The old things I repaired have become fine

Chapter 604 Cut it down! Disobedient cultural relics must be cut down! Shen Le, tell me where to cut!

"Help me!"

"Boss, please help!"

Professor Han, still groggy, fumbled for his phone and swiped it open. He'd only listened to two sentences before his anger flared. Help?

What are you trying to save?

Do you need me to save you from failing your exam, or do you need me to save you from not having enough papers to write?
My students, those who put in even a little effort, all have a GPA above 3.5, if not 4.0, and each of them has accumulated three, four, five, or even six papers.

Shen Le has provided you with such excellent conditions!

You have the entire laboratory to use, and all the equipment is at your disposal. You don't need to queue with outsiders!

Even the cheaper reagents, he doesn't charge for them anymore!
No, that voice screaming for help sounds like Shen Le!

"What's wrong?" Professor Han sat up abruptly, gripping his phone tightly.
"What happened? What trouble have you gotten into? Where do you need my help?"

As he asked the question, his heart pounded. To be honest, he was completely out of control of the trouble Shen Le was causing. He was just an ordinary person with no special abilities.

However, when his own students encounter difficulties, he will do everything in his power to help them—if he can't handle it, there's still the department, the college, and the university. Even the top two universities can't handle it, and there's the country behind them!
"Boss, I need tutoring!" The voice on the other end of the phone sounded utterly miserable, as if it wanted to beat its chest in despair.

"I only realized how many things I don't know after leaving you! You only realize how little you know when you need it! I don't know any of your special skills! I'm completely clueless about estimating the height and length of buildings!"

"Please let me come back! Please let me catch up on my studies!"

Professor Han let out a long sigh. Then, he launched into a tirade:
"I told you to study hard, but you wouldn't! I told you to practice, but you slacked off! See, now there are problems when you need to use them—don't assume that equipment can be used all the time!"

Shen Le listened attentively. He rolled up his sleeves, began packing his things, bid farewell to the professors at the research institute, and prepared to fly to Huacheng to go to his boss's construction site.

I had just finished getting ready and heading out when I bumped into my supervisor, who was rushing over on the earliest flight:
"You mean, you saw Hanyuan Hall with your own eyes?"

Professor Han gripped Shen Le's shoulders, leaning forward abruptly, his eyes gleaming. Judging from his expression, if he could possess Shen Le and access his memories, the old professor would not hesitate to leave his body.

"Are you sure what you're seeing is the real Hanyuan Hall in history, and not something you're dreaming about?!"

"I think so..." Shen Le tried hard to search his memory to explain to his mentor:
"During my restoration process, there is a certain chance that I will see the memories that the owner of the artifact has condensed into the object..."

If the owner of that armor really did visit Chang'an and go to Hanyuan Hall, then I think what I saw was real…”

He counted on his fingers, slowly explaining to his mentor. The garrison duty on the beacon towers, the battles in the desert, the trek across mountains and valleys, the ten-month journey along the Uyghur Road, all the way to Chang'an…

"Why can't I see it?!" The two sat down in the studio, and the mentor slammed his fist on the table in frustration, his eyes red. Hanyuan Hall!

That's Hanyuan Hall!

Daming Palace and Hanyuan Hall embody the essence of the glorious Tang Dynasty and stand as a monumental achievement in architectural history!

Later palaces like the Qianqing Palace, in terms of grandeur and the prosperity of a prosperous era, are utterly insignificant compared to the Hanyuan Hall! They're miles ahead!

Which scholar specializing in ancient building restoration wouldn't want to see and touch the Hanyuan Hall with their own eyes and hands...

"Uh, boss, seeing this memory comes at a high price... I've knelt down countless times..."

"Kneel? Kneeling is fine too!" Professor Han waved his hand dismissively, his voice resolute:
"If kowtowing a few times will let me see the Hanyuan Hall, I'll do it every day! If kowtowing a hundred times a day will let me do the surveying, I'll bring all my colleagues and students with me!"

