Chapter 140: 140 Firing the First Batch of Porcelain

For the past month, Lia had barely had a good night's sleep; she had spent almost every spare moment she could squeeze out on weaving a silk scarf.

Although Luoning had said that it would not matter even if she could not finish it.

But as a Servant, if Lia could not finish it and disappointed the Lord, that would be a dereliction of her duty.

Although this was her first time handling a special thread like silk, fortunately, she could apply and utilize her many years of experience in weaving Wool Cloth and Linen Cloth; in the first half of the month, she had already completed the spinning and dyeing of the silk.

Most of the time in the latter half of the month was spent on weaving; although the thread broke countless times due to her lack of familiarity with the operation, as her experience accumulated, she became increasingly proficient.

Finally, on the 9th, she completed the weaving of the first piece of silk fabric.

The appearance of this pale blue fabric held great significance for Luoning, and he came over in person to inspect it.

It was very light and thin, soft to the touch, and possessed excellent comfort and skin-friendliness when held in the hand; breathing against it at the tip of one's nose, one could also feel its good breathability and smoothness, which was completely different from the feeling brought by Wool Cloth.

From just the first impression, he knew that silk would also be an Advanced commodity in this world.

With the fabric, it would be much simpler for Lia to make the scarf, and it would definitely be finished before Luoning left Wushan Castle on the 14th.

At this moment, inside the tailor shop in the Outer Castle of Shanlin Castle, Lia was busy, while Tangmu was eating his lunch on the side.

He was in the habit of taking off his mask at home.

"Mother, in two days I will be heading to Wushan Castle with the Lord and Guard Officer Maiken to celebrate the birthday of Marquis Lulansi. I heard from Qiaozhi and the others that Wushan Castle is super luxurious; I never thought I would have the chance to go inside!"

Last time, Wodun and Qiaozhi accompanied Luoning to Wushan Castle; the two of them had talked endlessly about the delicious food and the prosperity of the scenery there upon their return, and Tangmu yearned for it greatly.

"Then you must cherish this opportunity and serve the Lord well on the road!"

Lia glanced at her son, her hands not stopping their work: "Lord Luoning is a good Lord; by following him, we can all live good lives."

"That's for sure!"

Tangmu believed this firmly, "It's just that I won't be able to spend the New Year celebration with you this year."

"These are all small matters."

Lia did not care about this at all, "I am familiar with many people in the castle, and the Lord has even arranged three apprentices for me. You don't need to worry about me; just try your best to complete the tasks the Lord has given you."

While speaking, she picked up the scarf that was nearing completion and examined it carefully under the light, sighing incessantly in her heart about this kind of thread.

"Ever since the Lord came to Shanlin Town, the roads in the town have become clean, people no longer freeze to death in winter, farming has become easier, and even the vegetable yield has increased this year..."

"And this magical thread discovered by the Lord—his vision, ability, and breadth of knowledge are things beyond our reach!"

Lia looked at her son earnestly and emphasized again: "Tangmu, you must follow Lord Luoning well!"

"I know, look at you, you've already said that three or four times in just this short while."

Tangmu said with a smile: "Actually, it's not just me; all the Transcendental ones are following Lord Luoning unswervingly!"

There were actually many people like Tangmu and his mother.

Every single servant in the castle, without exception, and their families were all singing the praises of the Lord's merits.

After all, Shanlin Town was not yet large; with so much praise, coupled with the fact that Luoning had indeed brought changes to Shanlin Town, people's worship of Luoning became increasingly intense.

This change was subtle, and Luoning did not feel it deeply; he was just following his own instincts.

At this moment, he was in the porcelain workshop, firing the first Kiln of porcelain together with the potter Jim.

Inside the porcelain kiln, flames leaped, fervent and dazzling.

They surged within the furnace, gradually raising the internal temperature higher and higher.

The glazed porcelain blanks had long been placed into the kiln chamber, and as the temperature rose, the surfaces of these porcelain blanks were also undergoing earth-shaking changes.

