Campbell was walking among a large row of wooden bulletin boards in front of the dormitory. These wooden bulletin boards were painted with simple and vivid black and white images using a technique he had never seen before.
And their names were written in a font that was vulgar by the standards of the royal capital's aristocrats and not fancyly decorated, but clear, concise, and powerful in the eyes of the workers who had just learned the alphabet.
This kind of writing allowed Campbell, who had just finished learning it, to see it very clearly, and he didn't have to half-read or half-guess which letters those fancy writing methods were.
In this way, he can focus on the work of matching the pronunciation in his mind with part of the word.
There is no doubt that knowledge was once monopolized and writing was once the privilege of the upper class. They invented many decorative methods that were meaningless for fast and accurate reading, and even full of counterproductive methods to highlight their status.
For Polu's current purpose, using this writing method to popularize education can be said to be a waste of time.
However, at the beginning, Polu, who was preparing the night school teaching materials, had no idea about these people who had knowledge from the old era and their thoughts and pursuits.
He asked Little Irene to find a literati from the royal capital, and the main purpose was to ask him to help transcribe Bolu's messy drawings, and write wherever he thought. In essence, the time when Bolu was exposed to this kind of writing
It's not too long either.
The work is complicated and time-consuming, but at its core, it's just a human typewriter.
This person is called Dongkini. He always wears washed and faded robes. He is not bad-hearted, but he always has a subtle sense of superiority like a person from the royal capital. He walks with his chin raised slightly, as if he wants to use his nostrils to see the road.
, the look on his face seemed to say: "After leaving the royal capital, everything else is countryside."
After he saw the words drawn by Polu, which was like a dog holding a quill, he said to Polu, "Have you read the book?"
Poru nodded slightly.
He said: "After reading the book... I will give you a test. How do you write the root of an adjective?"
Polu: "?"
He turned away and ignored her.
Dongkini waited for a long time and said sincerely, "Can't you just write?... I'll teach you, remember! These words should be remembered. When you make a report in the future, you will need to use them when writing accounts."
Polu thought to himself: "I don't know how to write a report myself. This matter has been left to little Irene."
Funny and impatient, she answered him lazily, "Isn't there a long circle drawn out by a long pen at the bottom of the word?"
Dongkini looked extremely happy, tapped the long nails of two fingers on the counter, nodded and said, "Yes, yes!... There are four ways to write long round pens, do you know?"
Soon, because the charcoal pen could not write the gorgeous cursive characters like the nobles of the royal capital, Boru, who could not project it, became furious: "What does it mean to make four bends at the end!? Just draw a flower.
Come on!"
But Dongkini showed an expression of admiration: "I really want to meet such a calligrapher!"
Soon, Dongkini took the salary and travel expenses he deserved and returned to the royal capital. But Polu made up his mind, what kind of four-curved cursive script he wanted! Damn your decorative lines! Decay!
Behind! Inefficient!
Then he spent some time and directly cut the cursive font into a thick black sans-serif font. If you don't know what a sans-serif font is, you will understand after looking at Helvetica.
Back to Campbell, he was reciting silently in front of a wooden board with particularly obvious rabbit ears: "Bald...rabbit..."
Suddenly a hand patted his shoulder, and an overly enthusiastic voice sounded: "So you are here! Stop being in a daze! Let's go! Go to the river to watch the fun!"
Campbell raised his head, which was a little dizzy from reciting too hard: "Warren, it's you! It scared me. How exciting? Comparable to a bowl of broth? Don't delay me from completing today's task of memorizing words! Soup in the evening
Will you pay for it?"
"I heard that the big iron ship is going to be put into the water today! Hurry up, everyone is rushing over there now. If you don't leave, there will be no place to stand!"
"What! So fast!?" Campbell suddenly became interested. He quickly put away the paper roll, which was as rough as tree bark. On it was written his section's recitation task for today. As the crowd poured out of the dormitory, it was like a tide.
They were generally rolled out and swarmed along the wide road to the river.
Soon, everyone could see the large, strange-looking iron ship with a shiny metallic luster, half of which had fallen into the pit and half of which was exposed on the ground.
"When we first started digging this pit, we didn't expect it could be used to build ships." Warren clicked on the pit that was not too big or too small.
The pit is about 5 meters deep, and there is a series of steel brackets inside, supporting a shuttle-like hull that may be about 10 meters long and only 3 meters wide.
Both ends of the hull are pointed, and one end has two flat surfaces fixed on brackets, which seem to be able to swing.
The strangest part is the two strange circular parts in the middle of the hull. These circular parts are composed of spokes and iron plates fixed transversely to the spokes.
"Campbell, do these two big wheels look like tractor wheels?"
"It looks quite similar. Is this for paddling?"
"Can the water be rowed like this? Can such a big boat be rowed?"
"Don't talk about it. Whether it can float or not is still a question! I believe this iron basin can float if it is filled with water. Can this iron boat be made of such a big piece of iron?"
"I saw that you didn't listen well in class! You definitely won't be able to get the sausages this month! The iron ship can float if its mass is heavier than the water it pushes!"
"When did you talk about this? No! I have to take tutoring lessons when I get back!"
