Chapter 690: Zong Ge'er loves to invent [Thanks! Thanks again! 37 chapters owed]

"Ever since I was old enough to understand things, I have found the summer months particularly difficult to endure."

Hearing this, Chai Zhengzheng nodded thoughtfully, looked at Rong Feiyan, and said, "I happen to have a list of summer dietary habits I use myself. Wait a moment, and I will have my maid bring it over."

As she spoke, Chai Zhengzheng turned and waved her round fan at her maid, continuing, "Miss Feiyan, take it home as a reference. After you have a physician check your pulse, you can adjust it as you see fit to see how it works."

Rong Feiyan had only brought up the topic to suppress what she truly wanted to ask. Hearing Chai Zhengzheng say this, she naturally nodded repeatedly: "Then I shall trouble you."

"It is just a small matter."

Chai Zhengzheng said with a smile.

The summoned maid, Yun Mu, also walked over with a smile at this time, looking at Chai Zhengzheng: "Miss?"

Chai Zhengzheng: "Go and copy a version of the dietary list I use in the summer, and hand it to the maid beside Miss Feiyan in a moment."

"Yes, Miss."

After Yun Mu acknowledged the order and curtsied, she turned and walked out of the pavilion.

Chai Zhengzheng laughed: "Miss Feiyan, let's go, let's go taste the watermelon that was just delivered. If we don't go over now, it will all be eaten by the Fifth Da Niangzi herself."

Rong Feiyan nodded with a smile and followed Chai Zhengzheng over.

"Eh? What do you all think that head courtesan named Li Shishi looks like? To actually make His Highness curious enough to go see her." In the pavilion, Meng Jier, the younger sister-in-law of Gu Tingyi, asked curiously.

"Hehe! Second Sister, your news is a bit..." Before the Zhang family's Fifth Da Niangzi could finish her sentence, she felt Chai Zhengzheng's gaze upon her.

Looking at Chai Zhengzheng, who was shaking her head slightly, the Zhang family's Fifth Da Niangzi pursed her lips and continued: "... a bit well-informed!"

Meng Jier smiled: "I also just heard it being spread among the commoners."

"Isn't it said that the young masters of the Qi, Liang, and Xu families were all there that day?" another noble young lady said.

Seeing that the conversation was about to veer toward Zhao Fang, Chai Zhengzheng hurriedly changed the subject, saying with a smile: "Second Da Niangzi, if you are curious, you might as well look at Head Courtesan Wei; they are generally not much different."

Upon hearing this, Huang Qingmeng turned her head to look outside at Wei Fangzhi and smiled: "She is indeed beautiful."

Chai Zhengzheng nodded and smiled: "Speaking of Yuanruo, it reminds me of the Young Xiao Xiao Gongye Lu from my eldest sister-in-law's maiden family."

As Chai Zhengzheng spoke, the young ladies in the pavilion turned to look at Lu Shi, the wife of Chai Jin.

Lu Shi, who had been mentioned, looked at her sister-in-law with a dazed expression, her eyes full of confusion as she said: "Zhengzheng, what is it? Is there something about Zezong that I don't know?"

"Sister-in-law, didn't you say before that Zong Ge'er wanted to pull you into a share, to make some kind of rotating fan?" Chai Zhengzheng said with a smile.

Lu Shi pondered for a moment, and a look of sudden realization appeared on her face. She said to the noble young ladies in the pavilion who were looking at her curiously: "Oh! This? I remember now. Zong Ge'er said that the Xu Wu Ge Xu had told him about a miscellaneous book called something like 'Miscellaneous Records of the Western Capital'."

"There is a story in the book that says there was a brilliant craftsman in ancient times who made a seven-wheeled fan cart, which had the effect of 'one person operating it, and the whole room shivering with cold'."

"After Zong Ge'er found out, he thought about making this thing to use for cooling off during the dog days of summer."

"Oh? 'Miscellaneous Records of the Western Capital'? Sister Hai, have you ever read this book?" Shen Hezhen, who was sitting in the pavilion, turned and asked.

Hai Chaoyun shook her head in confusion: "Let alone read it, I haven't even heard of it."

After finishing, Hai Chaoyun looked at Chai Zhengzheng and said: "Miss Zhengzheng, does your Sibaozhai have this book?"

Chai Zhengzheng shook her head and waved her hands with a smile upon hearing this.

