My Days as a God in Ancient Times
Lan An thought carefully. It seemed that Chu Qiuze really had nothing that required his help. For a moment, he felt a deep sense of powerlessness and frustration.
As a prince, he was utterly useless in front of Chu Qiuze.
But Chu Qiuze didn’t think about it that way. What he had always wanted was just Lan An himself, along with the gratitude points that appeared above his head.
That fleeting first glance, love at first sight—it was all because of his face, and he did not deny it. But after spending so much time together, he knew clearly that his feelings were not just temporary.
Being in his twenties, he could certainly distinguish between mere attraction and genuine affection.
This prince might be a little fussy, have a strange temperament, and wear a cold expression, but Chu Qiuze could feel that Lan An’s heart was warm.
And he wanted to be the fire that would ignite Lan An’s heart completely.
"My god" the playful Lu Ziye said cautiously, holding a box of tissues with both hands. "This, is this paper? Why is it so soft? How can you even write on it?"
The two men, deep in thought and discussion, were interrupted.
Lan an frowned, disapproving of Lu Ziye's behavior as a guest in someone else's home. "That's not writing paper; you can't use it to write."
Lu Ziye was even more confused. If this paper wasn't for writing, then what was it for?
"Those are facial tissues" Chu Qiuze explained patiently. "They're for wiping your hands, wiping your mouth, and even wiping your bottom. Writing requires a different kind of paper."
As a military general, Lu Ziye was already shocked to hear that paper was used to wipe bottoms. What would scholars think if they heard such a thing?
"What a waste of resources!" Lu Ziye exclaimed. He pulled out a tissue and gently rubbed it against his face. "It's so soft and delicate, it feels even more comfortable than silk."
Chu Qiuze raised an eyebrow. He'd forgotten what people in ancient times used to wipe their bottoms.
Stones? Bamboo scraps? Wouldn't that hurt?
Thinking of this, he asked, "Lan pengyou, what do you use to clean yourselves?"
Lan an was initially surprised to learn that this tissue paper was used for wiping bottoms, but knowing that the artisans of the Great HÃ n dynasty couldn't produce such a thing, he didn't bring it up again.
He opened his mouth, unsure how to answer.
"Most common people probably use bamboo scraps or leaves" Lu Ziye answered for Lan an. "Wealthier families use hemp cloth or cotton cloth, and the nobility mostly use silk."
Chu Qiuze was speechless. Now that was a real waste of resources!
Weaving cloth in ancient times was such a laborious process. Wouldn't it be better to use it to make clothes? Using it to wipe bottoms???
"However" Lu Ziye added "most of them are reused. They wash them clean and use them again."
Chu Qiuze suddenly felt like he was about to die on the spot. He was so disgusted that he felt like he would throw up his dinner from the night before.
Reusing them? That was even worse than using bamboo scraps and leaves! Wait a minute...did that mean they reused the bamboo scraps too?
Ugh! Chu Qiuze couldn't take it anymore and started dry heaving.
He said in a trembling voice, "Lan pengyou, how about we stop talking about food for now and discuss papermaking instead? Maybe we can figure out how to make toilet paper, or at least improve your writing paper?"
Lan an's eyes lit up. If papermaking could be improved, not to mention using it for wiping bottoms, at least it would make paper more affordable for the scholars of the Great HÃ n dynasty.
You see, for an ordinary family, supporting one scholar was a huge financial burden. The biggest expenses weren't the tuition fees, but rather the writing implements and paper, among which the most expensive and most used was writing paper.
Seeing Lan an's expression, Chu Qiuze knew what he was thinking. He immediately pulled out his tablet and started searching.
Papermaking had been improved countless times by the twenty-first century, and he didn't know how much more advanced it was compared to the Great HÃ n dynasty.
But the artisans of the Great HÃ n dynasty didn't have the technology to achieve that level of production, so they could only take it one step at a time.
Chu Qiuze pointed at the screen and began explaining seriously, discussing and researching with Lan an.
"Do you have writing brush and ink?" Lan an asked, listening intently and wanting to take notes.
"No need to take notes," Chu Qiuze said, performing a few simple operations on the tablet. "I'll print it out for you."
Before long, rustling sounds came from the study upstairs.
The two ancient men looked at Chu Qiuze, their expressions asking a simple question: they didn't understand what the sound was, nor did they understand what it meant.
"Come with me," Chu Qiuze said, leading them into the elevator. "There's a printer in the study. It's much less trouble than writing by hand."
Lan an could roughly understand the concept of printing, but he didn't know how it worked.
Lu Ziye, however, wasn't thinking about the printer. He was curious about the elevator.
It was simply unbelievable. They stepped inside, and in the blink of an eye, they were on the second floor.
"My god, is this some kind of magic?"
“No,” Chu Qiuze patiently explained. “This is an elevator. It’s powered by machines.”
Lu Ziye was once again amazed. The immortal realm was truly magical.
By the time they reached the study, both men were astonished.
The room was filled with bookshelves, packed with books. Even the imperial library probably didn’t have this many.
Lan an was mindful of being a guest in someone else’s home and remained composed, glancing around but not lingering.
Lu Ziye, however, was different. He was naturally more unrestrained.
He randomly picked up a book and flipped through it. “My god, what are these squiggly symbols?”
