Two thousand healthy soldiers were recruited, and Li Zhi asked them to report next month. This month, Li Zhi will seize the time to build soldier barracks. Li Zhi is going to let eight soldiers per room, so he will build 250 barracks.
Building so many houses in one month required a large number of construction workers. Li Zhi almost recruited all the masons and carpenters around Tianjin.
When he learned that the building Li Zhi wanted to build was a barracks for soldiers, Tao Youmao, the head mason, was very surprised and asked in amazement: "Master Guan, you actually want to build such a big barracks? How many soldiers will it need to accommodate?"
This Tao Youmao is a thin middle-aged man with two long mustaches on his lips. When he talks, his two beards twitch, which is very funny.
Although the number of soldiers hired is not a secret, Li Zhi is not willing to let too many people know. At least when he fights against slaves or bandits in the future, he cannot let the enemy know his details clearly. After looking at Tao Youmao, Li Zhi said
: "Don't ask any more questions, just organize the manpower to build it!"
Tao Youmao agreed repeatedly, but then sighed: "The sergeants in charge of the team are more than the garrison of the city! It's chaos, it's really chaos!"
Li Zhi glared at Tao Youmao and cursed: "Don't go out and talk nonsense. If you do, I will cut out your tongue!"
Hearing the official's scolding, the craftsman shrank his head and said with a smile: "Guan Ye, how can I say nonsense? I'm really surprised. I just said a few words to myself. I will never say anything outside!"
After thinking about it, Tao Youmao said again: "Master, you are so courageous. You have raised so many soldiers. You will definitely achieve great success in war in the future! Become a thousand households, no, be a general soldier!"
Li Zhi had experienced many things in the past few months. He felt that he would not be able to survive without an official position in the late Ming Dynasty, but he was looking forward to becoming a high official. He smiled and replied: "Then I'll give you good luck!"
Tao Youmao looked at Li Zhi's face and saw that Li Zhi was not unhappy, so he asked again: "Why isn't the official's barracks built in the city? If the Tatars come in the future, won't they be safe?"
Li Zhi smiled and said: "This area to the north of Zhuangzi will be built into a city in the future. I want to build a city with a circumference of two thousand steps, with walls covered with bricks and four gates!"
The head craftsman was stunned for a moment and murmured: "The official is so ambitious. The official wants to build a city as big as a county seat!"
Li Zhi nodded proudly and said, "That's right. You will be able to see this new city in a few months!"
"As expected of the Li family in the east of Tianjin!" Tao Youmao sighed with emotion, and suddenly became a little anxious. He rolled his eyes, knelt down in front of Li Zhi with a thud, knelt on the ground and said flatteringly: "Official
Master, you have to give me some of the work of building the city wall and covering it with bricks. I have more than two hundred craftsmen who are waiting for the work to start every day and make a living!"
Li Zhi said seriously: "It depends on the quality of the barracks you build. If the barracks are of good quality, I will give you the work of building the city wall!"
Tao Youmao kowtowed on the ground and said, "Don't worry, sir, we will work very hard to build these barracks!"
Now that the city wall is about to be built and cementitious materials need to be used on a large scale, Li Zhi will start making cement.
In the Ming Dynasty, Sanhe soil was used to bond masonry. The book "Tiangong Kaiwu" records: "For tombs and water storage tanks, divide the ash into river sand, divide the loess into two parts, and mix it with glutinous rice and sheep peach and vine juice.
..It’s called Sanhe soil. This kind of Sanhe soil requires glutinous rice, which is very expensive, which directly led to the high cost of ancient Chinese civil engineering projects. And compared with cement, the quality of this Sanhe soil is far inferior.
When Li Zhi built a city wall to protect his life, of course he had to use the best materials.
Li Zhi chose to produce Portland cement, which was simple to produce, strong and durable in the early 19th century.
The cost of Portland cement is much lower than that of Sanhe soil, but the effect is even better than Sanhe soil. Cement is not only used to build city walls. With the expansion of Li Zhi's career, the amount of civil engineering work everywhere in the future will definitely not be small. This kind of cement
Use it everywhere.
Limestone and clay are required to bake Portland cement. After firing, a small amount of gypsum is added as a retardant. Limestone and clay are extremely cheap and easy to obtain. Li Zhi found a miner and ordered 100,000 kilograms of limestone and three ounces of limestone.
Ten thousand kilograms of clay cost only a few dozen taels of silver. Gypsum was also mined in the late Ming Dynasty and was used as a medicinal material. It was not very expensive. Li Zhi found a big medicine shop in Tianjin city and bargained for three cents a day.
The price of one thousand kilograms of gypsum was set at the price of one kilogram.
Cement production pays attention to two grinding and one burning. Before calcining, the limestone and clay must be ground into powder. They are calcined at a high temperature of 1,300 degrees in a vertical kiln. After calcining, the cement obtained must be ground into powder again.
Li Zhi built several factories outside the south gate of Fanjiazhuang and surrounded them with walls. They were used as a factory for producing Portland cement. There were thirty large stone mills in the factory, pulled by donkeys, specifically used to grind materials and finished products.
Li Zhi also used three taels of silver a month to hire four lime craftsmen who could make quicklime, and asked them to set up vertical pits in the factory to bake cement.
Li Zhi directed the craftsmen to grind the materials into powder, mix the limestone in a ratio of three to one, and send it to the vertical kiln for calcination. The vertical kiln gradually heated up, and after calcination at the highest temperature for three hours, the fire was turned off, and cooked pieces in the shape of large and small stones were obtained.
Li Zhi asked the lime masons to pour the clinker onto a stone mill and grind it into powder, and then added some gypsum as a retarder.
The four limemakers followed Li Zhi's instructions and got the first batch of test products. Li Zhi took it and tried it: mix cement powder with water to make a paste, and apply it on the brick to bond another brick. Wait for the cement to dry.
Finally, Li Zhi grabbed a brick and lifted the two bricks.
The second brick could still stick to the first brick at first, but after a slight shake, the second brick fell off.
The first batch of cement experiments failed and failed.
Li Zhi was a little annoyed. He thought for a while and checked the formula of Portland cement in his memory again. After confirming that it was correct, Li Zhi felt that the temperature of the vertical cellar might not be enough.
Li Zhi walked up to the vertical cellar that was two people high, looked back and forth, turned to the most experienced craftsman and said, "Boss Liang, the temperature is not enough now, can the temperature of your cellar be increased?"
As an industrial designer, Li Zhi knew the formula of Portland cement, but he had no research on vertical pits of burned lime. He could only rely on the craftsmen of this era. After saying this, Li Zhi looked at it a little nervously.
Boss Liang.
Mr. Liang replied respectfully: "My lord, it can still be improved, but the vertical cellar needs to be renovated."
Li Zhi's face lit up with joy, he patted Mr. Liang on the shoulder and said with a smile: "Then change it quickly! Hurry up!"
Those lime craftsmen were also experienced at controlling the vertical cellar. It took them three days to modify the vertical cellar and raise the temperature.
After firing the second furnace, Li Zhi finally produced the world's first qualified Portland cement.
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Thank you book friend 160829025118860, Res丿Magic Pen for the reward
