Drive to the Tang Dynasty, where supplies are refreshed daily!

Xiao Ran glanced at it and thought it was no different from tree roots.

A group of children gathered around to observe and chatter excitedly. Sun Simiao was in no hurry and just waited patiently with a smile.

The little princess discovered it first, and Sun Simiao deliberately squatted down to ask her, "Does Sizi know what kind of medicinal herb this is?"

The little princess shook her head very honestly.

After thinking for a while, Zhang Jinnian asked hesitantly, "Teacher, is this Anemarrhena asphodeloides?"

Sun Simiao was somewhat surprised. In his previous classes, he had mostly shown them pre-processed medicinal herbs, which were already sliced ​​and made easier to observe.

I've seen the complete ones, but many medicinal herbs look exactly like tree roots, making them difficult to identify.

He hadn't expected Zhang Jinnian to recognize him.

“You’re right, this is indeed the mother of wisdom.”

Zhang Jinnian scratched his head and smiled somewhat embarrassedly.

Afterwards, the group continued to collect herbs on the mountain, and at noon they ate their own dry food.

After lunch, Sun Simiao took out all the medicinal herbs he had collected and let the children identify them again to reinforce their memory. Then he went down the mountain.

The afternoon sun was shining brightly, and the air felt even more tranquil than before.

Even though they were descending the mountain, Xiao Ran felt a little sleepy as he felt the warm sunlight.

Not only Xiao Ran, but the little princess had already fallen asleep in Li Wu's arms.

Xiao Ran originally wanted to carry the little princess, but Li Wu was worried that it would be inconvenient for him to go down the mountain, so he carried her himself.

Upon reaching the foot of the mountain, the villagers, along with their children, thanked Sun Simiao and Xiao Ran. After all, without Xiao Ran, there would be no Sun Simiao, and no present-day Sun Simiao.

The villagers have always known that education is a good thing. Every time they come home and hear their children reciting their lessons, they are overjoyed. They are even more excited today after seeing their children's performance on the mountain.

Qin Shi even said directly to Zhang Mingde, "It's a good thing I didn't force Dalang to go out to study. I don't think even the teachers in the prefecture can compare to the teachers in the village, let alone the county."

Zhang Mingde smiled upon hearing this, with an expression that said, "I knew it would happen."

Zhang Jinnian really made Qin Shi proud today, so to reward him for his hard work in studying, Qin Shi specially cooked extra meat.

"Sizi, wake up." Xiao Ran walked to the little princess's room and gently patted her.

After coming down from the mountain, Xiao Ran went back to sleep.

He slept for almost the entire afternoon and was only woken up when it was time for dinner.

The little princess turned over groggily, then snuggled into her blanket and slept even more soundly.

"Sizi, if you don't get up soon, there won't be any good food. I made roasted mutton tonight, it's so delicious."

These words were incredibly effective. The little princess suddenly opened her eyes, rubbed them with her little hands, mumbled "I want to get up~", and struggled to get up. Xiao Ran smiled and helped her straighten her clothes, then took the boots from the side and squatted down to put them on for her.

Just then, Li Lizhi's voice came: "Young master, has Sizi woken up?"

Before Xiao Ran could speak, the little princess quickly said, "I'm awake~ I want Qi Youyou~"

The smell of meat in the room was so strong that the little princess could smell it as soon as she woke up.

Xiao Ran led the little princess to the dining table, where the square table in the main room was already filled with tableware.

The porcelain plate holds glistening, roasted mutton, steaming gently. Next to it is a dish of sesame cakes, their outer layers baked to a golden brown and crispy, revealing sesame seeds and fennel inside. The earthenware bowl holds rice, each grain distinct and exuding a delicate fragrance.

Li Lizhi ladled a small bowl of mutton soup from the table and pushed it toward the little princess.

The little princess picked up the little spoon and took a bite.

"It smells so good!" The little princess ate a sesame cake and a mutton soup, filling her belly to the brim.

After dinner, Sun Simiao went to put away the medicinal herbs, and Xiao Ran followed to help.

At this moment, the lanterns hanging in the courtyard emitted a warm yellow light, and the evening breeze carried a slight chill, rustling the sycamore leaves in the corner of the courtyard.

Xiao Ran looked over and laughed, "These leaves are quite resilient; they haven't all fallen off yet."

Sun Simiao glanced in the direction of the paulownia tree and said, "It's still early; the leaves haven't all fallen yet."

After collecting the medicinal herbs, Xiao Ran went inside, chatted with everyone for a bit, and then went to sleep.

The next day, as soon as it was light, Xiao Ran got up, did his morning exercise, and then went to eat.

After the meal, he first went to find Qin Huaidao.

"How's the lens cleaning going? Is that toothpaste effective?"

