Chapter 397: The First Chemical Factory
San Shier was left utterly bewildered, and his strategists looked just as lost.
Li Daoxuan, however, was amused. So this was it, he realized—one of the earliest harbingers of the Industrial Revolution.
The advent of advanced production tools had propelled the textile industry forward, leaving its supporting sectors struggling to keep pace. To bridge this gap, every related industry would be spurred into a rapid, collective advance.
"Fascinating!" he thought. "Time to sit back and enjoy the show." He was thoroughly pleased.
Li Daoxuan continued to enjoy his spicy wontons, watching the unfolding spectacle.
Once Chun Hong finished explaining the textile production process, San Shier and his strategists finally grasped that it demanded enormous quantities of alkali.
San Shier ordered, "Someone go to the Craftsman Well and fetch our alkali artisan."
Soon after, the alkali artisan arrived.
Gao Family Village had never before possessed the means to produce its own alkali. The women had always bought the alkali for their fabrics from the county town. It was only after Xing Honglang spent a sum of money to convince an alkali artisan from Xi'an to join them that Gao Family Village finally established its own alkali production.
San Shier asked, "I hear our village is running short on alkali?"
The alkali artisan immediately looked sheepish. "Yes, that's right. It's severely insufficient. Every day, the women hound me to produce more."
San Shier said, "If the women need alkali for weaving, then just produce more. Inform the master artisans; we'll allocate more funds for production."
The alkali artisan's face fell. "It's not a matter of wages, sir. Even if I had three heads and six arms, and brought on dozens more apprentices, it still wouldn't be enough."
San Shier frowned in confusion.
The alkali artisan explained, "Once those steam engines start, the textile machines practically fly! They work non-stop, day and night. How can I possibly keep up with that speed? The method I currently use to make alkali involves soaking mugwort and knotweed in a cellar, then thoroughly sun-drying them. After they're completely dry, I pour water over them and mix it to produce a batch of lye. If you simply review that process in your mind, you'll understand how incredibly slow it is."
San Shier considered this, realizing the artisan was right. This method of alkali production sounded much like making vinegar or wine, requiring significant fermentation time. "So what's to be done?" he asked. "Do you know any other alkali artisans in Xi'an? Perhaps we can recruit more. Or should we manage more alkali ponds?"
The alkali artisan shook his head, a frantic shake. "With my meager skills, I'll never keep pace with those steam engines, and there are more of them every day! Those blacksmiths are like tireless beasts, constantly forging steam textile machines, churning them out one after another. Every new machine adds to the demand for alkali. Unless I knew immortal magic, these relentless machines would surely work me to death!"
Li Daoxuan inwardly chuckled, "Hahaha! A small handicraft workshop, indeed! Experience the overwhelming power of the Industrial Revolution."
"But we must find a solution, mustn't we?" San Shier insisted.
The alkali artisan shook his head. "I have no solution."
Chun Hong exclaimed, "Oh no! Does that mean we're finished?"
The group exchanged bewildered glances.
Li Daoxuan was secretly amused. *At a time like this, you ought to be thinking of the school,* he mused. *It all depends on whether you can make that connection.*
Just then, the doors to the deliberation hall opened, and San Shier's third daughter slipped inside, carrying a bowl of tremella soup.
She smiled as she handed it to San Shier. "Father, here's some tremella soup."
San Shier's daughter was already sixteen this year, having blossomed into a graceful and elegant young woman.
She was unlike typical young ladies from prominent families, not one to seclude herself indoors all day. Instead, she was regularly seen at the school,
teaching children mathematics. She was also diligently self-studying various middle school textbooks, having already mastered them and now progressing to the high school curriculum.
San Shier, still looking troubled, accepted the tremella soup. After a small sip, a smile softened his features. "So sweet! My good daughter, you've brewed it perfectly. This bowl of soup is simply 'Sweet and Rich'."
His daughter smiled. "What are you fretting about, Father? Your features are all crinkled with worry."
San Shier gestured towards Chun Hong. "Shopkeeper Chun just reported that we're running out of alkali. I summoned the alkali artisan to ask, and he says he can't produce it fast enough."
"Oh? Alkali?" his daughter smiled. "That's just sodium hydroxide! It's not actually that difficult; it just involves many steps and requires several chemical raw materials... mainly sodium carbonate solution and lime..."
She chattered away, explaining the entire method for producing sodium hydroxide, but as she spoke, everyone present looked utterly baffled, completely unable to comprehend a word.
Even Li Daoxuan, the Heavenly Lord who had long since "returned his middle school chemistry to his teacher," was bewildered for a considerable time. Only after frantically apologizing to his chemistry teacher in his mind did he barely manage to grasp the explanation.
Modern people learned a vast array of subjects, but they rarely had the opportunity to apply that knowledge practically, so after a few years, it was often completely forgotten.
Fortunately, the children of Gao Family Village didn't have this problem!
The mathematics, physics, and chemistry they were currently learning were genuinely applicable to every aspect of their lives.
Li Daoxuan's lips curled into a slight smile. *Excellent! The younger generation, those who have learned modern scientific knowledge, are gradually stepping onto Gao Family Village's stage. Following Young Master Bai, San Shier's daughter is also beginning to make her mark. Next, even more children will surely rise to the occasion.*
*Could Gao Sanwa be next?*
*Gao Sanwa, who skips class all day long and insists 3 + 2 = 32, will he truly step up?*
Li Daoxuan felt a mountain of pressure.
San Shier announced, "Did everyone hear that? My brilliant daughter has just explained the method for mass-producing alkali! Especially you, artisan, why aren't you hurrying to get started?"
The alkali artisan's sweat poured down his face. "This... I couldn't understand a word! What are sodium carbonate and sodium hydroxide? I have no idea!"
His daughter laughed. "Sodium hydroxide is caustic soda, and sodium carbonate is soda ash."
The alkali artisan finally understood a little. He knew how to make both kinds of alkali; he just produced them slowly. As he mentally reviewed the materials for making them, he finally grasped the steps his daughter had just described. Yet, he understood only the procedure, not the underlying principles.
His daughter giggled. "You don't actually need to understand the specific principles. Just like making cement, first you build an alkali factory, then prepare all the machines and materials needed for the process I just described, and then you can start production!"
During the manufacturing process, you only need to master some very basic operating procedures."
Exactly. In modern chemical factories, not everyone understands the underlying chemical principles. The actual operators, in fact, don't need to grasp the theory at all; they simply need to follow the standardized operating procedures provided by technicians.
The plan would come from chemists, the machines would be built by Song Yingxing, the materials extracted by miners, and the chemical factory operated by workers... A modern chemical factory required a colossal chain of operations, far beyond what a single alkali artisan could manage alone.
Li Daoxuan gave San Shier's daughter a massive thumbs-up.
San Shier, naturally, threw his full support behind his daughter's plan. Without a word, he immediately allocated the necessary funds. Gao Family Village's first alkali chemical factory—and indeed, the world's first chemical factory—was about to begin operations...
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