Shen Le found it both amusing and deeply relatable, and couldn't help but nod. Kowtowing to the emperor was unacceptable;
I wouldn't hesitate for even a second before kowtowing to Hanyuan Hall; I'm not a professional in ancient building restoration!
They asked me if I could increase the price tenfold, or even the quantity tenfold! Fivefold would be fine too!!!

"By the way, what did the Hanyuan Hall look like to you?"

After the initial excitement subsided, Professor Han immediately began asking questions. Shen Le slowly turned on his computer and pulled up the sketch he had drawn.

The old professor glanced at it only once, then his brows furrowed deeply. He decisively spread out his notebook, grabbed a pencil, and began:

"You tell me, I'll draw!"

"Uh... the size and shape of the platform are correct, roughly the same as in archaeology..."

"Three tiers of steps lead up to the hall... The Dragon Tail Path winds its way forward from the east and west pavilions..."

“Interlocking beams…front and rear purlins…upper eaves column heads…inner groove column heads…corner brackets…”

Shen Le racked his brains, desperately trying to recall. He could remember some parts, but for others he could only give a rough idea or gesture with his hands, saying things like, "This is roughly what I saw," or "The proportions seemed a bit wider."

Then, he watched as his tutor, with a stack of papers and a pencil, like a policeman drawing a suspect's portrait, painstakingly pieced together the Hanyuan Hall from his memory!

Shen Le was utterly impressed. He was, after all, a graduate of a top-two university, and although he hadn't succeeded in the civil service exam, his professional expertise was certainly on par with his seniors.

But seeing the mentor's skills made me realize what professionalism and competence truly mean.

With a casual stroke, a horizontal line is a horizontal line, a vertical line is a vertical line, and all kinds of beam structures and the layers of brackets can be drawn at will.

Can't remember what you saw?
Come on, let your tutor draw a few for you to choose from!

One spoke, the other drew. Half a day passed, and Shen Le's throat was dry from talking. Finally, a magnificent palace appeared on the paper.

Professor Han looked left and right, his brows still tightly furrowed, clearly dissatisfied.

"Do you... still have a chance to see it?"

I'm not sure either. I've already exhausted all the memories of this armor, belt, and boots...

Shen Le's words were on the tip of her tongue, but meeting her boss's expectant gaze, she hesitated to utter them. After thinking for a moment, she answered uncertainly:

"Maybe……"

The remaining spear, half of the breastplate, and other things that might be unearthed in the future—maybe we can take him to see Hanyuan Hall again?
Even without Hanyuan Hall, there's Daming Palace; even without Daming Palace, there's Chang'an City; and even if Chang'an City is no longer visible, there might still be other memorable buildings—

In short, it's always good to have more skills!
"So what do you want to learn? Visual estimation? Hand drawing? Or—"

"Let's learn visual estimation first!" Shen Le stared at his instructor expectantly, practically begging for his attention.
"Boss, back then in the Daming Palace, I couldn't estimate its height and width just by looking at it. I regret it so much..."

Laser scanners aren't always available to help with the work!
Sometimes, you can't rely on anything, not even your thumb, and you have to use the lateral movement of your fingers to measure distance!
"Ah... this often relies on experience..." Professor Han thought for a moment, looking somewhat troubled:

"Fine, come work for me. After a while, you'll understand... This requires hard work, do you really want to learn?"

"Really, boss! Please teach me! If I still can't draw Hanyuan Hall next time I see it, I'll regret it to death!"

"But even if you drew it, it wouldn't be the Hanyuan Hall recognized by the academic community." Professor Han's old eyes fixed on Shen Le, his already aging gaze sharp, almost piercing Shen Le's heart.

"You've put so much effort into learning this, so you can only keep this diagram and model to yourself and look at it for fun."

"You'll never get published in journals or conferences, and you'll never find experts to repair or rebuild the model you present—in that case, why would you want to learn?"

