Transmigrated into a female county magistrate during a famine, leading her country to prosperity

Chapter 396 Calcined Limestone

"Sir Shen, it's only a few hours. It's no problem for me. Just let me do it."

Shen Zheng shook her head and refused. She was not some evil-hearted landlord.

"Just listen to me. You can take turns. It will be good for your spirit. If you succeed this time, I will find a master for you tomorrow. With the master's guidance, we will build a larger kiln in the wasteland nearby and put it into use as soon as it is completed."

When Niu Chu heard that time was so tight, he didn't refuse and squatted down to start working.

Next to them was a pile of limestone, as well as loess brought from Wangjiazhuangzi and fine sand dug by Wu Lizheng and his men.

Yu Shizhang came forward with a limestone in his hand and asked Shen Zheng, "I heard from Liang Fu that this dolomite has another name? What is it called... limestone?"

"Limestone." Shen Zheng blurted out everything in one go. "The uncalcined one is called limestone. The one that is calcined and ground into powder is called quicklime. When quicklime meets water, it becomes slaked lime."

Yu Shizhang rubbed the limestone in his hand with his fingers and marveled at Shen Zheng's brain: "Where does all this weird knowledge come from?"

Shen Zheng pursed her lips and smiled, and said no more.

Yu Shizhang was not the type to pry into other people's secrets, and both Shen Zheng and he had very clear positions, so there was no need for him to get to the bottom of things.

He has secrets of his own, doesn't he?

Just because people have secrets from each other doesn’t mean they can’t be sincere to each other.

Yu Shizhang saw all this very clearly.

He was extremely curious about the small stone in his hand and asked repeatedly, "Why can't this limestone be directly ground into powder and put into use? Why must it be calcined quicklime?"

What a professional question.

Shen Zheng answered honestly: "Because during the calcination process, certain substances contained in the limestone will react with the air, decompose, and recombine, thus turning into another substance."

She sighed in her heart: Great chemistry!

But could Yu Shizhang understand what she said?

Don't mention it, he really understood, "Ben Bo knows, it must be burned, otherwise it will be useless."

A simple and crude understanding.

Shen Zheng was very happy with this and praised him repeatedly: "My Lord, you are smart. I admire you."

But in fact, limestone is still of some use. But now Shen Zheng thinks it is better to have less trouble than more, and it will be the same later.

She thought about it and told Yu Shizhang and Niu Chu the precautions: "Slaked lime cannot be easily exposed to water. When it comes into contact with water, it will generate a lot of heat and burn people. So we must be careful when we use it in the future. Burns caused by this are very uncomfortable and difficult to heal."

Niu Chu quickly wrote it down.

An hour later, all the limestone brought back by Shen Zheng and the other two was crushed and thrown into the kiln.

Shen Zheng called Wu Lizheng and asked him to help find a young man to take turns watching the kiln with Niu Chu, and then followed Yu Shizhang and the other two back to the county school.

Shen Zheng was drowsy along the way. Yu Shizhang had seen a lot today, so he kept talking, trying to get a response from Shen Zheng.

Shen Zheng was already very sleepy and her whole body ached. The swaying of the carriage made her feel like she was in a cradle. But after a while, she could no longer hear Yu Shizhang's words and closed her eyes to think about the future.

"Hey--"

Yu Shizhang curled his lips and asked Liang Fu: "How long have you walked today? Did you make her so tired?"

Liang Fu thought for a moment and said, "Including the round trip, it took about three or four hours."

"How much?!" Yu Shizhang sat up straight and scolded, "Are you treating her like a cow?"

Liang Fu was old, but he couldn't help but feel wronged in front of Yu Shizhang: "Didn't this humble official and Lord Shen Xingjian leave together with Lord Shen?"

It would be fine if I didn't care about them! Why do I have to take the blame in the end?

Don't even ask them if they are tired...

Yu Shizhang didn't listen, turned his head aside, and said with disdain: "Can you be the same as her? Don't bring her along for this kind of thing next time."

This is such a protective look!

Shen Xingjian glanced at the sleeping Shen Zheng and nodded yes.

Liang Fu was dissatisfied, but dared not say anything.

If Lord Shen doesn't go, how can they be sure that dolomite is the limestone she is looking for?

Besides, Lord Shen wanted to go too! How come they were the ones who got scolded in the end? It was really unfair.

Yu Shizhang didn't think there was anything wrong with what he said, and continued to talk to himself: "Liang Fu, Shen Zheng should have told you that this road paving method is not only low-cost, but also durable. Think carefully, where else can it be used?"

Liang Fu had this idea before Yu Shizhang asked this question, and he thought about it for the entire afternoon.

"Official roads, main roads in towns, and... mausoleums."

Yu Shizhang nodded and asked, "What about the city wall? What do you think?"

Liang Fu was stunned. He had never thought about this. The city wall was a vital place in a city, and he hadn't seen the real thing yet, so he couldn't be sure.

He told the truth: "I don't know yet, but I feel that if it is used as a city wall, I am afraid that something else must be added to it. After all, Lord Shen also said that if these materials are used to pave the ground, they need to be repeatedly hammered and compacted before they can be officially used."

Yu Shizhang had no problem with this. He glanced at Shen Zheng who was sleeping soundly and said, "Let's talk about it tomorrow when she's in better spirits."

When they returned to the county school, it was already dark.

Shen Zheng was like a blind man groping in the dark, walking towards his own house with half-closed eyes, when he was stopped by Yu Shizhang.

"How many meals did you eat today? Eat later and then go to bed."

Shen Zheng suddenly opened her eyes.

This kind of love and care from elders is a feeling she has rarely experienced in her entire life, but it is extremely beneficial to her.

She looked up at the angel, rubbed her face vigorously, and said with a smile: "Okay! I'll listen to you, uncle!"

......

The next morning, Shen Zheng regained his spirit, called Yu Shizhang and others with high spirits, and went to Xiahe Village.

Li Hongmao and his companions, Fang Ziyan and others, were waiting eagerly behind them. Fang Ziyan wanted to say that he would not study today and follow them to Xiahe Village, but Li Hongmao's face was full of "disapproval".

Niu Chu listened to Shen Zheng and stopped adding firewood in the second half of the night, waiting for the kiln fire to go out naturally.

When Shen Zheng and others arrived, the heat in the kiln had almost dissipated and the calcined limestone had cooled down.

Under the excited gazes of the crowd, Niu Chu smashed open the kiln, took out pieces of calcined limestone, and placed them on the clothes that Shen Xingjian had torn off yesterday.

The fired limestone has lost all its impurities and gray color, and the entire stone exudes a strange white color.

When it was taken out of the kiln, the dust on the surface fell down.

Shen Zheng nodded secretly. Calcium oxide. It’s done.

Wu Lizheng ordered people to bring in a large stone mortar with a stone pestle early in the morning to grind the calcined limestone into powder.

Shen Zheng took out some silver from her bosom and handed it to Wu Lizheng: "This mortar was bought by the county government. You give this silver to that family."

Wu Lizheng repeatedly waved his hands to refuse, "Sir, you are being too polite to us. This stone mortar is just lying there in the village. It is useless anyway. You can just use it."

Shen Zheng disagreed and forced the money into his hands: "It's one thing not to use it yourself, and it's another to give it to others. If you accept the money, this mortar will belong to the county government from now on, so keep it."

This was the umpteenth time that Wu Lizheng had felt the "human rights" in Shen Zheng.