My Imperial Advisor is ChatGPT

In the depths of winter in Xianyang, the cold wind is no longer the only visitor.

That winter, a thin layer of gray mist hung over Xianyang. It was the smoke from tens of thousands of families burning honeycomb briquettes, mixed with moisture from workshops upstream of the Wei River, shrouding the capital on windless days.

Although the air quality has visibly declined, no one is complaining. Compared to the tragic scenes of freezing to death in previous years, everyone is able to spend a warm winter huddled around a tin stove this year.

However, inside a top-secret workshop of the Imperial Household Department, the atmosphere was even more frigid than the cold wind outside.

"Sizzle—!"

A sharp, piercing shriek suddenly rang out, followed by a cloud of white, high-temperature steam erupting out like a wild beast out of control.

"Ah! My face! My face!"

Zhao Gao screamed and fell backward, the black ash on his face washed away by the steam, leaving white streaks, making him look like an actor who had just finished applying makeup and then had makeup remover splashed on him.

In the center of the workshop, the colossal machine on which so much hope was placed—the first prototype steam engine of the Qin Dynasty—was now like a giant, leaky teapot, with steam escaping from every crack in its body.

The piston trembled only twice before collapsing limply.

"Stop! Turn off the engine! It's going to explode!"

Wearing blackened goggles and holding a sand bucket for extinguishing fires, Hu Hai shouted excitedly, seemingly more anticipating a more spectacular explosion than putting out a fire.

……

Half an hour later.

Ying Zheng stood before the still-warm iron lump, holding a precision vernier caliper (produced by Li Si's Standards Bureau), his brow furrowed.

Kneeling at his feet were Zhao Gao, covered in dust, and the leader of the Mohist school.

"This is the... Hercules you created for me?"

Ying Zheng kicked the heavy cast iron cylinder with his foot.

"A loud noise, but a quiet one. You burned five hundred catties of my finest coal just to make a sound?"

The leader of the Mohist school was filled with shame and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, it was not a fault of the mechanism's design. It was simply... that the vital energy could not be retained."

"Although this cylinder has been machined on a lathe, there are still gaps between the iron parts. When steam rushes in, it escapes through these gaps. If the air pressure can't be increased, the piston won't be able to push up."

"We tried stuffing it with burlap, using leather pads, and even... we even used lard mixed with flour to make the paste. But the steam was too hot, and it all melted in no time."

This was the biggest obstacle in the early stages of the Industrial Revolution—sealing.

Without rubber, a steam engine is just a leaky sieve.

Ying Zheng looked at the light screen in his mind.

"Little G, you see. Iron won't do, cloth won't do, flour won't do. And that 'rubber' you mentioned, where am I supposed to find it for you now? In that South America thing?"

Your Majesty, distant water cannot quench immediate thirst.

However, nature is amazing. In your country, there actually grows an alternative to the 'rubber tree'.

Its name is Eucommia ulmoides.

The bark, leaves, and fruit of the Eucommia ulmoides tree contain a white, fibrous substance scientifically known as eucommia gum. This is a hard rubber; while not as elastic as natural rubber, it has excellent insulation and thermoplasticity.

With just a little processing, such as mixing it with sulfur and 'vulcanizing' it, it can be transformed into a high-temperature and high-pressure resistant sealing ring.

"Eucommia ulmoides?" Ying Zheng was taken aback.

He's very familiar with this stuff. In the kidney-tonifying and bone-strengthening prescriptions Xia Wuqie writes, he adds Eucommia ulmoides eight out of ten times.

"You mean, all these years of medicinal soup I've been drinking actually contained... wheels and sealing rings?"

Ying Zheng's expression became quite interesting.

He turned around and looked at Zhao Gao.

"Zhao Gao, stop howling. He's not familiar with us yet, he's still useful."

"I recall that there were quite a few Eucommia trees planted in the Shanglin Garden?"

Zhao Gao covered his swollen face and sobbed, "Your Majesty, there are quite a few. They are medicinal herbs reserved for the Imperial Medical Bureau."

