Chapter 219: Hemp Robes Like Snow

On the first day of the third month, two men shared a carriage and left Ying County, heading west of Jiangling City.

The dark-faced young man in the carriage wore a crimson official robe and a bronze seal with a yellow cord at his waist — clearly a ranked official, naturally Heifu. The other, in plain white silk with a medicine pouch slung over his shoulder, was a physician — none other than Chen Wujiu, who had just arrived in Nan Commandery and was ordered to work with Heifu on establishing a medical corps system from scratch.

"I never imagined it would be this hot in Nan Commandery already in the third month."

Chen Wujiu wiped the fine sweat from his forehead and looked up at the sun overhead, groaning miserably. A northerner, he detested the heat intensely; after bathing, he hadn't even put on an outer robe, venturing out in only a thin silk garment.

The temperatures in this era were somewhat higher than in later ages. Heifu had seen rhinoceroses by Cloud Dream Marsh, and it was said that elephants roamed just south of the Yangtze. Coupled with days of no rain, it was indeed a bit hot. Probably because his constitution had long adapted to Nan Commandery's climate, he didn't feel it much and merely teased him:

"Since you fear the heat, Physician Chen, why didn't you stay comfortably in Xianyang and instead volunteer for a posting to Nan Commandery? This is only late spring — when summer comes, you'll really suffer!"

Chen Wujiu replied, "The Guanzhong region and Xianyang have the master personally overseeing matters. All his disciples have been dispatched to the various commanderies, so I volunteered to come to Nan Commandery."

His calculations were shrewd: partnering with Heifu would make it easier to produce results.

Heifu understood perfectly but didn't expose him, simply introducing the scenery of Jiangling instead.

This was Chen Wujiu's first visit to Jiangling. In this metropolis where "morning robes are fresh and evening robes are worn," everything he looked at was utterly novel. His eyes, in particular, liked to linger on the slender-waisted young women dressed in thin silk, sitting by the bridge.

Then he sighed with emotion: "Jiangling truly lives up to being the former Ying capital of Chu — connecting to Wu and Ba in the west, blessed with the abundance of Cloud Dream in the east. In terms of grandeur and majesty, Jiangling certainly cannot match Xianyang, but in commercial prosperity and the free-spirited ease of its people, it surpasses the staid Guanzhong by a fair measure."

However, he had not made the long journey south for sightseeing. His trip into Jiangling with Heifu today was precisely for the matter of the medical corps.

Heifu did not hold back his ideas, telling Chen Wujiu: "In my view, medical personnel should be divided into two sections. First, rescue soldiers who accompany the army into battle, quickly bandage the wounded, and carry them back to the main camp. Second, medical soldiers who wait at the main camp for the wounded to arrive and assist the military physicians in saving lives."

When an abstract idea needs to be implemented, one must consider many details. Since the Commandery Governor and Commandery Commandant had entrusted Heifu with this task, he had to do his utmost to do it well. Otherwise, as the initiator of this proposal, if his results were inferior to those in Guanzhong and other commanderies, wouldn't he lose immense face?

Heifu continued: "After the rescue soldiers accompany the army into formation, they shall stand behind the ranks together with the military judges. Once the engagement ends, they will assist each other, using stretchers to carry wounded and fallen soldiers to a place far from the battlefield, and bandage their wounds to stop the bleeding. What material should the bandaging cloth be made of? With such a large quantity needed, who will supply it? This is what you and I must resolve today."

Heifu knew that in later ages, bandages were likely made of cotton cloth, but in this era, China had no cotton, let alone cotton cloth. So they could only search among the fabrics currently available in Qin for a substitute.

As they spoke, they arrived at the Weaving Workshop west of Jiangling City...

The so-called Weaving Workshop was the Qin government's official textile manufactory. At this moment, the Workshop Master had already received word and was waiting outside. Seeing Heifu and his party arrive, he hurried over to greet them, bowing with clasped hands:

"This humble official failed to welcome you from afar. For the Left Military Section Clerk to visit the Weaving Workshop is truly our honor."

