Endless Winter: My Camp Infinite Upgrades

Chapter 598 Huajin Coatings, A Twist of Fate

The earliest summer palace was actually a three-story main building of the camp.

Later, the Alchemy Pavilion, the Weapon Forging Pavilion, and the Martial Arts Pavilion were added one after another, along with the Great Xia Eight Tribes Main Hall, the Star-Picking Hall built against the cliff of the valley, and the Ancestral Temple at the deepest part.

In March of this year, the expansion project of the Summer Palace, which was fully participated in and guided by Mu Dong, the head of the Craftsmen's Department, yielded exceptionally good results.

Firstly, considering that there were too many staff members in the eight departments and that the affairs were complicated, and that the comings and goings of outsiders were too frequent and dense, which was not conducive to maintaining the solemnity and privacy of the summer palace, the main hall of the eight departments was moved to the outside of the palace city.

Secondly, the Martial Arts, Alchemy, and Weapon Forging Pavilions were also relocated for the same reason as the former. Since the medicinal fields were located on the south side of the valley, the Alchemy Pavilion was located outside the east city wall of the Summer Palace; the Martial Arts and Weapon Forging Pavilions, which did not occupy a large area, were located on the west side of the Summer Palace.

With these two large sections and more than a dozen buildings moved out, the Summer Palace suddenly had much more space. With ample space, Mu Dong was able to do as he pleased, pouring all the architectural skills accumulated by the craftsmen department over the past ten years into this project, according to the highest standards.

First is the Lord's Hall. In the previous rounds of renovations, the main building materials of this hall were all replaced with ten-forged iron. This time, Mu Dong directly upgraded the main building materials to hundred-forged iron, used thousands of forgings in some key parts, and even boldly used silver in the hall doors, windows, corridors and inner walls.

If the main building materials are like this, then the exterior decoration is even worse.

Coating is a process developed by the Craftsmen Department in its early years. Because it can effectively prevent metal from being corroded, and some precious coatings can even enhance the toughness and sharpness of metals, it is most widely used in the outer coating of weapons, armor and various metal products.

However, as the resources of the Xia Dynasty became increasingly abundant, the types of paints increased, and the output also grew larger. In addition, the aesthetic standards of the Xia people continued to rise, and the decorative demand for paints was quickly discovered. As a result, its role gradually extended to aesthetic needs, such as furniture and building materials.

Where there is demand, there is a market. With the population of Daxia constantly increasing, any demand can create a huge market. The craftsmen department recognized this and naturally became more and more concerned about the research and development of coatings.

Although various new types of coatings are constantly emerging, the most precious coatings that can be widely used on building materials are three types: Huajin, Zizhu, and Heyu. These three types of coatings are clearly stipulated to be used and purchased only by those who have been granted noble titles. Moreover, there are fixed purchase quotas every year according to the title level, and even the way they are used is strictly regulated. Therefore, the price of these three types of coatings is naturally the most expensive.

Of the three, Huajin Coatings has the lowest production volume. Huajin Coatings is mainly made from two raw materials: silver and golden pine powder. The two are put into the furnace together and smelted at high temperature for a long time. Then, more than 30 kinds of auxiliary materials are added in strict order. Temperature, water volume and air humidity are indispensable in the whole process. If any link is missing, the final product will not be obtained.

Not to mention that the raw materials contain silver, the complicated process alone means that its price cannot be too low. And that is indeed the case. Its price reached an astonishing 1300 taels per catty. Moreover, due to the use of silver and the complicated firing process, the woodworking workshop under the craftsmen department could only produce about 10,000 catties per year at most.

Generally speaking, one pound of paint can cover about one square meter, so ten thousand pounds sounds like a lot, but if it is used for construction, it can only cover a square wall with a side length of one hundred meters at most.

Compared to a few years ago, Da Xia is now extremely rich in resources. In particular, after Da Xia opened Hongmen Port in the seventh year, thanks to its advanced production capacity and trade with various towns on the southern slopes, Da Xia made a fortune. In the end, the benefits for the people of Da Xia were a wider variety of products and lower prices.

Then at the beginning of this year, the Great Xia destroyed the five northern towns and incorporated the entire southern foothills into its territory, greatly expanding its resource areas. After defeating Caiqiu three times, it also established trade relations with the vassal states. The Great Xia's products once again ushered in a boom in development. The timely introduction of silver monetization by the Ministry of Economy and Supply added another powerful element to this boom.

As of June this year, the Logistics Department has made a rough estimate that an ordinary family of three in Xia City, without considering any special factors, would need about 50 to 60 taels of silver per month to live a normal life and ensure the supply of the most basic cultivation resources.

Huajin paint, on the other hand, costs 1300 liang per kilogram, enough for a family of three to live off the food and drink for two years without doing anything. This comparison shows just how outrageous its price is.

