Chapter 009: To Leave a Clear Conscience in the World

The engineering project was declared a failure, and the burnt lime waste was utilized by simply constructing a three-in-one earth dam for drying grain

Liu Yaozu eagerly responded: "Wang Erge deceived the Fang village chief terribly, claiming that the products from the kiln could be used to repair the irrigation canal, which led the entire village to help him build a lime kiln. Everyone worked hard for two farming off-seasons, but as a result, the irrigation canal has still not been repaired, and the Fang village chief is so angry that he wants to burn down Wang Erge's house"

Liu Yaozu, being very intelligent, nodded and said, "My father also said that one should not stand out too much; when it is time to yield, one must yield."

It is not the case at all

Humans are adaptive creatures

The only water source in the village is a small stream, which is formed by the convergence of mountain spring water, and it is simply insufficient during the busy farming season. People need to travel several miles to a cave to fetch water; within the cave, there is an underground river, but the mountainous terrain is very steep, making it unsuitable for building houses and settling near the cave

It is evident that the village chief was deceived

The true transformation is encapsulated in the phrase "Understanding the affairs of the world is knowledge, and being well-versed in human relationships is literature"

"There is absolutely no possibility of making a profit," Wang Yuan shook his head and said, "At first, I also wanted to make money from the three-in-one soil, which is why I deceived the village chief into building a lime kiln for me. However, the cost of producing lime is too high, and if it is transported down the mountain for sale, ordinary families simply cannot afford it"

The couplet from "Dream of the Red Chamber" directly resonates with Shen Fuceng's innermost feelings, perfectly summarizing his life experiences over the years

The underground river is too deep, requiring a long rope to be tied to the bucket, making it very laborious to pull up the water

Master Shen said: "If you wish to take the imperial examination, you must obtain a household registration. Regardless of the means, acquiring a household registration requires money. I see that you are skilled in mixing three-compatibility soil, and I was wondering if you could make a profit from this."

Curious baby Liu Yaozu eagerly asked: "Who is the gentleman referring to?"

Wang Yuan chuckled without offering any explanation

In fact, the process is quite simple. As a seasoned engineer, I discovered that the Heishan Ridge is abundant in limestone and that kaolin can be easily found. What can Wang Yuan think of?

In the counties where he served as a legal advisor, regardless of how corrupt the officials were, there were still basic rules to adhere to. However, such rules did not apply to the local chieftains; even if they were to kill everyone in the Chuanqing Stockade without reason, no one would be held accountable. To the court, the barbaric and uncivilized people were not considered human, at least not in the legal sense

Master Shen slowly squatted down, picked up a lump of lime that had long since solidified, and asked, "Is this how chalk is made?"

The Heishan Ridge village is so impoverished that, in addition to the barren land, it primarily suffers from a lack of irrigation water

Wang Yuan asked, "Why did you come to the forest to find me, what is the matter?"

The shock in Shen Shiye's heart is unimaginable, and he was even so excited that he vowed on the spot to seek an official position, firmly believing in Wang Yuan's innate wisdom. He no longer regarded Wang Yuan as an ordinary disciple, but as a comrade in struggle with whom he could mutually support each other.

Wang Yuan scoffed disdainfully, exuding a spirit of grandeur: "How can one accomplish great things by merely yielding?"

Of course, it is the production of cement

In his previous life, Wang Yuan's family owned a cement factory, but it was later shut down due to environmental regulations

On the other side of the green forest, a large area has been artificially cleared.

Wang Yuanle laughed heartily and said, "What you just mentioned, sir, seems quite interesting."

As for the relationship between Shen Fuceng and Wang Yuan, it seems to have undergone some subtle changes

Is the village chief that easy to deceive? Shen Fuceng asked suspiciously

Shen Fuceng arrived at the kiln, gazed for a moment, and said: "Yuan Ge'er, this lime kiln is likely not something you could have built alone"

Liu Yaozu looked at Shen Fuceng and said, "Sir, why are you in a daze?"

In the center of the open space, there is a large earthen kiln made of mud.

"Why not sell it to the local chieftain?" asked Master Shen

In order to persuade the village chief Fang to build a kiln, Wang Yuan exerted considerable effort. He deceived him by saying that the products of this kiln could be used to construct the water diversion canal, which led Fang Ayuan to reluctantly gather manpower, albeit with lingering doubts.

Three-in-one soil, like cement, primarily consists of limestone; however, the temperature required for its calcination is several hundred degrees lower.

Indeed," Wang Yuan smiled and said, "There is an abundance of lime here, all of it useless waste, enough for you to complete the Four Books and Five Classics.

