Chapter 50 of 100

Chapter 50

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To say that being a shipbuilder in this era is not easy is an understatement. Knowing carpentry alone is not enough; you also have to be skilled in blacksmithing. All the metal fittings used in shipbuilding have to be hammered out one by one. After working as a laborer for half a day, Hong Tao felt that the 80 strings of cash he spent were well worth it. It was no easy task for the Wen family to earn this money.

When the last mast stay of the small boat was finally secured, it was already the end of the seventh lunar month. By then, Hong Tao had been in this era for nearly three months, and he had spent more than half of that time working as a laborer in the Wen family's temporary shipyard. Now, he looked more like a Tanka man. His skin, which was not particularly dark before, had been tanned to a shiny black, and his hands and feet were covered with calluses. Why did he have calluses on his feet? Because he had no shoes to wear. Hong Tao had thought about buying a pair of straw shoes, but after wearing them for just three days, they started to come apart. At that time, shoes were all sewn, and they couldn't withstand his daily intense labor. No wonder the dock workers went barefoot; it wasn't that they were foolish and didn't know to wear shoes, but rather that they couldn't afford them, as they wore out too quickly.

The main structure of the ship was completed, but it still couldn't be launched. The Wen brothers had to grind shells into a fine powder, mix it with hemp fibers and tung oil, and fill every seam layer by layer. After that, they had to apply four or five layers of raw lacquer to the outside of the ship before the work was considered complete and the ship could be delivered.

This process took another half a month, but Hong Tao didn't idle. He no longer worked as a laborer for the Wen family but went to the mountains with Huang Hai to find the Li family village. He spent ten strings of cash to order two sets of six thick Li cloth sails. This time, he didn't need to bring them back for the Tanka women to sew; he had the Li women sew them according to his requirements, and they delivered the finished products.

While the Wen family was fitting out his small boat and the Li village was sewing the sails, Hong Tao and Wen Qi started working on a pile of hardwood lumps. Every day, they were either scraping or drilling, and soon they had made over a dozen items of various sizes with holes and grooves, resembling small fragrant melons.

"Are these also for the ship?" This time, not only Huang Hai but also Wen Laoer looked puzzled.

"Hehehe... Just wait and see. This is called a single-sheave block, this is a triple-sheave block, and this is a deadeye. With these, I can sail the ship very fast by myself, hahahaha..." Hong Tao looked at the smooth, polished hardwood lumps and felt very proud. Although this era couldn't produce winches and capstans, these simple blocks could serve as substitutes. His sailing lessons hadn't been in vain; skills were always useful, and who knew when they might come in handy?

On the 15th of the eighth month, the people of Zhenzhou were busy preparing for the evening lantern festival and the worship of the moon and tide gods. Even the crew of the merchant ships that had stopped to refuel in the port changed into new clothes to celebrate. According to Song Dynasty customs, during the festival, people would buy a few flowers to pin on their collars and heads, then visit the entertainment quarters to watch acrobatics. The Song Dynasty had many holidays, and during the Mid-Autumn Festival, people took three days off, and no one was allowed to work. The only activity was eating, drinking, playing, and gambling, and the festivities wouldn't end until dawn. Even families with modest means would change into clean clothes and make a dish called "dialy fish."

Indeed, during the Song Dynasty, people didn't emphasize eating mooncakes on the Mid-Autumn Festival. Instead, they ate "tadpole powder." This was made by mixing flour or lotus root powder into a batter, then pouring it into a colander over boiling water, shaking it to make the batter fall evenly. The batter would instantly solidify in the boiling water, forming one large and one small end, resembling small tadpoles, hence the name "frog tadpoles" or "tadpole powder."

After scooping out the tadpole powder, it was seasoned with scallions, ginger, garlic, sesame oil, and vinegar, and slurped down without much chewing. In later times, a similar dish existed in the north, called "dialy fish" in Beijing, with a similar preparation method and appearance to that of the Song Dynasty.

However, Hong Tao had no interest in fussing over food. His first modern-style wooden sailboat was about to set sail. Although it looked 80% similar to a modern sailboat, how it would perform at sea was still uncertain. Modern sailboats are fast and seaworthy mainly due to modern materials technology, with lightweight hulls, sails, and large sail areas. This pure wooden sailboat was nearly twice as heavy as a modern fiberglass sailboat, and its sail area was slightly smaller. Whether it could sail well was still a question.

"Let's see if it's a donkey or a horse; we'll take it out for a spin." Not only did Hong Tao think this way, but Wen Laoer and his sons were also eager to try it out. Listening to Hong Tao's boasts about being a ship designer had become a daily routine, and if he didn't talk about it, it was as if he hadn't lived that day. Everyone was already annoyed by his constant boasting. Was a designer just a talker? He couldn't even bend a piece of wood, and he still had the nerve to call himself a designer? Now was the perfect time to see if he was a designer or just a braggart!

Also present to watch the launch ceremony were Bo Fu and others. The ship had cost a total of 100 strings of cash. Bo Fu was so worried that he couldn't eat well for several days, and Hong Tao's adoptive grandfather, Chen Ming'en, was so anxious that his teeth swelled. The Tanka people found it very difficult to earn money. They had just saved up about 150 strings of cash, and Hong Tao had spent two-thirds of it. Anyone would be worried in such a situation.

There were also two distinguished guests, Luo Youde and Luo Dacai. Since Hong Tao left Zhenzhou Port, he had hardly returned, focusing entirely on shipbuilding and almost forgetting about Luo Youde. Fortunately, Chen Ming'en still delivered seafood to the Zhenhai Tower from time to time, and Luo Youde inquired about Hong Tao's whereabouts through the innkeeper. When he heard that Hong Tao was building his own ship, he immediately wanted to come and see, but he restrained his curiosity because the shipbuilder was a Tanka.

A few days ago, he asked Chen Ming'en to pass a message to Hong Tao, inviting him to the evening lantern festival. Hong Tao found it hard to refuse such a kind invitation. He hadn't given anything to Luo Youde and had even taken advantage of him, so it would be impolite to keep ignoring him. As for whether he would attend the lantern festival in the evening, Hong Tao hadn't decided yet. His mind was entirely on the ship, but he invited Luo Youde to attend the launch ceremony of his new ship. With the ship completed, there was no longer any need for secrecy, and the Wen family couldn't object.

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