Chapter 24: The Great Way Is SimpleIn fact, this awl was exactly like the ones people in later generations used to alter clothes. When Fu Xuechen was young, she had seen her own grandmother use one. It was just that the entire awl body was too slender—not only did it require a wooden handle to be attached, but the tip of the wooden handle also needed to be carved into a conical shape, like a pencil, to encase the awl’s point.“Yes, yes! Absolutely perfect!” Fu Xuechen repeatedly praised Master Liu, earning a warm smile from him.With the brush, ink, and paper all resolved, the remaining tasks were not difficult. It was simply a matter of a shallow wooden box to hold the paper, paired with a recessed square frame above to secure the waxed paper, making it convenient for the ink-coated roller to pass over. All these tasks could be handed over to the carpenter who had arrived.After all the instructions were given, Yang Qian, seeing that Fu Xuechen had no further requests, invited the two to go to the outer office for tea while they waited.However, Fu Xuechen was unwilling to leave. In just this short moment, the carpenter had already crafted a uniformly thick wooden roller and a short handle. Now, following Fu Xuechen’s description and requirements, he was drilling holes at both ends of the wooden roller to embed metal bearings.Watching his skilled and swift movements, Fu Xuechen couldn’t tear her eyes away. She wanted to witness firsthand the creation of the ink roller she had envisioned. Even Yunzuo was curious and eager to see the finished product, so he declined Yang Qian’s invitation and stood beside Fu Xuechen, watching intently.Yang Qian’s invitation was merely a polite formality. Having spent his entire career in the Ministry of Works, shuttling between the ministry and the workshops, how could he possibly mind the various peculiar smells in the workshop or the busy craftsmen? Since the two youngsters declined tea, he was more than happy to accompany them.Before long, the apprentice Little Sun, who had gone to fetch the waxed paper, and the craftsman who had gone to retrieve the smooth square copper plate both returned to the printing workshop.The copper plate had already been polished smooth. All it needed was an additional layer of chemical solution to become a mirror-like surface. Without that step, it was merely smooth—insufficient for use as a mirror, only capable of reflecting a blurry outline.In truth, the hardness of the copper plate was not quite sufficient. Using an iron stylus to etch the waxed paper on it would likely leave many fine scratches after not too many uses, unlike a steel plate, which could be used for a long time without leaving marks. Fortunately, Fu Xuechen only intended to use it temporarily and could later find a way to replace it with an iron or steel plate.The actual appearance of the waxed paper differed somewhat from what Fu Xuechen had imagined—it seemed a bit thicker. However, when she tried scratching it with her fingernail, the effect was similar. Where the fingernail scraped, the thin layer of wax would be removed, leaving a white scratch mark—the paper underneath.Whether it would work or not could only be determined through testing. Taking advantage of the gap while the iron stylus and roller were still being made, Fu Xuechen had Little Sun cut the waxed paper into A3-sized sheets. She also asked Master Liu to bring over the ruler—a triangle ruler and straightedge of this era—to draw squares and grids on the copper plate.Originally, these squares and grids should have been drawn on the waxed paper. Unfortunately, the waxed paper had already been prepared, missing this step. It could only be compensated for on the copper plate. However, the waxed paper was not transparent enough, making it somewhat straining on the eyes to ensure each character was written within the grids.After a while, the grid on the copper plate was finished, the waxed paper was cut into a thick stack of A3-sized sheets, and the carpenter had already polished the wooden roller and handle smooth. Following Fu Xuechen's instructions, he was now making the wooden shaft for the iron pen, which looked like it would be completed soon.As for the awl that would replace the iron pen's core, it had also been polished to a smooth, ballpoint-pen-like roundness. Once the iron pen was ready, the next steps would involve wrapping the wooden roller with smooth, tanned cowhide, installing the metal frame, and finally crafting the wooden box and frame.Almost done! Fu Xuechen was excited. She personally took the finished copper plate, picked up a sheet of waxed paper, carefully smoothed it over the copper plate, folded the excess edges to the back, and secured it with another copper plate.Yang Qian watched all this, his frown deepening as he vaguely grasped something but couldn't quite pin down the idea.Yunzuo curiously leaned close to Fu Xuechen's ear and whispered, "What are you making?"Fu Xuechen reached up to rub her itchy ear, then turned and leaned close to Yunzuo's ear, breathing warm air as she whispered back, "I'm making a printing press!"A printing press?! Yunzuo's eyes widened in shock. He jerked his head back, nearly bumping noses with Fu Xuechen. His mind raced through records of Mohist Mechanisms. By its name, could this so-called printing press be like Lu Ban's mechanical bird—something that would print on its own once built?Seeing his exaggerated expression, Fu Xuechen couldn't help but roll her eyes. What was he thinking? He looked as if he'd seen a ghost.The iron pen was finished. Fu Xuechen took the newly made pen, feeling that the shaft was too thick and straight, not as comfortable to hold as the slightly curved pens of later times, but it didn't matter much. Eagerly, she found a table, immediately pulled a storybook from her pocket, and began using the iron pen to trace the text from the first page onto the prepared waxed paper.At