a moment! ”

Lu Liuliang's sweat was even more, at this moment, Lu Liuliang felt a lot of pressure, in front of so many dignitaries and dignitaries, and the emperor was on his side, Xia Wanchun's words did not leave the slightest politeness!

"Okay, Xia Wanchun, say something useful, I want you to make some useful suggestions, not to let you find faults! If you don't have any helpful advice, shut up! ”

Zhu Jie on the side couldn't stand it anymore, if he continued to squeeze, Lu Liuliang wouldn't be able to live......

Xia Wanchun smiled and stopped talking, enough, as long as he can hold on to the scene of the generals present, nothing else is his own business, presumably the emperor has already known it in his heart......

Zhu Jie turned his head and said with a smile: "Liuliang, don't worry too much, you can build this steam locomotive in such a short time, it is already very good, of course, you still need to make persistent efforts, now is far from the time to relax, although Xia Wanchun's words did not leave a face, but they are to the point......"

Lu Liuliang's face turned red, and he said in a low voice: "Your Majesty, the students understand that what General Xia said is basically a topic that the students are thinking about, if the steam locomotive can really be put into use, it is much more powerful than Zhuge Wuhou's wooden oxen and flowing horses, but if you want to use it to transport military grain and grass, I am afraid that it will be impossible in a short time......

"Nothing is impossible!"

Zhu Jie smiled: "Lu Liuliang, it's not impossible, but there is a problem with your direction, you only think about improving the steam locomotive, don't you think of improving the road?" ”

"Improving the roads?"

Lu Liuliang's head was dizzy, and he was stunned: "Your Majesty, the best road in this Ming Dynasty is the official road and the post road, but even if it is the official road and the post road, I am afraid that it will be difficult to bear such a weight, and even a steam locomotive that is much heavier than this weight, right?" In less than a year, the official road and post road will be completely crushed......"

Zhu Jie shook his head and replied: "It's not an official road, a post road, but a brand new railway, of course, your steam locomotive, you also need to continue to improve, you can think about it, is it not the smoother the place, the easier it is for the object to move?" ”

Lu Liuliang nodded and said: "This student understands that this is a problem of friction, when the student was studying, Western teachers used to teach us relevant courses, the smoother the object, the smaller the friction coefficient......

"Isn't that the end of it?"

Zhu Jie waved his hand at Xia Wanchun and said, "Wanchun, give me your sword!" ”

Xia Wanchun hurriedly took off the sword and handed it to Zhu Jie.

Zhu Jie bowed slightly, drew on the ground, and everyone gathered around, now who doesn't know how many whimsical ideas are stored in the emperor's genius's head!

After a short time, a schematic diagram of the railroad tracks appeared in front of everyone's eyes.

Zhu Jie said in a deep voice: "Lu Liuliang, Xia Wanchun, you see, everyone knows that steel is almost the smoothest object except for porcelain and glass, but it is far stronger than porcelain and glass, we can lay two steel rails on the ground, let the steam locomotive move along the rail, and the iron wheel of our steam locomotive is to create the corresponding grooves, which can just be stuck on the rail, so that the friction between steel and steel is not the smallest friction coefficient?" In this way, the steam locomotive can save more power to transport goods, which is one thing; Second, we can set a certain distance along this railway line, build a post station, and prepare coal and water, so that we can eliminate the problem of coal interruption in the middle, yes or no? ”

Xia Wanchun stuck out his tongue and said in shock: "Your Majesty, here, are you kidding?" With your plan, it can be faster, more capable, and negligible of fuel interruptions, but where are we going to find so much steel? Isn't this one or two thousand catties of steel? I'm afraid that from the capital to Baoding Mansion, I don't know how much steel is needed! ”

(End of chapter)