Zhu Guoxiang strode into the hall and said with a smile: "Don't be afraid, I am not alchemizing to seek immortals, but doing a kind of learning." ”

When these words were spoken, the ministers, Taoist priests, and people breathed a sigh of relief at the same time.

There were quite a lot of people, Zhu Ming was too lazy to squeeze in, so he only said to his wife, concubines, and children: "The chemistry of the official family, you can go and see it." Especially children, you should watch carefully. ”

The crowd gradually gathered, the royal family members stood on the right and behind Zhu Guoxiang, and the rest formed a circle around the large long table.

Zhu Guoxiang asked everyone to disperse, and then instructed the eunuch: "Go and open all the windows."

Instead of immediately demonstrating the chemistry experiment, he picked up a candle and asked, "What is this?" ”

"Ash!"

"Worm wax!"

“……”

The answers, though varied, refer to the same thing.

Zhu Guoxiang picked up the candle and showed it to everyone, and said: "During the Qin and Han dynasties, beeswax was used. Shi Chongdoufu also used beeswax as firewood, which shows that beeswax was extremely luxurious at that time. Today, this insect wax is more expensive than beeswax. In the early years of the Song Dynasty, the prime minister lit insect wax every night to read books, which was also considered to be an unfrugal behavior. ”

"But now?"

Zhu Guoxiang put the candle back and said with a smile: "Not to mention the prime minister, the local tyrants in the countryside can afford it occasionally." How so? ”

Most of the people present didn't know how to answer, because they didn't even know where the wax came from. Even if you know a little, you only know that insect wax is derived from a kind of wax worm.

A Taoist priest from Sichuan said: "Because there are more people who raise wax worms, the price is cheaper." ”

"Yes, that's a very good point," Zhu Guoxiang nodded in approval, "but mulberry silkworms, silkworms must eat mulberry leaves in order to spin silk cocoons." I heard that there are silkworms in the north that eat the leaves of other species, but they have to find suitable food. The same is true for this ash insect, what leaves it can eat, and how it should reproduce, need to be explored and discovered by insect keepers. ”

"It was discovered that ash insects could collect wax, and the earliest time was probably in the late Tang Dynasty. Today, it is only cultivated in southern Sichuan, eastern Sichuan, Hunan, and Guangxi, and it can only be stocked in the woods, and it cannot be harvested and fed at home like silkworms. ”

"Agricultural officials in Sichuan, Hunan and Guangxi are studying the habits of ash insects."

"They have concluded the following points: first, ash insects are male and female, and it is difficult for females to secrete white wax, but they can be used to reproduce larvae; Second, the larvae of the male worm can produce wax; Thirdly, two kinds of plants that ash worms like to eat have been found; Fourth, females must be on plateaus or high mountains, and they must be mild and dry in winter to lay eggs; Fifth, males produce wax only in the summer when the temperature is high and the humidity is heavy. ”

"What's the use of knowing that? The breeding range of ash worms can be quickly promoted! ”

That is, in a place suitable for females to lay eggs, the ash worm is multiplied in large numbers. Then take the eggs and go to a place suitable for male wax production to breed. In the breeding area of male insects, plant more plants that they like to eat in advance. And this plant is not too picky to pick the ground, and it can also be planted on the barren slope. ”

"With the results of the research of persuading the agricultural officials, coupled with the guidance of the magistrates. I believe that within ten years, white wax, which is more expensive than beeswax, will become extremely cheap, and even poor scholars will be able to read at night with white candles! ”

When the ministers heard this, they were all extremely happy.

White ash is the best quality candle to light without smoke and odor, who wouldn't want to light this stuff every day?

Zhai Ruwen asked: "Danyang, the hometown of the minister, can also breed ash worms?" ”

Zhu Guoxiang said: "In your hometown of Danyang, female insects will definitely not be able to lay eggs. However, you can take a boat from Sichuan and Hunan to bring the eggs over, and directly raise male insects in Danyang to produce wax. People who raise ash worms, even if the ash is cheap, I am afraid that the profit is not much worse than that of silkworm raising. Nowadays, raising ash worms is ten times more profitable than raising silkworms. ”

"This is a thing that benefits the country and the people!" Not only the ministers praised it, but also the people and Taoist priests were very happy.

Zhu Guoxiang looked at everyone: "The knowledge proposed by the prince is that the people's daily use is the Tao. Raising ash insects is naturally not the way, but exploring the habits of ash insects so that ash insects can be quickly promoted is the real way to benefit the country and the people! ”

Everyone nodded, but they didn't object.

First, this will benefit all people, even the powerful and rich; Second, they all know that the emperor likes farming, and there is no need to conflict with the emperor.

Agriculture is the foundation of the country, who dares to say that it is not the Tao that is conducive to the development of agriculture?

Zhu Guoxiang continued: "The study of agriculture is the Tao, the study of physics is the Tao, and the study of chemistry is also the Tao! ”

Qin Hui rushed in front of Li Bangyan and said: "The minister doesn't know what chemistry is, so please ask the official to show it." ”

Zhu Guoxiang took out an iron box, took out a small wooden stick from it, and swiped it lightly on the rough side of the marble tabletop.

The little sticks are on fire!

Everyone was shocked, could it be that the emperor really knew magic?

Some people can't help but move their feet, wanting to see if there is an open or dark fire hidden in the place where the stick is rubbed.

In the Northern Song Dynasty, there were already matches, called "light slaves", "hair wax", and "fire inches", which were made by infecting and smearing sulfur with cedar sticks.

However, this match cannot be ignited on its own, and must be used by other sources of fire, such as touching it on a coal.

