Chapter 56: Modifying the Car

"Big Brother, what's wrong with me winning a bet?" Yan Er-er suddenly became quite arrogant. "I didn't steal or rob anything; I won it fair and square with my own skills. So what?"

"All military equipment bears inscriptions, and there are records within the army. Do you think people won't find out just because you deny it?"

Yan Er-er: *My name shall be cleared!*

He took a deep breath and said, "Big Brother, you insist it's military equipment, but if it isn't, then what is it? Are you framing your own brother?"

Yan Huaiwen subconsciously looked at the crossbow. Such a finely crafted instrument—if it didn't come from the military, where else could it have come from? How could there be someone with such superb skill among the common folk?

Yan Er-er stepped forward and turned the crossbow over and over in his hands.

"Look, where are the markings? Nowhere! It's just something passed down from our ancestors, absolutely nothing wrong with it. It has nothing to do with military equipment. Besides, how would I have the capability to get hold of military gear... Big Brother, tell me, are you framing me?"

Yan Huaiwen couldn't believe it and examined it closely.

He truly had... wronged Tianyou.

"But this... this crossbow is so new, how could it be an old relic?" Yan Huaiwen found another point of suspicion.

"It's well-maintained! The owner took great care of it. If he hadn't taken it out to show off constantly, how would I have ever seen it?" Yan Er-er admired his own quick wit.

Yan Yu also secretly gave her father a thumbs-up.

Yan Huaiwen wanted to say more, but Yan Er-er cut him off.

"Big Brother, I feel so wronged. I've already turned over a new leaf, yet you still don't believe me..." He lowered his head with a look of dejection.

Yan Huaiwen: *I've been outmaneuvered.*

"It is my fault. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions."

"Then, Big Brother, promise me one thing."

"What is it?"

"I can't focus on studying. I don't want to touch books ever again."

Yan Huaiwen remained silent for a long time.

Yan Er-er asked hopefully, "Is that okay, Big Brother?"

"No!" he replied decisively.

With a complex expression, Yan Huaiwen said, "Tianyou, one thing is one thing. I have admitted my mistake in wronging you, but as for not studying, do not mention it again. It is absolutely impossible!"

"Starting tomorrow, you shall—"

"No!" Yan Er-er broke into a cold sweat. "Big Brother, we're about to enter the mountains. I need to lead the way, and I also need to discuss modifying the carriage frames with Qi Wu... There's too much to do. Please, don't assign me any schoolwork. Once we reach Guanzhou—yes, once we reach Guanzhou—then I'll continue my studies, alright?"

Yan Huaiwen nodded. "Fine."

...

Li Xuemei comforted him: "At least the crossbow is out in the open now. Haven't you always wanted to practice? Now you can use it openly and legitimately."

Yan Er-er finally accepted his fate.

Fine, he would become a man of culture from now on.

"How did Old Yan see the crossbow?" Yan Er-er wondered.

"It was because you were too excited. You wanted to bring it but didn't dare, so you took the sickle and left, but you just left this lying around haphazardly. When your brother moved things, he felt something was off the moment he touched it."

"Sigh!" Yan Er-er secretly blamed himself for being careless, but just like his wife said, this crossbow was finally out in the world, hahaha!

...

Early risers in the village discovered that Yan Er-er had acquired a rare item.

It was a very small bow.

Yan Er-er practiced with it quite enthusiastically.

They didn't know if it was called a bow or a crossbow, but they could clearly see Yan Er-er's accuracy.

What kind of accuracy was that? It was all over the place!

After a flurry of *whoosh-whoosh-whoosh* shots, he had to spend a huge amount of effort searching the ground for arrows.

After seeing this, Village Chief Luo told every household that children were absolutely not allowed to crowd around.

This was their third day entering the mountains.

The difficulty of the mountain paths was no exaggeration.

The so-called mountain paths had no paths originally; they only became paths because many people walked them.

Sanbao only had four hooves, not four wheels; he couldn't flatten a path.

For the village's mules and donkeys, the carriage frames behind them had become a heavy burden.

The ground was pitted, the roads were sometimes wide and sometimes narrow, and the rocks on the path often caused the carriages to get stuck.

Modifying the carriage frames was a necessity.

"The space between the two wheels needs to be narrower so the small carts can navigate through the mountains more easily."

"The cut planks can be made taller, like the ones Brother Yan Er-er made before. Can we add two more layers?"

"It's possible, but it's better to only add one layer, and it shouldn't be too high, lest the mules and donkeys can't pull it."

...

This time, the modification of the carriages was a collective brainstorming effort.

The few people who knew how to drive carriages gathered to discuss.

Having traveled for so long, they had a general idea of the stamina of the mules and donkeys they drove and how much weight they could pull.

"Brother Yan Er-er, how do you want to modify your ox cart?"

"Hehe!" Yan Er-er laughed before speaking. "My cart doesn't need a major overhaul. Just like yours, I'll add a layer on top, but this time, the four leg pillars will be shorter. As long as there's enough room to sit underneath, it'll be fine. What if we have to enter the forest later? Being too high would be an obstacle. Also, it would be best if the top layer could be removed entirely. Think about it—there are many snakes and insects in the mountains, and it's not good to sleep on the ground. If it can be removed, wouldn't it be a bed!"

He looked at Qi Wu with expectant eyes and asked, "Brother Qi Wu, do you think it can be done?"

The others thought it was a good idea and looked at Qi Wu simultaneously.

They also asked, "Can it be done?" "Can you make it?"

Qi Wu: *Do you all have some misunderstanding of my skill level...?*

"I don't know how to do that," Qi Wu said candidly, putting everyone's hopes to rest. "If you're lifting it up and down every day, you'll need very sturdy timber so it doesn't break. And as for the floorboards, they won't stay fixed at all; it's too heavy."

"What if we make a bamboo bed? Put it on the roof during the day and take it down when it's time to rest," Qi Si suggested.

"If it works, we can let our parents and children sleep on it at night. There really are many insects in the mountains."

"Where have we seen bamboo on this journey?"

"Let's note it down first, and we'll figure it out when we encounter some."

"Alright, let's modify the carriages first."

The Yan family's carriage was the first to be completed.

It was essentially the same thing, just made shorter, meaning the people underneath had to bend over to climb in and out.

Yan Huaiwen was not as comfortable getting in and out.

He suspected Tianyou was doing it on purpose, but he had no evidence.

Because the reason Tianyou gave was very reasonable: he said that if they entered the forest later, a high carriage would be difficult to maneuver.

To modify the carriages, they stopped in place for three days.

The men split into two groups: one group went to find trees to cut wood, and the other group handled the splitting, sawing, and chiseling.

For the first two days, they worked very slowly because no one understood how to "coordinate" as Yan Er-er had described.

It exhausted Yan Er-er; after explaining it to one person, he had to explain it again to another.

It wasn't until the third day that everyone understood: if they just focused on their own specific task and ignored the rest, their efficiency would increase.

It was still Qi Wu's signature rugged style, even coarser than before.

The wood didn't need to be polished, and the four pillars didn't need to be identical; they just needed to be able to support the weight.

The upper frame still consisted of a few planks laid out, roughly similar in length and size.

Qi Wu was responsible for the most critical part: cutting the grooves and mortises.

Though it didn't look pretty, it was truly sturdy.

Although the carriages were smaller, they weren't much different from the originals in terms of capacity.

Items were placed on top and people sat underneath; the only addition was the weight of the wooden frame.

The mules and donkeys could pull it.

Because they were small, they were very agile when turning through passages.

They could also avoid hollows and large rocks.