Emperor Ming Dynasty

Chapter 649 This is Qi

Strange skills and obscene skills refer to those luxury items that are exquisite in appearance and frustrating in skills but of little use.

As for practical technologies such as waterwheels, water mills, and curved plows, they have never said anything, but they are encouraging.

The agricultural books in history were basically compiled by scholar-bureaucrats, such as "Nongzheng Quanshu" and "Wang Zhennongshu".

In the late Ming Dynasty, the scholar-bureaucrat group resumed their interest in exploring science and technology, and the rise of the Jurchens in the Northeast led to the spread of a strong trend of "practical application of the world".

In other words, a group of scholar-officials headed by Xu Guangqi, like the Westernization Movement in the Qing Dynasty, all wanted to save the nation and save their own court.

To sum up, the ass determines the head, as long as it can promote agricultural production, grain harvest, and stable court rule, no matter how bizarre the technology is, it will be accepted for a long time.

Just like Ming Xizong, if he did not study carpentry for self-entertainment, but developed artillery technology to benefit the country and the people, you can see how many people would oppose him.

Therefore, compared with the late Qing Dynasty, today's society is more tolerant, and Xu Guangqi can believe in Catholicism, which was unimaginable during the Manchu Qing Dynasty.

People's thoughts are not so imprisoned. From a social perspective, this is excellent for the development and utilization of technology.

Regarding the steam engine, Zhu Yixi is not clear about its specific structure, but he confirms one thing, it uses the energy of water just like the stone mill.

It's just that one uses the kinetic energy of water, while a steam engine uses water vapor.

"Just like the story in the book, Watt saw the water being boiled, the plug was popped, and invented the steam engine. Although it is a bit nonsense, the principle is the same."

Thinking of this, Zhu Yixi felt like she wanted to show off her talents.

Piston movement, who doesn't understand?

If the steam engine is used to solve the problem of rice husking, then as time goes by, the use of the steam engine will naturally be extensive.

Didn't China's textile technology also start from a little bit?

"Yan Yingyuan, as the governor of Shuntian Prefecture, I will leave it to you to handle it at this time. If there is any disobedience, the farm will be confiscated directly."

The emperor was full of thoughts and couldn't wait to start research on technology.

"The minister obeys the order!"

Yan Yingyuan responded loudly, looking very excited.

Zhu Si on the side was a little envious.

As a retainer, it is a luxury for the court to appoint officials.

"You go to supervise Huangzhuang and Juntian, and directly demolish them."

"Yes!"

After the dissolution, Zhu Yixi became busy.

First, he ordered someone to make an egg-shaped iron container, and then made some iron pipes, which were used as water vapor pipes and transported into a narrow iron box.

Finally, place a piston in the iron box.

Boil the water, the water boils and turns into steam, and the steam is transported from the pipe into the iron box, thereby pushing the piston to move up and down.

The next step is simple, just install an iron ring and iron wire on the piston, and then connect the grinding disc.

Therefore, as long as water is continuously added, boiled, and water vapor is generated, the piston can continue to move, pushing the millstone to do work, and husking the rice.

The iron box is connected to the water tank with pipes, and the cooled water vapor turns into water and flows into the water tank again.

A perfect closed loop is formed.

"Simple yet not simple."

Zhu Yixi muttered as he looked at the masterpiece that he had worked on all afternoon.

As we all know, there are seven things to do when you open the door. Firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar and tea, firewood ranks first.

Fire, and its fuel, are still the greatest consumer goods in cities.

Food is only one of the factors limiting the size of ancient cities, and fuel is the second.

Although the coal in Mentougou has now been excavated and made into honeycomb coal, which makes it cheap and easy to use, the cost of using steam engines cannot be underestimated.

There is also the issue of efficiency.

This steam engine is too rough and its utilization rate is too low, so he just burned dozens of catties of media, and only pushed to grind two hundred catties of rice.

What the hell, one catty of medium hulls and five catties of rice.

A catty of medium is three coppers, five catties of rice is worth fifty coppers, and the cost of shelling is only [-]%, which is relatively low.

But I can't stand the comparison with the water grinder!
Just a manufacturing cost, put it in the river, and then make money continuously, there is no operating cost at all.

Therefore, the power must be higher to reduce operating costs in order to replace the water mill.

The sealing degree is not good, the iron pipe is too thick, the water tank is heated unevenly, the size of the piston is wrong, and so on.

So it has to be improved, continuously improved.

"Your Majesty, boiling water can actually grind rice. This is really an eye-opener for servants."

Tian Ren covered his mouth exaggeratedly, his eyes were full of shock.

He didn't see it that way.

Because this matter is so bizarre no matter how you look at it.

Boiling water can make the stone mill move by itself, this is probably the trick of the gods!
Zhu Yixi turned his head and saw that the craftsmen and guards all knelt down at this moment, their faces were full of piety, and they looked like miracles.

"Let the princes come and see."

Sighing, Zhu Yixi was instantly filled with a sense of accomplishment, and then said to several kneeling craftsmen: "You have to improve, as long as you can burn less coal and grind more grain, I will reward you generously."

It seemed that this was too vain, and the emperor increased the reward: "If I am satisfied, I will immediately give you a ninth-rank official status."

Suddenly, the craftsmen became a little panicked, with uneasy expressions on their faces.

Zhu Yixi was puzzled, and looked at Tian Ren beside him.

"Your Majesty, the few of them are already from the eighth rank..." Tian Ren explained with his head down.

Who would like to be demoted for co-authoring a meritorious service?

"A first-class official is promoted to three ranks, a second-class house in the capital, a third-class silver dollar is 500 yuan, and a fourth-class silver dollar is 100 yuan."

"The fourth class is your reward, are you satisfied?"

"Your Majesty is holy!" One of the craftsmen raised his head and said, "I don't know if this thing can be disassembled?"

"Of course, as you like."

Zhu Yixi glanced at the ugly rudimentary steam engine, or the large kettle: "As long as it can be improved, don't be stingy with all the materials."

After a while, all the concubines in the harem also arrived, looking at the product of the emperor's busy day.

An iron shell that can grind itself.

The women looked at the iron box in amazement one by one, and looked back and forth, still curious.

Although they are delicate, fleshy and graceful, the emperor has gotten used to them and is tired of looking at them.

And the princes also left school, and when they heard their father's call, they all ran over and stared at the iron box, their eyes almost popping out.

"The movement of this thing depends on Qi."

For his son, Zhu Yixi patiently taught: "When the water is boiled, it turns into gas, and then accumulates more and more, pushing the final plug and driving the stone mill behind..."

Seeing this group of little guys still didn't understand, Zhu Yixi directly ordered someone to bring the kettle.

A kettle without a spout, when it boils, the lid on it will bounce off.

"This is anger—"

(End of this chapter)