182: Chapter 182 The Joyful Toolbox

After Ma Lan and Xiao Ma returned, Lin Feng crouched under the Old Locust Tree and thought for an entire day. The cat also crouched there all day, but in the middle of it, it slept four times, ate twice, and chased a butterfly. Lin Feng remained motionless, dangling a straw from his mouth and staring at the ants on the ground. An ant was carrying a breadcrumb, walking from the tree roots toward the Restaurant; it moved very slowly, but steadily. He watched for a long time, then suddenly stood up and brushed off his pants. "I've figured it out." The cat was startled, jumping up from the blue cloth and glaring at him. Margaret poked her head out from the Restaurant. "What have you figured out?" Lin Feng said, "I can't save them one by one. It's too slow. There are twenty-three towns; if I go to each one individually, it will take half a year to finish. And after those twenty-three, there will be even more. I can't save them all." Margaret walked out and crouched beside him. "Then what will you do?" Lin Feng pulled a piece of paper from his pocket and unfolded it. On the paper was a drawing of a toolbox containing various small items—the methods for making Kaleidoscopes, Water Glass Harps, Telescopes, Microscopes, and Sound Cups. Next to it were a few words: "happiness toolbox. Open it, and you can make them." Margaret looked at the paper. "You're going to send this toolbox to every town?" Lin Feng nodded. "Not send it, but teach it. Teach them to make them themselves. Once they're made, they can play with them. When they're happy, they'll teach others. Once others learn, they'll make them too. That way, I won't have to go myself."

Lin Feng began to write the "Happiness Toolbox Instruction Manual." He crouched under the tree, leaning over his knees to write; he wrote very slowly, and every word required long thought. The cat crouched nearby, watching his hand move, and reached out a paw to bat the pen, which rolled to the ground; Lin Feng picked it up. The cat batted it again, and it rolled to the ground once more. Lin Feng looked at the cat. "If you keep causing trouble, I'll stop writing. If I don't write, there will be no toolbox. Without the toolbox, no one will smile. And if no one smiles, you'll have to play by yourself." The cat withdrew its paw and crouched nearby, the tip of its tail swaying gently. Lin Feng continued to write. He wrote the instructions for the Kaleidoscope: paper tube, tinfoil, colored cellophane, glue, and a circular mirror. Step one: attach the tinfoil. Step two: cut the paper scraps. Step three: place them in the paper tube. Step four: seal it. Step five: attach the scale. He drew a diagram, sketching each step carefully, even depicting the reflection on the tinfoil. Next, he wrote the instructions for the Water Glass Harp: glass cups, water, and chopsticks. Step one: line up seven cups. Step two: pour water into them in sequence, from most to least. Step three: tune them. Step four: strike them. He drew seven cups, with water lines at different heights inside. Then he wrote the instructions for the Telescope: paper tube, magnifying glass, small glass piece, and black tape. Step one: fix the magnifying glass to the front end. Step two: fix the small glass piece to the eyepiece end. Step three: pull and push to adjust the focus. He drew a cross-section of the paper tube, marking the positions of the lenses. Finally, he wrote the instructions for the Sound Cup: glass cup, phone, and QR code. Step one: speak into the phone. Step two: generate a QR code. Step three: stick it to the bottom of the cup. Step four: place it on the wine rack. He drew a cup with a QR code stuck to the bottom, and next to it a phone displaying a QR code scanning interface.

He finished writing a thick stack of papers that resembled a small book. He flipped through it from beginning to end and realized he had missed something: the Microscope. He added the instructions for the Microscope as well: paper tube, magnifying glass, small glass piece, flashlight, and black paper. Step one: blacken the paper tube. Step two: fix the magnifying glass. Step three: fix the glass piece. Step four: adjust the focus. He drew a structural diagram of the Microscope, marking the light path. After finishing, he handed the manual to Margaret. "Take a look, is anything missing?" Margaret took it and flipped through the pages one by one. She read very slowly, speaking every word aloud. When she finished, she nodded. "It's all here. But you missed the most important thing." Lin Feng was stunned for a moment. "What?" Margaret pointed to the cover of the manual. "The name. You haven't written the title yet." Lin Feng thought for a moment, picked up the pen, and wrote a few words on the cover: "happiness toolbox · Instruction Manual." After finishing, he took a step back and looked at the words. "That's enough." Margaret smiled. "When other people make manuals, they need typesetting, printing, and binding. You just handwrote one." Lin Feng said, "It's handwritten, so it's easy to understand. If they don't understand, they can ask me. If I'm not there, they can ask someone else. If no one else understands, they can figure it out themselves. Once they figure it out, they've learned it." He put the manual into a plastic bag, tied it shut, and placed it by the tree roots.

When Old Zhou came to deliver the mail, he saw the manual and picked it up to flip through it. "What's this?" Lin Feng said, "The instructions for the happiness toolbox. Help me photocopy it." Old Zhou flipped to the last page and saw the structural diagram of the Microscope. "You can draw this too?" Lin Feng said, "I practiced while crouching." Old Zhou tucked the manual into his canvas bag and rode off, the bike chain clinking as he went. The next day, he brought back a box of photocopies—a thick stack—and placed them by the tree roots. Lin Feng sorted the copies into twenty-three file bags, each containing a set of materials: a paper tube, tinfoil, cellophane, a circular mirror, a glass cup, a magnifying glass, a small glass piece, tape, and QR code stickers. He handed the bags to Old Zhou. "Deliver these to those twenty-three towns. One for each town. Give them to the mayor, or a bar owner, or a priest at a church. Give it to whoever is willing to take it." Old Zhou looked at the twenty-three bulging file bags and then at his bicycle. "The bike can't hold all of this." Lin Feng thought for a moment. "Deliver them in three trips. Eight per trip." Old Zhou stuffed the file bags into his canvas bag; it was full after only six. He rode off, the chain creaking as he went.

