Master Kong Zhongni

Chapter 13 Talking about Papermaking
"Zi I, Zi Gong, please don't persuade me anymore. I heard that if you have not established meritorious service, you can't accept salary. Although I am poor, how can I destroy my virtue for the sake of a little food?"

Zi Gong was about to get angry and was about to scold Yan Hui for being pedantic.

But Zaiyu suddenly covered his mouth, and then whispered in Zigong's ear.

"Hmm... oh? Can you still do this?"

After Zi Gong listened to Zai Yu's words, the anger on his face disappeared, and he put on a smile instead.

He said: "Ziyuan, you are right. How can you get paid if you don't make contributions? Forget it, let's not mention this for now. You and Zi, I will help me go home."

Seeing that they were no longer obsessed with eating, Yan Hui finally breathed a sigh of relief, then gritted his teeth and helped Zigong walk towards home.

They walked through several streets, and soon came to a deep house compound, which was Zi Gong's residence in the State of Lu.

Zigong's father was an aristocrat in Weiguo, so his living conditions have always been good. In addition, Zigong himself is good at doing business, so he has always been known as a "big dog" among the disciples of Confucianism.

When disciples like Zaiyu and Yanhui were still digging food in the fields, Zigong had already lived a life of affluence.

Not only could he afford to hire servants, but he was served in his daily life. He even often bought Lu people who had been enslaved from abroad and returned them to freedom.

The servant at the gate saw Zigong coming back, and hurried up to greet him: "Master, what's wrong with your foot?"

Of course Zigong was embarrassed to say that he was punished by his master, so he blushed and was confused for a while, trying to fool him.

"It's nothing, there was a little accident during class."

"Do you need to see a doctor for you?"

"It doesn't need to be so troublesome. I'm hungry, go and prepare today's meal. Remember to prepare more, there are guests coming to the house today."

"understood."

Yan Hui quickly waved his hand and said, "Zigong, didn't I say that I won't eat at your house? You don't need to prepare mine."

Zi Gong said with a smile: "The master said that a gentleman must repay the favor of others with kindness. If it weren't for you and me today, how could I go home? You helped me, and I prepared a simple meal for you. Isn't that too much food?"

Zaiyu also echoed: "Zigong is right! If you receive help from others but turn a blind eye to the benefactor's suffering, can you still be called a gentleman? Ziyuan, if you reject him, you will be trapping Zigong in the future." Land of Righteousness!"

Yan Hui thought about what they said for a long time, but he actually felt that it made some sense.

After a long time, Yan Hui sighed and said, "Master said: A gentleman fulfills the good deeds of others and does not promote the bad deeds of others. The villain is the opposite. I don't know if my merits are worthy of a meal, but if Zigong and I In the meantime, if there must be one person whose virtue is destroyed, then please destroy mine."

Zaiyu smiled and said to him: "Ziyuan, don't worry, let's take ten thousand steps back, even if eating will ruin your morals, it's not your own morals. I'm also eating at Zigong's house today."

Zigong raised his eyebrows when he heard this: "Hey! That's not right! You didn't say that you also want to eat at my house!"

Who knows that Yan Hui heard this, and immediately bowed down and said: "My son, I helped you home together, we all have the same credit, if he can't get a meal as a reward, then I can't accept it either .”

Zigong quickly changed his words: "Ziyuan, you are serious, why are you so serious? Ziwo and I are joking, don't take it to heart. Both of you are having dinner at my house today."

After saying this, Zigong gave Zaiyu another hard look.

He secretly said in his heart: "This kid Zaiyu must have planned to have dinner at my house early in the morning, right? His answer is too silky!"

Zi Gong led Zai Yu and Yan Hui into the house, and the three sat down in front of several tables.

As soon as Zaiyu sat down firmly, he began to persuade Yan Hui with the tone of a senior brother.

"Ziyuan! It's a good thing that you are obsessed with academics, but there is no conflict between academics and eating! You are hungry and full every day, and your body will be destroyed in a short time. Look at you, you are only 20 years old. At my age, I already have gray hair, which is not a good sign!"

The reason why Zaiyu said these words to Yan Hui was entirely because he had seen Yan Hui's end in a dream.

Yan Hui was obsessed with learning, but because of poverty, he died when he was less than 40 years old.

As a classmate who gets along day and night, Zaiyu feels that he has the responsibility to mention a few words about this little junior.

Yan Hui replied in embarrassment: "But if you want to have enough to eat, you have to sacrifice part of your study time. And sometimes it's not that I don't have money to buy food, it's just that I spend all the money on food to buy books. ..."

Zai Yu suddenly realized: "No wonder you are so poor, that's how it is."

In this age when paper and printing were not popular, the price of books was very expensive.

The word Xuefu Wuche is often used in later generations to describe a person who is knowledgeable.

But in the Spring and Autumn Period, the four characters Xuefu Wuche can be understood literally. In this era, being able to own a Wuche collection of books is in itself a high-profile behavior of showing off wealth.

Jae Yu couldn't help asking: "Is your father just not caring about you? We ordinary people have to be more restrained when buying books!"

After hearing this, Zi Gong immediately tapped on the table twice with his fingers, and then gave Zai Yu a wink.

Zai Yu slapped his head.

How could I have forgotten that Yan Hui's father, Yan Wuyou, was also a student taught by Master!

With such a father around, it is probably impossible to dissuade Yan Hui from suicidal behavior of studying.

How can this be so good!
When Zaiyu was worrying, Zi Gong asked: "My son, I have finished the things you told me today. Now is it time for you to tell me about papermaking?"

Zai Yu replied: "Paper making is easy to say..."

Papermaking in the usual sense is generally divided into four steps, namely raw material separation, beating, papermaking and final drying.

To put it bluntly, paper is a piece of plant fiber that has been broken up and resolidified.

To make paper, you must first choose the right material.

In view of the current level of technology, Zaiyu plans to choose bark and ramie as raw materials. These two things are easy to obtain and low in cost, and are suitable for use in the initial trial production.

After the material is determined, the bark and ramie need to be cut and crushed to make the fibers broom and finally become a puddle of pulp

Then the obtained paper pulp is mixed with water to make a slurry, which is fished out with bamboo mats to form a wet paper paste, and finally the wet paper paste is dried and peeled off to complete the process.

Zaiyu's dictation of the papermaking process stunned Zi Gong and Yan Hui.

Yan Hui's forehead was full of question marks, and he asked humbly: "My brother, what is paper? What is plant fiber? What is fibrous fiber?"

Although Zigong didn't fully understand, his keen sixth sense of businessmen told him that there were huge business opportunities here.

He hastily summoned the servants of the mansion, and told them: "Quick! Go to the market immediately, buy some bark, ramie, and get me a bamboo mat!"

　Writers who count votes are talking to readers on the other side of the screen, not trying to get a number.

　　——Excerpt from "Zaiyu's Diary"

　　


(End of this chapter)