Development of productivity started in 1981

Chapter 21 Hydropower and Lighter Project Launched
The next morning, Master Quan came to the blacksmith shop.

In fact, calling it a blacksmith shop is no longer appropriate, as it can now be considered a clock factory.

Just calling it a factory might cause trouble, while calling it a blacksmith shop would be misleading.

Wang Jiankun asked Master Quan’s youngest son, Cha Gangliang, to help him with the wiring.

Arrange the grinders in order of grinding, leaving passages for transporting goods and people walking.

After working hard for a whole morning, I finally got it done. I turned on the machine and tried it out, and found that using a grinder is indeed faster.

If you work hard at polishing, you can probably polish more than 8 sets in 50 hours a day.

If you work at night, that would be more than 100 sets.

However, there are not so many orders now, and there are not so many people operating, so the production capacity of 50 sets per day is enough.

If you work the night shift, you will need to add more people to all processes.

After the debugging, Master Quan invited Wang Jiankun to the morning market for breakfast.

When I returned to the blacksmith shop, my father and Wang Liping were also there.

My father came to deliver the glass and clockwork, while Wang Liping came to deliver the clock base.

Now the carpenters in the team can make 30 sets of clock bases every day, and the speed is slowly increasing.

Wang Jiankun asked his father and Wang Liping to load a few rails and miscellaneous tools onto the bus, and then took the shoes he bought and went back together.

The generator and transformer will be transported by ox cart arranged by the captain later.

On the way, Wang Jiankun told me about his experiences in Raozhou. I was a little envious when I heard that he took such a long car ride, went to such a tall building to buy things, and saw a lot of new things.

When he heard that the team was going to build a small hydropower station, his father said excitedly and worriedly: "Jiankun, are you sure the generator and transformer you bought can be used? Do you know how to build a hydropower station?"

"Don't worry, I have checked the generator and transformer, they are definitely usable. Although they look tattered, everything inside is good."

"The construction of a hydropower station is not a problem. I read a book in the Raozhou Library that teaches how to build one. This kind of small hydropower station is very simple. I will take out the design drawings when I go back and guide the construction."

"That's good. I heard that you spent so much money to buy equipment. If it can't be used or you don't know how to build it, then it's all wasted."

"I'll tell grandpa first when I get back, and ask him to talk to the team leaders and explain that this is for the good of the team. Once the hydropower station is built, everyone will have electricity."

The three of them returned to the production team, unloaded the goods at Wang Jiankun's home, and Wang Liping went about her own business.

My father went to find a bullock cart and prepared to go to Fengshan to pull back the generator and transformer.

Fortunately, we haven’t used the oxen to plow the fields these two days, otherwise it would be difficult to arrange.

Wang Jiankun took a pair of sandals out of his bag and gave them to his sister who had been wandering around nearby, asking her to try them on.

When my sister saw the pink plastic sandals, she jumped up with joy.

Quickly took it and changed it.

After changing, he started turning around on the spot and stomping his feet.

The size is just right, and I’m ready to run out and show it off to my friends.

Wang Jiankun stopped her and asked her to bring her grandfather home, saying that he had returned and he had something to discuss with him.

My sister agreed and ran away.

Wang Jiankun quickly went back to the house, washed up, changed his clothes, and put on his Huili sneakers.

Not long after, grandpa came back. He was wearing a straw hat and a towel around his neck. I guess he went to the fields to supervise the rice harvest.

Wang Jiankun poured some boiled water for his grandfather and asked him to sit down and rest.

He then gave a general account of his trip to Raozhou, focusing on the process of purchasing the power generation equipment and future plans.

The lighter project has not been mentioned for the time being. It will be mentioned after the hydropower station is completed. We can equip the equipment first.

We need to think carefully about how to cooperate when the time comes. After all, this is a project that can make a lot of money, at least millions.

