What's wrong with me, a powerful minister, supporting a few female officials?

Chapter 309 Observing the Changes at Lonely Peak Mountain, the Empress Remains Shocked!
Seeing Leng Liuxi looking at him with a serious expression, Su Mo frowned, but finally couldn't help but ask, "Does Your Excellency really not know about cement?"

Leng Liuxi was so angry that her teeth itched, and she immediately raised her voice: "I've already said it!"

"I did not send anyone to spy on the situation at Lonely Peak Mountain!"

As she spoke, she gave a light snort: "Does Su Lang not believe me?"

She paused, then looked at Su Mo with a serious expression and said, "My lord is honest with me, and I will not deceive my lord!"

What else could Su Mo say?

You can't accuse the Empress of lying!

After thinking for a moment, he said, "Cement is similar to the glutinous rice paste that binds stones; it can quickly solidify into a hard block like stone."

"However, the cement I developed is relatively weak. Although it has a wide range of uses, it is not as durable as glutinous rice paste."

Leng Liuxi's expression was serious: "Being able to quickly build city walls is already a huge advantage!"

"Uh... how long does it take to cement?"

Su Mo pondered for a moment: "I estimate it will be about fifty or sixty years."

Leng Liuxi's expression instantly turned strange.

She had thought that Su Mo's prediction of a short duration was only ten or eight years!
As a result, Su Mo suddenly appeared from fifty or sixty years ago.

Su Mo's conservatism is a well-known fact.

The fifty or sixty years he mentioned is probably not a hundred years.

Is this not as long-lasting as glutinous rice paste?

He doesn't think that all the city walls of the Great Wu can withstand a hundred years or even longer, does he?

If this is the case, why would the imperial court need to frequently renovate the city walls?
To make it last longer, you need to add glutinous rice juice or even egg white!

Where in the world would you find so much glutinous rice and egg whites to build city walls?
In fact, even with the use of glutinous rice juice, it would normally need to be repaired and reinforced every one or two hundred years.

The key issue is that there are too many procedures, and it takes an extremely long time to complete.

Leng Liuxi took a deep breath and looked at Su Mo seriously: "Besides building city walls, what other uses does cement have?"

The fact that it could be used to build city walls already surprised Leng Liuxi greatly, but judging from Su Mo's tone, it had even more uses.

Su Mo quickly corrected Leng Liuxi: "It's a wall!"

Leng Liuxi...

Seeing Leng Liuxi's displeasure, Su Mo quickly gave an awkward smile: "Of course, building city walls is also an option... but what this subordinate is building is truly a perimeter wall!"

Leng Liuxi was both amused and exasperated: "Alright! You've built a wall, for goodness sake!"

"Quickly tell me, what other uses does cement have!"

Su Mo frowned and thought for a moment: "It can be used to build houses, bridges, and roads, etc. Hmm... the cement I made is of poor quality, and it seems that it doesn't have much use when you really research it."

Leng Liuxi...

This is considered to have little use?
She couldn't be bothered to waste words with Su Mo.

Once you see the cement with your own eyes, you'll naturally be able to determine where else it can be used!

She walked quickly toward the city wall... toward the stone wall!

Then, several searchlights shone on the Empress!

In an instant, several crossbows, each with its own caliber, creaked and turned, their gleaming spears aimed intently at Leng Liuxi.

"Halt! Otherwise, you will be killed without mercy!"

A loud shout suddenly came from the top of the wall.

Leng Liuxi was slightly surprised, not expecting that Su Mo's small place would be so heavily guarded.

Su Mo hurried over, looked up at the stone wall and cannon platform, and said in a deep voice, "It is I!"

"Open the gates immediately!"

"master?"

The searchlight shifted its direction, shining on Su Mo. Confirming that it was indeed the master himself, Niu Da, who was guarding the city wall, hurriedly said, "I'll open the gate right away!"

As the guards turned the winch with all their might, the heavy gate slowly rose.

Leng Liuxi was speechless again.