The first to receive a toolbox was Baishi Town. Xiao Ma opened the file bag, took out the manual, and flipped through it page by page. He stopped at the page for the Sound Cup and looked at it for a long time. Then, following the steps in the manual, he made a new cup. He spoke a sentence into his phone: "This is the first cup made by the happiness toolbox." Once recorded, he generated the QR code and stuck it to the bottom of the cup. He placed the cup on the wine rack, right next to Ma Lan's cup. The two cups sat side by side—one saying "Xiao Ma, I'm back," and the other saying "This is the first cup made by the happiness toolbox." Xiao Ma looked at those words and smiled. He picked up his own cup and said another sentence into the phone: "Sis, now that you're back, I won't make cups anymore. I'll just talk to you; I don't need a cup."

The second to receive a toolbox was Millfield. Eric opened the file bag and turned to the page for the Water Glass Harp. Following the steps in the manual, he made seven Water Glass Harps. He spent a long time tuning the notes; the cat ran over from Xinfeng Town and crouched nearby to listen, helping him tune. When the cat's Ears twitched significantly, the note was accurate. Once Eric finished tuning, he played "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star." The cat closed its eyes, its head swaying slowly. Eric then played the sound of a cat's purr—thump-thump-thump-thump—low and deep, like an engine. The cat opened its eyes, glanced at him, and closed them again. Eric smiled. He set the Water Glass Harp by the farm entrance and put a sign next to it: "Please play. Free of charge. To make you happy." Passersby stopped to play a few notes and smiled when they were done.

The third to receive a toolbox was Greenfield. Martha opened the file bag and turned to the page for the Telescope. Following the steps in the manual, she made a Telescope and set it up at the church entrance, pointing it toward the distant mountains. Passersby stopped to take a look, and when they were finished, they smiled. Someone said, "I can see my roof!" Someone else said, "I can see the mushroom sheds in Millfield." Another said, "I can see the wind. No, it's not the wind; it's the leaves moving." Martha smiled. She stood beside the Telescope and played a piece of music. The sound of the piano blended with the wind, drifting toward the mountains.

The fourth, the fifth, the sixth... all twenty-three towns received their toolboxes. Some mayors took them, some bar owners took them, and some church priests took them. Some people made Kaleidoscopes, some made Water Glass Harps, some made Telescopes, some made Sound Cups, and some made Microscopes. The finished items were placed in public areas of the towns—squares, church entrances, bars, and schools. Passersby stopped to play with them, and when they were done, they smiled. After they smiled, they told others. Then others came to play. Happiness grew like wild grass on its own, without Lin Feng needing to water it.

The red dots on the happiness map grew more numerous and brighter. There were more than twenty-three—new red dots appeared on the happiness map as the towns that had received the toolboxes passed them on themselves. They photocopied the manual and sent it to neighboring towns. The neighboring towns followed suit, and they lit up as well. The red dots spread like ripples on water, expanding outward in circles from Xinfeng Town. Lin Feng crouched under the Old Locust Tree, watching those red dots. The cat crouched beside him, watching too. It couldn't understand the red dots, but it knew Lin Feng was happy. The corners of Lin Feng's mouth curled up, as did the tip of the cat's tail. Margaret came out carrying a plate of mushrooms and crouched beside him. "How many more have lit up?" Lin Feng said, "Seven. Four yesterday, three today." Margaret looked at the red dots. "Is it enough?" Lin Feng thought for a moment. "Not enough. There will be more." Margaret placed the plate of mushrooms on the ground and crouched down as well. The three of them—plus the cat—crouched there, watching that increasingly bright expanse of red.

In the evening, Lin Feng sat on the steps in front of the Restaurant. He wasn't crouching; he was sitting. Margaret came out with a plate of mushrooms and sat beside him. The two of them sat there, watching the sky. The stars lit up one by one, just like yesterday. The cat jumped down from the awning, walked to their feet, crouched down, and looked up at the stars. It watched for a long time, then closed its eyes, curled into a ball, and began to purr. Margaret looked at the cat. "It didn't play with the toolbox today." Lin Feng said, "It did. It helped Eric tune his notes. It listened for a long time, its Ears twitching many times." Margaret asked, "Was its tuning accurate?" Lin Feng said, "Yes. When its Ears twitched the most, the notes were the most accurate." The wind blew over, carrying the scent of paper pulp from the tubes, the faint fragrance of cellophane, the aroma of coffee, and the light sweetness of mushrooms. Lin Feng closed his eyes and inhaled. He opened them, stood up, and brushed off his pants. "I'm going to sleep." Margaret also stood up. "Will you make more toolboxes tomorrow?" Lin Feng shook his head. "No more. It's enough. They'll make them themselves now." Margaret looked at him. "How do you know?" Lin Feng said, "Because happiness is contagious. Once it spreads, it grows on its own. And once it grows, I don't have to water it anymore." He turned and walked into the Restaurant, and Margaret followed behind him. The door closed, and the lights went out. The cat jumped down from the steps, walked back into the awning, curled up on the blue cloth with its head resting on the Iron box, and closed its eyes. The moon emerged from behind the clouds, casting the toolbox's shadow on the ground—square and solid, like a treasure chest. The wind blew, and the shadow wavered but did not break apart. Lin Feng stood in the Restaurant, looking out the window. He saw the shadow of the toolbox, the shadow of the cat, and the shadows of the red dots. He watched for a long time, then pulled the curtains shut and went to sleep.

[Chapter 182 End]