This was the first time firing porcelain, and no one had any experience.

All Luoning and the others could do was to throw in more dry wood and the charcoal prepared in advance when the firewood was insufficient and the flames diminished, maintaining the combustion atmosphere inside the kiln.

The firing lasted for a full ten-plus hours, and after another few hours of cooling, it was not until the evening of the next day that it was time to open the kiln.

In order to witness the birth of the porcelain with his own eyes, Luoning opened the furnace door himself; at this moment, a faint wave of heat still rushed toward his face.

The porcelain bowls, tempered by the raging fire, were now lying quietly in the kiln chamber.

When Luoning saw the mirror-smooth surface, a brilliant smile appeared on his face; the luster was very similar to what he had in his memory.

"My Lord, how is it?"

Jim and the three apprentices on the side were also very anxious to know the result; there were bloodshot eyes in their eyes, and in order to avoid any accidents, the three of them had hardly slept until now.

Luoning reached out and took out the porcelain bowl from inside, and Jim and the others held their breath.

Was this the porcelain the Lord spoke of?

Judging from the appearance alone, it was much more Advanced than ordinary pottery.

Pottery was generally simple, rough, and primitive, while the porcelain held in the Lord's hand at this moment was so smooth and exquisite, like crystalline crystal.

Did it succeed?

Luoning held the porcelain bowl and turned it around to look, and the smile on his face stiffened for a moment.

On the back of the porcelain bowl, there was an area that appeared not fully fired through; the glaze looked dull, the structure was raw, and it was clearly a substandard product.

Luoning handed the porcelain bowl in his hand to Jim, then took out the remaining few from the kiln chamber; they all had signs of under-firing.

Therefore, on the whole, this firing was a failure.

As expected, it was not that simple.

Jim and the others examined the porcelain bowl carefully; although they were still marveling at the beauty of this bowl in their hearts, they could also see that the Lord was not very satisfied with this result.

Finally, Jim gathered the courage to ask: "My Lord, did it fail?"

Luoning pondered for Along while, and seeing that everyone's expressions were a bit heavy, he knew he had made it too serious, so he smiled to ease the relaxed atmosphere.

"Although today's batch cannot be considered a complete success, it cannot be called a failure either. We have already succeeded more than halfway; next, we just need to keep trying and improving."

Luoning pointed to the unfired patch on the porcelain bowl and said: "I suspect it should be a problem of the Kiln temperature being insufficient."

He walked around the Kiln once, front, back, left, and right.

"We need to improve the Kiln; first, we must fire bricks and use bricks to build the furnace kiln—we cannot continue to use mud blocks like we do now—and then increase the thickness of the insulation layer when building it to reduce heat loss."

"Secondly, add a grate in the combustion chamber to support the wood, so that the bottom is ventilated, increasing air circulation and improving the fuel's combustion rate."

Although Jim and the others did not quite understand many of the terms Luoning used, by combining them with the context, they could fully grasp the Lord's goal—to increase the temperature inside the Kiln.

"You know so much, my Lord," they could not help but exclaim in admiration.

Although Jim was a proper potter, the things he understood could not compare to Luoning at all; in front of Luoning, he was like an apprentice.

Luoning laughed and said, "Knowing a lot doesn't necessarily mean one can make it; the matter of exploration and experimentation still has to be left to you. Although we failed this time, as long as we learn from the experience and lessons, there will always be a day of success."

As he spoke, he patted Jim on the shoulder, "I am going out soon, so the matter of firing porcelain will be left to you to take charge of. You don't need to worry about the Kaolin and these materials; use them as needed, and it doesn't matter even if some are wasted."

Jim felt his shoulders were heavy and the pressure was great, but he also knew this was an opportunity.

"Rest assured, my Lord, Jim will definitely work hard and not let down your expectations!"

I've returned home; today is the burial, so the update tonight will likely be late.





(End of this chapter)