Chapter 180 Visiting the Paper Mill
A short, stout middle-aged man trotted over. He first bowed to Du Min, then walked up to Meng Qing and greeted him: "Your Excellency is Lady Meng. My surname is Wu. I am highly regarded by Master Meng and am the head manager of the Meng family's paper mill. When Master Meng left, he instructed me that all matters concerning the paper mill should be handled according to Lady Meng's instructions. I have been waiting for your arrival."
"Manager Wu." Meng Qing nodded, then turned to face her parents and said, "These are my parents, and they are the ones in charge."
"Greetings, Master Meng, and Master Meng's wife," Manager Wu greeted.
“This is our first time here, please show us around,” Meng’s father said.
"How are ramie and rattan made into paper? Is retting the first step?" Du Min asked. "Let's start by explaining that step."
Manager Wu explained, "After the ramie and rattan are cut down, the bark and stalks stick together very tightly, making it difficult to peel off the bark. This is where the first process comes in: soaking the ramie. After the branches are removed from the ramie stalks, they are soaked in water. The water and mud will dissolve the glue between the bark and the stalks. After soaking for two days and one night, the bundles of ramie are taken out of the water, washed to remove the mud, and then the bark can be easily peeled off with a bamboo knife."
"The purpose of retting hemp is to ferment the hemp resin?" Du Min asked.
"Yes." Manager Wu led the group away from the hemp field and followed the porters carrying bundles of hemp. After walking a few dozen feet ahead, they could see a river.
"This river winds around Dawa Village and was specially dug for the paper mill. It draws water from the Yellow River and is mainly used for washing hemp," Manager Wu explained.
The riverbanks were paved with sand and gravel, and bamboo frames were set up on both sides of the road. Porters carried the soaked hemp to the river and threw it into the water. Young men who stayed by the river were responsible for washing the mud off the hemp. Women and girls sitting on the riverbank each had a bamboo knife in their hands. They used the bamboo knife to tear off the hemp skin and threw it with their arms. The hemp skin was then placed on the bamboo frames by the roadside.
The old man driving the oxcart bundled up the dried hemp bark and loaded it onto the cart. Once the cart was full, he cracked the whip, and the old ox skillfully pulled the wooden cart, sending the hemp bark into the steaming workshop with the curtains hanging high.
Meng Qing and his group followed the oxcart toward the workshop. Inside, they saw dozens of stoves, each with a large earthenware pot about half a person's height on it. A fierce fire burned beneath the stoves, and hemp skin was being boiled on them. The entire workshop was filled with a bitter, steaming mist. The men walking around were all shirtless, their faces flushed from the heat.
"This is the third step, and it serves a similar purpose to the first step. This step is to boil the glue so that any remaining glue on the hemp hide can be fully cured and removed," Manager Wu explained. "Another purpose is for tanning. Just like tanning sheepskin, boiled hemp hide will be softer and more supple."
"Should we just boil it, or do we need to add something to the water?" Du Min pressed.
Manager Wu glanced at Meng Qing.
“This is my brother-in-law, my child’s uncle. He’s not an outsider, so please speak freely,” Meng Qing said.
“It’s lime water. Small workshops use water mixed with wood ash,” Manager Wu replied.
Du Min noted it down. He was thinking that once the official paper mill was built, he would borrow a few master craftsmen from the Meng family paper mill.
"How much do the workers in this workshop earn each month?" Meng Qing asked.
"The wages vary from three to five strings of cash. The wages are higher in the summer, around five strings of cash, and in the winter, around three strings of cash," Manager Wu replied. "Everyone hates the job of steaming and boiling when it's hot, but everyone wants it when it's cold."
"The wages are quite high. When I was a county magistrate, my monthly salary was only five strings of cash," Du Min replied. "How many workers are there in this workshop?"
“One hundred and twenty or thirty. Before last year, there were only forty or fifty, and at most eighty. After Meng Dongjia bought the paper mill, the paper mill business was good, and the supply of goods could not keep up. The stoves for boiling hemp had to be kept burning day and night. It was not enough to have one person to guard the fire for each stove, so we had to hire more people to take turns working day and night,” Manager Wu said happily.
"That's pretty good, enough to support more than a hundred households." Du Min exclaimed. "In recent years, Wen County has been plagued by disasters, both big and small. Are the workers in your paper mill not affected? Every household has enough to eat and drink."
"Before the paper mill changed owners, it was affected. Back then, wages were delayed for half a year, and everyone was having a hard time. Last year and this year, it wasn't affected. The workers in the paper mill can get a wage for working here, and they can also get another income by selling the hemp they grow on Yongye Field to the paper mill. Life is pretty good," Manager Wu said eloquently. "To be honest, the work at our paper mill is in high demand. Last year, Wen County suffered a drought and the crops failed. Farmers from within a 30-mile radius came to the paper mill looking for work."
"Have you received it?" Du Min asked.
"We collected a portion of the labor. Master Meng sent Steward Chen and his two sons out to investigate the situation. Steward Chen would hire one or two suitable people from families with no surplus food, orphans, and families with seriously ill members to work. Last year, the paper mill added fifty-seven workers, and Master Meng's paper horse shop also took in more than forty apprentices." Steward Wu spoke frankly about everything he knew.
"Meng Chun has done so much!" Meng's father suddenly felt proud.
“My younger brother has always been very shrewd and calculating,” Meng Qing said proudly.
“We underestimated him.” Du Min was deeply surprised. “A man should be viewed with new respect after three days of separation.” “He is quite humble. He has done so many good deeds, but I have never heard him boast about it.”