Many cities never had gates!
Su Mo's gate looks heavy and solid, covered with a thick sheet of iron, and probably weighs at least three or four thousand pounds.

He also said that what he was building was not a city wall!

The empress did not rush into the city. With a stern face, she walked to the foot of the stone wall and observed it carefully for a moment.

The stone wall was made up of stones of various sizes and shapes, which looked quite irregular!

No wonder it was able to be built in such a short time!
When others build city walls, they have to carve each stone flat and smooth it, or spend an even longer time firing the bricks. No one uses raw stones directly.

However, Leng Liuxi was surprised to see that all the irregular gaps in the stones were filled with a dark brown substance, which connected the stones into a whole.

Leng Liuxi couldn't help but reach out and touch the crack in the stone; it was indeed as hard as stone.

Finally, she raised her jade-like finger and gently traced a line through the crevice.

A scratch about half a finger's width deep appeared.

Upon seeing this, Su Mo felt a slight chill run down her spine.

There was absolutely no trace of magical power; he could slice cement as easily as tofu with just one finger.

The Empress's physical strength is so terrifying; if that hand were to touch a human body...

Ahem! It seems the city walls can't stop a True Immortal of the Heavenly Infant Realm.

However, this seems to be more reasonable.

He's a Celestial Infant Realm True Person, one of the most powerful beings in the cultivation world!

After inspecting the stone wall, Leng Liuxi suddenly turned to look at Su Mo and asked abruptly, "Su Langyan, the cement you made is ordinary."

"If it's truly high-quality cement, how does it compare?"

What she was asking about was, of course, the cement of the mysterious hometown that Su Mo had mentioned.

Su Mo blurted out, "Definitely not!"

He seemed to remember watching a video that said a newly developed special cement was eight times harder than steel!
Although I don't know if it's true.

But there is no doubt that the hardness of special cement can be compared with that of steel.

Therefore, Su Mo honestly replied, "Anyway, it won't be worse than steel."

"The cement I produced was all substandard. Anyone who dares to use it to build houses in that area will definitely go to jail!"

Leng Liuxi's expression suddenly changed!
Cement that rivals steel!
If the entire city wall were built using that kind of cement, wouldn't that be the same as building a city directly out of steel?!

Steel is precious and scarce; who can actually use steel to build city walls?
Even the Great Wu Empress Leng Liuxi couldn't possibly be one!

Even though she was a True Person of the Heavenly Infant Realm, she couldn't imagine how solid it was!
In fact, the inferior cement that Su Mo mentioned was much more solid than she had imagined; it was no different from real mountain rocks!
Even catapults couldn't possibly destroy it!
Leng Liuxi gave Su Mo another deep look.

In just a few days, he brought himself a series of surprises that could be described as divine artifacts for the country!
He truly is my... lucky general!
I need to visit Gufeng Mountain more often!

She said in a deep voice, "Young Master Su, could you take me to see the cement?"

The old farmer can't run away from home; let's see the cement first!
Su Mo nodded: "Okay!"

He then led Leng Liuxi inside the stone wall.

He praised Niu Da for his heavy responsibility of guarding the city wall, then walked straight toward the cement workshop.

Cement workshops generate significant dust pollution, but water is essential for their operation.

Now that the river is frozen, Su Mo has no choice but to place it inside the walled enclosure, but naturally far away from his own villa.

We can move out when we no longer need to keep it a secret and the river has thawed.

That said, the pool formed by the hot spring water at Wulongtan is really useful.

Without this hot spring water, the city walls could not have been built.

Leng Liuxi was secretly surprised again after entering the walled area.

Suddenly, a complex of buildings covering an area of ​​more than five or six acres appeared beside the Five Dragon Pool, and it was as tall as three zhang!
From a regulatory perspective, they have already reached the highest height that ordinary buildings can be constructed.

Most buildings in Shenjing (Beijing) have two stories, but three-story buildings are absolutely nonexistent, except for the imperial palace.

The building must be three stories high and exceed the regulations set by the imperial court.

That's a capital offense!

