Our neighborhood has been transported again.

Chapter 78 Springs
After giving his instructions, Qin Ziwen left with Qin Ziwu.

Watching his departing figure, Li Yue withdrew his gaze.

He sat on a damp rock beside him, staring blankly at the river.

This seemingly sunny and cheerful young man was unusually quiet.

I never expected that so many families would be willing to follow Brother Qin.

Li Yue sighed inwardly.

That's right. It's normal for someone as kind as Brother Qin to have followers.

However, other families don't consist of just one person. Even Dr. Zhao has two people in his family, so he's fighting this battle alone.

Seemingly sensing its owner's low spirits, the golden retriever stuck out its tongue, moved closer to its owner, and licked his cheek.

Li Yue wiped the drool off his face and laughed, cursing, "It stinks!"

He hugged the golden retriever, a warm feeling rising in his heart. He almost forgot about you; you are also family. He will work hard with you to live well in this world.

I am not without advantages; my advantage lies in the knowledge in my head.

Thinking of this, Li Yue felt more confident.

Since transmigrating to this place, Li Yue has never felt safe. Unlike others who have family to accompany them, he sleeps alone in an empty house and is often awakened by nightmares at night.

In the early stages of his time travel, he actively contacted several friends from his usual dog-walking group, and they formed a team together.

To gain the trust of others, he also gave them the cold weapons he had collected.

In return, they were abandoned.

He thought he was going to die in the forest, but then he met Brother Qin and Brother Deng, who took turns carrying him back to the community.

That night, he felt the cool breeze, looked at the moon overhead, and listened to the conversations around him; it was the most peaceful time for him.

"Brother, these logs are all soaked in water. Li Tieshan told us to find dry logs, but where are we going to find dry logs?" Qin Ziwu swung a wooden stick in his hand, sweeping it across the bushes in front of him.

As Qin Ziwen spoke, he observed the surrounding branches: "Aren't they all on the trees? No rush. Tieshan said that even slightly bent sticks are fine; we can straighten them by heating them with fire."

In the grass, a black snake was startled by the stick and quickly slithered away.

The two stopped and, after confirming that the snake had gone far away, continued to explore the path.

Qin Ziwu suddenly pointed to a tree not far away, "Brother, do you remember this place? We picked mulberries here back then."

Qin Ziwen looked in the direction of the voice and said, "How could I not remember? The first food we found, all the mulberries on the tree have been picked clean."

"Hey, brother, I remember Li the blacksmith said that mulberry trees can also be used to make gun shafts. Although it's not the best choice, it seems like it can still be used."

"Yes."

Qin Ziwu then asked, "Aren't mulberries the fruit of the mulberry tree?"

"They both contain the character 'sang' (桑), so I think it should be it."

The two looked at each other.

That's it.

If we can find mulberry trees, at least we have a backup plan.

The two had limited knowledge of trees, but they could identify what kind of tree it was if it happened to be bearing fruit or flowers.

But if none of these apply, then it becomes quite difficult. Our understanding of most trees is limited to: "This tree is so thick," "This tree is so tall," and "This tree grows so straight."

So along the way, their method for finding suitable gun shafts was simple and brutal: they would break off tree branches or chop them with a machete, then swing them around to see how hard they were, how dense they were, and how resilient they were. If they were easy to use, then they were good materials.

Qin Ziwu climbed the tree, looking for a suitable part to use as a gun barrel.

Soon, they cut down two tree branches, each over two meters long and of suitable thickness.

The two picked up tree branches, carried them on their shoulders, and continued their search.

This time they walked up the northern slope, where the trees were dense and the light was sparse.

Among the trees, a tall tree caught Qin Ziwen's attention.

(Photo: Zhemu)
The main issue is that there are several branches lying on the ground next to this tree, their trunks already naturally dried and straight.

The only drawback is that it has a lot of thorns on its sides.

He picked it up, used his machete to remove the thorns, swung it around a few times, making a whooshing sound. It felt good in his hand, heavy, and he could tell that the wood in his hand was quite dense.

Besides the branch in my hand, there is another smaller branch on the ground next to me, but it is thinner and shorter than the one in my hand.

"It doesn't matter if it's a little shorter, it's perfect for making javelins."

Having made their harvest, the two took four long branches home.

After finishing his work, Li Tieshan came over to explain.

Taking the two mulberry branches, Li Tieshan first nodded, then shook his head. "Sir, mulberry branches can be used to make gun barrels, but their hardness is limited. They are fine for dealing with people, but if used to deal with wild beasts, they are likely to break in a collision."

"Then take a look at these two."

Taking the two new branches, Li Tieshan's eyes lit up with joy as he recognized them. "Sir, this is mulberry wood! It's not only hard, but also moisture-resistant and rot-resistant. It's one of the best types of wood for making gun shafts, and it's also a good material for making bows."

"Then both of these can be used as gun barrels, right?"

Li Tieshan first picked up the large one, which was nearly 2.8 meters long. "This one is good. It's not only long but also straight. With a little processing, it will be a good gun barrel."

He picked up the smaller one, which was only 1.7 meters long. "This one is a bit short. It could be used to make a bow or a short gun, but I don't know how to make bows, so it would be a waste of wood."

"No rush, let's leave it for now. How's the animal trap coming along?"

Li Tieshan said, "Sir, we can make it today, but there is a key component that I have tried several times to make, and the result is still not quite up to the requirements of the blueprint. The power of the animal trap may only be about 50% of that in the blueprint."

"What's missing?"

"spring."

Qin Ziwen roughly understood, pondered for a moment, and said, "Don't worry about the spring, I'll take care of it."

After leaving the blacksmith's shop, Qin Ziwen said to his younger brother, "Go to where we just picked up the branches of the mulberry tree and cut down the rest of the mulberry tree."

"Okay." Qin Ziwu nodded.

After leaving the house, Qin Ziwen went straight to the riverbank, found Li Yue, and then told him his thoughts.

When Li Yue heard that Brother Qin needed a spring, he replied without hesitation, "Springs that can be used in animal traps. There are plenty of these things. They are used in many places in modern industry, and they are not uncommon in residential areas."

The most suitable material is the valve spring from motorcycles and electric bikes; they're strong and the size is just right. Then there are car suspension springs. Suspension springs are actually of better quality than valve springs, but they're too stiff, difficult to machine, and too large. If you used suspension springs of the appropriate size to make a trap, I reckon you could catch a dinosaur.

Li Yue laughed at this point, saying, "Dinosaurs are extinct, so where are there any dinosaurs left?"

(End of this chapter)