Riding the wind of rebirth

Through in-depth collaboration with Master Yang in restoring the silk fabrics used for mounting ancient calligraphy and paintings, Zhou Zhi also became an expert in ancient silk fabrics. Although his expertise was more in brocade, he also became a master of kesi (silk tapestry) and embroidery at that time.

Of course, this is only limited to appreciation and authentication. It is far from being able to replicate the work of Master Yang. However, even so, it is enough to help Feng Cang with the authentication.

For a considerable period of time, the two maintained a friendship that was free of any "money-grubbing" and purely based on shared interests. This friendship, in retrospect, is more solid than that of the other two.

"Are you satisfied with Master Yang's restoration skills, Brother Feng?" Zhou Zhi naturally brought up this question again during their meeting.

"How could I not be satisfied?" Feng Cang laughed. "Qingwen from Dream of the Red Chamber, who stayed up all night to finish what Jia Baoyu did?"

"Peacock Gold Fur Coat"

“Ah, right! The Sparrow Gold Fur Coat! Master Yang’s craftsmanship is no worse than that! When the item was sent back, I completely forgot where the previous damage was, and the wear and tear on the collar. It was completely unnoticeable.” Feng Cang still clicked his tongue repeatedly when he talked about this, but his expression suddenly became a little strange: “That’s right, the shock that Master Yang herself gave me was much greater than the impact of her craftsmanship.”

Zhou Zhi once recommended Master Yang to repair a dragon robe and a python robe for Feng Cang. The repair work not only included physical damage such as wear and tear and loose threads, but also a major part of the repair, which was stain removal.

This involves highly specialized knowledge and exquisite craftsmanship. Ancient silk fabrics relied on natural dyes for coloring, making them very susceptible to fading and discoloration during washing. Moreover, stains that had accumulated over time could have become firmly bonded to the silk threads, making cleaning even more difficult. In addition, silk fabrics exposed to the air over the years were repeatedly damaged by moisture and oxygen, which could have made the fibers extremely fragile. Therefore, proper maintenance was very challenging.

There's also a little-known fact: the emperor's court robes, commonly known as dragon robes, were only used a limited number of times a year for grand court ceremonies and sacrifices due to the extremely high requirements for their weaving. The time spent on them was also very short, and they were immediately stored away in a special wardrobe after use. There was no consideration given to washing them.

The need for preservation arose because these precious garments were scattered among the people after the dynasty collapsed. Since the conditions for preservation in the palace were no longer available, this created a demand.

So when Zhou Zhi heard that Feng Cang wanted to maintain his collection, he was terrified and immediately recommended Master Yang to him.

Feng Cang was probably influenced by "Dream of the Red Chamber" and thought that a skillful person must be like Qingwen. He was extremely satisfied with the dragon robe and python robe he received, so he spent a lot of money to hire Master Yang to maintain his collection of Ming and Qing dynasty clothes. However, when he met Master Yang, he was shocked to find that he was a tall, fat man who was only missing a beard compared to Zhang Fei. His fingers were as thick as small carrots.

“Haha, extraordinary people always have extraordinary phenomena. Qingwen is a special case.” Zhou Zhi laughed. “Master, that’s inner talent. No one else in the country can even think of copying and restoring ancient artifacts.”

“It is indeed impressive,” Feng Cang said. “Several teachers from the Palace Museum have come to see it and have invited Master Yang to repair the palace lanterns.”

“She already told me.” Zhou Zhi’s head was spinning when he thought about it: “Because of this, Deputy Director Li of the Provincial Department of Culture even blamed me.”

"Oh? What's going on now?"

“The Palace Museum has asked for a year to borrow Master Yang,” Zhou Zhi said. “The Department of Culture is preparing a gift for the return of Hong Kong. Their first thought was to ask Master Yang to make a Shu embroidery piece, which is huge. It’s impossible for him to finish it now.” “Then what should we do?” Master Ma exclaimed, then quickly defended himself: “Master Yang’s borrowing has nothing to do with me. It was Old Master Wang who made the decision.”

