# The wind in the capital had always been swifter than the blades of the northern frontier.
Overnight, the name of Shen Zhiwei, the legitimate eldest daughter of the Yongning Marquis's Residence, spread from the residence's rear courtyard to several noble households.
Some said that her personality had completely changed after recovering from her illness.
Some said she had learned all sorts of unorthodox tricks from who knew where.
Others said she had turned a perfectly respectable marquis's daughter into a craftswoman.
The wildest version of all went like this—
“She wants to make transparent stones that can see right through people.”
In a teahouse, a young man in brocade robes laughed so hard he nearly fell over.
“Did you hear that? Transparent stones!”
“Miss Shen must be seriously ill.”
The people beside him laughed as well.
“Seriously ill? I heard she’s even making paper out of old rags.”
“Old rags can be turned into paper?”
“Who knows? Whatever’s going on at the marquis’s residence, they’re making it sound like some kind of miracle.”
“I say she just wants attention.”
“A woman should be learning music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Instead, she insists on learning the work of craftsmen. What nonsense.”
The crowd burst into laughter.
Only an old man in the corner did not laugh.
He lowered his head and sipped his tea.
After a moment, he asked mildly, “Did any of you see it with your own eyes?”
Everyone froze.
“See what?”
“Glass.”
The old man set down his teacup.
“Which of you saw her make it with your own eyes?”
No one answered.
The old man let out a cold laugh.
“If you didn’t see it, how do you know she’s crazy?”
“Maybe…”
He looked out the window.
“Maybe she really did make it?”
Zhiwei Workshop.
Shen Zhiwei had no idea that the people outside had already branded her a madwoman.
She was standing in the courtyard.
A wooden board sat in front of her.
A sheet of transparent glass had been secured to it.
Sunlight passed through the glass and fell onto the ground.
It was still not pure enough, but a person’s silhouette on the other side was already clearly visible.
Gu Changfeng stood beside her, barely able to conceal his excitement.
“Miss.”
“Hmm?”
“Can this really be used for windows?”
“Yes.”
“Then should we install it?”
Shen Zhiwei shook her head.
“Not yet.”
“Why not?”
“It’s too brittle.”
She tapped the glass.
A clear, crisp sound rang out.
“It isn’t thick enough.”
“The edges aren’t even, either.”
“And there’s no frame.”
Gu Changfeng nodded.
“Then we’ll make it thicker.”
“Right.”
“If we make it thicker, it won’t be brittle?”
“Not completely.”
Shen Zhiwei picked up a charcoal pencil.
On the wooden board, she drew a window frame.
“Glass is only one part of it.”
“A real window also needs a frame.”
“A wooden frame?”
“That works.”
“An iron frame?”
“That works too.”
“Then which one is better?”
“That depends on its purpose.”
Gu Changfeng studied the lines.
Slowly, he began to understand.
Miss Shen never did only one thing at a time.
She always thought several steps ahead.
A sheet of glass.
She thought of windows.
A window.
Then she began considering how to light a house.
And after that…
Who knew what she would think of next?
“Miss.”
Gu Changfeng suddenly asked, “Is your head filled with the whole world?”
Shen Zhiwei paused.
Then she smiled.
“No.”
“Then what is it filled with?”
She looked into the distance.
“A future that hasn’t arrived yet.”
Gu Changfeng didn’t understand.
But he did not ask again.
Because he knew that one day, he would see it.
That morning.
The workshop received a special visitor.
“Miss.”
A craftsman hurried over from the entrance.
“Someone outside is asking to see you.”
“Who?”
“He says he’s from the Ministry of Works in the capital.”
Shen Zhiwei looked up.
“The Ministry of Works?”
She was a little surprised.
Soon, a middle-aged man in his forties entered the workshop.
He wore a blue official robe and had a steady, composed expression.
Two minor officials followed behind him.
The man cupped his hands.
“I am Zhou Yuanshan, an administrative director of the Ministry of Works.”