"Issue my decree." A ruthless glint flashed in Ying Zheng's eyes. "Go, strip the bark off all the Eucommia trees in Shanglin Garden."

"Also, a notice was issued to collect Eucommia bark. One pound of bark could be exchanged for one pound of coal."

"I don't care if you boil, steam, or roast it. Just pull out the 'white threads' from under that skin!"

"If you can't pull it out, I'll pull out your tendons!"

……

Thus, a catastrophe targeting the Eucommia ulmoides tree erupted around Xianyang City.

The Eucommia trees, originally considered precious medicinal materials, suffered overnight. Imperial guards, armed with knives and axes, stripped those decades-old trees bare, like peeling onions.

A strange smell once again filled the Shaofu laboratory.

This time it wasn't the smell of gunpowder or garlic, but a strong, burnt herbal smell mixed with the pungent odor of sulfur.

Zhao Gao, wearing a thick cotton mask, was looking at a large pot with a troubled expression.

Tons of eucommia bark were boiling in the pot. Following Little G's "vague instructions," they had to first boil the bark until it was mushy, extract the white, gelatinous substance, then add sulfur powder while it was still hot, stir, and press it into a mold.

"Will this thing really work?"

Zhao Gao used an iron spoon to stir up a clump of dark, sticky, snot-like glue.

"Add sulfur! Quickly!"

A craftsman, his hands trembling, poured in a bowl of yellow sulfur powder.

"Sizzle—"

A plume of yellow smoke rose from the pot.

Zhao Gao suppressed his nausea and stirred frantically. The clump of gelatinous substance began to harden, turn black, and finally become a... not very elastic, but extremely tough black ring.

Zhao Gao picked it up and bit it with his teeth.

It's tough and a little bitter. But you can't bite into it or tear it apart.

"It's done?" Zhao Gao exclaimed in disbelief. "These medicinal herbs, after being boiled, can actually turn into belts?"

……

Just as Zhao Gao was arguing with the tree bark, a crisis concerning "face" was erupting in the West Market of Xianyang.

Liu Bang squatted at the entrance of the "Great Qin Gas Company," looking at the several imposing noblewomen in front of him, feeling utterly bewildered.

These women are no ordinary people; some are the wives of high-ranking officials, and others are the daughters of marquises.

"Magistrate Liu! Look! Look!"

A plump lady pointed angrily at the collar of her once snow-white fox fur coat, which was now a dull gray.

"Ever since you burned those honeycomb briquettes of yours, there's black ash everywhere in Xianyang! The clothes I washed yesterday turned black after hanging out to dry for only half a day!"

"And my Persian cat! It used to be white, now it's turned into a lump of coal!"

"You have to pay us money! Pay for our emotional distress!"

Liu Bang wore a bitter expression, inwardly cursing these women for being so fussy. They complained about being dirty when there was heating on? But his face was plastered with smiles.

"Ladies, please calm down, please calm down."

"This coal does have some ash. But it's 'rich man's ash'! In the past, poor people couldn't even afford firewood, so how could they be qualified to inhale this coal ash?"

"Bah! Stop your nonsense!" The plump lady wasn't buying it. "In short, if you don't resolve this, we'll stage a sit-in at the entrance of the Epang Palace! Let His Majesty be the judge!"

Liu Bang's eyes darted around.

As a "resource integration master," he never solves problems; he only transforms them.

"Solved! Definitely solved!"

Liu Bang pulled out an exquisite wooden box from under the counter.

"Actually, I have already prepared 'dust-proof artifacts' for all of you ladies."

He opened the box.

Inside was a layer of white gauze as thin as a cicada's wing.

But this gauze was unusual; it was sewn into the shape of exquisite masks, embroidered with patterns of plum blossoms, orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemums, and even scented with incense.

"This is the 'Beauty's Face'," Liu Bang said with a straight face, spouting nonsense. "It's made with the latest textile technology and soaked in a medicinal solution. Wearing it will not only keep you clean and dust-proof, but also filter out cold air and moisturize your skin."

"The most crucial thing is..." Liu Bang lowered his voice, "It's a kind of 'mysterious beauty.' Wearing it and walking down the street, appearing and disappearing, the number of people turning their heads to look... wow wow wow."

