socalfunplaces Chapter 137 Turning Wood into Gold
Chapter 137 Turning Wood into Gold
Chapter 137 Turning Wood into Gold
Although the mouth of the Blackwater River is gentle, it cannot be directly utilized.
Across the river from the fish market, there are several narrow irrigation canals that gently guide the river water into deeper areas, filling them into square, shallow pools.
After being notified at each level, the officer in charge of guarding the paper mill rushed out.
"Sir Baron, we've come to see you," Joffrey said with a smile.
"Look, they even brought some gifts."
After Balon finished bowing, he looked at the gift and immediately frowned: "Your Majesty, we're so tired of eating fish."
"What about the meat? Are you tired of eating meat too?"
"A little—" Baron mumbled, then hurriedly shook his head, "No, no."
"His Majesty is benevolent, bestowing upon us the royal game from the royal gardens. This is a privilege we cannot enjoy even if we live in the city."
"With every bite they take, everyone will praise your kindness."
Check it out.
Even though I knew Baron had some needs, it still sounded comforting.
It's much more pleasant to hear than the stinky farts from hunting dogs.
"Alright, it's not like you're not allowed to go back to the city for vacation, why are you reminding me in such roundabout ways?"
Every seven days, soldiers can return to King's Landing once.
Joffrey also thoughtfully set up a time-off system so that they could accumulate their vacation days and use them all at once.
However, hunting rights were not fully liberalized; only a special hunting team was granted permission to provide extra meals for the soldiers during peacetime.
Although the Imperial Forest was vast and had abundant prey, it could not withstand the unrestrained hunting by nearly ten thousand people.
"I'll check your work after I've finished reading this part."
"Good construction will be rewarded; poor construction will bring gloating—"
Baron wiped away his cold sweat and retreated.
The paper mill is currently in the experimental stage, with a small production scale, and is under military control, prohibiting unauthorized personnel from entering or leaving.
This place is not far from the military farmland, and the management and construction work are all handled by Baron.
However, he could only follow orders and then direct the workers to do their jobs.
It's absolutely not acceptable to let him research and design on his own.
So Joffrey found a general manager, a bachelor.
Bachelor of Science degree.
The knowledge required for a bachelor's degree is extremely complex.
In addition to the most basic medical and ravens studies, one must complete many subjects and create a sufficient number of necklace links before officially advancing in rank.
This also meant that when nobles went to war, if they could not find reliable relatives or knights, they would often appoint scholars as their acting lords.
As a Grand Secretary serving the King and also holding the title of Royal Advisor, Paisell wore a chain around his neck far more than Qyburn, who did not.
But Pycelle thought the job was too lowly and refused to accept it, and Joffrey didn't trust him either.
The choice fell to Kobe.
After the war, the Old Town Academy was forced to reinstate his academic status, but did not return the necklace that had been taken from him.
But Coburn didn't care about any of that.
What he really wanted was official recognition of his knowledge and the power and status of a high-ranking position.
Talented people are always indispensable, even if they have some bad habits.
For example, when Cobain had free time, he always wanted to dissect a few living people for fun.
Then we can't let him be idle.
In addition to overseeing the paper business, Coburn also served as an accountant.
Aside from his initial few visits to the site, he remained in King's Landing to handle cost expenditures and budget distribution.
Only the technical backbone was permanently stationed at the paper mill.
And he finally emerged, his back hunched.
A fire mage.
"The wise man of Monticette," Joffrey nodded politely to him.
Seven layers of hell! It's amazing that such a bunch of freaks are driving Westeros forward.
Within King's Landing, the most deserving of the titles of scholars and researchers are these fire sorcerers.
Because the Harlin Sage had more important research work to do and couldn't spare the time, Joffrey sent Monsiet, with whom he had collaborated before.
He was in charge of the wildfire during the siege of Gaoting.
Monsitet was beaming and immediately tried to grab Joffrey's arm.
The hound reacted with lightning speed, instantly blocking in front of him, and drawing half of its longsword from its waist.
