Daming Crazy Emperor

Chapter 637
With Taichang's order, Wubei City once again set off a frenzy of construction.

The originally vacant Gecheng has basically been used. Factory buildings and laboratory buildings have sprung up like mushrooms after rain, and a set of luxurious residences are also under construction.

The Aeronautical Research Institute, which is Gecheng under the charge of Cheng Jiashuo, has built a platform similar to an altar.

This platform is about ten feet high, more than ten feet wide, and fifty feet long. It seems that the whole body is made of cement, and there are cement steps all around.

Ordinary people would probably be dumbfounded when they saw this platform that was even more magnificent than the city wall.

What is such a table used for? Is it really used to worship the sky?
of course not!

This is a docking station for a hot air balloon or aircraft.

In the middle of the platform there is a deep groove with a width of two feet. There are also many steps up and down on both sides of the deep groove. There are also many steel-framed wooden walkways like bridges built on the deep groove.

At this moment, a giant hot air balloon more than [-] feet long is docked in the middle of the docking station. Its volume looks even bigger than a dreadnought!

Taichang opened the door curtain of the carriage to take a look, and couldn't help being stunned.

He has been busy these days with the establishment of other research institutes and the list of examinations. It has been a long time since he came here. If Cheng Jiashuo hadn't sent someone to tell him that the prototype of the aircraft was almost ready, he would not have come here yet. .

The sample of the hot air balloon aircraft must be at least twenty feet long, which he already knew.

He just didn't expect that Cheng Jiashuo would build such a huge platform.

This table looks really magnificent, high-end atmosphere.

Very good, the docking platform of hot air balloon aircraft will be made like this in the future!
He just froze for a moment and couldn't help but nodded slightly.

At this time, a head of the Ministry of Industry has already stepped forward to greet him, bowed his hands and said: "My minister will see the emperor."

Taichang nodded slightly and said, "Where is Yaoguang?"

The head of the Ministry of Industry hurriedly pointed to the bottom of the hot air balloon and said, "Your Majesty, Mr. Cheng is conducting the final test under there."

Hearing this, Taichang led a group of people up the steps without hesitation.

Uh, Cheng Jiashuo is not on this high platform, there is a huge groove in the middle of this high platform!

At this time, he finally understood why Cheng Jiashuo made such a big table.

Because it is troublesome to prop up a hot air balloon that is [-] to [-] feet long or even [-] to [-] feet long. Moreover, there are hanging baskets, fire protection devices, and hanging ropes under the hot air balloon, which add up to almost one foot high.

If there is no such a big table, it is really difficult to park such a huge hot air balloon.

This Cheng Jiashuo is really smart.

Taichang looked at the hot air balloon that happened to be on the steel-framed wooden walkway, and couldn't help but nodded slightly, and then walked towards the groove in the middle.

The gondola and fire protection device are just below the groove, where Cheng Jiashuo is testing the side and tail wings installed on the fire protection device.

At this moment, the copper skin of the entire fire protection device has been replaced with copper plates, and it has also been knocked into a pentagon with a circular arc in the front. The overall weight is probably not more than a few kilograms.

If you add the side wings on both sides and the tail fin installed behind the fan basket, this set of things will weigh at least a hundred catties.

There is no way, because there is no aluminum alloy at the moment, and the fire prevention device in the middle can only be made of copper plates and copper skins, otherwise, the middle part will be ignited if the flame below rises a little higher.

Taichang walked down the groove along the steps in the middle, came to the side of the hanging basket and took a look, and couldn't help but nodded slightly.

It's good to invest a lot, and anything can be made, and it's done quite beautifully.

There are several herringbone-shaped steps next to the hanging basket, and they are still the kind with hinges in the middle and wheels below.

Don't think about it, it can definitely be turned over and put away together, and then pushed away.

With this kind of ladder, it is convenient to enter and exit the hanging basket. You can go directly to the ladder from the outside, and then walk down the other side of the ladder to the inside of the hanging basket. It is no longer necessary for personnel to enter and exit the hanging basket as before. Climb up and down.

Moreover, the height of this step is just enough for people to reach the side wings, tail fins and blades above, and it is relatively convenient to install and maintain.

At this moment, Cheng Jiashuo was standing in the basket and turning the sprocket, trying to adjust the angle of the tail.

Taichang walked into the hanging basket on the steps, and asked with great interest: "How is it, Yaoguang, have you adjusted it?"

When Cheng Jiashuo heard the words, he turned his head to take a look, and hurriedly bowed his hands and said, "Your Majesty, you are here, and I am far away from welcoming you. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

He originally thought there was nothing serious, so he hurriedly ordered someone to ask the emperor to come and have a look.

Unexpectedly, he encountered another problem. In the end, he didn't go to greet the emperor when he came.

That's a bit of a faux pas.

After all, he sent someone to invite the emperor, not himself. He was supposed to wait outside.

But Taichang didn't care and said: "Aren't you busy now? It's all right. How about it? When can you take a test flight?"

Cheng Jiashuo hastily introduced: "There is no problem with the side wing, it is the rear wing, because of the sprocket and chain of the fan, Wei Chen can only use the bracket to stagger it. The bracket seems not very stable, and two screws have to be added to fix it. Just do it."

You have installed it all, and there is no electric drill at the moment, how do you open holes and add screws?
Taichang looked up curiously, and immediately understood.