Leng Liuxi thought to herself, "This must be the villa that Su Mo mentioned."

She didn't understand why Su Mo called the house a villa, it sounded very strange, just like the style of the house itself!
This villa, like the houses outside, is mostly made up of square houses. The roofs are completely different from ordinary buildings, as flat as the surface of water, without any curves.

The huge complex of houses seemed to have firelight shining through the windows and doors, and lanterns hung in many places on the walls, illuminating the strange houses brightly.

The walls were made of blue bricks, and must have been reinforced with cement, making them appear exceptionally sturdy. Leng Liuxi couldn't help but feel suspicious.

I don't know why Su Mo built the house in such a strange way.

However, let's look at the cement first.

After inspecting the cement and sending the sweet potato farmers to the palace, it won't be too late to study Su Mo's strange villa.

After walking around the Five Dragon Pool for a while, Leng Liuxi found herself in front of a workshop covering an area of ​​about four or five acres.

It seems that all the buildings on Lonely Peak Mountain have flat roofs, and this workshop is no exception.

In front of them were many large wooden sheds, under which were piles of sizable limestone stones.

There was also a shed filled with handcarts that looked similar to rickshaws.

It's clear that cement plants are extremely labor-intensive.

However, since it's a holiday this year, apart from the person on duty, there are hardly any hired workers in the workshop.

Those on duty at the cement plant are mainly elderly people from Changping County.

Upon seeing Su Mo approach, Niu Er was slightly taken aback, then quickly saluted and greeted Su Mo respectfully, saying, "This humble servant greets Master!"

Then, his gaze fell on Leng Liuxi, who was walking behind Su Mo, and he saluted without hesitation, saying, "This humble servant greets Madam!"

They knew that Su Mo had a great many women.

Besides the Third Madam who frequently appeared at Gufeng Mountain, there was also Yin Qiguan, who claimed to be Su Mo's disciple, and quite a few other mistresses of the Su residence who had visited Gufeng Mountain.

Despite Leng Liuxi's unfamiliar face.

But the fact that she was able to come to Fengyi with the master at this time undoubtedly means that she is one of the mistresses of the Su residence!

Calling her "Madam" is definitely the right thing to do.

When the other guards heard Niu Er address her in that way, they quickly greeted Leng Liuxi as well.

The voices of the ladies rose and fell.

Su Mo didn't even have time to stop her; a cold sweat broke out on his back, and he secretly glanced at the Empress.

Fortunately, Leng Liuxi's expression remained normal, and she did not show any signs of shame or anger.

The favorability rating on the head remained unchanged.

Su Mo breathed a sigh of relief and immediately scolded Niu Er, "Don't talk nonsense!"

"This is Lord Leng, my superior!"

Upon hearing this, Niu Er was immediately taken aback and hurriedly said to Leng Liuxi, "This humble subject greets Lord Leng!"

"I mistakenly thought you were the master and mistress, please don't take offense!"

Although that's what I said, I didn't really agree with it.

So what if he's an official?
Wasn't Lin Baihu, the former commander, also the master's superior? In the end, wasn't he taken into the master's household?

But the master is truly blessed with good fortune in women!

Every official is so beautiful, truly a peerless beauty!

Seeing his expression, Su Mo snorted and was about to speak when Leng Liuxi waved her hand: "Ignorance is no excuse, so please don't blame them, my lord."

"Hmm... is cement made here?"

Su Mo nodded and replied, "That's exactly right, sir."

He then glared at Niu Er and shouted, "Why aren't you getting a mask yet?"

Niu Er quickly handed Su Mo a mask.

Leng Liuxi stared in astonishment at the mask in Su Mo's hand: "What is this?"

Su Mo explained, "The dust inside the workshop is extremely high. I set up the cement workshop downwind to blow away the dust, but you still need to wear a mask to enter, otherwise it can easily damage your lungs."

As he spoke, he put on the mask and handed the other one to the Empress.

Leng Liuxi took it, squeezed it, and found it very soft. She casually asked, "Is it wool in there?"