The chief officer of the Commandery Works Section was the Works Section Head, with a rank of four hundred shi, under whom were further divided many specialized workshops, such as the Bronze Official Workshop and the Weaving Workshop. Although the Weaving Workshop Master was also an official, compared to Heifu's high post of "Left Military Section Clerk" at four hundred shi, his mere one-hundred-shi salary was not worth mentioning. He could not help but offer an eager welcome, and referring to himself as a "humble official" was entirely proper.

Besides, rumors had been circulating lately that this Left Military Section Clerk was not only a trusted confidant of the Commandery Commandant but also highly favored by the Commandery Governor, who had even invited him into his private chamber for talks...

After a few pleasantries, Heifu stated the purpose of his visit, and the Weaving Workshop Master immediately ushered him inside.

They first passed through the silkworm rearing room. The third month was a critical time for the silkworms' growth. On the rearing trays, countless silkworms were slowly wriggling, densely packed. The silkworm keepers spread freshly picked mulberry leaves over them, and a rustling sound could be heard. In a moment, the mulberry leaves were chewed down to nothing but veins and fibers.

Next was the weaving room. Before they even approached, they heard the endless sound of looms. This sound was all too familiar to Heifu, for his mother and elder brother's wife often wove at home, turning strands of silk and hemp into cloth through warp and weft.

In this era, men tilling and women weaving was the standard division of labor, as the saying goes: "If one man does not till, some will go hungry; if one woman does not weave, some will go cold." Farming could fill the family's stomachs, while mulberry and hemp gave them clothes to cover their bodies. Raising silkworms, planting mulberry, reeling silk, and weaving cloth propped up half the sky of the self-sufficient small-peasant economy.

Besides individual small farmers weaving at home, the government, which had an enormous annual demand for cloth, also established Weaving Workshops in commanderies and counties. The weavers toiling inside were almost all government slaves. When noblewomen and the wives and daughters of officials were implicated in collective punishments, they were often sent to the Weaving Workshop. Right now, Heifu saw over a hundred women inside the room, ranging in age from young to old, busily spinning wheels and working looms without pause.

The petty official "Silk Master," specifically responsible for silk production, also came over to introduce it. Silk was the Weaving Workshop's most important product. From silkworm rearing to reeling, spinning, weaving, dyeing, and scouring — it was all an integrated operation from start to finish.

Heifu picked up a piece of newly produced silk, examined it, tugged at it, and shook his head: "Silk won't do. Too expensive. If wound bandages were all made of this, the cost would be far too great..."

Although Nan Commandery's silk could not compare to the fame of Shu brocade, E silk, Lu silk, or Huainan shell-pattern brocade, it was not cheap either. One bolt of ordinary silk was worth about five or six hundred coins; a better quality one could be worth over a thousand coins!

Heifu had to consider the cost: "Using silk for writing is already considered wasteful by the Qin government, let alone using it to bandage and save the lives of common soldiers, who are lowly in the eyes of the nobility! Not every battlefield emergency can be like last time, where we could tear enemy silk banners for materials!"

After ruling out silk, they continued onward and examined kudzu cloth, primarily used for sewing inner garments, but that too was unsuitable. Fine kudzu cloth was light and thin, perfect for summer inner robes, but slightly too fragile for bandages, and the price was still on the expensive side.

They finally arrived at the hemp-weaving workshop. Because hemp had only just been planted in the second and third months, there was no material available for weaving, so it was not very busy here. Only a few female government slaves were using leftover hemp from the previous year to weave clothes and shoes.

It was worth noting that those clothes were to be sent to the dyeing workshop behind them to be dyed a reddish-brown color...

They were weaving the reddish-brown garments provided to convict laborers. The state's ritual order began with the dress code. People of different statuses used different clothing materials, cut different garment styles, and dyed them different colors — all meticulously regulated. For example, Heifu, as an official, wore silk, while ordinary commoners and convict laborers wore hemp. Walking down the street, one could tell a person's profession and social stratum at a glance.

