Tang Dynasty: A Guide to Avoiding Pitfalls for Li Er at the Start

Chapter 282 Li You's Unexpected Circumstances

Wen He's method of boiling water is naturally not as simple as actually placing the kettle on the stove to boil it.

He carried a brass kettle from the kitchen and was about to walk to the study when he suddenly remembered that there were no portable stoves in this era.

You can't exactly carry the embers from the stove with you, can you?

He simply turned around and took the three teenagers back to the kitchen.

"Watch carefully." Wen He filled the kettle with water, placed it on the iron rack of the stove, and lit a fire to ignite the dry firewood.

The flames crackled and licked the bottom of the pot, making his eyes shine brightly.

"The white mist coming out of the spout looks like gas, but it is actually small water droplets formed by the condensation of water vapor, which is steam."

The three children were completely confused. What kind of gas is water?
As Wen He was speaking, she caught a glimpse of a small hand reaching out out of the corner of her eye, as if trying to catch the drifting white mist.

"Li You!"

Wen He reacted quickly and slapped away the restless hand.

Li You let out a "howl," covered his reddened hand, and pulled back, looking at him with a pitiful expression, his eyes reddening.

"The steam is so hot it can burn off a layer of skin and flesh."

Wen He reprimanded him with a stern face, but her tone softened a bit.

"Curiousness is fine, but you have to figure out the risks first. I don't want to have to add an extra serving of steamed human paws tonight."

Li You nodded quickly, secretly rubbing her hands behind her back, the grievance in her eyes quickly replaced by curiosity.

Wen He continued to explain: "When water boils, it turns into steam, which increases in volume. If this force is trapped, it can push things to move."

As he spoke, he used a twig to draw a simple cross-section of a kettle on the ground, marking the lid, spout, and the direction of water vapor flow inside.

The firelight in the stove flickered, illuminating the faces of the three children.

Li Tai lay on the stove, one hand supporting his chin, the other idly poking at the firewood, his eyes already drifting to the backyard.

At this hour, his piglets must be hungry. He wondered if Atu had fed them on time.

That maid is always careless; she probably forgot to leave some extra feed for little Jieli again.

Li Ke stood a little further away, seemingly listening, but his gaze kept drifting towards the kitchen doorway, lost in thought.

He could barely keep up with Wen He's words just now, but now his brows are furrowed, as if he is troubled by some problem.

Looking at their absent-minded appearance, Wen He felt a growing sense of frustration and disappointment.

These two probably think boiling water is just child's play and don't take it seriously at all.

Just as he was about to tap on the stove to perk himself up, a clear voice suddenly rang out beside him: "Sir, you said steam can propel things. If we make a bigger kettle and fill it with water, won't it produce more steam?"

"Will you be able to push the cart around then?"

Wen He turned his head sharply and saw Li You staring at him with wide, round eyes, his little face full of excited exploration and a hint of expectation for praise.

Wow! This kid's got it right!
Wen He was overjoyed, and her anger vanished instantly. Her tone became lighter: "That's right! That's the logic. But to actually do it, we need to calculate how much power the steam has and how to channel that power into electricity. We need to figure these things out slowly."

He simply squatted down, took a twig and drew a more detailed diagram on the ground, and began to explain to Li You how to use steam to drive the piston, and how to make the piston drive the gear to rotate.

What was originally a class for three gradually turned into Wen He giving Li You private tutoring.

Li Tai lay on the stove, nodding his head repeatedly, his saliva almost dripping into the firewood.

Li Ke quietly slipped out, saying he was going to the restroom, but half an hour passed and he was nowhere to be seen.

The water on the stove was bubbling happily, and steam hissed out from the spout, condensing into a white mist on the kitchen ceiling.

Wen He spoke with great enthusiasm, and Li You listened with rapt attention.

Dusk, like a piece of velvet soaked in ink, gradually spread over the tops of the sycamore trees in Wenhe Courtyard.

It wasn't until Li Ke led Wenrou in that the boy snapped out of his reverie about the principles of steam, his stomach growling as he realized it was already afternoon.

"Brother, I went to see Second Sister with Brother Ke. Her older sister is so fierce."

She nestled gently into his arms, a hint of displeasure on her face. "But my second aunt secretly slipped me a piece of malt candy, it was so sweet."

Wen He had just smiled and ruffled her hair when a small hand grabbed her sleeve.

Li You tilted his little face up, his eyes shining like two stars: "Sir, could steam be used to make a rotating wheel? Like a waterwheel, but without water?"

That kid actually managed to squeeze in.

Wen He's heart stirred slightly. She had originally thought that Li You was sent by Li Shimin to avoid disaster and protect him from future hardships. She never expected that the child would be interested in steam.

He crouched down, picked up a twig from the ground, and drew a rudimentary gear on the bluestone slab: "Theoretically, it's feasible, but we need to calculate the steam pressure and the gear meshing angle first..."

"Then I'll go get it done tomorrow!"

Li You immediately chimed in, gesturing with his little hands to show how the wheel was turning.

"Once I learn it, I'll make something that can beat Li Tai up, something so strong he can't get out of bed!"

