The pedal-powered vehicles Pan Yun had made by hand were incredibly useful. She was already skilled in artifact forging, which meant she alone could serve as a fitter, grinder, boring-machine operator...
So far, she had made only two pedal-powered vehicles herself. One had been given to the Emperor as his birthday gift this year, and the other to Yu Qian.
Yu Qian now rode that pedal-powered vehicle to and from court every day.
With the Grand Secretariat's Chief Grand Secretary taking the lead, pedal-powered vehicles suddenly swept through official circles. Officials great and small not only bought them for themselves but also for their children. The Ministry of Works seized the chance to make a handsome profit, not only recouping its research funds but also turning over a sum to the treasury, giving the already poor national coffers an extra surplus.
Better still, once officials and their children had bicycles, those below the middle class sold off the oxen, horses, and mules in their homes. The number of oxen, horses, and mules among the common people increased, their prices fell, and more farming households around the Capital City bought oxen and mules, greatly improving cultivation efficiency.
Pan Yu followed Miao Zhen to outside the palace city and saw quite a few pedal-powered vehicles parked in neat rows in the open spaces on either side of the palace gates.
Pan Yu could not help stopping, staring at them in astonishment.
In the past, these two areas had been used to park carriages and horses.
Miao Zhen let him look for a while before explaining, "The carriages and horses were moved to the back."
Pan Yu did not understand. "Why?"
"Because horses shit, and it stinks," Miao Zhen said with a grave expression. "And besides, with Elder Yu riding a pedal-powered vehicle,