At that moment, a petty official hurried over to the Weaving Workshop Master and whispered a few words in his ear. The Workshop Master promptly apologized to Heifu and Chen Wujiu, saying there was a matter outside, and assigned the petty official in charge of hemp cloth production, the "Hemp Master," to accompany them, before hurrying out himself.

The Hemp Master followed beside Heifu with the utmost deference, answering whatever Heifu asked.

As the most common clothing materials under heaven, silk and hemp were one expensive, one cheap; one splendid, one plain; one smooth, one coarse. The two were often mentioned together. In reality, however, hemp cloth had a far longer history in China than silk.

"For the Military Section Clerk's information, there is a legend among the people that Bo Yu created clothing."

The Hemp Master petty official smiled: "It is said that the ancient sage Bo Yu was the first to discover that the hemp found everywhere could be used to weave clothes. He twisted hemp fibers into threads, worked them with his hands and fingers, and the cloth he wove was like a net. The people of the world imitated him, and only then did the loom come into being, allowing the masses to obtain hemp cloth to cover their shame and ward off the cold."

"Like a net" indicated it was very loosely woven, as spinning and weaving technology in high antiquity was primitive.

"If the Yellow Emperor and Shennong truly existed, could it be that what they wore, besides animal hides, was also fishing-net attire?" Imagining this scene, Heifu couldn't help but laugh.

Next, the Hemp Master petty official took out different types of hemp cloth from the storehouse — three kinds in total — and introduced them one by one.

"This is qing hemp cloth, used for making ox coats, raincoats, or twisted into ropes and made into sacks."

This kind of hemp cloth was rough and heavy, clearly unsuitable for bandages. Heifu immediately ruled it out.

Then, the petty official pointed to a bolt of pure white, crisp fabric and said: "This is ramie cloth, also the most common hemp cloth in Nan Commandery. The commoners and ordinary people within Jiangling City mostly wear this cloth."

Without a word, Heifu picked up this bolt of cloth, examined it carefully, and his face lit up with delight.

Heifu's own family had this kind of cloth. Before he attained the rank of Grand Master, the clothes he wore were made of it. And in his mind, the most suitable substitute for gauze bandages was precisely this material!

"If I remember correctly, the characteristics of gauze bandages are that they are loosely woven, with a distinct grid pattern — exactly matching ramie cloth!"

Having worn this cloth, Heifu particularly remembered that it was also cool, wicked away sweat, was breathable, and endured washing and sun exposure!

It was practically the most suitable fabric for medical bandages, and most importantly, it was cheap!

"In Anlu, it's about three hundred coins per bolt. Jiangling is slightly more expensive, but still within an acceptable range."

The standard specification for one bolt of cloth was four zhang long and two chi two cun wide, just enough to make one adult's set of clothing. If made into bandages, it could produce at least twenty rolls.

Seeing that Heifu had found what he needed and revealed a satisfied smile, the Hemp Master fawned beside him: "Congratulations, Military Section Clerk. As the poem says, 'The mayfly digs through and reads, hemp robes are like snow.' To bind the soldiers' wounds with this hemp cloth — nothing could be more fitting!"

The words were pleasing to the ear. Heifu memorized this line of poetry; perhaps it would be useful later.

Then, Heifu asked the petty official about the production volume of ramie cloth. Upon learning that this type of hemp was grown everywhere in Nan Commandery and that the Jiangling Weaving Workshop alone could produce at least fifty thousand bolts per year, Heifu was finally reassured.

Before leaving, out of curiosity, he asked the Hemp Master again: "I see this third type of hemp cloth is slightly yellowish in color, and the material is neither tight nor dense. If ramie cloth runs short, it could also serve as a substitute. What is it called?"

The Hemp Master smiled: "This type of hemp cloth is rarer in the south and more common in the north. It is generally called fire hemp, also known as dà má!"

(End of Chapter)