bookcurios Chapter 160 Shoulders of Giants
Chapter 160 Shoulders of Giants
After walking about 40 miles, it was time for lunch.
Mu Sheng found a flat, wind-sheltered place, asked the guards to clean the ground, and sprinkle some insect repellent powder around, and then everyone stopped here to cook.
Yun Xi smelled the sulfur from the insect repellent powder. Sulfur has a very long history of application. In her original world, the Shennong Herbal Classic had already recorded the method of preparing sulfur. I think it's similar here.
This reminded her of something. Where there is sulfur, there will probably be hot springs. Maybe she could go and soak in them.
The guards and servants of the Mu family were all very familiar with setting up camp and cooking in the wild. They methodically brought down the small stove, cooking utensils, ingredients, and buckets and arranged them in order. Then the maids took over and started to make a fire and cook.
Mu Sheng took an embroidered cushion from the carriage and gave it to Yun Xi so that she could sit more comfortably.
Mu Jinyan was not tired at all. He ran around on the ground as soon as he got off the car. He chased a grasshopper for a long time when he saw it in autumn. He finally caught one and wanted to show it to Yun Xi, but the grasshopper spit black water on his hands.
No matter how lively he was, he was still a nobleman at heart. He was disgusted by the grasshopper's behavior and cried for his mother with a pout.
Yun Xi couldn't stop laughing and quickly asked the maid to scoop some water for him to wash his hands.
He asked Yun Xi: "Did the grasshopper vomit?"
"I guess so. This is the grasshopper's way of protecting itself, just like when you saw it spitting out black water, you immediately let it go."
"Ah! It's so smart!"
“Although animals and plants cannot speak, they all have special survival skills.”
While waiting for the meal, Mu Xuan couldn't help but come over and ask, "Sister-in-law, are you looking for something on Guangshan Mountain?"
Yun Xi gestured for him to turn to the chapter on burnt stone in The Exploitation of the Works of Nature, which contained records about coal.
"Coal is found everywhere and is used for smelting gold and stone. In the south, there are bare mountains without vegetation, but coal is found underneath. This is also true in the north. There are three types of coal: clear coal, crushed coal, and fine coal... Those who have been mining coal for a long time can tell the presence of coal from the color of the soil surface before digging. Only when the depth reaches about 50 meters can coal be found."
This paragraph is already included in "The Exploitation of the Works of Nature".
There is another paragraph added by Yun Xi himself, from Sun Tingquan's "Yanshan Miscellaneous Notes": "Anyone who digs charcoal veins should look at the rocks on the mountain. If there are a few rocks, it is fine, but if there are bluestones or sandstones, it is not. Observe the soil for black sprouts, measure the number of stone layers, and avoid waterlogging. Use the upper part to know the lower part, and use the near part to know the far part. If you can get it, you are a good worker."
The so-called "coal vein finder" refers to a person who looks for coal. The meaning of this sentence is translated as follows: coal-bearing areas are all distribution areas of sedimentary rocks. When looking for coal, the first thing to do is to observe whether the rock layer belongs to sedimentary rock. Secondly, it is necessary to find shale that can be intercalated with coal seams among these types of sedimentary rock layers.
Mu Xuan suddenly realized.
"So you really don't want to go to Anye County, but come to Guangshan to look for coal? Why did you suddenly think of looking for coal?"
"Winter is coming. Don't the people need to keep warm? Don't I need to prepare some coal for my glass kiln and porcelain kiln?"
Mu Xuan nodded repeatedly, "That makes sense. But sister-in-law, you can just send someone else to do this kind of work, why do you have to do it yourself?"
Yun Xi: "..."
She looked at Mu Xuan with an unfriendly look.
This question made her look stupid.
Mu Xuan obviously realized that he had poked Yun Xi's lung. He smiled and said, "...Hehe, others may not be as lucky as my sister-in-law. They may not be able to find it after searching for a long time, but once my sister-in-law takes action, she will find it quickly."
Yun Xi immediately stood up.
But isn’t that what it is?
The system comforted Yun Xi: "Host, I will open a map for you later. I guarantee that you will find the coal in no time. I have already made the area reach the level of 'black seedlings can be seen in the soil', which is visible to the naked eye. The fact that you can find it in no time confirms your identity as a person of great luck."
"Yeah, yeah, I'm definitely going to be the lucky star that falls from the sky!"
Mu Xuan said again: "Sister-in-law, I have another question. Who is this Song Yingxing? And who is Sun Tingquan?"
Yun Xi: "How should I know? I just bought a book casually. I guess these two are really powerful people."
This book "The Exploitation of the Works of Nature" was pieced together by Yun Xi and the system. The main part is Song Yingxing's "The Exploitation of the Works of Nature", and some other content was added, such as Sun Tingquan's "Miscellaneous Notes on Yanshan". Therefore, the cover of this book says: Song Yingxing wrote it, and Sun Tingquan and others also contributed to this book. In fact, Yun Xi and the system also contributed, but it cannot be written.
She actually wanted to say that Song Yingxing was an ancient scientist who failed in the imperial examinations many times, while Sun Tingquan was a Jinshi in the late Ming Dynasty, who later surrendered to the Qing Dynasty and served as the Minister of War, Minister of Revenue, Minister of Personnel, Prince Taibao, Prince Taibao, and Grand Secretary of the Secretariat.
But she can't say it.
She could only repeat in her mind and to the system, thanking the two for their contributions and help.
Yun Xi positioned herself as a knowledge porter, and she was able to achieve something in this era thanks to her predecessors.
Therefore, she actually didn't care about many things. She was very open-minded about what kind of rewards the emperor gave her and how much money she could make, because these were not the results of her own painstaking research. She was just standing on the shoulders of countless giants. She brought the wisdom of these giants to this world, and she didn't think she had done anything remarkable.
Moreover, the ancients did not hide their writings in books. The seven great scientific masterpieces of ancient times, "Mengxi Bitan", "Qimin Yaoshu", "Yingzaofashi", "Donglu Wang's Agricultural Book", "Compendium of Materia Medica", "Tiangongkaiwu" and "Xu Xiake's Travel Notes", were all published publicly.
It’s just that sometimes, the author does not have enough financial resources to publish the book while he is still alive, so it is postponed.
For example, the Compendium of Materia Medica was not published when Li Shizhen was alive. It was his eldest son Li Jianzhong who funded the editing and revision of the Compendium of Materia Medica during his tenure as magistrate of Pengxi County, allowing the book to be printed.
Xu Xiake's Travel Notes was not published during Xu Xiake's lifetime, but was compiled and published by others one year after his death.
Regardless of whether it is out of selflessness or the desire to become famous and immortal, the original author hopes that his book can be read by more people and benefit the world.
Now, she is using these books to benefit the world and make money for herself at the same time, but she still feels that her vision is a bit small. She is a little embarrassed when facing the praise from the world.
Mu Xuan sighed: "It would be great if I could meet these two people and communicate with them face to face."
Yun Xi: "..."
System: "If there are other time travelers in the future, they might think that it is Song Yingxing and Sun Tingquan who have traveled through time and space when they see this book."