After listening to his idea of ​​building a hydroelectric power station, his grandfather pondered for a moment and said, "Kunli, from what you said, the investment in building a hydroelectric power station should not be very large. You have already paid for part of the equipment. The next step is to build the dam and sluice gates manually. After the rush harvest and planting in a few days, we should be able to start construction."

Hearing his grandfather's support, Wang Jiankun said happily: "Grandpa, I will first look for a place to build a hydroelectric power station, and we will start construction after the busy farming season is over."

"Today I discussed with several team leaders and asked them to tell the team members that we sold bricks and tiles for several thousand yuan last month. Now the timber factory and rice mill are also starting to make profits. The team leaders and team members should support it."

"After I choose the site, I will go buy cement immediately and ask my father to accompany me to Tsinghua University."

"Okay, go check out the location this afternoon and come back to tell me. Based on the results of today's team cadre meeting, if nothing goes wrong you will go to Tsinghua Cement Factory to buy cement tomorrow."

After saying that, the father and son went back to their respective work.

Wang Jiankun came to the river and walked upstream to see where it would be suitable to build a small dam.

Wang Jiankun came to the big river dam adjacent to the neighboring Shibao Production Team and thought it was a good place.

The dam was built only a few years ago. Its main purpose was to raise the riverbed above to facilitate the diversion of water into the small river entering the production team.

So we dug a canal on the other side of the dam and put the generator there.

The transformer will also be placed there, and the electric wires will be laid across the river to the production team.

In this way, a small hydropower station can be built with very little engineering effort.

There is still a lot of water available, which can fully meet the demand for power generation.

In autumn and winter, we can use sandbags to raise the dam and block part of the water channel entering the production team. At that time, most of the water will go through the power generation channel, which can also meet the water demand for power generation in autumn and winter.

Wang Jiankun waded across the river and came to the other side, using his superpowers to project the terrain within a hundred meters into his mind.

Let Tomoko draw the renderings and construction drawings according to her own ideas, and generate the construction steps.

Wang Jiankun decided to wait until he got home to put the drawings on paper, and then ask his grandfather to find someone to be responsible for construction management.

There is a rocky mountain near the canal leading into the village. Wang Jiankun used his superpowers to create some cracks in it.

When the time comes, we will take stones from here as the main material for the water channel, and then buy some cement to reinforce and smooth it.

According to Tomoko's construction animation, it would take about 30 people about 5 days to complete.

Wait for the cement to dry for 5 days, then you can release water to generate electricity.

When we walked back, we found that there were schools of groupers in the deep pool under the dam. Many of them were as long as chopsticks, and they would hide in stone holes when they were frightened.

Thinking that he hadn’t eaten stream grouper for a long time, Wang Jiankun decided to get some fish to eat.

So he went back to the creek, took off his clothes, broke off a willow branch and went down into the pool.

At this time, the groupers all hid in the stone holes. Wang Jiankun used his superpowers to explore, and when he found a hole with groupers, he dived down and reached in to dig.

This way of catching fish means you can always catch one accurately and you can also catch big ones.

Soon, there was a large bunch of grouper on the willow branches, each as long as a chopstick.

I can’t catch any more and string them together. I weighed it and it’s probably more than three pounds. I can go home and satisfy my craving now.

Wang Jiankun returned to the shore, wiped the water off his hair and body with his clothes, put on his pants, picked up the fish and went home.

People on the road saw him carrying such a large bunch of groupers, each of which was very big. They all praised him for his skills and asked how he caught such big ones.

Wang Jiankun said that they caught them by diving deep into the water, as the big fish were all in the deep holes.

I got home and asked my grandma and mother to cook the fish for lunch because it couldn't be left out in such a hot day.

Not long after, his father drove the ox cart back home. Wang Liping was also there. It turned out that his father asked him to help transport the generator and transformer.

Wang Jiankun asked Wang Liping to have lunch together at home as they had just caught several kilograms of grouper.

