novelAbuy Chapter 75 0073 [The Ultimate Weapon for Showing Off]
Chapter 75 0073 [The Ultimate Weapon for Showing Off]
Chapter 75 0073 [The Ultimate Weapon for Showing Off]
Early in the morning, Xu Lai would take a palm-leaf fan and stroll out to select various raw materials for improving the folding fan.
Don't think that making a folding fan is simple; it's much more complicated than having a blacksmith forge scissors.
The morning air was fresh, but already carried a hint of muggy heat.
It rained for half the night last night, and while the heat didn't subside much, it greatly increased the humidity.
As soon as I stepped out of the school gate, I heard someone hawking their wares on the street.
Then came a foul stench—it was the night soil truck that had come to town that morning to collect manure. This stuff was a rarity in the countryside; the villagers of Qingxi Village couldn't even find a way to buy manure.
Shops selling books, writing brushes, ink, calligraphy, and paintings are clustered together on a street near the state school.
Xu Lai strolled over leisurely and first found a shop that sold calligraphy and paintings, which also sold drawing paper, brushes, paints and other items.
The shopkeeper and his assistant glanced at him but didn't rush over to greet him warmly. They also kept an eye on him, seemingly worried that Xu would steal something.
Unfortunately, in an era when literati painting was not popular, creating paintings was very expensive.
Especially pigments!
Xu Lai was dressed in a cheap coarse linen shirt and carried a palm-leaf fan instead of a round or feather fan. He was clearly a poor scholar and unlikely to make a purchase at this shop.
It's just that Xu Sanlang isn't famous enough.
He was already very famous at school, and even had a small reputation in the government district, but the owner of the calligraphy and painting shop did not recognize him.
"Don't touch it! Your hands are sweaty."
Xu Lai leaned closer to examine a painting, intending to adjust the scroll to align it with the light, but was stopped by the shopkeeper as soon as he raised his hand.
I won't touch it.
Xu Lai smiled and lowered his hand, his gaze sweeping over the various paintings.
It consists entirely of landscapes, flowers, birds, and figures, with meticulous brushwork and ink wash painting each making up half of the work.
Freehand brushwork paintings are almost nowhere to be seen, and there isn't a single literati painting to be found.
Xu Lai finally found a painting of bamboo, but it was still a meticulous brushwork painting. He couldn't help but ask, "Shopkeeper, don't you have any ink bamboo paintings here?"
The shopkeeper countered, "What is ink bamboo painting?"
Xu Lai didn't want to talk anymore.
The idiom "胸有成竹" (to have a well-thought-out plan) originated from Wen Tong, who was Su Shi's distant cousin and brother-in-law.
Wen Tong had been in mourning at home for a few years and had just finished researching the technique of ink bamboo painting. It was still in its early stages, so it was impossible for it to spread to Guangzhou so quickly.
Unfortunately, Xu Lai had seen countless finished works of bamboo painting using ink wash techniques, but he didn't know exactly how to paint it.
The amateur hobby classes he attended as a child only taught sketching and watercolor, and Xu Lai had only ever studied sketching.
"Shopkeeper, where is the drawing paper? I'd like to buy a few sheets," Xu said.
The shopkeeper immediately perked up and came over to ask, "Scholar, would you like raw or cooked paper?"
Xu Lai said, "Matured paper. It needs to be durable and wear-resistant."
"This kind of tanned paper mulberry bark is quite good." The shopkeeper wiped the sweat from his palms, untied two layers of moisture-proof cloth, and pulled out a roll of tanned paper mulberry bark.
Later generations often used alum-treated Xuan paper for folding fans. Although Xuan paper also existed in the Northern Song Dynasty, its craftsmanship was completely different from that of Xuan paper in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
Xu Lai wiped his hands, feeling the thickness of the paper.
Four or five sheets pasted together should be strong enough to make a fan surface.
Xu Lai asked, "How much is one?"
The shopkeeper replied, "There's no fixed size for the drawing paper, so it's sold in sheets, but you have to buy at least one roll. Each roll costs six hundred coins."
So expensive!
As the temperature gradually rose, Xu Lai became too lazy to haggle anymore, since the cost would ultimately be borne by the customer anyway.
Professional tasks should be left to professionals.
Xu Lai paid for a roll of processed paper made from mulberry bark and entrusted the shop to find a craftsman to do the gluing of the paper.
Next, I strolled to the fan-making street and found a shop that specializes in weaving bamboo fans.
The shopkeepers here are extremely welcoming.
"Can I go to the backyard and take a look?" Xu Lai asked.
