Great Song

The winter solstice is also like the New Year's Eve, so people can't help but rush, so the market is full of people, and all the shops and street vendors will display their trophies, display some novelty goods, and invite people to play. It is a great time to have fun.However, Zhen Qiong is not interested in gambling.Banquets and gifts are also out of his consideration.It was Mi Fu's proposal to visit the newly built water conservancy hammer forging workshop, which moved him quite a bit.This is a project that Su Song has been busy with for more than half a year. Brother Miao must have never seen it before. It would be good to go to broaden your horizons!

So early in the morning, the two changed into new clothes, boarded a carriage, and headed for Guangjin Gate.This is an important water gate outside Tokyo, through which the Bian River can flow into the Zimeng River and then into the Huaihe River.Therefore, the river is turbulent and it is a good place to use water conservancy.

The carriage left the outer city slowly, and before it reached the hammer forging workshop, a deafening noise was heard.Zhen Qiong couldn't help but opened the car window and looked out.Not far away, there is a large courtyard standing by the river, with a fortified wall and a very large area. There are also two huge, non-stop rotating water wheels next to the courtyard. The rumbling sound is coming from there. Come.Farther away, you can vaguely see the towering furnace, billowing thick smoke.

"This hammer forging workshop is so big!" Zhen Qiong was shocked, wishing she could jump out of the car immediately and take a closer look.

Han Miao calmed down a lot, stopped the person, waited for the car to stop, and then took Zhen Qiong's hand and got out of the car.

As soon as he stood still, he heard a call: "Brother Zhen! I heard that you didn't go to the suburban festival!"

Who else could make such a ghostly noise?Zhen Qiong shook her brand-new sleeves, imitating the appearance of a senior official Han, and calmly said: "The ceremony of worshiping heaven, how can I be qualified to attend the ceremony? But the officials said, I am allowed to participate in the first day Dachao..."

Mi Fu doesn't care what the first day is or not: "Who said that, this year there will be elephant taming, wouldn't it be a miss if we don't go?"

Oh, that's what I was talking about.Zhen Qiong couldn't help being even more proud: "You can't see the whole thing when you attend the grand ceremony. A few days ago, the official Han took me to Xuandemen to see it. The elephant can not only turn around, but also kneel down and worship."

Although it is said that the situation is very calm now, when Zhen Qiong saw the elephant that day, she was taken aback.so high!The ears are so big!And a long nose!Such a giant beast was driven obediently by people.Turn around when asked, worship when asked, and sing in unison, which is extremely rare!

When Mi Fu heard this, he felt sour water coming out of his stomach.Before the winter solstice, Xuandemen has a preview, but it is not so easy to find a place to watch.Relatives and clan members can still go up to the private mansion to have a look, but the imperial street is so crowded that they can't get out of it.I don’t know where I booked this trail, so I can see it all!

But no matter how sour it is, it can't lose its share. Mi Fu snorted: "It's really amazing. When the Yujin Garden opens next year, I can see tamed elephants too!"

Yujin Garden is a royal garden, and it is also open to the common people in March and April every year.There are rare birds and animals inside, and of course there are elephants. You can also see elephant taming performances for some money.

When Zhen Qiong heard this, she suddenly regained her spirits: "Then there are giraffes in Yujin Garden?"

Mi Fu couldn't help scratching his head: "What is a giraffe? I only know that there are Suanni, Zouyu, Lingxi, Qilin...have you never heard of a giraffe?"

Zhen Qiong was also in a daze: "It's a deer with a particularly long neck. What are you talking about Suanni and Zouyu?"

His seniors told him about the giraffe, and he could see it in the Royal Zoo in Dayi Dynasty.On the other hand, what Mi Fu said sounds like something in a myth, why can't you imagine what it looks like?

Mi Fu was as puzzled as he was: "Suan Ni is an auspicious beast that carries a Bodhisattva. During the Double Ninth Festival, didn't there be monks riding on Suan Ni to give lectures at Kaibao Temple and Renwang Temple?"

"Isn't that a lion?" Of course Zhen Qiong knew about it, mainly because he was afraid that wild animals would hurt people, so he gave up running to have a look, and followed Han Daguan to the mountain to soak up the hot water.Why did the lion turn into a suanni in the blink of an eye?

