Quick travel to save a miserable life

As for Lin Jiacheng's thoughts, although he didn't say it out loud, Lin Hui really felt it.

No matter how late he comes back every day, as long as the two children are awake, he must hug the younger one, tease the older one, and get close to them.

And Cuiya has become familiar with this uncle for a long time. Every day, the uncle is older and the uncle is shorter. When Xiao Zhiyong saw Lin Jiacheng, he screamed "Ahhh" excitedly. The two children were very excited about this appearance in their life. There is an indescribable attachment to the only male elder in life.

Lin Hui felt that she had come to the capital this time. The two children really needed a male elder to guide them in their growth. Regardless of whether they were boys or girls, a reliable and trustworthy male elder played an indispensable role in their growth. Replacement.

Even if I could give them [-]% maternal love, it would be difficult to replace this feeling.

One day before the Chinese New Year, a carriage suddenly stopped at the door of Lin Hui's house. Lin Jiacheng got out of the carriage and knocked on the door.

Lin Huizheng was wondering. He usually walked back, so why did he get into a carriage today?

Lin Jiacheng lowered the threshold and asked a soldier in the car to drive the carriage into the courtyard and stop at the door of the kitchen. Then the two of them began to unload the food from above.

It turned out that this was the salary rice distributed by their yamen. According to his grade, it was twenty-four stones a year. He was originally supposed to receive it on a monthly basis, two stones per month, but he was not in Beijing in the past few months and did not go to collect it. , so this time I took back everything from the previous few months at once.

One stone weighs about sixty kilograms. This time, we received a total of more than fourteen hundred kilograms of grain. No wonder it had to be pulled by a horse-drawn carriage.

Lin Hui was holding the child but couldn't help, while Cui Ya looked curiously at Da Ma who couldn't hold back his breath.

Because Lin Hui exerted few restraints on Cui Ya, she gradually developed a lively and lively character who dared to ask questions, and often looked at some ordinary things with an inquiring eye.

Just like now, Cui Ya asked about the animal skin-like thing wrapped on the horse's hoof: "Uncle, are these horse shoes?"

Lin Jiacheng carried food to the kitchen several times in a row. A layer of sweat broke out on his forehead in the middle of winter. He wiped the sweat with the back of his hand and smiled at his niece: "Isn't that right? Think about it. If you walk without shoes, your feet will be hurt and worn out. The same is true for horses, and you must protect their feet!"

"Then when we took the carriage to Beijing, why didn't the horses pulling the carriage wear shoes?" Cui Ya thought for a while and asked, tilting her head.

Lin Jiacheng smiled: "This is a military horse. It is a precious breed, so it must be carefully protected and cared for. Its feet are made of animal skin. They wear out quickly and need to be replaced frequently. It costs a lot of money. The carriage and horse dealer does not want to spend money on it." Let’s buy shoes for their horses!”

Lin Hui heard some questions from the side. Aren't the horseshoes nailed with horseshoes? Why do they need to be wrapped in animal skins?

However, she was used to being cautious and did not ask her questions directly. Instead, she waited until the food was unloaded and the soldiers who drove the cart had left before asking Lin Jiacheng insinuatingly.

After asking, she realized that there was no such thing as horseshoes in this world. Ordinary horses' hoofs did not have any protection. Horses in the army would wrap some animal skins on their hoofs for protection, but just like Lin Jiacheng As said, the cost of doing this is very high, and there is a lot of military expenditure for this every year.

After Lin Hui heard this, an idea suddenly flashed in her mind.

"Jia Cheng, since the horse's hoof armor needs protection, why not nail it with an iron base plate? Wouldn't it be more resistant to wear and tear?" Lin Hui suggested.

Unexpectedly, Lin Jiacheng looked incredulous after hearing Lin Hui's words: "Sister, how can iron be nailed to the horse's feet?"

"Why not? Didn't you say that the master's craftsmen also have to trim the horses' hoofs regularly? Since it can be trimmed, it proves that cutting off part of the hoof is not painful or itchy for the horse, then why can't it be trimmed with nails? Is there an iron plate nailed to its hoof?"

Lin Hui thought she could convince him now, but Lin Jiacheng still shook his head.

"Sister, if this method is feasible, then why didn't anyone propose it before? Since no one has done it, it obviously doesn't work. Besides, iron is rare and strictly controlled by the court. It is more valuable than animal skins. This approach is inappropriate.”

Lin Hui felt helpless, why is this child so ignorant? What a good opportunity for promotion!

Once he was able to come up with the innovative idea of ​​shoeing horses' hooves, it greatly increased the durability of horses in the army and indirectly extended the use time of horses. In this situation where the court is short of horses, it can be regarded as a big achievement. !

As for the preciousness of iron he mentioned, how much iron is used in the four hooves of a horse? No matter how precious it is, can a horse be precious?

What's more, horseshoes are made of iron and are very durable. Once a pair of horseshoes is made, it can be used for at least several years. Even if it breaks, the iron can be melted and used to make other instruments. There is no waste at all. Is it good?

However, after all, Lin Jiacheng came from a peasant family and had limited knowledge. He could not think of many things and was timid. Even if someone proposed it, he would not dare to try it. Therefore, facing Lin Hui's proposal, his instinct was to object.

Seeing that she couldn't convince him for a while, Lin Hui simply stopped talking and decided to find someone to make a sample in private first.

Lin Hui can ride a horse, and her riding skills are pretty good, so she has a pretty clear idea of ​​the general shape and structure of a horseshoe, and quickly drew a pattern on paper.

There is a blacksmith shop in Beicheng, which is licensed by the government. Except for weapons and swords, which are not allowed to be made, the blacksmiths there can make some basic farm tools and kitchen utensils.

Regarding the drawings Lin Hui brought, although the blacksmith thought the appearance of the thing was a bit strange, he didn't find it too difficult, and the clear dimensions were given on it, making it easier to build.

Because Lin Hui had no iron and needed a blacksmith shop to produce work and materials, the price was not cheap.

Four horseshoes, weighing less than eight taels in total, actually cost seven cents of silver.

Sure enough, in an era of low productivity, metal prices will not be cheap because mining and smelting are relatively expensive.

Compared with iron, copper in this era was more expensive because copper ores were rarer and copper was also the main material for making coins, so its value was higher.

Lin Hui explained the matter to the blacksmith and hurried home.

She had the opportunity to go out alone today because Lin Jiacheng, Xiu Mu, was at home and could help her look after the child, so she could go out in the name of handing in embroidery.

Of course, the matter of handing over the embroidery products was true, she just stopped by the blacksmith shop.