"I still have to learn." Shen Le nodded seriously without hesitation.
"Boss, I'm learning this not for anyone else, but for myself—so that I won't regret it next time I see it. Besides, I actually succeeded..."

He suddenly smiled slyly, his eyes sparkling:

"Working backwards from the answer is much easier than starting from a pile of foundations and ashes and working backwards without knowing anything, right?"

Professor Han shook his head helplessly, but his face showed delight. He patted Shen Le on the shoulder and turned to leave.

"Alright, then come with me. After you've built Hanyuan Hall and Weiyang Palace, just remember not to mention that I taught you..."

"Oh, boss, it seems a bit too late to give this instruction now..."

Shen Le obediently shouldered his luggage and went with his mentor to the construction site for further training. As they walked, Professor Han began to instruct Shen Le:
"First, you need to be familiar with your stride length and be able to control the stride length of each step to be even... If you can memorize your stride length, you can measure the length by walking through the Dragon Tail Path once..."

I understand the principles, but the problem is, it's not like understanding them automatically means I can do them. Shen Le silently groaned as he began practicing according to the old professor's instructions:
How long was that section of wall?

"Ah, I'll go through it again!"

How long is this brick?

"20? 22? 25? Let me measure it..."

"Remember the length of your palm! The length of your fingers! How long is a span! Use the length of your hands and feet to measure the length of the bricks, then count the bricks. This is a very simple and effective measurement method!"

How high is the eaves of that roof in front?

"Ah this..."

Shen Le raised her fingers as instructed by her mentor:

"Let me estimate..."

Training, training, grueling training! For the Daming Palace, for the Hanyuan Hall, we'll give it our all!
During the day, I assisted the boss, integrating various training methods into my daily work. At night, I would immerse myself in picture books, diligently memorizing and drawing.

Copy it!

Just draw it!

You must be like your mentor, memorizing all the details so that you can draw them without looking at a book, and sketch them in your mind with your eyes closed!
Only in this way can we avoid struggling to distinguish which form is which when we see the actual ancient buildings, and have the energy to remember these details!

Shen Le worked hard under Professor Han's tutelage for two months, diligently carrying out every training exercise with unprecedented enthusiasm.

Two months later, the project came to an end, and the old professor finally asked everyone to leave.

"I've taught you everything I could—at least for now. The rest is up to you to practice. Let's go, let's go!"

"May I ask for your name?"

"...Get lost!" Shen Le rolled away, looking back every step of the way. The first thing he did upon returning home was to don his armor again, put on his helmet, pinch his nose, slip on his boots, and try to connect with them:

"Please take me to see the Daming Palace one more time! I'm willing to start from the beginning! I'm willing to walk the Uyghur Road for ten months! Please!"

"I'll even kowtow to you if I can!"

Unfortunately, it doesn't work. Whether it's the armor, the helmet, or the boots, the memories sent out don't have a replay function.

Once you've cleared the game, you've cleared it; you can't do it again.

Shen Le tried everything: feeding them heat, untying the leather straps and re-attaching the armor plates, dusting and oiling the boots, and even actually bumping them. But nothing worked.

Ugh, it's terrible...

Will I ever see the Daming Palace again in my lifetime?
Or, I should try collecting some cultural relics from the Tang Dynasty and restore them myself, taking a gamble.
Shen Le sighed. He had tried every possible method, but to no avail, so he had no choice but to get to work and hope that the next piece of this set of armored weapons would give him a satisfactory answer.

The armor was mostly repaired; all that remained were the spearhead and the half-section of the wooden handle that had been pulled out of the desert.
"Hmm, this difficulty level isn't too high at all..."

Shen Le breathed a sigh of relief and rolled up his sleeves to get to work. The spearhead was made of iron, and the handle was made of wood; he already had a well-developed plan for repairing these things.

Basically, there's not much to worry about. Clean the ironware, remove the rust, and fill it with metal-based energy; remove the wooden handles, throw them in water, add nutrient solution to promote growth, and you're done...

Up...

Up...

