Li Shimin told the craftsmen Li Lizhi's idea in detail.
After hearing this, everyone's eyes sparkled with excitement, as if they saw the moment when they participated in making history.
"Your Majesty, shall we start now?" an old craftsman asked with some anticipation.
Li Shimin nodded and said decisively: "Yes, time waits for no one.
Just follow what Li Zhi said and try to turn these ideas into reality one by one. I believe in your craftsmanship and you will succeed."
"Yes, sir!" the craftsmen responded in unison, and then quickly plunged into the intense and orderly work.
With Li Shimin's full support, all the raw materials needed by the craftsmen were quickly delivered.
They first tried connecting the flywheel of a steam engine to a horse-drawn carriage.
The craftsmen were busy, some were responsible for adjusting the speed of the flywheel, and some were responsible for reinforcing the connections.
But soon, they found themselves in an unsolvable dilemma.
That is because the steam engine is too large and too heavy, and an ordinary horse-drawn carriage cannot bear its weight at all.
Not to mention, it runs very fast with its power.
"What should we do?" A young craftsman scratched his head, looking troubled.
The old craftsman pondered for a moment, then slowly said: "Perhaps, we can start by improving the design of the carriage.
Strengthen the carriage's structure so it can carry heavier loads."
"But in this case, it would take several days just to build the carriage..."
Li Shimin was so impatient that he could not wait any longer. He waved his hand and said, "Come here, bring my purple-gold dragon sedan chair!"
He intended to use his own luxurious carriage as a test piece to demonstrate his firm support for this innovative initiative.
Soon, a magnificent and imposing royal carriage was carefully pulled over by several guards.
This carriage is usually only used for important royal occasions. Its exquisiteness and carrying capacity are incomparable to ordinary carriages.
"Your Majesty, this..." The old craftsman hesitated. After all, this was the emperor's carriage. If the test failed, the consequences would be disastrous.
But Li Shimin seemed confident: "It's okay, I believe in your craftsmanship.
Let's use this carriage as a test. If it succeeds, that's great. If it fails, it can be considered as paving the way for future success."
Inspired by the emperor's determination, the craftsmen cheered up and threw themselves into the intense modification work.
They carefully dismantled part of the carriage's original structure to install the steam engine and flywheel.
A series of innovative designs were also made for horse-drawn carriages based on the characteristics of steam engines.
At the same time, personnel were also dispatched to carry out other aspects of the transformation work.
After all, compared to horse-drawn carriages, using steam engines to pull mills and drive water wheels is much easier.
As for weaving, it is not difficult either, but it still takes some time to succeed.
In a blink of an eye, the morning passed and the steam millstone was the first to come out.
The steam mill produced by the craftsmen has a strong Tang Dynasty style.
Because steam engines were too large and bulky, they wanted to make steam mills quickly.
They simply moved a steam engine to the square, used it as the center of the circle, and used the existing technology of the Tang Dynasty to make a millstone.
Finally, in order to save time, they could only use the hardest steel and wood as bearings to connect the steam engine and the millstone.
When the steam engine starts, it can drive the millstone to rotate, thus achieving the function of grinding flour.
In addition, the craftsmen specially installed a speed regulator on the steam engine to adjust the grinding speed according to needs.
Under the watchful eyes of Li Shimin, the craftsmen began the first test run.
They first lit the steam engine, and as the flames rose, the steam engine gradually began to roar.
Then, the gears on the steam engine began to turn slowly, faster and faster until they reached a stable state.
At this time, the millstone also began to turn, making a rustling sound.
The wheat placed on the millstone in advance was quickly crushed into fine flour, which overflowed from the four sides of the millstone, forming a small flour waterfall.
This scene stunned everyone present. They had never seen such an efficient and labor-saving way of grinding flour.
In the past, grinding flour was an extremely arduous and time-consuming task that often required the efforts of multiple people and consumed a great deal of time and energy to complete.
Now, only one person is needed to operate the steam engine to easily complete the flour grinding work, and the efficiency has increased by more than several times!
"Success! We succeeded!" The craftsmen cheered and hugged each other excitedly.
Their faces were filled with smiles of pride and joy, as if this moment was the most glorious moment in their lives.
Li Shimin also seemed very excited. This steam engine was indeed a magical thing. It could greatly improve production efficiency!
"Good! Good! You've done a great job!" Li Shimin praised repeatedly, "I will definitely reward you handsomely as an encouragement!"
As a result, just as Li Shimin finished speaking, there was a "click" sound, and the steel-wood bearing connecting the steam engine and the millstone suddenly broke.
The millstone, which was originally connected to the steam engine through steel and wood, was thrown out towards Li Shimin because of its excessive weight.
Finally, it hit the ground heavily, raising a cloud of dust.
In an instant, the whole audience fell silent.
"Your Majesty, spare us!" Soon, the craftsmen who reacted fell to their knees.
They thought that since such a serious accident had occurred, they would definitely be beheaded, and maybe even their entire clan would be exterminated!
Li Shimin was also shocked by this sudden change, but he was the king of a country after all, so he quickly calmed down.
He looked around at the craftsmen kneeling on the ground and knew that blaming them at this time would be useless.
Besides, he knew it.
The failure of this experiment was not the fault of the craftsmen, but because he was too impatient.
So, Li Shimin took a deep breath and slowly said, "Everyone, get up. The failure of this experiment is not your responsibility."
Upon hearing this, the craftsmen raised their heads, with surprise and gratitude in their eyes.
They thought they could not escape death this time, but they did not expect the emperor to be so magnanimous and not hold them accountable.
"Your Majesty..." The old craftsman's eyes filled with tears and he choked up, "We will continue to work hard and live up to Your Majesty's high expectations!"
"Alright!" Li Shimin waved his hand. "Move all these steam engines to the General Works Department and focus on polishing and studying them carefully."
"When you have a qualified finished product, please present it to me!" The craftsmen responded in unison, their hearts filled with gratitude and determination.
They carefully moved the steam engine and the broken bearing back to the workshop, ready to start a new round of research and improvements.
Li Shimin thought to himself that the craftsmen's failure might be because the little divine beast did not teach them some core manufacturing techniques.
He decided that when the little beast arrived tomorrow, he would ask about this matter in detail.
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