The ship's lower hold was a battery compartment, packed with power cells that supplied electricity to the entire model vessel.
Mounted atop the ship tower were solar panels, wired through a hidden constant-current, constant-voltage charging control circuit embedded inside the tower walls. The wiring ran straight down to the batteries in the lower hold, allowing the ship to recharge itself.
Of course, solar charging efficiency was… tragic.
Painfully slow.
While the ship was moving, the battery drained faster than it charged. Only when the ship stopped completely would the power level creep upward again.
Even so, it was still ridiculously useful.
Cai Xinzi pointed at the "rudder" on the bow and grinned.
"Give it a spin."
Li Daoxuan gently nudged the rudder with a finger. At once, the rudder at the stern rotated in perfect sync.
"See?" Cai Xinzi said proudly. "Directional control—flawless."
He chuckled. "At this scale, building this stuff is easy mode."
Li Daoxuan couldn't help admiring it. At a full fifteen centimeters long, the ship was big enough for Cai Xinzi to really show off. Unlike those earlier solar toy cars—so tiny there was zero room for shenanigans—this thing had space for actual engineering.
"This ship is excellent." Li Daoxuan clapped Cai Xinzi on the shoulder. "Old Cai, make ten more. Same quality."
Cai Xinzi blinked. "For collecting, one is plenty. Why do you need ten?"
Li Daoxuan gestured vaguely toward the garden. "See the pond in my villa? I'm going to line them up and stage a massive naval battle. Full fleet combat."
Cai Xinzi stared at him. "You're a grown man and you're still playing house? I finally get why you don't have a girlfriend—you never grew up. You should learn from me. Abandon childish hobbies. Embrace love. Romance is what matures a man."
Li Daoxuan snorted. "This is called eternal youth. You, on the other hand, walked straight into the graveyard of marriage. It's already over for you."
They traded a few more insults before Li Daoxuan suddenly froze.
Wait.
Why did arguing with Cai Xinzi feel exactly like watching Gao Chuwu and Zheng Daniu bicker?
Alarm bells rang. He immediately opened his high school class group chat and typed:
"Quick question. Back in high school—what nickname did you guys give me and Cai Xinzi?"
The class monitor replied instantly:
"Big Idiot and Bigger Idiot."
Li Daoxuan collapsed face-first onto the floor. orz.
Cai Xinzi left. Li Daoxuan, holding a bowl of now-cold stir-fried instant noodles in his left hand and the ship model in his right, returned upstairs to the box.
He sat beside it, thinking.
The ship was done—but all the cannons mounted on it were fake. That wouldn't do. The little people had to start making real artillery soon, replacing the decorative props with actual firepower.
He needed to check on Gaojia Village's "Red Barbarian Cannons."
Time to look for Gao Yiye.
Watchtower? Not there.
Cloth shop? Nope.
After searching around, he finally found her—in the Gaojia commercial district's brothel.
With Qiuju and Dongxue.
The three of them were strolling around inside like they owned the place.
Li Daoxuan nearly choked. "Yiye—why are you wandering around a brothel?!"
"Oh! Dao Xuan Tianzun!" Gao Yiye looked up, smiling brightly. "We're studying this building. I think it could be used for something else."
Li Daoxuan frowned. "This place should've been demolished ages ago."
Qiuju and Dongxue nodded vigorously.
"Exactly."
But Gao Yiye shook her head. "I don't think buildings are good or evil by themselves. It's just a house. Like a knife—used to chop vegetables, it's good; used to kill people, it's bad. The knife itself isn't at fault. The user is."
Li Daoxuan raised a brow. "Whoa. Philosophy arc unlocked?"
Gao Yiye flushed slightly. "Tianzun, don't tease me."
He laughed. "Alright then. What good thing do you want to turn it into?"
"Teaching women skills," she said simply.
Li Daoxuan blinked. "Isn't there already a school?"
"Not that kind of skills," Gao Yiye explained. "Not language, math, physics, chemistry. I mean weaving, embroidery, tailoring, cooking—practical trades."
Now it clicked.
A vocational school.
She continued, "Many women in the village are already earning money through skills. But many others know nothing at all. They're anxious. Quite a few came to me asking to learn—but those crafts aren't taught in the Workshop."
Li Daoxuan understood immediately.
The Workshop was male-dominated—blacksmithing, carpentry, heavy labor. Fields traditionally suited for women—textiles, embroidery, tailoring—simply didn't exist there.
Learning those skills meant begging neighbors or relatives for informal lessons. Inefficient. Limiting. That was why Gao Yiye had thought of repurposing the brothel.
Li Daoxuan considered it, then shook his head. "Yiye, your idea is excellent. But not here. This building carries… baggage. It'll discourage women from coming. Instead—let's build a proper women's vocational academy from scratch."
Gao Yiye froze. "A school… just for women? You'd value us that much?"
Even Qiuju and Dongxue were stunned. They already knew the Tianzun treated women generously—redeeming them, pulling them out of misery—but this was on another level. A large academy dedicated solely to women? That was putting them on equal footing with men.
In truth, Li Daoxuan wanted a fully integrated vocational school—men and women alike, with all crafts under one roof. But in this era, getting women to step outside their homes was hard enough. Starting mixed-gender would slow everything down.
Better to begin with a women-only academy. Lower barriers. Build confidence. Let them step out, learn, and come back transformed.
Li Daoxuan said, "I'll handle the school. Stop circling the brothel. Let's go to the Workshop—I want to see how the Red Barbarian Cannons are coming along."
Gao Yiye nodded obediently and headed off, Qiuju and Dongxue following close behind.
They soon arrived at the Workshop.
The moment Gao Yiye appeared, it was as if a switch flipped. The craftsmen instantly entered 'inspection mode'. Postures straightened. Movements sharpened. Even the guys who'd been slacking seconds ago suddenly looked like model employees.
Leadership had arrived.
trivia
Red Barbarian Cannons (Hongyi Dapao)
A Ming-dynasty term for early European-style artillery introduced via Portuguese traders. These cannons used cast metal barrels and gunpowder-based propulsion, offering far greater range and destructive power than traditional Chinese artillery of the time. Despite the xenophobic name, the Ming court adopted them enthusiastically once battlefield results spoke louder than ideology.
Vocational Education in Late Imperial China
Formal vocational schools were rare. Skills were typically passed down through family lines, guilds, or apprenticeships. Women's access to structured skill education was especially limited, making Gao Yiye's proposal—state-backed, organized training for women—quietly revolutionary.
Brothels as Commercial Real Estate
In Ming-era cities, brothels were often centrally located, well-built, and economically significant properties. Reformers throughout history occasionally proposed repurposing them for schools, offices, or charities—ideas that were progressive, controversial, and usually blocked by "tradition."
Workshop Culture
Craft workshops operated as tightly hierarchical systems. When an authority figure appeared, productivity spikes were immediate—not because of loyalty, but because punishment was efficient. Some management principles are apparently eternal.