Su Mo shook his head: "It's kapok, which can block some dust from being inhaled into the lungs."

"However, even so, it is more prudent to replace the workers in the workshop every five years."

Su Mo didn't realize that cotton existed in this world.

There are kapok trees, though.

However, kapok is a short fiber and is not suitable for weaving cloth. It is mostly used as a quilt insert for warmth.

Of course, some are also used to make face towels or similar items, but they're not very durable.

Like Su Mo, Leng Liuxi put on a mask and then walked into the cement workshop.

Su Mo had nothing to hide from Leng Liuxi.

He took her to visit the workshops where calcination, crushing, and grinding were carried out, and finally to the warehouse where the finished products were stored.

"This is cement?" Leng Liuxi picked up a handful of dark brown powder and rubbed it in her palm. It felt as fine as flour.

Seeing Su Mo nod, Leng Liuxi became curious again: "How can such fine dust bind the stones together so firmly?"

Su Mo smiled and said, "It's very simple."

"Simply add the right amount of sand and water, mix well, and once it solidifies, it will be as hard as stone!"

Leng Liuxi blinked: "May I try it myself?"

Su Mo thought for a moment and said, "I'll do it myself, Your Excellency can just watch."

He paused, then explained, "Sir, you've never seen cement before, and the ratio of sand and water is difficult to control."

Leng Liuxi nodded gently: "In that case, I will observe how you proceed, my lord."

Just as Su Mo was about to make a move, he suddenly remembered something and turned to look at the Empress: "What shape does Your Majesty wish to create?"

Leng Liuxi immediately became curious: "Any shape is possible?"

"Could we create a cement figure shaped like Su Lang?"

Su Mo frowned, "Cement is like clay, but I'm afraid I'm too clumsy to create any shape."

"I'll just make a cement slab."

At that moment, Su Mo had someone bring sand and gravel, which he first mixed evenly with cement powder. He was about to add water and stir, but after thinking for a moment, he took some black powder from a box next to him and mixed it in.

Leng Liuxi immediately became curious: "What is this black powder?"

Su Mo explained, "It's fine slag powder, waste residue left over from iron smelting at the Craftsmen's Camp."

"Adding slag can enhance the strength of cement. However, slag is more difficult to grind than limestone. Just a few boxes of slag powder have worn out several stone mills, so it is difficult to popularize and can only be used in critical areas."

Leng Liuxi nodded gently, remaining silent as she watched Su Mo operate the device.

Su Mo mixed the raw materials evenly, added water and stirred, and the raw materials immediately turned into a black slurry.

They took a wooden board as a mold, poured a layer of cement mortar, placed a few bamboo poles as reinforcing bars, and finally covered it with the remaining cement mortar and smoothed it out.

After watching Su Mo's actions, Leng Liuxi couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "It's done just like that?"

Su Mo nodded: "It will take shape after it solidifies!"

"About two days."

He paused, then added, "However, directly making cement slabs like this is quite wasteful of materials."

"With insufficient cement production, it is more cost-effective to use it as an adhesive to bond bricks and stones. Therefore, crushed stone can be omitted from the ingredients."

"If you want the cement to be more durable, you can also use iron bars instead of bamboo strips."

"However, like slag, iron is precious and can only be used in special places."

Leng Liuxi looked at Su Mo with a smile: "Could you please trouble your husband to make a few more cement slabs using different methods?"

Su Mo...

your sister!
I came here to enjoy life, not to be a construction worker!

He turned towards the warehouse door, his voice booming, "Niu Er! Get in here!"

Niu Er, with his honest and simple face, immediately trotted in: "What are your orders, sir?"

Su Mo pointed to the cement slab: "Do it like this, cement, slag, with or without added steel bars, do it all!"

Niu Er patted his chest and said, "I understand!"

He paused for a moment, then said, "I'll go and fetch the bricklayer right now!"

Su Mo...

　Godfathers, could you spare a monthly pass to support me?

　　
　
(End of this chapter)