Chapter 708

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The roar of steam engines and the smell of metal filled the military workshop.

After briefly stating his purpose for coming here, Xiao Ming routinely inspected the firearm workshop and the artillery workshop as usual.

In the firearm workshop, he specifically observed the production of conical bullets. One by one, conical bullets were cast in molds, then taken by artisans for grinding and calibration.

The advantage of rifled muskets was clear, but the demands on the bullets were also strict. Substandard conical bullets would cause disastrous consequences for the soldiers.

Therefore, after each batch of bullets was cast, the artisans would strictly calibrate them. After calibration, the artisans would insert wooden wads into the holes at the back of the conical bullets, which was to ensure airtightness during firing.

When Xiao Ming said each artisan produced three bullets a day, it was just a minimum estimate, as the current military workshop had already skillfully adopted assembly line production.

Different artisans were responsible for different processes: casting, grinding, manufacturing wooden wads, and assembly. These four sets of processes were carried out by these one thousand people through division of labor.

After inspecting the firearm workshop, he went to the artillery workshop. A long time ago, he had instructed Chen Qi to research rifled cannons.

After much exploration, the artillery workshop had successfully manufactured rifled cannons. According to Chen Qi, the production speed of rifled cannons was slow, but their range was much greater than before, now able to fire shells five li away.

“Five li.” Xiao Ming was slightly satisfied with this figure. Five li was two thousand five hundred meters, a range that should not lose to Western artillery.

“Prioritize providing these naval guns to warships,” Xiao Ming ordered. The news from both the French and the British had made Xiao Ming increasingly wary.

Domestic troubles had not yet been resolved when external threats arrived. Xiao Wenxuan had indeed left him an enormous mess. However, it was fortunate that this place was too far from the West, making it impossible for either France or Britain to deploy large-scale armies here.

Now, they were merely playing the role of troublemakers, stirring up unrest in East Asia. His primary enemies at the moment were still the barbarians, Japan, Goryeo, and the King of Chu.

And these were precisely the targets Britain and France wanted to use to counterbalance him, leading to the cooperation between France and the Prince of Chu, and Britain’s journey to Japan.

Although Xiao Ming was angry at the petty actions of these two Western powers, he was currently helpless. However, this world would not always be dominated by them.

Once industry was popularized in the six provinces and the livelihoods of the people in the north were restored, that would be the time for him to reveal his sharp claws.

After inspecting the military workshop, Xiao Ming and Qian Dafu returned to Qingzhou City.

Meanwhile, under the supervision of Fei Ji and Pang Yukun, the six-prefecture reform movement was also gradually unfolding.

…

At the entrance of the Qingzhou Chamber of Commerce, Zhu Wuliu and other merchants were waiting for Li Kaiyuan to come out.

News about private workshops in the newspaper had spread throughout the six prefecture, and merchants eager to get a share immediately swarmed in.

In the past two years, Zhu Wuliu had earned a lot of silver from his white sugar workshop, and his family fortune had become substantial. He bought a large mansion in Qingzhou City.

Not only him, but Zhu Family Village also saw five wealthy households emerge. These households were the ones who lent Zhu Wuliu silver when he built the white sugar workshop.

At that time, Zhu Wuliu promised to share profits with them based on the amount of silver lent. Because of this, they also became wealthy, which made many people envious.

“Brother Wuliu, there are so many people here today!” Behind Zhu Wuliu was a slightly shorter, lean young man named Shangguan Yong, also from Zhu Family Village.

Zhu Wuliu looked at the long queue behind him. There were at least seven hundred, if not a thousand, merchants who came to the Chamber of Commerce this time. He said, “This is dangerous. These merchants are all wealthy, and I’m afraid we can’t compete with them. It’s said that the number of steam engines is limited; once they’re sold out, we’ll have to wait.”

Shangguan Yong was even more anxious than Zhu Wuliu. Many people in the village didn’t participate in the previous white sugar workshop venture. This time, hearing that Zhu Wuliu was starting another workshop, they all pooled their silver for Zhu Wuliu, aiming to get a share of the profits from this new workshop.

Touching his chest, Shangguan Yong confirmed that the bank draft he exchanged at the Qingzhou Bank was still there. The silver he carried was the entire village’s savings; if he lost it, he couldn’t even sell himself to replace it.

“Brother Wuliu, if it doesn’t work out, why don’t you go find Third Brother Si? I heard Third Brother Si has been transferred back from Ryukyu and promoted to captain. Ask him to pull some strings. Wouldn’t that make this batch of steam engines more secure?” Shangguan Yong said with a chuckle.

Zhu Wuliu’s face darkened upon hearing this. He said, “Second Brother is in the army and cannot engage in business. If it’s known, he’ll be kicked out of the army. Your asking me to find him is harming him. I can go without this business, but Second Brother cannot take off that uniform. It’s an honor for our old Zhu family.”

Shangguan Yong gave two awkward laughs. “I was just anxious, you know. Actually, if I hadn’t broken my leg when I was a child, I’d want to join the army too. Look how impressive the soldiers are now! Not only does the prefectural office deliver rice and flour at the end of each year, but it’s said that soldiers now get priority for many things. Even buying things at the Qingzhou Chamber of Commerce’s shops only costs half the silver.”

“Of course! It used to be that no one wanted to be a soldier, but now it’s great; everyone’s breaking their heads to join the army!” Zhu Wuliu found himself a little envious as he spoke.

It was said that the past two years of war had made many soldiers rich. After each battle, they would receive rewards, which made many troops eager to fight.

And the soldiers who returned to the village, giving dozens of taels of silver to their families at a time, confirmed these rumors.

Just as the two were momentarily lost in thought, Li Kaiyuan suddenly appeared at the entrance of the Chamber of Commerce. He frowned as he scanned the waiting merchants.

“There are a total of one hundred steam engines for sale this time. But it’s not just the steam engine; it’s actually a complete steam engine production line. That means there are one hundred production lines. For fairness, this sale of production lines will be conducted by auction, with the highest bidder winning. Gentlemen, you may now enter the venue to prepare.”

Li Kaiyuan finished speaking and made a “please” gesture. The merchants immediately surged into the Chamber of Commerce’s auction hall.

Merchants, one after another, rushed past him eagerly. Li Kaiyuan showed a hint of helplessness. He had argued with Lin Wentao quite a bit over these one hundred production lines in the past two days.

For him, the more steam engines, the better. But Lin Wentao had brushed him off, arguing that they needed to sell them for silver to have silver to continue manufacturing more.

He had only managed to get these one hundred sets of steam engines from the steam engine workshop. Now, indeed, there were too many monks and too little gruel (too many buyers, too few goods).

Soon, the auction hall was filled with excited merchants.

Before coming, the prefectural office had opened up official workshops, such as the imitation workshop and the white sugar workshop, for them to observe. The role of steam engines in these workshops had deeply impressed them.

Merchants, driven by profit, immediately recognized the value contained within, leading to today’s scene.