Chapter 23

Zhang Laohan's craftsmanship truly satisfied Xia Hongsheng. The things he made were very meticulous, almost perfect. Such a skilled carpenter would be a master in the future, leading a group of apprentices and making a fortune. However, Zhang Laohan's family was not wealthy; they were only slightly better off than Xia Hongsheng's family. Now, they might even be worse off. There were many reasons for this. First, the social status of craftsmen was not high, only slightly better than merchants. Second, Zhang Laohan was just a carpenter in the remote Luanzhou city, with no connections and unknown to people, so no one came to him for work. In the end, it was due to a lack of publicity. Xia Hongsheng felt that Zhang Laohan was honest and a good neighbor. In the past, he had been kind to Xia Hongsheng's family, often helping out. According to his sister-in-law, whenever something broke at home, it was mostly Zhang Laohan or his eldest son who came to repair it, always offering help without expecting anything in return. The simple and honest folkways were well reflected in this. Therefore, Xia Hongsheng felt he could help Zhang Laohan in return.

Outside Zhang Laohan's house, Xia Hongsheng brought a bamboo basket of scallion oil pancakes and a few large vegetable buns he had made with the pork bone broth from the other day. Xia Hongsheng himself did not know how to make buns, so this was an experimental attempt. If it worked, he would have his sister-in-law add a clay stove and a few steamer baskets to the snack cart to sell them. Since it was an experiment, the buns did not look very good, but they tasted fine. He decided to give the remaining few to Zhang Laohan to try.

"Xia kid, you can't keep bringing things like this. The two little ones at home have been spoiled by your gifts and are picky eaters now! Sigh, it's only in recent years that we've had enough to eat. During the war years, the bark on the trees in Laojun Mountain was almost stripped clean! And those two little ones are still picky eaters, which earned them a good beating from the old man!" Zhang Laohan looked at the bamboo basket Xia Hongsheng was holding and came out, holding a few fan bones, which he handed to Xia Hongsheng, saying, "Here, you asked for these. They take some time to make, and they need to be finely polished, or they might hurt your hands."

"Thank you, sir." Xia Hongsheng took the fan bones and followed Zhang Laohan into the yard, putting down the bamboo basket. "Don't worry, Sir Zhang. Things will get better. I've told my sister-in-law that many people at the market have been asking about the snack cart, the folding tables, and the stools. They want to know who made them."

Originally, this was a kind word, but Zhang Laohan's face immediately fell, his small eyes glaring. "Xia kid, even though I'm a rough man and don't know much about your literary knowledge, I still worship the ancestor Gongshu and follow the rules! This thing is your design, and I just made it. I would never steal it! Xia kid, don't ruin my reputation!"

Xia Hongsheng was so scared that he almost turned and ran. "Are you a virgin girl?!" Seeing Zhang Laohan's stern face, Xia Hongsheng knew he had been misunderstood, thinking that Xia Hongsheng was warning him not to leak the information.

Shaking his head with a bitter smile, Xia Hongsheng said, "Sir Zhang, it's a misunderstanding. I meant that this thing isn't precious. I've already told my sister-in-law that if anyone asks, she should say it was made by you. I expect people to start coming to you for orders soon, mostly for folding tables and stools. You should prepare some materials. Your craftsmanship is excellent, and this is a good opportunity to let people know. When they buy something from you and see how well-made it is, they will think of you first when they need something else. By the way, I have big plans for these fan bones. No one has seen them except you, so please don't leak the information. I'm counting on this to build a new house and get married!"

Zhang Laohan's eyes widened, and his expression looked disbelieving. He even exaggeratedly dug his ears and asked, trembling, "Are you saying that the snack cart, the folding tables, and the stools can all be made and sold by me?"

"Yes, no matter who you make them for or how much you sell them for, it's all up to you. It has nothing to do with me. I just wanted to make it easier for my sister-in-law to sell food. Now that the goal is achieved, that's all I need." Xia Hongsheng nodded, speaking matter-of-factly.

"Thump!" Before Xia Hongsheng could react, Zhang Laohan bent his legs and knelt down, tears in his eyes, his voice trembling, "Master..."

