CHAPTER 219: CHAPTER 217 REVEALING TRUE FORM

Chen Zigeng helped Chang An start the charcoal brazier together.

When Chen Chuchu and the others first arrived in Zhaozhou, they encountered an unexpected cold snap. The blacksmith shop delivered some charcoal, but the boys couldn’t bear to use it, keeping it stored properly, and now it came in handy.

But the clothes were still not easy to dry, especially when worn so wet. Xie Liangchen felt a chill in her heart looking at Song Xian, though Song Xian seemed unconcerned.

Song Xian relayed the results of the discussions between the two military craftsmen to Xie Liangchen.

The few who could understand, including Chen Yongyi and Chen Chuchu, did not leave.

The rain was heavy outside, and the few people inside listened intently.

Mrs. Gao curiously peeked and found the spinning wheel on the paper intimidatingly large.

Can such a big spinning wheel really work?

Song Xian said, "Initially, I thought about sending two military craftsmen to the Chen Family Village to try making it based on this drawing. Since Miss Xie is here, there’s no need to trouble ourselves further; let’s make it in Zhaozhou!"

There are several advantages to making it in Zhaozhou, where the Ministry of Construction’s tools are complete.

Xie Liangchen was fascinated by the diagram before her, carefully discerning where the military craftsmen had made changes. It was indeed more thorough than she imagined, something she might take ten days or half a month to think of.

Song Xian looked at the young girl before him, her eyes lowered, with a hint of delight in her brows, as if a ray of moonlight fell upon her. Warmth surged in his heart, even the damp chill of his clothes seemed to lessen, becoming more fitting and snug.

Xie Liangchen asked, "I wonder if I could meet the military craftsmen in a moment?"

Song Xian nodded, "These two won’t go to the Ministry of Construction for other errands and will work with you to get the spinning wheel made first."

Xie Liangchen smiled, thanking Song Xian, "Thank you, General, for your assistance."

Song Xian’s voice softened, "Your courtyard is small, with people constantly coming and going to work on the wind box, which might not be very convenient. Why not go to the small courtyard next to the Ministry of Construction?"

Chen Yongyi said, "I and Chu Er will go with Miss Chen."

Song Xian looked at Xie Liangchen, "Is there anything I haven’t thought through thoroughly?"

With such attentive arrangements from Song Xian, Xie Liangchen had nothing more to say.

Beside them, Chen Zigeng said, "I’ll accompany Sister too."

The charcoal fire warmed the room, Mrs. Gao went to the kitchen to make a bowl of soup to ward off the cold.

Song Xian drank the hot soup, glancing at the pair of blue fabric embroidered shoes under Xie Liangchen’s dress hem. The soles were worn thin, indicating how much she had walked recently.

Originally planning to sit for a while longer, he stood up thinking of her eagerness, "I’ll head to the Ministry of Construction first, and have Chang An come fetch you once everything’s ready."

Xie Liangchen and the rest hurried to see him off.

The rain hadn’t stopped; why did the general suddenly want to leave? Chang An drank the third bowl of water, thanked Mrs. Gao, and chased after him.

Song Xian left the room just warmed, enduring the cutting damp and chill as he cast an unnoticed glance towards Xie Liangchen at the door, then urged his horse towards the Ministry of Construction.

"General Song truly has it rough," Mrs. Gao murmured, "His clothes weren’t even dry yet. After having just a sip of hot water, he left again. It’s only because he’s young and fit, otherwise, he’d surely catch a cold. In the end, it’s all for the people of Zhenzhou and Zhaozhou."

But General Song wasn’t just for the people; he was also for Miss Xie. After seeing Su Huaiqing and Old Master Su in Zhaozhou, along with He San, Song Xian was quite displeased. Before he arrived, Old Master Su was already engaging Miss Xie in conversation, even though their connections were long severed, but they seemed to be "engaging in lively conversations."

Song Xian thought if he had arrived a moment later, the one escorting Miss Xie and her brother back to the courtyard would likely have been Su Huaiqing. Ironically, he once thought Su Huaiqing had some self-awareness, quietly acting until Miss Xie came to Zhaozhou, timing it to intercept them in the rain. Otherwise, neither he nor Miss Xie would have been caught in the rain.

