The other blacksmiths came up to observe, and all of them went crazy.

"Oh my god, you can really make steel!"

"Oh my God, there will be no shortage of steel from now on."

The actual results made the blacksmiths all excited and they immediately started working quickly.

The liquefaction effect of molten steel is much better than that of previous molten iron. It can be easily drawn out, wrapped in an iron truss and beaten repeatedly.

As the molten steel continues to cool and is hammered, it gradually takes shape, which is actually the preliminary barrel.

Looking at the work of the gunsmiths, Zuo Mengeng had to admire the craftsmanship of the craftsmen in this era.

Who would have thought that such a high-end device as a gun barrel could be hammered out by craftsmen?

He pointed to the waterway not far away: "The waterwheel will be ready for use after spring. Then the waterwheel will push a larger forging hammer, making it easier to make gun barrels."

The waterwheel Zuo Mengeng had built in advance could be used for both fetching water and driving it.

The craftsmen were astonished after understanding the working principle of the hydraulic forging hammer, and were even more impatient than he was.

However, the river is now frozen and the waterwheel cannot be driven.

The steel pipe was quickly made. Although it was still rough, it was enough for use.

So Zuo Mengeng took the steel pipe and the finished iron plate to another stove.

Here Yang Gui and others were still thinking about how to make a gun barrel, and they didn't know what Zuo Mengeng was doing.

The other furnace has now begun to warm up, and another group of craftsmen are guarding it.

However, this group of craftsmen were temporarily recruited from refugees and did not have basic skills.

But it doesn't matter. If you want to find craftsmen who can make glass in this era, there is no hope in the Ming Dynasty.

It would be better to find some refugees and train them yourself.

After a period of training, these refugees have been able to master the furnace temperature well.

Without a thermometer, Zuo Mengeng could only observe by feeling.

When he found that the furnace was almost warm, he asked the craftsmen to put sand and limestone into it.

In fact, in order to lower the melting point of refined glass, soda ash needs to be added to it.

However, Zuo Mengeng's knowledge of chemistry was all related to the military industry, and for a while he didn't find any tricks like soda ash.

He did know that the ashes burned after drying certain seaweeds contained alkali, which could be used to make the most primitive soda ash.

But this place is far away from the sea, and he has no way to do it.

Fortunately, there is a graphite crucible, which improves the durability of the furnace, and the limestone lowers the melting point of some glass, so it is barely usable.

The most important thing at the moment is whether the glass can be produced.
Chapter completed!