The Great Ming in the Box

Chapter 397: The First Chemical Factory

Thirty-Two was baffled. All the advisors were baffled.

Li Daoxuan, however, chuckled in amusement. So this was it—one of the heralds of the industrial revolution.

Advanced production tools had spurred progress in the textile industry, causing supporting industries to fall behind. To develop those complementary operations, every sector would be compelled to advance together.

Most fascinating. Time to kick back and enjoy the show. Blissful anticipation.

Li Daoxuan happily munched his dragon wontons while settling in for the entertainment.

After Chunhong explained the weaving process, Thirty-Two and the advisors finally understood that weaving required vast quantities of alkali.

Thirty-Two said, “Send someone to the artisans’ well. Fetch our alkali artisan.”

Soon, the alkali artisan arrived.

Previously, Gaojia Village lacked the ability to produce its own alkali; women purchased alkali for imitation weaving from the county town. Later, Xing Honglang spent some silver to coax an alkali artisan back from Xi’an, granting Gaojia Village its alkali production capability.

Suddenly summoned to the conference hall, the alkali artisan felt rather nervous. To such a humble craftsman, figures like Thirty-Two and Tan Liwen ranked higher than the county magistrate, nearly on par with the magistrate of Xi’an. He cautiously inquired, “Manager Thirty-Two, might I ask why you summoned this humble one here?”Thirty-Two asked, “I hear our village’s alkali supply is insufficient?”

The alkali artisan’s face flushed with embarrassment. “Yes, terribly insufficient. Women badger me daily to make more.”

Thirty-Two said, “If the women need alkali for weaving cloth, just produce more for them. I’ll notify the artisan master to increase your wages.”

The alkali artisan looked miserable. “It’s not about the wages. Even if I grew three heads and six arms, and hired dozens of apprentices, it still wouldn’t be enough.”

Thirty-Two was baffled. “???”

The alkali artisan explained, “Once those steam spinning machines start running, the cloth just flies off the looms! They work nonstop all day long. How can I possibly keep pace with steam power? The method I use involves soaking mugwort and smartweed in a cellar, then sun-drying them thoroughly. Only after that can I pour water over the mixture and add alkali powder to produce mineral alkali. Just imagining this process shows you how slow it is.”

Thirty-Two thought it over. It was true; this alkali production sounded much like fermenting vinegar or wine, requiring significant time for processing. “Then what’s the solution? Do you know other alkali artisans in Xi’an? Can we recruit more? Or perhaps dig more alkali pits?”

The alkali artisan shook his head vehemently. “With these clumsy hands of mine, I could never match the speed of steam machines in this lifetime. Especially since more machines appear each day—those blacksmiths are beasts, pounding out steam weaving machines nonstop. With each new machine, the alkali demand grows. Unless I wield immortal arts, these beasts will be the death of me.”

Li Daoxuan thought: Hahaha! Handicraft workshops, meet the terrors of industrial revolution.

Thirty-Two pressed, “We must find a solution, mustn’t we?”

The alkali artisan sighed. “This humble one sees no way.”

Chunhong interjected, “Ah? Does that mean we’re finished?”

The group exchanged uneasy glances.

Li Daoxuan gleefully noted to himself: This is when you should think of turning to the school. Let’s see if you figure it out.

Just then, the door to the discussion hall opened. Third Miss slipped inside, holding a bowl of snow fungus soup. She beamed as she handed it to Thirty-Two. “Father, have some soup.”

Third Miss was now sixteen, blossoming into a graceful young woman.

Unlike typical sheltered maidens, she didn’t stay confined indoors. Instead, she appeared openly at the school, teaching children mathematics while independently studying various junior high textbooks. Having completed junior high materials, she’d already begun tackling senior high-level subjects.

Thirty-Two accepted the soup with a troubled expression. After a small sip, his face lit up with a smile. “So sweet! My dutiful daughter cooks wonderfully. This soup is simply【exquisite in richness and sweetness】.”

Third Miss smiled. “What worries you, Father? Your brows are knotted tight.”

Thirty-Two gestured toward Chunhong. “Manager Chunhong just reported our alkali shortage. I summoned the alkali artisan, who says production can’t keep up.”

“Oh? Alkali?” Third Miss laughed. “You mean sodium hydroxide! That’s not particularly difficult; it just involves several chemical processes… Primarily requiring sodium carbonate solution and limestone…”

She methodically outlined the process for producing sodium hydroxide. However, her explanation drew only blank stares; no one understood a word.

Even Li Daoxuan—the Deity who’d long returned his middle school chemistry knowledge to his teacher—was momentarily stunned. After mentally apologizing to that teacher several times, he barely grasped her meaning.

Modern people learned many things, yet rarely applied them, thus forgot most subjects within years.

Happily, the children of Gaojia Village faced no such issue!

Every bit of math, physics, and chemistry they learned found practical use.

Li Daoxuan’s lips curved into a smile. Excellent! The younger generation, armed with modern scientific knowledge, is gradually stepping onto Gaojia Village’s stage. After Young Master Bai, now Third Miss contributes vital solutions. Soon, more children will rise to action.

Might Gao Sanwa be next? The perpetual class-skipper who thinks 3＋2=32? Could he possibly rise to the occasion?

Li Daoxuan felt immense pressure indeed.

Thirty-Two declared, “Everyone heard? My dutiful daughter just taught you the method for mass alkali production! You especially, alkali artisan, shouldn’t you hurry off to work?”

Sweat poured down the alkali artisan’s face. “But… this humble one didn’t even comprehend those terms. Sodium carbonate? Sodium hydroxide? Utterly unfamiliar.”

Third Miss clarified, “Sodium hydroxide is caustic soda. Sodium carbonate is soda ash.”

Now the alkali artisan grasped a sliver. He could produce both alkalis but painstakingly slowly. Running the materials through his mind, he finally parsed the steps Third Miss described—though he understood the procedure, the underlying principles remained obscure.

Third Miss chuckled. “You needn’t grasp the underlying science. Just like cement production, establish an alkali factory first. Prepare all the machinery and materials my process requires, then begin manufacturing. Throughout production, workers only need master very basic operational procedures.”

Precisely. In modern society’s chemical plants, not everyone understood chemical principles. Workers conducting operations required no theoretical expertise—they simply followed the standardized procedures provided by technicians.

Chemists devise solutions. Song Yingxing builds machines. Miners extract raw materials. Workers operate the factory… Running a modern chemical plant demands an extensive collaborative chain—far beyond an individual alkali artisan’s capability.

Li Daoxuan mentally awarded Third Miss vigorous applause.

Thirty-Two naturally backed his daughter’s plan wholeheartedly. Without question, funds were allocated immediately. Thus began Gaojia Village’s first alkali chemical factory—and the world’s first chemical plant…