Three Kingdoms: A Million Soldiers Grown from the Fields

Chapter 113 Cotton (The rain stopped, so I added an extra 4k words, I'm happy)
The term "military spirit" is profound and mysterious.

In Xi Zhong's understanding, these two words represent an army that advances and retreats in an orderly manner, with high morale, and is willing to die for its commander even when faced with difficulties.

In Zhang Xian's understanding, these two words represent belief.

Why we fight, and for whom we fight, the spirit of the army represents the unity of the entire force, willing to sacrifice their lives for the same goal.

Although the two had different understandings, they both knew what the military spirit represented.

This is also the significance of Zhang Xian's literacy campaign.

In ancient times, armies only recognized military pay; they would fight for whoever paid them.

It cannot be said that all armies are like this, but it is true for 98 percent of armies.

The reason why the soldiers of Lüsi County are now inferior to those of Taoyuan is precisely this.

belief.

Zhang Xian did not withhold military pay; on the contrary, he often paid more.

The food in the army was better than that of many sons of wealthy and powerful families, and the weapons and equipment were all of the highest quality.

He has provided the best possible external conditions for the county soldiers.

What remains is only the inner self.

The firelight in the drill ground circled the wall, and as the lamp oil dwindled, Zhang Xian felt it was about time.

He then walked up to the tin megaphone and coughed twice: "Alright, that concludes today's lesson. All of you may review on your own during your free time. The next evening exercise will be in two days!"

"Yes, my lord! You've had a long journey. We respectfully see you off!"

More than 900 people stood up and shouted in unison. Zhang Xian nodded, took a book in one hand and put the other behind his back, and walked away slowly.

The next day.

After waking up, Zhang Xian asked someone to help Xi Zhong settle into the room that had been cleaned up the night before.

He himself went to the county government office to handle official documents.

After roll call, all the yamen runners and clerks were still half asleep.

Zhang Xian clapped his hands: "Wake up, everyone. Go to the street and get a bowl of spicy soup to ward off the chill. I've already had it prepared."

"Yes! The county magistrate is benevolent."

The group of yamen runners and clerks then perked up and headed out of the county government office.

Zhang Xian shook his head and sighed.

It's really hard to get up early in the dead of winter, but there's nothing we can do about it. With tens of thousands of people in Luqi County, there are always countless trivial matters to deal with. If the yamen runners and officials don't get moving, the problems will just accumulate.

"Let someone search the mountains for camellia trees and process some tea leaves to use as a stimulant."

After taking his seat in the main seat, he began to review the official documents. These documents were all trivial matters from various parts of Luqi County that the clerks had collected the night before. He had them placed directly on the table so that he could deal with them directly the next day.

As always, we will separate the important from the unimportant.

For unimportant matters, a quick glance and a stamp of approval are all it takes to complete the process.

The important ones require detailed implementation advice, which is quite time-consuming.

"The county public security bureau is good."

While they were working on it, Gu Yu also started his work. Zhang Xian greeted him and gave him half of the official wooden slips. The two then worked quietly together.

After a while, another person came into the main hall.

"I am well, Lord."

Xi Zhong bowed respectfully, then bowed again to Gu Yu.

"Zhicai, you're here. Please sit down. Let me introduce you two."

Zhang Xian invited Xi Zhong to sit on the right and gestured to Gu Yu: "Gu Yu, Gu Shilin, is the head of the Gu family and currently serves as the county clerk."

He then extended his hand to Xi Zhong: "Xi Zhong, also known as Xi Zhicai, is from Yingchuan and currently serves as a clerk in the army."

"I've heard so much about you!"

"Disrespect, disrespect,"

The two of them exchanged pleasantries.

Zhang Xian didn't mince words and asked Xi Zhong, "Is Zhicai interested in handling county affairs?"

"It is my wish, but I dare not ask."

Xi Zhong smiled wryly.

Zhang Xian was overjoyed and transferred three-quarters of his official duties to them.

"Then those with talent and ambition will be given more responsibility!"

Eh.

Comfortable,

Grain Rain divided the rain in half and left.

Xi Zhong then took three-quarters of the remaining half, leaving him with less than twenty wooden tablets.

If I hurry up and finish this in half an hour, I can leave work early today!
"This"

Looking at the pile of wooden slips in front of him, and then at the number of thin wooden slips on his lord's desk, Xi Zhong shook his head with amusement.

My lord is truly worthy of being someone Han Sheng repeatedly reminded to be wary of suddenly giving me tasks.

They really don't consider themselves outsiders at all.

Still, it's pretty good.

He picked up his pen and ink, smiled, and began his first day of work in Luqi County.

After finishing his official duties, Zhang Xian quietly got up. Seeing that the two men were working at their desks and that clerks were occasionally coming in to present new wooden tablets, he didn't disturb them and quietly left.

The cotton gin and cotton carding bed are ready.

This time, I'm determined to master the cotton-making techniques.

