Rowling's face immediately showed surprise: "This structure is really ingenious, Ancestor, how did you come up with such a brilliant idea?"
“They’ve lived for seven hundred years, how could they not have any life experience?” Zijing said from the side.
"I didn't ask you, why are you being so nosy!"
Rowling said, giving Zijing a glare.
Night Wind smiled and said, "How I came up with this thing is not important. What's important is that it works... If you have no questions, just get started according to my design. If you encounter any trouble, come find me."
Rowling nodded and beckoned, saying, "Zhao Bo, come and take a look."
Zhao Bo immediately ran over, bowing and scraping as he approached Ye Feng and Luo Lin, taking the drawing from Luo Lin's hand and examining it carefully.
Zhao Bo was an old man in his sixties with a slight hunchback, and he looked very reserved at the moment.
But there's nothing wrong with that. It's perfectly normal for a commoner to feel awkward standing in front of Ye Feng, the city lord of Silla City and a Saint Realm expert.
"Who is he?" Ye Feng asked.
"His name is Zhao Bo. When Luo Yuncheng was still alive, he was the most famous carpenter in our city, and he even worked for our city lord's mansion for a while," Luo Lin explained with a smile.
"A carpenter?" Ye Feng asked, a look of interest on his face.
Luo Qing continued, "Zhao Bo is not just a carpenter; he knows a lot more than that."
"How did you know?" Rowling asked, puzzled.
“When Zhao Bo was working at our city lord’s mansion, I chatted with him a few times. Although he was always too nervous to say much when he saw me, he still told me a lot of things,” Luo Qing said with a smile.
"For example?" Night Wind asked.
Luo Qing then added, "For example, in farming, Zhao Bo knows how to grow crops in our southern territory that are only found in the eastern and western territories."
Night Wind looked thoughtful, and Rowling seemed to have thought of something as well.
But it wasn't long before Rowling came to her senses.
"Zhao Bo, you should be able to build this waterwheel designed by the ancestor, right? Have you encountered any difficulties?" Rowling asked.
Zhao Bo put down the blueprints and said, "In response to Madam, the design of this waterwheel is ingenious but not complicated, and it is entirely feasible to build."
“This is wonderful,” Rowling said.
“However, I discovered a small problem,” Zhao Bo said.
"What's the problem?" Rowling asked immediately.
Zhao Bo pointed to the water pumping vehicle on the blueprint and said, "Perhaps it can't be called a problem, but I think it would be better to change it this way. We can add a few more impellers on this side, which will make the water supply more efficient."
As Zhao Bo spoke, he also scribbled and drew on the blueprints with a pen, his expression so focused.
It was unclear how much time had passed before Zhao Bo finally came to his senses, only to find that everyone present was staring at him.
Zhao Bo's face turned deathly pale.
He suddenly realized how rude his actions had been.
The design of this waterwheel was personally designed by the lord of Silla City, and yet he, a lowly commoner, dared to criticize the lord's design and even doodle on the drawings without permission.
This is absolutely disrespectful!
Zhao Bo was so frightened that he dared not breathe loudly. He quickly knelt on the ground and said, "Lord, please forgive me, I didn't mean to..."
"Get up first," Ye Feng said.
Zhao Bo hesitated for a moment before finally getting up from the ground.
Night Breeze asked with a smile, "Can you write?"
"I...I know a little," Zhao Bo nodded, speaking nervously.
"What do you mean by 'knows a little'? You seemed quite skilled when you were writing just now, and your pen-holding posture didn't look like someone who couldn't write at all," Ye Feng laughed.
You can tell whether a person can write or not just by how they hold the pen.
The way people who can write and people who can't write hold a pen is completely different.
Zhao Bo's pen-holding technique was clearly very skilled, indicating that he was not someone who couldn't write.
This is not a simple matter.
The vast majority of commoners and serfs in the Lingluo Great World are illiterate, let alone able to write.
People who could read and write were extremely rare among commoners and serfs, so it was strange that Zhao Bo could write.
"Don't worry, in Silla City, being able to read and write does not violate the law; in fact, it's a good thing," Ye Feng said.
Zhao Bo breathed a sigh of relief and finally began to explain.
"Lord City Lord, to be honest, I almost became a disciple of the Sunrise Sect." Zhao Bo had a bitter smile on his face, and his tone of voice conveyed a sense of deep emotion.
Decades ago, Zhao Bo was just a little kid.
He has a hardworking father and a down-to-earth and capable mother.
But his parents were commoners who were illiterate.
One day, a disciple from the Sunrise Sect passed through Zhao Bo's village and saw Zhao Bo herding livestock. He then struck up a conversation with him.
Perhaps because they had a pleasant conversation, the disciple of the Sunrise Sect introduced Zhao Bo to the Sunrise Sect.
This was naturally a chance for Zhao Bo to turn his life around, so Zhao Bo's parents sold everything they owned to finally raise enough money for the journey so that Zhao Bo could set off for Riyao Sect.
Zhao Bo went to the Riyao Sect and stayed there for three years.
During those three years, Zhao Bo lived in the Riyao Sect as a handyman, doing all sorts of rough, tiring, and miscellaneous chores for the sect every day.
However, three years later, Zhao Bo was eliminated during the examination.
“I returned to the village with the approval document from the Sun Yat-sen Foundation and showed it to my parents. They were overjoyed and thought I had become a big shot.”
"But in reality, the document only contained one sentence... This child does not have martial arts talent."
"I will never forget the look of disappointment on my parents' faces when I told them the truth."
The night breeze listened quietly, and the atmosphere around them became somewhat oppressive.
After a moment, Night Breeze asked, "And then?"
"That winter, the harvest was poor, and my father was injured while working and didn't make it..."
"Later, my mother also..."
Zhao Bo sighed, his expression becoming even more bitter.
Night Breeze asked, "Don't you hold a grudge against the Sunrise Sect?"
Zhao Bo forced a smile that looked more like a grimace and said, "What right do I have to hold a grudge against the Sunrise Sect? The Sunrise Sect is the largest sect in our Hongtian Empire. How could I, a mere commoner, dare to do that?"
"Moreover, the Sunrise Sect really doesn't owe me anything. At least the Sunrise Sect taught me how to read and write."
Zhao Bo stopped there.
Rowling sighed, "Ancestor, there's nothing we can do about it. Most commoners and serfs don't have the talent to cultivate martial arts, so it was inevitable that Zhao Bo would be expelled from the Sunrise Sect."
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