During this process, Roning witnessed with his own eyes the diverse stone mines in Giant Stone City. If large-scale infrastructure is to be built in the future, this would undoubtedly be an excellent stone mining base.

In addition to inspecting the resources, Roning also met with the people of Big Stone City.

Since the last turmoil, many people are still worried. After all, the lord is not coming, and they don’t know what the future of Big Stone City will be like.

The official appearance of Roning was like a shot in the arm for them, letting them know that their lord had come here and was paying attention to it.

Two days later, Luo Ning left Boulder City and came to Chishan Town.

Although the defense and government affairs of this town are led by McKen and Serin, matters concerning the iron mine in Chishan Town are handled by the master blacksmith Fengs.

For more than three months, the iron mine in Chishan Town has been mined day and night, and deep in the iron mine, blacksmith Kalles and others transferred from Wubei have built a blast furnace for iron smelting.

"Sir, after many experiments, we are now able to directly cast ordinary farm tools."

Fengs took Roning to visit their production base.

At this time, the blast furnace was smelting iron ore. Workers poured the red-hot molten iron into a clay mold, and it cooled to form the shape of a hoe.

To be honest, when Feng Si first came into contact with this production method, he was stunned.

When he learned that this method came from the Lord, he felt an unprecedented respect for Roning.

However, he also discovered disadvantages when using the hoe cast in this way.

"Sir, your method is indeed quick and convenient, but the cast hoe is relatively weak in hardness and can easily crack or even break during use."

The forged hoe is hard and can be used for a long time, but forging takes too long and costs too much.

A cast hoe lasts relatively short and is easy to break, but it takes a short time to produce and is relatively inexpensive.

In Fengs's opinion, these two methods have their own advantages and disadvantages. It is impossible to say which one is better or worse. The key lies in the trade-offs.

Luo Ning listened to Feng Si's report and nodded.

“Casting does have disadvantages in this regard, but the severity of the disadvantages can be reduced through other means.”

"oh?"

Fengs' eyes lit up, flashing with desire for iron-making technology.

Luo Ning smiled and said, "That's heat treatment."

As he spoke, he walked to a shelf nearby, picked up a cast hoe, and threw it into the boiler.

"Through heat treatment methods such as quenching and tempering, the stress generated during the casting process can be eliminated, the grains can be refined, and its hardness and strength can be improved."

Feng Si looked confused. Although he was a craftsman, he had never heard of these new words that Roning said.

Roning asked Kallus to get a bucket of water, and after the hoe in the boiler had been burning red for a while, he took it out and quickly put it into the bucket full of water.

With a crackling sound, a large amount of water mist rose up suddenly.

"Heating it to the right temperature and keeping it for a while, then cooling it quickly, this is quenching. In this way, hardness, wear resistance, etc. can be greatly improved."

After doing all this, Luo Ning threw the quenched hoe into the boiler, heated it up, and then took it out to cool it down gradually.

"This is tempering, which can eliminate the stress generated during quenching, prevent deformation and cracking, and adjust the hardness and strength again."

"I just demonstrated the effect. The actual quenching and tempering require very high temperature control, which requires continuous experience to master."

Luo Ning said to Feng Si and others, "How to adjust the strength of the iron through heat treatment is left to you."

Everyone nodded solemnly. They originally thought that blast furnace ironmaking was all the lord knew, but they didn't expect that the lord knew even more.

However, in response to Roning's instructions, they were all eager to try it out. After all, everyone wanted to be the first to try something new.

Next, Luo Ning stayed in Chishan Town for two days. On the one hand, he checked the mining records of the iron mine during this period, and on the other hand, he also needed to understand the situation in Chishan Town.

During this time, Philip and Thorstein, the lords of Cassiel Town and Surrey Town, learned about Ronin's visit through merchants in Chishan Town.

As vassals of Wushanbao and friendly neighbors of the genius Roning, it was natural for them to extend an invitation.

Luo Ning did not refuse. After all, they were neighbors and it was necessary to maintain good relations.

He chose the town of Cassiel as the venue for the gathering and met the two barons.

With Philip's warm hospitality, the three of them ate and drank to their heart's content.

During the meal, Philip and Thorstein both expressed their desire to purchase production tools from Ronin.

The town of Cassil is okay, but the small town of Surrey, which has been abandoned for many years, has a relatively large demand for farm tools.

Luo Ning naturally would not refuse such business that came to his doorstep.

He sold iron ore at a relatively low price. Of course, if the two wanted to buy finished products, Roning could also provide them.

When they learned that Roning's finished product was 30% lower than the market price, they both rushed to see the finished product. If possible, they would definitely buy a large batch.

This is the benefit of blast furnace ironmaking and casting, which reduces production costs a lot.

Luo Ning can take advantage of this to impact the existing market with lower prices and snatch their business.

However, he did not agree to deliver the goods immediately, but set the time before the beginning of next spring.

During this period of time, Fengs and others can study heat treatment technology to improve the strength of cast agricultural tools to meet the needs of daily farming.

In fact, Philip and Thorstein also had their own plans.

They originally just wanted to buy iron ore or farm tools at a friendly price, but they didn't expect Ronin's finished products to be priced so low.

The two discussed privately and agreed that if the quality of Ronin's low-priced goods was indeed impressive, they could purchase a large batch of goods and then sell them to various places at a price slightly lower than the market price.

Although this means that Kasir Town and Sari Town are likely to become channel dealers for Chishan Town, they don't mind as long as they can make money.

Luo Ning saw that the two had such plans, and he didn't mind this behavior either.

For him, as long as he makes enough money, it is completely acceptable to give others some benefits.

Once Philip and Thorstein tasted the sweetness, they would not only open up the market for him, but also actively safeguard his interests.

And Roning also saved a lot of cost in selling outside.

Win-win cooperation is also a way to make money. (End of this chapter)