When the bright sunlight shone through the window and onto the bed, Su Han woke up right on time.
He looked down into his arms.
Shenhe was clinging to him like a koala.
He gently brushed her hair aside.
Her fair face was filled with a look of peaceful ease.
He remembered that Shenhe was a very light sleeper, and the slightest disturbance could wake her. So, as he was doing this, was she awake or not?
Su Han observed her for a moment.
Shenhe's breathing remained calm and even, without any movement.
It seemed she was still asleep.
Suddenly, a mischievous impulse arose in him. His finger reached out towards her nose, then he gently pinched her ear.
Just as he was preparing to stroke her smooth, long hair, Shenhe opened her eyes.
Su Han's hand froze in mid-air. "Uh, you're awake," he said awkwardly.
"Mm. I just woke up."
Shenhe didn't seem to mind his actions. Instead, she looked up at the window.
Seeing that the sky was already bright, a flash of joy appeared in her eyes.
Without the red ropes, this was the second time she had slept so well.
It seemed her master was right. Being by this man's side was indeed incredibly relaxing for her. She no longer had to worry about the baleful energy in her body.
"I'm planning to go to the Guili Plains today. Are you staying here, or…"
"Wherever you go, I will go," Shenhe said decisively, not waiting for him to finish.
She had nothing to do anyway. By staying by his side, she could learn more about how to interact with people.
Arriving in the main hall of the Jade Chamber, they found that everyone was already awake. Keqing had even left without eating breakfast.
Su Han picked up a small steamed bun. "What's gotten into her?"
"I think it's because of what happened yesterday," Ningguang said, taking a sip of red tea with a smile. "She never likes to admit defeat. She was furious about the Fatui's snooping, but in the end, we had to rely on the adepti for help."
"She probably went to train the Millelith today. It's a good thing, actually. With more training, the strength of those Millelith will improve very quickly."
That secret unit had already consumed the Blood Bodhi yesterday, and some of the captain-level members had even been given a biscuit-sized piece of Qilin meat.
Su Han asked, "Are there any among them whose strength is improving rapidly?"
"Mm. Six of them have already mastered the power of Armament Haki. Their progress is very fast. The others have also been motivated and are training from morning till night. I didn't expect them to be so driven."
Ningguang couldn't help but marvel. She knew the training regimen of the Millelith, but those practicing Haki were training ten, some even twenty, times harder than ordinary soldiers. It was simply insane.
Hearing this, Su Han smiled. "This is something you wouldn't understand. To them, without a Vision, they are destined to be mortals for life. But when an opportunity to defeat a Vision holder is placed before you, who can possibly remain calm?"
Mona nodded repeatedly, agreeing completely.
"This is the only way for mortals to advance right now. If it were me, I would also train with all my might to defeat those with Visions and show them that even without one, you can still become very strong!"
Everyone chuckled. Mona's words had indeed spoken the minds of those soldiers.
After eating and drinking their fill, Su Han and the others boarded the Going Merry and set off for the Guili Plains.
Aside from Ganyu, who needed to work at Yuehai Pavilion, everyone else went.
Arriving once again at the Guili Plains, the area was already bustling with people. There were even shops and vendors.
The laboratory area was a special military zone. Food and water were specially supplied, so there was no need to worry about security.
Hu Tao looked at the bustling streets, surprised. "When I came here a few days ago, it was still very quiet. How did it get so lively now?"
"The merchants of Liyue are extremely sharp when it comes to business opportunities. When you came last time, Lady Ningguang had ordered a lockdown. It's only been gradually opened up in the last few days. Perhaps in the future, this place will be even more prosperous than Liyue Harbor," the nearby Baiwen explained slowly.
With the convenience of transport and the existence of the train, the future prosperity of the Guili Plains was visible to the naked eye.
Su Han looked at the ore that had been transported over last night and said, "For the first route, let's connect here with The Chasm first. That way, transporting ore will become much simpler."
"I've already prepared for it. The tracks have even been completed," Ningguang said.
"That fast?" Su Han was a little surprised. He never thought Ningguang had already prepared everything.
Just then, Ningguang took out a map and placed it on the wall. "The route I've prepared goes from The Chasm, through Lingju Pass and Mt. Tianheng, passes the entrance of Liyue Harbor, and goes directly to the Guili Plains. This way, the train will not cause any conflicts, and the route can even allow people from Liyue Harbor to go directly to the Guili Plains or even Mondstadt."