Wang Liping declined several times before agreeing, but said she would go home and tell him.

Wang Jiankun told him to come back soon and the fish would be ready soon.

My father came back after leading the cow back to the production team's cowshed.

The generator and transformer are still on the ox cart. Wang Jiankun just instructed that they should not be unloaded yet, as they will have to be transported to the power generation site in a few days.

At noon, everyone had a delicious grouper meal. A large pot of it was braised, and some was steamed, using the lard from the fat from previous times.

The fish meat is tender and the lard is fragrant, the taste is so delicious that you can't stop eating it.

My sister was so angry that she didn't dare eat the fish bones, so she picked out even the smallest thorns.

Wang Jiankun and others finished a fish in three or four bites. They ate the back of the fish in one bite, the belly of the fish in two bites, and the tail of the fish in another bite. After finishing, a complete fish skeleton was left.

This way of eating was taught to him by his grandfather. His sister could never learn it. It might be because she had a fish bone stuck in her throat when she was a child.

So she eats fish in small bites and only swallows it when she can no longer feel any bones on her tongue.

Later, her mother took out a small bowl and filled it with three strips of noodles for her, letting her eat slowly. Only then did she put down her anxious expression.

After lunch, Wang Liping went home, and Wang Jiankun talked about the situation with his grandfather and father.

Wang Jiankun said that he had just selected the location and explained the construction plan.

Grandpa didn't expect him to act so quickly. He said that he went to the team leaders in the morning to talk about Wang Jiankun's idea, and they all agreed.

Because several industries in the team have started to see returns recently, we can use the money to build a small hydropower station, and life has become much more convenient after the electricity is available.

Now that you have chosen a location, take a break and then go check it out with the team leaders. If there are no problems, then decide on it and start buying materials tomorrow.

During the lunch break, Wang Jiankun put the construction drawings and renderings in his mind onto a piece of white paper. Before leaving, Wang Jiankun showed them to his grandfather and father.

After looking at it, they both said it was clear and they could just follow the instructions for construction.

Inviting the team leaders to come to the dam, Wang Jiankun clipped the blueprints to a tree and used branches to point out and explain. The team leaders gradually got a sense of the picture.

After the hydropower station is built, as the sluice gates are opened, water flows into the water diversion channel and drives the generator impeller to rotate.

The generated electricity is then transmitted to the team after voltage regulation by a transformer. Every household can get electricity from the main line that passes through the team.

Each household is equipped with a switch and a fuse, and then wires are extended to the living room, rooms, and kitchen.

Just pull the switch and the light will come on.

As Wang Jiankun described it, the scenes appeared one by one in the minds of everyone present.

Everyone said that they would build the power plant here and gather people to start work tomorrow.

The accountant also said that he would pay Wang Jiankun for the generator and transformer when he got back, and then use some money to buy cement from Tsinghua University.

Let Wang Jiankun calculate how many main electrical wires will be needed later, and let the team members decide whether to buy light bulbs and switches for each household and how much they want. They can then report it together and go to the county town or Raozhou to buy them.

After the discussion, everyone went back to the team, and then went about their business separately.

Wang Jiankun also went home to rest and at the same time considered how to make a lighter.

I had a good sleep at home and woke up to find it was almost 5 o'clock.

When I arrived at the door, I found my sister coming home with a small vegetable basket with some vegetable leaves in it.

Wang Jiankun asked, "Are you carrying the leaves to feed the rabbits? How are the rabbits?"

"The little rabbit has grown a little bit, and it eats more and more vegetable leaves every day."

"Really? Then I'll go take a look too."

The brother and sister came to the place where rabbits were raised.

The moment the lid was opened, four rabbits crawled into the hole, and one of them even stuck half of its head out to look at the hole.

Wang Jiankun used his superpowers to check the situation underground and found that the rabbits were already digging holes.