Chu Qiuze looked over and saw that he’d randomly picked up a book written entirely in English. “That’s a foreign language.”
Lu Ziye nodded and asked, “Do you immortals have different nationalities too?”
“Of course,” Chu Qiuze replied. He realized he’d almost slipped up and quickly added, “The divine realm is vast, just like how you know of Buddha and Bodhisattva, who came from the Western Regions. We are native deities of the East.”
Before they could react, he quickly pulled out the newly printed materials. “Let’s take a look at papermaking.”
Sure enough, their attention was diverted.
Lu Ziye was focused on the papermaking techniques, but Lan an’s attention wandered elsewhere.
He stared at the square machine in front of him, wondering how it could print such long passages of text so quickly.
Chu Qiuze understood Lan an’s curiosity best.
“How do you currently print text in the Great HÃ n dynasty?”
“Widely circulated books are first carved onto woodblocks, then printed with ink,” Lan an explained. “Ordinary books are copied by scholars.”
Chu Qiuze understood. They were still using block printing. And as for copying, hand-copying was time-consuming and prone to errors and omissions, which hindered cultural development and caused unnecessary losses in the transmission of knowledge.
Thinking about it, since he’d already discussed papermaking, it wouldn’t hurt to talk about printing as well.
“Have you ever considered carving all the characters into small blocks of uniform size, and then retrieving them when needed, arranging them neatly before printing?”
This was essentially movable type printing.
Lan an was enlightened.
Previously, when printing a book, they had to carve the entire book’s worth of text. But if the characters were carved in advance, it would undoubtedly be much more convenient.
Chu Qiuze didn’t delay. He had only a rough understanding of the process, but with the internet at his disposal, he had everything he needed. He searched for the process of making movable type and printed it out.
“Here, take this and study it slowly!”
Lan an took a deep look at him. He really didn’t know how Chu Qiuze’s mind contained so much knowledge.
These past few days, the things Chu Qiuze had casually brought out were enough to change the entire course of the Great HÃ n dynasty’s development.
Take the cement formula, for example. Before they left Yugou County, they received a letter from the imperial city.
Cement had been successfully developed and was currently being tested in the areas surrounding the imperial city. The ground was indeed smooth, flat, and extremely sturdy and durable.
And now, the printing technique that had been used for generations was about to be improved with just a few words from him.
He was not good with words and didn’t know how to thank Chu Qiuze.
Saying thank you too many times would become meaningless.
Lu Ziye, being a military general, didn’t quite understand the importance of movable type printing.
What a military general would be curious about was naturally weapons. “My god, what kind of weapons do you have here?”
There were so many, it couldn’t be explained in a few words.
So he simply found a modern war film. “If you’re not tired, how about we watch a movie? A war movie?”
Lan an had seen movies a few times and was quite interested in them.
It was already past midnight, but he knew that tomorrow he would just be riding in a flying vehicle, so he wouldn’t be too tired.
Lu Ziye was curious. As a curious person, how could he prioritize sleep over watching a movie? Besides, when marching and fighting, it was normal to go without sleep for days.
What was one night of no sleep?
The three of them quickly reached an agreement.
Chu Qiuze led them to the audio-visual room. The movie was about a war involving the evacuation of overseas Chinese citizens, and it featured all kinds of modern weapons.
The two ancient men watched with great interest, occasionally exclaiming in surprise.
Those guns, those bullets, they were terrifying! They could kill people from a thousand meters away without being seen.
“My god,” Lu Ziye said again, “that sniper rifle, is it for sale? I’ll give you money, can you help me buy one?”
“Um…” Chu Qiuze stammered, “These kinds of weapons are regulated by the government. You can’t buy them, and you shouldn’t buy them. It’s illegal.”
Lu Ziye let out a disappointed sigh. He knew that with the current level of technology in the Great HÃ n dynasty, it was impossible to create such sophisticated weapons. He expressed his deep regret.
Chu Qiuze thought for a moment, then left the audio-visual room and went to his collection room. He didn't have real guns, but he did have models.
"Here, you can play with these," Chu Qiuze said, handing him the models. "They're just for show, they're not lethal, and they don't even work."
Lu Ziye was as excited as a child who had received a new toy. This was just too cool! Even though they weren't functional, he could still have some fun with them. He held them tightly, unable to put them down.
What man doesn't love weapons?
Lan an was also curious.
"This one's for you," Chu Qiuze said, handing him a realistic-looking toy gun. It felt similar to a real gun in his hand. "I'll give it to you as a gift."
Lan an took the gun, which was smaller than the size of his palm, and fell into deep thought.
He was now almost certain that Chu Qiuze was not some kind of immortal. But the difference between these weapons and those of the Great HÃ n dynasty was like the difference between heaven and earth.
He could hardly imagine what kind of world this was.
He looked out the window. If only...he could go out and take a look around.
Chu Qiuze didn't know what he was thinking. The movie had ended. "Everyone, let's get some rest," he said. "We have a long journey tomorrow."
That night, the two ancient men had a very fruitful experience.
One could imagine that the Great HÃ n dynasty would also make great progress because of their conversations that night.
Lu Ziye hugged his model gun and went to sleep on the big bed, completely satisfied.
Only Lan an stood silently by the window, looking at the neon lights of the distant skyscrapers, feeling a strong urge to go out and see for himself.
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