"The waterwheel is actually like a big turntable. You can use a wooden pole as the turntable's skeleton, or you can use steel. The edge of the turntable is equipped with a scraper and a water bucket. When the water hits the scraper, it drives the turntable to rotate. When the turntable rotates, the water bucket fills with water and is lifted up section by section with the rotation of the waterwheel. When it reaches the top of the waterwheel, the water bucket rotates due to gravity, and the water in it will be poured into the water trough above the waterwheel. This cycle completes the process of filling and transporting water.
Among them, the direction of the water bucket is very important. It must be against the direction of the water flow. Only in this way can the water be filled and lifted to a high place. In addition, in the main wheel of the waterwheel, we have to use our workshop's unique roller bearings to reduce the friction and increase the efficiency of transporting water! Of course, for the stagnant water that doesn't flow, we can add a gear transmission mechanism and use animal power to drive the wheel!
In short, no matter what method, it's much more convenient than the previous manual overturning of the waterwheel! "
That afternoon, Li Zexuan brought the completed drawings to the workshop of the Strange Taste Pavilion. Yan Shaoning, Faubert, Mo Huai, and Mo Chui all rushed over when they heard the news. Li Zexuan spread out the drawings and explained the structure and operating principle of the waterwheel in detail to everyone.
"Wonderful work of art! It's really a wonderful work of art! In this way, as long as there's water in the river, the waterwheel can carry the water to the bank day and night. Moreover, if there are a few of these waterwheels side by side on a section of the river, the speed of carrying water is definitely enough to irrigate thousands of acres of fertile land in a short period of time! "
After listening, Mo Huai imagined the scene of the waterwheel operating in his mind. In the end, he couldn't help but stroke his beard and exclaim in admiration.
"That's right! Compared to the manual overturning of the waterwheel in the past, this waterwheel can automatically carry water as long as it's placed on the river surface. Not only is it convenient and labor-saving, but it can also produce a lot of water! We can use this to transport the water to the ditch. In this way, we won't have to be afraid of drought anymore! "
Faubert couldn't help but nod in agreement.
Li Zexuan smiled and said, "Everyone is right. With this waterwheel and the ditch, we can water the farmland on a large scale! Tomorrow, I will ask County Magistrate He to hurry up and use cement to renovate all the canals in Lantian County. Lantian County has a dam as a guarantee, so we can directly release water from the reservoir into the canals. As for the villages in the north of Lantian County, because the terrain is much higher than here, we can use waterwheels to carry the water over! "
The topography of Lantian County was that the north side was higher than the south side, and the west side was higher than the east side. The Ba River was a river that flowed from the northwest direction into the southeast direction of the Yellow River. Plum Village and the Han Family Manor, which were close to the Ba River, could directly draw a canal from the vicinity of the dam to ensure that all of the farmland could be irrigated. However, for a manor like the Yu Family Manor, which was close to the north, wanting to use a canal to draw the water from the Ba River was tantamount to wishful thinking. They could only rely on a waterwheel to carry the water from the south side of the canal to the north!
"Using cement to repair the ditch? Little Xuan, did I hear wrongly? "
When Yan Shaoning heard this, he couldn't help but widen his eyes in disbelief.
At this time, Faubert, Mo Huai, and Mo Chui were also looking at Li Zexuan in surprise. They guessed that Li Zexuan had accidentally said something wrong just now!
Li Zexuan nodded and said, "Yes! That's right! It's to use cement to renovate the ditch! Firstly, this kind of ditch built with cement can reduce the loss of water during the process of water flow. Secondly, compared to the previous mud ditches, cement ditches are more convenient to maintain. There's no need to dredge them every year. This saves manpower and material resources. Compared to the little bit of cement used, it can be said that it's too cost-effective ~! "
Yan Shaoning nodded thoughtfully and said, "That's true, but such a luxurious method can only be used in Lantian County ~!"
When building canals in other places, they only needed to hire some workers to do some work. It wasn't like Li Zexuan, who not only had to pay for the wages, but also the cement materials!
"Hehe! All these efforts are definitely worth it ~! "
Li Zexuan said with a smile, then looked at Faubert and said, "Faubert, you've seen this blueprint. Are there any difficulties in the process?"
