Chapter 461: Exploring Spring Turns into Daiyu

Money makes the mare go: the price of gold is only a little over a hundred per gram, yet Lin Sicheng is willing to pay five hundred just to paint a plate?

Even if he really used Native Gold, it wouldn't be excessive.

He sent two apprentices, and in no time at all, they brought over a full set of pigments.

Opening the box and taking out a pile of containers, the Gold Tracing master prepared to mix them, but Lin Sicheng stopped him: "Master, I'll do it myself!" The Gold Tracing master eyed him twice: Do you know how?

Gold Tracing is Gold Tracing, and color mixing is color mixing; these are two completely different things.

Because these pigments are all mineral-based, they are first Glaze Material, and only then pigments. Regardless of their use, mixing methods, or even the coloring process, they are fundamentally different from the paints used for drawing.

Just consider one point: these things must enter a kiln and undergo high-temperature sintering of seven or eight hundred degrees to set; can painting pigments do that?

The Gold Tracing master only muttered to himself before stepping aside: Fine, let him mix it himself; it saves time anyway.

He was one hundred percent certain that what this young man mixed would be completely unusable. Even if it were barely usable, and he could barely draw a pattern, the fired result would be a mess.

The reason is simple: as long as it is colored porcelain, whether it is Overglaze or Underglaze Color, the glaze has a secret recipe. It not only requires strict proportions but also has the secrets of blending and fusion. Even the coloring and color-joining have strict sequences.

As long as one ingredient is not mixed correctly, or the glaze is not fused well, it will affect the sintering temperature after entering the kiln: the part that should solidify first doesn't, while the part that should solidify later melts into water; wouldn't the pattern be washed into a mess?

But it doesn't matter: he's making money anyway, as long as the money is in hand.

Secretly changing his mind, he gave his apprentice a wink, and the apprentice understood instantly.

But before he could even open his mouth, with a "swish," a fair, delicate hand handed over a stack of bills.

Ye Anning was direct: "This is two thousand; I'll pay more or take a refund later!"

The apprentice was full of joy as he took it into his hands.

This time, Ye Anqi did not stop her. Because Ye Anning had made it clear that this was a gift from Lin Sicheng to them.

He just didn't quite understand: "Sicheng, the plates painted by Assistant Fang and Professor Li (Li Zhen) only cost a few yuan each, and after they're painted and fired, they're no more than ten yuan; why are these so expensive?"

"Second Brother, this is Shunxiang Porcelain from Chaozhou, which belongs to high-end daily-use porcelain. Places like Ronghua Building, which are relatively high-end for Cantonese morning tea, mostly use this kind. One hundred yuan for a plate is not expensive.

The kind that Senior Brother Fang and Senior Sister Li use is just ordinary daily-use porcelain, costing one or two yuan a piece, or even a few jiao. The pigments are the same: they use chemical materials over there, while this kind uses traditional materials, so naturally, it's more expensive..."

Ye Anqi was half-believing: just because it's expensive, it's dozens or hundreds of times more expensive?

Looking at the side again, he felt there was no difference: they were all pure white porcelain plates, and all had colorful pigments. The only difference: the other side had paste that was already mixed, while Lin Sicheng's side still had powder.

The Gold Tracing master and the two apprentices were all taken aback: they had seen that they were dressed well, looked spirited, and were so generous with their money, so they thought they were a group of rich young masters?

The young man preparing to mix the pigments might know a little, but he probably only knows how to paint at most.

But looking now: there wasn't even a trademark on the plate, yet he could recognize it as Shunxiang Porcelain?

The apprentice leaned in to look, but after staring for a long time, he couldn't make heads or tails of it: if the small paper strip with the number were torn off, he certainly wouldn't be able to recognize it.

He looked at his master again, his heart jolting: his master was the same as him, looking at the plate with a puzzled expression.

So, the master couldn't recognize it either?

Then what is up with this young man? He couldn't possibly work at a porcelain factory, could he?

While they were suspicious, the two were stunned: Lin Sicheng began to mix the materials, but this technique—why did it look more and more like the old masters in the factory? Water-Flying Blue Copper—removing the head and tail and keeping the middle—Heating and Baking Paste—Boron Zinc Powder Grinding—Water-Adding Slurry Mixing... sealing and slightly heating... looking at this process and the mixing technique, one could tell: this young man really knows how to mix glaze paste?

But that wasn't the point; the point was that he added three ingredients in the middle: the first was Clam Shell Ash, which was already in the pigment box.

The second was tea, which of course wasn't prepared at the stall; it was the Dried Tangerine Peel Pu'er that he had the girl next to him buy on the spot.

The third was medicine, also bought by the girl; he didn't know what medicine it was, only seeing that it was two capsules.

The three master and apprentices looked at each other: adding the first one wasn't strange; anyone who knows how to fire Cantonese porcelain knows that if you don't add Clam Shell Ash to the glaze paste, you have to add other bone ash. Adding tea was also understandable: it promotes the decomposition of organic acids and speeds up the binding of glaze molecules. It was just a matter of what kind of tea was used: new tea, old tea, green tea, or Black Tea.

