Todd rubbed his sore and dry eyes.
Using his X-ray vision ability for an extended period of time, looking at the dazzling molten metal inside the furnace, strained his eyes so much that even his tear ducts were baked by the high temperature, preventing him from shedding a single tear.
In my past life, I often saw in novels and movies that time travelers could easily bring technological achievements and industrial inventions into new worlds, and everything seemed so easy and comfortable. But the real hardships involved can only be understood by actually trying it.
This is the third furnace for slag smelting in front of us.
The first attempt failed because the construction of the furnace roof material was not done properly, causing the load-bearing points to shift and eventually leading to a partial collapse that directly contaminated the silver-lead solution. The furnace had to be scrapped and started over.
The second incident occurred because of the lack of professional temperature monitoring equipment and the operator's lack of expertise, causing the furnace temperature to fluctuate wildly in a short period of time. The furnace wall material had low resistance to temperature differences, which directly led to the furnace explosion.
After the first two failures, the craftsmen and apprentices at the smelting plantation, and even Huggins and Edgar, had completely lost hope. Some advised the monks and apprentices to give up, some took out their crucifixes and began to pray to God, and some even packed up their things to go home and sleep.
However, the forging continues, and whether in his past or present life, the word "give up" has never been in Todd's dictionary.
From the moment the furnace was first opened, the smelting continued until 11 p.m. the following night. In the quiet and dark night, only the smelting workshop of the San Sidlow Monastery remained brightly lit.
A full 30 hours have passed.
The soul, accustomed to working late into the night in the laboratory in his previous life, is gradually feeling powerless and on the verge of collapse in this still young body. But now Todd cannot stop; the entire three-step gray-blowing technique has reached its final stage.
Only Todd, Hudgens, Aiden Colm, and a few of his apprentices were in front of the furnace.
Using a microscope to observe the furnace interior, Todd instructed his helpers to first add a small amount of saltpeter to the lead-silver solution to accelerate the oxidation of impurities such as copper. Next, they evenly sprinkled in a thin layer of bone meal (mainly composed of calcium and phosphorus) to absorb any remaining slag before scraping it off. Finally, they added a layer of charcoal to cover the molten silver, raised the furnace temperature to 900 degrees Celsius, and then extinguished the fire to cool it, removing the large amount of oxygen absorbed by the liquid. The finished solution was then slowly poured into the mold.
At four in the morning, the monastery's morning bells rang out in all directions, and the monks' chanting echoed in the main hall. At the foot of the mountain, a group of weary people, their faces covered in soot, witnessed a great success.
It took a full 35 hours, two failures, and consumed approximately three tons of silver ore waste. Finally, a silver ingot measuring 4 centimeters long, 3 centimeters wide, and weighing 23.5 grams was produced.
"It's...it's a success!"
The first sound to ring out was from Huggins' loud voice.
Soon, Edgar, who was asleep, and the other craftsmen and apprentices rushed over upon hearing the noise.
Touching the still-warm precious metal in his hands, Todd was filled with emotion. From mineral selection, chemical equations, industrial design, and equipment drawings, to preliminary preparations, furnace modification, three smelting processes, two failures, and finally the finished product, it was truly a laborious yet incredibly rewarding experience.
However, when it comes to feeling happy, some people are even more excited than him.
Haskins, who had staked his entire fortune on this small silver ingot, picked up the precious gem, completely devoid of his usual calm and composure. He closed his eyes, rubbing his rough face against the cool touch, occasionally letting out blissful groans.
Edgar, bouncing around behind him like a monkey, would grab the man's shoulder one moment and kick the big guy's knee the next, shouting, "Hey! Let me see! Let me see!"
Ignoring the two yelling guys, Todd had more important things to do.
Calculation of smelting profits.
The entire silver refining process took a total of 35 hours. Subtracting the time spent on two failed attempts, and adding the time for slag removal, furnace repair, and blower operation, this refining process can be carried out approximately six times a week. Assuming a fixed yield of silver each time, the weekly profit would be about 140 grams of silver ingots.
Aside from the church coins used by the Papal States, the most commonly used coins in the southwestern kingdoms are generally three types: the Gold Moon (made of gold), the Silver Moon (made of silver), and the Copper Star (made of copper), with a ratio maintained at approximately 1:10:1000. The Silver Moon weighs about 2.2 grams, meaning that the weekly smelting yield is approximately 63 Silver Moons.
Of course, the final net profit must be deducted for fuel purchase costs, equipment maintenance costs, spare material purchase costs, black market exchange fees, and the wages of the craftsmen and apprentices. The final net profit (per week) belonging to the three people in the monastery is about 38 coins.
Regarding the final expenditure, Huggins, Edgar, and Todd disagreed. The former, one older and one younger, believed that there was absolutely no need to spend extra money on the craftsmen and apprentices, but the latter insisted on his point of view, not only giving all the craftsmen and apprentices double their standard wages, but also adding their food allowance in monetary form.
The final result was naturally one of gratitude and happiness for both the craftsmen and apprentices.
After giving instructions, he left some men to watch the furnace. Covered in soot and exhausted, Todd collapsed from exhaustion on his way back to the monastery. In the end, Huggins carried the apprentice monk back to his quarters and laid him on his bed.
Once in his room, Todd slept soundly from dawn till late at night, completely unaware of what was happening on the other side of the monastery.
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The moon climbed to the treetops, and the night insects of early spring uttered their first chirps.
Master Myris sat motionless, leaning against the fireplace, his face facing south, in the north of the room, looking towards the door.
He, who was always frugal, unusually lit three candles in the room: one on the desk, one by the front door, and one in the stairwell. The faint light filled the entire room, illuminating every corner so that no shadows could be seen.
Eight chimes rang out from the monastery's bell tower, signifying that the light had come to an end and darkness was about to descend.
A thin layer of gray mist drifted into the room through the cracks in the window frame, gathering, condensing, and taking shape on the floor. A figure slowly straightened up from the hazy smoke.
Master Myris stared at the face that appeared in the mist, his body still and his face expressionless. He raised one hand and pointed to the main entrance opposite, saying in a deep voice, "You should know that the Father teaches his people how to use doors and windows, which is the true indicator of the difference between civilization and barbarism!"
The man in the fog gradually regained his balance. His pale, sickly face was devoid of any color. He took a charred, broken sword from his robes with his long, slender fingers and hissed, "Mr. Bourne is dead."
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