"Smack!" Wen He flicked her finger on his forehead, both angry and amused.

"I just praised you a couple of times and you're already acting all serious. Is this what you're supposed to do with your studies?"

Li Tai, who was standing to the side, was chuckling with his arms crossed when he was suddenly hit on the back of the head. He immediately yelled, "Why did you hit me? It wasn't me who said it!"

"Who told you to laugh like a rat stealing oil?"

Wen He raised an eyebrow, turned around, and led Wen Rou towards the dining room.

"Are you hungry? There's some lamb stew in the kitchen."

"I want two big pieces!"

Wenrou immediately put Wu Erniang's matter out of her mind and took quick steps with her short legs.

Several dishes were already laid out on the octagonal table in the dining room. The dark brown mutton was piled up like a small mountain on a white porcelain plate, and the emerald green vegetables were still covered with water droplets.

The three children waited for Wen He to sit down, and he took Wenrou's hand and sat her down. Just as they picked up their chopsticks, they saw Li You picking at the rice in his bowl, still muttering, "Sir, if the steam came out from a thin tube, wouldn't it be more powerful than a kettle spout?"

"Even food can't shut you up."

Wen He picked up a piece of mutton and put it into his bowl.

"It depends on how thin the pipe is and how high the steam pressure is. We'll find a copper pipe to try it out tomorrow and see."

With his mouth stuffed full, Li Tai mumbled indistinctly, "What's the point of dealing with those metal sheets? I'd rather go see my piglets; they've gained another half a pound today."

"You know how to eat."

The meal was lively and bustling. Li You was preoccupied with the steam pipes, Li Tai was thinking about the pigs in the backyard, Li Ke occasionally chimed in, and Wenrou was focused on her mutton.

Looking at these teenagers, Wen He suddenly felt that this afternoon was much more comfortable than the scheming in the imperial court.

After dinner, Wen He escorted Wenrou back to her room. The little girl pestered him to tell her "The Wizard of Oz" for half the night until her eyelids started to droop and she finally fell asleep.

When I returned to my courtyard, the moon was high in the sky, and its silvery light shone through the window lattice, casting a clear glow on my desk.

He lit the oil lamp and took out a stack of Xuan paper from the drawer.

With nothing to do and unable to sleep anyway, he decided to write a few chapters of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms".

He didn't feel sleepy until the moon was high in the sky.

The next day.

Wen He slept until the sun was high in the sky.

Xiao Wenrou had come to his door three times to urge him before he finally woke up.

When they arrived at the front yard, they saw Li Yifu talking to a stranger.

Upon seeing Wen He, the two quickly came to greet him.

"I have met the county magistrate."

The man was dressed plainly; although it was a round-necked robe, the style was definitely that of a commoner, so he was probably a minor official in that area.

"Greetings, sir. This is Liu, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, who sent them. He said that the people arrived early this morning and are waiting for you."

The minor official has been here for almost an hour.

But Wen He never woke up.

Li Yifu didn't dare to disturb Wen He's sleep.

The gentleman's biggest pet peeve is being woken up while he's sleeping; otherwise, he'll be in a bad mood all day.

So all we can do is wait here.

"Oh," Wen He replied indifferently.

"No rush, have you eaten yet? Let's eat first."

Wen He yawned, then left the minor official behind and went to wash up on her own.

The minor official was left there staring blankly.

Before they came, Minister Liu had specifically instructed them not to neglect the magistrate of Gaoyang County.

He could only stand there and wait with a forced smile.

Another half hour passed before Wen He finished washing up, ate breakfast, changed her clothes, and lazily prepared to go out.

"Brother, come back soon. We'll have beef...mutton to eat today." Little Wenrou winked playfully at Wen He.

This little girl almost let it slip.

Wen He smiled and gently patted her head.

"If you get bored later, have Adong accompany you outside. Don't wander around alone."

"Uh-huh."

Xiao Wenrou nodded obediently and watched Wen He get into the carriage.

Watching Wen He's carriage depart, Wenrou could no longer resist the urge to go out and play, and grabbed Li Ke's sleeve beside her.

“Brother is gone, Ake, let’s go too.”

"A-Ke?"

Not far away, Li You looked suspiciously at the two people walking towards the gate of the mansion, scratched his head, and then looked at Li Tai.

Why does Xiaorou call Sanlang "Ake"?

"You're stupid, I'm not talking to you." Li Tai rolled his eyes at him.

"You're the idiot! Yesterday, the master said I was the smartest. You and Sanlang don't even know what steam is!"

"You're stupid, I'm not talking to you."

"you you you you!"

Li You pointed at him, stomping his feet in anger.

Unfortunately, he couldn't beat Li Tai.

At this moment, Wen He, who had just left Yonglefang, was unaware that two little ones were secretly following behind his carriage.

As he leaned back in the carriage with his eyes closed, he was thinking about how to extort money from the Five Surnames and Seven Nobles.

Yesterday, Cui An sold five thousand strings of cash, but afterwards he felt he had lost money no matter how much he thought about it.

They had no choice but to use the excuse of doing Cui Dunli a favor.

He won't sell off the rest of them cheaply today.

(End of this chapter)