Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 150
150 kiln quality. (1)
Shortly after the launch of the ‘automatic loom’ and the end of the bidding, good news came from Area 51.
Research began as soon as the research institute and Area 51 were created, but it took nearly six years and a large budget before the results – which could be used commercially – were created.
“It’s a success!”
“Seonggoingya!”
“Wow!”
Researchers and craftsmen at the institute, including Jeong Cho and Jeong In-ji, hugged each other and shed tears of joy.
“Lowering! A blessing is coming!”
“That’s right! Lowering!”
“To complete it in 6 years! Hehehe!”
Looking at the people who were so happy that they even shed tears, Hyang responded with a smile.
“Thank you all for your hard work.”
Hyang grumbled softly as he organized the report to report to King Sejong.
“It wasn’t ‘only’ six years, it took ‘six’ years…”
In the 21st century, even though it was a model, it was a place that actually built a steam engine and a steam locomotive that moved by boiling water.
The concept of a steam engine was first explained with the model of ‘Heron’s Steam Ball’, but researchers and craftsmen were unable to even begin shoveling.
In the end, I had to use the cheat that the scent is the scent itself.
“I’ve been thinking about it…”
Hyang created blueprints for the early steam engines created by Savery and Newcomer and began training researchers and craftsmen.
Even with the intervention of scent, it took researchers and craftsmen a year and a half to create a model of James Watt’s steam engine.
After making a model and confirming its proper movement, the real digging began. There were many things researchers and craftsmen had to experiment with and create in order to create a proper, commercially valuable steam engine.
The first thing made was measuring equipment.
In order to create measuring equipment to measure the amount of power generated by a steam engine, equipment to measure the steam pressure produced in the boiler of a steam engine, and equipment to measure water quantity and water temperature, researchers and craftsmen literally ‘headed to the ground’ with no time to breathe. I had to do it.
In this process, an unexpected by-product was created.
* * *
The first was a pencil and pencil sharpener.
“It’s a hassle to write with ink on a gold pen and calculate it every time!”
“We have to find something!”
Graphite was what caught the eye of those who were looking for an alternative.
A craftsman who was looking at graphite powder, which was used to coat various gunpowders and then began to be used as a lubricant for machines that stamp armor, created his own product.
The craftsman tilted his head as he kneaded graphite mixed with soil, dried it, wrapped it in paper, and wrote on it.
“It’s useful in a way, but is it too soft? It breaks easily…”
The craftsman tried various experiments in his spare time, but was unable to find an answer, so he ended up looking for incense.
“Is there a problem?”
“Oh no.”
At that time, Hyang was around 10 years old. The father-in-law, seeing Hyang’s still youthful face, waved his hand and stepped back. The scent was rather interested in the suspicious appearance of the father-in-law.
“If you were able to find me, wasn’t there some problem you were looking for? tell.”
Although he was young, his father-in-law, who was pressured by the powerful background of being the crown prince, soon talked about his concerns.
Hyang’s eyes sparkled menacingly as he listened to his father-in-law’s concerns.
‘It’s a pencil! ‘I said I would make it at some point, but it’s popping out here!’
“That’s interesting. If done well, I think something good will come out of it. “Let’s do some research together.”
I soon started researching the fragrance with my craftsman. No, I pretended to go in and gave him an instruction.
“Let’s bake it, not just dry it.”
“Did you say you were going to bake it?”
The craftsman thought about Hyang’s words for a moment and nodded.
“okay. Pottery that has been simply dried is brittle, but pottery that has been properly fired holds up a little longer.”
That’s how the experiment began. High-quality clay and graphite were evenly mixed and shaped into thin rods, then placed in a smelting kiln and fired.
I rolled the graphite rod that came out of the kiln into paper and scribbled it on white paper.
After checking the result, Hyang looked back at the craftsman.
“It’s okay, but let’s experiment a little more.”
In this way, through experiments conducted by varying the ratio of clay and graphite and varying the temperature of the kiln, a graphite rod with useful strength was created.
“It seems like these three types of strength can be useful in many ways.”
“That’s right.”
Once the graphite rod was completed, the scent began to work in earnest.
In this way, the world’s first pencil was created.
A lump of graphite mixed well with clay was put into a noodle making machine, pulled out like noodles, then placed in a kiln and baked. The core thus made was placed between two grooved wooden boards, and then glue was applied to bond the wooden boards together.
Afterwards, the pencil, which was made through various post-processing processes, soon became a favorite item of researchers and craftsmen at the research institute.
Seeing this, Hyang registered a patent with the craftsman who first suggested it and immediately prepared to market it.
Jeong Cho said with a slightly embarrassed expression upon seeing Hyang’s happy appearance.
“I don’t think this will do much business…”
“Huh? why?”
“First of all, there is the inconvenience of having to cut it down.”
“You can sharpen it
without even thinking about it, but if you do that with a pencil, won’t it bleed right away?”
“I see…”
Zheng Chu pointed out the next problem.
“Secondly, it has an overwhelmingly shorter lifespan than a gold or brush pen. People say it’s not worth the money.”
“The problem is that if you mass produce it….”
“How many people in this part of Joseon who write so much that they use pencils in large quantities are there, other than the research institute and Area 51?”
“Wouldn’t it be okay to sell it to someone?”