But Monsieur was not afraid at all, and gestured to Joffrey to follow him by circling around.
"Hehehe, Your Majesty, come and see! This miraculous change is a prime example of the revival of magic!"
Joffrey signaled to the hounds not to be nervous, and the group, guided by Monsiet, slowly ventured deeper into the paper mill.
"The wood cannot be used as raw material for the time being, whether it is a whole log, a board, or a chip, it is still rock hard after so long."
""
"The bark needs to soak for a few more days, but—hehehe, Your Majesty, you would never guess that the rags you ordered could actually turn into paper!"
There have already been results?
Joffrey also felt a bit curious.
Several people were squatting by the shallow pool, retrieving pieces of cloth that had been soaked in water.
Others, armed with axes, chopped the wet rags into palm-sized pieces.
In my memory, hemp rope and fishing nets also seem to be usable, but they are still in the experimental stage and have not yet entered mass production. Joffrey has not sent anyone to collect them on a large scale in King's Landing.
Besides, there are many people in the city who don't even have underwear to cover their bodies, so eventually they need to figure out how to make paper from wood or bark.
At this moment, the chopped ingredients are put into wooden barrels, washed in clean water, and finally loaded onto horse-drawn carts and pulled into the inner workshop.
Joffrey and his group followed closely behind.
A pungent smell hit him, causing Lancel to pinch his nose.
But to Joffrey, it smelled of civilization.
Inside the workshop, there was a long row of stone troughs filled with a grayish-black liquid. Workers poured the scraps into them and stirred them back and forth with rakes.
"This is wood ash water. I experimented for a long time before finding the perfect ratio. Hehe, Your Majesty, there are some that have already been prepared here. Come over here."
A layer of grayish-white foam floated on the surface of the stone trough next to it. The workers scooped out the debris and threw it into several large stone stoves.
A huge pot sat on the stove, steam billowing out, carrying the aroma of boiling plants.
"It only takes a day to cook until it falls apart. Too long won't work, and too short won't work either, hehe."
Passing through this courtyard, another ditch draws water from the Blackwater River, churning against a row of huge wooden waterwheels.
"Iron Belly, His Majesty is here! Hehe, quickly tell His Majesty about the treasures you've created!"
A blacksmith with arms as thick as a bull's neck turned around and hurriedly knelt down.
"Your Majesty, I didn't make this myself; I made it with Master Tob."
Tob had previously reported that the prototype of the water pump had been successfully tested, but he didn't expect it to be used here first.
Workers poured baskets of softened fiber into a stone mortar, where a stone mallet was lifted high by a waterwheel and then slammed down.
After hundreds of poundings, the raw material turned into a grayish-white paste, thick and delicate, like a bowl of white porridge.
Tsk, Joffrey suddenly misses rice.
The workers poured the pulp into a stone trough in another courtyard, soaked it in water, and stirred it evenly.
Another person grasped a wooden frame stretched with fine copper wire mesh, placed it steadily inside, and with a gentle flick of the wrist, lifted it up smoothly.
A thin layer of paste was applied to the copper wire mesh. Water droplets dripped from the mesh, but the fibers remained on the surface of the mesh.
He placed the wooden frame upside down on a flat wooden board, and with a gentle lift, a complete paper film remained on the board.
"Hehe, we tried many people, but none of them had a steady hand."
Sir Baron suggested hiring some fishermen to try it out, since they cast their nets from the boat every day.
"I didn't expect it to actually work!"
The process is not yet finished.
The wet paper films were stacked layer by layer on the wooden board, with a layer of fine linen between each film, and then several large stones were placed on top to weigh them down.
The pile of paper slowly sank, and moisture dripped onto the ground through the cracks in the boards.
The wet paper, after being pressed to remove excess water, was peeled off one by one and sent to the drying yard.
This is a wide-open highland.
Pale yellow sheets of paper hung in the air, gleaming brilliantly in the sunlight.
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