Deep within the Lingering Garden, the accumulated snow had not yet completely melted.
Icicles hanging from the dead branches fell with a clatter when blown by the wind.
Xu Qinghuan, wrapped in her signature bright red fox fur cloak like a moving red envelope, led Xue Hong toward the most remote corner of the garden.
Xue Hong was feeling a bit creeped out at the moment.
The path was getting more and more desolate, without a single soul in sight.
If she didn't know that Xu Qinghuan wasn't the type to murder for money, she would have suspected this crazy county princess was planning to bury her alive to monopolize their cotton cloth business.
"I say, Princess, where are we going?"
Xue Hong pulled her sable coat tighter, her high-heeled boots crunching on the snow.
"No matter how you look at it, this place seems like a good spot for murder and dumping a body."
Xu Qinghuan didn't even turn her head, her red cloak flapping wildly in the wind.
"Sister Xue, you're really humorous."
"We are going to witness a miracle, and while we're at it, prepare a fine coffin for that old man from the Wang family."
As they spoke, the two passed through a moon gate.
The sight before her made Xue Hong pause in her tracks.
This was supposed to be an abandoned old warehouse, usually just used for storing miscellaneous items.
But now, around this dilapidated courtyard, there were guards stationed every few steps.
Those standing guard were no ordinary servants, but the batch of "special security guards" carefully selected by Li Sheng.
Each of them was expressionless, with bulging waists, looking like people you wouldn't want to mess with.
This level of security was even more exaggerated than the Xie family's.
If these security guards only made Xue Hong feel surprised, then the "door god" sitting on the steps at the courtyard entrance completely made her stare blankly.
Xu Wuyou.
This human-shaped Tyrannosaurus Rex sports student was sitting cross-legged in the snow.
He was sitting cross-legged in the snow, hugging a giant sword as wide as a door, resting with his eyes closed.
Accumulated snow covered his broad shoulders, but it couldn't conceal the striking impact of his face.
Sword-like eyebrows extending to his temples, a high nose bridge, and a tall, straight figure. If he didn't move or speak, this was absolutely a top-tier modeled face in the Great Qian Dynasty.
Hearing the footsteps, Xu Wuyou opened his eyes.
At that moment, Xue Hong felt a piercingly cold wind blow straight into her bones.
That was a look only a martial artist who had truly seen blood could have.
What a pair of sharp, profound eyes, full of... clear stupidity.
That's right, he was truly handsome, but also truly dense.
That kind of beauty unpolluted by knowledge really made it hard not to be moved.
"Big brother, rein it in."
Xu Qinghuan casually roasted him, "If you scare my golden goose, selling you wouldn't be enough to compensate for it."
The murderous aura around Xu Wuyou instantly dissipated completely.
He scratched his head in a handsome yet foolish manner, revealing a mouthful of white teeth, and chuckled.
"Little sister, is this that... that what chicken?"
"It's a machine! Machine!"
Xu Qinghuan rolled her eyes, frustrated by his density. "Don't embarrass us here. Stand guard properly. Don't even let a fly in."
"Don't worry!"
Xu Wuyou patted his chest loudly. "Except for you two, even if the King of Heaven comes, he'll have to take a strike from my blade."
Xue Hong swallowed hard.
She suddenly developed a tremendous curiosity about what was inside this dilapidated house.
Exactly what kind of treasure was worth having the Xu family's martial arts-obsessed eldest young master personally guard the door?
"Please, Clan Head Xue."
Xu Qinghuan pushed open the creaking wooden door.
Dry air mixed with the smell of cotton wadding and machine oil rushed to their faces.
It was very dark inside.
All the windows were sealed tight with thick black cloth, completely airtight.
Only on the table in the very center were a few dim oil lamps lit.
The light and shadows flickered, stretching their shadows long and casting them on the wall like some monsters baring fangs and brandishing claws.
"This..."
By the lamplight, Xue Hong could see the furnishings in the room clearly.
There were mountains of seed cotton piled everywhere, as well as some messy wooden parts.