Qin Huaidao nodded quickly, "It's much better than tooth powder. Not only does it make the lenses smoother, but it's also easier to control."

As he spoke, Qin Huaidao handed the lens to Xiao Ran.

"I tested it yesterday, and I can now clearly see the mountain from here."

Xiao Ran was somewhat surprised, "Really?"

As he spoke, he tried it himself and found that he could indeed see the trees on the mountain.

“Not bad, not bad. Next, we just need to grind another one just like this one. However, I’m not entirely sure what shape it should be. I only know that it should be smaller than this one, just big enough to fit a person’s eye.”

Qin Huaidao nodded, carefully placed the lens, and then went to find Zhang Dalang to ask him to make a small round glass.

Cheng Chumo breathed a sigh of relief, "We finally succeeded. I've been working on this for ages."

Xiao Ran's eyes darted around, and he asked, "Do you want to come with me to get something else?"

Cheng Chumo asked curiously, "What are you doing? As long as it's not grinding glass, anything is fine!"

Xiao Ran smiled and said, "Let's make some toothbrushes. Can you help me get some materials? The handles need to be made of thin bamboo, and we need to choose sturdy ones. The bristles should be made of pig bristles, but we don't have any of those."

Upon hearing this, Li Ke, who was standing to the side, suddenly laughed.

"So, young master, you have nothing at all."

Xiao Ran was not ashamed, but rather proud.

"Yeah, otherwise we'd let you guys do the work."

Cheng Chumo patted his chest and said, "These are easy to handle. Leave them to me. I'll get them for you in less than an hour. I just don't know how many you need."

Xiao Ran thought for a moment, "We don't need too much bamboo, but we need more pig bristles. I'll go find Uncle Wu and ask him to go with you."

Cheng Chumo did not refuse. Collecting the items was simple, but transporting them back by himself would be somewhat difficult.

Xiao Ran looked at Li Ke and said, "Shall we two go get some bamboo?"

Li Ke nodded, and the three parted ways.

Xiao Ran and Li Ke arrived at the bamboo forest and selected a few green bamboos of moderate thickness. They were only responsible for selecting them, while others would naturally do the physical work.

After making his selection, Xiao Ran returned to the courtyard. He first cut the bamboo branch into two-inch-long sections, then used a knife to whittle one end into an arc shape. After that, he encountered a problem.

Seeing that Xiao Ran was not moving, Li Ke asked, "What's wrong?"

Xiao Ran sighed, "We need to drill a hole in this, a very small one. What are we going to use to do that?"

Before Li Ke could even speak, Xiao Ran had a sudden inspiration and remembered something.

"Wait, I need to go back first."

He remembered that he had repair tools in his vehicle. After all, he was driving a motorhome, so he naturally needed to have all sorts of tools. He had a toolbox with an awl that looked like a steel needle, but not as thin or sharp. It should be enough for drilling holes. If all else failed, he could just use wire, although that would take a bit more effort.

Xiao Ran went back and got two awls, one for him and one for Li Ke, but before they could even use them, Cheng Chumo returned.

His loud voice reached the heavens.

"Young master, I'm back!"

Cheng Chumo and Li Wu arrived carrying a large bundle.

When the bundle was placed on the ground, the pig bristles inside were exposed.

"Is this enough?" Cheng Chumo asked.

Xiao Ran nodded. "I reckon that should be enough."

There's no rush to get the bamboo now; the pig bristles still need to be washed clean, then disinfected and dried.

Soon, a large pot was set up in the yard, and servants washed the pig bristles. After washing, they put them in hot water to disinfect them, and then spread them out in a winnowing basket to dry.

Pig bristles are fine and don't absorb water, so they dry very quickly, and Xiao Ran and the others used this time to continue working with bamboo.

Cheng Chumo tried to cut bamboo like Xiao Ran, but he was too strong. After only a few cuts, the bamboo was crooked and he almost cut his finger.

"No, no, this is too delicate. I'll drill the holes myself!" Cheng Chumo threw down the knife, grabbed the awl, and started poking at the bamboo section. However, the holes he drilled were either crooked or of different sizes, making them unusable.

After struggling for half an hour, Cheng Chumo had a pile of bamboo sections in front of him, none of them of any decent quality. He angrily threw the awl on the table: "Fine! Fine! This isn't my job. My hand is almost bleeding from all the work. You guys do it!"

"What are you all doing?" Li Lizhi's voice came from behind, with the little princess and the others following behind.

As soon as she saw Xiao Ran, the little princess ran over to him.

"Little Bag~"

Xiao Ran was squatting on the ground when he casually put his arm around the little princess, then turned around and asked, "Where have you been all this time?"

Li Lizhi put down the basket on her back and said, "We're going up the mountain to help gather herbs."