It’s better to clean up the courtyard next to the Ministry of Construction sooner, gather Miss Xie and a few from the Chen Family there, and keep them under his watch for peace of mind.

When the rain stopped, Song Xian had just completed the arrangements, his official robes getting wet and dry repeatedly, risking illness if not for constantly moving in and out of the barracks.

Only when he saw the military craftsmen and Chen Yongyi busily making the spinning wheel did he find time to go back, bathe, and change robes.

Xie Liangchen made sugar cake with Su leaves and handed it to Chang An, "The Perilla helps ward off the cold; reheat it and you both can have some."

A stack of sugar cakes was enough for both Song Xian and Chang An, but Chang An knew better. No matter if he went to the kitchen to concoct medicine, he mustn’t compete with his lord for the sugar cakes.

Returning to his abode, Song Xian changed into clean robes, feeling much relieved. Coming out of the inner room, he saw the hot sugar cakes on the table and felt only joy.

He picked up a cake and took a bite. The taste with Perilla was somewhat peculiar.

While eating the sugar cakes, thoughts of her lingered in his mind. By the time he came to his senses, the whole stack of cakes had already gone into his stomach.

...

A clanging and bustling noise constantly emerged from a courtyard behind the Ministry of Construction.

Chen Yongyi and Chen Chuchu worked tirelessly, while the military craftsmen discussed the intricate details of the spinning wheel with Xie Liangchen. They finished the framework, then worked on making a large round wheel. This wheel was similar to a hand-cranked spinning wheel, only much larger, followed by the cranking handle, the chord driving rotation, twisting, and winding.

Once the large spinning wheel was complete, Chen Chuchu held the handle with both hands to rotate it, everyone watched the large spinning wheel closely.

Mrs. Gao could hardly contain herself, exclaiming, "Now look, just one turn can spin out quite a bit, before we did it all by hand, it was slow, and the threads weren’t as fine."

Mrs. Gao couldn’t wait to take this large spinning wheel back to Chen Family Village; Zheng and the others would definitely be surprised and delighted.

Xie Liangchen tempered her joy, looking at the military craftsmen, "Can the wooden frame be made even larger, with a few more ingots added?"

Adding more ingots could speed up the spinning process, with one large spinning wheel matching the work of more than a dozen smaller ones, saving considerable manpower.

The military craftsmen pondered for a moment and said, "Let’s modify the drawing and try again."

In two days, they made three spinning wheels, each bigger than the last. The largest required a person’s full strength to turn, but the multiple ingots winding at once was a stirring sight.

Quite impressive indeed.

Running one continuously should yield a substantial amount of spun thread.

With the large spinning wheel completed, they needed to test it further until it was problem-free before taking it to Chen Family Village. By then, the purchased wool would have arrived, perfectly timed.

Mrs. Gao laughed, "Tonight, I’ll prepare more food in the kitchen, inviting General Song and the military craftsmen for a little celebration."

Mrs. Gao went to make the meal while Xie Liangchen continued contemplating the spinning wheel with the military craftsmen.

This spinning wheel should also be able to spin hemp and silk.

During the meal, Song Xian had gone to the military camp and was unable to come. After sending off the two military craftsmen, Chen Yongyi and Chen Chuchu also headed to sleep early in the front courtyard, exhausted from the constant carpentry over the past two days.

Xie Liangchen went to the back courtyard to look at her large spinning wheel, sorting the wool by thickness and placing it on the spinning wheel to see the differences in the spun threads.

"Tired?"

Xie Liangchen was so focused she hadn’t heard anyone approach, turning only when Song Xian spoke.

Song Xian stood nearby holding a bowl, his presence unnoticed for heavens knows how long, accompanied by a smiling Chen Zigeng.

Chen Zigeng said, "There was still some fire on the small stove. I made Brother some hot red bean soup. Today’s red bean soup is especially sweet, Brother says it’s delicious."

Red bean soup?

Xie Liangchen’s heart sank. The red bean soup contained sugar and rice wine. She looked at Song Xian, "How many bowls have you had?"

Chen Zigeng’s cheeks were flushed, holding up three fingers, "This is the third bowl."

Xie Liangchen took a long deep breath. Her younger brother still didn’t know, tonight, his General Brother might reveal his true nature.