I'm not a lord

Chapter 78 The Key to Changing the World

"Papermaking workshop? You want to make parchment? That's easy. The territory has no shortage of leatherworkers, but it lacks sheepskin."

When he heard that paper was going to be made, Lao Liu's eyes suddenly lit up with excitement.

According to Lin En's plan, the literacy school in White Bear Territory will officially start classes after the autumn harvest this year. Lao Liu is having a headache about the teaching paper.

The process of making parchment is similar to that of making leather. It is nothing more than scraping the sheepskin, removing the fat, washing it, air-drying it, and then stretching it. Any slightly skilled leatherworker can do this job.

Moreover, parchment is moisture-proof, durable and easy to store, and can be stored for hundreds of years without spoiling.

The only downside to expensive things is that they are expensive.

Sheepskin is an extremely important raw material at this time.

In the military field, it can be used to make saddles, quivers and various protective gear; in the civilian field, it is the most common winter clothing; sheepskin products are also indispensable in daily life, such as shoes, carpets, water bags, etc.

Sheepskin has too many uses, and there is very little sheepskin available for the papermaking industry, so the price of parchment paper has naturally remained high for a long time.

"Not parchment, but rag paper made from linen."

Lin En was about to expand his army, and the army was in short supply of leather. How could he possibly use precious sheepskin to make paper?

What he wanted to make was cheap rag paper.

After upgrading the [Forging] skill to level three, he immediately sent all his followers to the [Manufacturing] column.

The two-level [Manufacturing] unlocked a key technology for Lin En, which is papermaking.

At first glance, papermaking doesn't seem to require much technical skill.

But with the current level of handicrafts in Baixiong Territory, building a papermaking workshop with stable production capacity is definitely a major project, no less than building a new blacksmith shop.

"Can linen be used to make paper?"

Lao Liu was shocked. Various impressions of linen flashed through his mind in an instant, and it was really difficult to associate it with paper.

"Of course." Lynn took out a piece of parchment from the drawer and began to record the production process of rag paper.

For the current White Bear Territory, rag paper is the most practical and the raw materials are the easiest to obtain.

The main raw material for rag paper is worn-out linen clothes, which are available in every serf's home.

The first step is fermentation. Cut the washed linen into pieces and soak it in water. Add lime for fermentation. The fermentation time depends on the temperature. It usually takes one to two weeks in summer and two to three weeks in autumn and winter.

The second step is beating, which involves beating and pounding the fermented linen several times until it becomes a uniform pulp.

The third step is papermaking. The paper pulp is added to water and bleached with wood ash. The pulp is then scooped out with a scoop net made of reeds to initially form wet paper sheets.

The last step is dehydration and drying. By physically squeezing out the moisture from the paper and drying it in a well-ventilated place, you will get a relatively rough rag paper.

If you are pursuing higher quality paper, you can also use stone to repeatedly polish the paper to make it smoother.

When Lin En put down his pen, Lao Liu widened his eyes and stared at the papermaking technique recorded on the parchment.

There was no shortage of linen and white bear collars. Male serfs could be used to beat the pulp, while female serfs were responsible for weaving reed nets, and dehydration and drying were left to the wind and sun.

Although Lao Liu believed that his elder brother was telling the truth, he still found it a little hard to believe.

By following these steps, can we really create a new paper that can replace parchment?
With raw materials so cheap, the paper produced must not be expensive either.

Once this new paper comes out, the school system in the North and even the entire Diewas continent will face a huge impact.

One of the reasons why knowledge was scarce was the high cost of paper and books. A basic enlightenment textbook cost one or two gold coins, making it difficult for even ordinary knights to afford to read.

The lower-class serfs were naturally isolated from knowledge.

Lao Liu's hands holding the parchment trembled uncontrollably. He had a vague feeling that the papermaking technique in his hand was the key to changing the world.

Cheap paper can significantly reduce the cost of knowledge.

If this kind of paper can be successfully made, the children of White Bear Territory, and even the children of the entire North, will have more opportunities to access knowledge.

This will not only change their personal destinies, but will also have an immeasurable impact on the White Bear Territory and even the Northern Kingdom.
Lin En can see further ahead than Lao Liu, but he also has to focus on the present.

His primary goal is to solve the problem of widespread illiteracy in White Bear Territory.

He needed more qualified officials capable of handling administrative tasks, and his army needed more junior officers who could read and do math.

Lacking administrative support, the new territories he conquered had to be entrusted to the lords for management.

He owns the White Bear Territory, but he is not a lord in the traditional sense.

He could not allow himself to be trapped in the vicious circle of the feudal system.

"Don't underestimate the simplicity of the steps. The second step, beating, is the most difficult. It takes thousands of beatings to turn the linen into pulp. Water power must be used instead of human power."

After saying that, Lin En looked out the window. The dam was already half built.

Once the heavy rain stops, the project should be completed in about ten days.

This dam will become the engine of development for White Bear Territory, driving countless water wheels and countless hammers to flatten iron ingots and crush paper pulp until this chaotic era is completely smashed.

The next morning, the rain gradually subsided and the sky became lighter in color.

The air is filled with the fresh smell of earth, mixed with the fragrance of grass and flowers, which is refreshing.

The rainstorm stopped and Leon couldn't wait to take a boat south.

His old buddies couldn't wait to divide up the profits from the illegal salt business.

In order to ensure the safety of the salt, he even vacated his bedroom in the cabin and chose to sleep on the deck like the escaped slaves.

After Leon left, Lynn immediately called old Albert to the castle and handed him the design drawings of the papermaking workshop.

"We need to build another workshop north of the castle. The blueprints are here. You and Tolima will discuss it."

Lao Ai took the blueprint and just took a look at it, then he felt dizzy.

He is indeed the best civil engineer in the territory, but his actual level is just that.

He could barely manage to build a gravel road, but these workshop drawings with a large number of mechanical structures were like incomprehensible books to him.

At least he had a reference for the blacksmith shop that used water-powered hammers. After all, there was a very simple water mill next to the castle, which was driven by the water flow of the White River.

By consulting with Tolima and Qihe, we can produce a decent finished product.

But why is the structure of this workshop more complicated than that of a blacksmith shop?
Old Albert really wanted to ask his master to find someone else, but in the end he had no choice but to take the task.

There's nothing I can do. Who told him to be the chief steward of the territory?

He has to be responsible for all the engineering projects in this territory.

(End of this chapter)