My Imperial Advisor is ChatGPT

Chapter 72 The War of Weights and Measures: My one meter is the standard of the world.

Three days after the experiment ended, at the Shaofu Workshop.

Ying Zheng stood in front of a newly assembled steam engine, his brow furrowed.

This steam engine was meticulously crafted by the disciples of the Mohist school over half a month, based on blueprints provided by Wang Jianguo. The cylinder was cast from refined iron, the piston was made of brass, the connecting rod was forged from wrought iron, and even the sealing rings were made with the finest Eucommia ulmoides glue.

In theory, it should be able to operate normally.

But at this moment, the steam engine was like an old man who was terminally ill, emitting intermittent "whooshing" sounds. The piston moved up and down extremely slowly, and white steam kept leaking out from the joints of the cylinder, making a "hissing" sound.

"Your Majesty," the leader of the Mohist school knelt to the side, his face filled with shame, "this is the third one already. The first two either had their pistons jammed or their connecting rods broken. This one can move, but... but it always leaks air."

Ying Zheng walked up to the steam engine and reached out to touch the joint of the cylinder, but as soon as he got close, a burst of scalding steam sprayed onto his hand, burning him so much that he immediately pulled back.

"Hiss—" Ying Zheng looked at the red burn on the back of his hand, his face so gloomy it could drip water.

Why is it leaking air?

The leader of the Mohist school trembled as he rose from the ground and picked up two parts from the nearby workbench: "Your Majesty, please look, this is the cylinder head, and this is the piston. According to the blueprints, they should fit together perfectly, but..."

He tried to force the piston into the cylinder head, but the piston was noticeably smaller than the cylinder head, leaving a clear gap in the middle.

"What's going on?" Ying Zheng's brows furrowed even more.

"Your Majesty, the problem lies with the rulers," the Mohist leader said with a bitter face. "The rulers we use were transported from the former territory of Qi. The craftsmen responsible for casting the pistons used rulers from Chu, and the craftsmen responsible for casting the cylinders used rulers from Zhao."

"Although the dimensions marked on the drawings are the same, the actual sizes of the parts made are different."

Ying Zheng was stunned.

He had ordered the standardization of weights and measures long after unifying the six kingdoms. However, it was clear that this decree was not thoroughly implemented in the former territories of the six kingdoms. Craftsmen in various regions were still using their own accustomed rulers.

"Little G," Ying Zheng asked in his mind, "what's your opinion on this issue?"

Your Majesty, this is a classic case of "inconsistent standards."

In industrial production, the dimensions of parts must be accurate to the millimeter level. If standards are not consistent, "tolerance accumulation" will occur, making it impossible to assemble the parts.

You need to establish a nationally unified standard for weights and measures and enforce its implementation.

Moreover, this standard must be precisely replicable and cannot rely on someone's "feel" or the "length" of an object.

"A standard that can be precisely copied?" Ying Zheng pondered.

For example, you can define a "meter" using the length of the Earth's meridian, or a unit of time using the period of a simple pendulum.

But the simplest method is to create a "prototype"—a standard unit of length—and then precisely replicate it and distribute it throughout the country.

Ying Zheng nodded.

He understood this line of thinking.

But the question is, what should we use to make this "prototype"? And how should we define "one meter"?

"Send word to Wang Jianguo," Ying Zheng said to Zhao Gao behind him.

……

Half an hour later, in a side hall of Xianyang Palace.

Ying Zheng sat behind a desk, with three rulers in front of him.

One was the standard ruler of Qin, one was the ruler of Qi, and one was the ruler of Chu.

Although they are all called "chi" (尺), their lengths are clearly different. The Qin chi is the shortest, the Qi chi is the longest, and the Chu chi is in between.

Wang Jianguo stood aside, looking at the three rulers, and understood.

"Your Majesty, this problem certainly needs to be solved," Wang Jianguo said. "Standardization is fundamental in industrialized production. Without unified standards, large-scale production is impossible."

"Then tell me, how should this standard be defined?" Ying Zheng asked.

Wang Jianguo thought for a moment and said, "In science, we usually use natural constants to define units. For example, we can define a 'meter' using the length of the Earth's meridian—if we divide the Earth's meridian from the North Pole to the South Pole into forty million parts, each part is one meter."

"The Earth's meridian?" Ying Zheng raised an eyebrow. "How long would it take to measure that?"

