South of Luoyang, on the banks of the Yishui River, Wang Yu and Wen Wen and his family were on an autumn outing here. In the camp surrounded by foot barriers, Princess Yuchi Chifan and his side rooms took their children to play, while on the outside, Yu Wen Wen was hunting with his subordinates.

Hunting is the most common leisure activity in this era and a common social activity. For many people, it is easy to get addicted, even the emperor is no exception, but Yuwen Wen will not do this.

He is very busy and has a lot of things to do every day, so he doesn't have much time to hunt and have fun. This is the case when he was in Huangzhou, Bozhou, and now he is in Luoyang.

But Yuwen Wen could not be the "home king" and was cut off from his subordinates, so as long as he had time, he would rather organize hunting and have a "joyful fun".

Luoyang is about to start the examination and selection. The main officials are busy and no one has time to accompany Yuwen Wen on a trip, so the people who hunt with him today are all soldiers of the Hulin Army and members of the royal palace guards.

Everyone followed King Bin for more than ten years, and naturally they were so familiar that they could not be familiar with each other. After more than ten years of battle, it was natural that it was no problem to be skilled in bows and horses. After a while, everyone returned with a full load.

Taking advantage of the free time when the follower was grilling his prey, Yuwen Wen and his subordinates began to talk, and the topic quickly turned to the legendary Yewan Cao Canal.

Yuwen Wen had no intention of covering up this matter at the beginning. Now he has ordered someone to offer a plan to the prime minister, so the news has spread. Now, generals such as Tian Zhengyue want to know: Ye Wan Caoku, do you really need to be repaired?

The use cost of steam pumps is so high. Can such a canal that relies heavily on the pumps make a profit when operating? Or at least it won’t be too much of a loss?

Regarding this question, Yuwen Wen's answer was straightforward: "Profit? How is that possible!"

"Just as for Yewan Cao Canal, even if the daily fleets line up from morning to night, the tolls collected are just like that, the operating cost of this Cao Canal is still so high that it can make the court vomit blood!"

"We have seen steam pumps. Once they are turned on, they consume a lot of coal. If they just pump water to irrigate the farmland, they are used to maintain the lock operation. It is not burning coal, but circulation coupons!"

Yuwen Wen is not a nerd who is stupid in reading. It is true that the pump can pump water, but it is used to maintain the operation of multi-level locks. Not to mention the current pump, it is the pump used for electricity in later generations. As soon as it is turned, the electricity bill will surge.

The water level adjustment of multi-level locks should normally be based on the upstream of the lock (the upper lock) instead of using a water pump to pump water. If you really want to do this, it is no different from burning circulation coupons to keep warm.

Seeing that the king said that Ye Wan Caoqu was just a loss of money, Tian Zhengyue and others became increasingly confused: Since that is the case, why should we still repair it?

Yuwen Wen knew everyone’s doubts, but asked back: “Do you think the steam pump is a good thing?”

"King, steam pumps are of course good things, but..." Tian Zhengyue had seen the power of steam pumps, but he still couldn't understand the role of Yewan Caoku.

"King, the grain from Jingzhou can be transported to Henan by carriage. Why do you have to work hard to build a canal? After all, the capital is in Chang'an, not Luoyang."

Speaking of this, Tian Zhengyue suddenly thought of something and asked tentatively: "Master, may you... do you want to move the capital?"

Yuwen Wen immediately retorted: "What are you thinking? Chang'an New City is under construction. Do you think it is possible to move the capital?"

"Then? Please give me some advice."

"I have said many times that if you want to be rich, build the road first!" Yuwen Wen said this and was inspired, "Who said that after Yewan Cao Canal is repaired, he can only bear the profit and loss?"

"If Yewan Caokui is really open, the little toll collected will be a drop in the bucket for the huge expenses of using a steam pump, so you have to find another way."

"What is the method? Refer to Daye Ironmaking Institute, this is the best example, that is, the coal-iron and iron consortium!"

"There is a coal mine that has been successfully mined at Pingding Mountain, which is only forty miles north of Ye County. More than 80 miles southeast of Yecheng is the Wuyang Iron Mine that has been mined long ago. If these two mines are properly managed, they will inevitably bring about a lot of profits like the Daye Iron Factory."

"Pingdingshan Coal Mine is located at the eastern end of Yewan Cao Canal. Although it is a bit troublesome to mine now, the amount of coal output is still good. The mined coal can be directly supplied to the steam pump on the multi-level lock of the Cao Canal. In the future, the huge profits of coal mines and iron ore can be fully supported by the Cao Canal."

