As the two walked on the bridge in the park, Cheng Zhiwen asked casually, "Why don't you take a rickshaw?"

Shen Qing gazed into the distance: "I don't want to do anything that involves trampling on the bodies and dignity of others."

Why?

"Everyone is equal. I'd rather walk on my own than have someone else pull me along."

Cheng Zhiwen laughed sarcastically: "If everyone thought like you, then no one would ride in rickshaws anymore, and how would those rickshaw drivers make a living?"

Shen Qing meant that without buying and selling, there would be no harm.

He turned around and told her—this wasn't harm, it was a job that would allow them to survive.

What a typical capitalist face!

Shen Qing sneered and said righteously, "Without rickshaws available, humans might invent a vehicle similar to a horse-drawn carriage, but without the need for horses, to make travel more convenient."

You mean cars?

Shen Qing was stunned.

If I remember correctly, there were no cars back then! How did Cheng Zhiwen know about "cars" as a means of transportation?

Looking at his upright figure, she once again suspected that he was also a time traveler from the modern era, and jogged to catch up with him.

How do you know about cars?

He walked slowly forward with his hands behind his back, looking quite relaxed. He glanced at her and said with a smile, "If you know it, there's no reason why I wouldn't know it."

These words made Shen Qing even more suspicious.

While hesitating whether to test him further to see if he was also a time traveler from the modern era, he said, "Three years ago, a car had already applied for a patent in Germany, but it just wasn't in China."

So that's how it is.

Shen Qing was somewhat disappointed.

If he was also a time traveler from the modern era, things would be much easier; at least she would have a companion in the Qing Dynasty.

The result wasn't that; it was just an information gap.

He sighed and said, "Therefore, what drives the progress of human society has always been science, not human power. Rickshaws are human-powered vehicles. The existence of this industry not only tramples on human rights, but also cannot promote the progress of this society. On the contrary, it will exacerbate the gap between the rich and the poor and solidify class distinctions."

“I agree with what you said, but I believe that the progress of human society is a slow process that requires thought and planning, rather than something that can be achieved overnight. It’s like if you’re in the rayon business, you may be able to produce the product, but if your strategy is not in place, you may have a brief period of success, but then you fail and return to square one.”

These words truly pinpointed the root cause of the failure of the rayon business.

She was so focused on research and development, working hard on the materials, that she didn't think deeply about the overall strategy. As a result, her ideas were plagiarized by others in just a few months.

Moreover, the methods of plagiarism were quite crude; they simply bribed her workers to steal her raw materials.

Thinking of all this, Shen Qing felt relieved and firmly decided that the down jacket business must be carried out in secret!

No one knows the idea behind the down vest yet, except for Cheng Zhiwen.

Thinking of this, she glanced at him worriedly and said, "I haven't told anyone what I'm going to do with the duck feathers. Only you know. Don't tell anyone else."

"I'm not that talkative."

Shen Qing felt reassured and continued walking forward.

The park bridge is not long, and soon we reached the north bank of the Suzhou Creek.

Two three-story brick and wood structures stand on the shore.

This was the German Consulate in the late Qing Dynasty, which later became one of Shanghai's iconic buildings.

Shen Qing had seen it on a modern postcard.

Cheng Zhiwen went up and spoke a few words with the gatekeeper, who then led her into the consulate.

The journey was smooth and unobstructed; Cheng Zhiwen seemed to be quite popular even in German territory.

They soon met the designer.

The other party had a good personal relationship with Cheng Zhiwen. Upon hearing that Cheng wanted to customize a machine, the other party immediately put on his reading glasses and expressed his willingness to help.

Shen Qing took out his sketch.

The designer could only speak German, so Cheng Zhiwen helped translate. After several communication bottlenecks, Shen Qing realized that she couldn't explain things clearly even in Chinese.

She wasn't a mechanical engineering major and didn't understand mechanical principles. The only reason she could draw sketches was because she had happened to visit the fabric supplier's production base before she time-traveled.

Based on a general impression, I drew the appearance of the wire drawing machine, but there are actually many bugs in it.

The German designer repeatedly shook his head, indicating that he might not be able to do it. Only after Cheng Zhiwen's strong persuasion did he agree to give it a try.

The result was neither good nor bad; at least there was still a glimmer of hope, preventing Shen Qing from falling into despair.

So on the way back to the Licha Hotel, she was in a pretty calm mood.

Cheng Zhiwen didn't say anything, and just walked silently ahead of her.

Shen Qing looked down at the distance of two or three steps and felt more and more that the two of them were drifting further and further apart.

Remembering his advice, her heart ached, but she also understood that he had helped her today, and regardless of whether it worked out or not, she should thank him.

She jogged to catch up with him, took a deep breath, and said, "Thank you for your help today. Whether the machine is finished or not, I should thank you."

Without looking at her, he said emotionlessly, "It was nothing."

"I should have treated you to a meal to express my gratitude, that's what we do in my hometown, but I feel you probably don't want to eat with me, so I'll pass."

Cheng Zhiwen coughed lightly, a hint of displeasure flashing across her face, but she said nothing.

Shen Qing continued, "I have kept your advice in mind, so I did not go to your room this time. You came to knock on the door yourself and said you wanted to help."

He smiled but didn't say anything.

"Old Xu will pick me up early tomorrow morning to go back to Jiangzhou. I'll head straight back then. If there's any news about the wire drawing machine, please send me a telegram."

He finally spoke: "Okay."

The two stopped talking and continued until they crossed the park bridge.

Shen Qing asked, "Do you know where I can buy clothes in Shanghai?"

Cheng Zhiwen pointed in a direction: "Nanjing Road."

Shen Qing nodded: "Okay, I'll go take a look around by myself."

After saying that, he turned and walked towards Nanjing Road.

After walking a few steps, she realized that Cheng Zhiwen was still following her, but she didn't turn around and pretended not to know that he was following her.

Walking to Nanjing Road, Shen Qing was taken aback by the grand scene before him.

The street was lined with two-story shops, and rickshaws shuttled along the wide, flat street, with women wearing simple-style jackets and skirts.

Shen Qing noticed that this jacket was different from the one she was wearing.

The style is somewhat reminiscent of a cheongsam, but without embroidery or gold thread; it's just plain fabric with piping and frog buttons.

This should be the predecessor of the cheongsam.

She continued walking and saw a shop called "Shenghehao" with various fabrics hanging outside.

This is the place she's looking for.

She went inside.

The aisles of the shop were lined with different fabrics, including silk, cotton, fine yarn, and lace.