Chapter 157 Machine Tool

"Squeak--" The craftsman Qian Shiwu blew a whistle hard, his dark face tightly, as if facing thousands of troops in front of him.

The four blacksmith apprentices with red upper bodies quickly bowed down, carried the newly cast copper cannon with a bar, took small steps, and walked towards a long stone-faced platform not far away. The cannon body had not completely cooled down, and the iron chains passing through the front and rear gun ears were so hot that the four apprentices were sweating profusely. However, each of them dared not spare his hands to wipe it, for fear of being distracted, causing the cannon body to tilt and touch themselves or their companions.

If you encounter it, you will lose at least half your life. The copper cannon is not very heavy, only more than 530 kilograms. Even if you press it completely on one person, you may not be able to crush it to death. However, the temperature of the copper cannon is so high that it is afraid of people. If you rub it casually, it will smell burnt. If you accidentally touch it, a life will be announced, and even a god cannot save it.

Last month alone, six apprentices were scalded to death because they were distracted while working, and three others did not die on the spot. They are still suffering from lying in the clinic run by Semuren. However, there are still people who come to apply for apprentices in the workshop. No one else, they not only take care of food, but also pay wages. When the two-year apprenticeship period ends, they can get the salary of a formal worker. If they accidentally smoke from the ancestral grave and are promoted to a craftsman or even a master, they will have no worries about food and clothing for several lifetimes.

Although he was less free after becoming a craftsman, look at the current prodigal women who spent the most money in Huai'an City. How many men who did not rely on being craftsmen? Even the aunts and ladies in Huai'an City all regarded craftsmen as their first choice for son-in-law. They also summarized several conditions that made women most moved, "First, make more money. Second, they have workshops to manage food and clothing, and spend less. Third, they are either day shifts or night shifts every day, and they are busy like gyros. There is absolutely no need to worry about them going out to visit casinos and kilns."

"Squeak-Squeak-Squeak-!" Qian Shiwu's whistle sounded again, ordering the apprentice to stop. He walked forward and rubbed the pig railway tracks on the counter with his fingers. He ordered loudly, "Old Liu, have the trolley wiped? Get on the trolley, hurry up!"

"Here, come, come!" The famous bearded old craftsman directed two apprentices and quickly placed a four-wheeled iron truck underneath on the track. "Wipped three times to ensure that it was clean enough to slip on the flies!"

"You're talking too much!" Qian Shiwu said unhappily, then quickly turned his head to the apprentices who were holding the cannons, "Hurry up and put the cannons into the trolley, hurry up. Zhao Dazhao Er, you two fix the gun ears in front. Zhang Wu, Xu Liu, you two fix the rear gun ears. Lao Liu, you two bring your two apprentices to flatten the body of the car."

Six apprentices, a craftsman, under his command, quickly put the copper cannon into the iron trolley, and tied it firmly with the keyhole on the trolley with the iron chain passing through the ears of the cannon. The pre-made triangle pad was carefully stuffed to the contact point between the front end of the cannon and the trolley. The muzzle was raised little by little and lifted, and the barrel and the millstone at the end of the track were paired into a straight line. The craftsman Lao Liu observed it again, and was sure that the barrel was completely level. He took a deep breath and stuffed the large mass of mud into the gap between the tackle and the cannon.

"Shishesheshesheshesheshesheshes--!" The mud was scalded and the smoke rolled, with the smell of beastly urine, which filled the air, making people's eyes turn red. Craftsman Qian Shiwu, craftsman Liu Laoshi, and the apprentices didn't care about rubbing their eyes. His eyes were staring at the millstone at the end of the track.

The front end of the grinding stone is oval, with a maximum diameter equal to that of the cannon bore. The second half of the grinding stone is on a thick and straight iron rod. The iron rod is about six feet long and the tail end is forged with a thicker iron rod. The thicker iron rod passes through several fine iron brackets and a thin wall, leading to the outside of the shed, a large water truck that is two stories high.

"Squeak-!" Qian Shiwu's whistle sounded again. Everyone pushed the trolley with their arms at the same time, slowly leaning towards the grinding stone. The muzzle was close to the grinding stone, close to it, and closer to it little by little. Suddenly, a harsh friction sounded, causing everyone's internal organs to stir together and roll up and down. Golden sparks were sprayed out from the muzzle, dazzling.

"Squeak-Squeak-Squeak-Squeak-" Qian Shiwu's whistle changed tone, short and exciting. A craftsman, a craftsman, and six apprentices. Following the rhythm of the whistle, he continued to push the cannon forward, forward, and forward. He was fully focused and stared.

Sweat flowed like a river, passing through everyone's bronze skin, illuminated by sparks, and exuded a charming color. The shoes under their feet were quickly wet, and the stone-paved ground began to slip. However, they did not dare to pause, dared not bow their heads, and continued to push the chariot forward with all their strength, and the angular faces exuded the unique piety of the creator.