Xiao Ran lowered his head and met the little princess's gaze. "Si Zi went too?"

The little princess nodded, "Mhm!"

Xiao Ran touched the little princess's face and found that it wasn't very cold, which put his mind at ease.

Seeing the bustling activity in the courtyard, Li Li questioned, "What are you all doing?"

Xiao Ran said, "We're making toothbrushes."

As they were talking, Li Lizhi noticed the bamboo in front of Cheng Chumo.

"This is."

Cheng Chumo scratched his head, "I'm clumsy, I've been working on it for ages and I still can't get it right, it's unusable."

Since she had nothing better to do, Li Li asked, "Is there anything I can help with?"

Princess Yuzhang and Zhang Erya nodded in agreement.

The little princess even raised her hand, "I'll help too!"

Someone brought over some low stools, and a group of people sat down around them.

The pig bristles are almost dry. Even if they're not completely dry, it's fine. They can be dried after the toothbrushes are made.

Xiao Ran taught the others as he worked.

Li Tai took the knife from Cheng Chumo and began to whittle the bamboo.

His hands were much more skillful than Cheng Chumo's. In no time, he had shaved a smooth, round bamboo handle, which made Cheng Chumo stare in amazement.

Li Lizhi picked up the pig bristles and, following Xiao Ran's instructions, tied them into small bundles with fine thread.

Princess Yuzhang asked, "Why do they need to be tied up?"

Xiao Ran explained, "The boar bristles need to be neatly trimmed, otherwise it will look messy when you wear it."

"I see."

When Princess Yuzhang asked, he didn't delay his work. He reached out and took a bamboo handle that had been made, threaded the bundled pig bristles through the small hole, and tied it tightly with a thin thread. His movements were very quick and efficient.

"I'll help too~" The little princess tugged at Xiao Ran's clothes, her big eyes full of anticipation.

Xiao Ran smiled and handed her a small bundle of pig bristles: "Sizi, can you help me tidy them up?"

Princess Gaoyang and Yan Yao San Niang were not to be outdone, and they both reached out for the pig bristles. In no time, the pig bristles on the table were scattered by them, which made everyone laugh.

Princess Yuzhang even joked, "I think you've come here to make things worse."

Despite her words, Princess Yuzhang still divided the pig bristles into small portions and handed them to them, saying, "Take your time to comb them; they can only be used if they are combed neatly."

Di Renjie also silently joined in to help.

Everyone had work to do, so Zhang Erya asked, "Is there anything I can help with?"

Xiao Ran thought for a moment and said, "Second Aunt, go and get the needle and thread. After the pig bristles are sewn on, they need to be secured with needle and thread."

Zhang Erya was skilled at this, so she quickly went back to her room to get needles and thread.

Cheng Chumo didn't have any fine work to do, so he helped move bamboo branches and hand over tools.

As the sun rose higher, more than a dozen finished toothbrushes were laid out on the table. Xiao Ran picked one up and handed it to Cheng Chumo: "Want to try it?"

Cheng Chumo looked up at the sun. "How about we try it again after dinner? We can't really figure it out now. I brushed my teeth this morning."

Actually, the main problem was that Cheng Chumo was hungry.

Xiao Ran nodded. "That works too."

A group of people had lunch, and then, without prior arrangement, they all picked up a toothbrush.

Xiao Ran even made small toothbrushes especially for Princess Chengyang, Princess Yan Yao, and the other children.

They used to use adult toothbrushes, since Xiao Ran didn't have any children's toothbrushes in his car.

Adult toothbrushes are a bit too big for children and can't fit in their mouths, but they're still better than willow twigs, so they make do with them. Now that we have a smaller one, of course we have to give it a try.

So at noon, a group of people stood in a row brushing their teeth in Xiao Ran's courtyard, and they even used the toothpaste that Xiao Ran and Sun Simiao made.

The little princess was different, because she always thought the toothpaste was "cow food" and strongly protested.

After rinsing his mouth, Cheng Chumo wiped his mouth.

"It works great! Much better than willow branches! Not only is it softer, but it also cleans much better."

Xiao Ran also thought it was pretty good. Although it couldn't compare to a soft-bristled toothbrush, it was still quite good.

Stretching, Xiao Ran let out a long sigh of relief, "Looks like our efforts weren't in vain."

Li Ke looked at the toothbrush on the table and said, "This is also an item that benefits people's livelihoods. Young master, have you thought about what to do?"

Xiao Ran waved his hand, "No rush, let's wait until the toothpaste formula is more stable."

Actually, Xiao Ran had a general idea in mind. Making toothbrushes was troublesome, but they were essential household items, so Xiao Ran didn't plan to do it himself, but instead thought of building a workshop. (End of Chapter)