After taking a photo of the finished rose quartz peach blossom bracelet on her hand and sending it to the customer, Shui Yiyao finally had her hands free. She picked up her phone, checked the time, and called Mr. Yuanlao.
It's already 9 o'clock in the evening. I wonder if the old man is asleep.
After a while, the phone was picked up.
"Hello." The voice on the other side was that of the elder.
"Mr. Yuanlao, I'm Shui Yiyao. The sculptor."
"Young Master, it's you." The old man's unfamiliar tone changed to surprise, and he immediately asked carefully, "Who is the Tibetan line carving woodcarver?"
Shui Yiyao laughed. "It's me, but I mainly carve jade. However, on that show, I only did wood carving. I'm not very good at it, so please forgive me."
"Isn't this good?" The elder gentleman raised his voice and asked, "Besides this, do you know any other carvings? For example, do you know the Hour Flower Screen?"
"The Hour Flower Screen... Are you talking about the one where you can tell the time by looking at the flowers? That one is also carved with Tibetan lines, but I've only heard the elders talk about it and haven't seen it."
The elder said, his voice suddenly tense: "If you saw the real thing, would you be sure to make a replica?"
"Honestly speaking...hidden line engraving isn't a very difficult skill for me. I've even hidden the twelve Chinese zodiac animals. I don't think replicating it should be too difficult, but I can't guarantee anything until I see the thing."
"It's okay, it's okay... When you have time, come to our museum to see the real thing. It would be great if it could be reproduced! Ah, this craft has been lost. How did you learn it?" As if afraid of scaring Shui Yiyao, the originally excited old man lowered his voice.
"I can't tell you that for now."
"Oh, that's right... That's right. Besides Tibetan line carving, do you know any other carving techniques?"
"I have mastered some of the most carving techniques. I have an account in the jade carving community, called Chengdao Jade Carving. You can take a look at the pictures of my finished products there." Tibetan line carving is not a particularly typical carving technique in the finger knife tradition. She knows many types, but words are not enough, so it is best for him to see it for himself.
"Chengdao Jade Sculpture? Good, good, good..." The elder said three "good"s in a row, his voice trembling slightly, "I'll go take a look. Let me take a look..."
Shui Yiyao smiled and said, "Mr. Yuan, thank you for your kindness. Don't worry, I can't run away since I have my shop here. It's too late today, so I won't disturb your rest. Let's talk another day."
"Haha, yes, the Tibetan carved Hour Flower Folding Screen has been unearthed for fifteen years. I've seen it for fifteen years now, but half of it was damaged during the excavation process, so I've never been able to see what it looked like in its entirety. When I thought about the possibility of restoring it, I couldn't help but... When can you spare some time? I'll take you to see the real thing."
"You decide the time. I will definitely make time for you." She didn't have any particularly important announcements recently, and Sister Yu had said before that she could visit the elder gentleman in person, so she would definitely be able to make time.
"Then let's do it tomorrow, tomorrow morning at 8 o'clock... no, 9 o'clock, what do you think?" The elder realized that he had set the time too early and changed his mind.
"Okay." Shui Yiyao agreed immediately.
The two agreed on a time and place to meet and then hung up the phone.
After Shui Yiyao told Sister Yu about the appointment with the elder, Sister Yu readily agreed.
Shui Yiyao casually praised Sister Yu for her high level of awareness. Sister Yu smiled and said, "He's a judge on 'The Pursuit,' and he's very straightforward. Do you know how many people want to build a good relationship with him so he can be less critical, but no one can find a way to approach him. But you can handle it yourself. How can I hold you back?"
After she finished speaking, she instructed, "You must be respectful and behave well to leave a good impression on Mr. Yuan."
Shui Yiyao: "No problem."
·
Shui Yiyao and the old man met at the New Town Museum.
At nine in the morning, Shuiyi Yao appeared promptly at the gates of the Xincheng Museum. Xincheng Museum is the oldest in the area, boasting a rich history and collection. The decor is reminiscent of a traditional courtyard, with green tiles and red walls, reminiscent of a grand courtyard.
She walked towards the main entrance. Suddenly, the door of the duty room next to the museum door opened. An old man stuck his head out and waved to Shui Yiyao, saying, "Miss, today is Monday, and the museum is closed."