"Dong--!" The muzzle touched the baffle at the end of the railway track, making an empty sound. Qian Shiwu's face was happy, and quickly dropped the whistle and blew it from the other end, "Shh--shh--shh, shh--shh--shh, shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh--shh"

Everyone followed the whistle and began to push the iron cart to retreat. The red star also emerged from the muzzle, but it was much dimmer than before. Suddenly, the muzzle lit up again, and a golden river sprouted out. Then, the gun body and the millstone were completely separated, and under the action of inertia, it quickly slid toward its position.

"Old Liu, test the cannon chamber. Zhang Wu and Xu Liu, go water the grinding stones and check the grinding stones by the way. Zhao Da and Zhao Er, go prepare the printing and chiseling."

"Yes!" The craftsmen and apprentices breathed a sigh of relief and trotted to the next stage. Soon, Liu Laoshi returned with a large butter wax and a cross made of wood. He first held the candle and repeatedly shone it into the muzzle several times. Then he slowly rotated the wood cross and looked inward, while probing, while reporting loudly, "The surface was checked smoothly! There were no burrs in the front section. There were no burrs in the middle section. The last section was close to the tail of the gun, and there were two or three bulges in the four places. I couldn't see clearly from the muzzle, so I needed to take it outside for manual polishing."

"Okay, Zhao Da, Zhao Er, give the gun barrel a number! Send it to the next shed. Lao Liu, you can continue to clean the trolley! Zhang Wu and Xu Liu, you two go to the upper shed to take a look. When will their next shed be cast?" Qian Shiwu continued to make a loud command while holding a pen in the notebook.

"Yes!" The apprentices agreed happily, chiseled the words "Shelf No. 2, 15, Qian" at the end of the cannon, then removed the cannon barrel from the pulley, loaded it into a trolley, and sent it to the next work shed. Craftsman Liu Laoshi handed the matter of cleaning the pulley to his apprentice, glanced around, quietly gathered up to the craftsman Qian Shiwu, and asked in a very low voice, "Qian Jiang, you said, how much money can we get at the end of this month!"

"Flower red, flowers, flowers, flowers, flowers, flowers are so red!" Qian Shiwu, the craftsman, smashed the account book in his hand and said loudly, "I said, Lao Liu, can you think more serious things? This month, our group has been returned to three gun barrels. If one more is my grandmother, I will have to be demoted to an ordinary craftsman, and you, Lao Liu, have to be an apprentice again. You are so cold to be an apprentice at such an age, you won't feel so cold!"

"Then, that's not because of night shifts, no, aren't you used to it?" Old Liu, a craftsman, flashed two steps, rubbed his forehead that was smashed red, and whispered. "Besides, although our group has three gun barrels back, they have made seven more than others. If you deduct the three reworks, there are four more!"

"My Uncle Liu, how many times have you told you that the account cannot be settled like this!" Qian Shiwu was so angry that his eyes turned black. He patted his head hard and begged for promises loudly, "Making a few more is just making a few more gun barrels. But if the chamber exploded during the test of the gun, you will not only smash the job of our group, but also the ones in the previous squad and the ones in charge of hand-grinding the next squad. At that time, even if I don't cause trouble for you, they will have to find you!"

"They dare, Wang Tuzi from Shed No. 3, was still the one I recruited when he entered the workshop for the exam. By seniority, he had to call me Master!" Liu Laoshi glared at his eyes, seven dissatisfied and eight were resentful. But soon, he softened like a deflated toad. He quickly looked around and asked in a lower voice, "I said Qian Jiang, Qian Jiang Shi, Huang Laowai wouldn't be really ruthless. We were the first ones to follow him!"

"The key is that the batch recruited by Huai'an is more convenient to use than us!" Qian Shiwu glanced at him and sighed helplessly, "You used to be a hoe, and I followed my father to beat door knockers, beast heads, and locks. We are not considered fine craftsmanship. In Huai'an, we either use hairpins, head flowers, or make gold chains, silver bracelets, and bronze mirrors. The most unhealthy ones are also a wine pot, silver cup and bronze chamber pot. The work under our hands is so fine. Then use the water hammers, rhinestones, and horizontal grinders made by our governor and Jiao Dajiang. Think about it, can the things we made be bad?"

"Then, then let's let the people who came later crawl up!" Liu Laoshi sighed and murmured to protest.

"If you don't want others to climb up the top of your head, we have to put in more effort!" Qian Shiwu knocked him in the account book and scolded in a low voice, "Be serious in your daily work. After work, don't always think about stumble around. Take the time to raise your energy and wait for the next shift. Our governor is the most fair. As long as you work under your command, he will never treat you badly. Oh, the governor. The governor is here again. Hurry up and stand up and wipe your face clean. The governor comes to us and will come soon!"

Note: At least in the Tang Dynasty, Chinese craftsmen had begun to manipulate various types of primitive lathes. In the Ming Dynasty, there were monographs that recorded the structure and usage of grinders. It can be said that until the early Qing Dynasty, China's industrial development did not lag too much behind the world.
Chapter completed!