In a chaotic and famine-stricken era, I picked up an empress to be my wife.

Xu the blacksmith nodded in agreement: "Officer Shen, we really need to understand this matter first; we can't just give orders haphazardly!"

"Since Officer Shen has said so, he can definitely do it. Just follow his orders!" Dugu Meng stepped forward.

Although she is still dressed as a man, she can now speak.

She puts on a beard every day, and anyone who hasn't seen her in person would think she's a handsome young man.

"What do you know, young man?!" Yang Tiejun said with displeasure. "If you're not an expert, don't meddle in expert matters, okay?"

"Then just wait and see the reality, and you'll be proven wrong!" Although Dugu Meng didn't know how Shen An could do it, she had already realized from the previous slaps in the face that Shen An never boasted or did anything unprepared.

Once he speaks, even if they think it's outrageous, they can't easily deny Shen An's claims.

Although Yang Tiejun and the others were hearing about this slap in the face for the first time, they quickly came to understand.

They didn't dare to confront Shen An and Dugu Meng, but patiently said, "Sigh, Officer Shen, you really don't understand the inside story. However, since you are so confident, then we will do as you say."

If we can't do it, please don't blame us for being lazy or incompetent!

Shen An, however, was not particularly affected by their reactions.

He has experienced being looked down upon far too often.

Especially when dealing with these so-called professionals, once you look beyond their perspective, the doubts will be even greater.

Shen An smiled and said, "Don't worry, as long as you do as I say, I won't blame you no matter what the final result is. However, you must remember! I, Shen An, don't speak carelessly!"

Yang Tiejun and the others shook their heads again. Although Shen An was a high-ranking constable and had reportedly made meritorious contributions in the battle against the Western Barbarians, this did not prevent him from being a knowledgeable person.

Lacking knowledge yet so certain, truly youthful arrogance.

These old guys should teach Shen An a lesson.

"Great! We're relieved to hear that. Now, we're wondering how to proceed with making the furnace you mentioned?" Yang Tiejun asked.

"Follow me!"

Shen An then led them to the nearby Emerald Blue Mountain.

Although it is a mountain, there are official roads leading to various places, so transportation is relatively convenient.

The reason for coming here is that if you want to build a furnace, you need to choose a location that is high up and well-ventilated, with a stream to facilitate digging and drainage, and nearby charcoal, clay, and water sources.

After choosing a spot by a stream, he had them begin preparing the materials for building the furnace.

First, the main refractory material is loess, fine river sand, and broken old refractory pottery. Then, water is added and the mixture is repeatedly pounded to make refractory mud, which can withstand high temperatures and does not crack.

Secondly, the outer layer needs to be insulated with ordinary clay and stones, while the inner lining is thickened and made of a mixture of crushed charcoal ash and mud to resist high-temperature erosion.

After these materials are prepared.

Shen An then used large pieces of bluestone to reinforce the base and prevent it from softening and collapsing due to the high temperature.

The ancient earthen blast furnace was narrow at the top and wide at the bottom. Shen An gave them the blueprints, and they built it according to the requirements.

Although they questioned Shen An and had limited knowledge, they were blacksmiths who were not only strong but also exceptionally skillful.

With the combined efforts of several people, it was done in an hour.

Looking at the tall furnace, it was completely different from the blacksmith's stove they used.

They really couldn't understand what this thing could do.

"Officer Shen, shouldn't we start forging now?" Yang Tiejun asked.

Shen An could tell that Yang Tiejun was deliberately testing him to see if he really knew anything about the business.

Because this new furnace contains a lot of moisture, it will crack if exposed to high temperatures directly. You should first use a small fire of firewood to slowly dry it for three to five days, gradually increasing the fire intensity to dry all the moisture on the furnace walls before it can be officially put into iron smelting.

If he can't even say this, Yang Tiejun will take this opportunity to confirm that he doesn't know anything about the field.

Shen An was indeed not a metallurgical master, but back then, special forces soldiers had a course on how to enhance their weapons in situations where there were no firearms.

He was already skilled at using a furnace to forge iron, and he smiled and said, "

"First, the furnace needs to be built and slowly baked over a low flame for three to five days to dry out the moisture. Secondly, a forced-air system is required; otherwise, the temperature cannot reach twice that of your blacksmithing work," Shen An replied.