In the workshop of the mansion next to the Luqi County Government Office, Zhang Xian rolled up his sleeves and stared at the snow-white cotton bolls that had been harvested and dried for half a day. The morning light shone through the window lattice, casting fine spots of light on the blue brick floor, and dust motes floated slowly in the beams of light.

"This time we must succeed." He crushed a wad of cotton between his fingertips, the fibers gleaming like pearls in the sunlight.

Three months ago, some of the failed cotton wadding was soaked in alcohol to be used as medical supplies, while the rest, which was unusable, was twisted into a light cord for lighting.

The foot-operated cotton gin lay quietly in a corner. He went over, moved it over, and began ginning and removing the seeds.

The foot pedal of the cotton gin made a creaking sound, and the flywheel spun faster and faster. Suddenly, Zhang Xian remembered something and took out a small ceramic bottle from his pocket.

He applied a mixture of beeswax and pine resin to the jujube wood roller teeth: "to prevent fiber breakage."

The cotton was fed into the machine and miraculously split into two strands. The cotton fibers surged into the bamboo basket like clouds, while the black seeds fell into the earthenware jar with a "crackling" sound. He grabbed a handful of cotton fibers and gently pulled them apart, and the three-inch-long fibers remained intact.

"Wonderful!" Zhang Xian blew away the cotton fluff in his palm, watching it dance in the light.

The more than 100 kilograms of cotton were processed quickly, several times faster than when he and several others rolled cotton together in Taoyuan.

Machines are machines. Even the simplest human-powered machine is much faster than a person doing it by hand.

The rolled cotton bolls were somewhat flat, so Zhang Xian poured all the flat cotton bolls from the basket onto the cotton bed next to him.

The cotton bed is more than half a person's height, almost reaching the chest and abdomen. The main reason for making it so high is to prevent people from bending over and suffering from the hardship.

Beside the cotton bed was a longbow, its arm about four feet long, almost the same length as the cotton bed. Zhang Xian picked it up and tied it to the rope on the beam.

A four-foot-long bow made of mulberry wood hung under the beam, and a cotton mallet tapped it lightly with a "humming" sound.

The sound of strings reverberated through the cotton pile, and the fluffy cotton wafted like waves.

Zhang Xian laughed. The thing he had been rehearsing in his mind for so long had finally come to fruition, and this sense of accomplishment was truly captivating. Suddenly, an idea struck him, and looking at the surging waves of cotton as he played the instrument, he said, "Perhaps I could change the single string to a double string and try that next time."

The sound of strings filled the air, and the morning light shone through the room, causing cotton wool to flutter everywhere.

The cotton wadding on the cotton bed became increasingly fluffy, and gradually the originally flat cotton wadding turned into a pile of cotton like snow.

Of course, Zhang Xian also went from being a refined gentleman to a snowman.

Her hair, face, and clothes were covered in snow-white cotton lint.

"Pah, next time I'll have to get masks first."

He haphazardly patted himself, causing the soft cotton fibers to flutter even more violently.

We opened the windows and doors, and went outside to shake it out; that was a simple cleaning.

Once the fluffy cotton is piled up, the next step is to reel the yarn, just like reeling silk.

The sisters-in-law from Taoyuan were right last time; the preparation of cotton thread is just like twisting a thousand threads into one rope, just like making a silkworm cocoon.

However, the steps were wrong. Cotton is not a silkworm cocoon. Putting it into boiling water first caused severe fiber breakage, so it could not be spun into thread later.

Zhang Xian had to recall the details countless times before he could remember them, so he decided to reel out the thread first.

The waist-operated spindles of the Eastern Han Dynasty were inefficient; each machine with one spindle could only produce one thread at a time.

He made some improvements as well, and with the improvement of his craftsmanship, he became more and more proficient in the skills and experience of hand-operated machinery.

The improved spinning wheel sat quietly in a corner of the room. The wheel was not large, but it was a three-spindle machine, hand-cranked, and could produce three threads at a time.

Of course, the more spindles there are, the more yarn can be produced at once, but he hadn't fully mastered the design of the spinning wheel, so he only managed to make a three-spindle spinning wheel.

He tucked the cotton wadding into a ball and placed it near the spinning wheel. He then twisted the wad of cotton into a thread and attached it to the spindle inside the spinning wheel.

The principle behind cotton fibers forming yarn is that they are pulled together at relative speeds by the entanglement between the fibers.

Cotton is characterized by its fibers being very easy to interlock, and its fibers are also relatively long, making it a good raw material for textiles.

Turn the spinning wheel, and the three spindles will also start to rotate at a constant speed. The three threads in the cotton pile will be wound and pulled out one after another, and the cotton thread will finally appear in my hands!
The cotton thread was drawn out like a silver snake, winding around the spindle. As time went by, the three spindles spun simultaneously, and the yarn frame and spindles, which were full of thread, became more and more voluminous.

"It's done!"