Miss Zhao Chuhong, who had defected from Northern Liao and was now dressed exactly like the noble ladies of Bianjing, asked in confusion: "Miss Zhengzheng doesn't have it either? Could it be some rare and unique edition?"

Seeing that everyone in the pavilion was about to nod in agreement, Chai Zhengzheng hurriedly laughed: "No, no!"

"Then why are you shaking your head and waving your hands?" Gu Tingyi looked at Chai Zhengzheng reproachfully and said.

Chai Zhengzheng said innocently: "Sister Tingyi, what I meant by waving my hands and shaking my head was that I brought this up not to sell the copies in my bookstore."

"You! Zhengzheng, to say such a thing in front of your sisters, you really deserve a beating!" The Zhang family's Fifth Da Niangzi put down the watermelon rind in her hand, put her hands on her hips, and said: "No matter which one of us is in this pavilion, none of us would think that of you!"

"Right, right, right! Fifth Da Niangzi is absolutely right!" Gu Tingyi agreed.

Everyone in the pavilion nodded in agreement.

Seeing this "public indignation," Chai Zhengzheng hurriedly begged for mercy, saying: "That is this younger sister's fault. Just punish me, sister-in-law. What was the final result? Did Zong Ge'er manage to make it?"

Chai Zhengzheng asked, and everyone in the pavilion did not say it sounded like a fantasy; after all, the Lu family had a very good relationship with the Ministry of Works, and if the Young Xiao Xiao Gongye Lu Zezong had an idea, it could still be realized.

"Made it?" Lu Shi shook her head with a smile: "What need was there to make it? The cooling fans currently used in the palace are improvements on that seven-wheeled fan cart."

"Oh?"

"Ah?"

Looking at the surprised crowd in the pavilion, Lu Shi nodded affirmatively again.

"Now that you mention it, I remember! I remember that when I entered the palace before and had an audience with the Empress, I felt a cool breeze carrying the scent of flowers blowing toward me."

"I had always thought it was the wind fanned by a large fan!"

"Then why haven't I seen it when I entered the palace?"

"When did you enter the palace, younger sister?"

"In the winter..."

Listening to the chatter of the noble ladies in the pavilion, Rong Feiyan asked with a smile: "And then what happened?"

Lu Shi smiled: "Then? Then Zong Ge'er talked to the Xu Wu Ge Xu. According to the nannies beside Zong Ge'er, the two of them huddled together and whispered for a long time, and the Xu Wu Ge Xu was even writing and drawing on paper."

"If you are curious, I will send someone to ask."

Hearing this, everyone in the pavilion nodded.

Seeing this, Lu Shi waved her hand, and a maid acknowledged the order and walked out.

The Zhang family's Fifth Da Niangzi picked up another slice of watermelon and said thoughtfully: "Actually, my father and brothers have mentioned a thing or two to me about things that fan wind in the army."

"Sister Zhang, there are things that fan wind in the army too? Could it be a device used by officers to cool off?" Shen Hezhen asked in confusion.

The Zhang family's Fifth Da Niangzi shook her head: "Sister Hezhen, it's not used for cooling off. It's used when defending a city, after discovering enemy tunnels, to send poisonous smoke inside."

"Ah? Poisonous smoke? But I read in a book that when tunnels are discovered, shouldn't they be flooded with water?" Shen Hezhen asked.

The Zhang family's Fifth Da Niangzi pursed her lips and shook her head, explaining: "Sister Shen, that requires having water! If it's the dry season, or if the water is frozen, how can you pour water in so quickly? At such times, the effect of poisonous smoke is better than flooding."

"So that's how it is!" Shen Hezhen nodded.

"Besides sending poisonous smoke, there are other methods..." Han Wulang Da Niangzi said, looking at Gu Tingyi.

Gu Tingyi said with a smile: "Fifth Da Niangzi, can you pour kerosene inside?"

Han Wulang Da Niangzi nodded repeatedly.

"Alright, alright, let's not talk about these things; they are all things from the battlefield." Gu Tingyi waved her hand.

On the other side, Chai Zhengzheng said to Rong Feiyan with a smile: "Speaking of the battlefield, I must congratulate Miss Feiyan's elder brother for his meritorious service in the south!"

Rong Feiyan waved her hand with a smile: "My brother has only been in the south for half a year. Any merit he achieved was merely borrowing the light of the Xie and Xiong families."

Gu Tingyi nodded with a smile on the side, looked around at everyone, and said: "By the way, guess who I ran into two days ago?"

