Reborn Together: The General and I Reach for Power
Chapter 24 - 23 Excitement

Chapter 24: Chapter 23 Excitement

Xie Liangchen was going to deliver medicine to the Papermaking Workshop, so she got up to prepare before dawn.

Old Mrs. Chen kept watch by the stove, her eyes frequently darting to the doorway, fearing that her granddaughter might catch her skimping on rice and oil.

In the past, during times of hunger, Old Mrs. Chen had mixed all sorts of strange things into the food, but now with her granddaughter inspecting, she dared not add anything unusual.

The food was ready, but Chen Zigeng had not yet gotten up.

Old Mrs. Chen went to call for Chen Zigeng, and as soon as she entered the room, she saw the blanket moving.

Old Mrs. Chen said, "Why isn’t Brother Geng up yet?"

Chen Zigeng mumbled from under the blanket, "Grandmother, you go first, I’ll get up in a moment."

Old Mrs. Chen was suspicious, "What’s the matter? Not feeling well?"

"No." Chen Zigeng hurriedly denied, but before he could finish speaking, he felt a chill as Old Mrs. Chen had already pulled the blanket away.

Old Mrs. Chen saw a wet patch under Chen Zigeng and laughed with her eyes wrinkled, "Oh, you’ve wet the bed."

Xie Liangchen followed the laughter into the room and saw her brother’s flushed face.

Chen Zigeng lowered his eyes, refusing to look at anyone out of shame.

Yesterday, when they went to the mountains, aside from digging for Huang Jing, his sister also caught frogs in the forest. She was quick and targeted the big ones, catching one with her left hand and one with her right, throwing them into the basket behind her. He stupidly stood by, not daring to reach out.

Chen Zigeng hadn’t expected to be afraid of those creatures; the image of frogs kicking their legs, scrambling to flee, was deeply imprinted in his mind.

At night, he dreamt of being chased around the mountain by a group of frogs, one even crawled into his trousers, and he had to muster all his strength to shake it out.

Resolved and calm, Chen Zigeng managed to drive the big frogs from his thoughts. He quickly changed his clothes and went to wash in the courtyard.

Who would have thought, as soon as he looked up, he saw frogs all hung on the thick rope in the courtyard, each head to the sky, swaying in the breeze.

Chen Zigeng’s face turned dark.

"Good stuff," Xie Liangchen pointed at the frogs, "After drying, the oil can be extracted and sold for a handsome price."

Old Mrs. Chen smacked her lips; her granddaughter saw potential money in everything.

For the first time, Chen Zigeng didn’t want to believe his sister; otherwise, he feared he would frequently encounter these frogs in his dreams.

The three of them finished eating, and just at that moment, Chen Yongsheng came in with Chen Yongyi, Chen Yuyu, and others.

Chen Yongyi had a lame leg, with four fingers on his right hand cut off, leaving only a thumb. Like Chen Yongsheng, he was someone who barely escaped alive from the battlefield.

Chen Yongsheng brought Chen Yongyi along, fearing any mishaps. After all, as men, they could stand in front of the women and children.

Everyone shouldered the bamboo baskets filled with medicinal herbs, while Chen Yongsheng and Chen Yongyi each picked up a wooden bucket with Xie Liangchen’s prepared sizing fluid inside.

"Let’s go!" Xie Liangchen called out, and they all headed toward the village outskirts.

The villagers of Chen Family Village stood at the village entrance, watching a few people leave, their eyes full of hope.

After the war, Zhenzhou City became much more prosperous than before. Xie Liangchen looked around, planning to visit the pharmacy on their way back from the Papermaking Workshop. As she withdrew her gaze, she spotted two familiar figures at the door of a rouge shop.

Xie Liangchen smiled slightly but ignored them and continued walking forward.

Seeing this, Xie Rulan said furiously, "She’s deliberately ignoring us."

Compared to Xie Liangchen’s attitude, Mrs. Qiao was more concerned about where the people from Chen Family Village were going to sell their goods.

"Second Madam," the Xie Family steward came to report, "they went to the Papermaking Workshop."

Mrs. Qiao was surprised, "Send someone to watch them." The Papermaking Workshop was official; could it be that they had secured some good job? Hopefully, she was overthinking it.

Just a group of villagers; what ability do they have to work for the official?

Manager Li at the Papermaking Workshop had prepared everything early on, just waiting to test the new sizing formula.

This was instructed by Mr. Song, and he dared not delay, for who knows when Song Xian might come to inspect.

Seeing Xie Liangchen enter the workshop with the medicinal materials, Manager Li quickly greeted her, "Is everything ready?"

Xie Liangchen bowed to Manager Li and handed over the prepared sizing fluid, "I started making this last night, and it’s ready to use. With this sizing fluid, the paper scooped will have a uniform thickness, and the wet paper can even be stacked together.

However, this formula was also passed down in my family, so to know its true effectiveness, you’ll need to try it yourself."

After speaking, Xie Liangchen then looked at the fresh Huang Shu Kui and Yangtao Vine, "I’ll continue making sizing fluid with these fresh herbs. Find me a quiet place, please."

Manager Li had a room prepared and asked someone to take Xie Liangchen there.

Xie Liangchen rolled up her sleeves with a strap, while Chen Yuyu hurried to hand her fresh Yangtao Vine stalks.

Meanwhile, Manager Li instructed someone to add the herb-based sizing fluid into the paper vat, and workers stirred with a wooden rod as the settled pulp slowly rose to the surface.

"Manager, this new sizing is definitely different." The foreman, who had worked in the workshop for many years, could immediately tell the difference. Seeing this, he got a bit excited.

The foreman pushed away a worker to hold the rod and stir himself. When he felt the consistency was right, he immediately ordered, "Quick, scoop the pulp."

When Li You and the steward entered the Papermaking Workshop, they saw several men steadily and skillfully scooping the pulp with bamboo sives from the vat.

Everyone’s eyes were fixed on the vat and the bamboo sives, so no one noticed the additional people in the room.

Although Li You couldn’t see anything unusual in the vat, the gaze and footsteps of everyone revealed a trace of excitement.

The pulp was finally scooped out of the vat.

Someone from the government office stepped in, and only then did Manager Li notice Li You.

"This is Commander Li You of the Palace."

Manager Li and others quickly went up to salute.

Li You looked at Manager Li, "What are you doing here?"

Manager Li, still not quite recovered from his shock, responded instinctively, "Following Mr. Song’s instructions, testing a new sizing formula."

Li You glanced at the bamboo sives, "Does it work?"

Manager Li instinctively shook his head, "It’s not finished yet, but... it should be different."

Not only different but very different, everyone was eager to see what the paper would turn out like.

Li You said, "Continue working; I’ll wait outside." To avoid distracting them.

Manager Li instructed others to keep an eye on the paper-making process, while he accompanied Li You out of the room.

Once outside, Li You looked at the villagers of Chen Family Village standing in the Papermaking Workshop’s courtyard.

These common folks were all thin and dressed in rags.

Li You thought about the many corpses he saw from famine on his way; his heart tightened. Decades had passed since the fall of the previous dynasty, and the end of the wars seemed nowhere in sight.

"It was their medicinal herbs you used?" Li You asked.

Manager Li replied, "Yes, but it’s a little girl who presented the new formula."

"Oh?" Li You was slightly surprised.

Manager Li said, "That little girl is still working on the sizing fluid."

Li You was very curious, "Take me to have a look."

...

As Song Xian returned to the city from reviewing camps, Chang Yue’s person approached.

"Sir, Miss Xie went to the Papermaking Workshop, and Commander Li You is also there."