Faubert thought for a while, then shook his head and said, "There's no difficulty. Some of the techniques used in it are ready-made in the workshop. If I can't make it even after looking at the blueprint, then I'll have no place to show my face! Young Master, don't worry. The workshop will make the waterwheel as soon as possible, and then we can immediately test it! "
Li Zexuan nodded. With the workshop's current level of technology, making the waterwheel was indeed not difficult. He smiled and said, "That's good! It's been hard on you guys recently. The drought is like fire. The sooner we make the waterwheel, the less the people will suffer! "
"Young Master (Yamachō), don't worry. We'll do our best ~!"
Faubert, Mo Huai, and Yan Shaoning all knew the severity of the matter, so they cupped their fists and said solemnly.
Li Zexuan nodded, said goodbye to everyone, and left the workshop.
…
It was already evening when they left the workshop. Outside, people were still watering the fields. In this era, water projects were far less developed than in his previous life. If there were no officials from the county government presiding over a major project like the renovation of canals, no one would do it. Those abandoned canals, under the erosion of rain over the years, would collapse and become blocked again. It was very troublesome to clean them up. It was basically the same amount of work as digging a new canal!
This was one of the reasons why Li Zexuan insisted on renovating all the canals in Lantian County with cement!
"Yo! It's Young Master ~! "
Coincidentally, not long after they left the workshop, they bumped into Hu Hanyun, who was carrying a bucket of water.
Ever since Han Lizheng became the "landlord" in Lan Province, Hu Hanyun became the new Village Chief of the Han Family Manor. Old Hu was a man who valued friendship. When the world was in chaos, he fled to the Han Family Manor with his wife. Many of the villagers in the manor helped him. Now that he was the Village Chief of the Han Family Manor, he was even more cautious and conscientious. He didn't dare to slack off for even a day. Whenever a family in the manor encountered a problem, he was always the first to solve it. Naturally, the villagers in the Han Family Manor had a good impression of Hu Hanyun.
"Uncle Hu, did you just come back from watering the canals?"
Li Zexuan asked with a smile.
Hu Hanyun wiped his sweat and said with a grin, "Isn't that so! The weather has been dry recently, and the nutrient bowl in the ground has just been planted. If I don't water it, the white pile seeds won't survive even if they germinate! This thing is very precious! "
It wasn't just Old Hu. Recently, all the citizens of Lantian County were busy "watering" the freshly planted White Fold Seed Flowers. Li Zexuan had spent a lot of money to buy these flowers, so no one paid any attention to them. It could be said that the White Fold Seed Flowers in this one mu of land were more valuable than all the crops in each household. If they could get a good harvest, they wouldn't have to worry about food for a whole year!
Li Zexuan understood. He thought for a while and said, "Uncle Hu, later tell the villagers that the canals in our county will be dredged soon. When the time comes, they won't have to carry water from so far away to water the fields!"
Hu Hanyun's eyes widened in surprise and said, "Young Master, is what you said true? The county is going to help us dredge the canals? "
Li Zexuan smiled and said, "Of course it's true! In a few days, the county government will organize the workers to start the construction. When the time comes, if the farmers are free, they can help. Not only can they speed up the progress, they can also get a salary! "
Old Hu quickly waved his hand and said, "Hey! Young Master, what do you mean by wages? In any case, they're helping us to build our own canals, so it's only right for us to contribute! Don't worry, when the time comes, you don't have to tell them. As long as the farmers have the motivation, they will go and help. We don't have other things, but we still have the strength! "
The people in ancient times were simple and honest. As long as the officials were willing to organize everyone to dredge the canals, they would be willing to do it even if they didn't want to be paid. Besides, the ordinary people in ancient times usually had corvee labor. If they did these things, they could reduce part of their labor and help water their own fields. Why not?
Li Zexuan smiled and said, "Uncle Hu, there will be some salary, but it won't be too much. After all, the amount of money that the county yamen can give in advance is limited. However, at the very least, there will be food. When the time comes, you can have the farmers call for those half-grown children who can carry shovels and eat a lot. After helping out, they will be able to eat their fill, right?"
What he was doing was not considered child labor. In ancient times, thirteen or fourteen years old was considered an adult. Moreover, at this time, the children of ordinary families were generally not fat. This was because it was impossible for them to eat until they burped every meal. It was not a bad idea to let them take advantage of the opportunity to eat until they were full for a few more days.
