There are many ways to divide time, such as by year, month, day, or season. Han Cheng felt that the best way to divide time among these various divisions was between night and day.
Daytime is for work, and nighttime is for rest; it was a reasonable division.
But then came the invention of electricity, and with it, the person who stubbornly tried over a thousand times to invent a durable electric light. This reasonable division of time began to be severely disrupted.
Driven by capital and various other interests, the days grew longer, the nights shorter, and the time for sleep became increasingly shorter...
From this perspective, Han Cheng, living in a primitive society without electricity or electric lights, could indeed complain about those lights that shone as bright as daylight.
Of course, whether this complaint stems from the "sour grapes" feeling of someone who couldn't get those lights is uncertain.
As night fell again, Han Cheng, without guilt, abandoned tasks like copper smelting, half-reclining on the bed with his wife, feeling the growing strength of the life inside her, with a face full of joy.
This had become Han Cheng's nightly routine since he learned that Bai Xue was pregnant.
The happiness he felt in these moments was indescribable...
For someone close to giving birth, it’s best not to sit or sleep for long periods; they should stand up and move around. This helps during labor and reduces the suffering during childbirth.
Giving birth is like walking through the gates of hell, especially in primitive times, and for a first child.
Han Cheng didn’t want anything bad to happen to Bai Xue or their baby, so he took these matters very seriously.
With his limited knowledge about childbirth, he tried his best to minimize the risks.
Bai Xue obediently picked up a bamboo basket to collect mulberry leaves. Han Cheng thought momentarily, then followed her, taking the basket from her and carrying it himself.
Of course, his wife and child should be cared for by him. As for the copper smelting, it could wait a little longer. After all, it was something that couldn’t be done in a short time, so there was no need to rush it.
Looking at Bai Xue Mei, who was so happy to be with him and wanted to jump up, Han Cheng felt that his decision was correct.
At this time, the mulberries were nearly ripe. When exposed to sunlight, the small, bumpy fruit had a reddish tinge on one side and white on the other.
The mulberries at this stage weren’t very tasty. They were sour and astringent with a bit of a raw taste, and compared to the ripe, sweet-sour mulberries, they were quite different.
Han Cheng ate two but couldn’t stomach more. Bai Xue, however, showed no signs of stopping. She kept eating one after another, enjoying herself immensely. Seeing this, Han Cheng couldn't help but salivate.
It wasn’t because he was craving them but because they were sour.
Indeed, a pregnant woman can't be judged by common sense.
Bai Xue liked sour things, which wasn't too unusual.
What was strange, however, were those who developed unique cravings due to pregnancy.
Some people like the smell of gasoline, others like the scent of old houses...
For example, one of Han Cheng's colleagues from his later life had a wife who, during her pregnancy, loved to go near other people's pigsties and watch the pigs salivate uncontrollably.
At first, the colleague thought his wife was craving pork, so he quickly bought some and prepared it carefully. But after she ate just two small pieces, she stopped eating.
After repeatedly asking, he found out she wasn’t craving pork; she was craving pig food...
After the bamboo basket was filled with mulberry leaves, the mulberries on the tree were all gone, but Bai Xue stared longingly at another tree, clearly reluctant to leave.
Han Cheng couldn't stand this look from her, so he picked more mulberries, wrapped them in a large tree leaf, and handed them to Bai Xue.
Han Cheng carried the bamboo basket and walked ahead, with Bai Xue following. They ate mulberries and delighted in every bite.
Han Cheng swallowed his saliva for a long time, realizing it would be difficult to get more ripe mulberries in the tribe this year.
After returning to the tribe and helping Bai Xue feed the silkworms and take care of the "household matters," Han Cheng finally called for Hei Wa to discuss the construction of a new copper smelting furnace.
The "vat" for smelting copper needed to be specially designed. A hole must be left at the bottom of the vat so the melted metal can flow out.
The lower the hole was, the better because the lower the hole, the cleaner the copper liquid would flow out.
According to this standard, the hole should be placed at the bottom of the vat.
However, after some thought, this was not feasible, so they decided to place the hole on the side of the vat, as close to the bottom as possible.
After some thinking, Han Cheng had an idea for the slag, taking advantage of the fact that slag is lighter than copper liquid.
Of course, it wasn't feasible to scoop it out little by little with a spoon. That would be too slow and dangerous and wouldn't guarantee the slag was fully separated.
Han Cheng's solution was quite simple: He would add another hole slightly higher than the first one on the opposite side of the ceramic vat. This way, the slag, which floated on top of the copper liquid, could be drained out, leaving only the copper liquid behind.
With these two outlets, the large vat for smelting copper could be reused, unlike the previous day, when they had to destroy it after each use.
The fire in the furnace was easy to solve; they could replace the bricks with yellow mud and clay.
These highly heat-resistant materials wouldn't melt like bricks in high temperatures.
After some discussion and sketching on the ground, the two finally settled on the design for the specially made ceramic vat.
From there, the rest was up to Hei Wa.
After specializing in pottery for several years, Hei Wa's skills became increasingly refined, and he had long surpassed Han Cheng, who brought pottery into the tribe.
Watching Hei Wa make pottery now was truly a visual delight.
It seemed to come to life with well-prepared clay in his hands, responding perfectly to his movements. The clay quickly transformed into the desired shape.
The entire process could flow like water, with each movement as smooth as an expert's command.
Before nightfall, a specially made ceramic vat over 1.5 meters tall and with a bottom diameter of more than 60 centimeters appeared in front of Han Cheng.
This vat was different from the usual ones. The middle and upper part was slightly thinner than the top and bottom, giving it a shape somewhat resembling a flower vase.
This unique shape was created when, during the design process, Han Cheng suddenly recalled seeing a brick chimney at a steel mill from a distance that occasionally emitted white smoke.
Although he didn't know its purpose then, Han Cheng figured that since the structure had been built this way in later times, there must be a reason behind it. So, he decided to use this design without hesitation.