The printing and binding of "Lanpu" was too complicated and coincided with Xu Jiang's marriage, so it had to be postponed until after the wedding.
Although Wen Hui was anxious, she did not rush him because she knew the inside story.
Now that the wedding ceremony was over, Xu Jiang and Liang Mo finally had time to settle the matter.
Because the overprinting was complicated and required precision, and because there were many categories in "Lanpu", it was difficult for Liang Mo and Xu Jiang to do it perfectly alone, so they invited Liang Mo's master to help.
Of course, you have to pay the wages.
Liang Mo's master's surname was Gu, with a given name of Zhi. Because he was the sixth child in the family, he gave himself the name Gu Liu. He was also a famous craftsman in the book industry in Beijing.
Being able to teach an apprentice like Liang Mo, his skills and character are beyond doubt. Compared with Liang Mo and Xu Jiang, he is more calm and has more control.
He was able to do such a complicated task as overprinting with ease after just two or three versions, and he no longer made any mistakes.
With his help, the progress of "Lanpu" was greatly accelerated. In addition, a group of masters from the Imperial College came to observe from time to time. By the end of March, more than 300 categories of "Lanpu" were printed.
The next step is binding. Once it is done, she can hand it in and she will have accomplished a task.
During this half month, Xizhi also helped a lot. She was good at painting and was an expert at mixing and making colors, which saved Xu Jiang a lot of trouble.
As she often participated in the bookshop's chores and work, and frequently interacted with visitors, her mind became more open. Her body gradually gained strength from the work, and she felt more lively than when she first arrived in the capital.
Especially after seeing Xu Yuan's reputation growing in the capital, the resentment that was deep in her heart because she sympathized with his situation was also diluted a lot.
When Xu Jiang was busy, she would take out Xu Yuan's old works and manuscripts, proofread and copy them one by one, classify them, write prefaces and postscripts for them, so that Xu Jiang could publish them later.
Ji Shan, Deng Yuechuan, Yuan Zuzhi and others occasionally came to the bookstore. After talking with him, they were all amazed by his intelligence and talent. When they asked Xu Jiang about his background, they all sighed with regret.
However, in the process of sorting out Xu Yuan's posthumous works, Xizhi became more calm and indifferent about the past, and cherished the hard-earned present days more and more.
I also deeply realized that Xu Yuan was like a star, high in the night sky, and could never return to the world, but would never disappear.
He has become a beacon that illuminates those who come after him and a monument standing tall in the literary world.
She is proud of it.
Although Xu Jiang has been busy publishing books these days, she can clearly feel the changes in her mother.
Her body became stronger and stronger, and her mood became more and more open-minded. Later, even Wu Zhi rarely came to check Ping An's pulse, saying that it was not necessary and that she was already well again.
Xu Jiang was overjoyed when she heard this, and felt that it was the right decision to bring the person to the capital.
Doctor Dai said that heart disease needs to be treated with heart medicine. The heart medicine that can completely cure Xizhi is Xu Jiang, Xu Yuan, this bookstore, and Xizhi herself.
At the end of the month, Wan Qingmiao arrived in Beijing with the goods to take Xizhi home.
The caravan consisted of hundreds of people, dozens of horses and vehicles, and attracted a lot of onlookers when entering the city.
Wan Qingmiao's arrival in Beijing this time can be considered to have a legitimate reason.
As a wealthy businessman in Chongzhou, the Wan family's business interests were not limited to commerce. They also owned tens of thousands of acres of tea plantations, making them a major contributor of local tribute.
Every year, tribute is paid by various places in two seasons, each with a strict deadline, and penalties will be imposed if the deadline is exceeded.
Last quarter, the tribute payment period was in April, and the local government should have sent people to escort the tribute. However, the journey to the prefecture was long, and the funds allocated by the court did not meet the budget at all. The local government often had to make subsidies from its own treasury.
The government was in a tight spot, so it turned its attention to the merchants who were responsible for producing and paying tribute, either to make them pay money or to make them contribute labor.
This was a thankless job, and the merchants were unwilling to take it, always finding various excuses to shirk it. Only the Wan family not only sold tribute to the government at a low price, but also provided money and cavalry to help the government escort the tribute to the capital every year.
This move is not to rush to be a sucker, but to seek protection from the government, just as paying money to buy peace.
The tribute was paid in the last quarter of this year, and the Wan family still provided manpower and effort. Wansheng asked Wan Qingmiao to lead the team in person to transport the goods.
First of all, I can take Xizhi back.
Secondly, it is also to let Wan Qingmiao go out and gain some experience and knowledge.
The third is to let him show his face in the capital and get familiar with the merchants who sell goods, so that he can take over the Wan family's various connections in the future.
Since Wan Qingmiao was personally escorting the goods this time and was also going to take his wife back to Chongzhou, Wan Sheng hired many guards to accompany the caravan to avoid encountering robbers along the way.
Therefore, the formation and the scene were grand, and the reputation spread along the way.
After Wan Qingmiao arrived in Beijing, he did not go to find Xizhi and Xu Jiang first, but went to the Ministry of Revenue to pay tribute first.
After paying the tribute, the commercial goods brought to the capital were sent to various shops and businesses according to their names.
Then he assigned the task of purchasing Beijing goods, settled the caravan and guards, and then went to Huailiu Lane in Yonghefang to find the residence.
Xu Jiang and Xi Zhi had known that Wan Qingmiao had come to Beijing a long time ago, but knowing that he was busy, they did not urge him to come and meet them. They only asked Liang Mo to inquire about him a few times.
Knowing that he was coming today, Xu Jiang and Xi Zhi set up a welcoming banquet in the courtyard early.
Before he came, Xu Jiang had asked Liang Mo to remind him to keep a low profile to avoid arousing suspicion.
Wan Qingmiao did come in a "low-key" manner, sending a dozen people with seven or eight boxes of specialties and gifts. Before they even entered the alley, they attracted a lot of discussion and onlookers.
Whenever someone asked him about his origins, he would answer that he was the younger brother of the owner of Zhanchun Bookstore, who was from his hometown. He was so proud of himself.
Xu Jiang heard the noise in the bookstore and hurriedly called Liang Mo to go and get this worldly treasure back.
As soon as Wan Qingmiao saw Xu Jiang, he immediately jumped off his horse and galloped towards her.
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