The shopkeeper didn't understand his meaning, but he still agreed and led him to the backyard.
A large amount of bamboo was piled up in the backyard, and several craftsmen were weaving bamboo fans. They looked up when they heard footsteps.
Xu Laijian picked up a few discarded bamboo strips and handed the shopkeeper a rough sketch of a folding fan: "I want to make a kind of fan. This is called a fan rib, about nine inches long. The inner thirteen ribs are small ribs, made of flexible bamboo strips. The two outer ribs are large ribs, which must have bamboo skin attached, the tougher and more durable the better. Drawing paper should be glued to both sides of the small ribs —"
The shopkeeper quickly understood by looking at the picture and describing it.
"Scholar, I've never done this before, and I don't know how much I'll charge you." The shopkeeper didn't want to take the order because it was too time-consuming; he'd have to figure out how to make it sturdy and beautiful.
Xu Lai took out three hundred copper coins: "Three hundred as deposit, twelve in total. Even if they're all ruined, you don't need to refund the two hundred. I'll give you an extra forty for each one you make."
"Really?" The shopkeeper was overjoyed; this was much more profitable than selling bamboo fans.
Xu Lai reminded him, "Remember, if the fan surface is stained or wrinkled, I will deduct money from the forty coins per fan!"
The shopkeeper said, "Don't worry, scholar, I definitely won't break it for you."
Xu Lai then said, "The fan ribs need to be painted. I won't give you the paper yet; I'll send it over in a few days."
Xu Lai returned to school and continued to study shirtless.
By the end of the fifth month of the lunar calendar, I had finally finished reading "The Correct Meaning of the Zuo Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals," complete with my own reading notes.
This was the first major scripture he had ever studied.
The book contains a total of 134 million words, and it's definitely impossible to memorize it all. I need to set aside time every day to review it.
Consolidation and review are relatively simple. If there is anything you can't recall, follow the bookmark number to find the corresponding page and read it carefully.
The five taels of silver that Yu Jing awarded him were not enough for him to buy either "The Correct Meaning of the Book of Rites" or "The Zhaoming Anthology".
We still have to wait for the fan.
"Old Wen." Xu Lai lay on the bed fanning himself.
Wen Zhonghe said irritably, "Don't call me Old Wen, I have a courtesy name."
"You can also call me Lao Xu," Xu said. "May I borrow your copy of the 'Selections of Refined Literature' to read?"
Wen Zhonghe dragged out a book that was placed in the corner of the wall. It was wrapped in several layers of hemp cloth.
The humidity is too high, so we need to protect it from moisture.
Every now and then, the students also have to show off their books.
Moreover, you have to keep an eye on it all the time, because there are just too many showers, and the books will get soaked if you're not careful.
If someone in the dormitory area calls for books to be collected, people will definitely go to help, regardless of whether they know each other or not.
The competition among students in the inner circle is so fierce that they help each other collect books. Anyone who is unwilling to lend a hand will be disgraced and even criticized by the teachers.
"Here you go," Wen Zhonghe handed over the first book, reminding him, "Wipe your hands so you don't get the book sweaty."
As Xu Lai wiped his hands, he teased, "When you were collecting the books a few days ago, didn't you mind that my palms were sweaty?"
"Times have changed." Wen Zhonghe has now developed a thick skin.
Xu Lai lay on the bed, opened the "Wenxuan" (Anthology of Literature), and began to recite Ban Gu's "Xidu Fu" (Rhapsody on the Western Capital).
Wen Zhonghe glanced at the drawing on the table: "Is this a drawing of bamboo?"
Xu Lai was very pleased: "It seems my drawing is quite good; you actually recognized it."
"I can barely recognize it," Wen Zhonghe complained. "Who paints bamboo like this? You don't even have a proper paintbrush."
Xu Lai asked, "You can paint bamboo?"
Wen Zhonghe shook his head: "No."
"Then stop talking nonsense." Xu Lai continued reciting the poem.
Two days later, Xu went to the calligraphy and painting shop, picked up the pasted fan paper, and took it to the bamboo fan shop to have the craftsmen process it.
Use fish glue to attach it to the fan ribs.
He then went back to school and studied there until mid-June before picking up the fan.
Twelve folding fans were placed there.
"This fan is wrinkled, deduct thirty coins. This fan has fingerprints, deduct thirty coins — hmm, everything else is pretty good." Xu paid and left.
Then he went to a calligraphy and painting shop and asked the owner to find someone to paint bamboo in the meticulous style.
He practiced ink bamboo painting for a while, and as for his skill level—you could tell it was bamboo.
In the sweltering heat, it was already the end of June.