"Sister Tingyi, don't keep us in suspense, tell us!"

Looking at the urging eyes of the crowd, Gu Tingyi smiled: "That day, Second Da Niangzi and I went to the villa outside the city and ran into the Old Madam Sheng who was leaving the city."

"Old Madam Sheng, is she the great-aunt of Xu Wu Ge Xu?" the Fifth Da Niangzi asked.

Gu Tingyi nodded: "Yes, after greeting her, I found out that Old Madam Sheng has a villa outside the city and was taking two young ladies to the villa to escape the heat and cool off. The two Sheng young ladies were riding horses beside the carriage, and they really looked quite impressive."

Hai Chaoyun, who was fanning herself with a round fan on the side, said: "No wonder someone sent an invitation to the Sheng family before, and only the Fourth Da Niangzi Sheng went."

"The two lines of poetry that were spread during the previous poetry gathering were spoken by the Fourth Da Niangzi Sheng, right?" Zhao Chuhong asked softly.

"Yes!" Hai Chaoyun smiled: "Sister Chuhong has heard of them too?"

Zhao Chuhong nodded: "Hmm! Although it was only two lines, I like them very much! Actually, before in Northern Liao..." She glanced at the crowd in the pavilion and continued: "When gathering and chatting with other young ladies, we would often talk about the poetry of our dynasty."

"There was a good friend before who particularly liked that line, 'The drizzle on the heavenly street is as moist as cream'."

Hearing this, the expressions of the noble ladies in the pavilion varied. Shen Hezhen smiled: "Sister Chuhong, I heard that 'The drizzle on the heavenly street is as moist as cream' and these two lines were written by the same young master."

"Ah?" Zhao Chuhong's face showed surprise.

Watching the crowd in the pavilion nod affirmatively, and listening to the Zhang family's Fifth Da Niangzi briefly explain the reason why that poem could enter the Chai family's bookstore, Zhao Chuhong's mind flashed to her good friend in the Central Capital of Northern Liao.

It was that sister from the Liu family of Changping, who was extremely beautiful.

The thought in her heart, 'I could write a letter to solve the confusion for Sister Liu', flashed by.

Subsequently, the young ladies changed the subject again, turning to the delicious snacks of the summer in the capital.

"Sister Tingyi wants to eat this? Then let the cook at home make it for us." Chai Zhengzheng smiled.

"It's a deal!" Gu Tingyi smiled.

At this moment,

On the veranda leading to the pavilion, four sturdy women followed behind Lu Shi's maid, carrying something as they walked over.

The somewhat "huge" lineup attracted everyone's attention in an instant.

When the sturdy women arrived in front of the pavilion, the thin gauze hanging there was lifted by someone, and Chai Zhengzheng looked at the object that was one person tall not far away with a confused expression.

"What is this?" Lu Shi asked, looking at her personal maid.

"Replying to the Madam, this is the thing that our Young Xiao Xiao Gongye studied and created, a manual rotating fan. Hearing that you were curious, the Young Xiao Xiao Gongye had us carry it over."

Glancing at Chai Zhengzheng and Gu Tingyi, the maid continued: "The Young Xiao Xiao Gongye also said that he knew Miss Zhengzheng and Miss Tingyi were here, and asked me to ask if the two of you would like to buy a share!"

Upon hearing this, the young ladies in the pavilion burst into laughter.

Chai Zhengzheng said with a smile: "The shape of these fan blades is indeed different from what I have seen, but if you want Sister Tingyi and me to put up money, you have to let us see the effect. Carry it in!"

"Yes!"

As she spoke, the sturdy women carried the object into the pavilion. After placing it, one of the sturdy women squatted beside it, gripped the horizontal handle, and turned it.

As the sound of metal engaging and colliding came, the fan blades on the rotating fan, which were quite similar to those of later generations, spun rapidly.

Watching the slow movements of the sturdy woman, the rapidly spinning fan blades, and the visibly blowing wind, the young ladies in the pavilion showed surprise.

"Put the ice basin behind this object, and let me feel it again." Chai Zhengzheng, who was standing in front of the fan blades, ordered.

After the maid acted accordingly, the wind blowing over was even cooler.

"Eh? How does this thing manage to spin so fast?"

"That's right, looking at this person turning it, it doesn't seem fast!"

"Could it be that there is something ingenious in the box under these fan blades?"

"Why don't we invite the Young Xiao Xiao Gongye Lu to come over?"