"Thank you, sir." Shui Yiyao stopped and looked up and replied, "I know. It was the elder who asked me to come here."
The old man nodded: "Oh, okay, let me ask."
The old man returned to the duty room, and through the glass window, you could see him making a phone call.
"Hey, are you here to visit the museum too?"
Outside the duty room, another person called Shui Yiyao.
Shui Yiyao looked over and saw a man who looked to be in his twenties but not more than thirty. He was wearing a small suit, gold-rimmed glasses, and had short, slightly curly hair.
He raised his head slightly when speaking to Shui Yiyao, his tone was arrogant.
Judging from the accent, the tone is a bit unnatural and doesn't feel like a local.
Shui Yiyao glanced at him: "You too?"
The young man looked at the entrance of the New Town Museum and curled his lips. "You Chinese are really weird. You're closed on Monday."
You Chinese?
Sure enough, he wasn't from this country. But he looked Asian, so if he wasn't Chinese, he must be from Xiaoshan Country.
The structure of this world is a little different. There are only six countries in total, and the only one with yellow race like China is Xiaoshan Country.
There were few wars between nations, and most of them were friendly. It wasn't surprising to see people from the Small Mountain Country here.
Shui Yiyao: "Aren't you from Xiaoshan Country?"
She remembered that closing on Mondays was a global rule, and Xiaoshan Country was no exception.
"But this week is different." The man frowned, looked at Shui Yiyao again, and snorted coldly: "What can you, a little girl, know?"
"Young Master, please come in."
After the old man in the duty room finished his call, he opened the door, waved towards Shui Yiyao, and said with a smile, "Teacher Yuan is already inside, on the first floor of the office building over there. He's waiting for you there."
"Okay, thank you, sir."
Shui Yiyao walked towards the duty room. The door was closed, so she could only enter through the duty room.
"Wait, why can she go in but I can't? I came from Xiaoshan Country to visit your museum." The man behind shouted, pointing at Shui Yiyao and staring at her in disbelief.
Shui Yiyao turned around and smiled at him: "I'm here to fix the water pipe. The sewer is blocked. Are you... also here to fix the water pipe?"
"Young Master, please leave him alone. I've told him so many times, but he won't listen." The old man on duty called Shui Yiyao in, turned back to look at the young man, and said word by word, "The museum is closed on Mondays. You'll have to make a new reservation on the official website and enter with your passport."
After thanking the old man, Shui Yiyao walked into the duty room, entered the door, and looked back. The young foreign man was staring at her with red eyebrows and green eyes.
What are you doing? You are still not convinced.
Shui Yiyao smiled and waved goodbye to him, then turned and walked towards the office building.
What can I do if I'm not convinced? I can only stare blankly.
Following the directions given by the old man, Shui Yiyao entered the first floor of the office building and found the elder.
In the first office, the door was open and the elder was sitting at a desk, looking at something with a magnifying glass.
"Mr. Elder, I'm here." Shui Yiyao stood at the door and knocked.
The elder immediately looked out the door. Seeing Shui Yiyao, he put down the magnifying glass and other things in his hands, stood up, and smiled at her: "Teacher Shui, you're here."
Shui Yiyao was stunned for a moment by being called, then smiled and shook her head: "Just call me by my name, Xiaoshui, Xiaoyao... whatever you want. By the way, is the screen you mentioned in this museum?"
The elder nodded, took the cane beside the table, and walked towards her: "Yes, it's in the safe over here. I'll take you to see it."
·
The condition of the screen was better than Shui Yiyao had imagined. The elder had told her on the phone before that during the archaeological excavation, the tools were not used properly and half of it was damaged. In fact, less than one-third of it was damaged. Although each of the twelve flowers was incomplete, they were all quite regular carved patterns and it was not difficult to complete them.
The difficult part is the hidden line engraving.
"Xiaoyao, how are you?" The elder stood next to Shui Yiyao, looking at the screen inside the glass wall and Shui Yiyao's expression. After looking at each other for a long time, he cautiously tried to speak.
In fact, just one look and Shui Yiyao had an idea in her mind. She could clearly see how many patterns and techniques were used in it.
