Summer rains come quickly.

Just moments ago the sky was clear and blue, but then a cloud drifted by, and soon a torrential downpour began.

The carriages were all covered with tarpaulins, but the road was impassable.

This was a place far from any village or shop. Xu Bai, wearing a raincoat and a bamboo hat, sat on his horse and gazed into the distance for a long time. He couldn't see anything clearly in the rain, so he could only sigh and dismount.

The group had to stop by the roadside due to the heavy rain. Fortunately, they had prepared enough raincoats and oil-paper umbrellas. Everyone took their rain gear and stood by the roadside waiting for the rain to stop.

Sitting in the car, Chen Zhaoci looked at the continuous rain outside and felt a little anxious. He and his horse were exhausted, and being stuck halfway through the journey was really a headache.

Seeing Xu Bai standing in front of the car, Chen Zhaoci lifted the car curtain and said, "Xu Bai, you and Yu Yuan should quickly get into the car and take shelter."

Xu Bai looked at his already soaked clothes and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Mom, my clothes are all wet."

Chen Zhaoci said, "It's good that they're wet. Take them off and throw them outside. I still have your clothes here. Hurry up and change into them so you don't catch a cold."

Upon hearing this, Xu Bai also felt uncomfortable with his clothes wet. Although it was summer and he wasn't afraid of the cold, wearing wet clothes always made him feel uncomfortable all over.

Xu Bai tied the horse to the carriage shaft and pulled Chen Yuyuan onto the carriage.

Chen Yuyuan had already found the two men's clothes. Xu Bai and Chen Yuyuan took off their soaking wet raincoats and threw them outside before quickly crawling into the carriage.

Chen Zhaoci's carriage was very spacious. The roof was not only covered with tarpaulin but also coated with several coats of clear varnish to provide shade and shelter from the rain. The interior space was maximized, with many fixed drawers and boxes around the sides for storing things, and even storage space under the seats.

When they needed to camp in the wilderness at night, this carriage was where Chen Zhaoci would rest. Sometimes, when Xu Bai and Chen Yuyuan got tired of riding horses, they would also rest in Chen Yuyuan's carriage or Wu Muyue's carriage.

Chen Zhaoci had already found two towels for Xu Bai and Chen Yuyuan to wipe their faces and hair. While wiping his hair, Xu Bai said, "I wonder when this rain will stop."

Chen Zhaoci said, "June weather is like a child's face, changing in an instant. This rain came quickly and went quickly too."

Xu Bai looked worried as he thought about the increasingly muddy road and said, "Mother, this road is getting harder and harder to walk on. I wonder if Father will repair the road after he goes to Liaodong."

Chen Zhaoci said, "Even I know that to get rich, you must first build roads. How could he not know? I just don't know if he has enough money on hand. If he does, he might be able to start building roads right away."

Xu Bai thought of the sturdy, durable, and easy-to-walk cement and asphalt roads of later generations and said, "It would be great if this road surface could be paved sometime soon."

Chen Yuyuan had already dried her hair and changed her clothes. When she heard Xu Bai talking about paving the road, she said, "Paving the road requires a lot of stone slabs, which is not easy."

Xu Bai said, "I know of something that is powdery, but when mixed with sand, pebbles and water, and smoothed out, it becomes something that is both smooth and hard. I just don't know how that thing is made."

Upon hearing this, Chen Yuyuan's eyes lit up immediately. He said, "If such a thing really exists, it can always be made. Abo, do you know what it's made of?"

Xu Bai thought about it carefully and said, "It seems that limestone, fly ash and iron powder are mixed together and calcined. As for the specific calcination method, I don't know."

After listening, Chen Yuyuan said with some difficulty, "Other things are easy to deal with, but this iron powder is not easy to obtain. As you know, the management of salt and iron mines is very strict now."

Xu Bai said, "That's why I want to join the Ministry of Works. Once I'm in the Ministry of Works, won't I be the one who has all these things to use? If we manage to develop something that works, and the Emperor sees the benefits, won't he let me use these things freely?"

Chen Yuyuan nodded after listening and said, "That's true, but is this cement really as strong, solid, and smooth as you say?"

Xu Bai said, "Of course, and it's not just about building roads, it can also build houses and city walls. Look at how troublesome it is to build houses and city walls now, you still have to boil glutinous rice water. If cement is used instead, it will be a qualitative leap."

Chen Yuyuan thought for a moment and said, "I think it would be great if the road could be repaired. If the road is repaired well, it will be unobstructed whether it is windy or rainy. The benefits are unimaginable."

Xu Bai said, "Yes, it's really hard to imagine. Putting everything else aside, just take the building we're walking on right now. If it were all paved roads, we could travel at least two or three hundred li a day by horse or carriage. But now, when the weather is good, it's manageable to travel two hundred li. But now, with the rain, it's impossible to move an inch. How much time will we waste on the road?"

Chen Yuyuan said, "Abo, I support you."

Xu Bai sighed, thinking about Chen Yuyuan's current situation, and said, "Yuyuan, what can you do by just offering verbal support? You can't do anything, so you might as well not say that to me."

Chen Yuyuan was stunned for a moment after hearing this, and then she realized that she really couldn't give Xu Bai anything right now, so her face turned a little red.

Hearing the two children's conversation, and seeing Chen Yuyuan's face turn red from Xu Bai's words, Chen Zhaoci laughed and said, "Xu Bai, what you're saying sounds far-fetched. If you told others, they would probably say you're just daydreaming. It's very precious that Ayuan didn't laugh at you and even supported you."

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