In order to prevent the rabbits from digging holes and escaping, Wang Jiankun used his superpowers to turn the underground and surrounding soil into rock, so that the rabbits could not dig when they reached the rock wall.

After putting down the vegetable leaves, the two of them left. If they kept guarding, the wild rabbit might be frightened and stop eating.

My sister put the vegetables back in the basket and ran out to play.

Wang Jiankun thought that the manganese was still in the two rails and he had to find a way to transfer it out.

They took out more than 30 kilograms of iron blocks from the cellar of the room and came to the place where the steel rails were placed.

Wang Jiankun used his superpowers to replace the iron inside the iron block with the manganese in the rails.

In this way, Wang Jiankun replaced about 28 kilograms of manganese.

Wang Jiankun planned to slowly make these manganese and iron into springs, and then ask his father to continue to deliver the goods to Master Quan.

During dinner, grandpa gave Wang Jiankun 950 yuan, saying that this was the payment made by the team for the generator and transformer.

I also took 200 yuan, certification documents from the production team, and a letter written by my grandfather and gave them to my father, asking him to take them to Tsinghua University to buy cement the next day.

My grandfather and the director of Tsinghua Cement Factory were comrades-in-arms, but my grandfather was injured and retired early. But because of the comradeship, it should be possible for him to buy some cement, otherwise ordinary people would not be able to buy it.

Because I have to walk to Tsinghua University tomorrow, which will take more than two hours, so it is best to go to bed early and get up early so that it won’t be too hot when I start my journey at dawn.

The next morning, Wang Jiankun and his father set out with two bottles of wine. The wine was for the director of the cement factory. It was their first time visiting the factory and they didn't want to go empty-handed.

It was almost 8 o'clock when I arrived at Tsinghua University. I asked someone about the factory director's home, and when I got there, my father knocked on the door.

The person who opened the door was an old man in an old military uniform and asked who I was looking for.

My father said he wanted to find Director Hu, who was Wang Shunxiang’s son.

The old man thought for a moment and said, "You are Comrade Wang's son. Come in and have a cup of tea."

Then he let the two of them in.

My father put the wine on the table in front of the hall and said that he came here to ask Uncle Hu to help him with some cement.

Then he handed the certification documents and grandpa's letter to the old man.

The old man took it and started reading it. After reading it, he said that since you are planning to build a hydropower station by yourself, he has to support you, so he took his father and Wang Jiankun to the cement factory.

On the way, his father introduced Wang Jiankun to Director Hu, and Wang Jiankun called Director Hu "Grandpa Hu".

In the cement factory director's office, Director Hu wrote a note and asked my father to go to the Finance Department to pay the money, and then go to the Supply and Marketing Department to pick up the goods.

If you want it delivered by truck, you need to find the transportation department, pay the fee and get a shipping note.

Wang Jiankun and his father completed the formalities and prepared to pick up the goods.

In the Transportation Department, Wang Jiankun met Hu Xiyang.

He went up to him, greeted him, and asked him whether he was sent to transport cement to Wangjia Production Team this time.

He said he had nothing to do anyway, so he might as well take a trip.

So he took Wang Jiankun's delivery note and started the truck to load cement. Wang Jiankun and his father sat in the driver's cab together.

On the way to the warehouse, Wang Jiankun saw that only one of the three chimneys of the cement factory was emitting smoke, so he asked, "Brother Hu, why is the cement factory not busy? Isn't there a huge demand for cement now?"

"Don't mention it. There's not enough coal. The coal mines have reduced production because of the hot weather, and they are fully supplying the county and other large cement plants. Our factory can only reduce the slag to maintain the production of one kiln."

After loading the goods, they left the factory. On the way, Wang Jiankun asked Hu Xiyang if he could go to Dexing and Raozhou to help transport the goods if he was not busy.

Hu Xiyang agreed, and that he would only need to pay the factory for gas and vehicle wear and tear with his earnings, and he would keep the rest himself.