Du Liming and Meng Chun never mentioned why. With Meng Qing and Du Min, two capable people, standing in the background, the brilliance of others was like fireflies and torches in front of the uncle and sister-in-law. No matter how beautiful the fireflies are, they are insignificant in front of the torch. Meng Chun did not dare to show off, nor did she think it was worth showing off.
"Manager Wu, please make a note of this and give the order later: every year after the start of summer, from May to August, have the accountant grant the steaming and boiling workshop a special allowance of ten strings of cash each month to purchase medicinal herbs from the pharmacy to brew herbal tea for the workers to relieve the heat. In addition to the herbal tea, prepare two vats of lightly salted water in the workshop every day, and workers who sweat a lot should drink two bowls of lightly salted water daily to replenish their fluids," Meng Qing instructed.
Manager Wu was taken aback, then he shouted loudly, "Old folks, the Lady is worried that we will suffer from heatstroke, so starting this month, the workshop will provide us with herbal tea and lightly salted water every day."
The workshop was quiet for a few moments, then erupted into a clamor as someone shouted that they were thanking the Lady Xie for the reward.
Meng Qing smiled broadly, then walked away, saying, "Let's go to the next place."
Manager Wu quickly led the way.
"You're quite good at handling things and dealing with people," Meng Qing said. "You were originally the head manager of the paper mill, and you were promoted by Boss Meng after the paper mill changed owners?"
"I used to be the manager in charge of purchasing hemp vines. Last winter, when Master Meng was returning to Heqing County, he appointed me as the head manager," Manager Wu replied.
"He has a good eye for talent, and you've lived up to his high regard," Meng Qing praised. "I'm entrusting the Meng family paper mill to you. I'm sure you can manage the business well. If you encounter any problems in the future, come to the Chief Secretary's residence in Hanoi County to find me."
Steward Wu replied, "I will certainly not fail the Lady's trust."
As soon as he finished speaking, a thunderous thud echoed through the air. Rounding a bend, six waterwheels appeared in the courtyard, and a dozen or so strong men were drawing water from three wells.
"That thatched shed is the pounding workshop. The steamed hemp bark is taken out and transported here to be pounded in the stone mortar. After being rinsed with water, it becomes paper pulp," Manager Wu explained. "Behind the stone mortar workshop is the papermaking workshop. My lady, let's go directly to the papermaking workshop. The workers in the stone mortar workshop are all working with wooden mallets. If they get distracted, they might hurt someone."
Meng Qing secretly praised Manager Wu for his good abilities; he had the intention to curry favor with her, and he also knew how to prioritize.
The papermaking workshop was relatively small among these workshops. It contained ten identical water tanks, each filled with paper pulp. The master craftsmen held papermaking screens and swayed them back and forth in the water.
“The previous steps are all physical labor, which can be done with brute force. This step is different; it tests the craftsman’s skills the most. These master craftsmen are the treasures of our paper mill,” Manager Wu explained. He then asked mysteriously, “Your Highness, Chief Secretary, would you like to make a few sheets of paper?”
“Sure.” Du Min rolled up his sleeves. “I’ll give it a try and see if I have a talent for papermaking.”
Manager Wu immediately arranged for someone to clear out a water tank and placed an experienced craftsman on each side to provide guidance.
Meng's parents and Du Min stood on one side, while Meng Qing, Du Li, and Wang Zhou stood on the other. The six of them stood on either side of the water trough and scooped up the paper-making screen. The paper-making screen was about the size of a bed mat, and the six of them easily lifted it from the bottom of the water trough together.
"There's too much pulp on the screen, it's wobbling from side to side." The master craftsman pointed out, "The screen is too deep in the water, lift it up a little... The pulp on the east side is too thin... Oh dear! The screen needs to be kept balanced, not one side higher than the other... Oh dear! Never mind, stop now."
"Wait, just a little longer." Du Min refused to give up. "Wang Zhou, stop causing trouble, go away. Auntie, you go away too, you don't have the strength."
Wang Zhou and Meng's mother immediately let go and left.
After a stick of incense had burned, the remaining four people were exhausted and covered in sweat, and received a wet sheet of paper of uneven thickness.
The group followed Manager Wu to the drying yard behind the workshop to dry the paper. All the wet paper sheets had to be dried in the bamboo building before being cut.
Du Min saw the hemp paper and rattan paper made by the master craftsmen, which were exactly the same as the paper sold in the bookstore, with uniform thickness and smooth surface.
"Manager Wu, besides the Meng family's paper mill, are there any other skilled master craftsmen left in the city? Forget it, it's impossible." Du Min answered himself. "To put it another way, how long would it take a novice to learn papermaking from a master craftsman and become a qualified artist?"
“It will take at least three years.” Steward Wu glanced at Du Min. “Chief Secretary, what are you planning to do?”
Du Min didn't answer. "At least three years? Can six months be enough?"
Manager Wu shook his head, "This skill requires practice to master. You have to practice a lot, practice your eyesight and feel for the work. You definitely can't do it in a short time."
Du Min immediately abandoned this plan. "Second sister-in-law, I'll follow your method and send out invitations to recruit skilled paper makers in Huaizhou and Luozhou."
Meng Qing nodded, "We've recruited the staff. During the assessment, the master craftsmen from the Meng family paper mill will oversee the process for you."
Du Min nodded, relieved. After touring all the processes at the Meng family paper mill, he cleared his mind and was now full of confidence. He was certain that he could build a paper mill within six months.
At the same time, he made up his mind that he would start building the paper mill immediately without waiting for the court's reply. If the court did not agree, he would sell the paper mill to the Meng family. He was determined to make this business a success and find another way for the people of Wen County to make a living.
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Author's Note: There will be another update at 12 o'clock.
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