Humans Shrunk 100 Times

Chapter 181: Completion of the Cannon Tower

Regarding Du Jiajia's ability to make rice balls, Chen Mu didn't find it strange. Even though there wasn't enough water to cook regular rice, the difficulty increased due to the shrunken rice they had now.

Of course, the traditional cooking methods were no longer effective.

Cooking raw rice and making it into cooked rice are two different concepts. To achieve a soft and chewy texture, simmering time still needed to be limited.

Currently, that was still quite difficult to achieve.

However, Du Jiajia came up with a new cooking method.

In simple terms, she roasted the rice and then soaked it in warm water.

The rice prepared this way, although far from matching the taste of the past, could barely serve as a substitute. For the people who had been eating rice cakes for too long, it was already quite satisfying.

"This green color, could it be tea leaves?" Chen Mu prodded the rice ball with his chopsticks.

"Smart of you to notice."

"No kidding, we have only a few things to work with now."

"Hehe, it's just soaking the rice in tea water, adding some ambiance, and everyone can make do with it."

"It's already pretty good."

Dong Junwei nodded, "Jiajia's cooking skills are getting better. The tomato, potato, and radish rice she made last time was also very good."

"It depends on you, Captain. If you can control the temperature more accurately, I can make rice just like before."

"I'll do my best, I promise..."

Dong Junwei was rarely reprimanded, showing extraordinary humility and caution. But to be honest, the Chief Decision Officer usually focused most of his energy on team-building, and his grasp of abilities was not particularly outstanding. His mental strength was probably only slightly stronger than Zhao Xiaoyan and others. It was for this reason that he was teased by Du Jiajia.

Although this rice ball didn't have bamboo leaves or glutinous rice, and it was just tea-soaked rice, everyone in Qiming and the others ate it with great enthusiasm.

Chen Mu somewhat understood why Tang Jing, He Ying, and others insisted on the sense of ceremony.

For example, this simple meal that wasn't actually a rice ball made everyone feel as if they had returned to the past, and their mood relaxed significantly. In terms of psychological adjustment, it indeed had a great comforting effect.

...

The construction progress of the cannon tower was much faster than expected because Chen Mu found a perfect substitute for scaffolding - foam plastic.

The two pieces of foam used to cushion inside the cardboard boxes were now the smallest density solid Chen Mu could find. In terms of volume control with the same mass, it was 780 times that of stainless steel. After Lushanshan's weight reduction, the overall effect was quite exaggerated.

The temporary stairs made of foam plastic could directly reach the height of the first observation platform and could be moved at any time, greatly reducing the construction difficulty.

July 4th.

Lunar May 14th.

Auspicious for placing the beam.

After twelve days of arduous struggle, with the joint efforts of all members of Qiming Architecture Design Co., Ltd., and many external personnel, the last crossbeam of the high-level cannon tower was finally placed.

With this, the entire project was completed.

The design of the high-level cannon tower far exceeded the initial observation platform in both practicality and precision.

Two elevators, through three transitional platforms, directly reached the highest level of the wooden door. The 16-square-centimeter lifting platform could accommodate more than a dozen people at the same time. Although the high-level cannon tower was usually only used by Cao Zishan alone, this elevator also considered the three intermediate observation platforms.

After testing, the cannon tower could reach a height of two meters from the ground in the fastest time of fifteen seconds, which was quite remarkable for humans at that time. The spring winding device equipped for this purpose consumed a lot of effort from Tang Jing and Chen Mu in terms of volume and technicality. The speed governor alone took a lot of effort.

Chen Mu and He Ying personally conducted several test runs to ensure there were no safety issues before allowing Cao Zishan to try it out.

The first time, Chen Mu accompanied him.

At first, Cao Zishan was extremely excited, but once he reached a height of more than half, his legs began to feel weak.

"You're not afraid of heights, are you?"

Chen Mu was somewhat worried, fearing that this guy, Cao Zishan, might end up like Wei Dalei, rendering the cannon tower useless.

"No, no, it's just my first time at such a height, feeling a bit uncomfortable," Cao Zishan hurriedly explained.

"That's good. Try it a few more times, you'll get used to it. Also, strictly adhere to the safety regulations when using the elevator and the cannon tower, especially the safety rope, which must be worn throughout the process. Remember this," Chen Mu advised.

"Yeah, don't worry, senior. I value my life very much," Cao Zishan replied.

"That's good."

Even at a height of 2 meters, the impact of a fall would likely result in severe injuries, and with the current medical conditions, it could be fatal.

To address this, two safety measures were implemented in the design.

The first was a safety rope made of cotton thread, and as long as it was worn according to the rules, there should be no problem.

The second was a buffer platform made of foam plastic located at the first observation platform, 80 centimeters high. The platform extended 10 centimeters outward, ensuring that an accidentally falling person would be caught unless it was a deliberate suicide attempt.

After Cao Zishan arrived at the cannon tower, he gazed outside through the massive floor-to-ceiling glass and was momentarily stunned.

At this height, the view was somewhat similar to the previous human eye level. The outdoor buildings, greenery, and roads, apart from the diminished visual distance due to shrinking, all looked very familiar.

In the middle of the glass, there was a sliding window that could be moved left and right. It was much wider than usual windows. Through this window, Cao Zishan could launch cannonballs.

"Your future mission is to detect enemy movements as soon as possible and engage in long-range strikes. Of course, this requires extensive training. For now, the most important thing is to practice throwing accuracy. Dong Junwei will provide you with specially designed large hand grenades."

Due to air resistance, at this height, the regular hand grenades used by Chen Mu and the others were difficult to ensure accurate throwing. Sometimes they got blown away by the wind, and they didn't know where they ended up.

So, the special hand grenades prepared for Cao Zishan were much larger than regular ones and were more akin to cannonballs. Moreover, Chen Mu filled them with a large number of steel beads, which were much denser than ordinary stones, significantly increasing their throwing accuracy.

Of course, the power was also exceptional.

After all, Cao Zishan's high-level cannon tower was not aimed at small groups of enemies but rather to defend against large invasions, such as the kind from Qingbei with hundreds of people pouring in.

The completion of the cannon tower added another layer of security to Qiming.

Of course, if possible, Chen Mu would prefer never to have to use it.

Unlock exclusive early access to 100s of chapters before anyone else by becoming a valued member of my Patreon community.

As a cherished member of our Patreon community, here is what you'll get:

For just $5, you'll receive:

• Early access to 100s of chapters before they go public. (check all the novels I'm translating from HERE, all the novels have 100s of exclusive early access chapters and some are complete.)
• Your name prominently featured on the "Wall of Gratitude".
• The power to vote on which novel I should translate next.

If you decide to pledge $10, you'll get all the perks from the $5 tier, plus:

• You get to suggest a Novel (Chinese or Korean) for me to translate, It may take some time for me to do it but it will be done as soon as possible.
• Your name prominently featured on the "Wall of Gratitude" (in gold).

And if you're feeling generous with a $20 pledge, you'll unlock all the perks from the $5 tier and $10 tier, plus:

• You get to recommend a Novel (Chinese or Korean) and I will immediately start translating it.
• You get to recommend an abandoned Novel (Chinese or Korean) and I will immediately start translating it.
• Your name featured at the top of the "Wall of Gratitude".

Don't let this amazing opportunity slip through your fingers!