Li Mu kept making moves, and Li Shimin couldn't sit still. Finally, on the day before the Shangyuan Festival, he summoned Li Mu to the palace in the name of asking about preparations for the Shangyuan Festival.
Without any greetings, he went straight to the point. Li Shimin stared at Li Mu and said, "What are you doing? You can throw away one or two hundred thousand guan at every turn? You threw so much money into Lantian. When the time comes,
You will lose all your money, it depends on how you end it."
Li Mu laughed and said nothing. Li Shimin was stunned for a moment, and then felt a little embarrassed. It was only one or two hundred thousand guan, which was really nothing to Li Mu. He was not interested, sighed, and said: "Okay, I will
I don’t need to worry about you anymore. Please tell me clearly what’s going on?”
"Your Majesty, I have something for you to enjoy." Li Mu took out a piece of gray soil from his sleeve and handed it to Li Shimin. Li Shimin frowned, stretched out his hand to take it, and said doubtfully: "Isn't this just a stone...
Huh? It doesn't look like a stone, a compacted clod of soil?" He weighed it in his hands, shook his head, and said, "The clod of soil is not that hard." He looked up at Li Mu and said, "What on earth is this?"
"
"Haha," Li Mu smiled confidently and said, "Your Majesty, this is the cement in the rumors."
"Cement?" Li Shimin looked at the cement block in his hand and asked doubtfully: "What is this thing used for? Cement, with the word "water" in it, where is the water?"
"The so-called cement is because this thing is originally in powder form and needs to be mixed with water to form a mud, so it is called cement. As for the use of this thing, His Majesty has already seen it." Li Mu pointed to the soil in Li Shimin's hand.
Block, said: "It is a building material."
"Building materials?"
Li Shimin glanced at the cement block in his hand, thought for a moment, and said, "I probably understand what you mean, but is this thing practical?"
Li Shimin did not explain, but his words were still full of doubts.
Li Mu did not answer, but asked: "In your eyes, which city has the strongest walls?"
Li Shimin thought for a while and said: "If we talk about city walls, then the Great Wall must be the most comprehensive. The Great Wall of the Qin and Han Dynasties has survived for hundreds of years and is still extremely strong. But if it is the city wall, I think the city wall of Chang'an City should be
It is the most comprehensive. In the past, General Yu Wenkai was ordered to supervise the construction and used the same glutinous rice mortar as the Great Wall. It is said that one mile of city wall cost 60,000 kilograms of glutinous rice. This was the prosperous period of the former Sui Dynasty. Now, I can't afford to repair it.
.”
Li Mu added: "If I tell your Majesty that the cost of cement is only 10% of that of glutinous rice mortar, what would your Majesty think?"
"One, one percent!" Li Shimin suddenly stood up and stammered: "One, one percent?"
He made a simple calculation in his mind. Compared with the glutinous rice mortar, the hardness of this cement was almost the same, but the cost was only one-tenth. Although the current economic situation of the Tang Dynasty was not as good as that of the Sui Dynasty, it was
If the cost was one-tenth of the cost, it would still be affordable.
If cities near the border use this kind of 'glutinous rice' mortar, which costs one-tenth of the cost, to repair city walls and build fortresses, what kind of bandits will we have to worry about invading the border? Close the city gates and everyone will waste it. Regardless of winning or losing, your side will stand first.
In an invincible position.
"I have to see it with my own eyes!" Li Shimin looked at Li Mu seriously and said again as if to confirm, "I have to see it with my own eyes."
Li Mu had already guessed that Li Shimin would make this request and said with a smile: "Then I can only ask your Majesty to move to the valley. I just used cement to build a dormitory for the captains of the Martial Arts Hall the day before yesterday. Your Majesty can see with your own eyes how sturdy it is."
or not.”
"It was built the day before yesterday?" Li Shimin was not ignorant at all, and said: "The glutinous rice mortar will take at least five days..."
"Your Majesty, my cement can replace glutinous rice mortar from any angle. Your Majesty will know if you go and see for yourself."
Li Shimin became more and more excited. If cement could completely replace glutinous rice mortar at one-tenth the price, then its value would increase again, at least ten times!
Just imagine, two armies are facing each other. In two days, one side builds a city wall that takes care of everything. How much of a deterrent will it have to the enemy?
When Li Mu saw the light in Li Shimin's eyes, he guessed that he must have thought of the military use of cement again. He couldn't help but sigh in his heart. The longer he stayed in contact with Li Shimin, the more he felt that Li Shimin's ambition was extremely inflated. What was going on in his mind
Everything we do is preparation for war, including things like recuperation and recuperation, which are all for this purpose.