Xia Hongsheng jumped up, shouting in alarm, and quickly ran over to grab Zhang Laohan, trying to pull him up. But Zhang Laohan kept trying to kneel, and Xia Hongsheng held him back, making it look like they were fighting. The commotion brought Zhang Laohan's son and grandson out of the house.

"Zhang Brother, help! Zhang Sir is crazy!" Xia Hongsheng shouted. Zhang Laohan's tall son quickly came over and grabbed Zhang Laohan's legs. Xia Hongsheng took the opportunity to let go and ran away. "What a bad habit, bowing and becoming a disciple so easily! It's a waste of life! It's just a few new gadgets, no need to go this far! That old man must be crazy, he must be!"

Xia Hongsheng didn't go to the academy in the morning. He went back to his room and carefully glued the prepared flexible paper, leaving it to dry in the sun for the whole morning. A few folding fans were now ready.

Xia Hongsheng picked up a folding fan, used two fingers to open it with a flick, and gently fanned it, feeling incredibly cool and stylish. Such a fancy thing should be promoted by someone equally fancy. Xia Hongsheng grabbed a couple of scallion oil pancakes from the stove, ate them, and wrapped the few completed paper fans, then ran to the academy.

At the academy, it was noon, and the students from other places had their own rooms, but the conditions were not good, with large dormitories. Few people rested there at noon. Xia Hongsheng went straight to Mr. Liu's office to get the tea he had promised. When he arrived, Mr. Liu had just returned to his room. Xia Hongsheng took out two folding fans and respectfully placed them in front of Mr. Liu.

"Hmm? What's this new thing? I've never seen it before," Mr. Liu looked at the items on the table. "Is this a fan? But how can a round fan look like this?"

"Mr. Liu, this is something I came up with. It's made of bamboo and paper, and I call it a folding fan or a paper fan. I came today to ask you to write something on these fans." Xia Hongsheng quickly answered, fearing that Mr. Liu, a calligrapher, might refuse. He added, "The tea you gave me is already processed, but new tea has a fiery taste, so it needs a few days to settle. That's why I couldn't bring it today."

Mr. Liu smiled and scolded, "Young man, since I promised to give you two pieces of calligraphy as a reward for processing the tea, I won't go back on my word. You're quite clever for your age!"

Xia Hongsheng blushed, smiling awkwardly, and quickly fetched the ink and brush for Mr. Liu. Mr. Liu dipped the brush in ink, thought for a moment, and then wrote swiftly, like flowing clouds and running water. The cursive script was so beautiful that Xia Hongsheng almost applauded. The two folding fans were soon inscribed with calligraphy, and Mr. Liu stamped his seal at the end, leaving his name.

"Thank you, Mr. Liu!" Xia Hongsheng excitedly picked up the fans, carefully blew on the ink to dry it, then closed and opened them again, gently fanning. Mr. Liu squinted his eyes. Xia Hongsheng quickly closed the fan and presented the other one to Mr. Liu with both hands. "Mr. Liu, I'll keep one, but this one is for you. Please accept it."

"Ha ha, this is a clever invention, but since you made it, I shouldn't take it," Mr. Liu said. Xia Hongsheng rolled his eyes internally. If you want it, just take it. Your eyes can't even leave it, and your frown smoothed out when you heard it was a gift.

"Mr. Liu, it would be impolite of me to ask you to write on these fans. Please don't refuse, or I will be very embarrassed," Xia Hongsheng quickly said, maintaining a respectful attitude.

"Well..." Mr. Liu looked at the fan. "Alright, since you insist, I'll accept it!"

Xia Hongsheng quickly thanked him and then left. He had given away the first fan, and there were still other teachers to visit. He followed the same procedure, asking each teacher for calligraphy and leaving one fan while taking one. It was clear that the fans were well-received, and he reminded them that they could add tassels to make them even more stylish.

After visiting all the teachers, Xia Hongsheng had six fans left, each inscribed with calligraphy and signed by the academy teachers. Even without considering the fans themselves, the calligraphy alone was quite valuable. He couldn't let them know he was going to sell their calligraphy, or these old men, who valued their reputation more than their lives, would come after him.

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The page is now complete.