But adding medicine—this was truly something they didn't understand.

The key was that although the master craftsmen in the factory didn't add medicine, they would add other things. But they always did it sneakily, avoiding people, so they didn't know exactly what it was either.

Could it be that the master craftsmen also add medicine?

In astonishment, the Gold Tracing master leaned forward a bit, preparing to see what it actually was.

But just as he approached the table, Lin Sicheng swept his hand, and the two capsule shells fell into his palm. Then he smiled: "Master, is something the matter?" "Nothing... nothing!" The master gave a sheepish smile, looking him up and down, "Brother, where are you employed?"

He had mistaken him for a glaze-mixing master from some Cantonese porcelain factory.

Lin Sicheng smiled: "In Xijing!"

The master was stunned: Xijing, impossible.

Cantonese porcelain is only fired in Guangdong and Jingdezhen; Fujian and Guangxi also imitate some, but the quality is average, so not much is fired.

There are only these three places in the whole country; in any case, the Northwest could never fire it.

And this young man's technique for mixing the slurry was clearly taught by a highly skilled old master. Therefore, he couldn't have learned this craft outside of the more famous factories in Guangdong.

But Lin Sicheng clearly didn't want to talk, so the master couldn't press him.

After mixing the Water Green, he mixed the Western Red, then the Eggplant Purple, Dried Bright Red, and Cobalt Blue. Afterward, Lin Sicheng mixed some Rouge Red Glaze, Gem Blue, and Antique Gold. These were all inorganic chemical pigments, simple to mix, just needing to be blended with oil.

Sealing everything with plastic wrap, Lin Sicheng took off his gloves and wiped his hands: "Let it sit!"

As he spoke, he stood up and called to Ye Anqi: "Second Brother, it will take about a quarter of an hour; let's go walk around nearby!"

"Okay!" Ye Anning nodded and stood up as well.

But he didn't rush to leave; instead, he looked at the three people next to them: the Gold Tracing master and the two apprentices were surrounding the jars of pigments Lin Sicheng had mixed, the amazement in their eyes looking as if it were about to overflow.

It was as if they had discovered some rare treasure, mysterious and whispering.

"I saw him add Clam Ash, right?"

"Yes, Master, he also added the Dried Tangerine Peel Pu'er from Ji Ming's shop."

"Nonsense, I have eyes: the bottle is still on the table. The key is the two capsules at the end: did you see clearly?"

The two apprentices shook their heads in unison, and the master's face darkened: "Useless things..."

Ye Anqi found it increasingly strange: "Anning, what are they doing?"

Ye Anning didn't know how to say it.

She suspected that Lin Sicheng must be using a secret recipe. It might very well be a unique glaze paste recipe for a certain type of Cantonese porcelain that had long been lost. Otherwise, given Lin Sicheng's personality, he wouldn't be hiding it.

But she couldn't explain it; even if she did, Ye Anqi wouldn't believe it: Lin Sicheng is still a student and this is his first time in Guangzhou; where would he get a top-secret recipe for Cantonese porcelain?

There was no help for it, so he could only prevaricate: "The glaze matching for colored porcelain in the north is a bit different from that in Guangzhou; they're just curious..."

Ye Anqi: "Heh heh~"

Do you take me for Ye Anlan?

Ye Anqi didn't ask any more and followed along. But halfway there, he froze again.

Two tables were pushed together, surrounded by a large crowd. If he hadn't seen Ye Anlan and Tao An in the very center, he would have thought he'd come to the wrong place. Not only were they watching, but these people were arguing incessantly: "Tsk, the painting is decent. Could they be students from the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts?"

"Don't talk nonsense if you don't know: students from the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts couldn't paint this, at least not at that time."

"Why?"

"The two aren't the same thing: painting is done on paper, while this is done on porcelain. The pigments for painting are water-based, but this is a paste—or to be precise, a glue. And the painting technique is different too..."

"Is this harder?"

"That's not it; it's that it requires training, and it takes at least a few months to get the hang of it. To be able to paint this well, they're likely specialized in glaze painting..." Hearing a few sentences, Ye Anqi stood on tiptoe: at this table, Fang Jin was painting; the plate was bright and vivid, already more than half finished. Judging by the pattern, it should be lychees.

But it was truly painted well, lifelike and fresh enough to drip.

If one were to compare, it was much better looking than the samples on the shelf behind.

Looking to the side, there were even more people gathered, at least a dozen or twenty. Ye Anlan was squeezed into the crowd, with only her head visible.

Unable to see clearly what was being painted, Ye Anning squeezed in a bit further, and at just one glance, she looked as if she had frozen: it was also a porcelain plate, with a few branches of red plum on the edge, the blank space serving as a sky-blue background, with a few snowflakes Floating leisurely down.

In an instant, a scene of "Proud Snow Red Plum" leaped into her mind. Although it was only a few sparse strokes, it made one feel as if they were there.