"Uh..." Wang Jianguo scratched his head, "With current technology, it might take decades."

"Decades?" Ying Zheng sneered. "I can't wait that long."

He stood up, walked to the wall, and took a bronze sword from it.

It was a long, slender bronze sword, its blade smooth as a mirror and its edge incredibly sharp. The hilt was engraved with the two seal characters "定秦" (Ding Qin).

"Wang Jianguo, look at this sword." Ying Zheng held up the sword. "This sword was forged by the best swordsmith in Qin, using the purest bronze, when I ascended the throne. Its length, from tip to hilt, is exactly three feet."

"Since there is already a standard ruler, why is there still a problem of inconsistent sizes?" Wang Jianguo asked, puzzled.

"Because the artisans in various regions don't trust the imperial court's standard ruler," Ying Zheng sneered. "They trust their own 'feel' more, or their ancestral rulers. Besides, even with a standard ruler, errors will occur during replication. A ruler replicated ten times might differ by several degrees."

Wang Jianguo understood.

In the era before precision measuring tools, errors did occur when replicating standard rulers, and these errors could accumulate.

"So what do you plan to do?"

Ying Zheng looked at the sword in his hand, a glint of light flashing in his eyes: "I think, since copying a ruler will result in errors, then I won't copy it."

"This sword of mine is the standard," Ying Zheng said, holding the sword horizontally in front of his chest. "My sword is three feet long. One foot of my sword is the standard for the entire world."

"From this day forward, all craftsmen must use this sword to calibrate their rulers. Any ruler whose length does not match this sword must be destroyed."

Wang Jianguo was stunned.

This method is indeed simple and crude, but the problem is that there is only one sword. It's impossible for all the craftsmen in the country to come to Xianyang to calibrate it.

"Your Majesty, this method is direct, but..." Wang Jianguo hesitated for a moment, "There are so many craftsmen across the country, we can't all come to Xianyang, can we?"

"Of course not." Ying Zheng shook his head. "Therefore, I need your help to create a standard instrument that can accurately replicate data."

"Standard?"

"Yes." Ying Zheng handed the sword to Wang Jianguo. "You come from the future, so you should know how to make this kind of thing. What I need is a standard, something that can be replicated, distributed, and without errors arising from replication."

Wang Jianguo took the sword and examined it carefully.

"Your Majesty, in science, we usually use metals to make standard instruments. For example, a standard 'prototype meter' can be made using a platinum-iridium alloy; it is very stable and its length will not change due to factors such as temperature and humidity."

"Platinum-iridium alloy?" Ying Zheng raised an eyebrow. "What's that?"

"It's a very rare metallic alloy, extremely stable," Wang Jianguo explained. "However, platinum and iridium might be hard to find in Daqin (the Qin Dynasty). We can make a temporary standard using bronze first, and replace it with a more suitable material later."

"Very well." Ying Zheng nodded. "Do as you say. Whatever materials are needed, I'll have Zhao Gao prepare them."

"However, until the standard is made, my sword will serve as a temporary standard."

Ying Zheng looked at Zhao Gao standing to the side: "Zhao Gao, convey my decree. From this day forward, all craftsmen's rulers must be calibrated using this sword. Any ruler whose length does not match this sword must be broken. I will send people throughout the country to inspect, and those found to be non-compliant will not only have their rulers broken, but the craftsmen will also be punished."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Zhao Gao quickly bowed and accepted the order, but in his heart he was thinking: I'm going to offend someone again.

"And another thing," Ying Zheng continued, "Wang Jianguo said he needs platinum and iridium to make a standard instrument. Go and find a way to get these rare metals."

"Platinum? Iridium?" Zhao Gao was taken aback. "Your Majesty, this is..."

"They are rare metals used to make standards," Wang Jianguo explained. "Platinum is a silvery-white metal that is very rare. Iridium is a similar metal and is extremely stable."

Zhao Gao's eyes suddenly lit up.

Rare metals? Used to make standards?

In his view, this thing must be some kind of magical treasure, and it might even be used to refine the elixir of immortality!

"Your Majesty!" Zhao Gao suddenly knelt down, his voice trembling with excitement, "This servant understands! This servant will immediately seek out alchemists throughout the land to find these divine metals! These divine metals will surely help Your Majesty refine the elixir of immortality!"