This may seem like a redundant move, but it's actually extremely convenient to use. Especially in the northern winter, it is necessary to roast the fire, or to keep the dark fire for a long time in the form of a fire fold, and at this time, the "candle" can burn at the touch of a casual touch.

Zhu Guoxiang held a match and lit the white candle with a smile: "This is not a candle, but it can also be called a candle." For the time being, it is still relatively dangerous and not suitable for civilian use, so it is necessary to wait for long-term research and improvement. This thing also uses the way of chemistry, so I won't explain it in detail today, but anyone who is interested can come here often. ”

Zhu Guoxiang picked up another beaker and used the beaker to cover the burning candle.

Under the eyes of everyone, the candle in the glass, the flame became smaller and smaller, and then suddenly extinguished.

Zhu Guoxiang asked: "Why do the candles go out?" ”

Longhu Mountain has studied talismans for generations, and the previous generation of heavenly masters also invented the first generation of thunder methods, and they still have a lot to say about the burning phenomenon.

Zhang Shixiu said: "Everything burns and depends on anger. His Majesty covered it with a cup, anger turned into death, and the candle was naturally extinguished. ”

Zhu Guoxiang asked again: "What is anger and what is death?" ”

Zhang Shixiu said: "The flowing water is the living water, and the unflowing water is the dead water." In the same way, the unobstructed qi is angry, and the unobstructed qi is dead qi. If a person lives in a bad room for a long time, he will be enveloped in the breath of death, and he will also be in danger of suffocation. ”

"In other words, put the candle on the cover, and once the candle burns out the life, everything inside will be extinguished?" Zhu Guoxiang asked.

"Yes!"

Not only Zhang Shixiu thought so, but others also nodded.

Zhu Guoxiang said: "Let's go out." ”

Zhu Guoxiang re-lit the candle, walked out, and came to the open space in the courtyard.

He asked one of the guards to put on heavy armor and pull down the mask as well: "Open this bottle and put it over the candle." Do not hold the bottle directly with your hands, but tie it with a branch, and it is better to cover the eye hole with the other hand. ”

The heavily armored guards did so, tying the bottle with a branch, then pulling the cork and capping, and then placing the mouth of the bottle over the burning candle.

Everyone stood far away, only to see that the candle in the bottle burned more vigorously, and even the other parts of the bottle were faintly burning.

Zhu Guoxiang also secretly said that he was lucky, but there was no explosion.

He produces oxygen by heating saltpeter, which may first decompose into potassium oxide and then release carbon monoxide and oxygen in the process of continuous heating.

In other words, this bottle of oxygen is not very pure, and it must be doped with carbon monoxide.

Of course, the concentration of carbon monoxide is not high, and the amount is not large, and even if it explodes, it is not very powerful.

Zhu Guoxiang asked Zhang Shixiu: "The glass bottle is covered, but there is dead air inside?" ”

Zhang Shixiu wanted to speak and stopped, not knowing how to answer.

Everyone looked at the candle that was still burning, frowned, and pondered, but they couldn't figure it out.

Eventually, the bottle ran out of oxygen, and the candle went out.

Zhu Guoxiang tried to explain it in a way that the ancients could understand: "Qi is everywhere, but it is not a pure thing. It's like fine sand, coarse sand, and after mixing, it's still a plate of sand. The mixture of many gases is the air we breathe. In this air, there are some things that people need, and some things that people don't need. The breath of man is to inhale the useful breath and then expel the useless breath. ”

He also pointed to the glass bottle that covered the candle: "What this bottle contains is the gas needed for the burning of firewood, and it is also the gas on which people depend." It can nourish people, and I call it qi. When doing research, and writing oxygen. ”

Zhu Ming picked up the stick and wrote the word "oxygen" on the ground.

The Taoist priests suddenly realized that "oxygen" is "heaven and earth aura", and it is this thing that is absorbed every day.

I don't know if the sect will give birth to the "oxygen inhalation school", and the carbon monoxide doped in it will be inhaled.

Zhu Guoxiang simply sat cross-legged in the courtyard, and everyone didn't dare to stand anymore, so they also sat down one after another.

Zhu Guoxiang said: "The people in Beijing use charcoal to cook and heat. When heating in winter, occasionally the doors and windows are closed too hard, and as a result, people die of charcoal poisoning. What is charcoal poison? It is also a gas, a poisonous gas produced by the incomplete combustion of coal. ”

The people who came were all important ministers of the Cabinet Ministry, and they all lived in Tokyo. Although he buys charcoal at a high price, the slaves at home mostly use charcoal for heating.

At this moment, listening to the emperor's explanation, everyone will be skeptical, but they can't help but believe it.

Zhu Guoxiang looked at Zhang Jinping again: "The ancestor of the crown princess improved the technique of wet copper smelting, and brought countless copper materials to the imperial court every year. Does the crown princess know the principle? ”

Zhang Jinping said: "Back at the official's house, my daughter-in-law knows how to smelt copper, but I don't know why I want to do that. ”

Zhu Guoxiang smiled and asked everyone: "Do you want to take a look?" ”

"Would you like to see it!" Everyone hurriedly answered.

I won't talk about any esoteric knowledge today, purely to arouse everyone's interest.

Zhu Guoxiang walked back to the house, and said as he walked: "The way of chemistry is for the benefit of the country and the people, and wet copper smelting is one of them." Studying this way in depth may be able to add countless gold and silver to the dynasty. ”

Everyone thought to themselves, yes, the wet method can smelt copper, why can't gold and silver be smelted?

The emperor is a big fool.

(End of chapter)