Some people wanted to ask Mu Gaoyi and Shi Hetong for information, but seeing that they also looked confused, they knew that the two of them probably didn't know much more than they did.
Indeed, this person was sent by Wei Jinwei in the past two days, and he had never met Mu Gaoyi and Shi Hetong before.
When I first arrived, they assigned me to be a menial laborer. I don't know what happened later, but our relationship progressed rapidly.
"I guess he escaped from the family of a reclusive master?"
"Stop talking nonsense. We are very strict about the rules when we take on disciples. We can't let our disciples wander around and become menial soldiers."
“But he doesn’t seem like a self-taught carpenter. I guess he must have had a master, maybe he didn’t formally become an apprentice.”
The other craftsmen took a break from their busy work and chatted there.
Meanwhile, Mu Gaoyi and Shi Hetong wiped the sweat from their brows, stood there staring at each other, whispering amongst themselves.
"Hey, He Tong, we weren't wrong. She might be a student at Jixia Academy. Otherwise, how could she know so much about woodworking at such a young age?"
“I think so too. I heard that Jixia Academy only accepts students with extraordinary backgrounds and strong talents. We were the ones who failed the exam and couldn’t get in.”
Mu Gaoyi said with obvious envy, "Look at him, so young yet with such a bright future. The car he designed is absolutely brilliant. I wonder how amazing it will be when it's finally made."
Shi Hetong, however, considered things more deeply than Mu Gaoyi. He asked doubtfully, "But he's so selfless, letting us all participate and not even crediting us. Isn't he afraid that in the end, all the credit will be stolen by someone else, and the design drawings will be impersonated?"
"Does he need to be afraid?" Mu Gaoyi rolled his eyes. "Just ask me, can you afford to offend the people behind him?"
They all assumed that A Qing was backed by Wei Yao, Run Tu, or some great craftsman, but they could never have guessed that the man standing behind Zheng Quchi was Yuwen Sheng, who could overturn the entire political circle of Ye Kingdom with a single sentence.
But then again, who could have predicted this?
"Alright, alright, we understand all this. He is indeed skilled, but there are many skilled craftsmen in these seven kingdoms. They don't necessarily have to target our little achievement to dig it up."
"This much?"
"Okay, it's huge, fine."
The group of over thirty people worked tirelessly for three whole days, not exactly day and night, but to the point of neglecting food and sleep.
Only then were the car parts, panels, and corner connectors finally unearthed.
But the remaining time is still tight, and not a single second can be wasted.
Seeing that it was almost time, Zheng Quchi asked Runtu for a docile horse, intending to ride it to the workshop in Fuxian County.
Runtu escorted her the whole way. He saw the lady enter a blacksmith shop with a familiar air, greet an old blacksmith with white eyebrows, and then the man carried out a heavy bag.
The old blacksmith looked quite old, but he had an inverted triangle body with particularly thick and strong arm muscles.
"This deal almost exhausted the old man and his apprentices."
"Thank you for your hard work. The food is very well made, exceeding my expectations. I will come back to support Grandpa Tie's business next time I have the chance."
"That's great. But I remember, the one who placed the deposit before was a young girl, right?"
"Oh right, she's my sister. She was doing this for me. I figured she couldn't carry this thing herself, so I came to get it myself."
"I see. Very well. Since you are satisfied, then I am relieved. These things of yours are so skillful, and the patterns are ones I have never seen before. It took a lot of effort."
"The first time is awkward, the second time is good. Next time, Grandpa Tie's skills will definitely be even more exquisite. I'll leave the rest here. I have something to do here, so I'll be going now."
"Hey, young man, you've given too much money."
"Not much, the rest is for express delivery."
Zheng Quchi was strong and didn't need Runtu's help. She carried the big bag herself and strode forward. In the end, Runtu found a carriage to transport her and the things back to the camp.
On the carriage, she carefully examined the batch of bronze parts she had ordered again. There were round and square decorations, reinforcing edging strips, canopy hooks, and other things.
She drew all the designs and marked the dimensions, then had the blacksmith melt down the copper and cast them. She specifically instructed that they must be made to look old and have a good texture, without cutting corners, but they also couldn't be made too heavy, since they were just decorative items.
When the craftsmen saw Aqing returning carrying a large bag of things, they all found it strange.
"Aqing, where did you run off to so early in the morning?" Mu Gaoyi ran over, his eyes darting around her bag of things with a sly look.
"Go do hard labor."
She placed the item on the ground in front of everyone, and it immediately made a clanging sound, like small pieces of metal rubbing and hitting each other.
"What's this?"
"Take a look."
She took them apart, revealing what was inside, and they couldn't help but exclaim, "Aren't these the decorative bronze parts painted on the car? You've already put them all together?"
"Yes, time is of the essence. I had the blacksmith make these custom-made ones a while ago. I've checked them all, and there are no problems. Once they're assembled, we can just attach them according to the design drawings."
"Great! We're full of energy now."
"that is!"
"Then let's assemble it now."
Everyone gathered around because Zheng Quchi always thought ahead and she had been working hard these past two days. Whenever someone got stuck, she would step in and give them a push, so they would sometimes unconsciously ask for her opinion.
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