Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 36: Meeting Miss Tang Again

Time passed quickly, and Xia Lin felt like he had done nothing. He was busy wandering around various construction sites all day long, and in the blink of an eye, summer had arrived.

With the arrival of summer, the kiln is finally open for business, and a series of processes have already started, including mining, grinding, sifting powder, beating pulp, etc. These processes would definitely not work if you just rely on your brain, but Xia Lin has a cheating device.

How to screen ore, how to prepare glaze, how to fire, how to paint, the processes are clearly arranged online, which obviously reduces the huge cost of trial and error. Even if you take your fellow villagers to run a few kilns, the quality will actually be relatively stable.

The Dragon Boat Festival is a turning point. Once it is over, the workshop will be fully put into production. Xia Lin has been very busy these days. Although there are no problems with the overall process, there will always be small problems during the actual operation.

For example, problems such as blocked pores causing the kiln to backfire, flameout, temperature failure, smoke return, etc. all required him to solve these problems little by little. Fortunately, there were no major problems. Even though the yield of the first batch was a little lower, it can still be said that a good start is half the success.

But when he saw the styles of those porcelains, Xia Lin could only squat there and scratch his hair. These porcelain makers were not professional after all. It would be an exaggeration to describe these shapes as ugly. The mouths of the bowls were crooked, the bottles were twisted, and even the plates were limp and drooping there. They could simply be called garbage among garbage.

If you want to sell it for money like this, it can really be said to be wishful thinking.

Indeed, cheating devices can solve basic process and manufacturing problems, but they cannot solve the problem of practice makes perfect. However, seeing that if this continues, not only will the capital not be recovered, but also the credibility among fellow villagers will be lost, Xia Lin is really having a headache.

There are now two paths before him. One is to increase efforts to train basic industry workers, and the other is to invite monks who can chant sutras from outside to serve as master and apprentice.

The first path is definitely difficult. To be honest, the second path is easier to follow and will definitely produce results much faster than the first one. After all, the current problem lies in the shape of the vessel and the proficiency in the manufacturing process. There is no problem with the porcelain itself. It is smooth, translucent and bright, which is clearly superior to the common products on the market today.

"Zhao Da."

"Yes, sir."

Zhao Da is now a completely different person from when Xia Lin first came. Not only has his family acquired property in Raozhou, but he has also found a very capable son-in-law for his widowed daughter. So now if anyone outside says anything bad about Xia Lin, he would want to rush forward and fight with that person for his life.

When he heard the little adult calling him, he naturally responded enthusiastically.

"Do you know any skilled pottery makers? It doesn't matter if they are older, we need them to teach apprentices."

"Pottery? But isn't this porcelain?"

"Ceramics and ceramics are almost the same, the only difference is the materials and the firing temperature. Without a good craftsman, how can you expect to make money with such a weak product? We have to launch the products before the Mid-Autumn Festival in August and see the return of money before the end of the year."

After hearing this, Zhao Da could only scratch his ears. He was unsure, after all, it was like a mountain between two different trades. But since Lord Xia had spoken, he would just go ahead and do it.

Fortunately, this place is only about a hundred miles away from Raozhou, and it would only take three or two days to go there and come back, so Zhao Da immediately prepared to set off.

"Wait a minute." Xia Lin also stood up at this time: "I'll go with you."

"Then I'll go and get ready."

"What's the point of preparing anything? Just find a bullock cart, you drive the cart and I'll sit in the back and that's it."

Zhao Da looked embarrassed: "Sir... your status is here."

"Identity is shit. If we can't get things done, our identities are just prisoners."

After hearing this, Zhao Da's forehead started sweating again, so he quickly prepared the car and they set off together to Raozhou to find a skilled pottery maker.

They set out in the morning and arrived at Huizhou Changmen in the evening, which was later called Qimen County. Xia Lin was confused when he saw the name of the county boundary: "Hey, aren't we going to Raozhou? How did we end up at Huizhou Changmen? Did you take the wrong road?"

Sitting on the ox cart, Zhao Da felt his scalp tighten when he saw the sign of Changmen. After a quick review in his head, he found that he had indeed gone to the wrong place after a fork in the road. That road was to Huizhou Xiuning, which is Wuyuan. After arriving in Xiuning County, he could take the road to Raozhou. But who knew that after this mistake, he actually brought his parents to Changmen...

"Forget it, let's find a place to stay first."

As they were talking, it started to rain heavily. The two men were soaked to the skin without even having time to put on their raincoats. They found an inn to stay in, went upstairs to change their clothes, and then went downstairs to eat something to replenish their energy.

