Chapter 494 New Resources

When diaspore reaches gem quality, it will refract brilliant light due to its extremely high fire color, and it also has strong polychromaticity - unlike other color-changing gemstones that change from one single color to another. It can reflect a variety of colors at the same time, the most obvious one is the mixture of red and green. No wonder it is called colorful by the locals. He hadn't thought of it when he heard Barov introduce it before, but the moment he saw it with his own eyes, Roland immediately thought of this kind of stone.

In addition, when diaspore loses water, it will transform into corundum... and the gem quality of corundum is the famous ruby ​​and sapphire. Compared with the former, the latter has a more prominent reputation.

But it wasn't the gem itself that excited him.

"Where are the residues dug out from the mine?" After a long time, the prince closed the wooden box and asked excitedly.

"Are you talking about...the gravel dug out when the mine tunnel was opened?"

"That's right, not just stones, but also mud. How do you dispose of these waste materials?"

"After being transported out, they were all piled at the foot of the mountain." Denver seemed not to understand the meaning of the prince's question. "Your Highness, please rest assured that we have carefully screened these ores. Either the quality is too poor, or they are mined." It was broken during the process and could no longer be polished into gemstones. For the screening process, the most experienced veterans in the family are responsible for it, so there is no chance of any omissions."

"You are wrong," Roland smiled and shook his head, "Those things... are probably the real treasures."

"What?" Denver was stunned for a moment, and the others looked quite surprised, as if they couldn't connect the mud with the treasure.

But he couldn't explain this matter - because in this era, it was difficult to even make steel, let alone refine aluminum.

The main component of diaspore is aluminum oxide, and its discovery as a companion product of bauxite most likely means that the aluminum element is enriched here, and both soil and rocks can be used as raw materials for aluminum smelting. As the most abundant metallic element in the earth, aluminum has higher reserves than iron and is almost ubiquitous. In other words, Lucia can decompose a small amount of aluminum by digging out a random stone from the ground - but it is not cost-effective to use it for industrial refining, so only places where aluminum is rich are valuable for mining.

Take this cave in front of you, for example.

Roland called Perot aside and asked in a low voice, "How have the Ke Lian family managed the gem mines for the past two hundred years? I mean... how have the previous lords paid them?"

"I checked from the account books left behind by Osmond Lane. The method of payment is very simple. That is, the Ke Lian family can select a box of secondary gems from the collected gems as a reward every year, and weigh it. The method of wheat is basically the same." Perro explained, "The square box is about a palm long and wide and half a palm deep. As long as the lid can be closed, you can put as many as you like. Of course, the rarest quality gems must be handed over to the lord. .”

"In other words, the two family collections he just gave me were not the best?"

"In terms of texture alone, it is indeed the best. He would not dare to lie to you on this point, but you also know that the bigger the gemstones are, the more expensive they are."

"You also received gifts from him, right?" Roland looked at Honeysuckle's eldest son with interest.

"Uh..." the latter responded with some embarrassment, "Yes, Your Highness, I will give the gem to you when I get back."

"Keep it, I don't care about it," the prince said unconcernedly, "I'm just curious, who will guarantee the authenticity of this reward? What if the family secretly takes more during the mining process? This kind of thing is nothing but Turn the mansion upside down, otherwise you won’t be able to find out at all, right?”

"Every batch of ore will be transported out of the cave and screened by someone, and even if the Ke Lian family steals it, it will not be too obvious - this is a relationship of checks and balances, they are afraid of being discovered by the lord and being severely punished, and The lord can't find so many people who know the mines well," Perro paused, "Besides, even if it's his own people, who can guarantee that they won't steal it?"

"I see," Roland nodded, "Then continue according to this rule. But in addition to the colorful stones, I also want the excavated gravel and mud. I will make a preliminary collection plan for you when I go back. First implement the requirements above."

"Your Highness, is this mud... really more precious than gems?"

"It depends on whose hand it is," the prince replied.

What is aluminum? It has countless uses. Its low density and corrosion resistance alone support half of the sky in industrial production. It is also an indispensable key material for aviation technology. It is true that smelting aluminum is a troublesome job, and the amount of electricity consumed by electrolysis equipment is astronomical for Neverwinter City, but with Lucia, a batch can always be saved. By then, there will also be hope for some weapons and equipment that are no less than miracles in this era - such as large airships.

Roland originally planned to focus his development on the two iron mines, but it seems that the plan will be slightly adjusted now.

…

After inspecting the remaining two mines and a salt well, we returned to the castle. It was completely dark.

After dinner, Roland couldn't wait to take out a pen and paper and start planning the use of new resources.

The first is the steam engine.

Whether it is mine drainage, hauling or brine extraction from salt wells, steam engines can double the efficiency. The Maple Leaf and Wild Rose families have now been destroyed. He plans to recruit a group of experienced people from the Beipo Mine and recruit a large number of employees in the Changge District to put the two new iron mines into operation first, and the ore can be hauled back to the border area for smelting. The gem mine needs to wait for Lucia to rush to Changge to test the aluminum content in each tunnel before arranging the next mining direction.

Another highlight is the salt well.

The situation was close to what Roland expected. In addition to using a steam engine to pump water to increase production, the remaining work to obtain snow-white refined salt was to remove impurities. Considering the complex geological composition, he decided to take a tube of brine from each well and bring it back to the border area, and gave it to the chief alchemist Kai Mostrier to study the specific impurity removal steps. After understanding the process, he set up a factory on the spot and started a large-scale Production of table salt.

Of course, the salt industry, like grain, should also be exclusively run by the city hall. The salt wells of the Elk and Honeysuckle families can receive technical support from Neverwinter City, but the refined salt they produce must be sold to the city hall at the specified market price and cannot be sold privately to other places for profit. If a large amount of refined salt could be obtained at a low price, it would undoubtedly open up a new trade route for Neverwinter City.

Roland hopes that everything will be on track after the collapse of the Tifeko regime. (To be continued.)