This was the so-called "trump card"?
Why did it look like an illegal workshop that hadn't gone out of business yet?
Xu Qinghuan walked up to a pile of unprocessed seed cotton and casually grabbed a handful.
The cotton was still wrapped around black cotton seeds, hard to the touch.
"Sister Xue is an expert, so you should know how difficult this stuff is to deal with."
Xu Qinghuan said nonchalantly while rubbing the cotton in her hands.
"A skilled worker, working day and night, can only strip a few pounds of lint a day. If it's yarn, getting half a pound is already an incredible feat."
"They still have to use those ancient little bamboo bows to fluff it bit by bit, loosening the cotton wadding."
"The efficiency is so low it makes you want to curse."
Xu Qinghuan threw the handful of cotton seeds back into the pile and clapped the dust off her hands.
"The reason the Wang family can hold us by the throat is just because they rely on having a lot of people, right?"
"Three thousand weaver girls sounds quite intimidating."
"But in my eyes..."
A mocking curve appeared at the corner of Xu Qinghuan's mouth.
"They are just a bunch of primitive people still using stone axes to chop down trees."
Xue Hong frowned.
She understood the logic.
But for hundreds of years, hasn't the Great Qian's textile industry always been like this?
Could you possibly pull off a miracle?
"Princess, be that as it may, we don't have a better method right now."
Xue Hong sighed. "This cotton won't turn into cloth by itself."
"Who says we don't?"
Xu Qinghuan walked to the center of the workshop.
A massive object was placed there, covered with a layer of black tarpaulin stained with oil.
Xu Qinghuan stood in front of the object and took a deep breath.
Although this thing was only an initial version, in this ancient era of low productivity, it was a divine artifact.
It was a nuclear weapon capable of launching a dimensional strike against all handicraft workers.
"Sys, give me some BGM."
Xu Qinghuan muttered in her heart.
The system had no reaction.
"Tch, stingy."
Xu Qinghuan curled her lips, then suddenly reached out and forcefully yanked off the tarpaulin!
Whoosh—!
Dust flew into the air.
Xue Hong subconsciously took half a step back and covered her mouth and nose.
When the dust settled, her eyes widened, staring intently at the bizarre-looking contraption in front of her.
It was a giant wooden machine.
It had no unnecessary decorations and could even be called somewhat ugly.
Rough wooden frames, exposed gears, and a complex connecting rod structure.
What shocked Xue Hong the most was...
On this machine, there stood a full eight spindles!
Eight!
One must know, the most advanced spinning wheel on the market right now only had a single spindle.
A weaver girl, with two hands, could only manage that one thread.
But this thing...
"This... what kind of monster is this?"
Xue Hong's voice even changed pitch.
Xu Qinghuan was very satisfied with her reaction.
She clapped her hands and shouted toward the shadows in the corner.
"Jenny Huang, come out and meet our guest."
In the corner, a thin and small figure slowly shuffled out.
It was a little girl who looked to be only fifteen or sixteen years old.
Her hair was as messy as a chicken's nest, and there were two black streaks of machine oil smeared on her face.
This was the "technical genius" gifted by the system—Jenny Huang.
Although the name sounded very foreign, the person was a genuine, introverted socialphobe.
Jenny Huang didn't look at Xue Hong, nor did she look at Xu Qinghuan.
In her eyes, there was only that machine.
She walked straight to the operating console and stroked those rough wooden levers like caressing a lover.
Then, she plopped herself down.
Begin.
Xu Qinghuan gave the order.
Jenny Huang nodded and gripped the massive crank with both hands.
Deep breath.
She pushed.
Click.
A crisp sound of gears engaging rang out.
Immediately after.
Click, click, click—whir!!!
The previously still wooden frame sprang to life in an instant.
The crossbar began to move, carrying that teeth-setting-on-edge yet rhythmic mechanical friction sound.
The eight upright spindles started spinning madly at the same time!
They spun so fast they became a blur!
The previously loose cotton rovings were rapidly stretched and twisted under the traction of the precise mechanism.
