Chapter 243: Genius Xiao Qingyue

Ah, what are we going to do from now on~

In the afternoon, Chen Yan lay on the rocking chair in the pavilion, his face full of worry.

In the time it took to finish a lunch, I signed a whole stack of unequal treaties.

How am I supposed to get by from now on?

"Child, you've basically killed your father." Chen Yan muttered involuntarily.

"Zi Anxiong!"

At that moment, Du Gou's shout suddenly came over.

Chen Yan replied without lifting his head: "Here, here, what's up now?"

Du Gou ran over, saw him lying down, and said helplessly: "Zi Anxiong, our library is about to be finished; didn't you say you'd keep an eye on it these two days?"

"I've been waiting for you over there for a good while, and you ended up lying at home."

"Something came up, I'm not going out today." Chen Yan heaved a long sigh.

"As for the library, please keep an eye on it for me."

Over the past two months, with Chen Yan's no-expense-spared investment, the library, which could almost be called a small palace, is about to be completed.

If it weren't for the earlier heavy rains, it would have been finished even sooner, and wouldn't have been delayed until now.

His papermaking workshop and printing shop had already been up and running, producing a large number of books each day, which Chen Yan had placed in a warehouse.

"Something came up?"

Du Gou looked at Chen Yan's dejected appearance, full of curiosity, and asked: "What kind of mishap could reduce you to this state?"

"Is it convenient to talk about?"

"There's nothing inconvenient about it." Chen Yan waved his hand, "It's just that Princess Gao Yang is pregnant."

"...... Ah?" Du Gou was taken aback, "Isn't that a bad thing?"

"How come you don't look happy about it?"

"I..." Chen Yan was about to vent his grievances, but then thought better of it.

"What's the point of bringing up such an embarrassing matter?"

"If spoken, it'll only invite ridicule."

"Or should I tell Du Gou that I've signed a series of unequal treaties, and now my status at home is even lower than that of a stray dog?"

Seeing his state, Du Gou didn't press further.

After all, he had come to somewhat understand how Chen Yan and Princess Gao Yang interacted over this period.

Du Gou then said: "Since you're not going, I'll swing by later; nothing will happen if I don't keep an eye on it for a moment."

"I've heard you've been researching something at home lately; could you let me take a look?"

It's long been rumored that Chen Yan has been mysterious these past two months, always researching some secret weapon.

If he succeeds, the development of Weinan County will no longer be a worry.

Du Gou had been curious for a long time; today he finally got to see what it was that could make Chen Yan say that after researching it, Weinan County's development would no longer be a concern.

Chen Yan gave a slight nod: "Nothing's off-limits; if you want to see, come with me."

He got up and led Du Gou toward the rear courtyard.

This county magistrate's office was specially granted to Chen Yan by Li Shimin; although its grounds might not be as large as the Marquis of Weinan's mansion, its rear courtyard is quite sizable.

Upon arriving, Chen Yan carried out a series of renovations, almost turning it into a small workshop and breeding farm.

Afterward, the two went all the way to the place where Tao Dashan was working.

Chen Yan was about to introduce Du Gou, but he noticed Xiao Qingyue hadn't left yet, squatting not far away, eyes unblinking as she watched Tao Dashan and them replace parts.

"Qing Yue, didn't you go take a nap?"

Hearing that, Zhao Qingyue turned her head, saw it was Chen Yan, and came running over: "Young master, you're back!"

"Hmm, I came to see why you haven't gone back to nap." Chen Yan ruffled Xiao Qingyue's head.

He couldn't help but think: if Princess Gao Yang gave birth to a daughter, and she were as smart and obedient as Xiao Qingyue, how happy he would be.

Zhao Qingyue shook her head: "Young master, I don't want to sleep; I want to watch them make the weaving machine."

"Oh?" Chen Yan laughed, "Can you understand it?"

"I can!" Zhao Qingyue confidently tapped her little head.

"Huh?" Chen Yan was somewhat surprised; he had just asked casually, teasing the child.

He hadn't expected Qing Yue to say she could understand.

He became interested: "Then tell me, what did you figure out?"

Zhao Qingyue raised her little hand upon hearing that, pointing to the small water wheel of the hydraulic weaving machine: "Young master, this is the water wheel device; you intended to drive it using the Wei River's hydraulic power, so it's a downstream-impact device, with the water flow pushing the bottom blades of the water wheel to set the weaving machine in motion."

"Over there is the weaving machine's spindle; when the water device starts moving, the water power drives the spindle to rotate rapidly, twisting cotton and hemp into yarn, then through the roller it's drawn out and evenly arranged, improving yarn quality."

"Finally, the water power drives the heddle to move up and down alternately, forming the shed for the shuttle to pass through, tightly pushing the weft into the warp to form fabric."

"Young master, am I right?"

Chen Yan looked at Xiao Qingyue in disbelief: "Is this what you figured out?"

Zhao Qingyue answered honestly: "Not entirely; I only figured out part of it, the rest was told to me by Uncle Tao."

"That's still impressive." Chen Yan exclaimed.

In just one afternoon, such a young child actually understood the operating principles of the hydraulic weaving machine, explaining it step by step.

Really damn smart.

"Zi Anxiong, what you're researching is the weaving machine?" Du Gou spoke up then.

"Yeah, that's right, it's a weaving machine; the hydraulic weaving machine's work efficiency far exceeds that of a hand‑cranked one." Chen Yan gazed at the hydraulic weaving machine not far away, his eyes showing some helplessness.

"Unfortunately, there are still unresolved issues; if it were actually completed, one hydraulic weaving machine could replace over twenty workers, greatly increasing the output of various fabrics while significantly cutting costs."

With it, perhaps Weinan County could become the Tang Dynasty's largest cloth and silk production region.

Du Gou heard this, his gaze shifting to the hydraulic textile machine's far greater number of cogs compared to hand‑spun looms, and he kept nodding.

Not discussing other matters, just these more than thirty cogs, he also believes this thing would make cloth and silk production absolutely fast.

"So what exactly remains unsolved now?"

"It seems already sufficiently refined."

"The main issue is the gears and bearings," Chen Yan explained. "The hydraulic textile machine works efficiently, but with current conditions, producing suitable gear bearings becomes a major problem."

"If it's iron, it simply can't be forged into parts that precise; we can only use hardwood or similar materials."

"Unfortunately, hardwood still can't support the hydraulic textile machine's operation; if it runs a bit longer, the gears and bearings will break."

"That clearly doesn't match my expectations, so I'm still looking for ways to change it, trying other materials."

"That's a pity…" Du Gou shook his head; he didn't understand these things and couldn't offer any effective advice.

Hope Zi Anxiong succeeds soon.

However, Qing Yue suddenly said, "Young master, then why not try bronze?"

"Bronze?" Chen Yan smiled, about to explain to Qing Yue, but suddenly realized something.

"Damn!"