Li An clearly remembered that the interior walls of the large tile-roofed house he lived in in his previous life were coated with lime. As long as the foundation was laid well, there wouldn't be any cracks in a short period of time. However, as time passed, cracks would slowly form. In fact, when the cracks gradually grew larger, one could see strands of hair-like material in the middle of the cracks. These strands of material were trying their best to pull at the cracks to prevent them from growing larger. Although it was futile and the cracks would continue to grow larger, it was completely capable of slowing down the rate at which the cracks grew larger.
After the cracks on the wall reached a certain scale, small pieces of the wall would fall off. However, at the same time, there would also be some parts of the wall that would fall off but not fall to the ground. This was the effect of the hair-like materials. These materials hooked onto the falling wall and prevented the wall from falling to the ground.
Therefore, it was very important to add materials in the form of hair into the lime material. The effect it could play was also very great. Without this material, it was estimated that the lime wall would be more prone to crack and fall off. As a result, the maintenance cost would be much higher.
Of course, the paint made directly from lime and hair-like materials was the most primitive kind. As long as he worked hard, he could use lime materials to make a more advanced and durable white paint. This was something Ang Lee was confident he could do.
This time, Ang Lee intended to develop this material and benefit the world. However, it was a pity that there was no lime mine nearby. Without the lime mine, Ang Lee would not have enough experimental materials. It would be very difficult to implement. This made Ang Lee quite disappointed.
"Assistant Minister Li, good news! Great news! The lime mine has been found! We've found it! "
The subordinate walked in and said excitedly.
"Found it! The lime mine has been found! Really? That's great! Haha!"
Li An looked very happy and stood up from his seat abruptly.
"Where is it? Where is the lime mine? How far is it from the port?"
Ang Lee asked happily. Finding the lime mine was great news. The location of the lime mine was also very important. If it was too far from the port, it would not be good. After all, the port needed a lot of lime materials and various industrial products made from lime. If the lime mine was too far away, the transportation cost would increase and it would not be good to control the cost.
"Not far, not far at all. It's about twenty li north of the city wall."
The subordinate replied.
"What? It's only 20 li? They only discovered it when it's so close to the limestone mine? What are these fellows doing?"
Ang Lee was a little dissatisfied. He had sent out so many people and searched for so many days, but they had only found a limestone mine twenty miles to the north. This efficiency was really not worth complimenting.
"Assistant Minister Li, please calm down. We're not familiar with this place, and the limestone mine is not near any roads. Our people have not been able to find it at all, so we haven't been able to find it. Recently, I've been stricter with my demands, and I plan to reward those who find it. Only then will these fellows be willing to work hard and find it."
The subordinate said.
When Ang Lee heard this, he smiled and said, "These fellows are usually unwilling to work hard. They'll only work hard if there's a reward. What a bunch of little scoundrels. It's also your fault. If you had agreed to reward them earlier, they would have been able to find it much faster."
The subordinate was taken aback for a moment, then apologized, "Assistant Minister Li is right. It's this subordinate's fault for not thinking things through. Oh, right, we can't say that this lime mine was found by our people. We heard the news from a woodcutter who went into the mountains to cut firewood and personally went to take a look. After some inspection, we confirmed that it was indeed a lime mine. Moreover, it's a lime mine with extremely high purity. It can be mined for a hundred years without any pressure."
Ang Lee agreed, "Very good. These fellows were able to find information about the lime mine through the woodcutter. This proves that they have brains! Finding information from the locals is the best method. However, these fellows only thought of using it now. They've really delayed this official's important matters. "
"Assistant Minister Li, then when should we go take a look at the lime mine?"
His subordinate asked.
Ang Lee said, "It's better to do everything as soon as possible. Make some simple preparations. We'll set off now to take a look at the lime mine."
The distance of twenty miles was not very far. However, in order to ensure safety, fifty soldiers of the Tang dynasty immediately rushed there in advance, while Ang Lee led his subordinates to the location of the lime mine under the escort of a hundred elite soldiers.
The main road was the smoothest, which could meet the needs of the armored vehicles. Therefore, Ang Lee chose to take the main road, even if it was a little farther.
"The lime mine is extremely important to Anzhu City, and it's not very far away. However, this road is really not flattering! It's too bumpy, and the width is not enough. It must be widened and strengthened. In this way, the transportation of lime for building materials will be faster in the future. "
Ang Lee looked at the scenery outside the window and said.
His subordinate in the same car nodded and said, "Assistant Minister Li is right. In the future, the port will have a huge demand for lime and cement. A large number of transport vehicles will inevitably appear on this road. With the current condition of the road, it's obviously impossible to support it. It must be strengthened and widened."
"I'm afraid that ordinary reinforcement is not enough. It must be made into a solid cement road. Only in this way can it be really durable."
Another subordinate said.
Ang Lee nodded and said, "Yes, the road in the north must be made into a cement road. Moreover, it must be a two-way road, preferably a two-way four-lane road. In this way, even if some vehicles break down midway, the road will not be congested. It must be built as soon as possible. After the railway station is built, start building this road."
"Yes, I'll arrange it."
His subordinate hurriedly responded.
The car stopped about a mile away from the lime mine. Seeing the car stop, Ang Lee stepped out of the car and looked around.
"Hey, where is the lime mine? Where is it?"
Ang Lee looked around and found that there were green mountains and clear waters all around. The environment was very good. On some commanding heights, there were a few Tang dynasty soldiers standing guard. In short, there was no trace of the lime mine at all.
"Assistant Minister Li, the lime mine is in the west. It's about a mile away. Because there is no road, Assistant Minister Li can only go there on foot."
His subordinate hurriedly said.
