American: Native Empire

The next place that the cool raindrop visited was where the second process of absorbing sulfuric acid took place.

It was none other than the bleaching factory.

“Long time no see.”

“How have you been?”

The cool raindrop had built friendships with the leaders of the main factories before he entered the industrial department.

The golden wing, the manager of this bleaching factory, was also one of them.

The golden wing laughed heartily and replied.

“Hahaha! I rarely have days as good as these. I’m really enjoying life thanks to sulfuric acid.”

“That’s good to hear. You know why I came here, right?”

“Haha. Are you going to work right away? Why don’t you take a break?”

“I have a pile of work to do in the capital. I’m sorry, but I don’t have much time.”

“Well, in that case… Follow me.”

Soon, the cool raindrop observed every step of the bleaching process, just like he did with the papermaking process.

‘This is where sulfuric acid has the most benefits. It’s incomparable to before.’

He had seen the bleaching process of cotton fabrics before, so he could clearly realize this.

As time passed, the demand for dyed cotton fabrics increased explosively.

It was because the imperial citizens became more interested in fashion.

However, to dye cotton fabrics properly, they had to go through a bleaching process first.

The problem was that the bleaching process was very difficult.

They had to soak the cotton fabrics in lye and then dry them in the sun for a very long time.

Using sour milk would make it easier, but there was no way to get milk in North America.

‘No matter how you look at it, I didn’t expect the process to be this easy.’

After taking out the clothes soaked in lye, they just had to soak them in a solution diluted with sulfuric acid for a while and the bleaching was done.

A work that took several months was reduced to just a few days.

It was too dramatic a change even if he thought about it again.

The cool raindrop chatted with the golden wing for a while and then left the bleaching factory.

‘I should go back now.’

He had achieved all his goals in Black Sky.

It was time to return to work.

***

After the industrial director returned to the capital.

Kim Ki-woo arranged a private meeting with him.

“So. How was your trip to Black Sky?”

“Yes. It seemed like the factories were growing day by day since I visited after a long time. It was truly dynamic, fitting for an industrial city.”

“Haha. I also want to visit once. It’s been too long since I went to Black Sky.”

Black Sky was the fastest growing place in the empire.

It was because there were many factories concentrated there.

‘I wish I had some pictures.’

He wondered how much it had changed compared to when he completed the Bessemer steelmaking method.

But his curiosity ended there.

It was work time now.

Kim Ki-woo went straight to the point.

“I’ve been receiving reports, but I’m curious how things are going on site.”

“Hehe. Seeing the simplified processes due to sulfuric acid, I felt scared.”

“It’s a dangerous substance. I heard there were several accidents.”

It was unfortunate.

He ordered numerous safety education before introducing sulfuric acid to each factory, but accidents did not stop because it was early stage.

There were always people who could not tell shit from soybean paste everywhere.

But the cool raindrop shook his head vigorously.

“That’s not what I meant. I meant that I felt scared seeing how bleach works with sulfuric acid. I realized your greatness once again.”

“Haha. This guy is still good at flattering. You’re making me blush.”

Kim Ki-woo just laughed and moved on as he was used to this kind of flattering words.

After that, the industrial director started to tell him everything he saw and felt in Black Sky.

Kim Ki-woo listened quietly to all his words and then sent him away.

‘Now it will be perfect as time passes.’

The shortage of sulfuric acid would be solved when the refinery expanded.

As time passed, the production of paper would increase much more, and the bleaching of fabrics would also become much easier.

‘Hmm. Fabrics…’

Kim Ki-woo threw his gaze back at the report he had been reading before the industrial director came in.

It contained information about the current textile industry of the empire.

He was not very worried about paper.

As long as sulfuric acid was introduced, it would improve steadily without him paying attention.

But the current textile industry was different.

‘The price of cotton fabric is skyrocketing without knowing the limit.’

This was all thanks to the increasing demand day by day.

As the quality of life of the imperial citizens improved, it was a natural consequence.

In many countries from ancient to medieval times, people wore a few clothes until they died.

But the empire was very different.

The imperial citizens bought several clothes and chose what to wear according to the occasion.

Of course, the demand for fabric was bound to be high.

Moreover, the fabric made in the empire was very popular outside as well.

It was of better quality than the fabric produced elsewhere, so it was natural.

Of course, the supply of fabric was also increasing, but the increase in demand was much greater.

‘The problem is still the spinning process.’

The cotton fabric could be divided into four major processes before it was sold in the market.

The process of growing cotton, removing the seeds and drying it.

The spinning process of making yarn.

The weaving process of making fabric with yarn.

And the processing process of bleaching, dyeing, clothing production, etc.

Among them, three processes were somewhat solved.

The place where the empire’s mainland was located was very suitable for growing cotton, so it was enough to grow more cotton.

The bleaching process, which was the hardest part of the processing process, also became much easier thanks to sulfuric acid.

And…

‘It’s been a while since the flying shuttle came out.’

If there was one keyword that ran through the empire’s industry, it would be ‘efficiency’.

Already, many factories had introduced various mechanical processes using water wheels, and their production volume had increased greatly.