Shen Zhiwei returned the courtesy.
“Lord Zhou.”
Zhou Yuanshan looked around, his brows drawing together slightly.
He had heard long ago that the legitimate eldest daughter of the Yongning Marquis's Residence was making a fuss here.
But after seeing it with his own eyes, he realized that the rumors had actually been understating things.
The dilapidated workshop had been remodeled beyond recognition.
Strange blueprints covered the walls.
Metal, timber, sand, and stone were piled across the tables.
There were also various tools he had never seen before.
“Miss Shen.”
“What exactly are you doing here?”
“Research.”
“Researching what?”
“A lot of things.”
Zhou Yuanshan: “…”
He fell silent for a moment.
“I heard that you made transparent crystal glass?”
Shen Zhiwei nodded.
“Glass.”
“Glass?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“What’s the difference?”
“It’s more transparent.”
Shen Zhiwei picked up a sample.
“And I’m planning to research how to mass-produce it.”
Zhou Yuanshan’s brows furrowed even deeper.
“Mass-produce it?”
“Yes.”
“Miss Shen, do you know that crystal glass is a precious material?”
“I do.”
“If you want to make money from it, that wouldn’t be a bad thing.”
Zhou Yuanshan’s tone was tactful.
“But the Ministry of Works has researched kilns before as well.”
“If you want to produce crystal glass on a large scale, I’m afraid it won’t be that simple.”
Shen Zhiwei glanced at him.
“I know.”
“You know?”
“That’s why I’m researching it.”
Zhou Yuanshan was briefly left speechless.
“But…”
“Lord Zhou,” Shen Zhiwei asked suddenly, “have you ever thought about what would happen if ordinary people could use transparent glass one day?”
Zhou Yuanshan stared.
“Ordinary people?”
“Yes.”
“Windows could become much brighter.”
“Physicians could have transparent containers.”
“Craftsmen could observe materials.”
“Scholars could make precision instruments.”
“They could even use it to study things that can’t be seen.”
The more Zhou Yuanshan listened, the stranger his expression became.
“Things that can’t be seen?”
Shen Zhiwei nodded.
“For example, bacteria.”
“Bacteria?”
The word was completely beyond Zhou Yuanshan’s understanding.
Shen Zhiwei knew there was no point in explaining it now.
“You’ll understand someday.”
Zhou Yuanshan remained silent for a long time.
At last, he said only, “Miss Shen.”
“Hmm?”
“With all due respect…”
He looked around.
“You’re researching too many things.”
Shen Zhiwei smiled.
“That’s because there are always many things in this world worth researching.”
Zhou Yuanshan stared at her blankly.
For the first time, he had no idea how to respond.
After he left, Gu Changfeng couldn’t help asking, “Miss, does the Ministry of Works dislike us?”
“No.”
“Then why did he keep frowning?”
“Because he thinks I’m trying to do something impossible.”
“But we already made glass.”
“Making one piece doesn’t mean we can mass-produce it.”
Shen Zhiwei looked at the glass.
“And the truly difficult part isn’t making the first piece.”
“It’s turning it into a product.”
“Making it affordable for ordinary people.”
“Making it possible for the workshop to produce several hundred pieces a day.”
“And then making it possible for other workshops to learn how to do it too.”
Gu Changfeng fell silent.
At that moment, he finally understood what Shen Zhiwei meant by scientific research.
It wasn’t some clever little trinket.
It was an entire system of methods.
That afternoon.
Shen Zhiwei began making the second batch of glass.
This time, she was no longer satisfied with mere transparency.
She began studying thickness.
Molds.
Cooling speed.
Annealing.
She had the craftsmen make molds in different sizes.
Each one was numbered.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Every batch of glass was recorded.
“Mold A.”
“Three units thick.”
“High heat.”
“Cooled for two hours.”
“Result: cracked.”
“Mold B.”
“Five units thick.”
“Same heat.”