Bolu stood at the other end of the dry dock, looking at the dark crowd opposite, and was a little caught off guard: "What's going on? The dock is just filling with water today, and it's not leaving the port. Why are there so many people here?"
"Come and see the excitement! If such a big iron thing is thrown into the water, everyone wants to know whether it will sink or float."
"I can definitely float, but I'm not sure whether I can run or how fast I can run."
"Didn't you ask Leonardo for a test?" Leah was a little surprised: "Why don't you know how fast you can run?"
Having said this, Bolu couldn't help but recall that day a month ago.
"Ah, stop talking, you ruined all my experiments. Thinking about it makes me want to die!"
When Polu thought about that day, he felt a splitting headache.
"Leonardo! Beckron, are you free? I need your help with something!"
"I'm free! What's the matter?"
Soon, the three of them came to the river beach near the old factory. Smith was waiting here with a few workers. There were two small things that looked like bathtubs beside them.
"What is this?"
"Biologically capable bathtubs. Bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah. I want to try which style is more suitable in this river. You can just pick one. By the way, can you all swim?"
"Armor or no armor?"
"?"
"You can still float in the water wearing full armor?"
"You can't float if you float, but you can still move forward with a little strength and a little fighting spirit." Leonardo said matter-of-factly.
"Your society, society." Bolu's face turned pale with fright. The horsepower is powerful enough not only to fly, but also to swim?!
"Don't wear armor, quickly pick one of them into the water, and let me finish the experiment."
These two small bathtub-like experimental boats have no roof and only a hull made of steel bars and thin steel plates welded together. One is slightly wider and has a pointed end. The other has a narrower rounded end.
.
The shape of the bottom of the boat is also slightly different, one has a V-shaped bottom, and the other has a flat bottom with a slight arc.
There are two seats in the center of the hull, with simple steel pipe backrests and an armrest that is also welded from steel pipes.
Under the seat, there is a regularly twisted twist-shaped iron rod, which is connected to the circular dials on both sides of the hull. The twisted position naturally forms the position of the footrest.
When you see this, do you feel a little familiar?
If you have ever gone boating with a girl on a park lake without a girl or a gay friend, then you must have recognized what this is.
That’s right! It’s the one in the park shaped like a swan! The so-called love boat!
However, this crude imitation does not have the graceful roof of a swan. The two-meter-long hull is completely exposed, revealing the structure of the keel and iron ribs.
"Wait! Beckron, you go to the narrow boat. We'll use the wider boat. Here, here's this hourglass for you. According to the rhythm, you can only step on it 120 times to turn it over. Don't step on it more."
Polu thought for a moment with his toes, indicating that the two of them chose the fat boat with a round nose. He also put on a wooden life jacket and followed, while Backlund was assigned to the narrower pointed boat.
"Well, if I don't step on it, it will be a counterweight, so it's very balanced." His plan was perfect.
"Let's try going upstream first. I've measured the speed of this water flow. It's not too fast. As long as we don't go to the middle of the river, it should be fine. Start from here and turn around where there are three big trees over there, and then don't
Step on it and float back naturally along the water, still at this starting point. Wait for me to record the time, and then repeat the route just now, still at the same point. After turning around, you step back hard this time. Is that okay?"
"I understand, I understand, let's get started!" There seemed to be a hint of expectant excitement in Beckron's tone?
The three of them stepped into the hull of the small boat. Polu took out his small hourglass and motioned to the workers to loosen the rope.
"Let's go! The timer has started!" He turned over the small hourglass.
Leonardo easily stepped on the crankshaft, turning the dials on both sides, and the ship began to move.
At first, Beckland and Leonardo were still pedaling the boat normally according to the agreed rhythm, and the boat gradually moved upward at an unhurried speed. The pointed boat gradually overtook it slightly.
"Why are you so fast!" Leonardo shouted loudly!
"Bah! You are so fast! My head is pointed! There is little resistance!"
Polu really admired the physical strength of these two people. They were going against the current and were about to reach a turning point. Their faces were not red, their hearts were not beating, and they were not even breathing.
"It's a bit impressive. Although it's only not far from the shore, I thought it would be difficult for this thing to overcome the current speed of the water."
The first round of the experiment was completed normally. Polu wrote down the results of his measurements on a wooden board. He stepped on the hourglass 120 times each time. Judging from the relative positions of the two boats, it was indeed easier when the pointed boat went up.
a little.
Although the conditions are very unrigorous, and there is an extra counterweight like himself, this is just an experiment to see if the wheel can go upstream. After all, there is only a calm lake in the park. Bolu has never seen swimming against the river.
I'm not sure if the paddle steamer can move forward. As long as it can run, the other conditions are pretty much satisfactory.
Although the wheel is as big as a dining table for four people, the two reckless men seemed to have no trouble stepping on it. With their legs paddling easily, the bow of the boat split through the oncoming waves and headed towards
Going upstream, the two even sang a song with a strange melody together.
At this time, Polu said something that later made him want to beat himself to death: "If you feel particularly relaxed, you can go faster."