Eight pure white cotton threads, like eight little silver snakes, poured endlessly out of the machine and wound tightly around the spindles.
Xue Hong was completely dumbfounded.
She had seen countless spinning wheels in her life and heard the creaking of countless weaver girls turning them.
But she had never seen such a shocking scene.
A frail little girl, sitting there, merely turning a handle.
And she could simultaneously spin eight threads!
Furthermore, the speed of each thread was several times faster than that of the most skilled veteran weaver!
Xue Hong's mind began to race.
She was a merchant, with an innate sensitivity to numbers.
One person, doing the work of eight.
No, counting the speed multiplier, she was doing the work of at least thirty people!
That meant...
This single broken wooden frame was worth ten top-tier weavers who did not need to eat, did not need to sleep, and would never slack off!
This... this, this...
Xue Hong pointed at the machine, her fingers trembling like a sieve.
She felt her worldview collapsing.
Whatever nonsense about hard work leading to wealth, whatever spirit of craftsmanship—in front of these clicking gears, it was all crushed to dust!
Xu Qinghuan stood in the shadows, looking at Xue Hong's expression as if she had seen a ghost, feeling absolutely thrilled.
This is the power of technology, mortal!
This is Jenny Number One.
Xu Qinghuan's voice drifted over faintly, carrying a demonic temptation.
How is it, Sister Xue?
This machine, with just a little training, can be operated by anyone with hands and feet.
It doesn't eat braised pork, it doesn't drink fine wine, and you don't need to pay it wages.
Just smear a little lard on it, and it can spin for you day and night.
Xu Qinghuan walked over to Jenny Huang and picked up a freshly spun spindle.
The cotton thread was fine and even, its tensile strength even better than hand-spun yarn.
She casually tossed the spindle to Xue Hong.
Xue Hong scrambled to catch it, clutching it tightly in her hand as if holding some rare treasure.
And, this is just the prototype.
Xu Qinghuan added another blow.
The blueprints for this machine are still being improved.
In a few days, we can even build sixteen-spindle ones, or even thirty-two-spindle ones.
Sixteen spindles...
Thirty-two spindles...
Xue Hong felt like she was going to suffocate.
If it were thirty-two spindles, wouldn't one person be able to do the work of forty?!
The Wang family's three thousand weavers?
In front of this thing, they were just three thousand mouths that only knew how to eat!
They were a burden!
A massive boulder dragging the Wang family into the abyss!
My lady, times have changed.
Xu Qinghuan looked at Xue Hong with a smile.
In the past, we did business by hoarding goods and cornering the market, relying on connections.
But starting today.
We rely on—
Xu Qinghuan pointed at the tireless machine.
Machines.
Xue Hong's eyes no longer held her previous doubt and hesitation.
Her eyes only held the fanaticism of seeing mountains of gold and silver, of seeing a broad road to the heavens.
She took a few deep breaths, trying hard to calm her wildly beating heart.
County Princess.
Xue Hong's voice was a bit hoarse, yet exceptionally firm.
This thing... how many can you build?
Xu Qinghuan shrugged.
That depends on how much wood, how much iron Sister Xue can give me, and...
She rubbed her fingers together, making that iconic gesture for money.
How much silver.
Without a second word, Xue Hong pulled a stack of silver notes straight from her breast pocket; it was a huge sum she had originally prepared to give out as New Year's money.
Smack!
She slammed it heavily onto the desk.
Build them!
Xue Hong's eyes were as red as a rabbit's, bloodshot from pure excitement.
Build them like there is no tomorrow!
I want as many as you have!
I want every inch of land in this Jiangning City to be filled with these damn sweet machines!
I want to let those old fogeys of the Wang family see, what is called... what is called...
Xue Hong was momentarily at a loss for words, unable to remember the term Xu Qinghuan had used earlier.
Industrial Revolution.
Xu Qinghuan kindly reminded her.
Right! Industrial Revolution!
Xue Hong roared, We will revolutionize them to death!!
