Chapter 37

"Clang!"

When the Fengke family and the Joshua family saw John riding his bicycle around and around in the garden, their eyes all widened in shock, and even Mr. Menders' cane fell to the ground!

"Screech, screech..."

In the garden, only the sound of the bicycle's metal parts rubbing together could be heard.

Pedaling leisurely, John circled the garden repeatedly, not deliberately increasing the speed to show off to the others, but rather feeling the cool afternoon breeze and carefully noting the bicycle's shortcomings. Although the bicycle was built according to his memory, there were significant differences in the details and materials, leading to noticeable deficiencies in flexibility and lightness.

However...

"It's already enough."

Seeing the stunned expressions of the people around him, John couldn't help but smile.

"Screech!"

After circling about a dozen times, John suddenly squeezed the handbrake, bringing the bicycle to a stop in front of Joshua. He nodded in satisfaction; the handbrake structure he had drawn was rather rough, and he had expected the workers to do a poor job, but the result was surprisingly excellent! John couldn't help but feel interested in the people his grandfather had found.

"John, let me try it!"

At this moment, Emma was the first to react, immediately rushing to John's side and shouting loudly.

"Emma!"

Seeing his daughter's impulsive behavior, Mr. Stone, though still in shock, sternly called out, his severe gaze immediately fixing on her.

Emma stuck out her tongue, pulled back her neck, and quickly retreated.

"I'll try it!"

Fengke was the second to jump out. Without waiting for anyone else to speak, he eagerly took the bicycle from John. The older men, like Old Hunter, were too old, and only he and Joshua were suitable, so he naturally took the lead.

After letting go, John saw his friend about to pedal and immediately grabbed his arm, saying urgently, "Fengke, wait a moment."

"What's wrong?"

Fengke turned his head, looking puzzled.

The others were also confused, not quite understanding John's meaning. Only Old Hunter had a sudden realization and asked in a deep voice, "John, is the bicycle hard to ride?"

Hearing this, the others immediately frowned.

"It's not that hard."

John chuckled and quickly explained, "But if you haven't practiced, you'll easily fall. It's better to have someone help you when you start. Hmm, someone as brave as Fengke should be able to learn in one or two hours."

"Is that so? Then how did you manage to ride it directly?"

Hearing John's words, Fengke clearly felt a bit不服气 (unconvinced) and asked loudly.

"Uh..."

John was taken aback, and a bitter smile appeared on his face. He couldn't explain that he had the relevant memory from his previous life, could he?

"No need for help, I'll do it myself!"

Seeing that John couldn't explain, Fengke's competitive spirit flared up. He shook off John's arm and pedaled forward.

"Thud!"

Just like John's first time, Fengke fell to the ground with the bicycle!

"It's fine, I just slipped."

With a red face, Fengke immediately got up, ignoring John's advice, and climbed back on the bicycle, waving his hand and saying, "Don't worry, I'll succeed this time!"

Then...

"Thud!"

"I'll try again!"

"Thud!"

"Thud!"

...

No one tried to stop this competitive guy anymore. Everyone noticed that the garden was already covered with tender grass in early spring, so even if he fell a few more times, it wouldn't be a problem. Therefore, they all watched Fengke's clumsy performance with interest and began to consider the value of the bicycle.

"John, how fast can it go?"

After a moment of thought, Old Hunter asked the question everyone was most concerned about.

"Well..."

After thinking seriously, John shook his head with a bitter smile and said, "I'm not quite sure, but I think it can reach about six or seven miles per hour. If the rider is stronger, ten miles might be possible!"

After considering, John gave a relatively reliable estimate. Although he hadn't completed the test, the feeling while riding was quite good, so with some optimization, the bicycle should be able to reach a normal standard.

Hearing this answer, Old Hunter and the other two gentlemen exchanged glances, all seeing the surprise in each other's eyes!

This speed was already enough!

Compared to walking, riding a bicycle was at least two to three times faster, and compared to a carriage, its size and price were highly competitive. This meant that in urban environments, bicycles had a broad range of applications!

"What about the cost?"

As a businessman, Mr. Stone asked another key question!

"Well..."

John's gaze turned to Old Hunter. After a moment of thought, Old Hunter said in a deep voice, "To manufacture these two prototypes, I paid two hundred dollars, but that's because the manufacturing process is quite difficult. If we produce them in large quantities, the cost will definitely be much lower!"

"But it will still be over forty dollars!"

Mr. Menders, who ran a factory, immediately calculated the cost of a bicycle and frowned.

Forty dollars was still quite expensive for the people of New York at the time.

An average worker in New York worked six days a week and earned less than twenty dollars a month, which had to support themselves and their families. Saving up forty dollars was not an easy task!

"Can't we design a set of machines?"

John, who had a clear idea, asked with a smile, "Although it looks complicated, if you observe carefully, you'll find that the bicycle's parts are actually quite simple. If we can design a set of machines to manufacture these parts, I think it will not only speed up production but also significantly reduce costs."

Hearing John's suggestion, Old Hunter and the others were immediately enlightened.

Indeed, the current high cost was due to the fact that most of the manufacturing was done by hand. But if they could design a set of machines, the speed of production would be much faster, and the cost could likely be reduced to below thirty dollars!

At such a price, the bicycle would be quite competitive.

Moreover, they were not newcomers to the business world and understood that with technological progress and the passage of time, or with the expansion of production scale, costs would continue to decrease!

"In that case, your investment of forty or fifty thousand dollars won't be enough."

After understanding this, Mr. Stone felt greatly relieved and said with a smile.

Mr. Menders, looking at John, liked him more and more, nodded, and said with a smile, "That's right. We should conduct a more thorough test of this bicycle. If it can indeed reach the speed you mentioned and