After Liang Xiao left, Xiao Qing gently stroked Zhen Mi's little head and comforted her, "Mi'er, you are the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, and he is Sun Wukong. He can't escape your five fingers!"
Zhen Mi was then content.
At the Ministry of Works' site, Liang Xiao followed everyone to inspect the newly built "coal yard."
A large amount of honeycomb briquettes had already been stored around, and nearby were some simple handmade "briquetting machines."
Workers were using the briquetting machines and a mixture of yellow mud, coal dust, and water to produce honeycomb briquettes.
"According to the blueprint from the Marquis of Anguo, the briquetting machines and coal stoves rushed out by our Ministry of Works can be put into use. Speaking of which, are honeycomb briquettes really easier to use than ordinary coal blocks?" Huang Xing asked with anticipation.
"Their utilization rate is higher than ordinary coal blocks, so there's less waste, and they produce less smoke," Liang Xiao explained.
He didn't need to explain from a physics or chemistry perspective; the minds of the Ministry of Works officials wouldn't be able to grasp such simple principles as increasing the burning surface and being highly efficient and flammable.
Of course, these simple honeycomb briquettes lacked the ignitable layer made of chemical materials, making their efficiency incomparable to modern coal. However, they were far superior to the ordinary coal currently in use, provided that the Ministry of Works could research the appropriate material ratio for honeycomb briquettes.
Liang Xiao himself was not from a chemistry background and could only offer some ideas for the Ministry of Works to test.
Miners in the Great Qian Kingdom had discovered several coal mines in the northern regions, which were currently producing at a high rate. Following Liang Xiao's suggestions, they were carefully mining without damaging the mountains or the environment, paying attention to safety, and also improving the treatment and wages of coal miners.
The use of coal did have certain environmental pollution effects and required attention to usage volume and location.
Large-scale logging would damage forest vegetation, while coal had higher calorific value and could be used to produce coke, improving the quality of Great Qian's steel and the production efficiency of some industries.
In comparison, the moderate use of coal was entirely feasible.
The development of the paper industry in Great Qian also relied on timber. If it weren't for the founding prime minister, Zhuo Mingfeng, who, despite all objections, had ordered the construction of more official roads and the planting of more trees across the country, the paper industry today would not be able to support Liang Xiao's widespread distribution of low-priced books nationwide, allowing the common people to read.
However, the production cost of coal stoves was not low, and currently, only the government and some wealthy families could afford them.
"News has come from Yizhou, reporting the discovery of another coal mine. In the future, local workshops in Yizhou can also use coal, but as per the suggestion of the Marquis of Anguo, the usage volume and ventilation must be carefully monitored," Huang Xing said, his excitement difficult to contain.
Since Liang Xiao had given him and Zhang Yang some peculiar things, they seemed to have discovered a new world.
Some technologies did not require secrecy, so he handed them over to the Ministry of Works officials to handle.
The entire Ministry of Works seemed to have discovered a new world!
Liang Xiao continued to explain the hazards and benefits of coal to the Ministry of Works officials, who listened with great interest.
"It's just a pity that we can't build a steam engine," Liang Xiao sighed.
"What is a steam engine?" everyone asked curiously.
"It's a concept of mine. By feeding coal into a machine and using the steam generated from boiling water to propel the machine, it can replace some manual labor," Liang Xiao explained.
Everyone pondered, "If the Marquis of Anguo has better blueprints in the future, we can try them!"
Liang Xiao simply smiled and nodded.
His mind was agile now, but intelligence did not equate to invention and creation ability. His understanding of steam engines was superficial.
Designing a steam engine alone in a short period would be difficult. Even if he could design it, some components might not be producible in Great Qian.
Savery had built the world's first practical steam water pump, but its efficiency was low, and it could only be used in areas where coal was cheap.
Later, Watt improved the steam engine, greatly increasing its efficiency, which accelerated the pace of the Industrial Revolution.
Meanwhile, Zhang Yang and others had not yet mastered modern scientific theories, so researching steam engines was unrealistic; they could only explore slowly.
Steam engines were very practical, so Liang Xiao did not oppose the Ministry of Works' research into them, but he could only provide simple sketches and not specific details.
