Chapter 96 Waterwheel
Qinzhou, Lian County.
When the caravan's carriage arrived at a village, they saw a dozen farmers arguing over a well that was about to dry up.
"My family came first!"
"The millet in my fields has wilted. Please let me have some of it!"
"Isn't my millet withered? How can I give it up with just this little water?"
"Oh, this life is really unbearable..."
Su Ci sat in Ling Shuang's carriage, lifted the curtain and took a look.
"Let's get off and take a look."
Su Ci is now the wife of the caravan. The master Xuan Yi in the carriage in front also got out of the car. Chu Yunzhou, Su Li, two court officials, and Fang Zhi with several imperial guards followed.
Su Ci observed from the side of the road.
To the left of where the carriage stopped was a vast expanse of fields, surrounded by mountains in the distance, with houses scattered at the foot of the mountains or on the edges of the fields.
On the right is a steep slope of broken rocks, and a flowing river can be seen below.
"lady?"
Su Ci turned around and looked at the yellowed fields, frowning slightly. "Master, it's not harvest time yet. I've seen so many cracked rice paddies and withered rice seedlings along the way today. I'm afraid there won't be any harvest this year, right?"
Xuan Yi nodded. "The Lian County prefect reported favorable weather and abundant rice harvests every year, but many Lian County refugees have fled to the outskirts of the capital. I made this private visit to inspect the local agricultural policies in Qinzhou, but upon arrival, I discovered they were all lies."
Su Ci thought for a moment and walked up to the dozen or so farmers who were looking awkward and curious.
"Fellow villagers, why don't you go to the river to get water to irrigate your fields?"
Although the woman in front of him was wearing a plain silk dress, her face was pretty and her grace could not be concealed.
"Uh, ma'am, you don't know."
An old farmer smiled wryly, pointing to the river below. "The river is low, the fields are high, and it's too steep here to get directly up. You have to take the uphill path up ahead. It takes a mile to carry a bucket of water. In this scorching heat, people can pass out from the sun. And half the water is spilled before it even reaches the fields."
"Yes, my old man and his three sons worked for days and nights until their legs were broken, but it was still not enough for the fields to dry up in half a day..."
"I see."
Su Ci looked at the well and said, "Wouldn't it be enough to dig a few more wells?"
A peasant woman sighed and shook her head, "Our fields are close to the mountains and are very dry. We've dug many wells but there's no water. The few wells we have are only enough to provide food and drink for the villagers, and there's really no way to irrigate the fields."
"Alas! I thought we'd have a good harvest this year, but now the seedlings have all turned yellow. All my hard work has been for nothing!"
“…”
Su Ci walked to the steep slope of the fracture again, looked around on both sides with a thoughtful look.
"Master, let's stay here for one night."
…
At night.
Green lamps were burning in the houses. Xuan Yi, Chu Yunzhou and others sat around the table, watching Su Ci and Ling Shuang unfold several drawings.
"This is a water pump, or a water transporter. It uses the force of the current to bring water from lower places to higher places. I only know the general idea. Fortunately, Ling Shuang knows some mechanical skills. We discussed it and recorded all the details in drawings."
"Look here. This wooden wheel is placed directly in the river. The wooden stakes at the bottom must be firmly nailed. Use bamboo tubes or dug water troughs to connect to the direction where the water is needed. Using the self-rotating force of the flowing river, the bamboo scoops around the wooden wheel are driven to draw water, and then the water is brought to a higher location through bamboo tube official roads and water troughs..."
Su Ci gestured as he spoke, explaining one by one the function of each detail of the mechanism on the wooden wheel, the materials needed to make it, etc.
"Xianzhi, you've been traveling for many years. I heard you enjoy carving and woodworking. I'd like to ask you to build a small one according to this design and test it out first. See the results before making a decision."
“…”
Xuan Yi and Chu Yunzhou took the drawings and looked at them carefully, their faces full of approval.
"If this method is feasible, it will benefit more than just Lian County."