Hu Hanyun grinned and said, "Yes! Yes! Yes! Those little bastards, they just squat in the manor every day and don't do anything serious. Let them come and help out, it'll be a good way to temper their temperament! "
Li Zexuan smiled noncommittally and chatted with Hu Hanyun for a while before taking his leave.
It was already late, so he didn't plan to go to the county town. He went straight back to Yunshan.
…
The next morning, after Li Zexuan finished his practice and breakfast, he went down the mountain and headed to Lantian County.
Pang Feiji had to prepare for his wedding, so Li Zexuan gave him a few days of leave. So, he didn't come with him today. Now, the two brothers beside Li Zexuan were Liu Feng and Liu Yun!
Li Zexuan was now the Marquis of ten thousand households, so he had to have guards following him when he went out. It wasn't for safety reasons, but it was also for the sake of his reputation!
Speaking of which, these two brothers were from the Imperial Guard. They were originally sent by Li Zexuan to help Li Zexuan search for ores and to be his personal guards. However, Li Zexuan was busy with the vanadium mine, the dam, and the drought. He didn't know what ores to mine next, so he didn't give them any missions to search for ores. So, they became temporary guards.
After entering Lantian County, Li Zexuan went straight to the county government. When he passed by another street beside the county government, Li Zexuan inadvertently saw a luxurious mansion with the words "Marquis of Yong 'an" written on it. He couldn't help but be startled. Then, he realized that this should be his new mansion in Lantian County!
Speaking of which, he was ashamed. Previously, he had heard from County Magistrate He that the new mansion had been built, but until now, he had not had the time to go in and take a look. After that, the decorations and furniture in the new mansion were all handled by his parents. Apart from paying for it, it could be said that he had not made any contribution to the new mansion at all!
However, just by looking at it from the outside, this new mansion was much more imposing than the one in Chang 'an. At the very least, the two stone lions at the entrance were very imposing. Li Zexuan liked it very much!
Yunshan Villa was a small building with a modern style. It was suitable for a short stay for a vacation. This mansion in Lantian County could be considered an official Marquis' Mansion. This had a symbolic meaning. It symbolized that the owner of Lantian County lived here. Therefore, the architectural style of this mansion was authentic Tang style architecture.
After living in Yunshan Villa for half a year, it might be nice to change back to a Tang Dynasty style mansion!
Li Zexuan thought to himself. After he finished explaining things to the county government, he should go to the new mansion to take a look. He didn't aspire to be a virtuous person like Yu the Great. He couldn't do something like passing by the house three times without entering it!
Speaking of which, if this luxurious mansion was placed in modern times, it would be worth at least a few billion, right? However, Li Zexuan only spent less than ten thousand strings of coins to build such a luxurious mansion. Just thinking about it made him feel like he was dreaming!
Even so, there would probably be people who would say that he was extravagant. However, to Li Zexuan, he had earned so much money. Couldn't he enjoy it and let his family live better? Moreover, he wasn't the kind of person who was heartless. He had used his own money to make the people rich. He couldn't even count how many examples he had!
"Marquis, why don't we go in and have a seat? Old Master and Old Madam should be awake by now! "
Liu Feng suggested after seeing Li Zexuan staring at the mansion for a long time.
Li Zexuan came back to his senses and shook his head. "Business is more important. Let's go to the county government first!"
After saying that, he urged Big White to go to the county government.
When they arrived at the county government, Li Zexuan didn't ask anyone to announce his arrival. Instead, he went straight to the back office. County Magistrate He happened to be going through official documents at the back office. Seeing Li Zexuan suddenly arrive, he was shocked. Could it be that he had done something wrong recently? Could it be that Li Zexuan had come to question him personally?
Suppressing the doubts in his heart, County Magistrate He hurriedly came forward and greeted, "Greetings, Marquis!"
"Mm ~!"
Li Zexuan nodded and walked into the hall. Then, he asked, "County Magistrate He, the weather has been dry recently. Many crops in the fields have withered. Do you know about this?"
County Magistrate He was shocked. Only now did he understand Li Zexuan's intentions. He hurriedly cupped his hands and said, "Marquis, I already know about this. Two days ago, I had already discussed a solution with the County Deputy and Official Registrar. We have decided to gather all the villagers and dredge the ditches. Then, we will divert the water from the dam that you built. I had planned to look for you today to discuss this matter, but I didn't expect you to come to the county government so soon!"
…
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