Mi Fu snorted: "How can a lion sound as good as a 狻猊?"

Seeing where the topic of the two was going, Han Miao coughed: "Xiandi Yuanzhang, this is your guest?"

It was only then that Mi Fu remembered that he had brought someone with him, so he hurriedly introduced: "This is Brother Li Gonglin. He is preparing for the exam in Beijing. He is also good at calligraphy and painting. He has a good relationship with me. Hearing the news about the hammer forging workshop, he also came to see it. Look, Brother Boshi, this is Ling Xiaozi and Han Daguan."

Li Gonglin has known Mi Fu for a while, and he also knows his temper. After being left alone for a long time, he didn't get angry. He smiled and bowed his hands to Zhen Qiong: "I've heard of the name of Zhenjun Lei Ting for a long time. Today, I know that it's better to meet him."

These words come from the heart, and there is no polite response.Li Gonglin is good at reading ancient books and poetry, but his favorite is painting, especially figure and pommel horse painting.The Xiaodao in front of him has a handsome appearance and high spirits, and it is even more rare that he is natural and flawless. His eyes are clear and bright, like a child, and it is easy to arouse the idea of ​​​​imitation at the first sight.

But anyway, unlike Mi Fu, he knows what to say and what to say slowly.However, holding back the agitation in his heart, when he turned to the senior official Han, the other party had already smiled at him and said, "Since Brother Li Xian is familiar with Yuanzhang, he is also our friend. I'm afraid you two have been waiting for a long time, why don't you go inside first?" "

Uh... why does this official Han make people feel hairy when he laughs?Before Li Gonglin could figure it out, he saw Han Miao graciously holding the hands of the people around him and walking towards the courtyard.He is also wearing a Taoist robe today, which complements Ling Xiaozi's Taoist robe, but he is not like an ordinary senior brother, and there is no sense of intimacy.

Li Gonglin was stunned, and then remembered the relationship between the two, secretly said that something was wrong.Could it be that he stared at Ling Xiaozi too engrossedly just now and was rejected by his husband-in-law?It seems that the matter of painting has to be discussed in the long run.

Seeing that Mi Fu was following up, he didn't dare to neglect, and followed everyone into the courtyard.

Su Song knew that everyone came to visit the hammer forging workshop today, so he greeted them personally.It was not surprising to see Li Gonglin following Han Miao and Mi Fu.This hammer forging workshop, after all, is also a subordinate of the Military Weapons Supervisor, how can ordinary people trespass?But with Zhen Qiong and Mi Fu leading them, it is reasonable to turn a blind eye.

After greeting each other, Su Song said: "This hammer forging workshop is an important place for military affairs, so it's okay to take a look. But you can't get too close, and you can't leak the structure here."

These words were obviously addressed to Mi Fu.Fortunately, Mi Fu had been anxious for a long time, so he nodded repeatedly.Su Song just smiled, led a few people around the wall of the outer courtyard, and walked inside.

In the large courtyard, there are more than a dozen small sheds densely packed, side by side.In each of the seven or eight rooms facing the water, there is an iron hammer placed in each shed, similar to the stone hammer on the water reed, and I don't know how it is connected, but each of them can rotate with the water wheel, rising and falling endlessly.The largest forging hammer among them, the hammer head alone was a circle larger than the head, and when it fell heavily, one could faintly hear the whistling wind.

Mi Fu's eyes straightened: "It's so magnificent!"

Li Gonglin was also amazed: "Amazing! It looks more skillful than turning a cart!"

On the Bianhe River, there are many turning wheels for grinding tea and noodles, which are also driven by water conservancy.But the two-story high crank is not as shocking as the array of forging hammers in front of you!

Zhen Qiong saw another water wheel next to her at a glance, and couldn't help wondering: "Wait, isn't the water wheel over there used to pull the bellows?"

There are two water wheels, one obviously drives the forging hammer, and the other stands beside the blast furnace.On the built platform, there is a structure similar to a bellows, which is actually designed for blowing wind, and there seems to be a preheating furnace in front of it.This is so strange!Even though he said blast furnace blast is good for steelmaking, he never expected to make such a thing!

Su Song smiled slightly: "Exactly. There were water conservancy leather bellows in the Han Dynasty, so how difficult is it to make a water conservancy bellows?"

