As they spoke, the group had already walked from the entrance to the deepest part of the shipyard.
This place faced the coast and, like the entrance, pierced through the wall; at the same time, this opening connected the interior with the external dock.
This design not only facilitated the launching of ships but also allowed seagoing vessels to directly enter the shipyard for repairs.
From the berths within the yard came a cacophony of sounds, a stark contrast to the quiet of the previous stretch.
Dozens of people were gathered at the pier, offering their opinions on the ships floating in the water.
Seeing this, Quan Yue also shouted loudly towards the front: "Factory Director Jiang!"
Among the crowd, the most gaunt figure turned to look at them.
Noticing it was Quan Yue, he immediately trotted forward and bowed to Quan Yue and Quan Li with an excited expression:
"Patriarch, you've finally arrived! We've just finished preparing for the test.
However, who are these two?"
This person was none other than Jiang Jun, the disciple of the factory director who had been poached from the Hanhai Shipyard.
At the same time, this person was also the current factory director of the Quan family's shipyard; it was because of his existence that the technological development of the Quan family's shipyard had been so rapid.
Factory Director Jiang looked at the robust Quan Yi and his facial features, roughly deducing Quan Yi's identity.
The look in his eyes towards Quan Yi changed several times in a very short period.
From initial surprise to disbelief, and finally to admiration.
He slightly trembled as he held Quan Yi's hand, excitedly saying, "Young Master, I've been waiting for you for a long time!
The steamship blueprints designed by you have truly opened my eyes; they have completely subverted my accumulated shipbuilding knowledge.
If it weren't for the Young Master being busy with affairs, I would have long wanted to visit and properly ask you about your design concepts."
Jiang Jun's gaze towards Quan Yi was filled with admiration.
At the same time, he adopted a junior's posture, revealing a desire to learn from Quan Yi.
Quan Yue added from the side, "Xiao Yi, every time I come, Factory Director Jiang asks me about you.
Now that you've finally met, you might as well have a good exchange with Factory Director Jiang."
"Of course, Factory Director Jiang's contributions to our Quan family are obvious to all, and in terms of shipbuilding skills, I am far inferior to Factory Director Jiang. I also need to learn a lot.
However, didn't the factory director invite us here today for something more important?"
As Quan Yi spoke, he shifted his gaze towards the pier.
Jiang Jun patted his forehead and said, "It's all my fault for being too excited. Please forgive me, Young Master.
Today, I invited everyone here to show you our preliminary results.
Please follow me."
Jiang Jun led the group through the crowd and to the pier.
There, a normal medium-sized wooden sailboat was docked at the shore.
"Huh? Isn't this just a normal sailboat? It seems completely different from the patterns on Xiao Yi's blueprints?"
Huo Wu looked at Jiang Jun in confusion.
Indeed, the shape of the ship was not much different from that of an ordinary wooden sailboat.
The only difference was that next to the ship's mast stood a thick, slender iron pillar.
Besides this, the outer side of the ship did not have steel plates attached, which was completely contrary to the image of the steel behemoth described by Quan Yi.
However, Quan Yi's gaze did not focus on the appearance but instead looked towards the surface of the water.
Seeing the extending shadow beneath the water, the corners of his mouth involuntarily curved upwards.
"Xiao Wu, don't just look at the surface of things. This ship is not as simple as it looks."
Quan Yi then looked at Jiang Jun, revealing an approving expression.
Afterward, he said to Jiang Jun, "Since Factory Director Jiang has summoned us, you must be well-prepared.
Without further ado, why not have Factory Director Jiang demonstrate the special features of this seagoing vessel for us?"
Jiang Jun had been paying attention to Quan Yi's actions, and from Quan Yi's expression and movements, he knew that Quan Yi had already noticed the special features of the ship.
A look of joy appeared on his face as well.
He immediately began directing the crew around him.
Several men surrounding the ship boarded it in an orderly manner.
A burst of noisy footsteps echoed on the deck above their heads.
Jiang Jun then walked towards the ship and said, "It's not very clear from here. Why don't you all come aboard and observe together?"
Naturally, everyone wanted to observe the ship's condition up close, so they followed Jiang Jun onto the ship.
However, as soon as they boarded, they saw the crew members not manipulating the mast but instead diving into the space below the deck and hastily carrying some kind of supplies down.
Quan Yi and the others followed Jiang Jun's footsteps into the space leading below.
As soon as they approached, a scorching heat wave rushed towards them.
The space below the deck was completely different from the exterior.
Inside, more than half of the space was filled with metal-forged machinery.
And the crew members were carrying sacks in their hands, piling a large amount of coal into a large boiler.
The crew members were each in their respective positions, with some responsible for shoveling the coal they carried into the combustion chamber of the boiler.
In just a moment, the heat from the burning coal filled the entire space.
The heat carried by the burning coal heated the large water storage device above.
The smoke accompanying the combustion was then discharged outside the ship through the exhaust pipes.
The thick iron pillar standing outside the ship was the exhaust pipe connected here.
With the addition of a large amount of coal, the heat of the combustion chamber quickly heated the water tank above.
Before long, accompanied by a sharp steam whistle, countless interconnected gears slowly rotated under the impetus of the steam, and the complex and disorderly massive metal structure seemed to form a perfect unity at this moment.
Displaying its unique mechanical beauty to everyone.
Jiang Jun explained to everyone, "We don't yet have the experience and ability to perfectly replicate the steel seagoing vessel provided by the Young Master.
However, I discovered that taking out the steam power device and installing it on a wooden frame is completely without any problems.
Therefore, our shipyard and the forging factory worked together to complete this wooden steamship."
Hearing Jiang Jun's explanation, Quan Yi couldn't help but applaud.
"This kind of resourcefulness is very rare for craftsmen.
As expected of Factory Director Jiang, to actually think of a point that even I didn't notice."
Hearing Quan Yi's praise, Jiang Jun felt a sense of recognition in his heart.
However, Jiang Jun was inherently introverted, and he humbly said to Quan Yi, "No, the steam engine and the overall structure were all completed by the Young Master and the blacksmiths of the forging factory. I'm just doing the assembly.
It's not worth such praise from the Young Master.
The steam engine has started, why don't we move to the deck to more directly feel how this ship will move."
