After listening to the old clan elder's words, Zhan Feiyu couldn't help but look towards the village head and Zhan Wencheng. "If the clan handles this business, then fourth brother will be at a disadvantage."
"I'm not working for nothing. The family is selling general goods now, and people from other villages will come to sell wild game and dried goods. Naturally, they'll also buy some general goods," Zhan Wencheng said with a smile. He was earning a little less, but it was more suitable for the long-term unity of the village.
It is better to have uneven distribution than insufficient quantity! Zhan Feiyu, being a scholar, naturally understood this principle.
Seeing that the old clan elder and the others had finished their discussion, Zhan Feiyu said, "This is also feasible. Grandfather, my teacher will open a workshop in the future, and I will try to have the workshop built in the village."
"What?" The old clan elder and the others were stunned. First, they were surprised that Zhan Feiyu had a teacher, and then they were excited that the village would have a workshop.
In the future, villagers working in the workshop would be much better than toiling in the fields. If a diligent family didn't let their fields lie fallow and could also earn money from the workshop, that would be double the income.
"This is just an idea for now, and it will be at least half a year later." Zhan Feiyu estimated the time. After all, she had the formula for soap, but she hadn't actually operated it yet. She still needed to experiment repeatedly. Moreover, she didn't have time to get involved in opening the shop, and her teacher would have to send someone over.
The old clan elder laughed heartily, "There's no rush for the workshop. The weather is favorable now, and with the money earned from selling vegetables, every household will have a good year by the end of the year."
Thinking of the Zhan clan becoming more prosperous, the old clan elder exhorted the village head and Zhan Wencheng, "You and Wencheng should pay more attention to the villagers during this time. Wealth moves people's hearts. Those who have wicked intentions must never be allowed into the workshop in the future."
"Yes, we can't let a single rotten apple spoil the whole barrel," the clan elders agreed, nodding their heads.
There were hundreds of people in the village. Most villagers were simple and kind, but there were always some cunning and malicious ones.
Generally, workshops have secret recipes. If someone in the village had ulterior motives and leaked the recipe for a little money, it would be a small matter if the villagers could no longer work in the workshop. But if Zhan Feiyu's teacher developed an opinion of Zhan Feiyu because of it, that would be a loss that outweighed the gain.
...
Gu Qingzhou looked at Zhan Feiyu, who was busy squatting by the stove, with confusion. "What are you taking the pot bottom ash for?"
"Teacher, I can't explain it clearly to you," Zhan Feiyu couldn't say saponification reaction, so she could only speak with facts.
She filled a copper basin with more than half of the grass and wood ash, then poured water from the bucket into it, just enough to cover the grass and wood ash. Then, she stirred it with a bamboo pole.
No matter how unrestrained Gu Qingzhou was, he was still a scion of a noble family. Seeing Zhan Feiyu with a bit of black ash on her cheek, and the ash scattered in the kitchen, he shook his head in disgust. "If this money wasn't all yours, I would suspect you were here to scam me."
Zhan Feiyu, who was paying for the money and the formula, glared at him angrily. She sped up her movements and stirred the grass and wood ash evenly in a moment.
"Teacher, help me with something." Zhan Feiyu spread out the white cotton cloth and asked Gu Qingzhou to help hold it. She then picked up a gourd ladle and poured the mixed water onto the cotton cloth, using it to filter out impurities.
Gu Qingzhou looked at the clean mixed water in the wooden basin and became somewhat interested. "What's next?"
If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, who would have thought that grass and wood ash plus water was also a secret recipe.
"Pour it into the pot and boil it slowly to remove the water," Zhan Feiyu said. As soon as she spoke, Gu Qingzhou poured the water from the basin directly into the pot.
Gu Yuan, standing by, twitched his mouth. Looking at the master and disciple occupying the kitchen, he wanted to ask what they were having for lunch. Could this pot still be used?
"Gu Yuan, you watch the fire," Gu Qingzhou called out. After he and Zhan Feiyu washed their hands, the master and disciple took chairs and sat down, starting their lesson without wasting time.
