North America 1849, from Gold Rush to Warlord

Chapter 32 Unexpected Fans

It took a full ten days to go upstream.

Going downstream, the speed was much faster. Six days later, Zu and Jason returned to the shipyard in San Francisco.

As soon as the two entered the three-story Spanish colonial-style building, Vivian rushed into his arms.

"Woohoo! A-Zu, you're finally back!"

"Where have you been for more than half a month?"

"Didn't you say you'd be back in a few days? It's taken so long, it scared me to death! Woohoo!"

A-Zu reached out and held Vivian's slender waist, which was soft and smooth, and the touch was really great!

"Okay, okay, we're back now, aren't we? Why are you crying? Everything is fine now!"

A Zu hugged Vivian and it took him a long time to calm the little foreign girl down.

"Oh, right!" Vivian wiped away her tears and said with a choked voice, "A-Zu, a guy named Edgar Allan Poe has come to see you several times these days!"

"Who are you talking about...?" As soon as A-Zu heard the name, he was stunned!

"Edgar Allan Poe... ah, that's his name!"

Edgar Allan Poe?

The great poet, novelist and...famous detective?

This originator of American detective novels is also a private detective in real life and a well-known figure. Why is he looking for me?
A bad premonition emerged in A Zu's heart!
"Could it be about Mayor Cameron?"

But why would a figure like Edgar Allan Poe, whose name is so widely admired, be dragged into this matter?
Moreover, the scapegoat black servant had already been publicly hanged. The verdict had already been made. Could it be possible that the verdict would be overturned?
If it was really because of this case, how could Edgar Allan Poe find himself?
After thinking it over again, A Zu confirmed that he had not left any clues!

At this moment, A Zu thought of a lot of things and couldn't help but be a little distracted.

"Azu? Azu...what's wrong with you?"

"Um...it's nothing!" He came back to his senses and regained his composure. "Did you ask what Mr. Poe wanted to see me for?"

Vivian replied, "That gentleman didn't look well. He kept coughing. I even saw blood on his handkerchief! But he was very polite and said he just wanted to talk to you!"

"Coughing up blood?"

A-Zu couldn't help but raise his eyebrows and searched his memory carefully.

If I remember correctly, Mr. Edgar Allan Poe died of illness at the age of forty.

It seems that he died of illness this year?
"Yes, coughing up blood!" Vivian nodded. "Based on similar cases I've seen at my father's hospital, this Mr. Poe must have contracted pneumonia, and he's seriously ill."

"Even though he's so sick, he still insists on coming to talk to me. I don't know what's wrong with him."

A-Zu said this, but he was certain in his heart that Edgar Allan Poe must have come for the mayor's death.

Apart from this reason, A Zu couldn't think of anything else that could attract the attention of the great detective.

Maybe I met a decent chess player in this chess game I set up!

"Vivian, if Mr. Poe comes to visit again, please ask him to come see me."

"Okay, Boss!" Vivian winked playfully.

"But, there's one more thing...!"

Vivian's expression became conflicted, and she hesitated, "My Uncle Evan has already arranged for me to go to a church school. When school starts in September, I'll be enrolled."

"Reading?" A Zu's heart tightened for no reason.

To be honest, he really likes this innocent, cheerful and generous blonde foreign girl!

What's more, this foreign girl is so beautiful!
With a girl like this by my side, life is full of sunshine and fun.

"Vivian, tell me, do you really want to go to school?"

Vivian lowered her head and shook it slightly. "Don't want to go? Why?" A-Zu asked.

Vivian bit her lips lightly with her pearly teeth: "I...I want to...stay by your side forever! Following you...I can...learn more!"

“Just learning more?”

"Oh...I won't talk to you anymore!" Vivian punched A-Zu's chest with her little fist, turned around and ran back to her room shyly.

Looking at the tall and voluptuous beautiful figure, A Zu couldn't help but shake his head and smile: "What a pure and innocent little silly girl!"

"Don't worry! If you don't want to go, no one can force you... not even your own uncle!"

Back in his room, A-Zu thought about it for a while and started drawing the design again.

This time, he wanted to rub the steam pump by hand.

The steam engine is already available, but the core of the water pump is the water pump!
In this era, both piston pumps and centrifugal pumps have been introduced, but piston pumps have a small flow rate and are prone to clogging when there is a high sediment content and turbid water.

So a centrifugal pump is the only option!

However, the straight-blade, single-stage centrifugal pumps of this era did not have enough pressure, and the total suction and discharge head did not exceed 30 meters.

The deepest part of Golden Lake is nearly 50 meters, and the 30-meter lift is completely unable to meet A Zu's needs.

I had to do it myself and design a curved blade multi-stage centrifugal pump.

Drawing the design was easy for A-Zu, but making it by hand was much more difficult than improving a sewing machine or a steam-powered saw.

The most important thing is the accuracy of the curved blades!
If the blade precision is not enough, the centrifugal pump will have serious problems such as shaking, insufficient pressure, and even blade breakage.

After drawing the design of the steam water pump, A Zu seized the time and worked overtime to draw the design of the steam drum ore washing machine.

The design and manufacturing difficulty of a large, crude and black device like a drum ore washer is actually simpler than that of a relatively sophisticated device like a centrifugal pump.

It was already late at night when A-Zu finished the design drawings of these two key devices and fell asleep.

The next day, early in the morning.

"Bang bang bang!"

There was a gentle knock on the door. A-Zu, who was still sleepy, rubbed his sleepy eyes and opened the door.

Outside the door was Vivian.

"Azu, that Mr. Edgar Allan Poe is here again!"

A-Zu was slightly surprised: "So early?"

Weiweian looked at A Zu, who was still asleep, with a distressed look on her face. "How about I ask him to come back later?"

"No, please ask him to wait in the study. I will see him after I clean up."

This is the first time I’ve had the opportunity to meet a famous person since I came to this era!
After washing up, A-Zu was still a little excited as he walked towards the study.

When I pushed open the door, I saw a middle-aged white man with a thin figure, a very long neck and a sickly pale face. He was sitting on a chair and flipping through his collection of books.

"Edgar Allan Poe? Are you Mr. Edgar Allan Poe?"

Azu walked forward with some excitement, held Poe's cold and thin hands with both hands, and shook them enthusiastically!

Poe was a little confused by the stranger's sudden enthusiasm.

"You are... Li Zunian, Mr. Li? Do you know me?"

Ah Zu nodded quickly. "Mr. Edgar Allan Poe, of course I know you! I've read your masterpieces, 'The Murders in the Rue Morgue,' 'You Are the Murderer,' 'The Rodman Diaries,' and more..."

Facing such young Chinese readers, Poe's sickly pale face couldn't help but turn a little red with joy.

"Ahem! I never thought my work would reach the far east!"

(End of this chapter)