I am the prince of the Ming Dynasty, I don't give up

Chapter 13 Springs
After some explanation, the carpenters quickly started working because Zhu Houxun's drawings were very clear and the carpenters quickly understood his intentions.

But Jin Tong looked at the drawing of the spring and couldn't figure out what it was.

"Don't think about it anymore, just do it according to what I said."

"Yes, sir!" Jin Tong nodded hurriedly. Anyway, the Jing Wang Mansion was a wealthy and powerful place, so this was not a big deal. The young prince was a kind person, so if he did as he asked, he would not be blamed if he made mistakes.

He picked up a piece of wrought iron and threw it into the furnace to heat it red, then placed it on the anvil, gradually stretched and elongated it, and finally made it into an iron bar as thick as an incense stick. He then heated the long iron bar again, and when it was red hot again, he wrapped it around the iron rod in circles, and finally put the still red iron wire directly into the water for quenching.

A spring that looked stupidly big, black and thick was made.

Zhu Houxuan happily picked up the spring and tried to test its elasticity, but the result was disappointing. Not only was the elasticity average, but it also lost its elasticity and became deformed after being pressed a few more times.

Zhu Houxuan thought about it and realized that the toughness of wrought iron was not enough. Springs in later generations were all made of special spring steel. He couldn't find spring steel now, so he had to at least use steel to make springs.

"Master Jin, use steel. Make sure the thickness of the iron bar is uniform. Don't be too anxious when winding it. Make sure it is wound evenly. After winding, heat it again and then quench it." Zhu Houxuan gave instructions.

"As you command, little prince!"

Jin Tong quickly made another steel spring. This time the spring worked better than the wrought iron spring window, but Zhu Houxuan was still not satisfied.

He asked Jin Tong and his apprentices to start making springs. This time he put forward new requirements, asking them to use steel from different origins to forge steel wires of different thicknesses, and to change the winding angle when winding.

He even asked Hou Sen to go to the kitchen to get a bag of salt and several cans of oil, and asked Jin Tong and others to quench the fire with water, salt water and oil.

Finally, he asked Hou Sen to lead the eunuchs to record the various variables of each forged spring.

This time, Jin Tong and his team were finally enlightened. They realized that there were so many tricks to forging a strange little thing. The most unacceptable thing was the quenching with salt water and oil.

This is white salt and fragrant oil!
A whole bowl of salt was poured into their quenching water tank, which made Jin Tong feel very sad. That was the best green salt! After Jin Tong finished making these little things today, he quietly collected the remaining salt water in the tank and put it in the pot to boil out the salt.

As for the oil quenching, it made Jin Tong even more distressed. This was edible oil! It was consumed by quenching.

As the red-hot springs were immersed in oil again and again, the whole place began to be filled with the smell of burnt oil, which made the craftsmen in the place secretly look at Jin Tong and his companions, swallowing their saliva continuously.

"There is lard in it, it smells so delicious." Wang Xiaowu said in a low voice with a sad face.

"Stop talking and work hard!" Jin Tong scolded in a low voice, and then calculated in his mind how much oil would be left after work today, and whether he could make some rice with lard, which would definitely be delicious. Thinking of this, Jin Tong swallowed a big mouthful of saliva.

Finally, more than forty steel springs were placed in front of Zhu Houxuan. After trying them one by one, he finally found a spring that was barely usable. But he was still not satisfied. After some thought, he finally found the key to the problem in his mind - tempering.

Tempering reduces the hardness and strength of steel to increase its ductility or toughness.

Sure enough, after tempering, the elasticity of the springs was greatly enhanced. Although it was still far inferior to modern springs, it also solved the problem of whether there was a problem or not. At this time, Zhu Houxuan realized that it was already dark, so he asked the craftsmen to have a meal and rest first, and continue the production tomorrow.

"Bang!" The crisp sound of porcelain breaking was heard from Changchun Palace, and everyone serving outside the palace gate dared not breathe.

"Get out! All of you, get out!" The angry voice of Concubine Liu came from inside the house.

Then the two uncles hurriedly ran out of the palace, with very unhappy faces, and left angrily.

Liu Yourong looked at the departing figures of her two uncles, with a trace of confusion in her eyes. She didn't understand why the originally quiet and peaceful Prince Jing's Mansion had become like this.

But this was not something she could figure out. She sighed and walked into the palace.

The broken porcelain in the room had been cleared away. Concubine Liu was rubbing her brows with her head down. Liu Yourong quickly walked behind Concubine Liu and gently rubbed her temples.

An old eunuch also came in holding a cup of tea. Liu Yourong looked up and saw that it was Yu Chunlai, the Chengfengzheng of the Chengfeng Division. The Chengfeng Division was in charge of all matters in the palace. Chengfengzheng was a sixth-rank eunuch, the highest-ranking eunuch in the palace and the chief steward of the palace. Liu Yourong knew that Yu Chunlai was a confidant of Concubine Liu.

Then she suddenly realized that there were only three of them in the room.

"I didn't expect it! Xuan'er and I just had a few words in the morning, and so many people knew about it in the afternoon. Some people have already started to take sides impatiently. What I didn't expect the most was that the first people to take sides were actually my two younger brothers!" Concubine Liu said coldly.

"Please calm down, my two uncles may have been confused for a moment." Yu Chunlai said with his head lowered.

"How is the situation in the mansion?"

"The situation in the palace is still as peaceful as before, but I think there will always be some servants who will take risks to secretly help the young prince in order to gain wealth and fame. It's just that they haven't found the opportunity yet."

Upon hearing this, Concubine Liu remained silent and just leaned her head against the back of the chair to allow Liu Yourong behind her to exert better strength.

"The young prince is already fifteen years old this year, and he has already made up his mind. You'd better go along with him. If you continue like this, I'm afraid that the relationship between you and the young prince will be hurt." Yu Chunlai said in a low voice.

"What did Xuan'er do after leaving Changchun Palace today?" Concubine Liu suddenly asked.

Upon hearing this, "Young Prince" Yu Chunlai's breath stagnated and he became hesitant.

"Tell the truth!"

"The young prince first met his two uncles, and then...he went to the Gongzheng Office again." Yu Chunlai said with some difficulty, and then waited quietly for Concubine Liu to explode.

"Alas..." Concubine Liu sighed, "Xun'er has reached the age of having his own ideas, but he has never done practical work and doesn't know how treacherous people are. Look, he actually asked his two uncles to be lobbyists today. Don't I know what kind of people my two brothers are? Xun'er is kind by nature. It would be bad if he was led astray by his two uncles. If he goes to promote business and industry, the reputation of the Prince of Jing's Mansion will be completely ruined. How can I follow him?"

(End of this chapter)