"Do you agree with the teachings of Confucius and Mencius?" As soon as Gu Qingzhou finished speaking, he saw Zhan Feiyu's eyes widen, her eyebrows raised, looking like she was about to explode.
Zhan Feiyu glared at the smiling Gu Qingzhou with grief and indignation. Was this a great Confucian scholar of the present age? Any scholar would not ask such a question.
"It's just you and me, teacher and disciple. Heaven knows, earth knows, you know, I know. There's no need for this," Gu Qingzhou laughed heartily and looked at Zhan Feiyu, who was angry but dared not speak, with great pleasure. He leisurely continued, "If you were someone who stuck to conventions, you wouldn't be thinking of studying for the imperial examinations. The teachings of Confucius and Mencius are only useful to this extent."
Gu Yuan, who was tending the fire at the stove, silently added more firewood. He felt he was not worthy of being a person.
"Teacher, it is noble to seek to be the same as others, not to seek to be different from others. Some things are better left unsaid, we know them in our hearts," Zhan Feiyu pleaded with a bitter face. With such a teacher, Zhan Feiyu could imagine the days of trepidation ahead.
Gu Qingzhou didn't want to scare his little disciple to death. He smiled and said, "The sage Confucius said of his learning: 'I transmit but do not create; I am faithful to and love the ancients.' For a person's learning, to have faith in and love what they learn, to take what they gain from previous generations as their learning, and not to seek to be different from previous generations through self-creation."
Confucius said that he only transmitted and explained the teachings of previous generations, and did not create arbitrarily. He believed in and loved ancient things. In reality, it was a humble attitude of Confucius towards the continuation of the wisdom of the ancient sages.
Zhan Feiyu pondered for a moment and said, "Therefore, Confucius said: 'Alas, my virtue is in decay! For a long time I have not dreamed of the Duke of Zhou.' Thus, the learning of the sage is what he pursued day and night, in his dreams, which is the Duke of Zhou."
Duke of Zhou: His surname was Ji, and his given name was Dan. He was the younger brother of King Wu of Zhou and the ancestor of the ruler of the State of Lu. He was the ancient sage most admired by Confucius.
Confucius said that he hadn't dreamed of the Duke of Zhou for a long time, which was only because he was old and in his twilight years, lamenting that he was born at the wrong time and was unlucky. However, even so, his desire to revive the ways of the Duke of Zhou was still strong, which was why he tirelessly organized classics and diligently taught his disciples.
"A promising youth indeed," Gu Qingzhou looked at Zhan Feiyu with admiration. The young girl was indeed intelligent and adaptable!
The sage Confucius had political ambitions, but he was often constrained by his environment and had to lie low. Zhan Feiyu wanted to study for the imperial examinations. Even if she didn't agree with the Confucian way in her heart, she could only seek harmony while maintaining differences.
"Since you are my disciple, and you have a teacher, you must not be sharp or extreme in your actions in the future," Gu Qingzhou solemnly warned. Zhan Feiyu, while seemingly obedient, had a kind of madness in her bones that would rather be crushed into jade than remain intact as a tile.
Gu Qingzhou could glimpse this from her actions. When Sun Fu's servant committed murder that day, she dared to hold a knife to Sun Fu's neck, put him in the county jail, and also incurred the full hatred of the Tong family. This was completely contrary to the Confucian way. If she did not speak and act cautiously, she would surely be caught by someone in the future.
Half an hour later, after listening to Gu Qingzhou finish the "Xue Er" chapter of the Analects, Zhan Feiyu ran back to the stove and looked at the half-boiled water in the pot, throwing the raw eggs next to it in.
"This?" Gu Yuan was startled, and then he saw the eggs floating on the surface of the water.
"Just a small fire is fine," Zhan Feiyu smiled and quickly took out the eggs. The concentration of the alkali water had reached the required level. "Teacher, I'll add the lard, and you stir."
