Chronicles of the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 96, Section 95: Forging and Annealing

After the superior finished speaking casually, the artisans from the six countries were instantly dumbfounded.

No, how come they're useless and have to retire?

How could the Qin people be so wicked!

The beginning casually revealed their secret method for forging steel. Although it only contained some keywords, everyone here is an expert in the field, so those keywords are enough!

These days, things like "forgeable annealing" sound really impressive, so why are they already phased out?!
How could the Chu craftsmen tolerate their secret techniques being surpassed by others? At this moment, they stiffened their bodies and were about to step forward, while also being extremely resentful:

"What do you Qin people know about forging ironware! When I was in Chu, I had an entire iron mine at my disposal to smelt and test!"

This Qin Shi also believed it.

Ji Heng wouldn't have bothered bringing back ironworkers from the six kingdoms if they weren't renowned and skilled. In fact, to ensure their obedience, he even housed their families within the ward.

Of course, Qin Shi guessed that, given his personality, he probably wouldn't ever be willing to appease others.

At most, it's just a matter of you doing things for me, and I'll take good care of your family and give you more rewards.

If you are unwilling, then kill me.

After all, it's just a craftsman's job; if he weren't making ironware, he really wouldn't care.

but--

She looked indifferent and suspicious: "You have been at the Ironworks for several years, yet you have not produced a single sword. It is clear that your reputation is undeserved."

"Now that we have such good skills, what's the point of entrusting them to you people who are all talk and no action?"

The craftsmen from the six countries felt a lump in their throats.

They arrived filled with hatred, even tormented by conflicting emotions: family feud or national enmity? That was the question.

They eventually discovered that the King of Qin had completely forgotten about them, and the ironworkers would not kill these famous craftsmen, which is why they gradually became disillusioned.

But no matter how negative one feels, the blacksmith's work still needs to be done.

In recent years, while there have been no results at all, at least none of the refined steel that was forged using the same annealing process as in the Chu Kingdom has been produced.

Now, when faced with such a question, everyone opens their mouths but finds themselves powerless to refute it.

But in reality, Qin Shi still needs them.

She herself was merely a theoretical giant. Although the keywords she mentioned could greatly help Qin blacksmiths make progress in their craftsmanship, the practice and exploration in between still required a great deal of time.

Since there's something readily available, why not use it?

But before we can use them, we need to get them to figure out how to get things moving on their own.

Seeing that everyone was speechless and about to succumb to reality, she turned to the Qin craftsmen and instructed them:

"Practice this annealing process diligently. Once you've mastered it, there are subsequent methods such as frying steel, pouring steel, and annealing steel."

Although it's unknown whether the mature craftsmanship of the Ming Dynasty can be achieved today, it doesn't hurt to say it now.

“The current vertical shaft furnace can also be converted into another type of blast furnace. By adding some substances to the clay, it can be made more resistant to high temperatures. Combined with new charcoal, the temperature in the furnace can be increased by another 10% to 30%.”

Blast furnace, better-sealed bellows, coke, bituminous coal... let's try them one by one, any progress is worthwhile.

As for these products resulting from such leaps and progress—

“When the New Year comes, I need you to forge a short sword as a gift for the King’s unification of the world.”

This pie looks big, round, and delicious!
No blacksmith who has already made a name for himself would not want to pursue even greater skills.

A century ago, Master Ou Yezi was able to forge the Tai'a sword, but today their painstakingly hidden techniques have not improved in the slightest.

After hearing Qin Shi's eloquent words, not only the Qin craftsmen, who were so excited they were about to faint, but even the Chu craftsmen were trembling all over.

If the soldiers hadn't stopped him, it would have been hard to say whether his first instinct would have been to rush up and hug Qin Shi's leg, or to stubbornly kneel down.

But they still suppressed their emotions, for the hatred of national subjugation was not something to be easily resolved—however, before the thought could even cross their minds, they saw Qin Shi glance at them coldly, indifferently:

"As for these artisans from the six countries... their cherished techniques are so outdated that they'd be considered obsolete even forging a kitchen knife later on, so there's no need to be wary of them."

"Iron official, then let them be treated the same as other blacksmiths."

After these words were spoken, the craftsmen from Chu and Yan stood there, their faces instantly turning red and their breathing becoming rapid.

Because they spend most of their time facing the fire, they are burly and robust, with particularly broad arms and dark reddish-black cheeks, making them look exceptionally fierce.

At that moment, the Chu craftsmen, having just calmed down from their initial excitement, immediately collapsed to their knees with a thud.

"Your subject...this humble servant..."

He spoke incoherently, finally gritting his teeth: "Now that the country is gone! I, Gao Ye, an ironworker, am willing to die for the King of Qin!"

After he finished speaking, he stared at Qin Shi without blinking.

Qin Shi shook his head—Gao Ye felt a chill run through his chest.

"This senior engineer, you should say that you are willing to die for King Heng of Qin."

She smiled slightly and said in a gentle voice, "Now that you have become a citizen of Qin, I will forgive and forget your previous disrespect and concealment of the matter from the King."

"But if you want to learn new techniques, you still need to show some real skill before you're qualified."

As she finished speaking, the other six people, except for the craftsmen from Yan, exchanged glances, deeply conflicted, but in the end, they still slowly knelt down.

Qin Shi was finally able to breathe a huge sigh of relief.

Looking at everything before him, the iron official was overjoyed.

But at the same time, he stared intently at the Yan craftsmen who still refused to submit, and asked them bluntly:

"Since that craftsman from Yan refuses to submit to Your Majesty, shall he be executed immediately?"

The craftsman from Yan felt a shiver run down his spine, but he quickly held fast to his patriotism and loyalty to his country!
Although he dared not rebuke her in court, he still glared angrily and stood there with his body tense.

The other five artisans, seeing this, felt ashamed and couldn't help but raise their hands to cover their faces.

However, Qin Shi felt that if his homeland was truly good—

Why are these people still considered lowly craftsmen?
But no matter what, she had finally managed to get everyone to willingly take sides, and she couldn't let all her efforts be wasted because of the rebuttal from the Yan craftsmen.

So she sneered, "No need, we can't just eat so much food for nothing."

"If he doesn't want to hone his skills anymore, then let him be an ordinary craftsman. If the people of our Great Qin need an iron shovel someday, he might have the honor of forging it himself."

These words were undeniably mischievous, and the scene they depicted sent a chill down the spines of the self-assured blacksmiths, who could hardly believe it.

Qin Shi really doesn't have time to bother with such disobedient people these days—who in the world doesn't have suffering these days?

Because everyone has a different perspective, the issues they need to consider will differ.

King Heng of Qin treated her well, and she held the Chihu Seal, which would allow her to share the power of "holding the balance and embracing the celestial bell" with the King in the future.

All his thoughts and desires naturally revolve around Ji Heng.

therefore--

"I am about to impart the secret technique, Iron Official, have him step down."

Coming!

The Qin Dynasty did not have blast furnaces, only vertical furnaces.

Currently, the temperature of vertical shaft furnaces is generally between 1000 and 1200 degrees Celsius, and can occasionally rise to 1300 or 1400 degrees Celsius when it is unstable.

[The subjugation of the blacksmith was a political act; this discussion focuses on stance, not right or wrong.]