Xia Lin almost cursed Zhao Da, but it was useless to kill him. He could only settle down first. At worst, he could find some skilled masters here and go back. But he was angry just thinking about it. If he really went to Xiuning, he would not have to walk such a long way. He might have arrived long ago and would not have been in such a heavy rain.

"In fact, it's quite good to come to Changmen, sir... Changmen is rich in tea, and there are also craftsmen who are good at making pottery among those tea-horse merchants."

"What's the point of you saying this now... oh, I really am."

Xia Lin waved his hand helplessly: "Waiter, if you have anything else to eat, bring some."

At this time, the inn's waiter hurried over, rubbing his hands and saying embarrassedly: "I'm sorry, it's getting late, and the inn has no more food left. The rest is for the guests who greeted us before."

"It's so late and it's raining heavily. I think the customer is unlikely to come. Just give me some extra money and give me the things."

"This..." The waiter became a little embarrassed: "I really can't make the decision on this. Wait for me to call the store owner."

Soon the shopkeeper came over. He said he was really sorry for that. Xia Lin was already hungry after a day's journey, and now he got angry when he heard them being so rigid. Zhao Dana, who was standing next to him, was very good at reading people's expressions. He was a constable and had a knife on him. He picked up the knife and slammed it on the table: "How dare you treat my master like this?"

The shopkeeper and the waiter were both very anxious. Who could have known that a great man would come so late at night? However, the sword he was wearing was indeed a government-issued sword. This was a good thing...

"Well...well...if that's the case, I'll have someone prepare some for you two."

Just as the two sides were arguing, four or five people wearing straw raincoats suddenly came in from outside. As soon as they came in, the leader spoke up: "After the goods are unloaded, let the guys come over and have a good rest. Everyone has worked hard on the journey."

Upon hearing the voice, Xia Lin turned his head immediately. Although the light was dim and he couldn't see who the caller was, the voice was firmly engraved in his mind.

"Miss Tang?"

His shout startled the group of people. The people standing beside Miss Tang became alert instantly, and the swords at their waists were slightly unsheathed.

"Don't panic." Miss Tang was calm after all. She just took off her hat and looked at Xia Lin curiously: "Do you recognize me? May I ask who you are?"

Xia Lin immediately stood up and said with a smile, "It's normal that Miss Tang doesn't remember me. During the Spring Equinox last year, there were two people in Luoyang City who took a ride to Yangzhou. I wonder if Miss Tang still remembers me?"

Miss Tang shook her head slightly, but a smile appeared on her face: "It seems that we are from Luoyang. Nice to meet you."

Seeing that she had completely forgotten him, Xia Lin couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. He pursed his lips and smiled, raised his hand and arched his hand with a lack of interest: "Then I won't bother Miss Tang anymore."

Tang Wanqiu had actually been observing Xia Lin, but she really had no impression of Xia Lin. It was just a small incident a year ago, and she had been traveling all over the country to manage the family business in the past year, so she really didn't have the leisure time to remember so many things.

After that, a bunch of people came in one after another. It seemed that Miss Tang brought the entire caravan here. No wonder the shopkeeper said that the remaining things here were booked. After all, this is the largest inn in this place. Generally, caravans of a certain size will choose to stay here. There are not many places in this small town that can accommodate dozens of people.

After they sat down, the shopkeeper didn't know what to say, but it could be seen that the dishes served to Xia Lin were actually pieces of food scrambled from the caravan's meals. But in this environment, whatever you have is already excellent, so there is no need to be picky.

Just as the group of people were eating, Xia Lin heard someone at the next table say, "Miss, you've been suffering with us these days, sleeping outdoors."

"It doesn't matter. Since I have taken over the Tang's business, I should do all these things. If my father can run, I can do it too." Miss Tang's voice was a little tired: "Everyone, eat quickly. You have worked hard on this journey. Have a good rest after eating."

After hearing this, Xia Lin realized that Miss Tang was actually a heroine. Although she looked fair and tender, a typical Guanzhong porcelain doll, her tenacity was very much like the poplar trees in the Northwest, which grow against the strong wind.

"Miss, after this trip, we will follow the Changshui River westward to Hongdu. I heard that a school has been opened in Hongdu, so we can go and take a look."

Hmm? Hearing this, Xia Lin was confused. What was Miss Tang doing at the academy? But she understood after a second thought. She was going to invest! The status of these businessmen was actually very low. The only way to achieve a leap in status was to become a powerful family. However, to become a powerful family, it was not enough to have money. You also had to have the right to speak. If a local rich businessman like her wanted to seize the right to speak, then the best way was to invest in a newly emerged academy.

Anyone who graduated from the academy would be considered a member of her school as long as they took her money. Over time, the Tang family would be able to transform from a merchant family into a family of aristocrats.

But this time, Miss Tang might run into a wall.

(End of this chapter)