Gu Qingzhou, who was drafted as a laborer, rolled up his wide sleeves, took the bamboo pole, and after Zhan Feiyu poured the warm lard from the stove into the pot, he began to stir. He stirred in circles until the liquid in the pot became so thick that it was almost impossible to stir.
Gu Qingzhou stretched his sore arm and said irritably, "I've never been this tired even when practicing calligraphy in the past."
As she was busy pouring the thick liquid from the pot into the wooden square boxes, Zhan Feiyu replied without looking up, "Teacher, there are ten pieces in total. We will see the results tomorrow."
Gu Qingzhou looked at the milky white paste in the wooden box and asked a pointed question, "Are the amounts of lard and water you added arbitrary?"
"Yes," Zhan Feiyu nodded, smiling innocently. "I remember the formula, but not the proportions. After seeing the results next year, I will experiment a few more times and then I should know how much alkali water and lard to add."
Gu Yuan, who had been acting as a tool, couldn't help but ask, "This is too simple. If anyone leaks it, this formula will be lost."
"Lard cannot be hidden, so only the alkali water can be kept secret," Gu Qingzhou pondered for a moment and smiled at Zhan Feiyu. "How do you plan to do it?"
"Build a plank road in the open and cross the Chencang in the dark," Zhan Feiyu had already considered everything thoroughly since she planned to open a workshop.
"It requires a large amount of lard and grass and wood ash. We can set up a cured meat workshop," Gu Qingzhou said. As soon as he finished speaking, Zhan Feiyu nodded with a smile. The master and disciple were very much in sync.
Making cured meat would require buying a lot of pork. The fatty parts could be rendered into lard, which would not arouse suspicion. Moreover, smoking cured meat required firewood, and grass and wood ash would also be available.
"Teacher, actually, strong liquor can be added to the alkali water, which can also serve as a cover," Zhan Feiyu offered her suggestion. Adding alcohol could also speed up the saponification reaction, but it also increased the cost, as high-concentration liquor was not cheap.
The formula for making soap was too simple, which was also a problem. In the end, Gu Qingzhou had to set up three workshops. One was planned to be built in Huaixian County, where bamboo was abundant, which could be used to make molds and bamboo woven boxes for the finished soap.
The second workshop would be built in Wuxian County, north of Shangsi County, where cured meat would be made and lard rendered, and the grass and wood ash would be boiled with water to make alkaline liquid.
The third workshop would be in Jinlin Village. After the lard and alkaline liquid were transported there, they would be boiled into a paste, then poured into molds. After the soap was formed, it would be transported to the shop.
...
Although Zhan Feiyu had become a disciple, she had not announced it to the public.
In the past few days, she had suspended her attendance at the county school and came to Gu Qingzhou's place every day. Both master and disciple knew that time was short. As a Grand Scholar of the Hanlin Academy, Gu Qingzhou could not stay in Shangsi County for long. Once he left, Zhan Feiyu would have to go back to the county school.
Southern Xuan Prefecture, Tong Residence.
"Father, since the imperial court has not announced that the movable type printing technology was invented by that dead girl, why don't we..." Tong Zhao made a throat-slitting gesture. The sixteen-year-old young face was full of sinister killing intent.
Among the three Tong brothers, Tong Xu already had the Xiu Cai degree, and his wife was a Juren, which was enough to teach Tong Xu. Tong Zhao preferred martial arts to literature and acted sinisterly in his daily life. Tong Yao was the youngest son, who grew up spoiled and was more like a dandy.
Tong Tongzhi had been in a very bad mood for days. Although he had acted righteously and abandoned Sun Fu, such a move had chilled people's hearts. If he could be so ruthless and heartless to his in-laws, how much more so to their allies and subordinates.
Moreover, although Tong Tongzhi had preserved his official position, a high-ranking official of the Tong family in the court had been reprimanded by the Emperor. His rank was reduced by one level to Fourth Rank, and he had lost his backing. Tong Tongzhi had lost control of Southern Xuan Prefecture.
