The second Sun Car was no rough prototype like the first one. After breaking down every flaw of Sun Car No.1, Li Daoxuan redesigned both the power system and the loading system and finally produced something he could proudly call a "mature product."
It was only five centimeters long in his world, but once it arrived in the late-Ming reality, it transformed into a ten-meter-long vehicle—about the size of a modern city bus. It even had a proper bus-style passenger cabin, and the solar panels were mounted across the roof.
Two long sliding rods controlled the sun-shade that covered the solar array. Sitting inside the cabin, Zheng Daniu could use the rods to open or close the shade at any moment—effectively controlling the vehicle's power output.
Because Sun Car No.2 was much larger, the modifications were simpler to implement. Li Daoxuan even added a braking mechanism—a humble plastic wedge. Gao Chuwu simply had to stomp on it to clamp a wheel.
After a few more days of training, Gao Chuwu and Zheng Daniu could finally drive the big vehicle with confidence.
More than twenty villagers of Zhengjia Village boarded the Sun Car. Zheng Daniu's parents were among them. No one understood why Dao Xuan Tianzun ordered them to go back and "look at Zhengjia Village," but when a god commands, mortals obey. They would see once they got there anyway.
Gao Chuwu: "Daniu, I'm ready. You can open the shade."
Zheng Daniu: "We killed a man by accident last time. Let's go slow today!"
After that accident, the two simpletons had learned their first lesson in traffic safety. Their entire driving style had transformed—no more reckless racing down the official road. The Sun Car glided forward steadily, heading toward Zhengjia Village.
Li Daoxuan watched the bus depart, then tapped the "Zhengjia Village" label on the side of his magic Box. His field of vision instantly leapt to the skies above that village.
Then he took out the medical nebulizer.
Pointing it at the aerial view of Zhengjia Village, he turned it on.
The distance between the two villages was about nine li, roughly four-plus kilometers. With the speed capped at around forty kilometers per hour, Gao Chuwu and Zheng Daniu drove steadily, carrying their passengers toward home.
They were still quite far away when a villager leaning out the window shouted, "Ah! Hurry! Look! It's our village!"
Everyone crowded toward the windows.
Home.
A month ago, they'd left this tiny place that had raised them since birth. Now, seeing it again from afar—the familiar turned unfamiliar, the small turned enormous.
The view blurred in a soft haze, as though wrapped in a fine drizzle.
No—wait.
Not "as though."
It really was raining.
A gentle white mist of drizzle enveloped the entire Zhengjia Village.
At that moment, tears burst from many eyes.
"Look at the sky!"
Someone shouted. Everyone looked up.
Above Zhengjia Village drifted a short, familiar cloud—the same cloud that always appeared when Dao Xuan Tianzun manifested. A dragon's head protruded from its underside, spraying rain-mist down onto the fields.
So this… this was how the miracle of fine drizzle came to be.
"Heavenly Venerable invited the Dragon Lord to our village!"
"Dao Xuan Tianzun is merciful!"
"My family's fields… we can farm again!"
The villagers were overwhelmed with joy.
"Stop the car! Stop the car!"
Zheng Daniu pulled the shade closed and the Sun Car rolled to a halt. Before it had fully stopped, a tide of villagers leapt out and sprinted madly toward the rain-veiled village, laughing as they ran.
Gao Chuwu: "Aiya… they always call us idiots, but look at them. They have a perfectly good ride, yet they choose to run."
A solid smack! landed on his head. Gao Chuwu crouched down, clutching his skull.
When he finally straightened up, he whined, "Daniu! Why hit me? Aren't we good friends?"
Zheng Daniu: "You called my parents idiots. Even if we're friends, I still have to punch you."
"…Fair," Gao Chuwu admitted. As friends, they could call each other idiots, but parents were off-limits. He accepted the hit.
They shook hands. Friendship restored.
Ahead, the villagers of Zhengjia Village sprinted for nearly a li before reaching their fields. Some dropped to their knees, scooping up the freshly damp soil and laughing toward the sky.
Back in Gaojia Village, they'd been happy. But this—this was happiness from the marrow, from the soul.
Little sparks of light lifted off their bodies, flying into the Box.
Back when Li Daoxuan first saved their lives, each villager had contributed only a sliver—zero-point-something—of Rescue Index. But this time, just twenty-odd people had already added eight points.
Li Daoxuan stared at the Rescue Index—nearing four hundred—and fell into deep thought. There was still much he didn't understand, but he was beginning to grasp its deeper meaning.
After the villagers' initial joy faded, they hurried back to the Sun Car.
"Chuwu, Daniu—take us back to Gaojia Village! We must beg Dao Xuan Tianzun to let us return to live here again!"
"No."
The moment they returned and surrounded Gao Yiye to plead their case, Li Daoxuan directly refused.
"I'll allow you to return during the day to farm. But when the work is done, you must return to Gaojia Village to rest. Staying here long-term is too dangerous."
The villagers were baffled.
"But Heavenly Venerable," someone said carefully, "the rebellion of Wang Er has ended. The other rebel bands are gone. The new County Magistrate is distributing porridge. Chengcheng County is safe now."
"No. Safety is still far away."
Li Daoxuan sighed, and did not elaborate.
Unable to hear his words directly, the villagers looked confused. Gao Yiye stepped close, lowering her voice.
"These are my words, not Tianzun's," she whispered. "You cannot see him—I can. Just now… his face looked sorrowful, as though lamenting the suffering of the world."
The villagers froze.
Gao Yiye continued, "He surely knows things beyond mortal comprehension. But heavenly matters cannot be revealed to us. If he told us, we would not be able to bear it."
That explanation frightened the villagers, but it also made sense. Dao Xuan Tianzun was a divine being—able to see five hundred years forward, five hundred years back, and everything in between. If he said Zhengjia Village was unsafe, then unsafe it was.
The entire group straightened solemnly.
"We obey Dao Xuan Tianzun. We will not move back. We'll return to farm during the day and immediately come back afterward."
Gao Chuwu and Zheng Daniu grinned.
"Every morning at sunrise, we'll drive you there. Then bring you back at sunset!"
The villagers thought it over. That was convenient. A daily round-trip ride, safety in numbers, work during the day, rest in Gaojia Village by night—it was perfect.
They no longer insisted on moving back.
Footnotes
Solar Power in the Late Ming — Although solar power is modern, Ming-dynasty commoners would naturally mistake the Sun Car for divine machinery since mirrors, lenses, and light-based curiosities were often attributed to immortals in folklore.
Li Daoxuan's "Nebulizer Rain" — In many Chinese rural legends, local gods "borrow" the power of Dragon Kings to bring rain. Here it's cleverly reinterpreted as a nebulizer mist, but to villagers, any moisture from the sky equals heavenly rain.
Village Migration Patterns — During late-Ming rebellions, villages frequently fled en masse to walled towns or nearby settlements. A month-long absence was common in real historical famine or war zones.
Li Daoxuan's Warning — Historically, even when a local rebellion was put down, roaming bandits, starving refugees, and splinter militias often lingered for years. His warning reflects real unstable post-rebellion conditions.