Ying Zheng and Wang Jianguo were both stunned.

Ying Zheng couldn't help but rub his temples: "Zhao Gao, you're overthinking it. These are just ordinary metals used to make standards, not for alchemy."

"But..." Zhao Gao wanted to say something, but seeing Ying Zheng's unfriendly gaze, he quickly shut his mouth. "Yes, Your Majesty. This servant will go find these... metals immediately."

"Remember, it's metal, not ingredients for elixirs," Ying Zheng emphasized.

"Yes, yes." Zhao Gao nodded repeatedly, but in his heart he was still thinking: Maybe it really is some kind of divine metal? Once I find it, I must try some first...

……

The next morning, in the market of Xianyang City.

A rice vendor was sweating profusely as he explained something.

"Sir, this scale of mine is truly accurate!" the vendor said, pointing to his scale, his voice trembling. "I've used it for over ten years and it's never made a mistake!"

The official in charge of the inspection sneered, "Standard? Very well, then compare this scale with His Majesty's standard scale."

He took out a standard scale and placed it in front of the vendor.

The vendor glanced at it and his face turned deathly pale.

Because his scales were noticeably lighter than standard scales. This meant that he had been cheating customers by shortchanging them.

"Sir, I...I really didn't know!" The merchant knelt on the ground, weeping bitterly. "This scale of mine is an heirloom! I thought it was the standard!"

"A family heirloom?" The official sneered. "Fine, since you've used it for over a decade, then go and attend a 'Error Analysis' class."

"Error analysis?" The vendor was stunned.

"Yes." The official nodded. "This is a new course His Majesty has established, specifically to teach you merchants how to correctly use weights and measures and how to avoid errors. Moreover, it's mandatory. Any merchant found shortchanging customers must attend the course. After attending, there will be an exam. If you fail the exam, you can no longer do business."

The vendors were utterly desperate.

He never imagined that the scale he had used for over a decade was wrong. And now, not only will he be punished, but he'll also have to attend classes and take exams.

"Sir, could I... could I not go?" the merchant pleaded.

"Not going?" the official sneered. "Fine. Then you can stop doing business."

The vendors were completely devastated.

……

At the same time, outside Xianyang City, at a smelting workshop.

Zhao Gao was standing in front of a furnace, watching the various metals being smelted inside.

"Have you found them all?" Zhao Gao asked the craftsman beside him.

"My lord, we've searched for those metals you requested for a long time," the craftsman said cautiously. "We found some platinum, but iridium... we searched the entire Qin Dynasty and only found a tiny amount."

"How much is 'a little bit'?" Zhao Gao frowned.

"It's about... about the size of a fingernail," the craftsman gestured, "and the purity is very low."

Zhao Gao sighed.

It seems that making such a magical standard is indeed not easy.

However, Wang Jianguo said that a temporary standard could be made of bronze first.

"Then let's use bronze for now," Zhao Gao said to the craftsmen. "Make a standard according to Mr. Wang's requirements. Remember, it must be highly precise; the error cannot exceed... what was it again?"

"Your Excellency, Mr. Wang said the error cannot exceed 0.01 millimeters," the craftsman replied.

"0.01 millimeters?" Zhao Gao was stunned. "What is that?"

"It's... a very, very small margin of error." The craftsman didn't know how to explain it either, "about one-tenth the thickness of a human hair."

Zhao Gao gasped.

One-tenth of a single hair?

That's incredibly precise!

Is this level of precision really possible?

……

Evening, at the Daqin Academy of Sciences, in Wang Jianguo's office.

Wang Jianguo is drawing up the design diagram for the standard.

According to his plan, the standard should be a long, rectangular bronze block, exactly one meter long (equivalent to three feet in the Qin Dynasty), with precise graduation lines at both ends, and the surface should be finely polished to ensure flatness.

The production process requires extremely high precision, and every step must be strictly controlled.

"Mr. Wang," a student approached, holding a report, "this is a standardized plan for units of weight. Please take a look."

Wang Jianguo took the report and looked at it carefully.

The report proposes defining a "kilogram" using the weight of one liter of water, and then creating standardized weights to distribute throughout the country.

"This method needs improvement," Wang Jianguo said. "We need to define a standard temperature. For example, at four degrees Celsius, one liter of water weighs one kilogram. This is because water has the highest density at four degrees Celsius, making the definition more accurate."