The ladies stared wide-eyed at the exquisite veil.

"How much...is this?"

"Not expensive! Since it's an apology, I'll give you a discount. Nine hundred and ninety-eight coins!"

"I want it! I want the plum blossom one!"

"I want the orchid ones! Give me ten! I want to wear them in rotation!"

A mass incident concerning environmental pollution was thus resolved by Liu Bang using a "fashionable item".

The next day, a strange scene appeared on the streets of Xianyang. All the noblewomen on the streets wore embroidered veils, considering it a sign of beauty. And those common women who could not afford "beauty veils" also tore off a piece of cloth and covered their faces.

"Mask fashion" became popular more than two thousand years ahead of schedule during the Qin Dynasty.

Looking at the heavy money bag in his hand, Liu Bang sighed, "There is nothing in this world that cannot be sold, only people who don't know how to deceive."

However, Xiao He poured cold water on the idea from the side.

"Liu Ji, this is just a temporary deception. The coal ash is getting heavier and heavier, which is indeed a hidden danger. His Majesty asked yesterday if there was any way to reduce the smoke from the chimney."

Liu Bang scratched his head: "What can we do then? Send Zhao Gao to put a mask on the chimney?"

……

Shaofu, Power Laboratory.

After half a month of hard work, and with half of the Eucommia trees in Shanglin Garden destroyed, the first batch of "Eucommia rubber sealing rings" were finally installed on the steam engine.

On this day, Ying Zheng visited again.

This time, he didn't stand too close, but sat in a safe area about ten feet away, holding a telescope in his hand.

"Let's begin."

Zhao Gao took a deep breath, like a suicide bomber about to detonate a bomb.

"ignition!"

The roaring fire licked at the bottom of the boiler. As the water temperature rose, the pointer on the pressure gauge (a modified simple spring scale) began to tremble.

"Sizzle..."

There was still a slight hissing sound, but that was normal pressure relief. At the critical flange, the black rubber seal was firmly clamped shut, and not a trace of steam escaped.

The pressure is mounting.

at last.

"Click".

The massive cast iron connecting rod moved.

"Huff! Huff!"

Steam drives the piston, the piston drives the crossbeam, and the crossbeam drives the flywheel.

The heavy iron wheel began to turn slowly but steadily.

One lap, two laps, three laps... the speed is getting faster and faster.

"It moved! It moved!" Hu Hai jumped up, disregarding all royal etiquette, and shouted at the iron lump, "It's alive! It's alive!"

Ying Zheng lowered the telescope.

He looked at the tireless machine that spewed out white steam and roared like thunder.

That is power.

It wasn't done by the flesh and blood of oxen and horses, nor by human labor carrying loads on their shoulders. It was done by fire, by water, and by these black stones.

"Little G," Ying Zheng murmured to himself, "that voice... is so beautiful."

[Your Majesty, this is the heartbeat of the First Industrial Revolution.]

Although it's still quite ugly and only 1% efficient—basically just pumping water—given time, it can haul tens of thousands of kilograms of cargo a thousand miles a day and push giant steel ships across oceans.

"Pump water?" Ying Zheng keenly caught the key word.

"Can you pump water now?"

Yes. The power output of this prototype is roughly equivalent to fifty strong men lifting water.

Ying Zheng stood up and pointed deep into the construction site of the Epang Palace.

A huge artificial lake is being dug there, and groundwater is seeping out severely. Thousands of laborers are working day and night to drain the water with buckets, but they still can't keep up with the rate of seepage.

"Pull it over there."

"Have it drain the water from that pit for me."

"I want the world to see if this coal-eating monster can really provide enough food for a hundred people."

……

Three days later, at the construction site of the artificial lake at the Epang Palace.

This steam pump, named "Qin Shi Huang No. 1," was set up on the shore.

As coal was poured in, the machines roared. From the thick water pipes, murky groundwater gushed out like a fountain, the flow rate so great that it left all the craftsmen present speechless.

The water level, which originally required two thousand people working in shifts to barely maintain, was dropping at a visible rate under the roar of this machine.

