Chapter 35: The Skills of Craftsmen
Chapter 35: The Skills of Craftsmen
Zhu Zaigui was a man of dictatorship, so how could he listen to Meng Chong's advice?
Zhu Zaigui said, "Just go buy it if I tell you to. Can I really leave you starving?"
Meng Chong was also startled by Zhu Zaigui's sudden rise in momentum, and his voice suddenly became weak, "I will go right away."
Zhu Zaiqi nodded with satisfaction, "That's right."
Then he said, "Only good ones, not bad ones. The more delicate and small the better, but it must not be as small as a snuff bottle."
Meng Chong also didn't know what a snuff bottle was, because snuff bottles were not introduced to the Ming Dynasty until decades later, and then gradually became an orientalized art piece.
Although Meng Chong didn't know what a snuff bottle was, he understood that Zhu Zaigui's requirement must be a small glass bottle that could hold about one or two ounces of sugar. With this rough idea, he naturally knew what kind of glass bottle he should look for.
Meng Chong had no choice but to go to the accounting office of the palace to withdraw some silver, and then went to Liulichang in Xicheng District according to Zhu Zaigui's request.
At this time, Liulichang was not as prosperous as it was in later generations. The main reason was that Xishi in Xicheng District was the execution ground where the imperial court handled death row prisoners.
Therefore, the industries concentrated in Xicheng District at that time were all relatively large-scale low-end industries and handicraft industries with relatively low added value, and it was not as prosperous as the commercial district in Dongshi with its numerous shops.
It was not until the Qing Dynasty, more than a hundred years later, that Liulichang became truly prosperous.
Because when the Qing Dynasty just entered the pass, the Qing Dynasty implemented the policy of "Manchus and Han living in separate cities", and Liulichang happened to be in the western part of the outer city, so most of the Han officials at that time lived nearby.
Later, as the world stabilized and trade re-emerged, merchants' guilds from all over the country were built near this place, making it gradually prosperous.
Officials and candidates taking imperial examinations would often gather here to browse the book market, causing the prosperous book markets in Qianmen, Dengshikou and Chenghuangmiao in Xicheng during the Ming Dynasty to gradually move to Liulichang.
Booksellers from all over the country also set up stalls and built rooms here to sell a large number of books. The prosperous market and convenient conditions naturally formed the "Kyoto Elegant Tour Place", which gradually developed into the largest book market in Beijing and a cultural street with a rich cultural heritage. Cultural-related writing brushes, inkstones, antiques, calligraphy and paintings, etc., also developed accordingly.
But now Liulichang is just an unknown gathering place for ordinary civilians in the capital, and it is one of the five major factories of the Ministry of Works of the imperial court.
However, although Liulichang was a government agency, it also took private jobs.
After all, how many colored glasswares can the imperial court purchase throughout the year? In order to support such a large group of colored glass craftsmen and their dependents, they had to find a way to make some extra money, otherwise they would really starve to death.
After arriving at Liulichang, Meng Chong, under the guidance of the factory's master craftsman, visited the factory's honorable products. Finally, Meng Chong found a small glass bottle suitable for storing sugar.
This small glass bottle is a small jar with a round belly similar to an incense burner. It is painted with plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum, and looks extremely exquisite. The only drawback is that it has no lid.
Meng Chong said to the master craftsman at Liulichang: "This bottle looks good, but it's not good enough. If you can make the mouth of this jar tighter and add a delicate stopper, it will look better."
The old master listened to Meng Chong's words and understood what he meant. He immediately replied, "Sir, this can be done. I can make it in a moment."
Meng Chong nodded, "Then make a few first and see how they turn out. If they're good, we might want a few hundred."
When the old master heard that it would cost several hundred, his eyes immediately lit up. This is a big shot, and a father-in-law, he must be rich!
The old master immediately patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, sir. As long as it doesn't suit your taste, I am willing to help you modify it for free until you are satisfied."
Meng Chong was very familiar with the level of the craftsmen in Liulichang. After all, he had come to Liulichang over the years and bought many glass vases to decorate the palace.
