Before long, the five kinds of mechanical arms took turns in action.
One moment it was the auger drill, drilling a huge hole in the ground with one twist. The next moment it turned into a ripper, loosening the compacted soil in one go. Then a while later it became a grapple, reaching down from the sky, grabbing half a mountain, and flying up into the clouds.
The little people watched in stunned silence, utterly entranced.
It was so shocking that they couldn't speak for a long time.
It wasn't known how much time passed before Gao Yiye finally spoke: "Alright, the Tianzun has already helped everyone move the most difficult section of the Shu Road. Everyone can continue working now."
Her voice snapped everyone back to attention, and they all focused their eyes again.
They saw that the most dangerous part of the ancient plank road in Mingyue Gorge, which had blocked their way before, had disappeared, leaving only a cloud of dust still swirling.
A huge vacuum cleaner stretched down from the sky again, whooshing once, and all the dust vanished too. Now everyone could get a clear view of what was ahead...
Flat! It was flat ahead.
Gao Yiye said: "Get to work! Be careful as you advance; if there are any loose stones or sinking sand, you have to proceed cautiously. Pay attention to safety during construction."
The Workers: "Awoo!"
After a loud roar, the people from both the north and south ends of Mingyue Gorge rushed toward the middle together. With over a hundred thousand people working at once, in almost the blink of an eye, a flat road was connected.
Li Dao Xuan saw the people cheering on the newly opened road and felt quite happy inside.
This section of Mingyue Gorge wasn't easy to open even in later generations; it required tunnel boring machines, and it was a hard effort to finally open the Mingyue Gorge tunnel for traffic.
But in the box, he could handle it by smashing the entire mountain to pieces and carrying it away, which was actually simpler than in reality.
Hey!
The excavator was super fun to play with. What to dig next?
Now the view radius was 500 kilometers, so there were many places he could see.
Might as well go dredge the silt from the bottom of the Yellow River!
Managing the Yellow River was also a great deed that benefited the present and future generations.
Li Dao Xuan got addicted to playing with the excavator and didn't hold back at all. The view whooshed over to the Yellow River, found a spot where silt buildup made navigation difficult, and dug a claw right in...
The people on both banks of the Yellow River saw this scene and couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
The voices on both banks didn't stop, but the excavator had already passed through ten thousand mountains.
...
Zhebu, the son of the chief of the Wushen tribe, had already grown into a sturdy young man this year. Originally, he should have become an illiterate grassland brute like all Mongolian kids when they grew up.
But his years as a hostage in Gao Family Village had turned him into a fine fellow proficient in both literary and martial arts.
"Sworn brother!" Zhebu clasped his fists toward Liu Maopao: "My father accidentally fell off his horse in a horse race a few days ago, got injured, and now has a disability. He walks with a limp. Although the other tribal chiefs aren't saying anything out loud, they're starting to look down on him in their hearts... If this continues, our Wushen tribe's leading position might not hold. Father wrote me a letter, wanting me to return to the grasslands and take over his position."
Liu Maopao heard this, and his eyebrows twitched upward slightly.
This was a good opportunity!
Gao Family Village's previous control over the Wushen tribe had only been through "threats and inducements," but control gained that way was ultimately unstable. Now it was finally time to send back a child who had grown up in Gao Family Village.
He thought this in his heart, but on the surface, he showed a very sad expression, patted Zhebu's shoulder: "Sworn brother, Erzh'e went to the Maritime Academy, so only two of us three brothers are left in the village. Now you're going back too. I'm really reluctant to let you go."
Zhebu: "I'm reluctant to leave you too, sworn brother! But father can't do without me."
"Yeah! That's true." Liu Maopao said: "How about this: I'll go talk to the village committee about this, submit an application, and see if the Tianzun will allow you to go back."
Although no one said it out loud, everyone knew in their hearts that Zhebu was a hostage, not someone who could come and go freely. This point, Zhebu himself also knew.
He was already quite old when he came to Gao Family Village, much more sensible than Erzh'e at the time.
Zhebu felt a little scared inside too. He was very worried that after he proposed "going back," it would arouse suspicion from the Han people, and maybe it would be unfavorable to him and his mother, so he didn't dare go directly to the village committee or to the saintess, but found his most trusted sworn brother Liu Maopao.
Liu Maopao told Zhebu to wait at home peacefully, while he quickly walked to the discussion hall in Gao Family Fortress and sat down in front of Shan Shier, who had returned to the village not long ago.
"Shan Manager! Zhebu wants to go back to the grasslands."
Shan Shier heard this, was slightly stunned, then said: "It's about time; he's reached the age. Even the smallest child has to grow up. Has he finally reached the point where he's unwilling to be a hostage and wants to break free from Gao Family Village's control? This is called [fledgling leaving the nest]."
Liu Maopao smiled: "Yes, he says he wants to go back to help his father, but in his heart, he's definitely thinking of using the opportunity to escape his hostage status. This is human nature, unavoidable, and I anticipated this day long ago."
Shan Shier nodded: "Handsome enough to the point of bubbling Liu Maopao, you know him best. Do you think we can let him go now? If he goes back, will the Wushen tribe break away from our control?"
Liu Maopao smiled faintly: "Actually, from the day we captured the Heavenly Khan Erzh'e, Zhebu's political significance wasn't that important anymore. As long as Erzh'e is still with us, whether Zhebu is here or not is the same."
Shan shier nodded.
Liu Maopao continued: "Moreover, Zhebu has studied in our Gao Family Village for many years. He's accepted a lot of 'Gao Family Village culture,' learned many heavenly books, and he's personally seen the Tianzun manifest miracles. He knows our strength well. At this point, if we release him back to the grasslands, he won't dare have thoughts of betrayal. He's very clear that whether he's here as a hostage or not doesn't make much difference; we can send out a large army at any time to conquer the grasslands."
Shan Shier nodded again.
"Letting him go back has another benefit!" Liu Maopao said: "He'll become a spokesperson, promoting all our good points to other Mongolians."
At this point, Liu Maopao lowered his voice again: "If he goes back early, he can help us further control the Mongolian grasslands. When Erzh'e grows up in the future and also wants to break free from our control, and returns to the grasslands, he'll find that Zhebu has already turned the grasslands into the shape of Gao Family Village, and no one will listen to the Heavenly Khan anymore."
Shan Shier laughed: "You kid, you're really [small person with big schemes]."
Liu Maopao: "Shan Manager flatters me."
Shan Shier: "Very good, just do as you say; let Zhebu go back to the grasslands. Oh right! Zao Ying returned to her military post a few days ago. The armored cavalry battalion, after years of preparation, has expanded many times in scale now. This is a good opportunity to go to the grasslands and [stir things up]."
Liu Maopao: "Third Manager, that's not an idiom, is it?"
Thirty-Two: "Not important, not important! [No big deal]."