Chapter 20
Qiao Hezhi's maternal uncle's home was only a quarter of an hour's walk from the Qiao family. Fang Yu thought to himself that since it was so close, rather than having the uncle make a trip, it would be better for him to go over himself. If it could be done, it would also save the uncle from having to go back to the workshop.
He followed the servant to the uncle's Lin family home. The Lin family ancestors were actually registered as artisans. Although they weren't a hugely wealthy or prestigious family, they had skilled craftsmanship and had lived quite comfortably since their grandfather's generation. Later, when Lin Yanbi married into the Qiao family, life became even more prosperous. However, this came with a cost, the Lin family lost its official status as artisans and was reclassified as merchants.
The Qiao family, on the other hand, had been merchants for generations. In earlier years, when the status of merchant households wasn't so low, the Qiao family was one of Yuncheng's top prominent families. Originally, Qiao Hezhi's father, Qiao Xinnian, was also a scholar; in his youth, he had already achieved the Tongsheng merit title. Unfortunately, the unpredictable ways of the world intervened. Emperor Pingyang issued an edict suppressing merchants, stating that all merchant households and their children were forbidden from taking the imperial examinations. Those who held merit titles would have them revoked if they did not change their household registration to scholar status.
However, before Qiao Xinnian could transfer his registration to scholar status, his merit title was revoked. Consequently, he had no choice but to continue in the family's commercial trade.
Considering these past circumstances, Fang Yu concluded that Qiao Xinnian's decision to select the original owner of his current body as a son-in-law was partly due to the pressures of the general situation, and partly likely due to his own lingering obsession with scholarly pursuits.
Fang Yu had a Qiao family servant lead him towards the workshop. The Lin family was truly very different from the Qiao family. It wasn't about the size of the residence, but rather the furnishings. The Lin home had pieces of wood placed everywhere. He glanced around casually and saw that there were all kinds of wood, not just that, but the residence also had a blacksmithing workshop. It really had the style of artisan craftsmen.
"Hezhi really knows how to act recklessly. What does his husband, a scholar, know about drawing designs? Indulging him in everything isn't necessarily good for him. Don't let him delay my work."
Just as he arrived outside Lin Xuan's workshop, he heard the person inside quite impatiently scolding the servant who had gone to announce his arrival. The Qiao family servant following him gave him an embarrassed look: "Please don't take offense, Son-in-law. Craftsman Lin has a bit of a temper, especially when he's working."
"It's fine. I am the one imposing abruptly. We can wait outside until Uncle finishes his work."
As soon as he finished speaking, Fang Yu heard a voice from inside the room: "Since you're already here, come in then."
The workshop door creaked open. Inside stood a young man, who looked to be only about twenty-six or twenty-seven. He was wearing a yellow leather apron, and it seemed he had just finished sawing wood; the saw was still in his hand. With one hand on his hip, he lifted his eyelids to glance at Fang Yu, but showed no intention of greeting him.
"Fang Yu pays his respects to Uncle."
"I can't stand you scholars and all your empty courtesy," Lin Xuan said, tossing the saw onto a table covered in wood dust with a clatter, his expression unfriendly. "What's this design? Let me see it."
Fang Yu wasn't angered. He pulled the folded design from his sleeve and was just about to smooth it out before handing it to Lin Xuan, but the man directly snatched it over and shook it open. "What's with the dithering?"
Lin Xuan looked at the design for a while, then raised his eyes to glance at Fang Yu. "You drew this?"
"Indeed, I did."
"It's actually drawn quite well. Did you use a charcoal stick?"
"Uncle, you have fiery eyes and golden pupils."
[火眼金睛 (huǒ yǎn jīn jīng): lit. fiery eyes and golden pupils; fig. keen perception, discerning eyes]
Lin Xuan was an experienced craftsman who had created countless items from iron and wood, ranging from large pieces to small, intricate ones. People often came to his door with designs, wanting all sorts of strange and bizarre things made. Often, there were things he had never seen before, and when he asked the people bringing the designs about their purpose, they would give vague, unclear explanations. It wasn't without reason that he had a short temper.
He had never made or seen the object on Fang Yu's design. Just as he was about to ask what it was intended for, he saw that on another sheet, there was actually a neat and orderly written introduction: the name, the purpose, the list of required materials was clear at a glance. Furthermore, key and difficult points were specially noted. He couldn't help but look at Fang Yu with newfound respect, thinking for the first time that scholarly people really did have clearer minds.
His tone softened considerably: "The pen you want is special, and the craftsmanship is truly intricate. I'll give it a try first. If I can succeed, I'll send it over to you in a few days."
"In that case, thank you very much, Uncle."
After taking the design, Lin Xuan immediately became absorbed in his work, ignoring Fang Yu completely. He went off alone to choose his materials and begin tinkering, his single-minded focus revealing a true craftsman consumed by his passion.
Fang Yu then wandered around the workshop by himself. It really had everything: agricultural tools, household tables, chairs, and benches, wooden carvings of insects, birds, fish, and animals that children loved, each one vividly crafted... However, the workshop was extremely messy. He accidentally stepped on a stone and nearly tripped. Looking down, he saw it was actually a piece of graphite.
"Don't step on that, it's for making pigments. There are two good pieces of pigment in the workshop, you're welcome to take them if they're useful. This evening, please let Hezhi know I won't be joining for dinner." Lin Xuan rarely found a spare moment to glance at Fang Yu and waved his hand, signaling a servant to fetch the pigment. "Your design and notes are detailed enough. I probably won't need to call for you."
Seeing his manner, he was already eager to start making the pen. Fang Yu said, "Uncle, there's no need to rush making it. I'm not in a hurry to use it. If you miss going over for dinner together because of making the pen, I'm afraid Hezhi would blame me."
Lin Xuan was rather blunt and unsentimental: "He won't. He knows my temper. I'll go see him myself whenever I miss him."
With that, Fang Yu had nothing more to say. He wandered around the workshop a bit longer before returning to the Qiao residence.
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