It turned out that they used the kind of hand drill with a string that carpenters use to open holes, that is, the kind that uses the up and down winding of the rope to turn the drill bit in the middle.

The speed of this thing is not very fast. It is fine for drilling wood, but it is a bit strenuous for drilling copper plates.

Fortunately, there are high-carbon steel drill bits at the moment, and the two carpenters are obviously masters, and they are not slow to drill copper plates.

It didn't take long before the hole was drilled. With the cooperation of several craftsmen, Cheng Jiashuo turned the sprocket below and tried again. The tail wing turned left and right smoothly.

He couldn't help but excitedly said: "Okay, Your Majesty, you can test the flight."

Taichang looked at the small steam engine and pocket boiler in the basket again, and then asked: "Have you tried this, how is the speed?"

Cheng Jiashuo nodded again and again: "I tried it, I tried it, because the steam engine is too small, so the speed can only be doubled, but the blades driven by the steam engine are still much faster than people shaking them."

Alas, there is no way, even this [-]-foot-long hot air balloon can only carry five or six hundred catties to the sky, and at least two people must sit on it, and there is such a heavy fire prevention device and side wings and tail fins. Steam engines and boilers can only use the smallest.

Perhaps, when the hot air balloon is more than fifty feet long, it can be replaced with a bigger one. Now, this is the only way to go.

Taichang nodded slightly and said, "Then let's start."

Cheng Jiashuo said cautiously: "Your Majesty, I dare you to go down first. Only two people can sit here."

This guy, you drove me down and you didn't come down yourself?

Are you trying to go to heaven for yourself?

How about that!
If something happens to you, Daming will suffer a lot.

Thinking of this, Taichang couldn't help but solemnly said: "Until this is fully tested, you can't go to the sky to take risks, you go down with me."

Uh, okay.

At the moment he has no apprentice yet.

Cheng Jiashuo could only recruit a director of the Ministry of Industry and explained it in detail, and then followed Taichang out of the hanging basket.

Immediately afterwards, he gave an order and ordered people to close down several steps and push them aside.

The head of the Ministry of Works took a deep breath, and then adjusted the flame of the huge kerosene lamp to the maximum, and at the same time ordered the craftsman who was helping to light the kerosene lamp in the small boiler below.

Not long after, the huge hot air balloon aircraft dragged a cable and slowly went up.

At this moment, the cables for hanging the hot air balloons have been replaced with shotguns. Not only have the cables been lengthened, but there is also a cable car fixed on the ground underneath.

It seems that as long as the wheels on the cable car are turned, the hot air balloon can be pulled down.

Taichang looked up, then asked, "How long is this cable?"

Cheng Jiashuo quickly explained: "Your Majesty, because the curtains on the walls around the city are only five feet high, the cable is only five feet long. Otherwise, people outside would be able to see the hot air balloon taking off."

Well, in a few days, as soon as the palace test starts, the curtain can be removed, and then you can rise as high as you want.

Taichang waved his hand and led Cheng Jiashuo and others to the huge concrete platform. Looking at the hot air balloon slowly rising into the sky, his face could not help showing a hint of hope.

I hope it will be successful this time, otherwise I'm afraid it will be too late, because the palace test will start in about ten days.

It didn't take long for the hot air balloon to rise to a height of nearly five feet.

Immediately afterwards, there was a whirring sound of fan blades above.

This time, with the tail fins to control the direction and the side wings to control the height, the hot air balloon no longer circles around the center of the cable.

As long as the tail changes direction, the hot air balloon will slowly change direction, and as long as the side wings change the angle, the hot air balloon will slowly float up and down.

The steering and lifting seems to be a little slow, but the function is no problem at all.

Fortunately, this thing is barely usable.

Taichang thought for a while, and then asked: "Yaoguang, is there enough fuel for the hot air balloon to fly to the capital?"

Uh, this one seems to be difficult!

Cheng Jiashuo thought for a while, then said cautiously: "Your Majesty, it depends on the wind direction.

If the wind happens to be favorable and the wind is strong, the hot air balloon will probably be able to fly hundreds of miles in an hour. There is still enough fuel for two or three hours. In this case, it will definitely be no problem to fly to the capital.

If there is no wind, it will be a bit difficult. It is estimated that the hot air balloon can fly about [-] miles in an hour without wind. If there is no wind, it is estimated that halfway through the flight, it will have to fall to refill fuel and water.

If it is against the wind, it will be even more difficult. It is estimated that if the wind is stronger, the hot air balloon will be blown upside down. "

Uh, who's to say where the wind is headed?
Taichang thought for a while, and then said decisively: "How about this, you find a place outside Dong'an, Wuqing, Xianghe and Tongzhou City, build this kind of cement platform, prepare fuel and water, and if it really doesn't work, you can go there first." Come down and replenish before continuing to fly."

Well, in this way, as long as there is no headwind, there must be no problem flying to the capital.

Cheng Jiashuo hastily cupped his hands and said, "I understand."

Next, a strange scene appeared outside the cities of Dong'an, Wuqing, Xianghe and Tongzhou. The officials of the Ministry of Industry actually ordered the soldiers of the Fifth Army Battalion to build altars outside the four cities!

The four altars are all frighteningly large, more than ten feet wide, fifty feet long, and about ten feet high.

What is going on here?
Is the emperor going to sacrifice to heaven?

(End of this chapter)