Zhen Qiong didn't have time to listen to him showing off, she had already trotted all the way, and ran over: "I'll go and see!"

Seeing Zhen Qiong running over, Mi Fu quickly blinked his eyes, and said to Su Song: "Brother Su, can I take a closer look at that forging hammer? Those people below really dare to reach out!"

He was almost dying of curiosity.Those craftsmen standing under the forging hammer really dared to reach out and adjust the angle of the steel plate.If it hits my hand, I'm afraid it will break my tendons and bones!

Su Song smiled slightly, and gave some instructions to the staff around him, and someone took the two curious guys to the work shed.There is only a forging hammer in the shed, but the complicated connection structure is not revealed, so it is not afraid of being seen by others.

In a blink of an eye, all three of them disappeared.Su Song turned around and said to Han Miao, "Why don't Jingsheng go and have a look?"

Han Miao shook his head with a smile: "I don't know how to use machinery, so I can feel the shock just by looking at it here. You don't need to look carefully."

How can Su Song not know, this is also to avoid suspicion.After all, what Zhen Qiong went to see were all the core secrets of the Hammer Workshop.Ling Xiaozi can see these things, but Han Miao, a commoner, cannot.

But it's not convenient to read, but there are some things that can be asked.Su Song glanced at the roaring forging hammer, and suddenly asked: "What does Jing Sheng think when he sees this thing?"

"Water conservancy is far better than manpower, and the forging hammer and bellows can also be driven. I'm afraid it can be used for other purposes." Han Miao looked at the ups and downs of the forging hammer, and he was not without emotion.The power of this conquest of nature is enough to amaze anyone who sees it.However, water conservancy can only drive forging hammers, bellows and other things?I'm afraid not at all.If it is other tools, it can also be transformed into a machine driven by water conservancy. I am afraid that it will bring convenience that ordinary people can't think of.

Su Song glanced at Han Miao in surprise, and smiled slightly: "The officials have this intention, and have asked the general supervisor to make other machines."

Among other things, in his opinion, the spinning wheel can be converted into water conservancy.The spinning wheel can be used to grind flour. If there is another water conservancy spinning wheel, and only food and clothing are used, how much manpower and material resources can be saved.It's just that ordinary officials may not have thought of this method. It is admirable that Han Miao, a merchant, has such wisdom.

However, as soon as his words fell, Han Miao sighed: "If these things spread, the water conservancy law will be more difficult to implement."

Su Song raised his eyebrows.The farmland water conservancy law is the most important matter of the emperor recently, and there has been rumors in the court.Building water conservancy and irrigating farmland is naturally a good thing that benefits the country and the people.However, once the imperial court started to move the river, those privately built dams, and even high-ranking officials and dignitaries who used carts and water reels to intercept the water, would not give up.The more machines that water conservancy can drive, the stronger these people's desire to possess the river will be, which will naturally become the resistance of the new law.

It's just this vision and thought, really extraordinary.

After a moment of silence, Su Song suddenly said: "Nowadays the government appoints talented people, why doesn't Jing Sheng enter the examination room and get a name?"

Hearing this, Han Miao smiled slightly: "The boy likes to do business, and he can't bear to be restrained. Besides, there is Qiong'er here, so I don't have to worry about it."

The meaning of these words is too clear.Zhen Qiong, as the emperor's trustworthy official and the master of Baoying temple, is already conspicuous enough. If Han Miao, a "family member", also enters the court as an official, it will immediately make people vigilant and attack them wantonly.Two people are one, how can they be officials in the same dynasty?

Although Su Song also valued Zhen Qiong's ability, but hearing this, he inevitably felt a little regretful: "It's a shame..."

Han Miao shook his head indifferently: "There is no bondage, but you can use your hands and feet. It doesn't matter if you are in the court or not?"

Su Song was taken aback when he heard this, and wanted to say something, when he saw Zhen Qiong running back: "Brother Miao, that bellows is really not bad..."

Looking at the chattering, there is no proper path, and the young man standing beside him, who has already handed him a handkerchief to wipe off the soot on his face.Su Song couldn't help laughing and shook his head.Rather, he was troubled.

The author has something to say: Li Gonglin, the masterpiece "Five Horses" =w=