While the young ladies in the pavilion were asking questions, they also looked at Lu Shi's maid.

Lu Shi's maid curtsied and said: "Replying to all the young ladies and Madams, the Young Xiao Xiao Gongye said that some of the things inside were the ideas of the Fifth Young Master Xu, and some were improved after he asked Minister Su."

"Minister Su?" Gu Tingyi said somewhat uncertainly: "Is it Minister Su Song?"

"Yes!"

Chai Zhengzheng looked at the object in front of her and smiled: "Then has Zong Ge'er ever mentioned the cost of this object?"

"Replying to the Miss, the Young Xiao Xiao Gongye said that this thing costs more than a hundred strings of cash, but if the things on it are replaced, the cost can be quite a bit lower."

Chai Zhengzheng nodded, looking at the copper fan blades spinning above: "For example, this can be replaced with bamboo strips."

The other noble young ladies nodded in agreement.

After pondering for a moment, Chai Zhengzheng smiled: "Alright, I will take this share."

Gu Tingyi nodded: "I will take it too!"

"Hey, hey, you two can't do this; I also have some pocket money." The Zhang family's Fifth Da Niangzi smiled.

At noon,

The scorching sun was in the sky,

The cicadas were chirping,

There were far fewer pedestrians and commoners on the streets of Bianjing than in the early morning or evening.

Looking into the distance along the ground of the Imperial Street, one could discover that the scenery in the distance had already been distorted.

Jingying Lane,

Sheng family,

The large tree behind the schoolhouse blocked the sun, but it also gave the cicadas a place to stop.

Amidst the bursts of cicada chirping,

The place where the partition screens were placed in winter on one side of the schoolhouse had now been replaced with thin gauze that allowed light to pass through and kept insects out.

A breeze blew into the room, blowing the thin gauze to sway gently.

Inside the schoolhouse,

Scholar Zhuang sat in front of the screen, looking at the object blowing wind beside him with a confused expression.

Seeing that the sweaty ox who was shaking the handle was truly sweating like an ox, Scholar Zhuang stood up and waved his hand: "You go and rest first."

As he spoke, Scholar Zhuang walked toward the hand-cranked rotating fan.

"Scholar, you don't want to try it, do you?" Changbai stood up and asked worriedly.

Changmei on the side also looked at Scholar Zhuang.

Scholar Zhuang stroked his beard and said: "I, this teacher, just want to see why this thing spins so fast."

Changbai also turned his head with some confusion in his eyes, looked at Xu Zaijing, who had a smile on his face behind him, and said: "Xu Wu Ge, come over and explain quickly. I have seen the rotating fan in Grandmother's room at Shou'an Hall before, and it spun much slower than this one."

Xu Zaijing stood up with a smile and said: "Alright, alright, then I will take it apart again and let everyone take a look."

Watching Xu Zaijing walk over, the sweaty ox hurriedly wiped his sweat and stood to the side.

After Xu Zaijing casually flicked open the iron pin fixing the outer shell, several exquisite metal gears under the fan blades were revealed.

After taking it apart, Xu Zaijing shook it a few times, watching the several metal gears spin together. Scholar Zhuang nodded with a look of sudden realization: "Hehe, so that's how it is! But, it looks a bit labor-intensive."

As he spoke, Scholar Zhuang looked at the sweaty ox, the young servant who was covered in sweat.

Xu Zaijing smiled and said: "Scholar, actually, we can study it further and change it to animal power, which will not only spin faster but also not be labor-intensive."

Scholar Zhuang stroked his beard and nodded: "Xu Wu Ge, you said before that the palace actually used this a long time ago?"

Xu Zaijing nodded: "Yes, Scholar, but the one in the palace is water-powered. When this student entered the palace, I also saw it from afar a few times."

Scholar Zhuang nodded and said: "Looking at how exquisite it is, I suppose only wealthy families can use it; it cannot be popularized in the homes of commoners."

"What the Scholar said is correct." Xu Zaijing bowed.

Let alone in ancient times, even in later generations, it hasn't been many years since everyone could blow air conditioning.

Scholar Zhuang walked around the rotating fan and looked at it, saying: "Then if we put a charcoal brazier or fire box behind it in winter, wouldn't it be able to blow warm air?"

Xu Zaijing was stunned, his eyes lit up, and he bowed: "Scholar, your insight is brilliant. Blowing warm air might even be able to dry hair!"

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 691 =====