HMIME Chapter 20: The Responsibility of Technological Advancement is Entrusted to You

Bai Lu pondered the events of that day and still felt somewhat uneasy. He gestured with his hands, “The iron you usually use, do you not burn your hands with the charcoal inside?”

Xiao Yue hesitated for a moment, subconsciously tucking her hands into her sleeves. She hesitated, “Young Master, occasionally it burns, but what’s more important is the master’s clothes…”

“No, no, no, hands are more important, especially for a lady, it hurts a lot,” Bai Lu thought for a moment with his clever little brain, “Right, why don’t you add a cover to the iron? That way, the charcoal won’t fall out.”

Xiao Yue smiled and said, “Young Master, the craftsmen have tried that, but after adding a cover to the iron, the charcoal inside quickly extinguishes, and it’s not hot enough to iron clothes evenly.”

“It’s simple, really. The cover blocks the oxygen, so the charcoal extinguishes. Just add a few holes to the cover to allow airflow, and the charcoal won’t extinguish.”

Xiao Yue listened with confusion, feeling like a kindergarten graduate suddenly sitting in a university classroom. She asked in bewilderment, “Young Master, what’s oxygen? I don’t understand.”

Seeing her bewildered expression, Bai Lu couldn’t help but feel a little smug. As a normal man, he was very willing to show off his not-so-rich knowledge in front of the opposite sex, after all, who doesn’t want to be admired?

Despite Bai Lu usually being low-key, he was actually quite arrogant inside. Although he always said he disliked the limelight, every time he won a competition, he thoroughly enjoyed the cheers of the audience and the appreciative flying kisses from the cheerleaders.

In the end, he was just an ordinary man who cared about his reputation.

Bai Lu enthusiastically explained, “Oxygen is something very important in the air. Our breathing depends entirely on it. Without oxygen, people suffocate to death, and all animals in the world need oxygen to survive.”

Xiao Yue nodded, “I see, I completely don’t understand, Young Master…”

“Anyway, just tell the craftsmen to make a cover with holes, at least it will ensure that the charcoal won’t fall out and burn your hands.”

Although Xiao Yue still didn’t quite understand, she obediently thanked him and left.

Geng Qing stared at him thoughtfully from the side. After Xiao Yue left, he spoke, “Brother, I’m interested in what you said about oxygen. Like you said, all animals need oxygen to survive, but is there oxygen in water? How do fish survive?”

The question suddenly escalated, and Bai Lu was a little overwhelmed. “Uh, well, there is oxygen in water…”

“But people can’t stay in water for long, they’ll drown.”

“Um… well, fish are different from people. They can absorb oxygen from the water.”

“Is that so? How do fish do that?”

Bai Lu was a bit frantic. How would he know how fish do that? Why don’t you ask the fish!

Geng Qing seemed particularly interested in this knowledge. He asked another question, “You said earlier that charcoal needs oxygen to burn, but fire isn’t a living thing, and I’ve always been curious, why can we see fire but not touch it?”

“Um…”

Bai Lu didn’t know either. Although he graduated from high school and got his diploma, once he left school, he left everything in his head to the teachers. Remembering that charcoal needs oxygen to burn was already pretty good. How could he remember that fire is just a chemical reaction and not a substance?

He could handle showing off his knowledge in front of Xiao Yue, but when faced with Geng Qing’s relentless questioning, Bai Lu’s limited knowledge couldn’t keep up.

So Bai Lu simply patted Geng Qing’s shoulder and said solemnly, “You should study more in the future. Maybe the heavy responsibility of technological advancement and opening a new era will fall on your shoulders.”

Geng Qing: “??? Are you trying to rebel? That’s a capital offense. Although I can’t accompany you in life and death, rest assured, I’ll definitely burn incense for you on Qingming Festival!”

Bai Lu: “…”

Are your ancient people always this strong in reading comprehension?

In the evening, Bai Lu told this story as a joke to Chu Ya, who smiled faintly. “You say something like opening a new era so casually, of course, you’ll be considered to have rebellious intentions. It’s just that you, after saying such words, can still come out unscathed. If it were someone else, they would probably have been arrested on charges of treason.”

Bai Lu, dressed in a snow-white thin robe, sat on the edge of the bed, leaning against the bedpost. He ate the sweet and soft pudding cakes, grumbling unhappily, “Your palace rules are too strict. You have to be careful with your words and actions. Saying the wrong thing can be life-threatening.”

“You don’t need to be careful with your words. After all, if you say something wrong, I’ll bear it for you. But being cautious is necessary. Just like during the day, if something of unknown origin isn’t stopped by Ling Feng, you’ll just eat it. What if it’s poisonous?”

Bai Lu stuffed the pudding cakes into his mouth, licked his fingers, and retorted, “What do you mean by of unknown origin? Xiao Yue made them and gave them to me. Humph, I think you’re jealous, because no girl has ever made you food.”

Chu Ya squatted down by the bedside, pulling Bai Lu’s hand and carefully wiping the crumbs and sugar frosting from his fingers with a damp handkerchief, cleaning them meticulously from the fingertips to the crevices.

He seemed to sigh, “I’m a bit jealous. When you’re with them, you always seem so happy, but you don’t want to stay with me. You even wait until after curfew to come back.”

If Bai Lu always treated him like this, it would be fine, but he had experienced three years of sweet love, tasted Bai Lu’s closeness and smiles, and couldn’t bear such a huge disparity.

Chu Ya’s lonely expression made Bai Lu inexplicably guilty. Feeling guilty, he subconsciously boasted.

“It’s not my fault, you’re busy every day, and last time I went to the Qingya Palace to find you, you tricked me into sitting on the Empress’s throne. Besides, don’t you have three thousand concubines? Do you need me? Oh, and a few days ago, your Lady Mei Gui even wanted to hit me!”

Chu Ya stood up, looking helpless. “The harem wasn’t my idea. Without an Empress, the harem can’t be disbanded. If you don’t like it, you can come and be the Empress.”

“Pah! Who wants to be your Empress? If it were General, I might consider it, but who has an ex-boyfriend as an Empress!”

Chu Ya calmly said, “Strictly speaking, we haven’t broken up.”

Bai Lu widened his eyes in disbelief. “Damn it, you almost killed me with one shot,

and it doesn’t count as a breakup?! If it weren’t for reincarnation, do you plan to marry my ashes?”

However, Chu Ya insisted on his own thoughts. “I didn’t give you a definite answer. This relationship hasn’t ended. You just said you hated me at the time, but you didn’t say you wanted to break up.”

Bai Lu felt a bit annoyed, “You’re treating love like marriage. Do we need a divorce certificate? Then let me say it again, clearly this time, I want to break up with you, understand!”

Chu Ya calmly replied, “I disagree. I reject your proposal.”

“I propose to break up unilaterally!”

“I unilaterally reject it.”

“??? Do you have some kind of illness!”