Wizard Farming Guide

Chapter 60 The Origin of Blacksmiths

The forging of stainless steel and extraordinary equipment has been temporarily suspended.

However, in the process of developing the territory, steel smelting and production need to be put on the agenda.

Rhodes recalled the list of supplies to be purchased from abroad.

The deployment and repair of military weapons, farm tools such as shovels and axes used by residents to clear wasteland, and the structural framework of houses, etc.

The territory is facing a huge steel shortage.

So far, he can only supplement his supplies by purchasing finished products from outside sources.

This is not the situation a proper territory should be in.

Before he could start making steel, he needed to have a clear understanding of the resources in his territory.

"Sir, these are the land statistics reports from the two forestry and pastoral guilds. Please take a look."

The speaker was Pips, a statistician from Pingdingshan.

He bent down and handed a simple map to Rhodes.

Rod took it and spread it out on his table.

With the establishment of various guilds, the artisan guilds are busy reviewing the residents' professional skills and discovering talent.

They attracted craftsmen from outside the area to settle in Hekou Town by offering various favorable conditions.

In contrast to the hustle and bustle over there, the members of the Linmu Guild were running all over the mountains under the protection of the army.

They continuously recorded the terrain of various parts of the territory and collected soil samples to send to Rhodes.

With their cooperation, plus the ravens' observation from the sky.

Rhodes already had a fairly concrete impression of his two territories.

Hekou Town is located at the entrance of the Hanshui River Valley, with the Hanshui River to its left and the Hantu Plateau to its right.

Rhodes picked up a soil sample from beside the Coldwater River; it was the clay used to make terracotta bricks in the territory.

Its composition is complex, mainly containing kaolinite, quartz, mica, etc., mixed with a large amount of sand.

With the completion of the brickyard, the extensive excavation of the riverside soil allowed Rhodes to discover even more after analyzing its composition.

There's a small hill inside the brick factory, where the soil is kaolin, a type of silicate clay mineral.

Specifically, this stuff can be used to make clay refractory bricks, which are the most important material for building blast furnaces.

Beneath the clay, as it was continuously excavated, the majority of the soil components gradually transformed into quartz.

The clay was replaced with silica, which is mainly composed of quartz sandstone.

This stuff has so many uses, from glass and ceramics to cement. Currently, its most important application is in the manufacture of silica bricks.

Those are refractory bricks from coke ovens used for producing coke.

Although there are no traces of coal or iron ore in either territory—which is normal; if such strategic resources existed, they would have been occupied by a more powerful force long ago, and it wouldn't have been Rhodes' turn to develop them.

But it's not too bad. Resources are everywhere; what's lacking is the means to utilize them.

After setting the next goal, Rhodes hurriedly gathered the members of the Craftsmen's Guild.

They are going to start the initial construction of a blast furnace next to the brick factory in Hekou Town.

The Kingdom of Rosa had actually developed primitive blast furnace technology.

However, due to the presence of an unreasonable dwarf, the nobles lacked a strong desire for steelmaking, and the technology remained stuck at the very first step.

If the temperature and pressure are insufficient, the quality of the smelted pig iron will be poor, only slightly better than the original sponge iron.

In the end, it was only through repeated forging by the workers at the iron mine that the basic structure was finally formed.

As for whether it will become plate armor and swords, or turn into hoes and farming tools.

That all depends on the blacksmith's skill.

Anyway, that's the quality of pig iron; you can decide for yourself.

Rod didn't let this opportunity slip by.

Over the next two weeks, he led a group of residents to work along the Hanshui River, instructing workers to build a primitive blast furnace with bricks and stones.

Although the most troublesome sealing problem can be solved with a metallurgical binder, the structure of the blast furnace must be confirmed.

If you seal an unstable structure haphazardly, it will explode.

Blowing air is also a big problem. The water mill works well, but the problem is that the Hanshui River is about to freeze over.

Without any other source of power, workers had no choice but to rely on manual blowers to keep things going.

Half a month later, a tall, strange clod of earth stood out from the broken bricks and slag in the blast furnace area.

Holding the first piece of pig iron he had forged, Rod finally breathed a sigh of relief amidst the cheers of the workers around him.

Never mind whether this thing in front of us can be called a blast furnace.

Anyway, relying on the high temperature and pressure inside, if you throw in iron ore, it can produce pig iron.

As long as the functions are up to standard, what does it matter if the appearance is a bit ugly? Practicality is the most important thing.

Even if iron ore and coal can be purchased from outside, the cost is still much cheaper than buying finished products directly.

"I have the pig iron, my blacksmiths, why aren't you here yet?" Rhodes muttered to himself.

He left the blast furnace area and headed towards the commercial district of Hekou Town.

After this period of development, with the help of their own Jianling Chamber of Commerce.

The Craftsmen's Guild has already recruited many stonemasons, carpenters, and other craftsmen at Broken Dragon Fortress.

Led by a special guide, they arrived at Rhodes' territory.

With the help of these craftsmen, the construction of Pingdingshan Castle has now officially begun.

But this does not include blacksmiths.

In particular, there were no weapon craftsmen with superb skills who could forge pig iron into weapons.

As for the reason, it wasn't that Rod was unwilling to make the sacrifice.

If a weapon craftsman is willing to come to him, he will start with the treatment of an army squad leader.

A luxurious house and a generous salary—you won't find another like it in the entire kingdom.

The problem is that blacksmiths are a strategic resource of the territory.

Although their lives were much better than those of serfs thanks to their blacksmithing skills, their personal freedom was basically restricted by the lord.

Just as Rhodes was pondering a solution, Adledge, a businessman who understood his predicament, came to his door.

"Sir, if you really want a group of blacksmiths, I have a way."

Adlich quietly leaned closer to him and said.

Rod looked at him curiously, not surprised that he had a solution.

Adledge was considered one of the high-ranking members of the Sword Tomb Merchant Guild in Dragonbreaker Fortress.

His position is second only to the chairman in charge, and he has a wide network of connections.

In other words, Rhodes and the Chamber of Commerce have a special relationship.

Otherwise, even the Knights of the Round Table wouldn't have made him so eager to come here all the time.

Tell me about it.

"Sir, look, this is your River Mouth Town, and about fifty kilometers away is Mole Town."

Adlich spread out a map and pointed to a location on it for Rhodes.

"Mole Town is located on the border of the principality and was built on a small iron mine. Over time, the town has developed into a town with many blacksmiths and a large number of blacksmith apprentices."

After hearing this, Rod looked at him strangely, wondering if he had misunderstood something.

Although he directly captured Hekou Town and killed Mansaru in front of everyone.

But that's because there are legitimate reasons, or rather, reasons that are convincing enough to others.

Although there was no evidence, the moment the barbarians stepped into Pingdingshan, Rhodes no longer needed to worry.

Mole Town is the territory of the Northern Frost Duchy. We have no grudge against it. Wouldn't it be wrong to forcibly occupy it?

Rhodes pondered in his mind what suitable reason he could send troops.

At this point, Adledge added, "The situation in Moletown is special. It is jointly ruled by the local lords and local gangs, and the blacksmiths suffer brutal exploitation by the gangs, their situation being no better than that of the worst serfs."

"If you wish, sir, you could simply pretend you know nothing and secretly give these blacksmiths an escape route. They'll then desperately try to get here to you!"

Adlich said confidently, only to find that the adult in front of him looked a little strange.

"Sir, is there a problem with this plan?" He was startled and couldn't help but worry.

"Good suggestion." Upon seeing this, Rhodes quickly nodded with a smile.

So it wasn't a forced occupation after all. Sorry, I misunderstood.

(End of this chapter)