In the classroom, Yu Zhi held "Ingenious Solutions" in his hands, reading intently.

The chatter of his classmates around him was constant, whether they were asking each other where to play after school or discussing the upcoming provincial examination. Each had their own topic.

Sunlight slanted through the window lattice, the noise slipping past his ears.

Yu Zhi paid no mind to it all.

He was completely immersed in the world of "Ingenious Solutions," strangely achieving a state of "two ears oblivious to affairs beyond the window."

The only unfortunate thing was that what he was reading was not a "sage book," but merely a book for entertainment!

The pages flipped over, and the wind rustled them with a rustling sound.

Yu Zhi read to a scene where a farm boy visits the protagonist at night.

The protagonist, Meng Zhou, upon hearing that the river's water level had dropped, making it difficult for crops to be irrigated, and seeing the farm boy before him covered in dust, looking pitiful, couldn't help but feel a sense of sympathy.

"Alas." Yu Zhi shook his head and sighed.

He was sighing over the protagonist Meng Zhou's excessive kindness in the book.

Why bother with this?

There weren't many good people in this manor.

Many of the villagers had been influenced by Meng Zhou's stepmother, secretly giving him cold stares.

A sage once said: "Repay resentment with virtue, then how does one repay virtue?"

What was Meng Zhou going to do?

Then they saw Meng Zhou pick up a brush, working through the night, producing dozens of drawings in a row.

And these dozens of drawings, when assembled, pointed directly to one thing: a dragon bone waterwheel!

Initially, Yu Zhi and the farm boy in the book were just as bewildered by the dragon bone waterwheel, seeing without understanding.

Until Meng Zhou emphasized once more:

"Aman, if you trust me, take your father, find the Ministry of Works in the county, hand over ten taels of silver and these diagrams to ask for their help in constructing the dragon bone waterwheel.

When the waterwheel is completed, you will naturally realize its effects."

Aman hesitated and said, "Ten taels of silver? Brother Meng, I... I don't have ten taels of silver."

Meng Zhou said, "I have ten taels of silver. I can lend it to you for now. Once you go to the Ministry of Works, they will definitely reward you.

After you receive the reward, remember to bring the exact amount back to me, and consider it repayment for my assistance this time."

Aman was surprised, never expecting Meng Zhou to be generous enough to directly lend him ten taels of silver.

At the same time, he was a bit confused.

Meng Zhou meant that when Aman went to the Ministry of Works and received the reward, he should bring it back to Meng Zhou to repay the favor.

But, wasn't the reward originally supposed to belong to Meng Zhou?

No, that's not right, why would the Ministry of Works give a reward?

Since the Ministry of Works would give a reward, why would they charge ten taels of silver to build the dragon bone waterwheel?

Aman was bewildered, full of doubts.

For a moment, his head felt as if it were entangled in a mess of confusion.

Instead, as an observer, Yu Zhi, reading the book to this point, vaguely understood Meng Zhou's purpose in spending the ten taels of silver.

Yu Zhi's emotions began to gradually boil, feeling as if there was a flame burning inside him, filled with anticipation for the upcoming plot.

Sure enough, Meng Zhou said:

"Aman, the ten taels of silver are not the payment for the Ministry of Works' service, but the stepping stone for you to enter the Ministry of Works. Ha..."

He chuckled softly.

Outside the story, Yu Zhi suddenly felt a thrill through his body.

Yes, the ten taels of silver are the stepping stone!

In the book, the Ministry of Works was the department overseeing all labor affairs across the realm.

Somewhat similar to the Ministry of Works of the Great Li Dynasty.

But in the world of the book, ingenious craftsmanship is exceptionally revered, thus the status of the Ministry of Works was even more esteemed than that of the Ministry of Works in the Great Li Dynasty.

The protagonist in the book, Meng Zhou, had been exiled to the manor by his father after his legs were broken, already fallen to the lowest.

Just with a pair of crippled legs, he had no chance of turning his life around in the manor.

Even if the villagers treated him with respect, what did it matter?

At best, he would just muddle through life in the manor, wasting his days.

But Meng Zhou had cleverly seized the opportunity, willing to give up his last savings—

Ten taels of silver.

To push Aman, the village boy, to go to the Ministry of Works.

The ten taels of silver were not the real bet to enter the Ministry; they were just a stepping stone to drive the errand runners of the Ministry of Works.

Meng Zhou's real bet was his full set of dragon bone waterwheel diagrams!

Reflecting on this, Yu Zhi couldn't help but feel his heart stir.

If Meng Zhou could gain the Ministry of Works' recognition with the dragon bone waterwheel diagrams, thereby escaping the Meng family's mire, what would ten taels of silver matter?

As for the cold stares he once received in the manor, they would matter even less.

The dragon does not dwell among the snakes.

When walking the great path, why would one become angry over an ant by the roadside casting a sideways glance?

So that's how it is!

Yu Zhi couldn't help but slap his thigh, exclaiming forcefully: "Good! Good, good, good! Hahaha..."

He laughed heartily and without restraint.

While laughing freely, he suddenly felt something was off.

It was an indescribable feeling of tension and excitement, like a thorn in his back.

Yu Zhi couldn't help but feel his heart tighten, suddenly snapping back to reality: Oh no, he was still in the classroom!

Although the present time was a break, it was not yet the end of school.

The teacher, the teacher was still in the classroom...

Yu Zhi's heart thumped loudly, feeling as if his heart was about to leap out of his throat.

He realized everything around him was silent.

All his classmates, he didn't know when they had all fallen silent.

A pair of eyes, filled with pity, filled with sympathy, filled with condescending ease... or perhaps schadenfreude, were looking at him.

As if all saying: "You're in trouble, kid, heh heh heh..."

Yu Zhi's throat tightened, his neck stiffened, yet he couldn't help it.

So he turned his neck inch by inch, looking towards the aisle beside him.

Then, he was caught off guard, meeting a stern, cold face.

"Ah!" Yu Zhi let out a scream, narrowly avoiding kicking over the stool beneath him and falling to the ground.

Suddenly, a pair of hands reached over.

They snatched the storybook from Yu Zhi's hands without warning.

Yu Zhi couldn't help but let out another "Ah," he was about to panic, the story was at its exciting point, he still wanted to read the follow-up, there were at least thirty more pages!

If Master Yuan were to confiscate his book, he was reluctant to spend another 300 wen to buy another book.

As they say, desperation gives courage to the timid.

Yu Zhi's inner struggle was fierce, almost daring to directly ask the master to return his book.

But then he heard the master sneer coldly: "Was it good?"

Facing the look of his classmates as if he were a hero, Yu Zhi, bracing himself, said, "Master, it was good."

"Ha!" Master Yuan sneered again, "I must see this for myself..."

With that, he flipped a few pages back from the one Yu Zhi had just been reading.

Then, his hand stopped abruptly as he was flipping through the book.

His brow furrowed tightly.

"This..." Master Yuan's face showed a look of surprise.

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