The whole family travels through time and space, and the three of them struggle together

In the Zhou family's small study, only Zhou Dajiang and his family of three were there.

Zhou Dajiang couldn't believe his ears and asked again, "Sisi, what did you just say? Say it again."

Zhou Sisi was helpless and was about to say it again, but her mother rescued her.

"She said she wanted a dressing mirror to put in the store." Chen Xiuying repeated in a flat tone.

"I, you, why didn't you just tell me you wanted me to build a rocket?!" Zhou Dajiang was so angry he didn't know what to say. If he was any good at chemistry, he would have already made those glass and other things. Why would he wait for his daughter to ask for them? Those things are much more profitable than making kitchen tools!

After venting his anger, he felt that his daughter was wronged, so he explained to Zhou Sisi, "My dear, I am not omnipotent. I am okay at physics, but I am absolutely incapable of chemistry. The question you asked is too difficult."

Zhou Sisi had originally thought her father was omnipotent, even knowing all the weapons like the back of his hand. Making a dressing mirror shouldn't be child's play, right? Who would have thought that just as she raised her head, she was pinned to the ground. Her father gave her a classic line, "I can't do it!"

So Zhou Sisi looked at her mother again, but her mother didn't even look at her. She just lowered her head, and no one knew what she was thinking.

Zhou Sisi...

It seems I was just daydreaming. My passionate heart was immediately chilled.

"Okay, I made a mistake."

Unexpectedly, just as she gave up her expectations, her mother gave her hope. "Mirrors are made of glass coated with mercury. As long as glass can be made, a dressing mirror should be similar."

Zhou Dajiang: "You don't even need to tell me that. I know the key issue now is that I don't know how to make glass at all!"

Chen Xiuying looked at the father and daughter, still speaking in a calm tone, "I didn't ask you to do it, I'll do it this time."

"you do?"

When Zhou Sisi heard her mother say they were going to do it, she immediately became overjoyed and started to praise her like crazy, "That's great, Mom is so awesome! Thank you, Mom! You're so kind!"

Zhou Dajiang doubted his ears again, "You know how to make glass?"

"It should be similar in theory, but I haven't put it into practice." Although Chen Xiuying is not very confident, she thinks it should be possible after practicing it a few more times.

"Mom, how do you make glass?" Zhou Sisi, like her father, was not good at chemistry, so she took the opportunity to learn about it first.

"The theory is to mix silica, sodium carbonate, and calcium oxide in the right proportions, put them in a high-temperature container, and melt them in a furnace or kiln at 1500°C. Then, the molten transparent liquid is poured into a flat container to form it, and then annealed to prevent stress and cracks. Once all is completed, the glass is ready."

When Zhou Sisi heard what her mother said, she was immediately confused. "Where can we get silicon dioxide, sodium carbonate, and other things like that?"

"Silicon dioxide is sand, quartz sand. Sodium carbonate is soda ash, which can be made from wood ash. The ancient book 'The Exploitation of the Works of Nature' mentioned the method of extracting soda ash from wood ash. Calcium oxide can be extracted from limestone or shells."

Zhou Dajiang was no longer annoyed, and turned into a curious baby, asking: "What do you do with the glass after it's made?"

"The surface of newly formed glass is rough and needs to be polished to a smooth surface. After polishing, there are usually two ways to make it into a mirror surface.

The first one is the most primitive method during the Ming Dynasty. Tin foil is attached to one side of the glass, and then mercury is poured on it. Mercury can dissolve tin, forming a thin layer of tin attached to the surface of the glass, and the mirror is made.

However, this method was very laborious, and mercury was highly toxic. So, in the 18th century, a scientist invented a second method: silver plating. This method involved adding glucose or maltose to a silver ammonia solution, which reacted to reduce silver ions to metallic silver. This metal then adhered to the glass, creating a silver mirror.

"Then which one do you plan to use? The first one? The second one can't be done, right?" Zhou Dajiang felt that the silver ammonia solution sounded very difficult.

"The second method is indeed impossible right now. However, the mercury in the first method is too toxic, so I don't want to use it either."

"So what are you going to use?"

"I just thought about it. Mirrors can also be coated with silver paint. This method has a similar effect to the mercury layer on the back of the mirror. And silver powder has been in the hands of painters since ancient times. Maybe carpenters like Tian also know about it."

Chen Xiuying thought for a moment and added, "Although this paint is also toxic, it's less toxic than mercury. The coating shouldn't be scratched or damaged, or the mirror will fall off."

"It's easy to prevent it from falling off. Just like a photo frame, you just need to put a layer of board at the back." After the previous problems were solved, the subsequent problems were all trivial matters for Zhou Dajiang.

Zhou Sisi felt relieved after hearing what her parents said. It seemed that her mother had thought of all the steps, so she just had to wait for the mirror to be made. Great! She was looking forward to it!

Zhou Dajiang understood his wife, "So, what do you need me to do next?"

Chen Xiuying thought for a moment, "The profits from this thing are too great. Even our family and Datong Trading Company can't keep it. We have to hand it over to the country. Besides, ordinary people can't explain to others how we came up with this thing. I have to think of a way."

First, ask Uncle Fu to help me gather the raw materials, and then you can help me build a small kiln, the kind for firing porcelain. Oh, and since none of you are working, you can help me build a few more ovens at home and on the farm."

Zhou Dajiang: "Okay, leave these to me. It just so happens that the wood they ordered won't arrive for two days. I'll ask them to help with it and it will be finished within two days."

After Chen Xiuying finished talking about the oven, she suddenly remembered, "Tsk, I forgot. I should drive the cows over here. I need milk to bake things." The last time she went home, two of her cows were pregnant, and the other two had entered the evaporating milk period, so she forgot about them.

"It's such a hassle to come all this way back and forth. Just buy a few more here. You know how to make cheese with those cows, right? Write down a recipe. My brother-in-law is here, so I'll sell the recipe and the cows to my eldest sister's family and ask him if he'd like to do it."

"Is it okay?" Chen Xiuying was a little hesitant. There is a knife hanging over her head. What if her eldest brother-in-law becomes greedy for Fangzi and treats her badly? What should she do?

Zhou Dajiang boasted that he was quite good at judging people. "Brother-in-law isn't that kind of person. Don't think too badly of him."

After saying that, he thought for a moment and asked his wife, "Do you know how to make other dairy products?"

"Yes."

"Or, why not just give it to him for free? Use this to negotiate with your eldest brother-in-law. His family happens to be close to the ranch, and once the dairy products are ready, there's a decent market. We'll provide the recipe and the cattle, and let your eldest sister's family do the hard work. He can buy the rest of the cattle, and then we'll calculate the shares. 30% to 70%, so we can take less. Then have your eldest sister come to the capital once a year to settle the accounts. Wouldn't that solve the problem?"

Chen Xiuying thought for a moment and said, "That's fine, but I won't discuss it. You guys are good at talking to men. Tell him that this is a deal between me and my eldest sister."

"Okay, okay, as you say. I'll go talk to you now. I'll also have to get the stove ready for you tomorrow."