“You’re looking for someone that short? I haven’t seen one. But speaking of which, among them, only Ah Qing is a little short, but even he is far from the five feet you mentioned.”
"You mean that Ah Qing?"
"It's him. If there are no surprises, he should be the chief craftsman of the exhibits from Ye Kingdom this time."
Gongshu Jiruo continued flipping to their entry: "Dragon-carried chariot..." He exclaimed with slight surprise, "It's a chariot?"
The abbot chuckled and said, "Isn't this like showing off one's limited skills in front of the Gongshu family? The Beiyuan Kingdom has top-notch carriage-making technology, yet the Ye Kingdom is now exhibiting a mere carriage. Which country are they trying to embarrass?"
Gongshu Jiruo knew Yuwen Sheng better than the abbot. He said, "Yuwen Sheng is not stupid. This actually proves that he thinks their Ye Kingdom's carriages can stand out."
After listening, the abbot pondered for a moment, then called over the young novice: "Wuqi, go and take a walk around the venue and see which exhibits have aroused great interest among the merchants so far, and which exhibition area is the most popular."
Wu Qi nodded: "Yes."
——
Wu Qi arrived at the venue quickly, but found that there were not as many people as before he left. Some of the exhibits on the antique shelves were ignored, especially the decorative items with "color" as the main theme. So, he asked the martial monks who were guarding the area.
Wu Qi, with his round head peeking left and right, asked, "Senior brother, weren't there many people here before? How come there are so many fewer after I left?"
The martial monk senior told him, "Those who weren't interested all went to the large equipment exhibition area."
Wu Qi's eyes widened: "Oh, is there something special over there?"
The venue was so large that Wu Qi was busy working and didn't get to see everything, so there were many exhibits he didn't know.
The senior monk's face was cold and stern. He replied, "I've been stationed here and don't know the situation over there. Go and see for yourself."
"Alright then, thank you, senior brother, I'm off."
Wu Qi jogged along, afraid of missing anything. When he arrived at the spacious Shui Xie booth on the west side, he was stunned by the scene before him as soon as he got closer.
Dozens, even hundreds, of people were gathered around a booth, crowding together and making a racket, as if they were fighting over some treasure.
Upon seeing this, Wuqi remembered the abbot's instructions and quickly ran back to report.
This was exactly what the abbot said, which greatly interested the merchants and made it the most popular exhibition area.
Mi Ku was somewhat surprised to see Wu Qi return so quickly and to hear what he reported.
He said, "Those merchants are all well-informed people, why would they cause such a scene of crowding and looting over a single exhibit?"
Gongshu Ruo asked Wuqi, "What exhibits are these?"
Wu Qi replied, "There were too many people at the large equipment exhibition area. I felt I couldn't squeeze in, so I quickly came back to report."
"Where is the exhibition space located?" the abbot asked.
Wu Qi was very familiar with the location of the venue, because he and his fellow disciples had set it up. After a moment's recollection, he told them the exact location.
Mi Ku then pulled out the roster and checked the registration positions of the various exhibits, finally fixing his finger on the "Dragon Carriage".
Mi Ku looked slightly taken aback.
"If you wish, then come and see."
Gongshu Jiruo noticed his strange expression and went over to see the "dragon-shaped chariot" that Miku had pointed out.
Both of them looked very surprised, then became serious and suspicious.
“This dragon-carriage belongs to Yuwen Sheng and his men…” Mi Ku suddenly smiled, he raised his wide robe sleeves and straightened his clothes: “You’re right, Yuwen Sheng is indeed not to be underestimated. He’s not only not stupid, but also exceptionally capable. I’m very curious about what’s so special about this dragon-carriage. Why don’t we go and take a look together?”
Gongshu Ji Ruoshi was also curious. As a member of the Gongshu family, he naturally had his own skills that he was proud of, and he did not believe that the people of Ye could surpass them in the art of chariot making.
He considered it for a moment, then agreed.
——
Speaking of which, the "Jichun Craftsmen's Guild" has been held for decades and has been able to hold such a grand event every year. In addition to the attractive prize money for the finalists, the winners of this event can also ask the Gongshu family for a "prize".
Although there is no explicit definition of what this "prize" is, throughout history, every champion has requested the blueprints of the equipment they have long admired from the Gongshu family.
The blueprints of the Gongshu family are priceless, because anyone who understands them thoroughly and can recreate them completely will almost certainly gain both fame and fortune.
Therefore, being able to become a top craftsman in the "Jichun Craftsmen's Guild" is something every craftsman dreams of.
However, precisely because of this, becoming a top performer and champion of the "Jichun Craftsmen Association" is not an easy task. The competition is too fierce, and only the top ten can be shortlisted.
Just imagine, at this year's "Jichun Craftsmen's Association" exhibition, there were thousands of exhibits, but only ten could be shortlisted. The competition among them was incredibly fierce.
Thousands are carried over to ten, and ten are carried over to one.
Among a thousand items, only one person and one tool can achieve the highest level of excellence.
Some of the exhibits are quite unique, and to ensure that voters understand their meaning, someone will be specially arranged to explain them to the participants.
Most of the functions of large-scale equipment cannot be fully demonstrated at the exhibition due to space limitations. Therefore, having staff to provide detailed introductions is also a way to garner support.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
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