The Craftsman’s Marvels is a technological epic about transmigration. Modern mechanic Chen Mo crash-lands in the impoverished Great Yu dynasty. Armed with fragments of lost technology and a burning passion for craftsmanship, he improves plows and builds waterwheels in Qinghe Village, saves the people from famine, and establishes the Heavenly Works Foundry. His innovations spread like wildfire: deep-plowing plows, water-powered forging hammers, threshers, and looms all make their debut. Grain and cloth abound, but this enrages the local gentryman Li Shoutian and draws the attention of the imperial court. Conservatives condemn the inventions as “frivolous tricks,” reformists try to seize them for themselves, the vice minister of the Ministry of Works sets a trap, and bandits and border threats take advantage of the chaos. Wielding ruler and compass as his sword and gunpowder as his shield, Chen Mo leads the village militia across prefectures and counties, harnesses waterpower to smelt iron, and lays out workshops like pieces on a chessboard. Amidst the thunder and lightning of the nine gates, he finally wins the seal of “Grand Master of Works.” In the final volume, he leads tens of thousands of craftsmen to dig canals, build new cities, fight epidemics, and secure the borders, bringing an end to hunger and cold throughout the realm and raising artisans to the imperial court. When the new capital is complete, with roads and fields stretching in every direction and looms humming, Chen Mo gazes across the land, ancient-patterned steel ruler in hand. Technology is the plow, craftsmanship the seed, and from this day on, an age of peace takes root.
