The entire refining area, whether it is transportation and unloading, or feeding and collection, uses steam power to replace manpower as much as possible, and the degree of mechanization is the highest in Neverwinter.

Because it needs to swallow large quantities of coal and crude oil, the plant looks like a huge rectangular square from above, with the north-facing end facing the Chishui River, which is both a dedicated wharf and a coal storage yard. Several conveyor belts linked to the steam engine transport coal to the boiler room, and the regular black lines running parallel to each other provide a striking contrast to the surrounding grey cement-hardened floor.

At the other end of the square, seaborne oil from the shoals is stored, with tracks and trailers forming this half of the picture, and the boiler room can also use unrefined oil as combustion material when coal is scarce.

The half-built oil storage warehouse to the west of the fractionation tower is lined up like a fortress-like concrete warehouse, and its rugged shape is incompatible with the small residential buildings on the other side of the river, but it has an indescribable beauty. At the same time, Roland knows that its technical content is not low at all, pressure relief valves, inspection windows, delivery pipes, anti-static equipment...... From the details of construction to the regulations of use, without the accumulation of previous chemical plants, it would not have been possible to go so smoothly.

To his satisfaction, he only made the final review and approval of the overall plan, and the intermediate design process was completed by the Ministry of Construction and the Ministry of Chemical Industry. Obviously, the mines, furnace areas, etc., have allowed them to accumulate a lot of experience and boldly apply it to new projects. Since there is no unified industry standard in this era, each machine, from the lift to the traction winch, needs to be processed and assembled on site after the parameters are determined on site. Without basic engineering literacy and literacy, it is difficult for the two sides to communicate with each other.

After two years of mandatory rollout, universal education is beginning to show results.

As the temperature of the boiler rises, oil that has been heated to a steamy state pours into the fractionation column – as can be seen by the snow on the column turning into wisps of vapour. At this moment, the north wind has basically subsided, and only the snow is slowly falling in the sky, but the people who came to visit are not moved at all, they stare at this beautiful metal tower, and the snort of the exhaled echoes with the steam of all kinds of machinery in the square, in this cold winter without sunlight, it has formed a kind of warmth that does not fall in the wind.

......

"It's beautiful. Edith stood on the steel bridge and muttered.

It was almost a few miles away from the refining area, so it was much more sparsely populated, and the occasional hurried passer-by basically wanted to go in the direction of the tower, not only to witness the birth of another novelty, but also to see His Majesty's side. However, as they passed by the Northland Pearl, most of them couldn't help but glance at her and the people next to her—no doubt in their eyes, the two women standing in the snow were both beautiful.

Isn't this just a chimney? Where is the beauty? Cole said in his heart, but he didn't dare to say it, "If you want to see it, why don't you go with the city hall? Lord Barov has obviously arranged a better position, and His Majesty ...... it."

Although the terrain is high and the view is wide, it is not really visible due to the distance. What's more, it was supposed to be a great opportunity to connect with peers – it didn't really matter what they were looking at, and all the town hall officials were gathered together, and the point was not just about watching. In aristocratic parlance, it's like a banquet, where it's definitely not about the food you eat, it's about who you're talking to and the new people you're getting to know.

For her sister, who is extremely sociable, it is impossible for her not to know these truths, and she clearly said that he would let him hone his heart in the city hall, but such an opportunity was deliberately absent, and sometimes he really didn't understand what was going on in the other party's head.

However, Edith's slight pinch made Cole shut his mouth.

"For you, my dear brother, of course," she whispered jokingly, "do you really want to appear to the other officials as you are?"

Wait, it's not because of your request yet!

It was enough to wear those clothes at home, but he didn't expect to be forced to wear them, and if an acquaintance saw it, he would probably have to jump off the bridge.

Ahhhhhh

Cole was about to protest a little when a flirtatious whistle came from behind him.

He suddenly felt a heat on his face, and subconsciously grabbed his collar and wanted to bury his head.

"Well, that's not the right way to deal with it. ”

A hand rested on his chin, forcing him to lift his gaze again.

Then Cole saw that the Northland Pearl turned around and swept towards the passer-by with contempt—the coldness in his eyes that was thousands of miles away, and even he couldn't help but shudder. I saw that the other party took two steps back, didn't dare to say a word, and quickly left her line of sight.

"Got it?" Edith shrugged, "and that's a test for you, too." ”

“...... If you were dressed normally, you wouldn't have encountered such a thing," Cole muttered quietly.

"But if you want to be involved in politics, something like this is going to happen, and the only thing you can do is accept it and try to harness it. She paused, "Do you think that when Tifeco was stationed in the North, I willingly greeted him with a smile? Besides, you can't help but try on my clothes, and you're actually looking forward to such a moment, right?"

Cole couldn't help but suffocate, his sister can always say some unreasonable actions at all, at this time, choosing to argue will only be a failure, the right thing to do is to wait in silence.

As for the last sentence, he will never admit it!

However, is the beauty she said before also because of the different angles?

After staggering the topic and asking the doubts in his heart, Cole clearly caught a flush on the other party's cheeks.

"Do you remember what winter is like in Eternal Night?"

"Uh......" He was slightly stunned, and a series of images suddenly appeared in his mind, but there were few cities in them, and most of the images stayed on the warm fireplace, ale and dinner party, and all he could think of were interior scenes. After a long while, he said uncertainly, "It looks like it's ...... Tranquility?"

"It's dead silence, as if the whole earth was covered in ice. "I always thought that was the norm in winter, but now it seems that this is not the case. She exhaled, "What do you see now? The earth is breathing, and the fog is the best proof that it is still alive." ”

"I'm not ...... Got it. ”

"This proves that nature can be changed by man," said the Northland Pearl word by word, "People don't need to look at the sky to live, and they don't need to follow the rules of heaven and earth, they are suppressed by it only because of their own weakness, and after being strong enough to a certain extent, we can even transform the world - isn't this kind of power beautiful enough?"

But Cole saw something else more beautiful.

The woman who said this seemed to radiate an indescribable light, her long blue hair undulating against the flying snow, better than any natural scene. The ruddy touch has reduced a bit of the previous sharpness, making the fair side face extremely vivid.

A strong urge arose in his heart to wonder, what was the world like through the eyes of Edith Kant?

......

"It's out, it's oiling!"

With cheers near Tower One, the crowd began to stir.

"What's wrong?"

"I heard it seems to be oil!"

"For fried dough?"

"How can it be, the yard is piled up with coal, not fat. ”

"No matter what it is, since it is something that His Majesty wants, it must be of great significance. ”

"So we can celebrate?"

"Yes, long live Your Majesty!"

"Long live Your Majesty!"

Soon more people joined in the cheers, even if they were completely unaware of the significance of the fractionation tower, and it did not prevent them from sharing the joy at this moment.

The noise spread like a tidal wave, and in just a few minutes, the entire refining area was boiling, and under such a momentum, the formidable Demon Moon seemed to have faded its former color.

Looking at the columns of black and white smoke rising from the riverbank, and the silver towers that flickered in the smoke and snowflakes, Roland's heart was filled with a sense of accomplishment.

If the smoke entrenched on the northern slope of the mountain represents the composite of coal and iron and the fruits of the first industrial revolution, then the smoke column rising here means that a new era is coming.