Chapter 53 So Happy
Before Zhu Zhanji's birthday, Zhu Yuhuan hurriedly prepared his compound bow. After all, the drawings needed to be corrected according to the real thing. When it came to understanding the structure of the bow, the soldiers who often trained in the training ground knew much more than Zhu Yuhuan. Asking them directly was the easiest way. By the way, he could take a simple bow and arrow and modify it first so that he would have a rough template.
Shi Lin looked at Zhu Yuhuan's drawings and was a little surprised. He said, "Girl, you are the only one who can think of a way to install wheels on a bow and arrow..."
Zhu Yuhuan was busy fiddling with the bow and arrow with Huai En. When he heard Shi Lin's words, he said unhappily, "Why don't you help me string up the bowstring and secure it now?"
Shi Lin sighed and helped to fix the bowstring. He couldn't help rubbing his hands together, looking eager to try. He said, "Girl... this... what kind of bow is this..."
"Compound bow."
"Yes, a compound bow!" Shi Lin's eyes lit up, and he asked eagerly, "Can I try this compound bow?"
Zhu Yuhuan made sure the bowstring was fixed, then handed over the compound bow in his hand and said, "Here, try it."
She went to the training ground specifically to do it, one reason being that there were more ready-made materials there, and the other reason being that she needed someone to help try it out, preferably someone with years of experience in bow and arrow shooting, so that they could test whether this compound bow was really more useful than other bows and arrows.
Zhu Yuhuan worked so hard to prepare a birthday gift for her biological father. Ultimately, she hoped to attract the attention of the Zhu family and find some craftsmen to make more useful things.
Who made her stay in this deep palace, with no contact with the outside world except for her daily studies, and she is powerless?
Shi Lin didn't know what Zhu Yuhuan was thinking, but he tried the compound bow several times in a row. It was indeed more labor-saving than an ordinary bow and arrow. With the same amount of effort, the range was longer. It was not a flashy product.
However, when he saw that Zhu Yuhuan had spent a lot of effort on this bow, he knew that this bow was not easy to obtain. It would probably take a long time to get one that could be used. It was most likely that it would be presented as a treasure to the emperor or the prince. An ordinary soldier like him was very lucky to be able to try his hand with it.
Shi Lin was afraid of damaging the bow and arrow, so he tried it a few times before returning it to Zhu Yuhuan. He then asked, "Girl, how did you come up with that idea?"
Zhu Yuhuan snorted and said, "Books contain golden houses and beautiful women."
Shi Lin suddenly realized and said, "There is also a compound bow in the book."
Zhu Yuhuan was almost choked to death by his words, and then said: "I'll keep this with you for now, and I'll come back to get it later."
Shi Lin actually liked this new thing very much, and asked excitedly: "Then can I lend it to someone else?"
"Of course you can, but you can play with it privately. Don't let too many people know to avoid trouble. Remember to ask people who have used it before if it works and if there's anything wrong with it." After hearing Shi Lin's response, Zhu Yuhuan thought of his uncle's words and reminded him, "Be careful. If others find out, they might accuse you of making a weapon illegally, and that would be disastrous."
Shi Lin nodded repeatedly and said, "I understand! You must be cautious when you act in the palace!" He was overjoyed and said, "If they knew that you could make such a powerful bow and arrow, they would definitely admire you even more. You are like Lu Ban reincarnated."
Zhu Yuhuan quickly waved his hand and said, "Lu Ban can't be considered..." She felt something was wrong again, frowned slightly and asked, "They? More admired? What do you mean?"
Seeing Zhu Yuhuan's confusion, Shi Lin immediately explained, "The girl is so focused on her own practice every day that she naturally doesn't care about what others say. Nowadays, people emphasize rest and recuperation, and there's no need for daily training like before, so everyone has slacked off a bit. But every time I look up and see the girl still practicing without a break, I feel ashamed... Even the princess, who lives in luxury, knows to be prepared for danger in times of peace, let alone us soldiers who are always ready to fight in the battlefield."
This really stunned Zhu Yuhuan. She usually thought that the royal family's example would surely inspire more people to do so, but Zhu Yuhuan herself didn't know whether this would be of any use, and could only move forward blindly as if walking at night.
But after hearing Shi Lin say this today, Zhu Yuhuan had a deeper understanding of what she had done. It turned out that everything she had done was not unrealistic castles in the air, but had indeed changed some people.
Zhu Yuhuan cleared his throat and said, "Alright, in short, don't forget what I just said, and don't damage my compound bow. When I come back, I will ask you how to improve it, and then I will give it to Grandpa Huang and my father."
Shi Lin bowed. "Yes."
Zhu Yuhuan brought Huai En out of the training ground with his hands behind his back. The sky, which used to look a little narrow because of the two palace walls, was exceptionally broad and clear today. Zhu Yuhuan unconsciously hummed a little tune and his steps became much lighter.
Huai En followed behind her. Seeing her like this, he couldn't help but smile and whispered, "Princess, there is no one on the palace road. If you want to jump, just jump."
Zhu Yuhuan stopped and coughed forcefully a few times, as if nothing had happened. Then she asked, "Is there really no one here?"
"No one."
Huai En looked at Zhu Yuhuan jumping in front of him and raised his hand slightly to cover the smile on the corner of his mouth.
Completely different from her usual lively self, the princess is truly happy today...
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