"Haha! Sit tight!" Leonardo suddenly became excited. The hull of the boat suddenly froze, he seemed to adjust his posture, and stepped hard. Before he could react, Polu felt the seat under his butt tighten.
He jumped forward, and a force pushed him onto the backrest.
"???! What do you mean? Wait!"
Can you also play with this kind of outing bathtub and have a push-back feeling?
An emotion of regret mixed with fear forced Polu to hold on to the handrail in front of him. Just as he was about to stop all this, the bow of the boat suddenly raised, breaking open the white waves, and foam mixed with them flew out from both sides of the boat.
.The water splashed by the wheel hit Polu's face under the influence of strong wind.
In just a split second, Polu saw Backlund's boat sliding past him as if it were reversing, and fell behind.
"Leonardo, you are playing dirty again!" Beckron's shout came from behind, followed by the sound of paddles pumping water that suddenly became intense. The two bathtubs suddenly transformed into racing boats.
, a crazy chase on the water.
Polu felt that the hull of the ship had raised its head, and the crankshaft under his feet was rotating so fast that he could not see clearly. There was no need to exert any force at all, and it even made him keep swinging, as if he was about to jump up from his seat. The crankshaft was clanging.
I knocked on his heel a few times, almost crying from the pain.
It didn't work anymore, he couldn't keep his feet up, so he could only withdraw his feet from the crankshaft.
He wanted to shout stop: "It's too fast! Kick quickly..." Another wave of waves hit his face, blocking the words "stop now".
The river water choked his throat, and he coughed crazily.
At this time, Polu saw from the corner of his eye that Backlund had bent down, his body burning with raging fighting spirit. The dial had already rotated, leaving an afterimage, making a loud noise like a propeller plane. The dial pushed the water from his body.
It was thrown far away from behind and flew more than ten meters away!
"It's over." Bolu closed his eyes in pain.
"Dead."
When he begins to look back on the past, will he feel regret for wasting his years because of his inaction? Will he feel guilty for being despicable and living a mediocre life?
Suddenly, a floating feeling caused by weightlessness rushed into Boru's heart. He opened his eyes and saw that the bathtub he was in was like a real speedboat, jumping from one wave to another with his head raised.
It moves like a drifting water.
"..." Bolu was too shocked to comment, and could only silently feel the buzzing sound of the dial next to him.
We are about to reach the turning point, ha! We have to slow down now! Polu was about to breathe a sigh of relief when he saw Leonardo standing up from his seat.
He grabbed the handrail and made a turning gesture like that of an Olympic sailing competition. He stretched the hull of the boat at an angle, and his whole body hung outside the boat, his butt wiping the water as he completed the turn.
"..." You don't have to be so cruel, right?
He turned around and found that Backlund had also entered the bend, drew an arc and wave wall in the same way, and turned around.
Polu was already numb, and waves of weightlessness hit him. When he came to his senses, he found that only the stern of his boat seemed to be in the water, and the other parts had taken off almost flat. He touched his own to avoid death.
The amulet is still around my neck.
"Do you think I can still be saved?"
The bathtubs flowing down the river were almost turning into ground-effect aircraft. Gradually, gradually, the finish line was approaching. Leonardo suddenly stood up, put on a bicycle racing figure and shook violently in front of the finish line.
Car sprint action.
The speed suddenly increased again.
Bolu let go of the death-saving amulet he was holding tightly: "It's hopeless. It's no longer needed. Leave it to those who need it." He thought to himself.
Backlund's bow gradually emerged from behind, and he also made the same gesture. The bow of the boat was exposed out of the water, and the paddle wheels at both ends slapped the water with such force that most of the bottom of the boat was exposed.
"Ahhhhh!"
The roars of the two muscular brothers echoed on the river. The workers on the shore watched the fierce competition and cheered excitedly!
From the moment it accelerated, the hull of the boat made a creaking sound, and Bolu was surprised: "The two iron bathtubs that are so crudely made are actually so strong. They have persisted until now and have not fallen apart."
As soon as he finished milking himself, the seam was stretched open, and a majestic water column spurted in. Before Polu could react, the collapsed hull structure was torn into two pieces by the huge impact and scattered.
Fly away.
"!" Bolu flew uncontrollably in the air and watched the mudflat by the river getting closer and closer.
"I bombed the river beach too much. Is this going to be retribution?"
He closed his eyes and calmly prepared to face the moment of hitting the ground.
Suddenly he felt himself being caught again. Before he could figure out what was going on, he felt himself shake violently. His face went numb and his ears buzzed.
It seemed to be getting dark, and a stream of muddy water mixed with the smell of mud went straight into his nose, mouth and ears. He desperately began to pull with his hands and feet, trying to dig himself out. With a gasp, he felt that he was coming from something.
The thing was pulled out, and air poured in again from the wide-open mouth.
Only then did he realize that he had been caught by Leonardo and was now lying on the mudflat by the river. On the ground in front of him was a huge black hole that was filling back with water. It seemed to be his head.
shape?
"I, Ni Ma, have too much water in my head, so I asked you two for a test!"
Cursing fiercely in his heart, Polu breathed in the fresh air greedily and collapsed on the river beach.