bayedsolid Chapter 71 Ceramics
Chapter 71 Ceramics
A few days later, Manager Du visited again and bluntly told Wen Yuxia that Li Wancai had taken a liking to the flowers painted on her teacup and the small ornaments she had given to Fu Bao, and wanted to collaborate with her on ceramics.
"Partnering to make ceramics?" Wen Yuxia asked in surprise. The teacups and small ornaments were something she made unintentionally; she didn't have the ability to mass-produce them.
Manager Du said with a smile, "The boss said that you will contribute your skills as equity, and the boss will take care of everything else. The profits will be split 30/70."
Wen Yuxia was responsible for the ceramic painting, color matching, and various patterned small ornaments, while Li Wancai was responsible for the venue, funding, and sales.
Wen Yuxia would take 30% of the profits, while Li Wancai would get 70%. Wen Yuxia, who originally had no intention of developing a career in the ceramics industry, was shamefully tempted.
"Manager Du, where does Old Master Li plan to build his kiln?"
"The landlord has a brick kiln, right in Niutou Village," Manager Du said, assuming Wen Yuxia would choose a kiln that was nearby, and directly stated the address of the Xinchuan County kiln.
Niutou Village—if she remembered correctly, Wang Ping's family was registered in Niutou Village. Wen Yuxia, who wasn't ready to meet the Wang family yet, was speechless.
Manager Du seemed to sense her predicament and said with a smile, "If Miss Wen doesn't want to go to the brickyard in Niutou Village, she can go to Jiangjia Village in the neighboring county."
Li Wancai had kilns in Niutou Village, Xinchuan County, and Jiangjia Village, Mengzhong County. As a technical advisor, Wen Yuxia only needed to provide the patterns and teach the kiln workers how to apply the colors.
After learning the skills, the kiln masters in Jiangjia Village would naturally pass on their knowledge to the kiln masters in Niutou Village without reservation.
The next morning, Wen Yuxia accompanied Manager Du to Jiangjia Village in Mengzhong County. She needed to conduct an on-site investigation before deciding whether to cooperate with Li Wancai.
Upon arriving at Jiangjia Village, Wen Yuxia saw several wisps of wispy blue smoke rising in the sky, and the carriage was traveling in the direction the smoke was rising.
"Old Du, you've arrived! This is our second boss, right?" The person in charge of the kiln was an elderly man with white hair. He invited Wen Yuxia to take a closer look at the kiln with a smile.
"Old Yang, the cooperation will have to wait until Miss Wen conducts her on-site inspection before a decision can be made. Miss Wen, Old Yang is in charge of the kiln; you can ask him anything you want to know," Manager Du introduced the two parties before going to find a place to have tea.
Old Yang then showed Wen Yuxia around the kiln, enthusiastically introducing her to various aspects of the factory. He explained that the former owner had already informed her by carrier pigeon that Wen Yuxia could handle the coloring and painting of exquisite patterns.
The porcelain produced by the kilns of the Great Xia Dynasty was all made of natural clay. If exquisite patterns could be painted on the porcelain, its price would increase tenfold.
Wen Yuxia carefully examined the freshly fired porcelain, occasionally squatting down to tap it with a wooden stick to check its quality.
After inspecting the site, she found the basic conditions there to be quite good and was already inclined to sign a contract.
Subsequently, Wen Yuxia signed a contract with Manager Du, and then had Lao Yang summon the kiln's master craftsmen. She then began explaining painting techniques and color matching methods to them.
The masters watched with great interest, occasionally raising questions, which Wen Yuxia patiently answered. Finally, Wen Yuxia even gave a live demonstration for the veteran craftsmen.
I watched as she drew an orchid on a blank vase, then used a bamboo knife to carve along the lines, creating a carved porcelain design. Next, she used a brush dipped in water to brush away the knife marks and any remaining dust from the unglazed vase.
She scooped up the glaze and poured it into the vase's unglazed body, then gently shook the vase until the glaze evenly covered the entire inner wall. Wen Yuxia then poured out any excess glaze, while gently rotating the vase to ensure the glaze was evenly distributed at the mouth.
Then, using a curved wooden stick to support the bottom of the clay body, she immersed it in the glaze. When the rim of the clay body was level with the glaze, Wen Yuxia quickly lifted the clay body out of the glaze.
……
The whole process went smoothly, leaving Manager Du, Old Yang, and several master craftsmen thoroughly entertained.
The carving and coloring demonstration shown to Manager Du and his team this time used glaze that Wen Yuxia herself brought. The kiln still needed Li Wancai to provide the glaze and raw materials. Wen Yuxia told Lao Yang:
"Glaze is mainly made from raw materials such as quartz, feldspar, and clay. These raw materials are ground into powder, diluted with water, and then applied to the surface of porcelain or pottery."
Forgive her; she only knows a little bit and can only explain things to others according to her own understanding.
"Miss Wen, the quartz and feldspar you mentioned can be found on the mountain. I'll have someone go up the mountain and dig some up later," Old Yang said excitedly.
Shopkeeper Du squinted slightly and said, "Miss Wen, draw a few patterns for Old Yang so they can carve them. Also, make a model of those exquisite little ornaments that Young Master Fu Bao has... Come back and check the quality after the finished products are fired."
With no skilled craftsmen available to serve as quality inspectors, Wen Yuxia was forced into the role of the kiln's sole quality inspector.
Before coming, she had drawn many patterns, some for carving and some for decorative ornaments. Wen Yuxia took out a stack of drawings from her handbag and said with a smile, "Uncle Du, I prepared the drawings a long time ago."
Old Yang took the blueprints as if they were a priceless treasure, carefully placing them on the table while muttering, "Be careful, don't tear the blueprints."
Upon hearing this, the experienced craftsmen who had rushed forward immediately stopped and took one by one picked up a drawing from the table to examine it. Wen Yuxia explained each drawing to them in detail.
"Miss Wen, is this drawing of Young Master Fu Bao?" Manager Du asked, pointing to an adorable little figure.
The adorable little figure on the drawing was drawn by Wen Yuxia based on a doll image stored on her spatial computer. Upon closer inspection, Wen Yuxia felt that the doll image did indeed bear some resemblance to Fu Bao's appearance.
"Yes, I compared it to Fu Bao's appearance and then slightly beautified it," Wen Yuxia didn't want to explain further and simply agreed with Manager Du's statement.
"The little figures in the drawings are even cuter than young master Fu Bao, and their hairstyles and clothes are quite different from those of children in the Great Xia Dynasty. Miss Wen, could you have the fabric shop make these clothes and sell them?"
The shrewd shopkeeper Du saw a business opportunity in clothing. By selling ceramic ornaments and launching matching children's clothing, he believed he could make a fortune.
Wen Yuxia calmly replied, "Okay."
The Great Xia Dynasty didn't have the concept of patents. Once the figurine series of small figurines hit the market, shrewd merchants would definitely jump on the bandwagon and make and sell figurine clothing.
Manager Du has a keen eye and can seize fleeting business opportunities to make a quick buck; that's his skill. Wen Yuxia generously offered to give away the clothing already shown in the drawings for free.
If she needs to provide clothing designs separately later, a service fee will be charged.