Li Mu had no doubt that if the Tang Dynasty had had the national power of the former Sui Dynasty, Li Shimin would not have stayed in Chang'an for a day. He would have conquered Goguryeo in the east and Tuyuhun in the west.
On this point, Li Mu and Li Shimin had somewhat different ideas.
Li Mu is not a warmonger, and he does not want to start a war. He just wants the people on his side to live a good life, not to be bullied, and no one dares to bully. This is enough. Any war, whether it is being invaded or invaded
Everyone else is going to die. The only difference is how many people die.
It took so much effort to let the common people have enough to eat and survive, just to let them die on the battlefield? Li Mu couldn't agree with this bullshit logic.
But Li Shimin definitely wouldn't listen to what he said now, so he didn't intend to say it. He was going to complete these things secretly, just do it subtly, without any discussion.
…
The group of people left the palace and came to the valley along the way. Li Shimin asked Eunuch Gao to go and greet Li Yuan instead of him, saying that he would be there soon, otherwise his father would have to find fault again. It was something that a person who was insulted during the Chinese New Year could not do anything, Li Shimin
Following Li Mu to the lecture hall where he had just attended the opening ceremony a few days ago, which was the site of the original Datang Technical School, he saw a row of newly built houses. In just a few days, the houses were completed. Li Shimin
I couldn't help walking forward, reaching out and touching it, trying to see if it was true.
When he got closer, he saw that the wall was made of bricks and stones, which had been completely glued together. There was a finger-width gray gap between the bricks. It looked uneven, with white frost appearing intermittently. Li Shimin
Li Mu raised his hand and punched him hard. Seeing that he was going to continue to harm himself, Li Mu quickly handed over an iron drill. Li Shimin took it and slashed it towards the crack of the brick. Amidst the harsh metal friction sound, there was only
It left a shallow scratch on it. Obviously it couldn't break the defense. Li Shimin tried another brick seam, but the effect was still the same. Li Shimin stepped forward unbelievingly and pressed hard on the wall seam with his fingers.
The cement solidified inside has the same hardness in every inch, like stone. No wonder the iron drill can't do anything about it.
Li Shimin pushed the wall hard again, but it didn't move at all.
Then he kicked hard with his feet and pushed hard with his shoulders, but the wall still didn't move.
Li Mu saw that Li Shimin was a little over the top, so he quickly grabbed him and persuaded him: "Your Majesty, the dragon body is important. It is not a crime to get along with a dead creature."
"I just want to see how strong it is!"
Li Mu hugged Li Shimin tightly and shouted loudly. Li Chongyi, who was observing the training of captains at the Jiangwu Hall, strode over and saw Li Shimin bowing and saluting.
Li Mu pointed at the cement wall, Li Chongyi nodded, took off the giant ax from his waist, swung it hard, and heard a loud sound of the ground shaking, and the entire cement wall fell down.
Li Chongyi coolly put away his ax, bowed and saluted, and went back to continue observing.
Li Shimin was so shocked that his jaw almost dislocated, and he praised: "This kind of divine power is hard to match in the world."
Li Mu said humbly: "Your Majesty, you have to praise me, you still have to learn. Some time ago, this boy competed with the Qiu-bearded Master, but he was still defeated. However, recently, the Qiu-bearded Master seemed to have taught him a method of Qi training, and this boy's strength has gradually improved.
It’s grown.”
Li Shimin didn't know what he thought of, and a sad look flashed across his face, and he said: "It's not necessarily a good thing to stop in moderation. I have a -" When the words came to his lips, he swallowed them back for some reason, changed the topic back, and looked
He said to the half-section of the wall that had fallen to the ground: "Even if it is broken, it is still whole. It seems that this kind of cement wall is really, as you said, very strong."
"The strength can be improved further." Li Mu said firmly: "What is being used now is only a sample in the process of Chen's development, and has not yet reached the state of a finished product. Moreover, the formulas are different depending on the purpose of use. It is best if they are all used.
The cost of the recipe would be too high.”
"I don't understand this, but I can see that this is a treasure." Li Shimin patted Li Mu on the shoulder and said, "Can you tell me where this thing can be used?"
"There are three main uses: construction, road construction, and embankment construction." Li Mu said seriously: "I plan to use all the cement initially to build roads, secondly to build embankments, and finally to build houses or city walls."