"Gulp... The buildings in the Summer Palace are all painted with gold paint on the outside, this..."

Upon entering the Summer Palace for the first time, Su Xing'er's expression froze instantly upon seeing everything before her. The unease and tension she had felt earlier vanished, leaving only shock and numbness on her face, her pupils filled with disbelief.

At the beginning of the year, under Luo Cheng's guidance, Su Xing'er and her three brothers settled down in Xiadu without any problems. Now, she has been living in Xiadu for almost half a year.

From initial confusion and disorientation, to gradually being attracted by the various novel products of the Great Xia, to being shocked by the fair environment of the Great Xia without the constraints of the six-class registration system, to later experiencing the astonishingly low prices of the Great Xia, and learning about the various rules and regulations of the Great Xia, to understanding the protections provided for the disadvantaged groups in the Great Xia...

All of this dazzled Su Xing'er, but it also quickly fostered her identification with the Great Xia Dynasty. Coupled with her intense desire for her master Xia Hong's approval, she and her three older brothers had almost no psychological barriers in integrating into the Great Xia Dynasty.

Because of their significant contributions to the uprising in Changqing Valley, the four siblings were each awarded between 100 and 200 military merits. Although they were still far from being granted a noble title, according to the regulations of the Great Xia Dynasty, anyone who earned military merits could have them converted into cash rewards on their first occasion at a ratio of 1 to 500 taels of silver. This meant that when the four siblings first arrived in Xia City at the beginning of the year, they were already quite wealthy.

Having considerable wealth meant that Su Xing'er had enough money to experience the dazzling array of products in Xia City, including summer clothes, summer food, summer-made weapons and utensils, refined salt, elixirs, and many other products. In order to integrate into the Great Xia Dynasty as quickly as possible, she tried almost everything.

The capital city of Xia is vast, and living there is not easy. With several rounds of population booms, even settling in the outer city of Xia is not an easy task these days. Not to mention the cost of building a house, even the most ordinary 100-square-meter plot of land costs more than 30,000 taels of silver. Considering the money needed for future cultivation, and the fact that she and her three brothers are not yet married, the four siblings did not live separately. Instead, they raised funds to buy a plot of land, built a house, and lived together.

Her three older brothers doted on her and, without saying a word, simply put the land in her name. They also entrusted her with handling all subsequent matters, such as building the house.

Because of this incident, Su Xing'er is unusually sensitive to building material prices, which is why she reacted this way when she saw everything in the Summer Palace.

Inside the Summer Palace, there are thirteen large palaces arranged in a row, with the Lord's Hall, which occupies the largest area in the center, as the core. The other twelve smaller palaces are scattered around and guard it. Directly above the Lord's Hall, there is also an exquisite palace that is suspended on the mountain wall. Although it is not large in scale, its high position alone is enough to show its extraordinary nature.

The key point is that the outer walls of these thirteen large palaces were all painted with Huajin paint. Previously, this could not be seen from behind the palace walls, but now that Su Xing'er had walked in and was able to see the thirteen magnificent palaces up close, she was naturally greatly shocked.

When her new house was completed, she went to a shop in the outer city to choose paint. The shopkeeper introduced her to many different paints, probably out of a desire to show off. He specifically introduced her to the three highest-grade paints, including Huajin.

When Su Xing'er heard that Huajin paint cost as much as 1300 taels per kilogram and that only those who had been granted a noble title were qualified to use it, and that the annual purchase quota was limited according to the title level, she was naturally astonished.

So how could she not be shaken when thirteen palaces, all painted in the color of Huajin paint, appeared before her eyes?
The thirteen palaces of the Summer Palace are all in the shape of square arches. The largest, the central main hall, has a base side length of approximately 150 meters. The other twelve are smaller, but their side lengths are estimated to be around 50 meters. Considering the overall composition, the amount of Huajin paint used would likely be well over 100,000 jin (approximately 50,000 kg). The thirteen palaces on the ground already left her speechless; the one suspended against the mountainside was even more extravagant—its exterior gleamed with a shimmering silver light…

Su Xing'er could tell at a glance that the shiny silver sheen was something that paint could not replicate; it was real silver.

The palace on the mountainside, which is 30 meters long, is actually painted with silver!

The higher the grade of the metal ore in the Ice Abyss, the greater its density, and the higher the furnace temperature required for smelting. Moreover, very little of it turns into liquid after smelting. The entire outer wall of a grand hall is made of silver molten metal, and Su Xing'er cannot even imagine how much silver it would consume.

The key point is that, so far, she has only seen the exterior of these palaces. If the exterior walls are painted so luxuriously, what must the interiors of these palaces be like?
"The Linchu Prefecture of Caiqiu and the Yanling Prefecture of Chencang are not even comparable to this place. It's uncertain whether even the garrison headquarters of the two feudal lords have this level of status..."

