I built a manor in the Middle Ages

Chapter 230 Red Brick Iron Smelting Furnace

"Sir, are you saying that you plan to use these red bricks to build a nearly ten-foot-long iron smelting furnace?"

In Blackridge Valley, Jason and his young apprentice exchanged a shocked glance as they watched Luke standing by the river, ready to unleash his full power.

"Sir, I originally thought you were going to build a small iron furnace like Smith's."

"No, we only used earthen furnaces before because we had no other choice. Now that we're going to build one, let's make it as perfect as possible!"

Luke stepped onto the flat riverbed of the Agate River.

At the end of Black Ridge Valley lies the Agate River; viewed from above, the two form a distinct shape.

“Let’s do it here. Once this furnace is built, the bellows won’t be able to power it, so we need to build a waterwheel here to provide water power.”

Seeing that Luc was determined, Jason said no more, took the shovel, and began to lay the foundation with his apprentice at the place Luc had chosen.

It took Luke several days to finalize the blueprints for the construction of the new iron furnace.

There are essentially two ways to achieve higher temperatures for refining iron ore: either use materials with higher temperatures, or build a more enclosed furnace.

The only high-temperature material available to Luke was improved pine resin charcoal, so he had no choice but to go for the latter.

Jason, his apprentice, and Hans, who had been brought along specifically for this purpose, worked diligently to dig the foundation.

Digging pits was Luke's specialty. With his guidance, the group spent two days digging a shallow pit that was one and a half feet deep and six and a half feet wide.

Luc didn't know anything about iron smelting, but he had plenty of experience in building houses.

Burn enough all-purpose wood ash and sprinkle it inside to prevent moisture. Then cut two straight tree branches and tie them to the front with hemp rope to make a giant compass. Using the shallow pit as the center, draw a large circle, then slightly shrink it by half a step to draw a smaller circle inside the large circle.

"Lay red bricks layer by layer along the two circles!"

Although he had experience building fortresses and brick kilns, this iron smelting furnace was a completely new building. Luc used clay, sand, lime, and chopped thatch to bind the red bricks together and fill the gaps between the two rings.

This was a solution that Luke had come up with after much deliberation.

Firing bricks only requires a temperature of a few hundred degrees, but turning iron ore into molten iron requires at least a thousand degrees.

Therefore, Luke planned to build two layers: the inner layer to withstand high temperatures and the outer layer for insulation.

Moreover, after each layer of red bricks is laid higher, the distance between the two layers should be reduced by half a finger width.

The final shape resembles an inverted bowl, except that the top opening is smaller and the bottom is designed in a V-shape.

After Berry's letter arrived, Luke summoned Ryan as well, as his presence would speed up the construction process.

"Wait a minute, it's crooked. Hans, go get the scaffolding for the city wall!"

Luke tapped on the large number of red bricks next to him. He had added clay to the inner layer of the red bricks, while the outer layer of red bricks, because they were not in direct contact with high temperatures, used the most cost-effective brick-making materials to "cut corners".

The iron smelting furnace was about thirty stories high. As the number of stories increased, a triangular ladder had to be brought out. After about three days of construction, Luke took a long wooden stick, placed it horizontally in the middle of the fireplace, and made symmetrical ventilation openings around it.

When they finally reached the top of the wall, a spring rain suddenly came. The group hurriedly covered the bricks with thatch and then returned to Knight's Castle to wait for the rain to pass.

Spring rain is as precious as oil.

As Luc gazed at the rain curtain, he once again pondered the baronial and knightly positions he had been considering for so long.

Luke was fairly familiar with the complex power struggles within the principality.

It's not surprising that Berry suddenly changed his tune, even after defeat, and still used Tiha Village as leverage to prevent him from siding with Count Macon.

Regardless of the circumstances, a knight who can withstand an attack from a baron of seventy or eighty men is certainly someone worth recruiting.

Even if this person was Berry, who had just stopped at Knightsburg.

The art of compromise wasn't something only Luc understood. The French king compromised with the Duke of Normandy, the Duke of Bohemia compromised with the Holy Roman Emperor; one could say that medieval states were themselves a combination of compromises. Of course, all of this presupposes that you have the power to make others compromise with you!

Luc didn't originally have it.

But it came about after Berry's army was defeated.

Kahn the Golden Lion was also a lord who wouldn't act until he saw a clear benefit.

Only knights who can withstand the baron are worth his court.

The same goes for Berry.

If he had known beforehand that this would be the outcome, he probably would have compromised with Luc from the start.

"Berry is indeed a smart man."

Luc took a deep breath. At this point, whether he became a baron or a knight under Berry who obeyed orders but not proclamations, it would be a good thing for him. The only headache was that the choice was not in his own hands.

“Berry must have submitted documents as well, and perhaps even secretly sent letters, taking advantage of his close relationship with the Duke. Now we can only wait and see how the Dijon court decides this matter,” Luc sighed.

If Berry only wants to annex him, then Count Macon's proposal will not be hindered, after all, he is Berry's lord, not to mention he has the support of the Cluny Church.

But at this moment, Berry suddenly changed his attitude, and now that the Duke has an excuse, it's unclear what choice he will make.

Quietly waiting for the spring rain to stop, Luc ordered Miller to bake a batch of pottery. Shaking off his thoughts, he then set up the iron smelting furnace.

The basic shape of the furnace has been built, and air inlets have been added. The next step is to enhance the temperature resistance of the furnace chamber.

"Sir, what do you think about applying pine resin to the inner wall?"

"Good idea, I'll leave this to you."

"By the way, go find Robert again and ask him to weave another batch of willow nets to further reinforce the iron smelting furnace."

To smelt iron, building a furnace is not enough; a waterwheel is also needed.

The bellows was naturally phased out and replaced by a more primitive and larger blower.

The blower was actually made by sewing sheepskin together with two wooden sticks. The blacksmith would open and close the blower by playing an accordion, thus generating wind.

The waterwheel works similarly, except that it uses ceramic pipes to connect the air inlet to the sheepskin, with the end of the sheepskin connected to the waterwheel. Drawing inspiration from sawmills, gears are installed, creating a nodding wooden stake that allows the sheepskin blower to open and close.

Although Little Maiman was working hard to finish the waterwheel, the furnace was still temporarily unusable because Luke didn't have enough sheepskins!

To keep the blast furnace burning brightly, at least two huge blowers are needed. Luc has a few meat goats, but they are pregnant now, and it would be too costly to kill them all for the sake of smelting iron.

"It seems we need to buy sheepskins."

"When it comes to milk production, the availability of goat milk is also unstable."

"Yes, sir, but I remember Berry has a cow? How about we use the cow as part of the ransom when we acquire Clovie?"

Ryan thought of Berry's cows and unconsciously licked his lips.

I don't even know what milk tastes like.

“That makes sense.” Luc laughed heartily.

As the furnace was nearing completion, construction on the bridge quietly began again.

However, at this time, George rushed back from Maconshire with a letter from the Earl of Macon.

"As expected, the Duke refused my request to become a baron."

(End of this chapter)