Late Ming Dynasty: The Counterattack Begins with Sea Pirates

Once the first step is complete, you can begin the second step.

"Build a shield and seal off the smoke tunnel."

After the low wall of the flue was built, Chi Honghai had people lay thick wooden planks of suitable length, prepared in advance, tightly on the wall to completely cover the flue space below. The gaps between the planks were carefully sealed with yellow mud mixed with straw fibers.

The most important thing about the wooden planks used as the base of the kang (heated brick bed) is that they must be laid flat and tightly. If they are not laid flat or tightly, there will be gaps, which will cause smoke to leak out.

After the wooden planks were laid, the craftsmen evenly spread a layer of yellow mud and straw mixture about half an inch thick on the planks and smoothed it out as a leveling layer.

"Get on the kang (heated brick bed)!" Chi Honghai gave the order.

The group took out the thick wooden planks they found in the warehouse, pieced them together, sealed the gaps with mud, and then carried them up, laying them tightly on the smoothed mud layer.

This thick wooden plank is the surface on which people eventually lie. After it is laid, all the gaps between the stone slabs and the joints between the stone slabs and the walls are sealed tightly with fine mud.

Then Chi Honghai pointed to the outer edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and instructed the craftsmen to nail sturdy wooden blocks to secure the edge of the kang surface, thus preventing people from rolling off.

The renovation of the shed was almost complete, and the final and most important part of the renovation was the renovation of the original kitchen.

Chi Honghai directed the craftsmen to carefully chisel a wide opening (about one and a half feet square) into the back wall of the stove. This opening had to be tightly connected to the entrance of the flue of the kang (heated brick bed).

At the same time, the original stove was dug deeper and larger. The principle is very simple: the stove at this time not only served the function of cooking, but also provided heating. Heating a large area requires more firewood, and with more firepower, the heat can be stronger.

Chi Honghai gestured to the side, while the craftsmen carefully deepened the stove with tools and measuring tapes to ensure that the smoke and fire in the stove could flow smoothly into the flue entrance under the kang (heated brick bed).

Outside the shed, directly above the flue outlet on the roof, craftsmen used mud bricks and large bamboo tubes to build a chimney that was at least three feet higher than the roof.

Furthermore, they made extra work at the connection between the bottom of the chimney and the flue outlet of the kang (heated brick bed). They sealed all the gaps in this area with mud, and even applied two extra layers of mud to prevent leaks.

At the top of the chimney, to prevent heavy rain from falling directly into the flue and damaging the original structure and heat, a rainproof "hat" was specially added to the top – that is, a rainproof board made of wooden planks, about half a foot higher than the top, similar to a straw hat.

After a period of intense and organized work, the basic structure of the first kang (heated brick bed) was completed.

Some of the mud hadn't dried completely, but the increasingly cold weather and the islanders' faces reddened by the wind made Chi Honghai eager to test the effects.

"Shen Er, bring some dry firewood! Let's start a fire!"

The chopped firewood was stuffed into the stove, and the embers were ignited. Flames rose, and thick smoke poured into the flue under the kang (a heated brick bed) through the newly dug hole.

Everyone nervously gathered around the stove and the kang (a heated brick bed), holding their breath. Among them, Chi Honghai was the most nervous. Even in such cold weather, his palms were already sweaty when Shen Er lit the fire.

At first, wisps of smoke seeped out from the newly laid brick or mud joints.

"Quick! Cover the leaking areas with wet mud!" Chi Honghai reacted swiftly, and the craftsmen immediately got to work, carefully covering the leaking areas.

As the fire grew stronger, the stove emitted a whooshing sound.

After being roasted by the fire, the nearby damp mud dried up, and the wisps of smoke that had been seeping in gradually disappeared.

Immediately afterwards, the person standing by the kang (a heated brick bed) was the first to sense the change.

"It's warm, sir! This wooden board... it feels warm to the touch!" A craftsman exclaimed excitedly, touching the wooden board near the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).

Chi Honghai reached out and touched it. Sure enough, the surface of the wooden board was no longer cold to the touch, but rather exuded a gentle, continuous heat. This heat was spreading slowly and steadily across the entire kang (heated brick bed) at a speed that could be felt by touch.

After about half an hour of burning, the entire kang (heated brick bed) surface had become evenly warm. Chi Honghai even had someone bring a basin of water and splash a little water onto the kang surface away from the stove. A slight "sizzling" sound was heard as the water stains quickly shrank and dried, leaving only faint watermarks.

Shen Er rubbed his hands excitedly, his face flushed red from the firelight, but this time it wasn't from the cold, but from the warmth of the heating. "Master, you're amazing!"

Chi Honghai let out a long sigh of relief, a genuine smile of contentment that he hadn't seen in days.

He walked to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), reached out and carefully felt the heat. Still not entirely reassured, he also checked the combustion in the stove and the smoke extraction from the chimney.

Only after confirming that everything was working properly, the smoke and heat were circulating smoothly, and the heat was being transferred to the shed, did he feel completely at ease.

"Go, first arrange for the elderly, children, and women to come to this room," Chi Honghai said to Shen Er.

"Yes, yes, sir! I'll go right away!" Shen Er's excitement hadn't subsided at all. After saying that, he ran off, shouting as he ran that there was heating!

After some of the elderly, children, and women on the island entered the shack, they, who had never experienced such warmth before, looked around and marveled at how it was done.

"This is all thanks to our master! Without him, this winter would have been very difficult!"

Everyone was sensible and knelt down before the master.

Upon seeing this, Chi Honghai quickly ordered his men to help these people up and let them spend the winter comfortably in the shack.

However, a single shed could not accommodate so many people, so Chi Honghai instructed all the able-bodied men to follow his method and try to renovate everyone's sheds and even houses.

Meanwhile, those who spend the winter in shacks are not idle either.

Chi Honghai instructed his wife, Wu Wanruo, to work with Ai Si to oversee matters in the shed and to collect supplies from the island to expedite the production of winter clothing.

"Sir, sir, although there are about a thousand people on our island, the many shacks we built before are enough for us. Why do you still want to put heating on all those existing houses?"

Chi Honghai patted Shen Er on the shoulder: "Shen Er, do you believe what I'm saying? Another group of people will be coming to our island this winter."

"Sir, I, Shen Er, certainly believe what you say, but I wonder who these people you are referring to are?"

"You'll see when the time comes. Right now, what we need to do is get the heating on. In the next few days, take some men and get more straw or thatch to make warm clothes for the people in the sheds. The brothers are still wearing too little."

Chi Honghai sighed as he said this, "If only there were more cotton on this island to make clothes."

"Sir, we rarely see snow in this area, and the cotton-padded clothes we usually keep at home are few and thin. With this sudden cold weather, we really don't have enough cotton to make new clothes."

Wait, cotton?