Becoming a stepmother of three children gives me space

The autumn wind is bleak, the leaves are falling,

In late autumn, the northwest is covered with withered and yellow ground, and the bare trees sway in the wind, which is particularly desolate.

"Daddy, hold on tight."

“Turn, turn, turn!”

"Hahaha, I can ride a bike now."

The children's laughter and joy brought a touch of warmth and vitality to this desolate place. A strange-looking bicycle rushed out of the yard.

The front wheel is large, the rear wheel is small, and it is made entirely of wood. When riding on a bumpy road, it feels like dancing, and the little boy on the bike is bouncing around.

“Ride slower!”

"Don't fall!"

Xiaobao roared away, and the children in the village chased after the car, waving flags and shouting:

"Ride a big horse."

"Ride a big horse."

"Drive, drive, drive!"

The crowd disappeared at the end of the road.

The bicycle was made, but its performance was far from that of modern bicycles.

The whole wooden structure, the seat is above the front wheel, so there is no chain or bearing, so it can only be driven by the front wheel.

The most unacceptable thing is that there is no rubber, the wheels are made of wood, the speed is slow, and it is very bumpy. Every 100 meters, one's butt is used up. Only Xiaobao's butt is tough.

"It needs further improvement."

Xiao Yunxi returned to the room and stared at the bicycle design. She picked up her pen but didn't move for a long time. Then she put it down and picked it up again, but finally gave up.

"Just make do with it."

Being able to restore the structure of the bicycle was already a miracle, and wanting to improve it was undoubtedly a pipe dream. Suddenly, his eyes went dark, and Zhou Jin came into the room.

“Can I sell the blueprints for a bicycle?”

"Sell?"

Xiao Yunxi had never thought about it. The bicycle was made entirely of wood, was slow, and was bumpy. It was okay to use it as a toy, but who would buy it?

"Bicycles have many disadvantages, but they also have more advantages. They can carry heavy loads, are quite fast, and don't require animals to pull them. They can play a big role in transportation."

It is wrong to use modern thinking to measure ancient times.

In Xiao Yunxi's eyes, bicycles are useless, but in this era, they are artifacts.

The transportation in Daxia was mainly by canal and land.

The canal transport required rivers and lakes, and the transportation conditions were limited. The main force was still land transportation, which relied on manpower and livestock.

Mules, pack horses, and ox carts had large transport capacity but slow speeds, traveling 20-30 miles a day. For a 2000-mile journey, the loss was over 50%!

It's fine if the road conditions are good and the weather is suitable, but if you encounter rugged mountain roads, muddy roads or bad weather, the speed will be greatly reduced and the losses will increase exponentially.

Mules and pack horses require regular feeding, there will be casualties, and sometimes they are not obedient.

In terms of human transportation, three people are required to provide food for one soldier. This is an extreme statement, meaning that to mobilize an army of 10, at least 30 civilians are needed to transport food.

Bicycles are as slow as turtles, but it depends on who you compare them with.

Zhou Jin has tested that the bicycle can bear a load of at least 500 kilograms. If the official road is flat, it can travel 100 miles a day. If the loss is not taken into consideration, and people take over every 100 miles, it is possible to travel more than 200 miles a day!

He even wanted to build a bicycle unit for quick raids. An image immediately emerged in Xiao Yunxi's mind.

He had a middle-parted traitor's hairstyle, rode a 28 bicycle, carried a turtle box, wore a black top hat, and bowed his head while calling "Taijun". It was a bit eye-catching.

“Who are you going to sell the blueprints to?”

"The imperial court."

Xiao Yunxi looked at Zhou Jin with suspicion:

"Are you sure you can get the money? Instead of being gashed?"

Bicycles are so valuable, there must be many people who covet them, and even more who want to get them for free. If you don't give me the blueprint, I will just keep trying.

Money is good, but you have to be alive to get it.

And if that foolish emperor takes a fancy to you, you must offer it to him for free, otherwise it would be considered as treason.

Zhou Jin is very confident:

"No one in the court dares to embezzle my money."

Xiao Yunxi curled her lips. "You are so capable, why are you still hiding in Tangjia Village?"

hateful!

What's that woman's expression? It's clearly one of contempt. Zhou Jin wanted to take out the token and throw it in Xiao Yunxi's face.

Hold on, hold on,

Now is the time to show his cards. Xiao Yunxi is too mysterious, so he has to be cautious.

"I can give you the blueprints, and we'll split the profits 55-50, but you have to do me a few favors."

55 point?

Aren’t we husband and wife?

What's mine is yours, and what's yours is still yours. If Xiao Yunxi knew that he was aware of this, she would probably make wolfberry soup for him at night.

The favors Xiao Yunxi asked him to do were not simple.

"We have flaming oil in the northwest. We'll deliver it to you within three days. The Nanyang caravan will need more time, perhaps a month at the shortest, or three months at the longest. As for spare parts and materials, they'll arrive in ten days at the most."

"There's no rush about the seeds; the other two things are the key."

Zhou Jin came to the bamboo forest on the back mountain with the bicycle blueprint.

"Send the blueprints to the capital and give them to the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War. Ask him how much silver he is willing to pay for this overwhelming wealth!"

"promise."

"As for the things on the list, prepare them as soon as possible and remember to keep them confidential."

Xiao Yunxi handed the blueprint to him without hesitation, without asking how much it cost. This was trust. Zhou Jin was in a good mood, but just as he arrived at the door of his house, the sound of talking in the yard made his face darken.

"You got beaten for provoking a decent woman?"

"What are you talking about? Am I that kind of person?"

Dabao, Xiaobao, and Xiao Yunxi nodded at the same time:

"Yes...."

Wow!

Zheng Tianming burst into tears.

“I am suffering.”

"In my dream, my legs were broken by a beating. I ran into a thief when I went out, but he beat me up when I caught up with him."

"Woooo..."

The crying sounded a bit fake. When Zhou Jin came in, she saw Zheng Tianming sitting in a wheelchair with a bruised face and nose.

"The design is quite unique, Master Zheng."

Zheng Tianming stopped crying and sighed.

"I'm sorry to have embarrassed you, brother."

"I see your forehead is black, I'm afraid you're going to have a bloody disaster."

Zheng Tianming didn't understand the meaning of Zhou Jin's words. He thought he was a fortune teller and begged him to tell him when he would be free from bad luck.

Zhou Jin solemnly took out a few copper coins and threw them on the table:

"The fate is bad, peach blossom bad luck,"

"How do you solve it?"

"Your horoscope conflicts with Tangjia Village. You'll be safe if you stay away from it."

“…”

Seeing that Zhou Jin was becoming more and more outrageous, Xiao Yunxi told him to stay away. Zheng Tianming was her tool to make money, so he should not be scared.

"Come on, what's going on?"

“I am suffering…”

Seeing Xiao Yunxi folding her arms, as if to continue acting, Zheng Tianming embarrassedly tangled his hands together.

"The return gift you gave me last time, the soap inside, can you mass-produce it?"

When the new house was being built, Xiao Yunxi gave her two homemade soaps as a gift.

The biggest difference between this product and the soap people use nowadays is that it has a strong floral scent and stronger cleaning ability. It seems that the effect of the trial is quite good, otherwise the patient would not have come to the hospital before the injury healed.

"Mass production is possible. The raw materials will be flower petals and pig pancreas."

Zheng Tianming patted his chest loudly:

"I will handle it."

"The cost is calculated separately, 46% of the bill."

"No, 37!"

Just as Xiao Yunxi was about to speak, Zheng Tianming said proudly:

"I'm 3, you're 7!"

This person is worth getting along with!