Blower system?

Apart from Shen An, no one else had ever heard of this term.

As for slow drying over a low flame for three to five days, they thought Shen An was right.

However, he knew that slow drying over a low flame for three to five days was nothing unusual; it was just common sense.

"What is that blower system?" Xu the blacksmith asked.

"You'll see once I've done it! In the next few days, you need to build five high-temperature furnaces according to the blueprints to prepare for the mass forging of weapons in the future!" Shen An instructed, "I'll handle the blower system myself!"

Seeing how seriously Shen An spoke, they still didn't believe that Shen An, an amateur, could double the temperature of the forging process!

That's absolutely impossible!

If Shen An were capable, what would all the blacksmiths in the world be? Would they be useless?

Shen An stopped communicating with them and instead prepared to build the blower system.

First, he needs to make an inflatable bladder, which requires multiple layers of cowhide sewn together and the edges coated with grease to seal it and prevent air leakage.

Secondly, there are the air vents and ducts.

He needed to drill through the hollow hardwood tube, insert one end into the furnace vent, and connect the other end to the leather bag. The outer layer of the tube was wrapped with mud for insulation to prevent it from burning and cracking.

Each furnace is equipped with ten bladders. Wooden poles are installed on both sides of the furnace to connect the bladders. Workers push, pull, and squeeze the bladders to continuously pump air into the furnace, providing oxygen and raising the temperature without interruption.

The temperature will then reach nearly 1500 degrees.

The furnaces they used to forge iron only reached a temperature of 700-800 degrees Celsius, which was insufficient to completely melt the iron into molten iron; it could only soften the ironware.

Under such circumstances, the forged iron would far surpass the ironware of that era in both hardness and toughness.

There will be a moment when the two sides' iron weapons clash, and the other side's sword is instantly cut in half.

This will not only greatly increase their side's power, but also greatly shock the enemy's mind.

Five days later.

Shen An has completed the five matching blower systems.

Following Shen An's instructions, Yang Tiejun and others built five high-temperature furnaces and used low heat to slowly dry them, thoroughly evaporating all the moisture.

"Officer Shen, can we start forging now?" Yang Tiejun asked again.

These past few days they've been doing drying work, and haven't done any blacksmithing at all. They feel like they're wasting their talents.

After all, they were the most famous blacksmiths in the surrounding area, and even when the government conscripted them, they were treated with great courtesy.

I really don't feel comfortable making them do these things now.

They all wanted to verify what Shen An said as soon as possible so that they could gain control of the narrative. Even if they couldn't, they could go back to their blacksmithing business sooner and not waste time here.

"In the past, you were blacksmiths, but now it's different. The first step is called molten iron! Melting iron into molten iron!" Shen An said, word by word.

"Melted into molten iron???"

Yang Tiejun and the others thought it was a fantasy. In their understanding, iron could not be melted into water; at most, it could only be softened.

"Officer Shen, you're being uninformed again. Iron can't be melted into water," Yang Tiejun reminded him. "Stop talking nonsense!"

"Of course iron can melt into water. Let alone iron, as long as the temperature is high enough, even stones can melt into water. You think it's impossible because you're not capable enough! Your knowledge is too limited!" Shen An finally retorted.

Although Dugu Meng felt that iron melting into water was too unrealistic, she still felt very happy when she heard Shen An retort.

"I believe Shen An. Since you all think it's impossible, then let's follow Shen An's arrangements and start forging iron without melting it!" Dugu Meng stepped forward again.

"Alright, alright, let's see how you, Officer Shen, manage to melt iron!" Yang Tiejun said, his face full of dissatisfaction.

The expressions of the others were almost identical to those of Yang Tiejun.

They were indeed afraid of Shen An, but they really couldn't stand it when an outsider said they were incompetent and short-sighted!

"Now open your eyes and take a good look. Let me show you what professionalism is!"

Shen An lit the furnace and started the fire. He then continuously stepped on the bellows, and Dugu Meng went up to help.

Soon, the temperature was reached, and Shen An put the three broken swords inside.