It's hard for my elder sister. I rely on the mountains to farm and pay off my debts.

On the second day, Song Zhi didn't let her elder brother go to the county town with her. She went to Wei Yue Fang with the cakes by herself.

As soon as she stepped into the shop, she saw Manager Zhou talking to an old man.

Upon seeing Song Zhi, Shopkeeper Zhou introduced Old Zhou to her with a smile on his face, "Liangtian heard that you were looking for a craftsman, so he immediately sent Old Zhou over today. If you have any needs, just tell him."

Song Zhi immediately greeted him, "Hello, Mr. Zhou. My family wants to build a heating house similar to a fire place, and I'd like to learn from you."

Old Man Zhou was just a servant of the Zhou family. He had to do his best to do whatever his master told him to do.

Just before Song Zhi came, Manager Zhou had already mentioned Song Zhi to him and knew that this girl had a good relationship with his young master.

Seeing Song Zhi say this, he quickly expressed his position that he would tell her everything he knew.

Shopkeeper Zhou didn't want to let the two of them just stand there, so after settling today's payment with Song Zhi, he invited the two of them into the inner room to discuss the matter.

Song Zhi gave Shopkeeper Zhou a grateful smile, "Thank you for bothering me, Shopkeeper Zhou!"

Shopkeeper Zhou also wanted to make friends with Song Zhi. Seeing Song Zhi talking to him politely, he waved his hand nonchalantly: "I haven't thanked you for what happened yesterday. That discount promotion you proposed really attracted a lot of customers."

After saying that, he turned around and told the waiter to prepare some more tea and cakes.

After Manager Zhou left, Song Zhi told him about her thoughts.

"I want to build a heated hut at home, but I heard it's quite expensive to build a fire pit."

When Old Man Zhou heard this, he nodded in agreement: "Indeed, building this fire land requires a lot of manpower and material resources."

"First, a layer of bricks must be laid underground, then stacks of bricks are arranged in a certain pattern, square bricks are placed on top of the stacks, and finally bricks are laid on top of them to form the floor."

"In addition, a furnace and a smoke outlet need to be set up outdoors. In this way, when heating is needed, all you need to do is light the charcoal in the furnace, and the heat will be transferred to the room through the ground, thus achieving the purpose of heating."

He emphasized: "Therefore, this fire pit is not only complex in structure, but also consumes a lot of wood, which is not affordable for wealthy families."

After listening to this, Song Zhi felt that this method of heating was similar to the steps of a kang.

One difference lies in the choice of materials, as fire floors are mostly paved with bricks and stones.

Most kangs are made of adobe, usually a mixture of yellow clay and hay, which has a better thermal insulation effect than kangs paved with bricks.

On the other hand, the fire pit conducts heat underground, while the kang places the heating point under the bed.

Song Zhi pondered for a moment and then said, "After listening to your detailed explanation, this fire pit is indeed very expensive. First of all, the bricks and stones consumed are a considerable expense."

"Plus, bricks and stones don't retain heat. If you want to keep the house warm, you'll probably need a lot of firewood and charcoal!"

Old Man Zhou looked at Song Zhi in amazement and nodded, saying, "That's right, but it's quite expensive. That's why the young master won't allow us to lay the fire ground in the backyard of the county government office!"

Previously, Shopkeeper Zhou said that the other party wanted to communicate with him, but when he saw that she was just a girl, he didn't take it seriously.

He didn't expect that after he explained it only once, the girl in front of him, who was only dressed like a peasant girl, could point out the shortcomings of this heating method so quickly.

Song Zhi sorted out her thoughts and said, "Since Mr. Zhou said so, I have a bold idea. Could you help me think about it and see if it is feasible?"

"What if we could take advantage of the advantages of the fire pit and avoid its disadvantages? We could replace the expensive bricks and stones with adobe bricks. On the other hand, we could change the heating location and choose a smaller method that consumes less firewood. Wouldn't that be the solution?"

Old Man Zhou waved his hand. "It's not as simple as you say. The room is so small. If not from underground, then from the wall?"

"It's not impossible to build a fire wall, but the structure of a fire wall is still complicated, and it consumes as much wood as a fire pit for heating."

Song Zhi thought about it and boldly suggested, "Uncle Zhou, what if I want to make a bed that can heat up?"

"A room consists of the ground, the walls, and the bed. If we follow the method of making a fire pit, and connect the hearth outside the room directly to the bed instead of connecting it to the ground, then when we light a fire outside, will the heat be able to flow under the bed?"

"A bed is no bigger than the whole room, so wouldn't it take up less wood to heat it?"

"If we were to be more adventurous and convert the furnace built outside the house into a stove, we could use it not only for cooking but also for heating. Wouldn't that save on firewood?"

If Song Zhi said this to Shopkeeper Zhou, he might just think she was joking. How could there be a furnace under the bed? Wouldn't that roast the person?

However, Song Zhi only mentioned this proposal in front of professionals.

After hearing what Song Zhi said, Mr. Zhou stood up from his chair.

While constantly constructing Song Zhi's words in his mind, he paced back and forth to ease the excitement in his heart.

Half a minute later, he excitedly said to Song Zhi, "This method you proposed may not be feasible. I'll go back and think about it. Give me five days, no, give me three days. I should be able to sort out my thoughts. Then I'll tell you that this method is feasible!"

Since the family was still laying the foundation, Song Zhi readily agreed with a smile, "Then I'll trouble you, Uncle Zhou!"

Old man Zhou waved his hands repeatedly, "No trouble, no trouble at all!"

At this moment, his face was flushed, and there was a faint voice in his heart telling him that this method would work.

He could no longer sit still, so he apologized to Song Zhi and hurried back.

Seeing that the matter of the kang was settled, Song Zhi felt relieved and said goodbye to Manager Zhou and left the pastry shop.