Courtyard House: Starting in a Ceramics Factory

Chapter 18 First Day at Work: Getting to Know Pot Throwing
The next day
Li Feng got up very early in the morning.

Today was Li Feng's first official day at work, and he couldn't be late, so he arrived at the ceramics factory very early.

And if you arrive early, they also serve breakfast.

For breakfast.

There are steamed buns, soy milk, fried dough sticks, and porridge.

Li Feng ordered a bowl of white rice porridge, two steamed buns, and a fried dough stick.

Li Feng found an empty seat and sat down immediately.

In this weather, nothing is more comforting than a bowl of warm porridge.

After Li Feng finished eating two large steamed buns, he felt his stomach was a little bulging.

The only downside is that these two buns are vegetable buns, not meat buns.

But Li Feng thought that in this era, it was indeed not easy to eat meat.

So Li Feng figured it out.

After finishing his meal, Li Feng quickly went to Master Wang's workstation.

Qian Fusheng was already there at this time.

Li Feng asked Qian Fusheng when he arrived.

Qian Fusheng told Li Feng that he hadn't been there long either.

As the two were talking, Zhou Jianjun helped Master Wang carry his things and teacup and followed him to his workstation.

Li Feng and Qian Fusheng immediately greeted him respectfully as "Master Wang".

Master Wang nodded slightly, and then sat down on the bamboo stool.

Then Master Wang asked Zhou Jianjun to call Wang Liu over.

Before long, Wang Liu came running over excitedly.

Master Wang looked at Wang Liu and then gave him an order.

"Six..."

"And then what?"

"I'm leaving those two to you."

Then Master Wang turned to look at Li Feng and Qian Fusheng.

"Your name is Li Feng."

"Your name is Qian Fusheng, right?"

Li Feng was somewhat depressed.

Got it!
This old man had only just memorized his own name.

It's not bad, though.

Even so, Li Feng immediately smiled and agreed with Master Wang.

"That's right, Master."

Qian Fusheng echoed Li Feng's words.

"Yes, Master."

Master Wang nodded and turned to Wang Liu.

"Six sons".

"You should teach them the basics first. You're almost a master yourself, so teach them well."

Wang Liu nodded.

"Okay, Master!"

As for Zhou Jianjun, he was called away by Master Wang to knead mud again.

Logically speaking, Zhou Jianjun has been studying for almost half a year.

They're still kneading mud; that's a bit much.

But Li Feng couldn't figure out the specific reason either.

in the following time.

Li Feng and Qian Fusheng were taken outside by Wang Liu.

Once outside, Qian Fusheng immediately greeted Wang Liu with a smile and asked.

"Brother Wang".

"Master Wang just said that you've been learning for almost a year."

"So, does that mean you're ready to graduate?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Liu nodded to Qian Fusheng.

That's right.

"After the assessment next month, I will be a formal apprentice."

Li Feng asked with some curiosity after hearing this.

"Are there formal apprenticeships?"

"Brother Wang, are we officially apprentices now?"

After hearing Li Feng's question, Wang Liu shook his head and explained.

"In our factory."

"Only after completing the apprenticeship can you become a formal apprentice and receive a portion of the performance bonus. Once you become a Level 1 worker, you can receive the full performance bonus."

"brother!".

"After I pass the assessment next month, I will be able to earn about fifty yuan a month."

Qian Fusheng was filled with longing after hearing what Wang Liu said.

After seeing Qian Fusheng's expression, Wang Liu patted Qian Fusheng on the shoulder and said...

"brother!".

"You have to do things one step at a time."

"You're still a beginner."

"So we have to start by kneading mud."

"You need to learn how to knead mud before you can move on to the next step."

At this moment, Li Feng asked Wang Liu, "Brother Wang, Zhou Jianjun should know how to throw a potter's wheel by now, right?"

"Then why did Master Wang still ask Zhou Jianjun to knead the mud?"

After hearing Li Feng's question, Wang Liu smiled and answered Li Feng.

"Him?"

"He already knew how to throw a potter's wheel a long time ago."

"It is said that Master Wang made him knead mud in order to temper his temper."

"But I don't know why."

Then Wang Liu began to explain to Li Feng and the other person why they needed to knead mud.

"If it's about throwing the potter's wheel."

"The first thing you have to learn is how to knead this kaolin clay."

"Do you know how this kaolin is made?"

Li Feng shook his head at Qian Fusheng.

"have no idea?".

Seeing that the two of them didn't know, Wang Liu continued.

"The kaolin we use now has undergone many processing steps."

"As for the specific processing method, I don't know."

"I heard from Master Wang that there are seventy-two processes involved in making porcelain."

"We also do several of the processes involved in pottery throwing."

"In other words, we are involved in a few of the steps involved."

"Master Wang said that kneading and shaping the embryo is also known as throwing the embryo. Shaping, mold repair, and embryo printing are all within the scope of our throwing process."

"As for the subsequent blanking process, that is another step."

"If we want to do it, we can do it too."

"The craftsman who shapes the clay simply makes the shape we've created a little more refined."

"As for the processes after the embryo preparation, I'm not very clear about them, and I haven't paid attention to them. If you want to see, you can go to other workshops to take a look."

"But please don't disturb their work."

Li Feng and Qian Fusheng immediately nodded in agreement.

"That must be it."

Qian Fusheng didn't plan to go see it, but Li Feng was curious and decided to go check it out.

After all, how could Li Feng not want the opportunity to see the porcelain-making process up close?
At this point, Wang Liu continued speaking.

Why are we learning to knead kaolin clay first?

"That's to make the kaolin and porcelain stone more tightly bonded, that is, to increase the adhesion, right?"

When Wang Liu got to this point, he seemed to have thought of something.

After about a minute, Wang Liu seemed to be thinking, and then he continued speaking to the two of them.

"The qualified requirements for kneading dough are that it can go through a series of operations such as kneading, rubbing, twisting and pressing."

"This is what constitutes qualified kaolin."

"That's right!"

“Every time a batch of kaolin arrives at the factory, we have to do a trial run.”

Qian Fusheng immediately asked in doubt.

"What does 'testing the image' mean?"

Wang Liu explained to Qian Fusheng.

"Test sample" is our jargon.

"It involves glazing the kaolin clay and then firing it once."

"After seeing the fired samples, the craftsmen had a clear idea of ​​what to expect."

Upon hearing this, Li Feng finally understood that even just one part of the process of throwing a potter's wheel had so many intricacies.

No wonder porcelain is so famous.

When Wang Liu got to this point in his story...

Li Feng had a preliminary understanding of what he was going to do.

After all, this is something I'll be doing in the future.

So we still need to take it seriously.

As Wang Liu spoke, he led Li Feng and the others to Zhou Jianjun.

At this moment, Zhou Jianjun was diligently kneading the kaolin clay.

have to say.

This kaolin is different from ordinary soil.

Ordinary soil is yellow, but this kaolin is whitish.

At this moment, Zhou Jianjun saw Wang Liu arrive and greeted him with a smile.

"Brother Wang! You've come to inspect?"

Wang Liu said to Zhou Jianjun with a smile.

"Didn't I bring Li Feng and Qian Fusheng here to learn from you?"

"I haven't been kneading mud for as long as you have."

Zhou Jianjun smiled and shook his head.

"Brother Wang, you're not joking with me, you're almost a master craftsman."

"I have plenty of time!"

Wang Liu nodded.

"That works!"

"I'll teach them how to knead mud first."

"You massage yours first."

(End of this chapter)