After the two men signed the employment letters, Xu San saw that he had nothing to do and that he had pending work elsewhere, so he fired them and left with peace of mind.
Xu Jiang led Hu Xu and explained in detail the placement of items in the bookstore, such as books, calligraphy and paintings, seals, and the four treasures of the study. They also explained their locations, categories, quality, how to maintain them, and other trivial matters.
Hu Xu had a good memory and learned quickly. He was familiar with most of the books in one day, and even corrected some books that Xu Jiang had missed or confused.
With one more person, Xu Jiang felt a lot more relieved. She handed over all the copying, annotation and other tasks to Hu Xu, letting him arrange them according to his preferences, and she freed up her hands to make two kinds of incense.
Cypress and pine scent.
Cypress seeds can be seen everywhere. There is a cypress tree outside the wall of Xu Jiang's courtyard. The seeds it produces are yellow and green. The yellow ones are old and the green ones are young.
The aroma of old cypress seeds is light, and because of the recent heavy rain, there is always a sense of dampness, which easily spoils the flavor. After being made into incense, the smell is mixed and the aftertaste is short.
The young cypress seeds have a rich and vigorous fragrance. After they mature, they have a light green color. The smell and color are both excellent, and the flavor is long-lasting and lasts for a long time.
So Xu Jiang only picked the green ones.
Pine trees are rare in the city, but there are pine oils in piano shops. However, after Xu Jiang inquired, the ones she found were not satisfactory. Either there were too many impurities, or the fragrance was too weak.
It was only after Hu Xu found out that he directed her to a lumberyard, where she searched through the piles of pine wood before she found a few pieces of clean orange-yellow pine oil with a strong aroma and a piece of dry and delicate sweet pine bark.
"This is really a blessing."
Xu Jiang happily returned to the workshop with the pine oil and began making incense. Xu Jiang's incense making was unconventional, having learned the technique from an old Taoist in a remote temple in Shu. Unlike the detailed, elaborate, and comprehensive incense making described in "The Way of Incense", her incense making was very rough and simple.
First, boil the cypress seeds in water, then take them out and dry them, then add fine wine and seal them for seven days. After seven days, take them out and dry them in the shade, then grind them into powder, and then roll the powder into incense balls, and the cypress seed incense is ready.
Rosin is simpler to make than cypress incense. First, remove all impurities from the pine oil and pine bark. Then, melt the pine oil over a fire and filter it with fine yarn. Then, while it's still hot, drop a small amount into the fine powder made from ground dry pine bark and knead it into incense balls.
It takes seven days for cypress incense to mature, but rosin can be obtained immediately.
Xu Jiang rummaged through boxes and drawers and found a small incense burner. It was palm-sized, copper-green, square in shape, and engraved with pear blossom patterns. Four thin chains were threaded through the handles, and it was supported by a wenge wood handle. It looked quite simple and elegant.
Xu Jiang filled it with incense ash, incense charcoal, and separators, placed the rosin balls in it, smoothed it out carefully, and burned it over fire. After a while, a thin wisp of smoke as thin as a white thread began to rise.
Xu Jiang took a deep breath, and the smoke entered her mouth and nose, causing her to sneeze immediately.
Whether it smells good or not is another matter, but it does have a ventilating effect.
"Is the incense ready?" Hu Xu was drawn to it by the aroma. He closed his eyes and sniffed for a moment before sighing, "What a wonderful fragrance! It makes me feel like I'm in the pine wind."
Hu Xu was truly elegant in appreciating incense, while Xu Jiang made incense just to show off her elegance.
This incense was prepared by her for the wedding at the Lou residence tomorrow. Since Hu Xu thought it smelled good, then the master of the Lou family would probably not think it was bad either.
Hu Xu asked, "Boss, can you sell me some of this incense? I'll deduct the money from my wages."
"If you like it, take it and use it. It's not a valuable thing. Why would you ask me whether to sell it or not? It's just too distant." Xu Jiang cut a square of paper and picked up most of the bag and gave it to him. After thinking about it, he said, "But I think you are more suitable for a different fragrance."
Hu Xu asked, "What kind of fragrance?"
"Bamboo Water Fragrance, made from young bamboo in March, using a recipe from Rongzhou. Its fragrance is light, fresh, and refined, perfectly embodying the meaning of bamboo and spring." As Xu Jiang packed her utensils, she said, "When spring arrives, I'll go outside the city to find some young bamboo and make this for you."
"Okay." Hu Xu nodded and went forward to help with red ears.
The next day, Xu Jiang left the bookshop in the care of Hu Xu and set out early, leading her donkey, towards Zhaoxingfang. On the way, she happened to meet the person who came to pick her up. It was the same boy who had delivered the invitation that day, saving her the trouble of asking for directions.
"This is the house." The boy led the donkey for Xu Jiang and pointed to a conspicuous plaque, asking Xu Jiang to identify the door.
This house is so luxurious!
I saw that the courtyard was wide and the Fangshan Mountain was towering. A pair of golden pillars supported the sky and two red doors touched the ground. There were also two white jade lions sitting at the foot of the steps. It was really majestic and rich.
The two men walked around the gate, tied up the donkey in the stable, and then entered the house through the corner gate in the alley, carrying the mounting supplies.
As soon as you step into the garden, you will see steep rocks, picturesque sparse forests, yellow flowers scattered on the ground, and lush white willows.
Walking along the bluestone road, you will see a winding path through the courtyard, red leaves dancing above your head, a small bridge over the stream, and a gurgling stream under your feet.
Looking southeast, one can see a veranda near the waterside pavilion. Looking northwest, one can see a cave in the distance and a pavilion leaning against the mountain.
Walking into the courtyard, there is a persimmon tree, its bright red color is particularly eye-catching. Beneath the tree is a pavilion, and under the pavilion is a plaque with the words "Ming Shi Ting" inscribed on it.
There were four or five people standing in the pavilion, and Xu Jiang recognized Du Hui at a glance.
Du Hui also saw her from a distance, turned around and said something to the others, and they all looked over here.
Xu Jiang hurried forward to pay his respects.
"My daughter Xu Jiang greets all the gentlemen."
"Get up quickly." Du Hui quickly asked her to get up.
"Is this the Shopkeeper Xu that Brother Du mentioned?" A man about the same age as Du Hui asked with a smile.
Du Hui pointed at her and said, "That's her, she's quite cunning. She really whetted my appetite enough to sell me the set of 'Ziyun's Four Fu'."
Although it was a complaint, his tone was full of pride, which made the other people roll their eyes.
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com