On the day of the monthly exam, Xu Lai handed in his paper early, tucked a folding fan into his waistband, and went to the next-door dining hall.
Chen Yanhong handed in his paper early and came out shortly after.
"Brother, please wait!" Xu Lai called out.
Chen Yanhong now turned around with unparalleled grace, and said politely, "Greetings, Brother Xingzhi."
Xu Lai walked alongside him, saying, "Brother, after you entered the vegetarian diet, your studies must have improved greatly."
Chen Yanhong's tone was slightly smug: "I finished my studies at Songyang Academy a long time ago. Now I only come to the state school lecture hall to listen when Professor Chen is lecturing in the inner dormitory. I usually study on my own at my uncle's house."
"Brother, you are indeed a man of great talent, bringing honor to the scholars of Qingyuan," Xu Lai said casually, offering his flattery.
Chen Yanhong listened with increasing satisfaction, but also learned to be humble: "Not at all, not at all. My poetic talent is inferior to Xingzhi's, and I admire the Three Cardinal Guides and Eight Virtues even more."
After walking for a while, Xu Lai suddenly pulled out a folding fan and flicked it open with a whoosh. He then fanned himself with his right hand while placing his left hand behind his back.
Chen Yanhong's eyes lit up as he looked at it.
This series of movements was so smooth and fluid, it was incredibly cool.
How could he not be handsome?
Xu Lai practices whenever he has free time.
"Is this a Japanese bat fan? It doesn't look like one. Bat fans are much smaller and not as elegant as yours, my brother," Chen Yanhong asked curiously.
Xu Lai looked bewildered: "What's a bat fan? It's a folding fan I had a craftsman make for me."
Chen Yanhong asked, "Which store can I buy it?"
"What are you going to buy?"
Xu Lai presented the fan with both hands, saying, "I was just about to give this fan to my elder brother."
Chen Yanhong happily accepted it, and saw a clump of small bamboo painted on the front, with a poem written next to it.
The painting skills for bamboo are so-so.
The calligraphy of the poem is also just so-so.
But the content of that poem made Chen Yanhong savor it repeatedly: "I do not ask the east wind for old traces, for my roots lie firmly in the broken cliff. A thousand frosts and ten thousand snows are but trifles; I leave behind only the clear sound that echoes in the azure sky."
"The first time I met my elder brother, I felt an indescribable spirit. This poem was written especially for my elder brother." Xu Lai originally wanted to copy Zheng Banqiao's "Bamboo and Rock", but felt that Chen Yanhong was not worthy, so he simply wrote one himself.
Written especially for me?
Chen Yanhong suddenly realized why he felt the poem resonated with him so deeply upon reading it. Wasn't this poem a reflection of himself?
Xingzhi truly understands me; he is my soulmate!
Chen Yanhong, who regarded Xu Lai as a close friend, quickly took off the jade pendant from his waist: "I am giving this jade to a gentleman, and I hope my virtuous brother will not refuse it."
Xu Lai looked at the jade, not knowing its value.
Can't I exchange it for money?
Damn, if someone gives me a piece of jade as a return gift, I'm really embarrassed to sell it.
Selling it would damage one's character.
"This jade is too valuable," Xu Lai said bluntly. "Brother, why don't you exchange it for money? I'm short of money to buy books to read."
Because of that poem, Chen Yanhong truly regarded Xu Lai as a confidant: "It's too vulgar for us to talk about money. My dear brother, which book do you need? I'll go and buy it for you tomorrow!"
Xu Lai thought to himself: Not only do I lack books to read, I also lack clothes. With this awful weather, even buying a new set of blouses recently wouldn't be enough to replace them!
Never mind, I'll buy my own clothes.
Under Chen Yanhong's repeated questioning, Xu Lai did not say what books he lacked, but only what books he had finished reading.
After bidding farewell to Xu Lai, this fellow became so enamored with the folding fan that he hurriedly left the school and returned to his uncle's house.
He locked himself in his study and wouldn't even let his page come in.
Recalling Xu Lai's movements, Chen Yanhong walked slowly forward in the study, then suddenly thought—wait, how do I flick this fan?
After struggling for a while, Chen Yanhong was finally able to swing the fan at will, and he was overjoyed as if he had mastered a superb skill.
"Come in," Chen Yanhong said to his page.
The page boy pushed open the door and entered. With a whoosh, his young master flung open the folding fan.
Chen Yanhong left the study with feigned composure, quietly closing the folding fan. When he saw a servant passing by, he quickly flung it open again.
This was so awesome!
He plans to take it to school for a performance tomorrow.
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