This won't work.
The crowd surged in and dispersed like the tide, and everything returned to calm.
That was three days ago.
On the morning of the fourth day, after squinting and bidding farewell to the several crescent moons that had gone by, Meng Yan made a list of the various talismans that needed to be purchased, intending to give it to Senior Brother Li after waking up so that he could buy them on her behalf.
She had earned a considerable amount of money from the wealthy man last time. She left some with the government department and gave the rest to Li the kidnapper to cover expenses in the valley or to purchase additional items.
When Meng Yan went to find him with the gold and silver in his hands, his hands were still trembling, afraid that a pothole on the road would cause the small mountain in his hands to collapse.
Li the cripple got up very early and was practicing boxing in the courtyard, dressed in a white linen robe. His movements were light yet firm, like birds in the forest, joyful yet understated. Only after he finished a set of boxing did he notice Meng Yan standing at the door.
She had never seen so much money before, nor did she recall her master ever having this much money. But the kidnapper Li accepted it as if it were nothing out of the ordinary, making her feel that it was just a trivial matter, as if he would come out and feed the birds after putting the money back.
He did indeed wave to the birds while holding a small box, and the whole family then happily began their breakfast.
The members of the organization initially refused to accept the money, insisting that Meng Yan keep it herself, saying that since she rarely went out, she should use the money to design a new mechanism.
Unable to refuse, Meng Yan divided the money in two, using half to purchase the necessary equipment for the organization, and forcefully distributing the remainder to everyone. "We're sending out cartloads of ice furnaces, but we don't have a single penny to our own pockets. Who will come to our organization's courtyard to learn how to work in the future? If no one is willing to come, who will inherit our skills after a hundred years?"
Unable to persuade her otherwise, they accepted the money and told her to come back to them if she needed it in the future.
As soon as Meng Yan received his hefty sum of silver, he had already figured out what to do with it.
She entrusted a messenger to send most of the money to the Lin family in her name, leaving a note instructing them to take good care of her mother. She also used a slingshot to send a small amount of money separately to her mother's window, without leaving a single word.
They were of little use to her, as she could get all her food, clothing, shelter, and transportation in the valley. But if it were those relatives who only cared about money and not people, they would at least treat her mother better, even if it was just for a few copper coins to get something for nothing next time.
.
When I woke up, I was greeted by a dim, yellowish light. The flower branches in front of the window stretched out and touched the cool tea in my cup. The shadows moved, but the water remained still.
Supporting her still somewhat groggy head, Meng Yan hastily fastened her hair, went to the courtyard to fetch a bucket of well water to wash her face, and after finishing these tasks, she casually threw on a coat and headed towards the government compound.
There haven't been any new mechanisms to design or modify lately, and the production of the ice furnace has become easier with the simplification of the process and the assistance of equipment. Everyone is much more relaxed than before, and no longer has to get up early and work late at night, squatting in the yard to rush the work.
As soon as Meng Yan entered, he caught a glimpse of Senior Brother Li sitting opposite the wall. On the wall hung the order statistics table from outside the valley. Theoretically, looking at them should be a very happy thing, as each record was a handful of gleaming silver. But this time, for some reason, Senior Brother Li's back view seemed somewhat... complicated.
Hearing footsteps, Li Li turned around somewhat slowly, a more complex expression appearing on his face than his back.
"Junior Sister Yan," he greeted her, then took a deep breath. "Good news or bad news, which do you want to hear first?"
Meng Yan's smile froze for a moment, then settled in his heart. Could it be that there was some serious problem with the ice furnaces that were sold?
Although they test and check the refrigerator before each delivery, no one can guarantee that it will not malfunction or encounter other problems.
Seeing them standing there dumbfounded, some of the junior brothers and sisters also came over. Following Senior Brother Li's instructions, they glanced at the white wall and their expressions became just as complicated as his.
Meng Yan suddenly felt as if she had slept for a lifetime, not just once. Worries welled up uncontrollably on her face. She closed her eyes to suppress them and calmed herself before opening them again to gesture to her senior brother Li: "No matter how big the problem is, we will all face it together. Let's hear the bad news first."
"I'm afraid things won't go as you wish, Junior Sister Yan. The good news and the bad news are the same." Li Li picked up dozens of pages from the wall and laid them horizontally in front of her. "These are all the new reservations made this morning."
If he wasn't still half asleep, Meng Yan remembered that seven or eight households could be listed on this page...
There are dozens of pages of paper in front of me...
Meng Yan swallowed hard and slowly gestured with his hand to express his question.
In fact, this was just the beginning of a bit of pain and itching. In the following days, the sky above the government compound was bustling with activity as countless homing pigeons and government sparrows came to visit. Everyone greeted them with a wry smile and then saw them off one by one, leading a busy life with little distinction between day and night.
Meng Yan was quite curious about where all these reservations came from. After all, manpower was limited, and she had only chosen some locations nearby when she was doing promotions, but the reservation letters she received came from Shazhen, which is located several mountains away.
The senior sister joked that his good reputation had spread far and wide, which made Meng Yan even more miserable. If the reputation continued to spread, he would have to live with the stove all year round.
Fortunately, summer came early and went quickly this year. As the heat subsided, the grueling orders decreased significantly, and everyone regained their freedom before completely collapsing.
