"Four to six hours? It's only twenty mu of land. It won't take that long. Two hours should be enough. "
Ang Lee objected to Guo Xuji's view. He was the one who invented the steam plowing machine. He had already calculated the plowing speed of the machine and the number of times per mu of land needed to be plowed. Therefore, he could accurately estimate how long it would take to plough twenty mu of land. However, Guo Xuji could only make guesses based on his own subjective feelings. Naturally, the numbers he obtained were not accurate.
"You can plough twenty mu of land in two hours. In that case, in ten hours a day, you can plough a hundred mu of land."
Guo Xuji was extremely shocked. This efficiency was already twenty times that of the best cattle. The efficiency of plowing was simply too great.
"Assistant Minister Guo, it will take a long time to plough these fields. Let's sit down and have a good rest. When we're done, we'll go and take a look."
As Ang Lee spoke, he had his subordinates take down a folding chair from the horse's back and gently open it by the side of the field.
"Assistant Minister Li, what is this?"
Guo Xuji had naturally never seen a folding chair before. Moreover, it was one with a backrest. This kind of thing could be retracted and placed at will. It was very convenient to carry around. Moreover, because the buttocks were soft, it was very comfortable to sit on.
"Assistant Minister Guo, this is a folding chair that I just invented. It's very comfortable to sit on. Assistant Minister Guo, please sit!"
Li An asked his subordinates to bring a lot of folding stools for Guo Xuji to sit down. He also sat down beside Guo Xuji. Among the R&D talents, some of the older ones also sat on the folding stools. Of course, they sat behind Li An.
Guo Xuji sat lightly on the folding chair and instantly felt a different kind of comfort. He turned sideways and smiled. "Assistant Minister Li invented this folding chair. It's really comfortable, haha!"
His tone was both praise and ridicule. In comparison, everything was inferior except for studying. Inventing a folding chair was nothing.
"It's been a few months. It's rare to see Assistant Minister Guo smile. In that case, this official's invention of the folding chair was worth it."
Ang Lee replied with a smile.
Ever since the Imperial Court decided to establish the Railway Bureau and poached many talents from the Ministry of Works, Guo Xuji's expression had not been too good. After all, he was the one in charge of the Ministry of Works. Now that a large number of talents had been transferred to the R&D Center and the Railway Bureau, the Ministry of Works had suffered a great blow and its power had decreased. As the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Works, Guo Xuji's mood could be imagined.
Ang Lee was also the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Works, but it was just a title. He did not ask about the large number of matters in the Ministry of Works. Moreover, he was not interested in these matters, so he naturally did not feel anything.
"Assistant Minister Li, most of the talents in the Ministry of Works had been transferred to the R&D Center and the Railway Bureau. Now, we have almost no talents! Assistant Minister Li, you must not have any ideas about the Ministry of Works. "
Guo Xuji looked at Ang Lee anxiously. Ang Lee could not escape the responsibility of the loss of talents in the Ministry of Works. After all, whether it was the R&D Center or the Railway Bureau, they were all established by Ang Lee. If it was not for Ang Lee, the Ministry of Works would not have lost most of its talents and would not have lost some of its power.
Of course, because the things that Ang Lee had created were all beneficial to the country and the people, Guo Xuji did not feel comfortable. However, he did not blame Ang Lee. After all, he was a rather righteous person.
However, the Ministry of Works had almost no talents. As the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Works, he naturally had to do his job. Thus, when he heard that Ang Lee had created a farming machine, he hurried over to take a look to see if the machine needed talents from the Ministry of Works.
"Assistant Minister Guo, you're worrying too much. There's no need to be afraid of having no talents. We just need to nurture more of them. Moreover, this official will invent many practical things in the future that will greatly facilitate the work of the Ministry of Works. This way, the Ministry of Works will be much easier and more relaxed."
Ang Lee consoled him.
"Assistant Minister Li, this official has a few suggestions. I wonder if they are suitable?"
Guo Xuji probed.
"What suggestions? Assistant Minister Guo is of the same rank as this official. There's nothing that can't be said. "
Ang Lee hurriedly asked.
"Assistant Minister Li, our Ministry of Works needs to recruit laborers every year to build irrigation works and clear silt in the river. However, clearing silt requires a large amount of manpower. It is both laborious and time-consuming. If we can invent a machine that can help manpower clear silt, wouldn't it greatly increase the efficiency of clearing silt?"
Guo Xuji suggested.
