Rise of a Lonely City: From Exiled Prince to Ruler of the Nine Provinces

No groundbreaking inventions or creations immediately emerged after the establishment of the Institute of Gewu.

Most of the time, this place is filled with trivial, repetitive, and even failed experiments.

The prototype of the water-powered spinning machine fell apart on its first run; the kiln that tried to fire "refractory bricks" with different proportions cracked several times; the craftsman who was researching the wind-powered water-lifting device frowned at the blade model that was spinning randomly in the wind without any discernible pattern.

But Xiao Chen was not in a hurry.

He knew that it took time to go from accumulating experience to making theoretical breakthroughs, and from a flash of inspiration to stable production.

He would regularly visit the Institute of Physics to listen to reports from various departments, observe experiments, and raise questions that seemed far-fetched but were actually based on sound principles, such as "Why can an iron ship float on water?"

"What is the connection between lightning and static electricity?" This question prompts deeper reflection.

He encouraged documentation, requiring that even the smallest improvement or the most disastrous failure be recorded in detail, including the causes, process, and results, compiled into a book, and numbered for archiving.

Gradually, the warehouse of the Institute of Geology was filled with more and more "experimental records" and "displays of failed products".

Change accumulates in the smallest details.

Craftsmen began to make a habit of drawing sketches and discussing solutions before starting work; they began to value the recording and comparison of data; and they began to try different combinations of materials to solve problems.

The unique smells and sounds of the Gewu Academy have become a new scenic feature in the inner city of Hanyuan.

The turning point came in a seemingly unrelated field—burning lime.

The construction of cities, houses, and roads in Hanyuan required a huge amount of lime.

The lime kiln operates day and night, but the traditional firing method is time-consuming, has low output, and the quality is unstable.

An old kiln worker named Shi San from the Construction Department, along with his apprentice, had been working on the experimental kiln allocated to them by the Institute of Natural History for almost a month.

Their goal is to improve the burning process and increase the yield and "viscosity" of lime.

On this day, as usual, Shi San mixed the ground limestone and clay in different proportions and put them into a small kiln for calcination.

He tried adding small amounts of different things, such as gypsum and slag, and even tried changing the calcination temperature and time, recording the color, fineness, and water reaction of the product after each firing.

In one of the kilns, he inexplicably added a lot of discarded brick fragments from nearby brick and tile kilns, and also increased the calcination temperature and extended the calcination time.

After being removed from the kiln, what is obtained is a dark-colored, grayish-brown block with a texture that is much finer and harder than ordinary quicklime.

"Master, this kiln seems to have been overfired. It's all clumped together and is probably ruined." The apprentice picked up a piece, tapped it, and found it to be very hard.

Shi San was also somewhat disappointed, but he still followed the rules, ground it into powder, took a small pinch, and put it in water to observe.

Ordinary quicklime will release heat and boil violently when it comes into contact with water, turning into slaked lime slurry.

However, when this grayish-brown powder comes into contact with water, the reaction is much milder, only slightly heating up and slowly forming a viscous paste.

"Strange..." Shi San dipped his finger in the paste-like substance and found it very sticky.

He applied the paste to the broken surfaces of the two broken bricks and pressed them together forcefully. The apprentice thought his master was doing something pointless again and didn't pay any attention.

The next day, when Shi San routinely checked the previous test samples, he was surprised to find that the two broken bricks that had been glued together with that strange plaster the day before were now firmly stuck together!

He tried to bend it, but it wouldn't budge.

Even after adding more water, it remained firm. This is far more effective at bonding than ordinary lime mortar!

Moreover, the color and texture of this lime plaster are different from ordinary lime after it hardens.

He immediately realized that this might not be a simple case of "overburning," and hurriedly summoned several other craftsmen from the construction department, even alarming the blacksmith Ou.

After repeated testing, the people found that using this mortar to bond bricks and stones and build small walls resulted in a hardened strength and water resistance that far surpassed ordinary lime mortar and was even comparable to walls built with glutinous rice mortar!

The cost is far lower than that of glutinous rice mortar, which requires the consumption of grains.

The news quickly reached Xiao Chen.

Upon hearing the news, Xiao Chen immediately rushed to the Institute of Physics.

When he saw the exceptionally sturdy brick bonded together with grayish-brown "mud paste," along with the test records and remaining grayish-brown powder presented by Shi San, his heart skipped a beat.

This color, this texture, this water-reactive property... could it be... the prototype of cement?

Although it is still very primitive and far from being true Portland cement, it is undoubtedly a hydraulic cementitious material! In this era, it is simply a revolutionary discovery!

He suppressed his excitement and carefully inquired about the raw material ratio, calcination temperature, and time.

