Chapter 2169 Flower War (seventy-seven)

  There are beautiful legends in almost all art, and many such legends are recorded in the four local chronicles of JDZ. There is such a legend: a china merchant was in distress at sea and fell to a deserted coast. Others were busy repairing the leaking boat, but he was strolling by the seaside, but he didn't think about it, but was on the pebbles on the shore. He found a lot of lapis lazuli in it, and he thought it was suitable for painting porcelain, so he brought back a lot of lapis lazuli. The story recorded in the county annals adds: "Never had the porcelain artisans used such a wonderful and pure blue, and later the porcelain merchants and others returned to the shores that had fallen in distress and found nothing." Blue was never found again.

   Few people know how many steps it takes to make a piece of porcelain, and how many hands it takes to make it. I’m afraid even those who casually drink tea from a thin porcelain cup may not know. Of course Nick doesn't know either, because that's a secret, like the Venetians protect their glass-making recipes on the island.

Due to the large population, the wages of artisans are very low, and many workers can be arranged in each process, but even so, it is still impossible to keep strict confidentiality. I learned the whole set of craftsmanship, and also developed the ink carving craftsmanship, which replaced the original ink molds used by Cao's family. Became the most sought-after, even surpassing the Cao family.

  The cost of labor in Europe is so high that it has been replaced by machines. However, when people are used as machines, it also limits people's creative surnames. The paintings on Chinese porcelain are not painted by a single artist, but by a dozen painters. This is probably because the painting quality of the porcelain vase is not high. s reason.

Painters are paid according to the work piece, some only learn to paint flowers, some only paint ladies or officials, etc., and so on, so in such an environment, art will never make any progress, but ancient porcelain More valuable than the china made today.

   Song Dynasty porcelain is the most expensive, and it is characterized by a monochromatic glaze, the elegance of which is unparalleled. Cyan is not the traditional color of Chinese civilization. It was only in the Yuan Dynasty that the blue and white color came into being. That blue color is not the color of lapis lazuli mentioned earlier, at least not until the chemical reaction occurs after high temperature baking.

The preference for ancient porcelain will inevitably lead to counterfeiting, which is to bury new porcelain in a pond and take it out after a few months to make it look like the yellowish color of the real antique, and the fake will not make a crisp sound when knocked on it , which is similar to a real antique.

   But there are also people who hope to get more remuneration by enhancing their value, or the boss invites craftsmen to learn painting here in order to meet the needs of European customers.

After    regained his freedom of movement, Nick came to Lin Gua's studio again. His "business" here was still very good, and the turmoil outside seemed to have no effect on him. Everything was the same as when Nick left last time.

The difference is that Nick put on a Chinese scholar's scholar's uniform. Lin Gua was surprised by the way he "appeared". He looked up and down Nick for a long time before he couldn't help laughing and said, "I don't think you are a scholar, you have a pair of blue eyes. "

  Many Manchus retain blue eyes and Sogdian characteristics, which is the result of their intermarriage within the clan instead of the Han. Even Wanning looks like a young Portuguese woman from a certain point of view.

   At this time, Lin Gu had already sent her portrait to the Admiral's Mansion. The easel that was originally used for her portrait was now painted by another person.

   This person gives people a feeling that is difficult to express in words. Jade is divided into warm jade and cold jade. Li Yishan wrote this in his poems: the moon in the sea has tears, and the warm jade in the blue field produces smoke. This analogy gives people the illusion that warm jade will emit heat, just like a warm inkstone, but it only gives a warm feeling in color and luster. This kind of jade is mainly produced in XJ.

  The "cold jade" produced in Yunnan and Myanmar is mainly crystal clear and cold like glass. The man in the painting is between the two, which makes people feel warm and cold.

   "Who is this?" Nick asked.

"A guest." Lin Gua said casually, then walked to the side, Nick found that there was a sculptor in Lin Gua's studio, Lin Gua took a few stones from the sculptor, "Choose one, I will use it to sculpt for you. seal."

  Nick chose a green stone that he thought was beautiful, Lin Gu gave it to the carver, and engraved his Chinese name "Pingxi".

  Manchus wear purses before entering the customs, usually around their waists, with flint and other items to meet the daily needs of fishing and hunting. After entering the customs, this custom has not changed. The most common thing in the folk is the wallet. You don’t need to bring money in the palace. It will contain some things such as eight treasures, jade or seals. At the same time, it also has the function of status symbol.

  The sleeves of Hanfu are generally wide and can hold a lot of things in them, but these sleeves are not suitable for riding and shooting. After changing to arrow sleeves, the sleeves cannot hold things.

  The literati often wear the "Four Treasures of the Study", especially the pen, so that it is convenient to "splash and splash ink" at any time. Those with ordinary family backgrounds can use a piece of bamboo to hold the pen, while those with more wealth can use ivory or red sandalwood or ebony.

  Nick couldn't accept the pen case and the brush, he still agreed with the quill pen, and Lin Gua was still reluctant to change his posture of holding the brush.

   Then Lin Gua said in a sarcastic tone of compliment, "What are you doing here today?"

So Nick left the studio and was wandering around the city like a depraved young man, but he didn't dare to enter the sparsely populated or complicated alleys. By chance he found Captain Yao on the street, and he also had nothing to do, so Nick stopped him.

   Captain Yao didn't recognize Nick at first, and he didn't recognize it until Nick walked in, but he didn't run away.

Nick invited Captain Yao to a restaurant not far away for a meal, and when he was three-point drunk, Captain Yao began to complain, "It's terrible, those pirates make it difficult for us to go to sea, I can barely survive, but I My brothers have to support a family."

  There are many temples in Guangzhou, not all of them have a long history like the Faxing Temple, but some temples are said to be "effective". Captain Yao went to burn incense to petition.

   Then he began to ask Nick about the way to make a fortune. The English built many luxurious houses in Guangzhou, and there were so many big ships at sea. He also asked Nick if there was a way to turn ordinary metals into silver.

  Nick asked Captain Yao why he asked him that. Captain Yao said you were French. He had heard in the Philippines that the French had developed that magical stone.

  Nick told Captain Yao that not only did he not have that ability, but no one else in the world had that ability. Later, Captain Yao asked about European coins, or counterfeiting.

  Because of their lack of understanding of foreign countries, many people do not know how much silver is in foreign currency, but making currency requires molds, which cannot be imitated by the poor craftsmanship of an ordinary sailor.

Then Captain Yao talked about his father's generation again. Because Guangzhou Customs repeatedly collects taxes, all ships parked in the port must pay customs duties. In order to avoid the tax, even if the sea is windy, they dare not enter the port to berth, causing many capsize accidents. . At that time, the admiral of the navy, Fan Yu, also submitted a memorial, requesting that merchant boats be berthed, and that non-local transactions should not be taxed. If it were not for this policy, Captain Yao would not have dared to park the boat in Guangzhou Port for so long.

  If we have romantic fantasies about a profession, it must be because we don’t know enough about it. The life of sailors is not as free as people think, and they yearn all the time for a safe harbor where they can dock.

  After parting with Captain Yao, Nick went back to the hospital and took away the luggage and the map on the wall. He could not cause trouble to the priest, and other European travelers would come here in the future.

When he was about to go out, Nick suddenly remembered and took the clock on the table away, because it was a gift he bought for the Admiral, not the original furnishings inside. Although it has a certain value, leaving it is considered a benefit to the hospital. a compensation.

   (end of this chapter)