So she looked at the elder next to her and said, "It should be no problem to make a replica. It will take at least five months."
"Only five months?" The old man's eyes widened.
Shui Yiyao smiled and said, "Five months, because my schedule is almost full, I can only work overtime to squeeze in time. If I work seriously, it will only take two months."
She looked at the screen inside the glass wall. Although it was large, the part that needed to be carved was not much, only one tenth of the total area of the screen.
Except for the patterns on the edges and corners, the main part of the carving is all done with Tibetan line carving. To replicate this screen, the jade carver needs to master Tibetan line carving.
"Also," Shui Yiyao turned her eyes away from the screen and looked at the elder beside her, "The seal you just saw in the office is fake. Don't look at it anymore."
The elder frowned: "Fake? How is it fake?"
"I didn't look closely, so I don't know whose seal it was copied from. Just look at the seal. It's seed material, and with that shape, wouldn't it be nice to carve a Guanyin? But they just hardened it into a seal. What's the point? Besides, yours has a bit of a smell, so it's probably fake."
Although it is said to be fake, the jade is actually real, it just looks old. It is not an antique, but a modern handicraft.
There is a smell, the smell of industrial pigments.
The seal has the color of jade skin, red skin, but it doesn't look natural, it looks like it's dyed.
The elder frowned and said, "I also suspect it's fake, but I can't tell the truth even after looking at it every day—"
Shui Yiyao: "Don't look at it anymore. You'll ruin your eyes if you look back."
Shui Yiyao: "Then do we have something else to look at? As for this one, I've already memorized it, no problem."
Elder: "That's it! I'm already very satisfied!"
After the two of them finished watching, the elder sent Shui Yiyao out.
When she reached the gate, Shui Yiyao looked to the side and saw that the foreign man was still standing at the entrance of the museum.
When he saw Shui Yiyao coming out, he became excited again. He walked to the door of the duty room and asked the old man, "Why can she come in and out, but I can't? Are you discriminating against foreigners?"
The old man waved his hand and said impatiently: "Didn't she say she was here to fix the water pipe? You too?!"
The foreign man's face turned red and white, and he stared at Shui Yiyao.
Shui Yiyao came out of the duty room and pointed to the office building behind her: "The water pipe has been repaired. Call me if you need anything next time."
The elder next to him responded, "Okay."
The elder came out after Shui Yiyao and saw the foreign man next to him. He frowned and said, "Matsushima Yuki, why are you here?"
The man snorted coldly, "Of course I'm here to visit your museum and see if it's really that impressive and has everything."
Elder: "It's closed today."
Matsushima Yuki was unconvinced: "But I'm a visitor."
The elder said: "To us, everyone is a guest. No one is special. Even if you are a foreigner, it doesn't count."
Matsushima Yuki repeatedly stressed that he was a foreign friend and should be allowed to enter the museum, but was always rebuffed by the elder.
When Shui Yiyao said goodbye to the old man, Matsushima Yuki also left with his head hung. Before leaving, he looked at Shui Yiyao angrily, muttering something about unfairness.
Shui Yiyao ignored him, said goodbye to the old man and went straight home.
After returning home, I took some time to restore the sample picture of the screen.
Now that we have the drawings, we still have to choose the materials. The screen is pure white, and Qinghai materials can achieve this whiteness.
Selecting the materials is also very important. She added the social accounts of several jade dealers she had obtained before and looked at the materials they released on the social platforms.
She quickly chose one that offered good quality products at low prices and was ready to bargain with the owner.
Just when Shui Yiyao was busy, her cell phone rang again.
She ignored it for a while, and only checked the message on her phone after the jade material was negotiated at a price that satisfied her.
That was the message Yue Xi sent her an hour ago.
Yuexi: [Link]
Yue Xi: Junior sister, are you okay?
Yue Xi: Where are you now? Why don’t you reply to my message? I’m so worried about you!
Yue Xi: Please reply to my message soon.
Yue Xi: There will always be a way when you reach the mountain, so don’t do anything stupid.
Shui Yiyao: ???
She clicked on the link message.
A large red headline caught my eye: [It's ridiculous that female celebrities can freely enter and exit museums on closed days!]
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