“Result: intact.”
“Mold C.”
“Added a new proportion of limestone.”
“Transparency improved.”
The more Gu Changfeng recorded, the more excited he became.
“Miss.”
“Hmm?”
“Are we close to finding the method?”
Shen Zhiwei shook her head.
“Not even close.”
“Not even close?”
“Before we achieve true stability, we’ll need to run at least dozens more trials.”
Gu Changfeng sucked in a breath.
“Dozens?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“How much charcoal will that take?”
Shen Zhiwei fell silent.
That was indeed a problem.
Charcoal.
Coal.
Fuel.
These were things she had to solve as well.
She suddenly wrote a line on the paper.
The Fuel Revolution.
Gu Changfeng stared at the four words.
“What’s that supposed to be?”
“I’ll tell you later.”
Shen Zhiwei rubbed her temples.
She suddenly realized that she seemed to have fallen into a massive pit.
To make glass, she needed a better kiln.
A better kiln required higher temperatures.
Higher temperatures required better fuel.
Better fuel involved metallurgy.
Metallurgy required better tools.
Tools required machine tools.
Machine tools required precision measurement.
Precision measurement required…
Shen Zhiwei suddenly stopped.
She looked at the blueprints covering the walls.
She couldn’t help laughing.
This was the technology tree.
The moment she took one step forward, ten new paths would branch out before her.
There was no way she could complete everything at once.
She could only choose what mattered most.
“One step at a time.”
She said it to herself.
And yet.
The rumors outside grew more outrageous by the day.
“Have you heard?”
“Heard what?”
“That Miss Shen from the Shen family wants to turn crystal glass into windows.”
“Windows?”
“Yeah.”
“She’s crazy, isn’t she?”
“Obviously.”
“Crystal glass is so expensive. She wants to use it for windows?”
“Even the rich shouldn’t spend money like that.”
“I heard she also wants to research some kind of invisible thing.”
“Hahahaha…”
Laughter rang through the teahouse.
Soon, someone else joined in.
“I heard she had the craftsmen boil old rags until they fell apart.”
“She said it was called fiber.”
“She also said she wants everyone to be able to read.”
“Who does she think she is?”
“A woman thinks she can change the world?”
The words fell.
The entire teahouse went quiet for a moment.
Then someone laughed even louder.
“She isn’t just crazy.”
“She’s completely lost her mind!”
Throughout the capital.
People had even started betting on Shen Zhiwei.
“I bet she’ll bankrupt the workshop within three months.”
“I bet two months.”
“I bet one month!”
“Then I bet she’ll end up having to get married.”
“Hahahaha!”
Everyone was laughing.
No one knew that as they mocked Shen Zhiwei, inside Zhiwei Workshop, a piece of glass more transparent than the last was slowly being lifted from its mold.
It wasn’t perfect.
But it was already clear enough for light to pass through distinctly.
Shen Zhiwei picked up the glass and looked at the sky outside.
Then she suddenly said, “Gu Changfeng.”
“Yes.”
“Put this in the window frame.”
“Now?”
“Now.”
“Got it!”
The craftsmen soon began working.
The wooden frame was secured.
The glass was fitted into place.
Iron nails were hammered in.
Thunk.
Thunk.
Thunk.
At last, a crude glass window appeared in the workshop wall.
Sunlight passed through the glass, illuminating the dim interior.
Everyone stopped.
There were no cheers.
No one spoke.
They simply stared in silence.
Because at that moment, they felt it for the first time.
The light in the room could actually be this bright.
An old craftsman extended his hand and looked at his palm.
“So this is…”
He murmured, “A window really can let light in.”
Gu Changfeng smiled.
“Of course.”
“Couldn’t windows do that before?”
The old craftsman shook his head.
“Window paper lets light through.”
“But the moment the wind blows, it tears.”
“And it has to be replaced whenever it rains.”
“But now…”
He looked at the pane of glass.
“As long as it doesn’t get smashed, it can be used forever.”
