She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 514 - 512 - Trial

Chapter 514: 512 Chapter Trial

Jiang Yifan, though he was the Master County Magistrate in charge of the entire Qingyuan County, was regarded by the poor common folk as a figure high above. Yet, the Master County Magistrate had been visiting the Qi family so often over the past two years, especially this year, with frequent visits to inspect the workshop’s experiment progress. Thus, the craftsmen had grown accustomed to Lord Jiang’s presence in the workshop.

In light of all this, when the Magistrate Sir came to inspect the civilian workshop in Clear Water Village, no one took the trouble to set up a desk and chairs for Lord Jiang in the workshop.

Jiang Yifan could only stand in the center space the craftsmen had voluntarily cleared out, leading his two servants, just like Ye Xinyan and Zhou Biyao, waiting to witness the experiment of lifting heavy objects with the Chain Inversion Device.

At that moment, the workshop was bustling; all the craftsmen had stopped their work, gathering together, waiting to see if this wooden contraption could really lift things up.

Song Ping’s Household frowned, often casting disdainful looks at the big shots present in the workshop, deeply concerned about Second Miss being in such a noisy environment. But since the Second Miss was the official in charge of the workshop, she couldn’t stop her from coming.

Moreover, she was well aware that even if she thought the Second Miss didn’t necessarily have to come in person, the Second Miss certainly wouldn’t listen to her anyway. She could only follow the Second Miss closely, making sure she stayed as far away from the craftsmen as possible.

All she could do was constantly watch over the Second Miss, instructing Bi Ning, Jiu Yue, and the other four maids to surround the Second Miss, to prevent her from being touched or bumped into by these rough men.

As for herself, she stood alongside Nanny Zhong, behind and to the side of the two young misses, vigilantly watching their surroundings, daunting the craftsmen nearby with stern looks.

Ye Xinyan didn’t mind the worries of Song Ping’s Household; this was her turf, and if she were to be jostled here, wouldn’t that be a humiliating embarrassment?

Instead, Jiang Yifan glanced around the empty space around Ye Xinyan and was very satisfied with Song Ping’s Household’s protective measures and their effectiveness.

Zhou Biyao was tense, clutching Ye Xinyan’s sleeve tightly.

She had great confidence in Sister Qi, but after all, this was something the world had never seen before, and she couldn’t help worrying. According to Third Brother Wong, if this thing could be made, it would have a wide range of large applications; it could save a lot of effort for the craftsmen and speed up the construction progress. Since the device, with such vast utility, was created under the leadership of Third Brother Wong and involved her own hard work, her nerves were strung tight, afraid that the experiment would not succeed.

Wong Qiao and his two assistants, surrounded by twenty or thirty craftsmen and Ye Xinyan, Jiang Yifan, and others, were slowly pulling the iron chain, retracting the hook to its lowest position, and checking the transmission of the Chain Inversion Device.

After assuring everything was intact, they hung the lifting chain on the gantry frame.

Wong Qiao’s expression was quite relaxed as he smiled and asked Ye Xinyan, "Ye Zi, shall we begin now?"

He had already tried moving the Chain Inversion Device up and down the previous day, and the transmission was very smooth. It was just that the Chain Inversion Device as a whole was small, and the wooden parts inside were even more flimsy; he feared these thin wooden components wouldn’t withstand the friction and the pull of heavy objects, which was why he hadn’t hung anything on the hook yet.

Now what they were about to test was hanging a bucket on the hook to see how smoothly the Chain Inversion Device could lift a heavy object and whether the reverse braking would work. In other words, during the process of lifting the heavy object, whether the object would uncontrollably slide down, commonly known as chain slipping.

Ye Xinyan, of course, knew that the Chain Inversion Device had been fairly successful, and as long as the wooden parts were replaced with metal ones and after some adjustments, it would definitely work.

Coming here a bit earlier than planned was just to let Jiang Yifan, the workshop owner, see for himself, and by the way, to send a message to Jinrong that although the Chain Inversion Device didn’t have any effect yet, the silver they had invested hadn’t been wasted. This was a project with potential, worthy of investment.

It also served to bolster the confidence of the craftsmen in the workshop who were skeptical, letting them know what exactly it was they were creating, and that it was worth the considerable time they were dedicating to it. It was especially critical for their morale during the lengthy process of perfecting the iron components to come, so they wouldn’t become disheartened or inefficient.

When Ye Xinyan saw Wong Qiao ask, she turned to Jiang Yifan, giving Magistrate Sir some courtesy. "Lord Jiang, Wong Qiao and the master craftsmen are ready. Shall we try it now?"

Jiang Yifan, who had originally come just for the spectacle, felt a touch of nervousness after being formally asked by Ye Xinyan.

Ah Yan had returned from the capital at the end of February, and nearly three months had passed since then. During these three months, Ah Yan, Second Miss Zhou, Wong Qiao, and a dozen other craftsmen had devoted nearly all their time to the Chain Inversion Device. Only now had they managed to construct a wooden model. This test was crucial; it would determine whether the combined efforts of so many people over three months were worthwhile and would certainly affect the morale of those involved.

Jiang Yifan’s face broke into a smile and he said to Wong Qiao, "Are you prepared? If so, then let’s give it a try. If it is successful, that would be great; we’ll have a celebration feast and really commemorate the occasion. Even if there are still flaws, we’ll still have a grand meal, gather our strength, and continue to improve."

Zhou Biyao nodded repeatedly, easing the tension in her heart, "Right, right, we must have a big feast after the test, absolutely!"

Ye Xinyan looked at Jiang Yifan with surprise. She hadn’t noticed before, but this man indeed had leadership qualities. He delivered his scene-setting speech so smoothly, quite stirring.

And the most critical part was the celebration feast and the big meal... who would pay for it? She had already instructed the kitchen to improve the meal for the day, but if someone was willing to foot the bill, she was more than happy to save that expense.

When Wong Qiao heard what Jiang Yifan said, he looked at his two assistants with a smile and addressed the craftsmen around him, "Did you all hear what Lord Jiang said? Today, we must succeed with the device to live up to Lord Jiang’s expectations."

Ancient wooden buckets had some heft to them. For the first trial, Wong Qiao didn’t dare to hang anything too heavy, so he added just two ladles of water to the bucket and signaled an assistant, "Start lifting."

The craftsman slowly pulled the iron chain. The chain was quite long and the worker had to switch hands twice, pulling down a considerable length before the hook holding the bucket moved up even slightly.

Even though the bucket had only risen a bit, Wong Qiao felt a surge of joy in his heart. These slender wooden components inside the iron shell were actually able to bear several pounds of weight.

As the craftsman continuously cycled the pulling of the chain, the bucket gradually lifted higher and higher, until it reached the top. The craftsman, holding onto the chain, looked toward Wong Qiao.

Should he let go now? Although he didn’t feel any weight on his hands, he still didn’t dare to release his grip, fearing the bucket might fall. Damaging the bucket was a minor issue, but if the wooden core of the Chain Inversion Device was damaged, that would be a serious problem. That would undo the efforts of so many people over several months.

Wong Qiao took the chain from the hands of the craftsman and tried pulling in the opposite direction, then slowly let go. The bucket remained suspended under the gantry frame, perfectly still.

Excited chatter from the craftsmen instantly filled the workshop. Wong Qiao and his two assistants exchanged smiles.

Turning back, Wong Qiao looked at Ye Xinyan with a beaming smile and said, "Ye Zi, we did it, the chain is loose, and the heavy weight doesn’t fall. The braking mechanism works."