Chapter 188: Iron Ambition 3

Chapter 188: Iron Ambition 3

TL: Etude

At half past one in the afternoon, Guy Burns arrived at the Lords Mansion. After sitting in the reception room for a while, the Chief Secretary invited him to meet the master of the house.

Upon entering the Lords office, he was first surprised by its simplicity; it hardly seemed like the daily workplace of a count-level noble.

Then, he saw the local Lord, Paul Grayman, who, as the rumors described, was very young, appearing to be only around fifteen years old. This was the person who had originally designed the harvester.

The young Count was standing not far from the door, seemingly there to welcome him.

Burns was about to perform the etiquette required for visiting a high-ranking noble, but he was interrupted by the others voice.

Welcome, Mr. Burns.

Paul was the first to speak, stepping forward to shake hands, gently moving it up and down.

Is this the etiquette of the Northwesterners? Simple enough, Burns thought, feeling the strength in the others handshake and instinctively gripping Pauls hand firmly.

Hello, Count Grayman. Its an honor to meet you. Ever since I saw that harvester, Ive been eager to meet you. Oh, its truly a genius creation.Visit no(v)eLb(i)n.com for the best novel reading experience

Such frankness in his first sentence typical of someone so engrossed in technology?

Haha! Its my honor to receive such recognition from an expert like you. Please, take a seat!

No, youre far too modest.

After both host and guest were seated, Paul first praised Burns for his achievements in spring research, and then revealed the reason for inviting him to take charge of developing a water-powered bellows system for the iron factory he was about to build.

A bellows system? Does the Count plan to use water power to replace manpower to drive the bellows?

Exactly. And the traditional bellows wont meet my needs; I require a more efficient one.

Burns knew that the bellows widely used in metal smelting were made of animal hide, with air tubes at both ends and a piston air inlet controlled by operators. When drawing air in, operators pulled up the hide with ropes and then pressed it down, pushing air into the furnace. Each furnace was equipped with four such devices, operated by two people facing each other.

Leave it to me, Count! I will not disappoint you!

Good luck!

Then, if theres nothing else, I will take my leave.

It seemed Mr. Burns was eager to start his new work.

However, Paul did not let him go immediately, No rush, Mr. Burns. Im quite interested in your past experiences. Would you mind sharing them with me?

Burns tensed up, worried that Count Grayman might bring up his past imprisonment.

His face and neck turned red, My lord, if youre referring to my imprisonment, it was completely due to slander. All the accusations were baseless and fabricated.

It was a shame he could never shake off.

Dont be nervous; I dont mind your past at all.

Paul smiled, signaling him to calm down. He had already heard from Hansel why Burns had been imprisoned; his story was quite widespread in the capital.

I heard from Sir Abbott that you werent very popular in the capital, especially among your peers?

Well I admit, our philosophies dont align, and we cant see eye to eye on many things.

He didnt directly state that his imprisonment was related to his colleagues, as he had no direct evidence.

So, what philosophy led you to willingly teach mechanical knowledge to the lower classes, risking ostracism and suppression from your peers?

This was something Paul had wanted to ask from the beginning, perhaps finding a like-minded person in this world.

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