With the use of a draw well, water pumping can be completed closer to the deck, saving time and effort. It's indeed a clever design.
While acknowledging the ingenuity of the sailboat's builder, Chen Zhou also favored this western-style well, thinking that if he had the ability, he would definitely dismantle it and transport it to the island.
By then, he would build a small courtyard on the island, dig a well in the yard, open up a vegetable garden, and plant a row of grapes along the yard wall. During drought seasons, he could simply pump the western-style well to draw water for irrigation.
If the sun was scorching at noon, he could sit under a grapevine-covered trellis to cool off, sip some refreshing well water to beat the heat, and eat a few sweet and sour grapes to quench his thirst, without having to carry buckets to the river or wait for rain. It would be exceptionally comfortable.
As someone who has enjoyed the benefits of modern technological progress, Chen Zhou, though stranded on a deserted island, couldn't forget the convenience and comfort of modern life.
He never hesitated to exert effort where labor was needed, nor did he pass up any opportunity to be lazy.
After all, he consoled himself, it's lazy people who drive the world forward.
After examining the western well, Chen Zhou opened the lid of a large wooden box to take a look.
To his surprise, these two boxes were also carpenters' toolboxes.
Unlike the toolbox inside the room, the tools in these two boxes were more varied and complete in model, and most of the tools showed no obvious signs of use. Even the nails and corner irons were brand new, making them more valuable.
Looking at the neatly arranged tools in the box, he recalled the traditional carpenters from his hometown, feeling firsthand the difference between European and Chinese carpentry.
European carpenters emphasize tools over skills.
Their axes are divided into large, medium, and small, and hammers are categorized into nail, round head, and square head types...
Each tool comes in various models and styles, used for different stages of work. As long as a beginner can correctly understand and master the use of these tools, they can craft whatever they want.
The vast categories of these tools make their use threshold extremely low. As long as one doesn't mind frequently switching tools, some simple carpentry tasks are no problem at all.
On the other hand, Chinese carpenters emphasize skill. They work for different families, running around town, carrying too many tools would be cumbersome, so they usually only need a few simple ones. With special techniques and years of experience and skill accumulation, they make items.
For a novice, Chinese carpentry demands a master's guidance, constant practice, contemplation, and lessons learned to grow into an excellent carpenter.
In the long term, both European and Chinese carpentry have their strengths and weaknesses. In more primitive working environments, Chinese carpenters can reach higher limits, while European carpenters require increasingly advanced tools and standardized methods to make progress.
But Chen Zhou is a complete outsider. To him, making a raft with just a single saw, chisel, and hammer model was an impossible task; he didn't have the skills for it. European carpentry was better suited for him.
Closing the box lid, Chen Zhou carefully searched the corners of the room despite the bad smell, ensuring there was nothing else besides some wooden planks of varying thickness and pieces of canvas. Only then did he pull out the crossbow arrow embedded in the wall and leave the drainage room.
Perhaps after staying in the dimly lit environment for too long, Chen Zhou felt his eyesight had sharpened considerably.
As soon as he walked out of the room, he noticed the brick chimney close to the wall on the other side, realizing that the kitchen wasn't on this floor but on the lower level.
Thinking about it, it made sense. If the kitchen was right next to the drainage room, with that stench, the sailors would likely vomit in their bowls.
So he turned back again, reaching the narrow staircase on the right side leading to the lower level.
Standing at the top of the stairs looking down, surveying the pitch-black hold, Chen Zhou felt a bit nervous.
But recalling his recent comical struggle with the western well, his courage was rekindled, overcoming his fear of the unknown.
People always find various reasons to persuade themselves when they want to do something.
Chen Zhou was determined to reach the kitchen to eat and warm up by the fire, so he used a somewhat shaky elimination method and flawed logic to convince himself.
Once he was convinced there were no life-threatening creatures on the ship, he stepped onto the creaky stairs and entered the hold without hesitation.
The hold had only a few tiny round windows, and even with all of them opened, most of the furnishings inside remained hidden in the pitch-black darkness.
He took a few staggered steps forward and considered returning to Robinson's room to fetch the lantern for light. But he soon realized that he had no tools to start a fire, so he gave up the idea and continued towards the kitchen.
The sailboat was wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, and the hold's hallway was so cramped that it could barely accommodate two adults walking side by side. Both sides of the hallway were full of cargo rooms.
On the way to the kitchen, Chen Zhou opened a cargo room door out of curiosity to take a look inside.
Most rooms were empty; a few with cargo were stuffed full, making it very difficult to remove the wooden boxes or sacks. To avoid wasting time, he didn't check the goods, only remembered the position of these rooms.
The hallway was unevenly lit, with enough light to see in windowed areas, but completely dark in windowless spots, forcing him to rely completely on his sense of direction.