Duke of Zhenguan

Chapter 104 Bamboo Paper

Because paper is too expensive, they want to improve papermaking technology?

Do you really think improving papermaking is as simple as improving a crossbow?

But looking at Lin Chuan's serious face, Li Shimin felt a strange sense of anticipation, because he hadn't really believed Lin Chuan when he said he could turn poisonous salt into refined salt.

"Hopefully this kid will surprise me again!"

Li Shimin sighed inwardly, then turned to Zhang Anan beside him and said, "Go and ask the Empress to send someone to take him to the imperial estate!"

"Here you go!"

Zhang Anan bowed in agreement, descended the imperial steps, and said with a smile to Lin Chuan, "County Lord Lin, please!"

After taking Lin Chuan out of Xiande Hall, Zhang Anan told Lin Chuan to wait outside Chengtian Gate while he went to report to Empress Zhangsun.

Empress Zhangsun now manages the imperial estate. After Zhang Anan explained it in detail, Empress Zhangsun immediately sent two people to take Lin Chuan to the papermaking workshop inside the estate.

With Xu Laosan by his side, and two eunuchs from Empress Zhangsun's side, they left the palace, exited Fanglin Gate, and arrived at a secluded manor outside the city.

Looking at the military camps near the manor, Lin Chuan clicked his tongue in amazement. He directly stationed his army there, wondering how many workshops were hidden in this imperial manor.

After passing two sentry posts and countless hidden sentries, the group of four finally arrived at a large courtyard. Upon entering, a fat, big-eared eunuch bowed obsequiously to two eunuchs: "This humble servant greets Steward Li and Steward Zhao!"

"Steward Tian, ​​this is Earl Lin. Earl Lin wants to improve the papermaking technique, and Her Majesty the Empress has instructed Steward Tian to fully cooperate!"

"The leader, Manager Li, said in a deep voice."

Those appointed as workshop managers in the imperial estate were all confidants of Empress Zhangsun, and Tian Shu was no exception. Upon hearing that it was Empress Zhangsun who had given the order, he quickly bowed and replied, "Yes, sir, I will certainly cooperate fully with Earl Lin!"

"Lord Lin, please feel free to instruct Steward Tian if you need anything. I will then return to report to Her Majesty the Empress!" Steward Li said to Lin Chuan with a smile.

"Thank you for your trouble, Manager Li!" Lin Chuan cupped his hands in greeting.

After seeing Steward Li off, Tian Shu respectfully said to Lin Chuan, "Lord Lin, may I take you into the workshop for a look?"

"Thank you for your help, Manager Tian!"

After following Tian Shu on a tour of the papermaking workshop, Lin Chuan realized that he had been too presumptuous. The papermaking workshop was very large, with dozens of people busy at each stage of the process.

He had carefully examined every step of the process and it seemed there was nothing that needed improvement.

There are many types, including hemp paper, paper mulberry bark paper, paper mulberry bark paper, and rattan paper.

Logically speaking, as long as the raw materials are available, the output should not be low. So why is Chang'an's paper so expensive?

When he voiced his question to Tian Shu, Tian Shu opened his mouth, then after a long pause, said to Lin Chuan, "Lord Lin, you may not know this, but most of the paper produced in this workshop is sent to the capital. The palace and the government offices of the Three Provinces and Six Ministries all use paper from this workshop! It's not sold!"

"I see!"

Lin Chuan suddenly realized that this made sense.

Just now in the palace, he had confidently told Li Shimin that he would improve papermaking technology. Now, it seemed impossible for him not to offer something in return. After thinking for a while, Lin Chuan finally came up with an idea. He cupped his hands in greeting to Steward Tian and asked, "Steward Tian, ​​this paper must be expensive to make, right?"

"Uncle Lin, there's no such thing as cheap papermaking. Just purchasing the raw materials is a huge expense, and it takes a long time—" Tian Shu replied cautiously, not knowing what Lin Chuan meant.

Gui, which was exactly what Lin Chuan wanted to say, asked Tian Shu with a smile, "Has Manager Tian had his men try making paper from bamboo?"

Tian Shu had been managing this paper mill for over three years and had some understanding of papermaking technology. After listening to Lin Chuan's words, he thought about it and felt that it seemed feasible.

If bamboo could be used to make paper, it would save a lot of trouble in the raw material stage.

Bamboo grows much faster than hemp, paper mulberry, or mulberry.

The more Manager Tian thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. Excitedly, he cupped his hands in greeting to Lin Chuan and said, "Lord Lin, please wait a moment. I'll go find a craftsman to inquire right away!"

A short while later, Manager Tian brought over a craftsman with gray hair and beard.

The craftsman bowed respectfully to Lin Chuan: "Greetings, sir!"

Lin Chuan didn't give the craftsman a chance to speak and said directly, "No need for formalities, sir. I heard from my teacher a long time ago that people in the Sichuan region use bamboo to make paper in large quantities. It is not only cheap to make, but also produces a lot of paper, and the paper is very lightweight!"

The downside is that paper made from bamboo is brittle and not easy to preserve!

When you're experimenting, you might try adding some other materials to see if you can improve the result and achieve the best of both worlds!

The craftsman looked awkwardly at Manager Tian.

"Old Master Chu, this County Earl Lin was sent by the Empress!" Steward Tian said with a smile.

"I will take some people to try it right away!" Upon hearing that the craftsman was sent by the Empress, he said respectfully without further ado.

After the craftsman left, Steward Tian led Lin Chuan on a tour of the workshop, then smiled and said to Lin Chuan, "Lord Lin, is there any room for improvement in these processes?"

"Manager Tian, ​​the Institute of Physics in Shanglin Garden has developed a water-powered forging hammer driven by a waterwheel. With a few modifications, it can be used to pound paper pulp, which is not only more labor-saving but also more efficient!"

"If Manager Tian is interested, I'll have someone say that a batch will be sent to him!" Lin Chuan said, pointing to the craftsmen pounding pulp with a mortar and pestle.

"Thank you very much, Lord Lin!"

Tian Shu hadn't expected that his casual remark would actually yield some results, so he quickly bowed and replied.

As a eunuch, gathering all sorts of information had long been instinctive for him. He naturally knew about the water-powered forging hammer and also knew that the Junior Supervisor of the Imperial Workshop had been severely reprimanded by His Majesty the Emperor for this matter.

"Manager Tian, ​​if bamboo paper is successfully made, please send someone to the Institute of Physics to let me know!" Lin Chuan said.

"Don't worry, Lord Lin, once the experiment yields results, I will send someone to inform you immediately." Tian Shu readily agreed.

The paper issue has been resolved. With the resources of the paper mill in the imperial estate, it's only a matter of time before they can produce cheap and mass-produced bamboo paper.

Moreover, when Lin Chuan left the imperial estate, he asked Steward Tian to send someone to his wasteland in Chengjiazhuang to guide the craftsmen in building a simple papermaking workshop.

Every day, Li takes people to the wasteland to check on the progress of land reclamation.

Sometimes she would even personally go to the fields to grab the hoe. When she saw Lin Chuan bringing people to inspect the paper mill, she finally couldn't help but ask him softly during dinner, "Big Brother, how much paper can you make with such a small workshop? Besides, hasn't Her Majesty the Empress already arranged for the paper mill in the imperial estate to make paper for you? Why did you build another workshop?"

"Mother, the paper we make in this paper mill isn't for writing!" Lin Chuan coughed lightly and said softly.

"Not for writing? Is it for making joss paper?" Li asked.

"Uh, no, Mother will know once it's made!" Lin Chuan said awkwardly.