The group looked at the map. A red line had already marked the route. And the yellow areas were already completed. The railway had even been built to the vicinity of the Dawn Winery.
Everyone was amazed at the speed of the railway construction.
Ningguang smiled. "The moment the plan was confirmed, I began to gather workers to start building the railway. I don't understand alchemy and engineering, but there are people in the city who understand railway tracks. I was paying, and those unemployed miners from the Shenglu Hall were more than happy to have such a job. Otherwise, do you really think it would have taken this long?"
Originally, the Ministry of Civil Affairs was supposed to pay to support these workers with a low salary. But after seeing that the plan was feasible, Ningguang had directly stepped in to recruit them.
The construction of the railway had, in fact, begun that very day. With the efforts of tens of thousands of miners working day and night, it was the only way to achieve such an outrageous result.
And at this moment, Su Han also understood why the lab had run out of ore. It was all because Ningguang had taken it to build the railway.
Subsequently, they arrived at the factory. The rune steam engine had been completed and was already installed on the front of the train.
Sucrose made a few adjustments and then nodded. "We can begin. The train is ready for a test run!"
"Then let's begin. Destination: Liyue Harbor. Depart!" Ningguang gave the order.
The train's starter began to light up. The rune steam engine used multiple energy sources. It could choose to burn coal, or it could choose to absorb power from Electro Slimes.
Yes, you read that right. Turning them into batteries was very effective. Using alchemical potions, their low-level consciousness could be erased, allowing them to be used as a kind of storage device. The entire bottom of the train was densely packed with purple Electro Slimes, so there was no need to worry about energy.
With a roar from its smokestack, the "Panda Express" train started up.
Its speed was about eighty miles per hour. Because it was a test run, the speed was not too fast. But for a mode of transport in this era, it was already incredible.
The little train, chugging along, pulled its cargo and passengers towards Liyue Harbor.
Near Mt. Tianheng, a group of merchants sitting on a horse-drawn carriage looked at the steel creation on the ground and laughed. "Liyue is really rich. To make something in this shape with such good iron and just leave it on the ground. Aren't they afraid of it being stolen?"
A merchant behind him heard this and chuckled. "You idiot, that's called a railway. It was built by Lady Ningguang, you understand? A large number of workers have been doing this for a while now."
"A railway? What's that? This road is so bumpy, who would walk on it? A horse-drawn carriage would probably break its wheels." The man shook his head, unable to imagine what could possibly travel on such a thing.
The merchant who had spoken then said, "Actually, I don't understand it either. But I heard the lords in Liyue say that if they can get it working, you can get from here to the Guili Plains in one hour."
"What? One hour? What kind of joke is that? Do you think it has wings and can fly?" The man was instantly filled with disbelief.
Normally, it took half a day to reach the Guili Plains, and that was if it didn't rain and the weather was clear. Otherwise, seven or eight hours was very normal. What kind of thing could reach the Guili Plains in an hour? Not even a braggart would say something like that.
The merchant smiled. "Old Han, don't be so serious. I'm just telling you what I heard those lords say. Who knows what that train is? That electric lamp that came out a while ago attracted a lot of people, didn't it?"
"How can that be the same? An Electro Slime can also provide light!" the man was still retorting.
But just then, a strange whistle came from a distance. The ground even began to shake.
"What's that sound?" The merchant named Old Han looked towards the source of the sound.
He saw a black monster, spewing smoke, roaring towards them along the tracks from a distance.
Its speed was incredibly fast. In the blink of an eye, it was not far from them.
"Wh-what is that?"
"Could that be the train?!"
"Quick, let's go and see!"
Watching the long, black dragon come to a stop, the crowd rushed over. They had never seen such a mode of transport before.
The entire Liyue Harbor was also awakened by the sound of the train, and countless people flocked over, all wanting to witness the train for themselves.
"Have you heard? The train has been developed! It only takes one hour to get from the Guili Plains to Liyue Harbor!"
"Heavens, that's too fast!"
"Let's go, quick! I hear they're also selling electric lamps! If we're late, we probably won't even be able to get our hands on one!"
"What? Electric lamps? Wait for me!"
The crowd quickened their pace. By the time they arrived at the station near Mt. Tianheng, the place was already packed with people.
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