The factory has no choice. It has to pay so many people even if they don’t work.

Wang Jiankun asked him to leave his phone number and call him when he needed him to transport goods, which could be Dexing or Raozhou.

Hu Xiyang said it was okay, but it had to be done one or two days in advance, otherwise he might have work to do that day and couldn't leave.

My father also asked why we still needed to hire a truck to transport the goods.

Wang Jiankun said that when the time comes to buy wires, they will definitely need a truck to transport them. He also has a product he saw in Raozhou that he is planning to make and sell, so he will need to buy the raw materials then.

His father was also very impressed with his creative ideas and skillful hands, and just told him to be careful when he was outside and he could go with him.

Wang Jiankun said he would talk about it later and go home to build the water diversion channel and hydropower station first.

When he arrived at the production team, he arranged for people to transport the cement to a place near the power station for storage, while Hu Xiyang drove home.

There were more than 10 people mining stones near the hydropower station, and seven or eight people digging the water diversion channel.

There was a team leader on the scene giving instructions with a blueprint in hand. Wang Jiankun took a look and went home.

He was going to fix the brushes on the generator and the tools as well.

When he got home, he found no one was at home, which was convenient for Wang Jiankun to work.

Wang Jiankun went to the kitchen to find some wood, extracted the carbon element from it and used it to repair the brushes. The wood then turned into water and gas and disappeared.

By the way, some iron was extracted to reinforce the outer shell, and an iron lining was made inside the rust holes so that outsiders could not see them.

Wang Jiankun also repaired those tools without changing their appearance. Their functions were not reduced, but their appearance was a little tattered, which just fits the origin of the term "reducing tatters".

I haven't figured out what to do with these rails yet, so I'll keep them for now.

Wang Jiankun began to think about how to carry out the lighter project.

The sample is made of galvanized iron sheet. Now I don’t know where to find the manufacturer of galvanized iron sheet, and there is not enough zinc to synthesize it using super powers.

So Wang Jiankun flipped through the books in his mind to see what materials were suitable for making lighters.

After searching for a while, I found copper and aluminum alloy.

Brass is also a good material for making lighters, but brass also requires a lot of zinc. Currently, Wang Jiankun has not found many zinc-containing ores nearby.

Therefore, Wang Jiankun initially planned to use his superpowers to synthesize 2 lighters, 100 each of copper and aluminum alloy.

The flint and steel was synthesized from rare earth ore in Dexing, and the others were all complete.

Then they go to Raozhou to wholesale to small vendors, where they synthesize some stamping machines and molds and bring them back, and then go to the production team to open a small factory for production.

The production team's factory earned processing fees and part of the material costs. For example, cotton and wicks could be produced by the production team.

In the afternoon, Wang Jiankun calculated the length of the cable needed from the hydropower station to the production team's main line network. The neutral line and the live line together would be about 4 kilometers.

This type of trunk cable can use bare aluminum wire, while the one entering the house must use insulated copper wire.

Go to Dexing or Raozhou to see if you can buy the main cables. If you can’t, use your super powers to synthesize them.

Copper cables can definitely be purchased in Dexing.

Not only is copper ore produced there, but copper smelting and processing is also very developed. Logically, there should be zinc mines there or it should be easy to buy zinc ingots.

I went to the hydropower station construction site and found that there were step-by-step construction drawings to guide us, and everyone was working in an orderly manner.

So I have to take advantage of the time to go out and buy what I want. For other small things, I can make another trip or ask the team to send someone to buy them when the time comes.

During dinner, Wang Jiankun told his grandfather that he was going to Raozhou again, this time to buy cables and some equipment.

If we can get a project to make lighters done, the team will have work to do all year round.

The family members didn't know what a lighter was, but seeing that Wang Jiankun had been working on it for more than a month without making any mistakes, they didn't object. They just asked him to go early and come back early and be careful.

Wangjia Production Team began to enter the electrical age



(End of this chapter)