Shen Le stared at the junction of the wooden handle and the spearhead, speechless!
It was supposed to be just a wooden handle!
The agreement was that we would just insert the wooden handle into the hollow part behind the spearhead, then nail a wedge to secure it, and that would be it!

It was supposed to be a mass-produced, most common, and cheapest weapon for infantry!

Why would anyone stuff things in a place like this? Even if they're not afraid of losing it, is it really possible that this spear, because it's so cheap, will get damaged or broken and just be thrown away?

Shen Le stared intently at the CT images. Fortunately, he was cautious enough to take a safe approach; even though the object was clearly visible at a glance, he still put it through the CT scanner.

Of course, the initial purpose was to detect flaws and identify where there were large cracks or damages on the spearhead, so that extra care had to be taken when disassembling it.

Then, he disassembled himself and found something strange:

"What's inside? It's tiny and has a really strange shape..."

He patiently used a fine needle and knife to carefully pick and pry at the spearhead and handle bit by bit. The wooden handle of the spearhead had become very brittle over time, and a piece could easily collapse if too much force was applied.

The fixing wedge, with a cross-sectional area of ​​less than one square centimeter and a length of less than five centimeters, took Shen Le a full half hour to remove. He then held the wooden handle in both hands and offered it as a sacrifice to the side.

"Come here, let me see what you really are..."

He probed his mental energy into the spearhead, enveloping and supporting the strangely shaped unidentified object.

By slowly tilting the spearhead, and ensuring that the unidentified object is subjected to force evenly without deformation, it was "invited" out.

Under the light, after just one glance, I couldn't help but cry out in dismay:

"How am I supposed to fix this?!"

The thing in front of him—well, it could only be called a thing—wasn't even immediately recognizable to Shen Le. Only after careful observation several times did he begin to piece together its structure:
This is a knife.

Or rather, it used to be a knife.

The blade is thick and heavy, with a sharp back. Even after a thousand years, faint traces of blood still remain on its edge.

However, hidden inside the spear shaft were just a few pieces of jumbled scrap iron, forged, glued, or welded together—in short, a small clump...

If it weren't for the extremely rough adhesion, you could still see the original appearance of those scraps of iron. Even if Shen Le racked his brains, he probably wouldn't have been able to figure out that it had once been a knife.

"Alright, now we need to restore it to its original state." Shen Le sighed deeply. He sent the small mass of the steel knife's remains to the CT scanner for a re-scan, gritting his teeth and encouraging himself:

"I can do it!"

"I can do it!"

"At worst, we can activate the resonance again and again, gather all its fragments, and then repair it!"

He started by repairing the spear. After removing the contents, the spearhead was indeed very easy to repair, and it didn't take Shen Le much time.

However, it was the spear shaft itself that caused Shen Le a lot of trouble. The nutrient solution that was poured in simply wouldn't be absorbed by it, or rather, the absorption was extremely slow.
Not to mention the speed of growth. Shen Le threw dozens of growth spells into it, but the half-rotten spear shaft hadn't even finished filling in the loose parts inside.

Shen Le sighed and struggled, observing the tissue with a magnifying glass, preparing slides, and taking photos of cross-sections, orthogonal sections, and tangential sections under a microscope. Finally, she posted the photos in the group for help.
"Senior brothers and sisters, please help me! Does anyone know any forestry experts? Can you take a look and tell me what kind of wood this is?"

A long silence followed. Then, the PhDs Shen Le had met in the south who were involved in the ship repair project began to offer their opinions:

"This isn't the kind of person I know."

"I don't know him either."

"Looking at the morphology and cell arrangement characteristics is beyond my scope of knowledge."

"Where did you find it?"

"In the Taklamakan Desert..."

Shen Le sighed. A moment later, two words popped up in the group chat:

"Poplar trees?"

Having a direction is good. Shen Le followed the clues, flipped through a bunch of documents, and sighed deeply.