"Four degrees?" the student asked, puzzled. "Why four degrees?"

"This is a physical property of water," Wang Jianguo explained. "Water has its maximum density at four degrees Celsius; this is a stable physical constant."

"Understood." The student nodded. "Then I'll go revise the plan."

Wang Jianguo continued to bury himself in drawing blueprints, but he was thinking about another problem.

Standardizing weights and measures involves not only standardizing units of length, but also units of weight, volume, and so on.

Furthermore, there needs to be a clear conversion relationship between these units.

For example, one foot equals ten inches, and one inch equals ten tenths.

One shi (石) equals ten dou (斗), and one dou (斗) equals ten sheng (升).

These conversion relationships must be standardized nationwide.

Otherwise, even if the length is standardized, problems will still arise if the weight and capacity are not standardized.

"Looks like this is quite a workload," Wang Jianguo said with a wry smile.

……

Late at night, in the study of Xianyang Palace.

Ying Zheng sat behind his desk, looking at a memorial in front of him.

This is a progress report on the standardization of weights and measures submitted by Li Si.

The report shows that in just one day, more than 300 non-standard rulers were broken in Xianyang City, and more than 50 vendors were forced to attend classes for shortchanging customers.

Moreover, this number is still increasing.

"Little G," Ying Zheng asked in his mind, "Do you think this is too radical?"

[Your Majesty, in the long run, standardizing weights and measures is essential. However, in the short term, it will indeed cause some backlash.]

However, you have made a good start. If you persevere, the standards of weights and measures in the Qin Dynasty will be completely unified within a few years.

Furthermore, with the advancement of standardized production, Daqin's level of industrialization will also be significantly improved.

Ying Zheng nodded.

Indeed, this process may be somewhat painful, but it is necessary.

Without unified standards, there can be no industrialization.

Without industrialization, the Qin Dynasty could not have truly become powerful.

More importantly, this process will transform the artisans of the Qin Dynasty from a "good enough" mindset to a "zero error" mindset.

This is true progress.

……

The next morning, at the Shaofu workshop.

A young craftsman is using Qin Shi Huang's sword to calibrate the ruler he just made.

He compared them carefully and found that the ruler was slightly shorter than the sword.

It's only a tiny bit, about the thickness of a single hair.

In the past, he might have said, "That's good enough."

But not now.

Because he witnessed it firsthand: it was precisely because of this tiny error that the steam engine parts could not be assembled, causing the entire machine to malfunction.

"Almost" is not acceptable in industrialized production.

He picked up the file and began to trim the ruler little by little.

Precise, and more precise, until there is zero error.

This is what industrialization requires.

This is what science requires.

......

Shaofu Arsenal, Class A Workshop.

Gongshu Huai held a brand-new, precisely caliper and carefully measured a newly made nut.

"Three o'clock...fourteen...fiveteen..." he muttered to himself, sweating profusely.

"Clatter".

The nut slid smoothly into the bolt, fitting perfectly, like a match made in heaven. There was not a sway, not a resistance.

As the steam valve opened, the reassembled steam engine emitted a deep and powerful roar.

"Boom—Rumble—Rumble—"

The piston moved smoothly back and forth, and the huge flywheel began to rotate, faster and faster, without the slightest sound of air leakage.

Gongshu Huai stared blankly at the scene, tears suddenly streaming down his face. He touched the cold machine as if touching some kind of living miracle.

"Beautiful..." he murmured to himself, "So this is what Lord Wang meant by...the beauty of industry."

Behind him, Wang Jianguo watched this scene and wrote a line in his notebook:

In the autumn of the thirty-sixth year of King Zheng of Qin's reign, the Qin Dynasty bid farewell to the "era of craftsmen" and officially entered the "era of industrial standards." Although it was only a small step, the distance of that step was a standard "one meter."

[Civilization level upgrade detected. New tech tree branch unlocked: Basic Physics and Qualitative Chemical Analysis.]

[Next phase task suggestion: Standards alone are not enough; these blockheads also need to learn how to use their brains to control these standards. It is recommended to start teaching the "controlled variable method."]

Wang Jianguo closed his notebook, looked at the cheering craftsmen in the workshop, and sighed softly: "The road ahead is long and arduous. Next, I need to teach them how to conduct experiments."