"To promote steam pumps to irrigate farmland, there must be sufficient and cheap coal supply. After the Pingdingshan Coal Mine is largely mined, a large amount of coal can be directly supplied to the downstream Rushui coastal areas, so as to reduce the cost of steam pumping."

"When steam pumps are really promoted, the demand for coal is huge. At that time, selling coal alone will make Pingdingshan Mining and Metallurgical smelting sluggish! "

"Like Daye Ironmaking Institute, use the coal from Pingdingshan to craft iron for Wuyang's iron ore. As long as the technology is found, the amount of iron output will inevitably increase greatly. At that time, the iron profit will also make Wuyang Mining and Metallurgical counting money sluggish."

"Coal is a good thing! Don't look down on this dark thing, it's all about getting rich!"

Tian Zhengyue and others looked at Yuwen Wen, but no one could react. They couldn't understand why the king liked coal so much.

It would be fine if you like iron, after all, iron is a good thing, but what's the use of black coal?

Coal, also known as carbonite, has been mined since ancient times and can be used as fuel. It is said that it was used for iron smelting in the Han Dynasty, but Tian Zhengyue and others couldn't understand how this thing could make a profit.

For large households, there is no shortage of firewood and charcoal. For ordinary people, instead of buying coal to burn, it is better to take time to pick up some dead branches and leaves as fuel, which will definitely save money.

So, can you make a profit by selling coal?

Yuwen Wen certainly expressed his affirmation of this: "Yes! Listen to me, right! Being a coal boss... the transaction of coal will inevitably make a lot of money!"

"But it takes time to promote, and relying solely on steam pumps cannot stimulate the large-scale mining of Pingdingshan Coal Mine, so the Yewan Cao Canal, which consumes amazing coal, needs to stimulate it."

"After the Yewan Cao Canal is open, Jingzhou can also obtain a large amount of cheap Pingdingshan coal-fired, and the convenience of water transportation can even allow Xiangzhou and Han River coastal areas to use cheaper coal, which will help promote steam pumps."

When Yuwen Wen said this, the meaning was already very obvious. He mainly wanted to promote steam pumps, so he made the "Da Bu Wan" smell of "Yewan Caoqu".

Using a steam pump to irrigate farmland is beneficial to the country and the people, but if you want to promote it, you have to reduce the cost of use. This is the most critical point. It is simple to say but difficult to do.

But no matter how difficult it is, it has to be done. This is Yuwen Wen's obsession.

Therefore, on the one hand, he encouraged craftsmen to find ways to improve pumps, and on the other hand, he should create a large coal mine to provide cheap and sufficient coal for surrounding areas. Only by doing these two points can promotion be carried out.

At least, do this in the surrounding areas and downstream areas where the coal mine is located.

Promoting steam pumps can irrigate more farmland and increase grain production. This is a huge temptation for the court that attaches great importance to grain income.

Then, in order to increase production and income, the imperial court built a Yewan Cao Canal that sounds amazing but is actually useless.

Once the Yewan Cao Canal is built, it will be possible to obtain cheaper coal-fired areas at the east and west ends of Yewan Road (Jingxiang, Henan). On this basis, it will be a natural thing to promote steam pumps.

After hearing this explanation, everyone finally understood Yuwen Wen's good intentions, and the topic slowly turned elsewhere, but Yuwen Wen did not actually express his true thoughts.

The drunkard's intention is not to drink, but to care about the mountains and rivers. He was doing this not to be a coal boss or to promote steam pumps, but to have other plans.

The demand for coal has increased sharply, so a large number of coal mines appeared, and the permeability problem during mining has caused steam pumps to appear.

During the continuous use of steam pumps, the disadvantages of low efficiency and high coal consumption have attracted widespread attention, so some people began to continuously improve steam pumps.

Finally, an engineer named Watt successfully improved the steam pump.

The pumping steam engine that can only be used for water pumping in mines (coal mines) has been improved by Watts and has become a power steam engine.

The emergence of the power steam engine changed human history.

This is the historical process that Yu Wen Wen knows. He himself does not have the ability to achieve a breakthrough from pumping steam engines to powered steam engines. Therefore, he can only find ways to allow this society to mine coal mines on a large scale, promote steam pumps, and then hope that someone can achieve a breakthrough.

It took Watt nearly thirty years to improve the steam engine. If it really takes thirty years to wait from now on, it would be worth it.

Yuwen Wen feels that there will definitely be no mistakes in making arrangements based on the correct technological development trajectory.

The feasibility of Yewan canal is not a problem, because the South-to-North Water Diversion Project in later generations also took this route and also passed through the Fangcheng Pass, so there would definitely be no mistake.

If it's wrong...
Chapter completed!