Meng Chong said, "You go and do it, and we'll go shopping again."
The old master did not dare to disturb Meng Chong from continuing to visit Liulichang. At this time, he was also busy making glass bottles according to Meng Chong's requirements.
The production process of colored glaze is actually not much different from that of glass. The most obvious difference between the two is that one is white and transparent, while the other is brightly colored and opaque.
The old master's skills are still very superb. He calcined a piece of raw material for making colored glass at high temperature. After the raw material was completely burned red and softened, he immediately used tools to roll out a piece of red and soft colored glass, and then rotated and shaped it wearing thick fireproof gloves. Whenever the temperature of the colored glass was about to drop, he would stop and continue to calcine it in the high-temperature furnace.
After it turns red and softens again, he pulls it out and continues to shape the glass embryo with his hands wearing fireproof gloves.
After repeating this process for more than ten times, the master craftsman finally made the shape that Meng Chong required.
The master craftsman did not rest then. He continued to make the second one. He did this until he had made ten of them before he stopped.
Then the master picked up the first glass bottle that had cooled down and began to paint it. The artistic conception of a plum blossom standing proudly in the snow was delicately portrayed by the master's delicate brush, and it looked extremely beautiful.
After finishing the first one, the master started to paint the second one. The second one he painted was a blooming chrysanthemum. On the other side of the chrysanthemum, the master also sketched the image of a scholar in white clothes. It was suddenly a picture of Tao Yuanming appreciating chrysanthemums.
Looking at the exquisite craftsmanship of this old master, it can be seen that there are really many hidden talents in Liulichang. It's a pity that their status is too low. Even if they make exquisite works of art, they can only earn enough money to feed their family.
After the ten glass bottles were made, the master craftsman found a piece of cork and made ten wooden stoppers that could just fit the glass bottles tightly. In addition, for the sake of aesthetics, the master craftsman also painted small paintings of plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum on each wooden stopper that corresponded to the ones on the bottle body.
If this skill were to be passed down to later generations, he would have been a master inheritor of intangible cultural heritage and would not have to worry about food and drink. He would not have to be so servile and solicit customers in Liulichang at this age.
Meng Chong also walked around and came back to the master at this time. He looked at the ten bottles made by the master and liked them very much.
Meng Chong praised: "You did a great job, you are worthy of being Liu Yishou of Liulichang."
Liu Yishou said respectfully to Meng Chong: "As long as it suits your wishes, my efforts will not be in vain."
Meng Chong hummed, "How much silver is this in total?"
When Liu Yishou heard Meng Chong talking about silver, he was very happy. He had been waiting for this moment.
Liu Yishou said shyly, "Eight hundred coins for one, and eight taels for ten."
When Meng Chong heard that ten bottles would cost 8 liang, he immediately felt as if he had stepped on someone's tail, "What? You want 800 wen for such a small bottle? Do you think we are easy to cheat?"
Liu Yishou quickly complained, "My Lord, you are right. This is the price of the glass stone and glass mother. I dare not ask for anything wrong."
Glass stone is the raw material for burning paper glass, which is also natural crystal fragments, and glass mother is the mineral pigment used to color glass, mainly cinnabar, lapis lazuli, realgar, galena, etc.
The prices of these things are not cheap, and there is really no way to get a discount even if you want to.
But Meng Chong still thought it was expensive, so he said, "Every time you save one hundred coins, we'll pay seven taels!"
How can we get a 100-cent discount for each? It can't even cover the cost.
Liu Yishou added: "At most 20 wen!"
Meng Chong gritted his teeth and said, "50 cents!"
After hearing the fifty coins, Liu Yishou calculated in his mind that he could make a few hundred coins from this order. He gritted his teeth and said, "Okay, fifty coins is fifty coins. Each one is 750 coins, a total of 7 taels and 5 cents of silver."
Meng Chong took out the silver with a painful look on his face, "Pack it carefully. If any one breaks, we will come to you to refund the money."
Liu weighed the silver with a gritted teeth and put it away. He carefully wrapped ten glass bottles with straw and put them into a wooden box to ensure that nothing would go wrong.
(End of this chapter)