When Ang Lee heard this, he immediately felt a headache. Li Longji had just asked him for a harvesting machine, and he had not even started researching it. Now, Guo Xuji was proposing a silt clearing machine. This was simply treating him like a god!
There were only a few types of silt clearing machines. There were excavators, dredgers, and the most powerful one was naturally the suction cutter dredger.
In the future, a certain type of suction cutter dredger used an extremely short amount of time to clear a large area of the sea and create an island. It was respectfully called an island-building artifact.
After thinking for a long time, Ang Lee felt that the suction cutter dredger was the most suitable for research and development. Firstly, the steam ship had been successfully developed, and there was a platform to build dredgers. Secondly, the pumping machine was in the midst of research and development. As long as it was successful and slightly improved, it could be used to extract mud. As such, only the suction cutter was left. However, the suction cutter was not difficult to develop. With the power of the steam engine, there was no need to worry about not being able to develop the suction cutter.
"Assistant Minister Guo, the silt clearing machine is not difficult to develop. However, the research and development center is currently lacking talents. We need the support of talents from the Ministry of Works."
Ang Lee smiled playfully.
"No, no, no. Assistant Minister Li, my Ministry of Works is running out of talents. You must not rely on the Ministry of Works' ideas. If we don't have enough talents, we can develop it in the future!"
Guo Xuji's expression was extremely exaggerated. He was so anxious that he was about to cry. Indeed, many of the skilled craftsmen of the Ministry of Works had been transferred away. If more people were transferred away, Guo Xuji would become a general without an army.
"Hahaha! Assistant Minister Guo, there's no need to be nervous. This official was just joking with you. This official will definitely invent a silt clearing machine. Moreover, its efficiency will definitely be much higher than manual labor. Not only will it be able to work during the Bitter Water period, it will also be able to carry out silt clearing activities throughout the year. As long as it's manufactured, there will be no more stranded ships in the Grand Canal. "
Ang Lee consoled.
"Assistant Minister Li, are you serious? Can you really invent an effective silt clearing machine?"
Guo Xuji was elated.
In the past few years, whenever the dry water period came, the Ministry of Works would organize a large number of laborers to clear silt in the shallow areas of the Grand Canal. The officials of the various counties would also organize their own laborers to clear the silt in their irrigation canals.
But there were far too many places in the Grand Canal and the various irrigation canals that needed to be cleared of silt. Relying solely on manpower to clear silt was not very effective. Thus, silt clearing occurred every year. But every year, there would be accidents of ships running aground on the Grand Canal, and the riverbeds of the irrigation canals were also being raised. This was especially true for the Zhengguo Canal in Guanzhong, where the riverbed had been raised the most. Its irrigation efficiency was less than a quarter of what it had been in the Qin and Han Dynasties. This severely restricted the development of agriculture in Guanzhong, and the capital had to rely on grain from Jiangnan.
And if these two tasks were not done well, it was naturally the responsibility of the Ministry of Works. Whenever a ship ran into silt and affected the progress of the transport, Li Longji would glare at the officials of the Ministry of Works and even complain about their incompetence.
The Ministry of Works had truly put a lot of effort into silt clearing, but silt clearing was not as simple as it seemed. With the various resources that the officials of the Ministry of Works currently possessed, they could only maintain the status quo and could not fundamentally change the fact that the transport was running aground and the riverbeds of the irrigation canals were being raised.
After a large number of skilled personnel from the Ministry of Works were transferred to the R&D Center and the Railway Bureau, the Ministry of Works found it even more difficult to do things. Without new help, the problems of the transport and irrigation canals would become even more serious.
At this moment, Ang Lee stated that he could invent silt clearing machines. This was naturally a great thing for Guo Xuji. As long as there was a mechanical digging machine, he believed that silt clearing would become much easier in the future.
"Next year! By this time next year, silt clearing machines should be invented. At that time, Assistant Minister Guo will be able to laugh every day. "
Li An patted Guo Xuji's shoulder and said with a smile.
"If that's the case, then many thanks to Assistant Minister Li. Many thanks, many thanks."
Guo Xuji was clearly very excited. This was the only thing that the Ministry of Works could rely on to achieve glory again.
In the construction of the black powder workshop, the R&D Center, and the laying of the railroad tracks, the Ministry of Works had already been in the limelight, and had received Li Longji's commendations and rewards.
But right after this glory, a large number of talents were transferred out of the Ministry of Works. The railway operation system that had been in the bag was also transferred to the Chamberlain Department. The Ministry of Works could be said to have suffered a great blow, and this blow had come at the height of its glory.