"Later I told Deputy Director Li that Master Yang had a Shu embroidery work called 'Guan Gong Reading the Spring and Autumn Annals,' which was two meters by one and a half meters in size. It was originally not for sale, but I managed to get it by begging and pleading. People on Hong Kong Island like to worship Guan Gong, so they should be very happy to receive that work as a gift."

Master Ma chuckled, "Even a martial god of wealth like Guan Yu can't beat you, the money-bringing boy."

"It depends on which aspect," Zhou Zhi said with a grin. "Sister Wanqiu even said I'm a Pixiu, only taking in and never giving out."

“Speaking of which, we actually have similar problems,” Master Ma laughed. “But I’m grateful for this problem. You may not know, but almost all of us who used to collect antiques together have been eliminated by history. Not a single one is left in Beijing, and it’s the same all over the country. They’re either in prison, addicted to drugs, or have five wives… all sorts of things happen to them. In the end, almost all of them have lost their families and lives.”

"Why is that? Let me tell you a story. Tongxian used to have a lot of antiques because it was the final destination for freight from the capital. Many things were concentrated there. In the 1980s and 1990s, there were a lot of good things there. At that time, there was a profession called 'street shopper,' which was going from house to house collecting 'junk.' A few farmers found a jar of it and got it for a few dozen yuan. Then they found a dealer who wanted 40,000 yuan."

"The dealer called me and asked me to come over and take a look, saying he would only give me a cut," said Master Ma. "When I got there, I saw it was a Yongle blue and white porcelain. Forty thousand plus some fluff made it forty-six thousand. That's really not expensive."

"As luck would have it, I had money at that time, but it was in Hong Kong dollars. When the farmers heard that, they said they didn't want Hong Kong dollars, they wanted RMB cash. I had no choice but to call the foreign currency dealer. It was already late at night. The foreign currency dealer said that the bank was not open and he couldn't withdraw the money, but he would go and withdraw it as soon as the bank opened. He told me to go back to the capital to get the money. The timing was just right."

"When I arrived in the capital, before I could even exchange the money, the dealer called me again and said I didn't need to come anymore. He had already found a buyer who offered 60,000 yuan."

"They said they were sorry I made a wasted trip and were going to give me two thousand yuan as emotional compensation!"

“I was so angry at the time. I said, ‘It’s only 60,000 yuan. I’ll add another 20,000 yuan and have your buyer transfer it back to me. I’ll give you the 8,000 yuan for water as well.’”

"The other party was quite agreeable. I guess he was also a dealer. He told me to wait at home. He really delivered himself to my door in no time. He only charged me 84,000 out of the original 88,000. He said that the first dealer had promised to split the 8,000 yuan water fee with him, but he had intercepted my deal and made 20,000 yuan in profit. He felt embarrassed to accept the original 4,000 yuan water fee."

"See? That's how it was back then. This jar changed hands three times in just one night. The farmer made a little over 40,000 yuan, the first-hand dealer made about 20,000 yuan, and the second-hand dealer made about 20,000 yuan. How much did the average person earn back then? If I didn't deal in medicinal herbs, my fixed salary in the editorial department would only be 50 or 60 yuan."

“Those people who have money go to waste. No one is like me. I didn’t sell. Those who did sell generally don’t have a good ending. They either don’t make any money or they make a quick buck. Then they spend it recklessly. When their appetite grows too big, they think about taking risks, either setting up a trap or getting involved in one. In the end, they either end up in jail or their families are ruined.”

“It’s not that I don’t like money,” Master Ma said, pointing at Mo Yan and Liu Zhengyun, “it’s mainly because I don’t want to lose face as a scholar in front of them. Therefore, I feel that selling things is a great disgrace, and this very behavior has actually saved me.” (End of Chapter)