Looking again at the main image in the center of the plate: a lady in ancient costume stood in the snow wearing a red fur cloak, her eyebrows like distant mountains, her eyes like autumn water, yet her face carried a faint trace of sorrow. Ye Anqi peered carefully for a moment, then looked at Ye Anlan, who was squeezed beside Li Zhen: could the lady in the painting be Ye Anlan? You don't have a chance usually, so you're playing Lin Daiyu here, right?

The key was this painting skill: even if Ye Anqi didn't understand it, he knew that Li Zhen's painting was truly good.

Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many people gathered around her.

After watching for a good while, he looked suspicious: "Anning, I feel like Teacher Li's painting isn't any worse than those at the Guangzhou Colored Porcelain Art Museum?"

That goes without saying.

Li Zhen specialized in porcelain, her attainments were already quite high, and she had been learning from Lin Sicheng for so long. The key was that Lin Sicheng truly taught: by word and deed, hand-in-hand.

Otherwise, the aunt wouldn't be so wary of her.

Ye Anning looked as if it were a matter of course: "Of course, Assistant Li's works have won provincial-level awards!"

Ye Anqi was startled: "That impressive?"

Judging by her age, she was about the same as Ye Anning.

But immediately, he felt something was wrong: "Assistant, whose assistant? Wang Sanshu?"

Ye Anning was stunned: the uncle did have assistants, teaching assistants, and research assistants, but none of them had come.

It was awkward to say directly that she was Lin Sicheng's assistant. She simply nodded: "Something like that!"

Something like that is how much of a difference?

Ye Anqi narrowed his eyes: Ye Anning, who are you trying to fool?

Just as he was suspicious, a commotion came from his ears: it turned out Fang Jin had finished painting and was preparing to get up.

Among the onlookers were those who knew their stuff, saying they would pay to have Fang Jin paint one for them too.

But Fang Jin didn't have the leisure for that and shook his head directly.

Tao An rushed to pay the money and happily handed the plate to the stall owner to take it for firing.

Just as he squeezed out of the crowd, Li Zhen beside him also put down her brush. It was exactly the same as over here: there were also people asking Li Zhen to paint one for them.

Even the stall owner tried to keep her, saying he would pay a high price for Li Zhen to paint a few more: two hundred per piece.

This was indeed a high price, but Li Zhen wasn't here to make money, was she?

She shook her head, carefully protecting the plate, and squeezed out of the crowd.

Ye Anlan followed behind: "Teacher Li, give it to me, give it to me, I'll take it to be fired..."

Li Zhen smiled: "Wait a moment!"

It definitely had to be fired, but she had to take a look at how it turned out.

As she spoke, she handed the plate forward: "Junior Brother, help me take a look!"

Lin Sicheng took it: "It's painted quite well!"

"The glaze application is smooth, the water-color layering is three-dimensional, and the gradients are orderly..."

"The color piling is moderate, with distinct depth..."

Li Zhen nodded continuously, a few traces of joy appearing on her face.

She didn't know what was going on, but she felt her state today was particularly good. Although this plate didn't count as Colored Porcelain with Gold Tracing in the true sense, its artistic component definitely exceeded her previous works.

But the others had strange expressions: it felt like Li Zhen was the student and Lin Sicheng was the teacher.

The key was: Lin Sicheng's tone was too natural, his expression even more so, as if he did this often?

Just as they were suspicious, Li Zhen pointed to the lady's face: "Are the facial expressions and the emotions conveyed not connected well? Is the transition too stiff?" "It is a bit!" Lin Sicheng peered carefully, then raised his head and looked at Ye Anlan, "But that shouldn't have anything to do with you!" Li Zhen pursed her lips and said nothing more.

Ye Anqi and Tao An were both laymen and assumed the two were just having a normal conversation.

Only Ye Anlan heard that something was wrong immediately: because when it came to painting the facial features, she had interfered, so how could it not have anything to do with her? She first blinked at Li Zhen, meaning for Li Zhen not to speak. Then, half-doubting and half-surprised: "Classmate Lin, since it was painted by Teacher Li, why does it have nothing to do with her?"

Lin Sicheng pointed at the plate and said straightforwardly: "Cousin Ye, at the very beginning, Senior Sister Li must have been painting one of the Four Springs from the Twelve Beauties, most likely Tanchun. But halfway through, you suddenly made her change it to you. Then, when it was two-thirds done, you made her change it to Lin Daiyu." Ye Anlan was stunned, as if saying: How did you know?

At the beginning, Li Zhen was indeed painting Tanchun, but halfway through, Ye Anlan realized belatedly that Li Zhen was painting exceptionally well, so she had Li Zhen change it to her own face.

But by the end, when it was almost finished, she felt the Four Springs weren't very recognizable and weren't as famous as Lin Daiyu, so she made Li Zhen change it again. Unable to refuse, Li Zhen could only force the change. To tell the truth, to have this level of artistry in the end, Li Zhen definitely used 120 percent of her true ability.