Sitting in a chair, Tong Xu looked at Tong Zhao, who was shouting for bloodshed, and reprimanded him irritably, "Second Brother, shut up! If Zhan Feiyu is killed, Prefect Zhang will be able to thoroughly investigate this case and then arrest all of us in the Tong family!"
"Impatience spoils great plans." Tong Tongzhi looked at his eldest son with satisfaction and admonished his second and third sons, "The more it is like this, the more we cannot panic. Killing Zhan Feiyu will satisfy our hatred, but it will cost the Tong family. This is an act of utter foolishness."
Tong Yao thought of how the Tong family had even sacrificed his marriage, but Zhan Feiyu, a country bumpkin, dared to refuse! After this news spread, Tong Yao hadn't gone to the academy for five days. It was too embarrassing.
"Father, are we just going to suffer this loss in silence?" Tong Yao shouted angrily, his plump face full of rage.
Normally, why would they need to deal with a mere young girl? With a single command, someone would naturally deal with Zhan Feiyu to vent their anger. Unlike this time, they were so stifled.
Tong Tongzhi ignored his two sons who were shouting for bloodshed and said to Tong Xu, "There is news from the capital that the Emperor has sent Grand Scholar Gu of the Hanlin Academy to handle this matter."
"What?" Tong Xu stood up abruptly, looking at Tong Tongzhi in shock. "Grand Scholar Gu is in Shangsi County?"
There were thousands of scholars in the world, but in recent years, only Gu Qingzhou had achieved six consecutive victories in the imperial examinations. He came from the Gu clan of Nanling, and he was even a classmate of the current Emperor. What truly concerned Tong Xu was that Gu Qingzhou had never taken a disciple, and he had once declared that if he were to take a disciple, it would be someone he found agreeable.
As soon as this statement was made, how many scholars wanted to have a chance encounter with Grand Scholar Gu, and they even inquired about Gu Qingzhou's life and preferences. Especially since he had never married or had children, and there were even rumors of his being a homosexual. Some young and handsome scholars even covered their faces with flowers before going out.
"The Qin family has already sent people to search secretly, but they have found nothing." Tong Tongzhi had also sent people privately, but he was cautious. At this sensitive time, how could Tong Tongzhi dare to inquire about Gu Qingzhou's whereabouts? He only sent people to keep an eye on the Qin family.
"Wan Yunhao also wants to become a disciple?" Tong Xu said hatefully, feeling both jealous and contemptuous of Wan Yunhao.
He was jealous of his early fame, as he was already a Juren. Yet, he despised him for abandoning his mentor and switching his allegiance to the Qin family, and for marrying the daughter of the Qin family, possessing scholarly talent but lacking integrity.
At the same time, in the Qin family's study, seven or eight people were discussing Gu Qingzhou.
"Father-in-law, I suspect Grand Scholar Gu is in Shangsi County." Wan Yunhao's eyes had a hint of dark circles from lack of sleep.
After learning the news about Gu Qingzhou, Wan Yunhao was so excited that he didn't sleep all night. If he could become a disciple of Grand Scholar Gu, he would soar to great heights from then on. What was the Qin family, his father-in-law's family, compared to that?
The head of the Qin family, sitting in the main seat, was quite satisfied with Wan Yunhao as his son-in-law. He said, "Tell me about it."
"Firstly, Zhan Feiyu brought up the movable type printing technology. It is only right and proper that Grand Scholar Gu would go to see Zhan Feiyu. Secondly, that day, the eldest son of the Tong family used a jade pendant to force Zhan Feiyu, but she easily produced four thousand taels of silver notes. I suspect that Grand Scholar Gu was the one who provided the silver notes," Wan Yunhao regretted not paying attention to Zhan Feiyu's whereabouts when he was in Shangsi County. Perhaps he would have met Grand Scholar Gu long ago.
"I Went to Ancient Times to Take the Imperial Examinations" no-error chapters will continue to be updated, there are no advertisements on this site, !