Jeongcho immediately answered Hyang’s question.
“That brings us to the third problem. When sharpening a pencil, a large amount of wood chips and graphite powder are produced. Throwing it away is also work. If you do it wrong, the paper you prepared will be a mess. Scholars who consider neatness before doing calligraphy will dislike it, saying it is of inferior quality.”
Hyang, who thought that Jeongcho’s words were plausible, muttered with a face full of disappointment.
“okay.”
Seeing Hyang’s expression full of disappointment, Jeong In-ji, who was next to her, spoke urgently.
“It certainly has its problems, but if it solves the first and third problems, it has some marketability!”
“Is that so?”
“That’s right!”
Jeong In-ji’s answer reminded Hyang of memories from the 21st century.
‘I guess I’ll even have to make a pencil sharpener!’
Having made up her mind, Hyang looked back at Jeong Cho and Jeong In-ji.
“For the time being, we will be the only ones using pencils. “We are more comfortable with a pencil than with a gold pen.”
“yes.”
In this way, the ‘commercialization of pencils’ sank below the surface.
However, it took a long time for the pencil to rise to the surface.
It was because of the pencil sharpener.
Because it was a blade tool, the problem arose that high-quality steel was needed in large quantities.
The next thing that arose was the issue of size.
The field managers collectively sighed when they saw the prototype pencil sharpener, which was similar in shape to a scaled down plane.
“To sharpen those tiny blades one by one…”
He didn’t say it until the end, but Hyang knew what he meant.
“Your belly button will be bigger than your stomach.”
Hyang, who returned to his office, sorted out the problem and muttered.
“To achieve cost-effectiveness, blades must be produced in large quantities. But there is a problem with human hands. To make a print using a machine… you need a steam engine… and is it a steam engine? “This is not like 21st century politicians who blame others when something happens…”
While grumbling, Hyang worked hard to find a solution. However, it took longer than expected for the pencil to be released as a commercial product.
* * *
It was concluded that the pencil was to be used only for internal purposes, but there were many problems in creating measuring equipment and a steam engine of a size that could actually be used.
In the end, Jeongcho gathered the township and other key officials and explained what the problem was.
“First of all, it is a question of weights and measures. There are several simple ways to measure length, starting with Hwangjongcheok, Jucheok, Yeongjocheok, and Joryegicheok. “Unification is needed in this area.”
At the beginning of the new year, Choi Haesan and Icheon immediately agreed and came forward.
“There was the same problem when making various new weapons, including the Gap-sik-jang Chong-tong. “Just as we unified under Hwang Jong-cheok back then, I think it would be right to unify under Hwang Jong-cheok this time as well.”
After hearing the opinion, Hyang nodded.
“That is reasonable. “Let us unify under Hwang Jong-cheok.”
Once the problem of weights and measures was decided, Jeong Cho brought up the next problem.
“Next is the problem of measuring equipment. “Researchers at the institute have calculated the formula and completed the measurement equipment, design, and measurement units, but the verification is not working properly.”
At the end of the New Year, the incense was slightly savored.
‘Tsk! I have nothing to say about this part… This is because I also bought a ready-made product and sweetened it…’
Hyang, who had nothing to say about this part, had no choice but to give a general answer.
“I think the only way to learn that part is through actual experiments.”
Jeong Cho looked slightly disappointed at Hyang’s words.
‘Was this a part for which even His Majesty the Crown Prince had no answer? I thought there would be some clear answer.’
Jeongcho, who had expected the incense to give some kind of answer but was disappointed, soon composed himself.
‘I have to reflect! The crown prince and his wife are now turning 11! No matter how good you are, if you know this at the age of 11, are you a person?’
Jeong Cho, who had composed himself, nodded.
“I also think that learning is the only answer to this.”
In this way, it was decided to repeat the experiment, which the researchers were excited about.
* * *
Jeong Cho, who discovered a problem while conducting repetitive experiments that were exhausting both mentally and physically, looked for incense again.
“This is an issue that I think is final. Although this is the last issue, we consider it to be the most important issue. The final problem is that of materials.”
The incense immediately understood the meaning of the words of New Year’s Day.
“What if it’s a material? Is it an iron problem? “Let’s try making it out of brass first.”
Jeong Cho shook his head at Hyang’s words.
“We thought so too, so we experimented with brass. “But there was an error problem.”
Hyang’s face became serious at Jeongcho’s answer.
“why?”
In response to Hyang’s question, Jeong Cho explained the cause.
“The problem with brass is that the ratio of copper and other things varies depending on the craftsman.”
“Then…”
“Yes, we are experimenting to find the optimal alloy ratio. But the biggest problem is that it is time consuming. “Budget is also an issue.”
At the beginning of the New Year, Hyang unconsciously placed his hand on his forehead. But after a while, Hyang responded with a determined face.
“I will do my best to budget. “Captain Jeong, please research ways to save time.”
“Yes, I understand.”
After finishing the conversation with Jeongcho, Hyang went to see King Sejong.
But Hyang had to say something to King Sejong before he could even finish his words.
“There is no budget! “Get out, you bastard!”
However, Hyang did not back down and persisted, eventually running out of budget.
King Sejong complained as he watched Hyang gleefully run away after spending his budget.
“I can’t just throw that away in the archives…”