Shen Zhiwei said nothing.
She simply stood in front of the window.
Sunlight fell across her face.
In that instant, she suddenly felt that she had truly taken her first step.
Not because glass was so precious.
But because she had allowed these people to see, for the first time—
That life could look entirely different.
Just then.
The sound of hoofbeats suddenly came from outside the courtyard gate.
“The Marquis has arrived!”
Shen Zhiwei turned around.
Shen Mingyuan strode into the workshop.
He had only wanted to see what exactly his daughter was making such a fuss over.
But when he entered the courtyard, he stopped dead.
His gaze fell on the window.
Sunlight passed through the transparent glass, filling the room with the brightness of day.
Shen Mingyuan stood there for a long while.
“This is…”
“A glass window,” Shen Zhiwei said.
“You made it?”
“We made it together.”
She pointed to the craftsmen behind her.
“It wasn’t just me.”
Shen Mingyuan said nothing.
He walked to the window and reached out to touch it.
Cool.
Smooth.
Transparent.
He could even see the people outside clearly.
“This thing…” he asked in a deep voice, “can really be mass-produced?”
“Not yet,” Shen Zhiwei answered honestly.
“But I will make it happen.”
Shen Mingyuan looked at her.
“Do you know what people outside are saying about you?”
“I know.”
“They say you’re crazy.”
Shen Zhiwei smiled faintly.
“I know.”
“Doesn’t it bother you?”
“No.”
Shen Mingyuan frowned.
“Why not?”
Shen Zhiwei gazed out the window.
“Because throughout history, everyone who truly changed the world was called crazy before they succeeded.”
Shen Mingyuan was stunned.
She turned back, her gaze calm and resolute.
“If I give up just because other people call me crazy…”
“Then I’ll spend my entire life living in a world defined by other people.”
“But I don’t want that.”
Shen Mingyuan watched her for a long time.
This time, he did not accuse her of fooling around.
“Then do it.”
Shen Zhiwei raised her eyes.
“Father?”
“If you want to do it…”
Shen Mingyuan turned around.
“Then do it well.”
He paused.
Then he added, “If anyone gives you trouble because of this…”
“Tell me.”
Shen Zhiwei’s heart stirred faintly.
“Okay.”
At dusk.
After Shen Mingyuan left, Shen Zhiwei returned to her desk.
She opened The Zhiwei Workshop Experimental Record.
On today’s page, she wrote:
Experiment number: 017.
Project: Transparent glass window.
Result: Initial success.
She paused for a moment.
Then she added:
“Today, for the first time, I let sunlight pass through glass and into the workshop.”
Finally, she wrote a sentence at the bottom of the page:
“Everyone outside says I’m crazy.”
The tip of her brush stopped.
The ink spread faintly.
She suddenly smiled.
Then continued writing:
“Then I’ll be crazy once, just to show them.”
Night fell.
The first glass window in Zhiwei Workshop shimmered with a faint silver glow beneath the moonlight.
No one knew that it was only a window.
Yet it was the starting point for countless glass products to come.
No one knew that from this day forward, Shen Zhiwei would no longer be merely the useless legitimate eldest daughter of the marquis's residence whom everyone mocked.
She had begun to enter the sightlines of every major power in the capital.
The Ministry of Works was watching.
Merchants began making inquiries.
The great families began to sneer.
And deep within the imperial city, someone noticed her name for the first time.
As for the person who had been watching her from the shadows all along—
Xiao Chengyuan.
He was standing before the window of his study, holding the latest secret report.
“Shen Zhiwei…”
He murmured the name, his gaze deep and unreadable.
“Everyone says you’re crazy.”
“In that case…”
The corner of his lips lifted almost imperceptibly.
“I want to see just how far you can take this madness.”
Meanwhile.
Shen Zhiwei was bowing her head to write down her next project.
The steam engine.
She did not know that the era destined to shake all of Dayong had only just begun.