Chapter 1244 – The Looming War (Part 5)
Busy spring plowing was nearing its end, and time steadily slipped into April.
The audience of the live stream, filled with both anticipation and concern, found that the great battle they awaited had yet to start. Many of the idle viewers lost their patience and gradually forgot about the matter.
For the past few months, Jiang Pengji had been tangled up in political affairs, only hosting the spring plowing ceremony and spending the rest of her time on the move, checking on various situations. The two most crucial matters were the progress of the water-powered spinning wheel and cotton, and these two pieces of good news eased the previously tense atmosphere.
Since Jiang Pengji supported Hui Jun in her efforts to tinker with the water-powered spinning wheel, most of Hui Jun’s focus had been on that, with the rest spent on the Dragon and Phoenix twin children. Harnessing the power of water to weave fabric was considered a fantasy in these times; however, after Jiang Pengji’s analysis and encouragement, Hui Jun firmly believed it was bound to succeed. If it didn’t work out, it must be because she hadn’t found the right method or hadn’t worked hard enough.
With this mindset, Hui Jun frequently ran to the Woodworking Workshop to find Zhang Ping or Shao Guang, leading Fu Wang’s former subordinates to think she was planting two green grasses for Fu Wang. Hui Jun knew about this and snorted coldly in response. She and Fu Wang didn’t have any marital ties; their relationship was merely that they shared two children. As for who she got close to, Fu Wang had no authority over her.
Plant grass?
She wouldn’t even bother planting a whole prairie for him.
Of course, there was nothing ambiguous between her and Zhang Ping. Zhang Ping and Shao Guang made every effort to use their knowledge of Mozi mechanics to help her practice and refine the concept of the water-powered spinning wheel. Over two or three years, they produced several generations of models, but none were completely satisfactory, seemingly missing something.
Until their Lord returned with troops, the Woodworking Workshop welcomed a new member.
This newcomer was quite remarkable, not only a standout among the greenery but also one of the few women in the workshop, and she was a half-disciple under the instruction of the Mozi master. Bai Yuexia wasn’t skilled in political affairs, so Jiang Pengji assigned her to the Woodworking Workshop to work under Zhang Ping.
Though Bai Yuexia was female, since their Lord was also a woman, Zhang Ping wouldn’t dare to treat her lightly. However, many tasks in the Woodworking Workshop were rather exhausting, and working late nights to revise designs was common. Zhang Ping worried that a young lady like Bai Yuexia wouldn’t be able to handle it.
Initially, Bai Yuexia misunderstood the Woodworking Workshop to be an ordinary place, only to discover that it was quite different from her expectations upon arrival.
With a name that could easily mislead, the workshop actually led with formal department ranks.
As one of the “masters” of the Woodworking Workshop, Zhang Ping’s salary was just two or three tenths lower than that of the prefect’s assistant.
Knowing this, Bai Yuexia finally felt relieved.
Her ambition wasn’t to be just an ordinary carpenter.
The office space allocated by Jiang Pengji was quite large, with the outer area filled with more mundane items. The deeper you went, the more precious the items and materials became. Assigned to work under Zhang Ping as an assistant, Bai Yuexia’s high starting point allowed her access to relatively confidential areas.
After spending some time there, she began to enjoy the job.
Not only was the workplace interesting, but her colleagues were also quite fascinating.
What delighted her most was the way Zhang Ping and Shao Guang regarded her. The latter revealed a hint of peculiar interest at first sight, while the former treated her completely as an ordinary woman, seemingly oblivious to the ugly birthmark that covered much of her face. Just this made her feel goodwill toward him. When Bai Ning heard her daughter mention another man’s name, he immediately started calculating—
If Zhang Ping had no family, he would be a good husband candidate!
Unbeknownst to him, Zhang Ping had noticed Bai Yuexia’s birthmark; he was so composed merely because his standards of beauty were questionable.
Why was Wei Ci so eager to pitch Zhang Ping to Bai Yuexia, hoping that Bai Yuexia would stop having eyes for Jiang Pengji?
Because he knew Zhang Ping didn’t judge people by looks; this guy looked at hands!
You heard it right—Zhang Ping’s beauty standards were based on hands, not faces.
Why had Zhang Ping been dreaming of a wife and children for so many years yet remained single?
Not solely because he enjoyed his single life, but another significant reason was—his only two sets of hands he admired were his own and Wei Ci’s. Wei Ci was male, not female, and was still his closest friend; Zhang Ping certainly couldn’t get any funny ideas there, right?
Wei Ci had noticed Bai Yuexia’s hands.
From the perspective of a mechanical nerd, those hands could score a solid ninety-five out of a hundred!
Zhang Ping, meanwhile, was blind and had face blindness; even if Bai Yuexia looked like a celestial being, he couldn’t appreciate it.
After a few days, Zhang Ping began to notice his new assistant.
As a homebody nearing the level of a Grand Sorcerer, he was experiencing feelings of infatuation for the first time.
Looking at those hands, it felt as if a feather were gently scratching his heart, this unfamiliar sensation leaving him confused and helpless.
However, being less extroverted than Wei Ci, Zhang Ping was so engrossed in woodworking that he wouldn’t express his feelings.
To outsiders and Bai Yuexia, Zhang Ping appeared merely as a competent and friendly superior.
On a particular day, Zhang Ping was again modifying the latest version of the water-powered spinning wheel.
This version was quite close to the ideal state, but for some unknown reason, it kept having operational issues.
Zhang Ping and Hui Jun racked their brains over the problem until Bai Yuexia suddenly enlightened them.
The modified water-powered spinning wheel could effectively use the flow of water; it ran for a while without any issues, although the efficiency of a single unit was still low compared to manual spinning. Yet if one person supervised several water-powered spinning wheels, the efficiency would be like a wild horse untethered.
When this great news reached Jiang Pengji, the entire live stream went into an uproar.
Their normally reticent broadcaster had suddenly accomplished something monumental with just a slight stir.
As soon as viewers caught a glimpse of the ancient version of the water-powered spinning wheel, they immediately began screenshotting, racing for trending topics online.
However—
Zhang Ping wasn’t very optimistic about it. First, the efficiency hadn’t met the expected numbers, and second, the spinning wheel was too dependent on water flow. Once the water supply dried up, the spinning wheel would practically become useless. It was far too unstable; it wouldn’t be better than manual labor.
Furthermore, if spinning was entirely replaced by water power, the impact on ordinary farmers would be quite significant.
It might be fine for hobby use, but mass promotion was nearly impossible.
Jiang Pengji had already made up her mind but wanted her subordinates to think for themselves.
“So, what’s your opinion?”
Though Zhang Ping was a tech nerd, that didn’t mean he was uneducated; he simply wasn’t as well-versed as Wei Ci and the others.
“Ping believes there are four main difficulties with this matter. First, while the lives of the common people have improved, the clothes they wear are not expensive, and the demand is not great; typical family output and demand are roughly balanced. Second, if the water-powered spinning wheel seizes the livelihoods of ordinary farming families, causing the value of fabric to plummet, many might lose their means of living. Third, this spinning wheel requires water flow to function; once a region faces drought, it becomes useless and will just gather dust. Fourth, while the spinning wheel can do a lot, there aren’t many materials for weaving fabric.”
The first three points were crucial, but the most important factor was the fourth.
Fabric raw materials were already scarce, and no matter how capable the water-powered spinning wheel was, how much could it really accomplish?
When the harvest doesn’t surpass the investment, isn’t that a losing business?
If this endeavor doesn’t generate profit and instead squeezes ordinary people’s chances to earn extra money, it’s merely a thankless task.