This had a great impact on other industries as well.

Similar mechanical processes began to be introduced in other industries as well.

The flying shuttle was born in this environment.

Even though Kim Ki-woo did not give any hint about it.

‘The flying shuttle is not a difficult concept.’

The basic principle of the loom was to weave the weft between the warp threads that crossed up and down.

A shuttle with a weft thread is inserted between the warp threads, and the warp threads that were above are crossed below, and vice versa.

This process is repeated continuously, and a dense fabric is completed.

In order to increase efficiency, the key was to quickly move the shuttle back and forth from left to right.

Naturally, people focused on the movement of the shuttle.

As a result, they made a shuttle that moved back and forth from left to right by just pulling force.

It was the same principle as the flying shuttle made in Europe.

Thanks to this, the weaving process became much faster, and the width of the finished fabric also increased greatly.

The three processes above were all being improved quickly, but only the spinning process lagged behind this trend.

‘I hope the spinning machine will be improved soon.’

That’s not to say that Kim Ki-woo wanted to improve it himself.

Just like the flying shuttle came out, the spinning machine would also be improved on its own.

The idea of improving the spinning machine was a common thought among many people involved in the textile industry.

Therefore, at this moment, too, the mechanization of spinning machines was underway.

Moreover, now that patent rights were established, they would make a lot of money if they succeeded in mechanizing spinning machines.

Kim Ki-woo had no intention of taking away their opportunity.

***

Kim Ki-woo’s prediction was not wrong.

“How about joining us?”

“You mean… working on improving the spinning machine?”

“That’s right. If we succeed, we’ll make more money than we can ever spend in our lifetime.”

“Can we make that much?”

“Of course! Don’t you know how much cotton fabric is produced in the empire every year? In this situation, think about getting a patent for an excellent spinning machine!”

If they could only succeed in mechanizing spinning machines, enormous wealth would naturally follow them.

Therefore, even many craftsmen who had nothing to do with textile industry began to challenge mechanizing spinning machines.

“The answer is a water-powered spinning machine!”

“Of course. That’s obvious.”

This was a common thought among craftsmen.

There were already many processes that ran on water power.

Inevitably, an excellent spinning machine would be a water-powered spinning machine that could be easily inferred.

After that, they each developed water-powered spinning machines as if they were chased by something.

If they were late in development and failed to obtain patent rights, all their efforts would be wasted.

In the end, developing water-powered spinning machines was a race against time.

Craftsmen poured out their best efforts by combining various technologies that had come out so far, including gears.

They competed fiercely day and night.

But everything has an end.

“That’s it! We did it!”

“Hahaha!”

They finally developed the first hydraulic spinning machine.

They immediately applied for a patent on the hydraulic spinning machine.

“Already?”

“Yes.”

The news was reported to Kim Kiwoo as if it was natural.

Kim Kiwoo was quite surprised.

‘Huh, well. It hasn’t been long since I wished for the spinning machine to be improved.’

Through this event, Kim Kiwoo once again felt the accelerated pace of industrial development.

“Can I take a look at it?”

“I already told them to bring it to the palace as soon as the spinning machine was improved.”

“Really?”

He seemed to know Kim Kiwoo well after serving him for a long time.

Kim Kiwoo wanted to see the hydraulic spinning machine as soon as possible.

And the next day.

Kim Kiwoo was able to see the hydraulic spinning machine.

“Hmm…”

It looked slightly different from the hydraulic spinning machine he knew, but it wasn’t a big deal.

Kim Kiwoo looked at the men standing next to the hydraulic spinning machine with a tense expression and said.

“Did you guys make this spinning machine?”

“Y-yes!”

Kim Kiwoo naturally glanced at their eyes, which were mixed with tension, excitement, and longing, and said briefly.

“Can you show me how it works?”

“Yes!”

Of course, there was no proper water power in the palace, so they had to turn the water wheel by hand.

Whiiik!

Clang!

As soon as the water wheel started to spin, the spinning machine began to work.

“Oh.”

Kim Kiwoo let out a short exclamation.

It was clearly due to the rotational force of the water wheel that the process of making yarn was as natural as water flowing.

It was incomparable to the efficiency of the existing spinning machine.

The mechanization of the spinning machine was finally completed.

After watching the spinning process enough.

“Stop turning it.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The rotation of the water wheel slowly stopped at Kim Kiwoo’s command.

Kim Kiwoo approached them, who were overly nervous, and patted their shoulders.

“Haha. You did a great job. Thanks to your efforts, the textile industry will leap forward once more.”

“T-thank you…!”

Their bodies trembled slightly.

“Hic!”

There was even a man who cried with emotion at Kim Kiwoo’s encouragement.

Kim Kiwoo left them behind and fell into thought.

‘I guess we’ve entered the real industrial revolution now.’

Many processes were being mechanized.

Even without Kim Kiwoo’s direct instructions, as before.

It was this mass production by mechanization that triggered the industrial revolution.

Of course, it was only the beginning of the industrial revolution, at best.

But he still had a long way to go.

Kim Kiwoo’s destination was beyond the fourth industrial revolution.

<The end.>