This was like a person who had climbed the highest mountain in the world only to suddenly fall into a basin. The fall would inevitably result in a bloody nose and a swollen face. This was the so-called drop.
And once the silt clearing machines were successfully developed and equipped with the relevant departments of the Ministry of Works, the Ministry of Works would definitely be able to completely solve the silt problem of the Grand Canal and all the other canals. In this way, Li Longji would definitely be very pleased, and the Ministry of Works would definitely be rewarded.
As they chatted, time passed much faster than usual. While Ang Lee and Guo Xuji were discussing the silt clearing machines, the twenty mu of farmland had already been completely plowed by the machines.
"Assistant Minister Li, it's already finished? This is twenty mu of farmland! It only took two hours. "
Guo Xuji stared in shock at the twenty mu of farmland that had been plowed, his eyes filled with disbelief.
The spectators, including the many commoners, were also very surprised. Of course, most of them were pleasantly surprised.
Ang Lee faintly smiled and ordered, "It's not enough to finish plowing. We still have to see the quality of the farmland. That's the most important thing, isn't that right?"
"Assistant Minister Li, this subordinate has already examined it. It's even better than plowing cattle. This machine is truly a wonderful thing!"
A subordinate hurriedly replied.
Ang Lee stood up and walked over to the plowed farmland. After a casual glance, he nodded in satisfaction.
What he saw was not only the twenty mu of farmland that had been plowed, but also the gazes of adoration. Many commoners had walked into the fields and personally inspected the quality of the farmland. After confirming that it was even better than plowing cattle, they raised their heads and looked at Ang Lee with adoration. There were even some commoners who kneeled in the fields and kowtowed to Ang Lee.
"Assistant Minister Li, this machine is at least twenty times more efficient than plowing cattle. How much did it cost?"
Guo Xuji also stood up and walked over to Ang Lee's side as he softly asked.
"How much did it cost?"
Ang Lee himself wasn't sure, so he asked the researchers who worked on the machines.
"Assistant Minister Li, it cost a total of five hundred taels of charcoal."
The researchers softly replied.
"Only five hundred taels of charcoal? With such high efficiency, five hundred taels of charcoal is really not high! "
Guo Xuji was clearly very excited.
Ang Lee frowned and calculated, then nodded. "Five hundred taels of charcoal for twenty mu of farmland. On average, each mu of farmland costs twenty-five taels of charcoal. It truly isn't very high. Moreover, it doesn't necessarily have to use charcoal. If we use firewood, we'll need three times the weight. One mu of farmland requires around seventy-five taels of firewood.
"That's right! That's right! Such a good thing must be reported to His Majesty as soon as possible. Assistant Minister Li, why don't you come with me to the palace and personally inform His Majesty of this good news? "
Guo Xuji excitedly said.
"No, this official still needs to go back and properly consider how to mass produce these machines. In short, there is still much work to be done. I'll have to trouble Assistant Minister Guo to inform His Majesty of this good news."
Ang Lee opened his mouth to refuse.
If Ang Lee wanted to mass produce the machines, of course, he would need Li Longji's approval. However, regarding the production process, the design of the assembly line, as well as the requirements for manpower and space, etc., he would need to clearly consider all of these before he could make any specific requests to Li Longji.
Now that he had just invented the machines, he couldn't wait to rush to Li Longji. Other than asking for credit, explaining the development process, and talking about his future plans, he wouldn't be able to make any specific requests. Thus, Ang Lee planned to go back and take a good look at the blueprints, confirm the assembly line, and estimate the requirements for manpower and funds. Then, he would meet with Li Longji and raise these requests. He wanted Li Longji to support him.
Guo Xuji didn't insist. He immediately rode back to the capital city and rushed to the palace to meet with Li Longji. He truthfully told Li Longji about the successful invention of the machines and the fact that he had just returned from the test site.
Lao Guo gave a very detailed account of the machine's appearance, size, performance, as well as its ability to cultivate 20 mu in two hours, its efficiency was better than that of cattle, and the cost of one mu was only 25 taels of charcoal. He almost picked up a brush and drew the machine on paper.
Li Longji's face lit up when he heard that the machines were so powerful and efficient that they were at least 20 times better than that of cattle. He immediately said that he would reward Ang Lee and summon Ang Lee. After Guo Xuji told him the reason why Ang Lee didn't come in person, Li Longji withdrew the order to summon Ang Lee, so that Ang Lee could have some time to think and decide on the assembly line needed for the machines as soon as possible.
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