Li Shimin frowned slightly and said: "If such a good thing is used in a border town——"
"Your Majesty, I have told you a long time ago about the importance of road construction. The Tang Dynasty is vast and vast. Only by strengthening transportation can it be better connected. Only then can the imperial court better influence the local areas and materials from various places can be transported. Now there are no roads on the four sides.
Provocateur, although precautions are necessary, it is not urgent, Your Majesty."
Li Shimin knew that what Li Mu said was right, nodded, threw the iron drill aside, brought the topic back and asked: "This house was really built two days ago?"
Li Mu couldn't laugh or cry: "Your Majesty, why don't you believe this? When you came to attend the opening ceremony, did you see this row of houses?"
"Not really."
"Isn't this the end?" Li Mu spread his hands and said: "If your Majesty doesn't believe it, you can ask the directors of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. I can't catch anyone for the time being, but I also want to check whether these boys have forgotten the Datang Technical School.
I have basic skills, so I called them over to build the wall. The section of wall that Your Majesty just knocked on was built by Changsun Chong, do you think it’s okay?"
After speaking, Li Mu praised again: "This kid Changsun Chong, why didn't I see that he was so promising before? He has been very busy this year, but he has not fallen behind in these basic skills. I checked the Ministry of Industry a few days ago
I went through the files and found that this guy actually took the time to take the vocational skill level assessment of the Ministry of Industry. The skill level of the bricklayer has reached the technician level, and he has not forgotten his original intention. It is really gratifying for me as a teacher."
"I really don't understand what the point is that you care about." Li Shimin snorted and said: "In my opinion, Changsun Chong is already a young talent who can stand on his own. Can he be a bricklayer or a carpenter?
, what’s the difference? It’s a complete waste of time to put your mind on this kind of thing.”
"Otherwise, Your Majesty!" Li Mu said seriously: "That's definitely not the case. Changsun Chong is the top disciple of my Xiaoyao sect. Although my disciple looks like Meng Lang, he has his own set of rules, which is
, all apprentices must have their own skills, regardless of type, but they must have it. For example, Changsun Chong, who has a wide range of interests, is pretty good at carpentry and masonry, but like Qingque, he is far behind in this aspect. He specializes in
What he is doing is mechanism technique, and I have already told him that if he does not meet my standards this year, he will no longer be my apprentice in three months."
Li Tai is Li Shimin's favorite son. How could he be happy when Li Mu said these words in front of him? He snorted and said, "My Qingque will be your apprentice. Will I suffer the loss or you?"
Li Mu chuckled and said: "I have already said that everyone has their own opinions. Of course Qingque is my good brother, but when he wants to learn from me, he must be an apprentice. Every apprentice has an assessment standard, Qingque
Whether he can learn the mechanism technique that Qingque chose by himself is his own problem. One thing is the same, and I hope it can be simpler, and only talk about brothers with Qingque."
"That's impossible." Li Shimin would not be fooled by Li Mu, and said: "When I hand Qingque into your hands, you must teach him well. If you want to give up the job, I can't agree to it.
.”
Li Mu sighed helplessly, what else could he say?
Li Shimin looked at the cement again and said: "This thing is a treasure. You must protect the formula. If it falls into the hands of a wealthy family, it will be a great disadvantage to the court."
Li Mu understood the meaning. This was a hint that he should hand over the formula himself. How could this be possible? A company had already been established, and the shareholders bought the stocks with real money. It was completely a 'private enterprise', not a 'national enterprise'.
'That's it.
Li Mu looked back and said: "Your Majesty, the formula has not been completely determined, and different cements have different formulas. For example, the cement formula in front of you is only known to me, so your Majesty does not need to worry at all, and no one can follow it.
The recipe was snatched from my mind."
After that, he smiled and said: "I am the one who invented cement. As long as I don't tell others, no one will know the formula."
Li Shimin's expression changed for a moment, but he quickly returned to normal. He also understood Li Mu's words. I am the only one who knows the formula of cement. This is another amulet. If I am no longer in this world, the cement will also disappear together!
Li Shimin couldn't help feeling a little emotional. Sure enough, once something happens, something has to be changed. Some things can't be taken back, just can't go back.
He also smiled, patted Li Mu on the shoulder, and said: "Let's go, come with me to pay respects to the Supreme Emperor. Tomorrow is the Lantern Festival. Let's see where the Supreme Emperor plans to spend it. If he returns to the palace, I will be happy to greet you."