Father, I really don’t want to be the emperor

After dinner, Ning Fan took Xiao Lingxi to the waterwheel by the river.

As the river surged, the huge waterwheel was pushed and began to rotate the rolling mill.

In the grinding pan, the villagers are constantly adding limestone stones.

As the grinding plate rotates, crushed powder continues to flow down from below.

Xiao Lingxi was stunned by the astonishing scene in front of her, and the rumbling sound in her ears made her trance.

"Actually, it's too slow to crush stones into dust! Recently I'm working on something called a crusher. If it is built, the efficiency will increase tenfold!"

Ning Fan said with a smile.

"ten times?"

Everything in front of her was shocking enough. Xiao Lingxi couldn't imagine the concept of ten times.

"It's a pity that the power of water power is always limited! If we use cement to cut off the river water and build a dam here, the water power that can be used will be doubled, and the power that can be driven will be much greater!"

Ning Fan pointed to the turbulent river in front and said.

Xiao Lingxi looked at Ning Fan in front of her with some numbness. This man was about to cut off a river casually, and he didn't seem to be talking big.

"After all the limestone, clay, and iron ore are ground into powder, the next step is to mix them according to a certain proportion, and then put them into a blast furnace for calcination!"

"This process requires very high temperatures. Ordinary firewood cannot achieve such high temperatures, so you must use charcoal!"

"However, burning charcoal is too complicated. If coke can be mined on a large scale, it can be directly used as a substitute for charcoal."

Ning Fan pointed to the blast furnace in the distance and said helplessly.

"Coke... this kind of thing has been used to smelt iron for a long time, but it is underground and it is too difficult to mine."

Xiao Lingxi also knew about Jiao Tan.

Hundreds of years before Dakang, coke was discovered and used as fuel.

"Sooner or later, coke will replace charcoal. After all, trees will be cut down one day, but coke is endless underground! As long as you find coal veins with abundant reserves, you can mine them in large quantities!"

Ning Fan scratched his head and said.

"Transportation is also a problem! Add in the cost of excavation and transportation, and the price of coke must be far higher than that of charcoal!"

Xiao Lingxi raised a pointed question.

Ning Fan did not deny it, but said helplessly: "We need to find ways to build roads first, and then find ways to improve horse-drawn carriages. When transportation costs drop, our prosperous and prosperous land will not only be Jiangnan with developed shipping."

"Actually, the biggest root cause of all this lies in crops!"

"As long as the crops grow well and people don't lack food, the population will increase dramatically. When the manpower is exhausted, they can be invested in digging canals and building various constructions."

Ning Fan smiled honestly.

Ning Fan's soliloquy shocked Xiao Lingxi.

She was completely shocked by Ning Fan's distant gaze. She stared blankly at Ning Fan and was speechless for a moment.

"Sister Ling Xi, autumn is short. If we want to go back, we have to leave early in the afternoon."

Ning Fan reminded.

Xiao Lingxi came back to her senses, but there was an unhurried look on her face: "If we stay here, we won't cause trouble to Wu Zhuangtou and the others, right? I know that these villagers are actually very hardworking."

"Of course not. Wu Zhuangtou and the others have caught a lot of lobsters recently and transported them to the capital as soon as possible to exchange for money and food. Life in the village has been very prosperous recently."

Ning Fan's eyes suddenly lit up when he heard that Xiao Lingxi was staying tonight.

It's not that Ning Fan has any special thoughts, but if Xiao Lingxi is willing to stay, it means that this girl has let down her guard against him.

Qingmeizhuang is a manor given by the emperor. In the early years, it also built a palace for the emperor.

Although it is a bit worn out, it is much cleaner than the ordinary huts facing downwards.

The main room in this palace should have been occupied by Ning Fan, but Ning Fan gave it to Xiao Lingxi and his servant.

Wu Yufang, the daughter of Wu Zhuangtou, helped clean the room, brought new bedding, and arranged the rooms for Xiao Lingxi and his servant very appropriately.

"Don't be afraid, Miss Xiao. Although we are in a remote rural area, it is also His Highness's manor. Everything is safe in the manor!"

"My father told me to take a dozen strong women from the village with me tonight, saying that I would keep vigil for Miss Xiao." Wu Yufang smiled honestly at Xiao Lingxi.

Xiao Lingxi's brows were frowning slightly, but now she relaxed completely.

Although she didn't want to admit it, the reason she took the risk to live in Qingmeizhuang was because she wanted to spend more time with Ning Fan.

Even Xiao Lingxi herself didn't realize that she had a vague liking for Ning Fan.

When the sumptuous dinner was served, the setting sun happened to shine in the small courtyard.

Several seasonal vegetables were stir-fried to perfection, the taste was extremely rich, and the chewy hand-made noodles filled with the aroma of wheat made Ning Fan even more reluctant to leave.

After dinner, Wu Yufang lit candles and a bonfire, illuminating the yard with bright lights.

Under Xiaoyu's strong suggestion, Ning Fan had no choice but to talk about the third chapter of The Divine Eagle, Desert Wind and Sand.

This time, it was not only Xiao Lingxi and Xiaoyu who were fascinated by the story, but Ergou and Wu Yufang were also heartbroken by the fascinating storyline.

"Okay, it's getting late. Let's go to bed early. We have to go back to the capital tomorrow!"

Ning Fan yawned and said.

After talking for more than an hour, Ning Fan's throat almost started to smoke.

But when he turned around, he saw several dark green eyes.

"Your Highness, is Guo Jing living in a foreign race and unable to return to the Central Plains?"

Xiaoyu clasped her hands together tightly and looked at Ning Fan with a worried look.

Although Xiao Lingxi did not speak, her eyes seemed to be able to speak, and she seemed to be urging Ning Fan to continue speaking.

"What about Guo Jing? I haven't remembered it yet, but I'm almost exhausted! If you exhaust me to death today, this story will be over."

Ning Fa yawned.

After saying this, no one finally dared to urge Ning Fan to continue talking. Although everyone still had something to say, they went back to their houses to sleep.

Ning Fan got up the next day and saw Xiaoyu wandering outside his window.

Seeing Ning Fan open the window, Xiaoyu immediately ran over, opened the window and said to Ning Fan: "Your Highness, do you remember the following story? We will return to Beijing in the morning, can you still tell stories to my young lady on the way? ?”

Xiaoyu looked at Ning Fan expectantly.

This girl had dark circles under her eyes, and it looked like she hadn't slept well all night. She was probably tempted by the story of the Condor Shooting, and she didn't want to think about food anymore.

Ning Fan saw how pitiful the girl's family was, and finally felt happy: "Okay, I'll talk about it a few more times on the way!"

Xiao Lingxi came to Qingmeizhuang nominally to observe the cement making process. After firing all night last night, one batch was finally ready in the morning.

As the blast furnace was turned on, steaming smoke flew everywhere.