first, she wasn't quite used to it and applied too little pressure. Fortunately, having often signed receipts and documents that required carbon copies with a ballpoint pen in her previous life, she quickly mastered the right pressure—neither too light nor too heavy—and smoothly wrote neat, orderly characters onto the waxed paper.This was the first time since her transmigration that she had written in hard-tip script using a pen-holding posture, and she felt particularly pleased. Throughout her school years, her penmanship had been praised by many teachers and classmates for its elegance and neatness. Now, finally able to show it off, she was even happier.Yunzuo followed closely behind her, watching her produce this beautiful script—completely different from brush calligraphy, with strokes as sharp as iron hooks and silver lines yet not stiff—and his eyes were practically glued to the page. He never imagined that without carving knives or printing blocks, just using waxed paper and an iron pen, she could write lines of text two sizes smaller than carved characters, yet just as neat and aesthetically pleasing as block-printed words."You're carving characters on waxed paper… Are you using waxed paper to make printing blocks?" Yunzuo watched for a long time, both amazed and somewhat puzzled. "But the characters on printing blocks are reversed. With your method, aren't you carving them wrong?"Fu Xuechen carefully wrote the Arabic numeral "1" in the bottom right corner of the waxed paper, which was now filled with text, marking the page number. She smiled smugly and said, "It's not reversed! You'll understand once you see what I do next!"After waiting a while longer, the carpenter finally finished the roller, along with the wooden box and matching wooden frame.Fu Xuechen was delighted. She instructed the apprentice, Little Sun, to place the cut white paper into the wooden box, then secured the engraved waxed paper to the bottom of the wooden frame. Finally, she carefully pressed the entire frame tightly against the white paper and fitted it into the wooden box.It had to be praised—the carpenter’s craftsmanship was truly excellent! As expected of a skilled artisan affiliated with a state department, the dimensions, appearance, and texture of each finished piece were all just right, making them a pleasure to use.If perfection were the goal, these wooden items should have been lacquered, but Fu Xuechen couldn’t wait. Once the white paper and waxed paper were in place, she immediately had Little Sun bring over the pine oil ink. Using the roller in her hand, she evenly coated it with ink and pressed it firmly onto the waxed paper inside the wooden frame, rolling it back and forth once.Finally, she carefully lifted the wooden frame and saw that the top sheet of white paper in the wooden box was neatly printed with text, exactly identical to the characters engraved on the waxed paper!Even better, this wasn’t the cheap, easily smudged ink of later eras but the expensive ink used in block printing. Once the ink dried, its fragrance and cleanliness were indistinguishable from block-printed books!Fu Xuechen inspected it and found no flaws. Satisfied, she removed the successfully printed sheet of white paper, replaced the wooden frame, and continued rolling the inked roller to print the next sheet. The process was incredibly convenient—each sheet took only seconds to print—and it was oddly satisfying, making it hard to stop.What she didn’t notice was that everyone watching behind her was utterly stunned!Yunzuo, however, looked enlightened. “So that’s how it works! No wonder there’s no need to carve the characters in reverse—I understand now!”All the craftsmen wore expressions of shock and bewilderment, their minds seemingly blank.Yang Qian, on the other hand, looked as if he had been struck hard on the head. He stood there dumbfounded, swaying slightly, muttering incoherently, “It’s like this?! It can be done this way? How is this possible?! But… but it really works! Printing can be this simple?! No need for block printing, no movable type, no need to learn reverse carving… just a sheet of waxed paper and a stylus…”“Heavens! Heavens! Is this the simplicity of the great way? This truly is the simplicity of the great way!” Yang Qian’s voice grew louder, almost shouting, his face flushed with excitement, his arms raised as if thanking the heavens.At that moment, Fu Xuechen, who had turned to look at him with a puzzled expression, transformed in his eyes—from the initially annoying brat, to a mischievous troublemaker, to a teachable youth, and finally, into a lovable, once-in-a-millennium genius!Fu Xuechen was momentarily bewildered by Yang Qian’s frenzied reaction before gradually realizing that perhaps, just perhaps, her makeshift printing setup, cobbled together on the spot, had an impact on this era far beyond her imagination.Seeing Yang Qian's face filled with fervor, as if he were about to pounce, Fu Xuechen quickly and warily gathered the wooden box, ink, iron pen, and waxed paper into her arms. She ducked behind Yunzuo and declared, "Chief Yang, thank you for your cooperation today. It's getting late, and we must return. We'll come again tomorrow! We'll take these crude and immature little things with us without ceremony!"Yunzuo turned and saw her urging expression, then understood with a start: "Yes! If we return too late, I'm afraid my Emperor Father will reprimand us. We must take our leave now!"The two exchanged a knowing glance and bowed to Yang Qian in unison before hastily making their way out."Ah! Wait! Wait!"Yang Qian hurriedly tried to stop them, but as an old man with slow reactions, how could he keep up with two youths? By the time he chased them out of the workshop, Yunzuo and Fu Xuechen had already mounted their horses, handed the items to their attendants, and disappeared from the workshop in a flash.

The Prince Does Not Compete for the Throne