“I don’t think this will work.” After finishing the last piece of the stove in his hand, Meng Yan found a flat spot, put down his small hammer, and began to speak with a look of utter despair, his hands covered in dust.
"What brilliant idea do you have, Junior Sister Yan?" The senior sister, who had also taken a break, went to the side to get a cloth, washed it in cold water, and handed it to her.
After taking it, Meng Yan dried his hands, washed it, and hung it back on the rope. On his way back, he casually stole two ice pears that his senior brothers had prepared in advance, and quietly shared one with his senior sister.
Seeing two furtive figures sitting in the corner, the junior brother, who had just been freed from the copper and iron, sat down without making a sound. Under Meng Yan's trickery, he managed to get three more pears back.
More and more people gathered in the corner, and it soon became the meeting place for the government departments.
With the right timing, location, and people, Meng Yan buried the pear core in the soil and waved to everyone, a signature gesture when she had a new idea.
A crowd gathered around, and some even brought candles, saying that a well-lit environment was more suitable for listening to her teachings.
Meng Yan looked up at the sun still hanging on the mountainside, pondered for a moment, then picked up a candle and threw it at his chuckling senior brother.
"Master mechanics, while the wealth and status we enjoy are important, we must not forget the inheritance of our spirit," she explained earnestly.
The junior brother scratched his head and came to a horrifying idea: "Then... we're not doing it anymore?"
The senior brother seemed to think it made a lot of sense, and echoed Meng Yan's opinion.
Meng Yan paused for a moment: "I mean, we can bring more people to help us with the work."
"..."
"How should we get them? Should we bring the neighbor who herds the cattle and sheep? Or should we go to the kitchen to get them?"
He spoke so seriously that Meng Yan also began to consider the feasibility of his words.
After a long while, she came to her senses and shook her head. “Start with the children. Next time you see children hesitating about what to learn, bring your little gadgets and coax them to come here to learn mechanical engineering. In this way, not only will the skills be passed down, but the money won’t slip away, and each of us will have to do less work.”
This sounds plausible at first glance, but upon closer inspection, it seems full of flaws. Children are at an age where they are active and energetic, so how could they stand being alone and come to play with a group of people?
Overall, it is indeed a good long-term idea, but I'm afraid not many children will be willing to do it.
.
As autumn deepens, the already cool library is swept by a breeze at night, and sitting by the window can even bring a thin layer of coolness.
The firelight flickered and trembled before it leaned against the candle, oil seeping out little by little from its base, sliding down the red candle and dripping onto the table.
Yue Lang lay down with his head propped up by one hand, while a book was still clutched in his other hand, teetering precariously.
With a thud, his hand slipped onto the table, the book fell over, knocking over the candle that was standing guard. The flame swept across his forearm and rolled off the table with the candle.
Yue Lang woke up with a jolt, tapped his half-asleep head, and glanced at the cooled wax on the table and the book beside it. Fortunately, the book was unharmed.
He picked up the red candle from the ground and lit it again. In the new light, he noticed a red patch on his left arm, which stood out conspicuously against the surrounding white. He slapped it a few times to make the surrounding area red as well, which made it look much better.
A while ago, his senior brother Li Li came to him and said he had a big order and asked if he wanted to help. He said he would give him half of the money.
The client only needed basic talisman paper. The talismans weren't complicated, but the client wanted too many. Li Li couldn't finish drawing them all, so he simply dragged along some yellow paper and cinnabar to give him something to do.
Before he could even say no, Senior Brother Li stopped him, saying, "This pile of talismans is from Ping'an Valley, which is Meng Yan's sect. You seem to have quite a connection with them. Remember those rare talismans from before? You gave them all to me to do with as you cleaned the house, and in the end, you gave them to my old friend in Ping'an Valley."
Yes, that's true. Out of respect for his senior brother, fate, or someone else, Yue Lang began a life where he painted as soon as he opened his eyes.
During the day, he would wield his wolf-hair brush with great skill, and at night he would practice drawing in the picture book. His hand suffered constantly as a result, and it swelled up five or six times during this period.
Persistence pays off. He finally managed to understand the obscure and difficult sign language book, but before he could even feel happy for a moment, he fell asleep sitting up.
After sorting out the current situation, Yue Lang realized that there was nothing else of importance to do. He got up, extinguished the flame he had just set up, put the books back on the shelf, and headed back to his dormitory under the moonlight.
.
This time, Yue Lang was certain he had closed the door, because Senior Brother Li had woken him up with a thunderous knock.
"Why are you back, kid? I went all the way to the library to look for you, but all I saw was a row of books."
He was still panting heavily as he spoke, as if he had searched the entire sect before finally finding this place.
Although Yue Lang didn't understand why he was looking for him, or why he was sweating and panting so early in the morning, he still opened the door, stood blankly by the wall, and reached out to invite him in.
“I’m not going in. Dragging this thing around is tiring enough. Now that it’s been delivered to your door, I’m not going to carry it inside. I’m leaving it at the door. Take it or leave it.”
Li Li leaned against the wall with one hand and put the other on his hip, as if he would collapse to the ground if he rested for another half a day.
Li Li, who prided himself on his strong willpower and physical strength, forced himself to hang on the wall and slowly shuffled along the edge of the wall out of Yue Lang's sight.
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