As the last wisp of cotton flew toward the spinning wheel, Zhang Xian cheered with great joy.

Once the thread is made, all the other finished products follow naturally.

With wired connections, the rest depends entirely on the tailor's skill; we don't need him anymore!

Cotton is good. Even if it cannot be widely promoted, as long as it can be equipped by the army, the combat effectiveness of Zhang Xian's soldiers will be greatly increased.

Take this time of year for example.

winter.

Compared to ordinary linen bedding, a quilt weighing seven or eight pounds is needed for a good night's sleep.

However, if it is a cotton quilt, the weight can be reduced by more than half.

Furthermore, the washing cycle for cotton bedding can be extended. Ordinary linen bedding needs to be washed every ten days to half a month or it will easily become moldy and rotten, but cotton bedding only needs to be treated once every thirty days.

They also have a long service life; linen typically reaches the end of its cycle in six months, while cotton often lasts for more than two years.

More importantly, this is Bingzhou!

The border regions are bitterly cold, and using cotton to insulate shoes can reduce frostbite by at least 30%, which can be considered an invisible boost to combat effectiveness.

Moreover, if cotton armor could be produced, its sound absorption effect would far surpass that of leather or iron armor, which would be of great help in night raids.

The core techniques of cotton cultivation are only cotton ginning and spinning. However, without switching to other cotton varieties, it is impossible to promote large-scale cotton cultivation. If we only use this type of cotton, we either need to win over the Xinjiang region or the Lingnan-Jiaozhi region. Otherwise, we still cannot cultivate it on a large scale.

"It seems it really is for military use first."

Zhang Xian bit his lip.

He arranged all the cotton threads neatly; about 100 pounds of cotton would only yield about 80 pounds of thread after being made into thread.

Most of the twenty pounds of loss consisted of drifting cotton fibers and short lint that couldn't be woven into threads.

He also has about 20 kilograms of cottonseed. He hasn't figured out what to do with the cottonseed yet, so he can only keep it as seeds.

I seem to have heard people talk about cottonseed oil before, but I also seem to have heard that cottonseed oil affects fertility, so I don't dare to do it for now.

After packing the cotton thread, he called out in the house, and two or three thin, fourteen or fifteen-year-old girls ran over to greet him.

"Master of the Household,"

"Heat the water in the bathroom so I can take a bath."

"promise!"

The three maids bowed and took their leave.

These three people were hired by him through Zhang's help from poor families.

They were considered servants. Zhang Xian gave them employment contracts with a salary of about a thousand coins per year, but room and board were included.

He hadn't been hired for even a day, so he had Zhang take care of her first.

Having once been the matriarch of a household, Madam Zhang knew how to teach people manners.

Upon hearing the name Zhang, Zhang Xian's eyes lit up, and he picked up the box containing cotton thread and went to find her.

In the back room, Zhang was mending her son's clothes; this was all she could do every day while staying in the courtyard.

Occasionally, he would also help Zhang Xian and Han Ji, these two bachelors, by mending their slightly damaged clothes.

"Sister-in-law, is this a convenient time?"

Zhang Xian's voice rang out from outside the door.

Zhang put down her needlework and stood up.

"Hey, here we come."

She opened the door and was startled to see Zhang Xian, a man with a pale face and beard, standing in the doorway. She quickly asked, "What's wrong, Your Excellency?"

"Oh, this? It's nothing, just some external things."

Zhang Xian patted himself, and cotton fluff flew everywhere.

Seeing that it was an external influence, Zhang breathed a sigh of relief. She and her son had finally met a benefactor. What would have happened if something had happened to the county magistrate?

Even without considering the future, this county official is truly a good man. It would be truly a tragedy if such a good person were to die young!
"The magistrate has come looking for my wife."

She hesitated and asked, "Zhang Xian rarely came to see me alone in the past. Could it be Wen Yuan?"
"Oh, is that so? Does your sister-in-law have any experience in weaving?"

"Weaving? Of course I know how to do that, Magistrate. Why are you asking?"

"That's good. Sister-in-law, look at this, could you help me spin it into cloth?"

Zhang Xian placed the box containing cotton thread in front of Zhang Shi.

When Zhang opened it, she saw more than twenty rolls of pure white silk thread.

She picked up a roll and twisted it, exclaiming in surprise, "This is silk? No, silk should be fine and smooth, Your Excellency, this is..."

Zhang Xian chuckled: "It's a new textile material. Sister-in-law, just go to the warehouse and withdraw money to buy whatever you need to spin it into cloth."

“Sister-in-law, this item is very useful to me. I hope you will do your best to weave it.”

"Oh, yes, I understand."

Although Zhang was still a little confused, she could only nod in agreement since Zhang Xian had said so.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, sister-in-law. I'm going to wash up; these cotton wadding wads are making me a little itchy."

Zhang Xian bowed respectfully, turned and left, heading towards the bathhouse.

(End of this chapter)