Whether it is Wang Yuan's talent for reading, the earthworm pond in the forest, or the loess on the other side of the drying dam, they all serve merely as a catalytic role in accumulation

Shen Fuceng was instantly rendered speechless. In a moment of clarity, he seemed to see another Yu Qian. Reflecting on his disciple's martial skills, a bizarre image involuntarily surfaced in his mind—Wang Yuan standing in the imperial court, suddenly throwing down his tablet of authority, rolling up his sleeves to violently beat the censors, causing them to cry out in pain: "Wang Er, I concede, please spare my life!" The emperor hurriedly intervened: "Wang Er, grant me a favor, do not kill him on the spot."

Later, Emperor Wanli changed Yu Qian's posthumous title to Zhongsu, replacing the character "Min" with "Zhong," which carries profound significance

As for the water diversion canal, the construction difficulty is too great, and Wang Yuan is also at a loss. He never intended to build the water diversion canal; it was merely a pretext to experiment with the concept of the lime kiln.

Wang Yuan smiled wryly: "The local chieftains are nothing but a group of bandits, completely unreasonable. If the chieftains were to learn about the benefits of the three-in-one soil, they would certainly be unwilling to spend money to purchase it; instead, they would simply conscript the villagers into craftsmen, which would be much more convenient. For the chieftains, there is an even easier way: to mobilize troops and eliminate the Qingzhuang village, capturing the villagers to make them slaves, specifically for the production of three-in-one soil for him and *Tu* *Shu*."

In just a few days, Master Shen adapted to life in the mountains and also to his current identity, even referring to himself as "this master" in conversation.

Wang Yuan wore a smug smile and said, "Haha, this matter is not convenient to discuss in detail, so let us set it aside for now"

Jiang Deke stated that "sincerity" is to hold a resolute heart and make decisions; "sincerity" is to uphold laws and regulations with clarity; "sincerity" is to correct oneself and manage subordinates; "sincerity" is to show compassion in times of national difficulty; "sincerity" is to express sympathy when calamities arise; "sincerity" is to assist the nation in times of trouble; "sincerity" is to risk one's life for the sake of others—honestly speaking, the posthumous title given to Yu Qian by Emperor Hongzhi is indeed very fitting

However, after the time travel, no matter how Wang Yuan conducted experiments, even with the legendary artifact, the Earth High Furnace, he still could not achieve the furnace temperature required to produce cement

Master Shen asked Wang Yuan again, "Brother Yuan, what do you think?"

Master Shen recounted the story of Yu Qian to his two disciples, advising them: "You must remember, one should not be overly rigid in character. Rigidity leads to breakage, invites jealousy from others, and inevitably results in being schemed against by petty individuals, as well as attracting suspicion from the sovereign"

In a state of helplessness, one can only settle for a compromise, prioritizing the production of the three-in-one soil first before addressing other matters

Ah? It's nothing, nothing at all. Master Shen came back to his senses and shook his head to dispel those absurd fantasies

The garbage earth kiln designed by Wang Yuan has a very low success rate for firing lime. Even if the limestone is crushed into fine pieces and thrown in, a large portion of the output ends up as waste, and the process is time-consuming, labor-intensive, and strenuous, making it impossible to meet the demand for constructing the water diversion channel

Wang Yuan then collaborated with Liu the carpenter to create a pulley system, making it easier and less labor-intensive for the villagers to fetch water. It was precisely for this reason that Fang Ayuan believed Wang Yuan's tall tales and, filled with enthusiasm, began constructing a clay kiln to produce lime, intending to rally the entire village to build a water diversion channel.

Master Shen was momentarily at a loss for words, unable to respond

Master Shen stared blankly at the quicklime, and after a long while, he suddenly felt inspired to recite Yu Qian's "Ode to Lime": "Chiseled a thousand times from deep mountains, burned by fierce fire as if it were nothing. Not afraid of being ground to powder or shattered, I wish to leave my purity in the world! This sentiment and this object make me inevitably reminisce about Duke Su Min, who stood up to turn the tide when it had already fallen, yet ultimately met such a fate."

Shen Fuceng's primary talents do not lie in composing formal essays or teaching children to read. He is a shiyé with over ten years of experience. He is capable of discerning the decisions of the court above and managing the clerks and officials below. Without a clear understanding of worldly affairs and the nuances of human relationships, how could he achieve such a level of proficiency

The methods of making money with Sanhe soil need not be mentioned. Shen Fuceng then spoke of another matter, stating, "The urgent task is to go down the mountain to buy books, and while at it, to purchase some ink, brushes, paper, and inkstones. If you do not practice your calligraphy earnestly, do you expect to use a blackboard and chalk during the imperial examination? The palace examination only accepts ink scrolls, not red scrolls. Are you expecting the emperor to hold a blackboard to award you the title of top scholar?"

Although Wang Yuan did not know Duke Su of Yu, he had studied "The Lime Rhyme" and could at least guess that it referred to the posthumous title of Yu Qian