Chapter 1294: The Person Who Made the Lock

"I had almost forgotten about this matter; the paper on which the task was written, if it hadn't been replaced often, would have likely rotted away long ago.

Just today, a young man found me and said he had built it, though he wasn't sure if it was correct, and he also said he had made several types at once, wanting to see which one you, King, wanted, so he brought all three of these to me.

King, hehe, look, this counts as being finished, right? There isn't a single problem with it, is there?"

Baifeng toyed with the wooden lock, feeling very happy in his heart: "Very good, very nice, these are all good things, every one of them can be used. What is that kid's name, what is his current level as a Carpenter, bring him over for me to see."

"His name is Xi, and he is currently only a Level 3 Carpenter. In terms of skill, he is average, but he is very good at making these fun things. If his other techniques were improved, he would certainly be able to progress even faster."

Baifeng then asked one more question: "What about now? Can he come over now? I want to meet this young man."

"I already had him waiting in the Ministry of Works office early on; if I call him, he can come over immediately."

Baifeng shouted toward the door: "Donglei, go to the Ministry of Works office and tell someone to bring a young man named Xi over."

"Yes!"

Afterward, Baifeng began to tease Ben: "A young man can make this, so why can't you? Ben, are you not afraid of being surpassed by a young man?"

Ben said nonchalantly: "Heh, not afraid at all. I actually hope that there will be more and more capable young people in Huaxia, preferably even more capable than me. That way, I can retire and take it easy sooner.

King, I have been following you since the very beginning, and until now, I have never had a proper rest. You are always saying that the manpower is almost enough, almost enough, and that once the manpower is enough, I will be able to rest.

But the speed at which the manpower grows is not as fast as the speed at which our Huaxia needs people. With one major project every year, where would I have any time to rest?"

Now Baifeng would not pay attention to Ben's grumbling: "It was indeed like that in the past, and I owe you for that, but haven't I compensated you with other things? You aren't lacking anything here, right?

Now, you are the one responsible for the training and assessment of Huaxia's Artisans. If you want a certain number of Carpenters, isn't it up to you to decide? If you feel there aren't enough people, then just train more talent. Could I ever be lacking in support for you? As long as you have enough manpower, I can certainly find a place for them to work here.

If Huaxia has nothing for them to do, I will have you take on work from the Xuanyuan Tribe and have you earn grain from the Xuanyuan Tribe. How about that?"

Ben chuckled, and did not say anything more.

Now Baifeng began to study it, wanting to take the lock apart to see what kind of structure was inside. However, he did not expect that not a single nail had been used, and the entire casing was made very tightly. It really could not be opened; he had to use some tools, but Baifeng was afraid of damaging the thing, which would be no good.

Soon, that young man was brought over. Before he could even salute, Baifeng beckoned him to his side: "Come, come, young man, open this for me. I want to see what kind of structure is inside."

It was the first time Xi had been in such close contact with Baifeng. He was not prepared for a moment and was a bit nervous. Hearing Baifeng call him, he hurried to Baifeng's side, then took his lock and squatted down.

He opened a small bag he was carrying, took out a tool like an awl, pressed it against one side of the lock, and used the ground for leverage. After tapping it twice, he pushed out a small wooden stick that had been driven in as a wedge to act as a nail.

There were five of these in this lock. After he tapped them all out one by one, he carefully placed the dismantled lock in front of Baifeng.

Only after Baifeng opened one of the covers could he clearly see the structure inside. He had to admit that this young man truly had such ingenious ideas to be able to create such a structure.

Without the cover blocking it, Baifeng tried locking it again. Because one of the sticks also served to fix the internal structure, it was not as sturdy once dismantled, but the operating principle could be clearly seen.

Ben also leaned his head in to look, clicking his tongue as he watched, feeling that this structure was truly ingenious. Even though it was simple, Baifeng and Ben, in all honesty, really could not have thought of it.

The young man was squatting between two big shots, so he was still under quite a bit of pressure. Fortunately, he was doing something he was good at, so he was not as nervous; otherwise, his hands would probably be shaking by now.

Baifeng handed over the other two, asking him to open them. The young man did not hesitate and took them apart without the slightest bit of reluctance. The main thing was that he wanted to gain Baifeng's approval; this point was more important than anything else.

The three locks all had completely different structures, all relying on his ingenious ideas. They operated like mechanisms; some relied on gravity, and others relied on interlocking structures like a Luban lock. If the sequence was off by even a little, they could not be opened, nor could they be locked.

No springs were used; such a lock could also be made entirely of wood. It just wouldn't be as sturdy as one made of Iron, but as long as it was built a bit larger, it could serve the same purpose.

First of all, a lock serves the purpose of containment. Even if it were made of Iron, if it were not thick or heavy enough, it could still be broken open if someone really used brute force.

But as long as it can prevent people from quickly pushing open a door, and they have no way to open the door without destroying the lock, that is enough.

Although Huaxia now has Soldiers guarding the warehouses, what if these two Soldiers conspire to commit theft while on duty?

The two of them would only need to push open the warehouse door, and they could take whatever they wanted from inside. After taking it, they could just close the door. The people from the Ministry of Revenue could not possibly check the warehouse every day. Even if things were lost, who would know?

By the time it is discovered that things are missing, it is already too late, and there is no way to find out who stole them. But as long as there is a lock, this problem can be avoided. Use a lock to replace people; you only need to control the person holding the key, follow strict procedures, and monitor the warehouse exits.

Instead of arranging for people to stand guard at the entrance of every Platoon's warehouse, now you only need to arrange for a few people to patrol near the warehouses. No one can destroy a large wooden lock, sneak in, steal things, and come back out in such a short window of time.

Even if Xi himself came, it wouldn't work.

Of course, a lock of this size won't work now; it must be a lock as big as what a person can hold. If someone wants to force it open, they can only use a saw to cut it, but with such a loud sound, who wouldn't hear it?