In fact, this bicycle wasn't easy to ride. It was even worse than a modern yellow car!
Because the pedals of this bicycle were placed directly on the axle of the front wheel, the power of the bicycle was mainly driven by the crank connected to the pedals. When the pedals turned, the front wheel would also turn. Under such circumstances, it was too difficult to speed up the bicycle!
If Li Zexuan didn't know martial arts, he would have been exhausted just from riding from Yunshan to Chang 'an. How would he have the energy to drive Lan' er around?
Because modern bicycles were driven by chains, there was a larger transmission ratio between the front and back gears. Under normal circumstances, when the pedals turned, the rear wheel would turn several times. The so-called speed-changing bicycles had a flywheel added to the rear wheel, which was a gear that could change the number of teeth.
Y represented the gear ratio, C represented the number of teeth of the driving gear, and n represented the number of teeth of the passive gear. The relationship between them could be expressed by a formula, Y = cn. For example, if the wheel of a bicycle had 48 teeth and the flywheel had 16 teeth, then the gear ratio would be 3. In other words, when the pedals turned one round, the flywheel would turn three times, which meant that the rear wheel would turn three times.
Although increasing the gear ratio could increase the bicycle's speed, one couldn't ignore the fact that the chain drive in this case was a laborious lever. The larger the gear ratio, the more laborious it would be to pedal. Based on this comprehensive consideration, in reality, regardless of the model of the bicycle, the gear ratio was around 2-4.
Speed-Changing bicycles relied on changing the gear ratio to adjust the transmission ratio, thereby saving energy or increasing speed.
Another problem was that the workshop could only make roller bearings for the various rotating parts of the bicycle. They couldn't make ball bearings yet. The roller bearings also caused Li Zexuan's bicycle to be a little jerky. The handlebars weren't flexible enough, and the wheels lost a lot of kinetic energy due to friction. This made it even more laborious to ride.
"Brother! Look! Look! Isn't that Sister Changle and Brother Crown Prince? "
Lan 'er suddenly shouted excitedly when they arrived at the entrance of the East Market.
Screech ~!
When Li Zexuan heard Lan 'er's voice, he quickly pressed the brakes. A hoarse screech resounded through the street, and the bicycle immediately stopped.
"Ouch ~!"
Due to inertia, Lan 'er's head hit Li Zexuan's back. The little girl couldn't help but let out a cry of surprise.
"Chengqian? Where is it? "
Li Zexuan used his right foot to support the bicycle and turned his head to ask.
"Hmph! Stinky brother, why didn't you tell Lan 'er when you stopped the car! "
Lan-er rubbed her head and pursed her lips.
Of course, the little girl wasn't really angry. After complaining to Li Zexuan, she said, "Hey, isn't that Brother Crown Prince and … Hey! Brother, they're coming our way! "
In fact, Li Zexuan had already found Li Chengqian and Changle in the crowd without her saying anything. There were two guards following behind the brother and sister. The guards were holding several brocade boxes in their hands. Presumably, the two of them had just finished shopping outside the palace.
The hoarse braking sound from before had instantly attracted the attention of the siblings. Once they saw Li Zexuan and Lan 'er, they approached them.
"Ah! Brother Xiaoxuan! What kind of bicycle are you pushing? "
Changle jogged over and looked at the bicycle beside Li Zexuan with surprise.
"Yes! Xiaoxuan! Why have I never seen this kind of bicycle before? "
Li Chengqian had also walked to Li Zexuan's side. Seeing Lan 'er sitting on the oddly shaped bicycle, he also felt a wave of surprise and couldn't help but ask.
"Brother Crown Prince is so stupid! This bicycle is called a bicycle. It can run on its own, and it runs very fast! "
Seeing that Li Chengqian and Changle both looked like they hadn't seen the world, Lan 'er suddenly felt a deep sense of superiority. She couldn't help but think, Mother said that Brother Crown Prince and Sister Changle were born in the royal family and had noble statuses. But now it seems that the royal family isn't as good as our family!
The little girl's thoughts were always so simple and naive. Her family had a bicycle, but the royal family didn't. Clearly, her family was better than the royal family!
"Haha! That's right! This is a bicycle! The workshop just made it. It's normal that you haven't seen it before, Chengqian! "
Li Zexuan held the bicycle with one hand and patted Lan 'er's head with the other.
"Bicycle? Can this bicycle really move on its own? "
Li Chengqian looked at the bicycle seriously and said with some disbelief.
He always felt that this kind of bicycle would fall to the ground as soon as the driver let go. How could it move on its own?
Actually, he couldn't be blamed for his lack of knowledge. The main thing was that ancient people often saw carriages and had formed a fixed mindset. A bicycle only had two wheels, and the two wheels were arranged in tandem. Naturally, it wasn't as stable as a carriage.
Before Li Zexuan could say anything, Lan 'er couldn't help but retort, "Why can't it? Lan 'er and Brother Crown Prince rode this bicycle over just now! "
Changle covered her mouth and laughed, "Sister Lan 'er, it should be Brother Xiaoxuan who rode the bicycle. You rode the bicycle, right?"
Lan 'er didn't blush and her heart didn't skip a beat, "Yes, yes! That's what I wanted to express. Sister Changle, you're so understanding! "
This girl's sweet mouth could make people sick to death. Changle was overjoyed by her sweetness. "Haha! Lan 'er, how does it feel to sit on this bicycle? "
Lan-er tilted her head and thought for a while. Then, she said, "Yes! It's quite comfortable … It's just a little cold! "
Logically speaking, a bicycle was indeed faster than a carriage, but it definitely wasn't as warm as a carriage. After all, there was wind on all sides!
This somewhat cute and quick-witted answer immediately made everyone laugh.
"Sister Changle, do you want to try it too? It's really comfortable ~? "
Lan 'er saw that everyone was laughing and thought that they didn't believe her, so she said again.
Changle's eyes immediately flashed with a hint of interest. Li Chengqian inadvertently glanced at Changle, and his heart suddenly thumped. He hurriedly said, "Ahem! Changle, it's not early anymore. If Father and Mother don't see you for a long time, they'll be anxious! "
As her elder brother, Li Zexuan had actually noticed that Changle's feelings towards Li Zexuan were a little different. He couldn't tell if it was because of her attachment to her elder brother or because of the feelings between a man and a woman, but no matter which it was, it wasn't appropriate for Changle to get too close to Li Zexuan. As for things like riding the same bicycle, that was even more out of the question!
"… Yes ~! Then … Brother Xiaoxuan, Sister Lan 'er, goodbye ~! "
Changle's thin lips moved as she spoke softly.
Wearing a pink palace dress, she looked even more delicate and pitiful under the setting sun.
…
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