The addition of crushed brick powder inadvertently provided components such as silicon and aluminum, which reacted with limestone at higher temperatures in a manner similar to cement clinker.

"Master Shi, you've done a great job!" Xiao Chen patted Shi San's shoulder heavily, and the old kiln worker was flattered.

"Immediately, establish a special fund based on this!"

Xiao Chen addressed the blacksmith and the construction team, saying, "This substance will be temporarily named 'Stone Clay.' Establish a 'Stone Clay Research Group,' with Shi San as the group leader. The Institute of Natural History will provide full support—personnel and materials as needed!"

He quickly gave instructions: "First, conduct systematic experiments on the proportions of different limestones, different clays, and different additives to find the best formula."

Second, optimize the calcination process and determine the most suitable temperature, time, and kiln type.

Third, test the strength, hardening time, water resistance, and frost resistance of the "stone mud" mixed with sand and stone.

Fourth, conduct small-scale trial production, using it to actually build a section of city wall and pave a section of road to observe the long-term effects.

A series of orders set the Institute of Physics up and running at high speed once again.

The stone and mud processing group became the busiest place in the institute.

The small-scale kiln experiment was transformed into a medium-sized kiln experiment, and the formula records filled several large notebooks.

Adding a small amount of gypsum to "stone mud" makes the hardening time more controllable and seems to improve its strength.

Small components cast from a mixture of "stone mud" and sand are so hard that they amaze all the old craftsmen.

Half a month later, the first batch of "stone clay" produced according to the initially determined optimal process was officially produced in the kiln.

Xiao Chen immediately decided to use this batch of "stone mud" mixed with river sand and gravel to pour a small section of the city wall foundation and a section of the main road surface in the outer city new district that was being expanded, as a practical test.

It was late winter and early spring, and the ground had not yet fully thawed, making it difficult to carry out ordinary civil engineering projects. However, "stone-mud" construction has relatively low temperature requirements, which is just in time to lay a good foundation for the construction of the new city before spring plowing.

The news spread, and many people came to watch the "magical mud" city being built. The craftsmen mixed gray "stone mud" powder, river sand, and gravel in a specific ratio, added water to create a paste, poured it into pre-nailed wooden templates, and tamped and smoothed it with wooden rammers. The process was much faster than laying bricks and stones.

"Can this mud really hold together?" an old stonemason asked skeptically.

"Anything the prince makes is bound to be good! Have you forgotten about the waterwheel and the steel knife?" someone nearby retorted.

Several days later, the formwork was removed.

What is presented to people is a solid wall base that is bluish-gray, smooth, and seamless, as well as a road of the same material that is hard and smooth.

Some curious people tried to dig it up with a pickaxe, sparks flew everywhere, leaving only a shallow white mark. Water was poured on it, and it flowed away quickly, leaving no mud.

"Amazing! Absolutely amazing!"

Exclamations of surprise rose and fell. This "stone mud" was fast, strong, and water-resistant for building cities and paving roads. Its advantages for constructing city walls, fortresses, warehouses, and docks were self-evident! More importantly, its main raw material was not scarce in the North, and its cost was far lower than that of glutinous rice mortar, allowing for large-scale application!

Xiao Chen stood on the newly built "stone and mud" road, stepped on it hard, and felt the solid feedback from his feet, which made him feel at ease.

The advent of cement is no less significant than the improvement of steel. It will greatly enhance the infrastructure capabilities of Hanyuan, bringing about a qualitative leap in fortifications, roads, water conservancy facilities, and residential construction.

This means faster expansion, lower construction costs, and a more solid foundation for rule.

"Pass on the order!"

Xiao Chen said to Han Lie, who was accompanying him, "Choose a site in the south of the city to build a 'Stone and Clay Factory,' under the jurisdiction of the Industrial Construction Department, with technical guidance provided by the Stone and Clay Group of the Institute of Natural Sciences. Full production will begin after spring! Priority will be given to supplying materials for city wall reinforcement, road construction, and the construction of permanent housing in resettlement areas for displaced people!"

"yes!"

Han Lie excitedly agreed. He seemed to already see that in the near future, fortified cities built with "stone mud" and smooth "stone mud" roads would continue to extend across the northern land.

A seemingly "failed" experiment at the Institute of Physics unexpectedly yielded results that were enough to change the very foundations of matter.

Xiao Chen knew that once the seeds of science began to sprout, their vitality would be beyond imagination.

Cement is just the beginning. In this courtyard filled with the sounds of hammering, arguing, and strange smells, who knows what surprises it will bring next?

The foundation of the Cold Abyss is becoming harder and deeper at a speed visible to the naked eye.