Chen Kai said, "Everyone guessed correctly, the water mill is indeed used to pound rice, but other things that need to be crushed, such as medicinal herbs and spices, can also be crushed using the water mill."
"Of course, the most important advantage of using a water mill to pound rice is that it saves labor, because it doesn't require human labor; the water mill can operate automatically."
One villager exclaimed in surprise, "How could such a thing exist? It's impossible!"
Chen Kai said with a smile, "Nothing is impossible. A watermill is a tool that uses the power of water to automatically pound rice. With a watermill, grain can be processed day and night, which saves labor."
Another villager asked, "If we're using water flow, does that mean we have to build it where there's water?"
Chen Kai laughed and said, "That's right, watermills should indeed be built on the banks of streams and rivers."
After Chen Kai's explanation, the villagers started discussing it again.
An older man said, "Is there really such a thing? We can use water to pound rice, that's impossible."
The person next to him agreed, saying, "I also think it's impossible; I've never heard of such a thing before."
At this moment, an older woman said, "I have a feeling that what Uncle Chen is talking about is a bit eerie."
Another woman agreed, saying, "I also find it strange that it can pound rice by itself without human intervention. It sounds terrifying."
When Chen Kai heard that the topic of conversation was gradually going astray, he quickly asked his sister-in-law to step in and quell the misunderstanding.
Chen Kai asked, "Does everyone know what water power means?"
Bai Yu replied, "Hydropower is the power of water flow, isn't it?"
Chen Kai nodded and said, "Yes, that's one way to understand it."
"Hydropower can be large or small, and how to use it to help us work is the problem we need to solve now."
"The watermill is one of the tools that utilizes water power, and it was the first thing we studied."
At this moment, the village chief excitedly asked, "Chen Kai, is the next thing we're going to study a waterwheel?"
The village chief was a knowledgeable and insightful man, and he believed what Chen Kai said.
Chen Kai replied perfunctorily, "Well, once the watermill is developed, the waterwheel won't be far behind."
Waterwheels are something they definitely need to study. As for whether waterwheels will be the next thing they study, no one can say for sure. We'll just have to wait and see.
"Everyone has seen the blueprints just now. This is basically what a watermill looks like. Everyone, think about which parts you know how to make and share them so we can discuss them together."
The village chief's wife asked, "Chen Kai, which book did you read this in? Does it have a detailed explanation?"
Chen Kai said helplessly, "No, the book only has simple diagrams. If there were detailed explanations, we wouldn't have to work together to figure it out."
"I saw it in some miscellaneous books, but I've forgotten the title, and I returned the book a long time ago."
Next, Chen Kai took out a sheet of paper filled with problems that needed to be solved by everyone.
Solving the problem of the watermill as a whole is very difficult, so Chen Kai broke down the visible parts on the watermill blueprints into smaller problems and explained them to everyone in simple terms so that everyone could work together to solve them.
After listening to the long list of questions raised by Chen Kai, everyone immediately started discussing them.
Before long, an older woman raised her hand and said, "Aren't those the troughs we use for pounding rice?"
Everyone burst into laughter upon hearing this, and one person said, "Do you even need to tell me? Everyone knows that."
After everyone finished laughing and quieted down, Chen Kai encouraged them, "What this auntie said is very good. There's no need to laugh at her. What everyone knows is proven to be true. You can also share your thoughts."
Seeing that the aunt had been praised, others also spoke up enthusiastically, and Chen Kai praised everyone who spoke.
Although the things these people suggested were the most common and things that Chen Lao Er could solve on his own, and they couldn't offer any help with the research on watermills, Chen Kai still wanted to use this method to increase everyone's enthusiasm for this matter.
Once everyone had fallen silent, Chen Kai laughed and said, "Look, there are many things here that everyone knows, so why can't watermills exist?"
This made many people think. Indeed, there are many things in the water mill that exist in their daily lives, so it's not impossible to manufacture them!
When a person has confidence, their potential is huge. An older man solved a problem that no one else knew about.
Of course, whether this answer is reliable or not remains to be seen, and we'll have to wait for Chen Lao Er to put it into practice and verify it.
However, as an outsider, Chen Kai knew that the answer was definitely correct.
More than ten days have passed, but the villagers' enthusiasm for studying the watermill has not diminished. Many people have put forward their own ideas, and after Chen Lao Er's practical verification, many of their answers have been found to be correct.
So far, more than twenty people have solved part of the problem.
Watermill research progress: 40%.
Chen Kai was already very satisfied with the research progress.
There's another important thing to do today. Bai Yu plans to consult the teacher and his classmates about the remaining issues in making the water mill.
Because of concerns about safety on the road, a top-tier escort team was dispatched to escort Bai Yu there.
This included Bai Yu, Bai Yu's father, Bai Yu's grandmother, Mr. and Mrs. Chen, Zhou Shi, Ma Zhen, and more than a dozen young adults.
No one knows what's going on outside the village. During this time, everyone has been following the Chen family to clear land and grow vegetables, and no one has been sent to inquire about what's happening outside. Occasionally, when they see someone coming here, they will ask about it. Right now, all they know is that it's very dangerous outside, there's a severe famine, and people are scrambling for food everywhere.
The village is relatively safe now, so everyone tries to stay home as much as possible. Of course, if anyone dares to target the village, everyone will take the initiative to strike.
However, thieves have been frequently visiting Anping Village recently. Fortunately, the Chen family has three dogs, so there has been no loss to the village. The thieves were caught as soon as they entered the village.
As for what to do with the thieves, they were all beaten up and then thrown out.
As the number of thieves increased, the villagers became anxious, fearing that outsiders would discover the vegetables they were growing in their greenhouses and steal them.
So, at night, many people stay here to sleep in the vegetable greenhouses and keep watch over them.
The village chief knew that this wasn't a solution; the vegetables grown in the village would be discovered sooner or later, and then many people would come and steal them.
So the village chief gathered the villagers together and asked them if they had any good solutions.
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