The onlookers' initial fear turned into deep awe.

"Goodness gracious... this iron behemoth is as strong as the entire village combined." Aguda scratched his head, feeling that his livelihood was threatened.

On the outskirts of the crowd, a middle-aged man with a thin face, dressed in a gray robe, was staring intently at the machine.

He is Zhang Liang.

He disguised himself and infiltrated Xianyang. He originally wanted to see the results of the "Poison Smoke Project," but instead witnessed this scene.

"What kind of sorcery is this?" Zhang Liang's fingers dug deep into his palms. "Moving mountains and unloading rivers without human or animal power, just by burning fire?"

"Ying Zheng... from whom exactly did you borrow this heaven-defying power?"

Zhang Liang felt an unprecedented sense of powerlessness. He was well-versed in military strategy, knew how to devise tactics, and even knew how to create panic.

But his schemes seemed so pale in the face of such pure, brute industrial power.

"No. We can't let him make this kind of thing again."

"If the Qin army used this kind of thing to transport grain, troops, or even... to attack cities."

Zhang Liang shivered.

He turned and disappeared into the crowd.

"We need to think of a way. Destroy it. Or... make the people believe that this is the source of the disaster."

……

Just as "Qinhuang No. 1" was roaring day and night, draining the lake water, and preparing to dig the foundation downwards.

An unexpected event occurred.

Because the pumping speed was too fast, the groundwater level dropped sharply, causing localized ground subsidence.

"Boom!"

A muffled thud.

A large hole suddenly appeared in one corner of the construction site.

No ghosts or spirits flew out.

However, from that large hole, a black, viscous liquid with a pungent, strange smell gushed out.

The liquid flowed along the ditch, leaving nothing but barren land in its wake.

"Black water! Black water is flowing from the underworld!"

Some superstitious laborers shouted in terror.

Upon hearing the news, Li Si, who was inspecting the scene, rushed over. He looked at the black liquid and frowned.

"This smell...it tastes like asphalt!"

A craftsman held up a torch and leaned closer to get a better look.

Just as the torch approached the black water.

"call--!"

The black water... caught fire!

The fire was extremely fierce, spreading across the water surface in an instant, with billowing black smoke resembling a fire dragon churning in the ditch.

"The water is on fire! The water is on fire!"

Even Li Si was stunned. Water and fire are incompatible—a principle even a three-year-old knows. How could this black water actually burn on water?

This is truly a monster!

The news spread like wildfire throughout Xianyang.

"Hellfire was unearthed from the Epang Palace!"

"That was because Qin Shi Huang defied the heavens, severing the dragon veins, causing the subterranean fire to rise!"

Zhang Liang, who was hiding in the shadows, was overjoyed when he heard the news.

God helps me too!

That's the best excuse!

However, inside the Qilin Hall...

Ying Zheng looked at the urgent report and listened to Li Si describe the properties of the "black water": viscous, pungent, and flammable.

His hands trembled slightly.

It's not because of fear.

Rather, it was because of... ecstasy.

"Little G," Ying Zheng's voice was trembling, "tell me. Is this black water... the one..."

Your Majesty, congratulations.

You're not digging a foundation, you've won the lottery!

This is petroleum. It's the "fierce fire oil" that Shen Kuo of the Northern Song Dynasty referred to in his "Dream Pool Essays."

This is blood that is more advanced, more volatile, and more powerful than coal.

With it, your steam engine will no longer be a clumsy coal-burning machine. With it, the internal combustion engine of the future, and even... well, that's too far off.

In short, this is liquid gold.

Ying Zheng suddenly stood up and laughed three times.

"Ha ha ha ha!"

"Zhang Liang, Zhang Liang, you must think this is divine retribution, right?"

"Unfortunately, this is a gift from heaven!"

"Issue my decree!"

"Fence that piece of land for me! That's royal forbidden territory!"

"Zhao Gao! Stop boiling the tree bark! Take your chemistry institute and go study this black water for me!"

"I will make this 'hellfire' the hottest blood in the Qin chariots!"

(End of Chapter Thirty-Eight)