This small amount of ice was something he had searched the entire city for, costing a considerable sum, but seeing the smile on Feng Jin's face made it all worthwhile.
"If you like to drink it, you should also store some ice this winter. Next year, in the scorching summer, you can also have it. However, ice water is bad for the body, especially when consumed in the summer, so you mustn't drink too much."
Ling Mohan had previously disdained noble youths who wasted manpower, wealth, and resources to store ice. But as long as Feng Jin liked it, he was willing to do so.
"Just as you said, drinking ice cold drinks in the scorching summer is bad for the body. I have always lacked self-control and enjoy pleasure the most, so I will naturally drink too much. Therefore, you don't need to store ice."
Feng Jin knew how difficult it was to store ice, and spending so much money and manpower for temporary pleasure was truly not cost-effective.
"I'm not eating anymore. If I eat too much at night, I'll inevitably feel uncomfortable in my stomach. Have it cleared away."
Feng Jin rose from the table, quickly having the food removed. She couldn't guarantee she wouldn't eat it all if she indulged.
It was already late at night, and eating too much would lead to indigestion, preventing her from sleeping well. It was better to eat only half full.
Ling Mohan had a habit of reading before sleep, a practice he had maintained for over a decade without interruption. He sat at his study desk, reached for a scroll, and a few sheets of paper fell with it.
One of the papers had strange patterns drawn on it, which caught Ling Mohan's attention. He bent down to pick it up. The lines on the paper were too fine; they didn't seem like something that could be drawn with a brush.
Ling Mohan was captivated by this unusual drawing method, holding the paper and examining it carefully.
After a long while, he couldn't decipher the mystery within.
He could only turn to ask Feng Jin, "What is this?"
Feng Jin looked down. Wasn't this the blueprint for a firearm she had casually drawn?
"It's nothing, just a weapon blueprint I drew randomly. I only drew half of it, and it probably can't be manufactured."
After all, the manufacturing of firearms was very precise, allowing no room for even the slightest deviation.
Moreover, she didn't know the level of manufacturing technology in Dongchu, so she only drew half of it and discarded it there.
"Weapon blueprint..." Ling Mohan asked doubtfully, then continued, "What kind of weapon is it? Can you tell me?"
It wasn't something that couldn't be said. Feng Jin informed Ling Mohan about firearms one by one.
Ling Mohan's face was filled with disbelief. Did such exquisitely crafted weapons truly exist in this world? With such weapons, one could take the lives of enemies hundreds of meters away on the battlefield.
"Draw the rest of the blueprint." Ling Mohan hurriedly handed the paper and pen to Feng Jin, urging her to draw the remaining blueprint.
Feng Jin hesitated for a moment, then drew the rest from memory.
After revising and modifying for half an hour, Feng Jin put down her pen, "It's done."
Ling Mohan eagerly leaned over to look at the paper. This weapon, only dozens of centimeters long, had such complex and precise steps inside.
Could Dongchu's current manufacturing technology really produce it? Ling Mohan's face showed difficulty.
"This firearm is complex and precise. The reason I only drew half of it was because I considered that the current technology could not manufacture it, so I didn't plan to inform you."
"As expected, it's complicated, but... I still want to try."
Ling Mohan's eyes were resolute. If he gave up without even trying, then there would truly be no hope at all.
"Then let's try."
Ling Mohan looked at the blueprint for a long time. After Feng Jin's explanation, a general image formed in his mind.
It wasn't until late at night that he put down the blueprint.
He reached for the long, black object on the desk and began to examine it.
Feng Jin seemed to have used it to draw on the paper just now.
Ling Mohan imitated Feng Jin and drew on the paper. Black marks instantly appeared on the paper. He rubbed it hard a couple of times but couldn't erase a single mark.
He then tried holding it and writing a few words on the paper.
To his surprise, he discovered that this object was much easier to use than a brush, and it didn't require dipping in ink; one could write directly on the paper. Moreover, the writing was dry immediately, so there was no worry of smudging or bleeding ink. It was indeed very convenient.
"What strange thing is this now?"
Ling Mohan held up the unknown object and asked Feng Jin. She always seemed to bring out things he had never seen before, and they were surprisingly easy and convenient to use.
"This is a pencil. In my hometown, we use it for writing. It's much more convenient than a brush."
Feng Jin was truly not good at using a brush, which was why she created a pencil.
"Pencil..." Ling Mohan examined the black object in his hand, as thick as a finger, and curiously wrote a few more words on the paper.
"Why do you always bring out strange things? What kind of place is your hometown?"
Feng Jin's eyes darted away, and she stammered, "I learned it from my master. Naturally, he taught me these things."
It wasn't entirely untrue that she said that. What she had learned and known was indeed taught by others, just not in the same era.
Naturally, there would be some discrepancies in knowledge.
Ling Mohan nodded, half-believing, and hesitated, "Will you leave, then? Go back to the place you lived before?"
Feng Jin paused while tidying the bedding, her eyes glistening with tears. Could she go back?
"I don't know. Perhaps one day I will return, or perhaps I will never return."
"When you go back, can you take me with you?"
After these days of getting along, Ling Mohan increasingly felt that Feng Jin did not belong to their world. But he didn't know if Feng Jin was ultimately a goddess or a demon. All he knew was that he could no longer leave Feng Jin, and wherever Feng Jin went, he would follow.
Feng Jin's eyes were full of astonishment. She looked at Ling Mohan blankly, her heart deeply touched. After a pause, she nodded, "Wherever I go, I will naturally take you with me."
"Good. You must remember what you said. Do not break your promise."
Feng Jin nodded in agreement and leaned into Ling Mohan's embrace, "Ling Mohan, if... if I am not the real Feng Jin, what would you do?"
Ling Mohan's embrace tightened for a moment, then he held her tightly in his arms, his voice firm, "No matter who you are, I only love you. Even if you are a god or a demon, I only wish to be with you for all eternity."
Feng Jin couldn't help but roll her eyes. This was even going into the realm of ghosts and deities. What gods or demons!
However, speaking of which, what kind of creature was she now? A soul occupying someone else's body...
It seemed even worse than a demon...
Feng Jin immediately felt inferior. The gap was truly too vast. At least the former was a physical being, while she was just an ethereal soul.
"I am not a god, nor am I a demon..."