However, the country was wealthy and could afford some minor experimentation by the Ministry of Works.
Due to the control of a large amount of official land and the encouragement of commerce and industry, Great Qian's fiscal revenue reached an astonishing seventy million taels of silver this year!
The abolition of the head tax had not significantly reduced Great Qian's fiscal revenue. On the contrary, land tax was more direct than head tax, and tax evasion was more difficult. Instead, it had increased national treasury revenue, as Great Qian still had a large number of unregistered households, and landowners were exposed when faced with land tax.
However, due to the large-scale production and upgrading of weapons, the pacification of Xichuan, the defeat of the barbarians, and the improvement of soldiers' treatment, Great Qian's military expenditure over the past two years had exceeded fifty million taels of silver.
Whether it was longbows or other steel weapons, the material costs and craftsman salaries represented a colossal sum.
Fortunately, Xiao Qing's personal treasury still had a surplus, which was enough to sustain a few years even in times of famine. After all, the national treasury itself had a surplus, saving at least twelve million taels in normal years, and currently had a surplus of twenty million taels.
If not for the ongoing conscription and grain stockpiling in various regions, the national treasury would have at least twenty-eight million taels in surplus today!
Without the interference of the three major clans in the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Personnel, and the Ministry of War, the country had significantly reduced redundant expenditures. The officials in the Ministry of Revenue now had more integrity than the members of the Ouyang family and dared not act recklessly.
What the country lacked now was various materials and mineral resources; money and grain were secondary. The promotion of new crops had resulted in a large surplus of other grains, which could cope with years of famine.
Tens of millions of taels were not an insignificant amount; a few wars could deplete it. Moreover, the livestock confiscated by Great Qian from the barbarians were "non-saleable"...
The Ministry of Works officials were still excitedly testing the recently made honeycomb briquettes in the coal stoves.
During the testing phase, Liang Xiao's guidance was not needed. After taking his wives home, Liang Xiao went to visit Liu Yunzi.
Liu Yunzi had already established the Liuyun Temple in the capital. The Taiji Way still operated as usual, indifferent to whether people believed or not, without deliberately recruiting followers.
Since Liang Xiao had children, Liu Yunzi had stopped being unkempt and always dressed neatly.
"Little Xue'er, quickly let go of Grandpa Liuyun's beard!" Jian Qinwan said helplessly.
At this moment, the eldest child, Liang Hongxue, was being held by Liu Yunzi, with one hand tugging at Liu Yunzi's white beard, giggling uncontrollably.
Liu Yunzi, however, took it lightly and said with a smile, "Little brother, this Little Xue'er might grow up to be like you, deeply versed in the art of厚黑 (cunning and unscrupulous), but she's a girl."
Liang Xiao looked at Liang Hongxue and Liang Cangsheng, who were mischievously playing with Liu Yunzi's beard, and fell silent.
An ominous premonition... 138read.com
The Taoist temple was filled with laughter. Suddenly, a young Taoist boy led two young men to report.
"Grand-Ancestor Master, two individuals claiming to be descendants of the Guigu School are seeking an audience!"
Liu Yunzi was startled and looked at Liang Xiao.
He had only mentioned the Guigu School to Liang Xiao's family, the Great Qian Three Sages, and Zhuo Zifang.
It was not until Chen Feng and a woman entered, presenting the ancient tome "Gui Gu Zhen Chuan" and a letter from Chen Changqiu, that Liu Yunzi, after reading the book and the letter, found his hands trembling slightly as he flipped through the pages, sighing for a long time.
"Decades have passed since we parted. It turns out my twin brother fled to the Great Liang Kingdom and has been pursued by the Rejuvenation Cult."
Liang Xiao's heart sank as he read the letter.
The contents of the letter were quite shocking.
At least three princes of the Great Liang Kingdom were followers of the Rejuvenation Cult!
But what truly shocked Liang Xiao was another piece of information.
The Empress of the Great Liang Emperor Mu Cheng, and the two princes born to her in her early years, had both died within a month thirty-seven years ago.
In fact, they had been poisoned...