Ang Lee did not care about the distance of a mile. This distance was nothing to him at all. Although it was very difficult to walk and could not even be considered a road because it was trampled by woodcutters, the destination was the lime mine, which was crucial to the construction of Anzhu City in the Tang dynasty. Therefore, even if it was tiring, Ang Lee would not feel tired because the destination was the lime mine.
Climbing up a high ground, Ang Lee saw the lime mine not far ahead. Although the mountain was covered with vegetation, some areas without vegetation exposed white lime ore. Obviously, the lime mine was in front of him.
Ang Lee was quite excited. His pace quickened a lot. Soon, he arrived at the location of the lime mine. He squatted down and personally stroked the lime ore.
"Lime, it's really lime. It's quite hot. The purity is good. "
Ang Lee excitedly clenched the lime block in his hand with an extremely intoxicated expression on his face.
"Let's go and have a look elsewhere."
It was obviously not enough to have a lime mine in one place because the construction of Anzhu City required a large number of lime mines. Ang Lee had to check this in person so that he could be more assured. It was not that he did not believe in his subordinate's judgment, but that he had a long-term cautious character.
After personally checking the lime mines in many places, Ang Lee has confirmed his subordinate's report. There were indeed a lot of lime mines here, enough to support the needs of Anzhu City.
"With this lime mine, the demand for lime and cement in Anzhu City will soon be solved. This lime mine came at the right time."
Ang Lee said happily.
"Assistant Minister Li, a lot of craftsmen are needed to mine lime, build cement workshops, and make cement. The demand for cement in Anzhu City is extremely high. Therefore, this subordinate thinks that we should transfer craftsmen here as soon as possible. It doesn't matter whether the city wall is completed a day earlier or a day later. Therefore, we can transfer manpower from the craftsmen who are building the city wall to finish the lime mine and pave the road as soon as possible."
His subordinate suggested.
Ang Lee nodded in agreement: "You are right. The demand for cement and lime in Anzhu City is too high. The city wall is not very important. Therefore, we must transfer craftsmen here to mine lime, build cement workshops, and pave roads. These must be done together. Especially the road in front of us, it's completely unpassable. We must prioritize opening the road, otherwise, all kinds of machinery will not be able to enter here."
"Yes, this subordinate understands."
His subordinate replied.
Now, the location of the super-large lime mine had been determined, but its location was not close to the road, which would be very inconvenient. Even many mining and construction equipment could not enter the area where the lime mine was located. In order to solve this problem, they must first open up the road, turning the undulating mountain road into a flat road that could be passed by vehicles. Then, they would further build a wide cement road, a two-way four-lane road.
Before the construction of the road was completed, the work of mining lime and building cement workshops could not start. Therefore, they must prioritize a large number of manpower to pave the road.
Li An looked at it carefully. This road was more than a mile long, and it had a lot of ups and downs. If they wanted to open up a wide road, they would need to transport a lot of earth. Without the support of a thousand people, it would be impossible to complete the road in a short time.
Fortunately, the Tang dynasty had a large number of soldiers and horses. There were already 6,000 people who had joined the ranks of the craftsmen. The manpower resources were still enough.
"Assistant Minister Li, after the road is completed, we will begin to build the cement road for 20 miles. But now, Anzhu City is extremely short of cement. The cement transported from afar is not enough. If we want to build this cement road, we must save it from other places. It's really difficult to cook without rice!"
A subordinate complained.
Ang Lee also understood this. The lime mine had not started mining yet, and the cement workshops had not been built yet. It was impossible to produce cement resources in a short time. Cement was needed to build cement workshops and roads, and the existing construction of Anzhu City was very short of cement. They really could not pump out extra cement to build roads and cement workshops.
However, building cement workshops and mining lime ore were very important. Although it would consume a lot of scarce resources temporarily, as long as the construction was completed, it could provide a large number of construction materials for Anzhu City. Therefore, no matter how difficult it was, they had to prioritize it.
Only when the cement workshops were built could they produce a large amount of cement. If they wanted to transport the cement resources to Anzhu City, they had to build cement roads. This was also essential.
After thinking about it, Ang Lee finally made a decision. He said, "Before the cement workshops and roads in the north are completed, stop the construction of the city walls. Half of the craftsmen at the railway station will be transferred to pave the road. The construction of the second street will be stopped, and the construction of the lighthouse by the sea will be stopped. In this way, we can save a lot of cement resources. At the same time, we can provide sufficient labor for the construction of the north.
In order to immediately solve the problem of the lime mine, Ang Lee made the biggest move. He even delayed the railway station that was originally planned to be completed as soon as possible. It could be seen how much importance Ang Lee attached to the lime mine.
"Assistant Minister Li is right. The lime mine and cement workshops are very important. Even if we stop the construction of the port, we have to prioritize the demand of the lime mine. This subordinate fully supports it."
The subordinate expressed his support.
Li An opened his mouth and said, "Alright, everyone, go and prepare yourselves! This official is going back. "
On the way back, Ang Lee was still thinking hard. He was thinking about how to mobilize all the resources to prioritize the lime mine, cement workshops, and cement roads in the north.
Of course, because the resources were still tight, the cement roads could only be built with two lanes in each direction. After the cement workshops could produce cement, they could build four lanes in each direction.
After returning to the port, a subordinate ran over and said, "Assistant Minister Li, a few more pirates were killed. This subordinate took the initiative to bury the pirates' bodies."
"Well, it's good to bury them to avoid causing a plague. Well done."
Ang Lee praised his subordinate. He paused and said, "How are the remaining pirates? Are they still arrogant?"
"Replying to Assistant Minister Li, their faces are all ashen. They don't have long to live. How can they still be arrogant?"
The subordinate said.
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