Populus euphratica, truly a poplar tree, lives for a thousand years without dying, stands for a thousand years after death, and doesn't rot for a thousand years after falling—

These large trees are of great importance for soil and water conservation in desert oases, but even they are ruthlessly cut down and made into spear shafts—a short-sighted approach that drains the pond to catch all the fish…

Back then, the four garrisons of Anxi were in such a precarious state...

Now that they knew it was Populus euphratica, things became much easier. Shen Le consulted a lot of information and sought advice from the local special affairs bureau staff—of course, through them, he consulted experts from the local forestry bureau.

Then, a nutrient solution specially prepared for poplar trees was started, and spells were cast into it:
"Grow! Grow! Grow! Grow taller!"

The handle of the poplar spear grew vigorously. This kind of tree grows very slowly in the arid desert environment; it takes at least seven or eight years to grow to the length of a spear.
However, when there is sufficient water, or rather, with artificial irrigation and care, they can grow to two or three meters tall within two or three years.

At this moment, it was soaking in a long water tank, with buckets of nutrient solution being thrown in one after another. The tree trunk was even growing so fast that it seemed to have lost all sense of proportion.
"Don't grow leaves! What are you doing growing leaves for! Just grow back to your original shape, like a spear!!!"

He tried his best, constantly communicating. But Hu Yang just kept sprouting new branches and growing new leaves, his main message being: "I won't listen, I won't listen, I just won't listen," and his replies were disjointed and incoherent.

These giant trees that grow in the desert can withstand hundreds of years of drought and have their roots extending more than 20 meters into the ground, demonstrating their unyielding spirit.

At this moment, the fact that it didn't pierce the water tank with its roots was already a favor to Shen Le, or rather, it meant that Shen Le had added enough nutrient solution to the water tank...

Shen Le's forehead was covered in sweat. He went from waving his hands above the water tank to pressing them into the water, and then lunging forward to grab the spear handle tightly.

His left hand gripped the copper plate and pressed it against the spear shaft, while his right hand, glowing green, desperately channeled heat into it.
"Are you going to listen to me or not! If you don't, I'll cut off all the newly grown parts and make you grow them all over again!!!"

The copper sheet hummed. Under the strong pressure of the copper sheet, the poplar wood spear handle finally stopped sprouting side branches, leaves, and bark, and began to grow obediently forward.

Shen Le waited patiently for more than ten minutes. When he pulled it out of the water, it had become a long, beautiful spear shaft, and even the characters branded on the shaft were clearly visible:

"Liu Ada"

"Zhao Shiyi"

Xu San

"Wang Agou"

The handwriting was layered, some large, some small, some neat, some messy, some crooked, and some even missing parts.

Shen Le gently stroked the dark brown characters, lost in thought for a long time:
Are these the names of its previous owners?
It was passed from one person to the next... Was its previous owner promoted or transferred to another team?

Or was he crippled, or did he sacrifice himself?

The wooden handle lay quietly in his hand, silent and offering no memory. Shen Le stared blankly for a while, then snapped out of it and flew into a rage:
"Why are you growing leaves again! You want me to cut you down?!"

[Shave! It absolutely has to be shaved!]

Peel it!

A sapling won't grow straight if it's not pruned, and a child won't be witty if he doesn't make jokes!

The little ones started cheering from all directions. The little puppet even jumped to the side of the cabinet and struggled to carry over the black knife that Shen Le had bought for cutting the copper seal, with a blade length of thirty centimeters.

Holding the survival knife, which was half its own height, it swayed and handed it to Shen Le:

Here! Slice it!

Shen Le: "..."

Is it possible that even if I were to carve it, I would have to do it on a lathe? With such a heavy survival tool, I simply wouldn't be able to control it and wouldn't be able to carve out a perfect shape?

While he was still lost in thought, a whooshing sound came from beside him as Xiao Modou swung over, wielding his lead weight.

He slumped down beside him and began directing the knives, axes, planes, and chisels in the box:
[Shen Le! What shape do you want it to look like? I'll do it!]

(End of this chapter)