Su Xing'er couldn't help but take out the prefectural governments of Linchu and Yanling that she had visited before and compare them with the Xia Palace in front of her. But as soon as the thought arose, she eliminated the two prefectural governments.

The abundance of resources in the Great Xia Dynasty far exceeded her expectations...

"Miss Su has been in Xia City for less than half a year, yet she already recognizes Huajin paint. That's truly thoughtful of her. This Huajin paint contains a lot of silver, which can ward off evil spirits. At the beginning of the year, when the Xia Palace was being expanded, Mu Sizheng proposed to paint all the palaces with Huajin paint. Madam was worried that it would be too extravagant and wasteful, so she rejected it. In the end, it was Mu Sizheng who overruled the objections. In addition, Si Cheng said that the Xia Palace is not only the residence of the lord and the core of the Great Xia, but also the future headquarters of the Xia Kingdom. Security and solemnity are both indispensable, and no matter how high the standard is, it is not excessive. That's why Miss Su sees what she has now..."

Mingyue was clearly in a good mood today. Seeing Su Xing'er looking at the main hall of the Summer Palace with a shocked expression, she couldn't help but smile and explain.

She had always served the First Madam, Li Xuanling. In March, when Madam Cai was sent to marry a foreign ruler, the First Madam assigned her to serve the other party.

Lady Cai had the title of Princess Tianyin, so Li Xuanling simply allocated a large hall from the Summer Palace and named it Tianyin Hall, giving it to Lady Cai as her residence. She is now the head maid of Tianyin Hall, specifically responsible for serving Lady Cai.

Yesterday was her day off. She was married, her husband worked in the Imperial Guard, and they had two children. Since she finally had a day off, she went to ask Madam Cai for permission as soon as it was light.

Speaking of Lady Cai, she was a very good person. She had been here for so long for the marriage alliance and had not yet met the lord. An ordinary woman would probably have made a scene by now, but she not only did not make a scene, but she also never made any demands. She was very polite to the maids and never made things difficult for them, even though she knew that they were all spies sent by the lady.

Unexpectedly, when she went to ask Madam Cai for permission to leave the palace yesterday, the other party actually made a request.

This request was made by Su Xing'er, whom she had just brought in.

Lady Cai grew up in Caiqiu and had only recently married into the family. She should have known nothing about the Great Xia Dynasty, yet she knew of a woman named Su Xing'er in the outer city and begged me to bring Su Xing'er into the palace so I could meet her.

Mingyue knew that Madam Cai was only nineteen years old, while she was already twenty-five. If it weren't for the huge difference in their status, and the fact that she had spent almost three months with Madam Cai, she would have felt sorry for her.

Yes, it's heartbreaking!
A nineteen-year-old girl traveled a long way from Caiqiu to marry into the Great Xia Dynasty. More than three months have passed, and she hasn't even seen her husband, Lord Xia Hong. To make matters worse, she is being suppressed by an extremely powerful First Wife. Li Xuanling has sent away dozens of people from Caiqiu who accompanied her as part of her dowry. As a result, she doesn't know a single person in the vast city of Xia.

Even though Mingyue considered herself loyal to the First Madam, she couldn't help but feel sorry for this young girl in such a situation, and would occasionally speak well of this Lady Cai in front of the First Madam.

So when she finally heard the other party make a request of her, and it was just to ask her to go to the outer city to bring someone into the Summer Palace, Mingyue gritted her teeth and agreed, even though she felt embarrassed.

Of course, everything in the Summer Palace was decided by the Lady, so she only agreed to ask the Lady for her opinion on behalf of Lady Cai. Only if the Lady agreed could she proceed.

Fortunately, the lady did not make things difficult for Lady Cai in this matter, which is why Mingyue had the opportunity to bring Su Xing'er into the palace at this moment.

Mingyue didn't hide anything. As she led Su Xing'er toward the Tianyin Palace, she told her everything about Madam Cai and the things Madam Cai had told her.

After listening, Su Xing'er was initially confused. After thinking for a moment, she seemed to have thought of something, and her expression suddenly froze.

"May I ask, Sister Mingyue, what is Madam Cai's name?"

clank…………

As the two were talking, they had already reached the entrance of the Heavenly Sound Palace. As soon as she finished asking her question, a melodious and elegant zither sound came from inside the palace.

Upon hearing the familiar melody, Su Xing'er's body jolted. She was initially excited, but her expression inexplicably became complicated.

"Madam Cai's full name is Cai Shiqin."

Just then, Mingyue also revealed Madam Cai's name.

The person sent by Cai Qiu to marry his master Xia Hong was actually his little sister, Cai Shiqin, whom he had met three years ago in Linchu Prefecture!
How could things in this world turn out so unexpectedly!

(End of this chapter)