I see.

Xia Fan immediately understood the other party's method of distinguishing steel - judging toughness and hardness by pressing and bending plasticity and steel chiseling, pig iron is easy to break, and wrought iron is too soft, only the characteristics of steel meet these two points at the same time, both tough and strong.

In the absence of a determination of carbon content, the experience of a blacksmith is the most reliable criterion.

"I have smelted all the iron in Jinxia City at one time, and if this news reaches the Ministry of Industry, those old guys will definitely be able to scare their jaws off. Mo Yun is also quite excited, she has been specializing in mechanism manufacturing for more than ten years, so she naturally knows the meaning behind mass production.

"I think their first instinct is to refuse to believe it and think we're cheating. ”

Ning Wanjun replied with a smile.

She was also very happy, but for a slightly different reason. In addition to the fact that his own territory can produce a large amount of steel, another point is that he is proud of his old friends. After all, being able to come up with a plan in front of the listener and get the approval of the other party is estimated to be rare when you look at Daqi. Before the mass production of the Trap Beast, this furnace could be regarded as Mo Yun's first official achievement after coming to Jinxia City, and she would naturally be happy about it.

Only Xia Fan was the calmest.

In his opinion, it is completely unknown whether this batch of molten iron is considered steel, and there is no guarantee that the same result will be obtained by smelting the second furnace in the same way.

After all, its quality depends entirely on the available pig iron and wrought iron ingots, and it is not surprising that the carbon content fluctuates greatly. In addition, there is no impurity removal in the whole smelting process, and the quality of the finished product is still far from Xia Fan's ideal "steel".

Fortunately, this is just the beginning.

As he had previously envisioned, this batch of crude steel of varying quality would be the starting point for rapid advances in smelting technology. Built on more specialized and reliable equipment, it is only a matter of time before steel with controllable quality and superior performance is produced.

As the stone molds were constantly being filled, Mo Yun had already begun to select the best quality raw steel for his new machine manufacturing bureau.

Looking at the other party's attentive and tireless appearance, Xia Fan always felt that she was not picking hot steel, but shopping in the commercial street where the new products were on the shelves, and at the same time couldn't help but feel a little emotional-it turned out that the woman with a cold expression and sharp eyebrows would also show such an expression.

At this time, a guard walked up to Ning Wanjun's side, "Your Highness, there is a visitor who claims to be Jin Xia's new Taishou who wants to see you. His name is Hong Siqi, and he has all kinds of documents, appointment and dismissal orders, etc. ”

Hearing this, the princess couldn't help frowning, "Have you handed it over to Gonggong Li for inspection?"

"Yes, it has been confirmed, not a forgery. ”

Xia Fan saw that Ning Wanjun's eyes showed obvious impatience and boredom.

He even suspected that it was not impossible for the other party to say the next moment, "Arrest this person and put him in prison, as if he had never come".

But in the end, she forcibly restrained her emotions and replied in a deep voice, "Bring him here." ”

"Yes. The guards took the order.

"It's time to come after all. Ning Wanjun sighed a little disappointed, "Although I know that the imperial court will not let Jinxia City become a blank area with no one to govern, but sending people over so quickly, I can only say that there are really many officials in the ministry who have nothing to do." ”

Xia Fan understands the princess's feelings very well at this moment - she finally got the complete Jinxia City by removing obstacles, but now she has to be intervened by the imperial court, even if the other party fails in the end, this process is quite disgusting.

"Isn't that something that was expected a long time ago?" he said in a relaxed tone, "and the General Affairs Bureau was set up for this situation. Your decision is very correct, if you arrest him or close the door, the officials will definitely notice it, it is better to put him in the government office, which can be regarded as not being true. ”

"You're right," the princess nodded, "and the city no longer belongs to the court. ”

......

"Your Highness, if you have any orders, the lower officials will do their best and will never shirk!" Hong Siqi said loudly after saluting, completely ignoring the gazes of the surrounding people, "If you feel that the ability of the lower officials is still in doubt, the lower officials are also willing to prove themselves through the reserve officer training of the General Affairs Bureau!"

Xia Fan and Ning Wanjun looked at each other.

The two imagined a variety of scenarios, but they didn't expect this one.

The new Taishou immediately expressed his attitude after introducing himself, and he did not mean at all that "Jinxia City should have been managed by the government", let alone his dissatisfaction and resistance to the Bureau.

By the time they reached the position of taishou, most officials had begun to pay attention to their words and deeds, even in the face of the royal family, they would not grovel too much, for fear of leaving an impression of no character in the eyes of others. Even if you take refuge in the upper position, you have to find a private environment, and you will reveal your heart only if you are subtle.

And Hong Siqi seems to have no worries about this at all.

Such a straightforward declaration of effectiveness made the princess not know how to answer for a while.

Just as the two were silent, Hong Siqi was also quietly looking at the two...... and a sight on the beach.

Not to mention Princess Quang Binh and the Privy Council, the common characteristic is that they are young, but he had inquired about it long before submitting the prayer post, so he was not too surprised.

But the furnace on the beach is even more eye-catching.

He noticed a constant flow of red liquid from the bottom of the furnace, presumably smelting some kind of metal. After being an official for so many years, he has also seen what the smelting place looks like: not only is there a miasma of black smoke, there are topless charcoal burners everywhere, but also the stoves are small and numerous, standing all over the ground like a cut of tree roots.

This is the first time Hong Siqi has seen this kind of giant furnace.

What's more, he didn't see the black smoke of charcoal burning rising from the scene, but the metal flowing out was endless, and it was completely unpredictable how they could smelt so much ore at the same time and maintain the high temperature inside the furnace.

But he was sure of one thing.

From today onwards, Yancheng will produce more than just salt.

Hong Siqi was vaguely aware that all the differences he had seen had a common reason - the past experience could only play a very small role in the city, and what he saw in front of him made him confirm his decision, if he was not more decisive, he might not even have the opportunity to meet the princess.

Who to play for isn't something he needs to struggle with.

The key is how to get more out of it.

What do you think?

Ning Wanjun asked Xia Fan with her eyes.

Xia Fan nodded his chin slightly.

The princess immediately understood his thoughts, turned to the new Taishou and said, "Lord Hong, the government has suffered too much loss in the last calamity, and I am afraid it will be difficult to recover for a long time. If I let you follow Fu Cheng, will I be too wronged by you-"

"Not aggrieved, not aggrieved at all. Only a state capital has a privy council, and the government is essentially the same as the state minister, how can I feel wronged. Hong Siqi bowed his hand directly to Xia Fan and said, "Lord Xia, please take care of it in the future." ”

"Each other, each other. Xia Fan bowed his hand in return.

"I saw that there were a lot of people in front of the office, and the reception was overwhelming, so I guess the manpower in the house must be quite tight. He didn't think of himself as an outsider, "If there's anything I can do to help, just mention it." ”

Xia Fan pondered for a moment, "In fact, there is really one thing that is imminent, but I can't find anyone to do it for the time being." ”

"Oh? ”

"I have heard that Leizhou seems to have been hit by a military disaster, and a large number of people have fled eastward, and some people have already crossed the border of Shenzhou. If no one takes them in, it is estimated that they will soon reach the vicinity of Jinxia City. ”

"You want me to disperse those refugees?" Hong Siqi said without hesitation, "Don't worry, I have a lot of experience with this-"

"Nope. Xia Fan interrupted him in a condensed voice, "I hope you can assist the Secretariat in containing them and placing them properly." ”