Chapter 345: Gao Yiyes Idea
Chapter 340 of "The Great Ming in the Box" introduces the scene: The shipâs bottom cabin housed the battery compartment, filled with batteries that powered the entire... Keep going!
The shipâs bottom cabin housed the battery compartment, filled with batteries that powered the entire model ship.Solar panels were installed atop the cabin roof, connected to the batteries below via wiring through a âconstant current constant voltage charging circuitâ concealed within the cabin walls, allowing the batteries to recharge.
Of course, solar charging was inefficient and slow.
During voyages, the battery drained, and only when stationary could the charge increase.
Even so, it remained remarkably practical.
Cai Xinzi pointed at the ârudder wheelâ on the bow and laughed. âTry turning this.â
Li Daoxuan gently nudged the ârudder wheelâ with his finger, and the stern rudder rotated in response.
âSee? Perfect steering control.â
Cai Xinzi chuckled. âAt this scale, adding such features is childâs play! Haha.â
Li Daoxuan couldnât help but admire it internally. Measuring fifteen centimeters long, this shipâs size allowed Cai Xinzi to incorporate intricate detailsâfar surpassing what was possible with the earlier, tiny solar-powered cars.
âThis ship is exceptionally well-made.â Li Daoxuan patted Cai Xinziâs shoulder. âHey, Old CaiâIâd like ten more of this caliber.â
Cai Xinzi frowned. âFor collecting, one is enough. Why would you need ten?â
Li Daoxuan grinned mischievously. âThe garden pond in my villaâI plan to deploy these ships into a grand formation and stage a naval battle.â
Cai Xinzi rolled her eyes. âA grown man playing war games like a child? No wonder youâre still single. Youâve yet to mature. Follow my example: forsake childish pursuits, commit to romance. That is what matures a man.â
Li Daoxuan scoffed. âI prefer eternal youth. You? Youâve entered the tomb of matrimonyâyour time is over.â
As they bickered, a sudden realization struck Li Daoxuan: their squabbling mirrored the dynamic between Gao Chuwu and Zheng Daniu.
He opened his high school alumni group and typed: âClassmatesâfor over a decade, one question haunted me: what nicknames did you give me and Cai Xinzi back in high school?â
The class monitor instantly replied: âBig Fool and Second Fool.â
Li Daoxuan thudded face-first onto the floor. Orz.
After Cai Xinzi left, Li Daoxuan returned to the second-floor boxâleft hand balancing a plate of cold stir-fried instant noodles, right hand clutching the model ship.
Settling by the box, he pondered: The ship is ready, but its guns are dummies. Unacceptable. The Little People must forge real cannons soon to replace these replicas.
He needed an update on Gaojia Villageâs âRed Flag Cannonsâ project.
Time to locate Gao Yiye!
The lookout tower? Absent!
The fabric shop? Not there either!
After circling the village, he finally spotted her inside the Gaojia Business Circleâs brothelâjoined by Qiu Ju and Dong Xue, leisurely exploring the premises.
Alarmed, he exclaimed: âYiye! What are you doing in a brothel?!â
âOh, Deity! Youâre here!â Gao Yiye looked up brightly. âWeâre evaluating this building. Surely it can serve a better purpose.â
Li Daoxuan replied sternly: âThis structure shouldâve been demolished long ago.â
Gao Yiye countered: âQiu Ju and Dong Xue do advocate tearing it down. But I believe a building is just an inanimate shellâlike a knife. Used to chop vegetables, itâs useful; used to kill, itâs evil. The knife itself isnât wrong; the wielder is.â
Li Daoxuan chuckled. âWell nowâa budding philosopher!â
Flushing slightly, she protested: âDeity, donât tease me!â
He relented. âFine. What âgood purposeâ do you envision?â
Gao Yiye responded eagerly. âTeaching women practical skills!â
Puzzled, he asked: âBut we already have schools?â
âNot literacy, math, or scientific subjectsâskills like weaving, embroidery, tailoring, cooking.â
He finally understood: She meant vocational schools.
Gao Yiye continued: âMany village women now earn income through their skills, but many more remain untrained. Theyâre anxious. Several approached me desperate to learn, yet the artisansâ well district offers nothing suitableâtheir trades cater to men: blacksmithing, carpentry.â
Li Daoxuan connected the dots.
Indeed, Gaojia Villageâs women were awakening. They recognized skills meant financial independence and improved status but found no avenueâsince the artisansâ well prioritized male-dominated crafts. Departments for textiles, embroidery, or tailoring didnât exist. Learning required finding peers haphazardly. Hence, Gao Yiyeâs proposal: repurpose the brothel into a womenâs vocational school.
Li Daoxuan praised warmly. âYiye, thatâs brilliant. However, we shouldnât use the brothel buildingâits tainted symbolism may discourage learners. Instead⌠weâll erect a dedicated womenâs vocational school.â
Gao Yiyeâs eyes widened. âA technical school solely for women? Such⌠significance granted to us?â
The two brothel girls stood stunned. Though aware of the Deityâs compassion in freeing them from suffering, theyâd never fathomed a grand school elevating women as menâs equals.
Truthfully, Li Daoxuan envisioned a coeducational vocational schoolâhousing crafts for all genders. But given the eraâs restraints on women, segregation initially would ease their participation: an all-female environment mitigated hesitancy, encouraging entry. Graduation meant rebirth.
âLeave the school construction to me,â Li Daoxuan instructed. âNo more brothel visits. Head to the artisansâ well insteadâI request a report on our Red Flag Cannonsâ progress.â
Gao Yiye nodded obediently and strode toward the artisansâ well, trailed by Qiu Ju and Dong Xue.
Shortly, they arrived.
As Gao Yiye entered, every craftsman snapped alertâknowing her presence signaled the Deityâs scrutiny. Slackers scrambled upright, transforming instantly into models of diligence.