"Yes, ma'am, after your detailed explanation, Yunzhou finally understood the ingenuity and mystery behind it. I really admire you."
Chu Yunzhou bowed respectfully and said, "Madam, please give me one night. I will be able to make it and conduct experiments tomorrow."
"Okay, the ingenious mechanism in this design was created by Ling Shuang. Let her help you."
"That's even better. Thank you for troubling Miss Lingshuang."
Ling Shuang was stunned for a moment and looked at Chu Yunzhou with admiration in his eyes, her cheeks turning slightly pink.
"Sir, your praise is too great..."
Su Ci raised an eyebrow and watched the two of them leave, a hint of cunning flashing in her eyes.
To be honest, Ling Shuang is much better than Lin Shuang. She is calm and smart, and knows poetry, songs, calligraphy, painting, chess, and even divination. After spending a few days together, she admires him very much.
But the relationship between the two is not what she and Xuan Yi thought it was. Ling Shuang was driven to a country farm by her father because of her stepmother's frame-up. She met Chu Yunzhou again by chance, and because she was depressed, she followed him to Zhuojing to relax.
She had to help push it no matter what.
"lady."
Xuan Yi took her hand, his dark eyes softening, "The food is ready. Let me accompany you back to your room."
"Well, come to think of it, I'm really hungry."
The two court officials, one was the Minister of Works Xu Shan, the other was the Vice Minister of Revenue Qian Erwen, both looked surprised.
"Master Su, your father has been well-educated."
"Yes, Madam, you are clever and quick-witted, and you care about the people's livelihood. You are truly a blessing to Dayong..."
“…”
Su Li stared at his sister's back, feeling very ashamed.
He never knew that his fourth sister was such a good painter, nor did he realize that she was so smart...
…
Early morning.
Chu Yunzhou and Ling Shuang really worked through the whole night and completed a finished product that was about half a person's height.
Su Ci and Yanyu were playing with bricks and mud in the yard, while Su Li and Fang Zhi were carving bamboo tubes next to them.
A small-scale simulation scene similar to the steep slope of the fracture yesterday was built, and after drying for a while, the experiment began.
The waterwheel model was placed in the dug-out trough, with the bottom firmly secured. Fang Zhi held the basin of water and poured it into the trough at a constant speed to create the appearance of flowing river water.
“…It’s spinning!”
The small bamboo tubes on the edge of the waterwheel are filled with water one by one, driving the waterwheel to turn. The water in the small bamboo tubes flows to the top and then down, successfully pouring the water into the connected large bamboo tubes one by one and flowing out from the other end.
“Success!”
"It's amazing! It doesn't require any manpower!"
"Madam, you are truly ingenious!"
Xuan Yi looked at the person with a bright smile and felt proud of himself.
"Xu Shan and Su Li, notify the local county magistrate and assist Xian Zhi in developing a plan to build a waterwheel at the same location as yesterday. Qian Erwen, estimate the cost and time required, and quickly implement this plan in other drought-stricken areas to avoid delaying this year's autumn harvest."
"Yes, sir!"
Everyone else was busy with their own things, so the master and the mistress naturally just waited to see the results.
When Su Ci had nothing to do, she would stroll around with Yanyu Lingshuang every day, and Xuan Yi, Fang Zhi and other imperial guards would become their accompanying guards.
"This, this, and this, I want them all."
"Hey, thank you, ma'am! I'll wrap it up for you right away!"
"Madam, this rattle is so small, and this little wooden peach is perfect for the little prince or the young lady to play with."
Su Ci took a bite of a candied haws and said, "They are indeed very cute. Let's buy a few more of each."
"Okay!"
"Madam, look at that hairpin. It looks like a style from outside the Great Wall..."
"It's so beautiful, I bought them all!"
After half a day's work, the accompanying carriage was filled with spoils.
Fang Zhi told the driver to go back and put down the things first, and followed Yanyu into a teahouse.
There weren't so many rules outside, so Su Ci simply asked for a big table on the second floor and asked everyone to sit down together.
…
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