ABPUBALC - Chapter 11

 

Chapter 11: The Blueprint

“Master Lin is here! Please, have a seat. The shopkeeper has stepped out for a bit but will return shortly.”

Before Gu Qiming and the other could even step foot through the carpentry shop’s entrance, an apprentice enthusiastically came forward to greet them.

The street peddler’s business has been incredibly prosperous these days. Seems like they can’t wait for Lin Xing to deliver the goods again tomorrow.

“Our shopkeeper just happened to mention you today. He said you haven’t been here in a few days and has been worried about running out of goods recently.”

“My family ran into a bit of trouble these past few days, so I haven’t had the time to send it over. I’m here today to handle this matter.”

The attendant led Lin Xing and his friend to the lounge and brought them a pot of hot water. “You two can rest here for a while. I’ll go and serve the guests.”

This is Gu Qiming’s second visit to this carpentry shop. The first time they came, they were in a hurry and Gu Qiming didn’t have time to take a closer look at the furniture in the shop. This time, with plenty of time, he stood beside the wardrobe and looked at it carefully. It was indeed more refined than the usual ones made by Lin Xing.

In modern times, buying solid wood furniture can be deceitful, but in ancient times, it was not. Solid wood was solid wood, and there was no fakery. The workmanship was also much better than that of solid wood furniture used in modern times. From the wood to the techniques of the woodworker, nothing was overlooked. Gu Qiming couldn’t help but marvel at the wisdom of the ancients once more.

Unfortunately, the wardrobe has no space to hang clothes, so it’s not very convenient.

Later, maybe he can describe a modern wardrobe and let Lin Xing give it a try.

After they waited there for a moment, the shopkeeper hurriedly returned.

“Master Lin, you’ve finally arrived. I haven’t been able to eat anything these past few days, constantly anticipating your return.”

The owner of the carpentry shop, surnamed Zhang, is over forty years old this year. Whenever he smiles, his eyes narrow honestly.

Shopkeeper Zhang glanced at Gu Qiming again and asked, “Who might you be?”

“He is my husband. Today, he specially escorted me into town.”

After he finished speaking, he became embarrassed and didn’t dare to look back at Gu Qiming’s expression.

The shopkeeper laughed and said, “So this is Master Lin’s family! The two of you are so handsome, you are truly a match made in heaven.”

Gu Qiming was also stunned. He thought that in accordance with Lin Xing’s character, he would never say their relation so directly. He did not expect that Lin Xing would give him such a big surprise.

Lin Xing cleared his throat and said to Shopkeeper Zhang, “We came this time to discuss the business of the cart. I wonder if Shopkeeper Zhang is interested in buying the handcard blueprint?”

When Shopkeeper Zhang heard his words, he had an idea in his heart and immediately led them to the second floor guest hall, then asked the waiter to send over a plate of pastries.

After everyone left, only then did the shopkeeper speak, “To tell you the truth, we have also thought of making more of these lately, but although these carts look simple, figuring out exactly how they were made isn’t all that easy.”

Finished speaking, he poured a cup of tea and sent it to Lin Xing’s front, “Does Master Lin really intend to sell this rare skill to us……?”

“Of course it’s true. There have been many changes at home recently, and I don’t have enough energy to do business anymore. If the shopkeeper can continue to make these carts, it will live on, making my regret diminish.”

Shopkeeper Zhang immediately smiled broadly: “Of course, we’ve been in business for decades. It goes without saying that we have a place in Shiqiao Town and even in Fuzhou. By then, the entire Qing Kingdom will definitely be using our handcarts!”

“As for the price... we can naturally talk about it. Do the two of you have any thoughts?”

Gu Qiming took a sip of tea and slowly put down the cup. He spoke calmly, “Shopkeeper, to tell you the truth, Lin Xing and I grew up together in the village. We have no great ambitions in life. We just want to live an honest life as farmers. The idea for this handcart was actually thought up by my younger brother, who is studying at the academy.”[e/n: man, you two better get your stories straight. Met at the carpentry shop, now you’re lifelong partners?? And you have a scholar brother? Daaaamn]

“We are not unreasonable people. As long as the shopkeeper is willing, we can sell you the blueprint for 50 taels of silver, and we will have nothing to do with this cart in the future.” While speaking, Gu Qiming took out the blueprint he had redrawn last night from his pocket.

“Good!” The shopkeeper slapped the table. “We can talk about the price. As long as you two promise to sell this craft only to my shop, everything else is negotiable.”

“That goes without saying.”

The shopkeeper was drawing in a deep breath. He presumed Gu Qiming would demand 200 to 300 taels since the cart was selling so well. However, he did not believe that country folk were easily bribed, since even he would have asked for 500 taels. He did not expect that Master Lin would ask for a mere 50 taels.

“My two treasured guests, please wait a moment, I’ll go get the money right now!”

The shopkeeper tucked the blueprint safely into his bosom as if he were carrying some precious treasure. Hunching his back, he went downstairs in a few swift steps.

He had been the shopkeeper in Shiqiao Town for decades. If Young Master Lin allows him to take over and expand the handcart business, the shop owner might even allow him to go to the county office to work, by then he could bring along his whole family, and their life would be great!

With this in mind, he was eager to find his master to build this pushcart.

Gu Qiming took a sip of tea and sighed, “Wow... This business is surprisingly easy.”

It seems like there was a reason why the heavens took away his cell phone. Just a small street cart alone was sold for fifty taels. If he were to bring out a precious object like a cell phone and sell it, who knows what kind of astronomical price it could fetch?[e/n: flashbacks to Re:Zero and Subaru selling his flip phone... when’s the next season...]

But after all, it’s a fresh and trendy thing, so everyone fancies it. Give it some time and sooner or later someone will figure it out, and we won’t be able to sell it as well as we can now.

“We can still make a fortune before then.”

Gu Qiming pulled Lin Xing to sit beside him and said to Lin Xing, “Xing Xing, after you collect the silver, head over to the government office first. I have some matters to attend to.”

“What are you going to do at the yamen?”

[ 衙门 yá men: government office in feudal China ]

Hearing this, Lin Xing’s heart skipped a beat. The yamen was not a place one could casually wander into.

Gu Qiming squeezed his hand and reassured, “Don’t worry, I’m just looking for someone to re-register my personal records. My current identity is very inconvenient. After the busy farming season, I plan to buy two more mu of land.”

Once he finished speaking, Lin Xing finally calmed down. When Gu Ge suddenly said he was going to the government office, Lin Xing felt his heart drop.

Gu Qiming started counting on his fingers: “Look here, right now, the family owns two acres of paddy fields, the rice that we eat is bought from the town, and for the past half a month, we have spent quite a lot of silver.”

“And also, it’s all well and good now that the weather is calm, but let’s say there was a famine, you wouldn’t be able to buy any grain even if you had money. After paying the taxes on our two mu of paddy fields, how much would be left? I should buy a few more mu.”

The two of them were discussing buying the land upstairs. Not long after, Shopkeeper Zhang came upstairs with his men.

“Here are two 20 tael silver ingots, and the remaining 10 taels specially converted into loose silver, take a look to see if this is acceptable.”

“As expected of the shopkeeper, you are very thoughtful. Then, thank you very much.”

Fifty taels of silver is not a small sum, so the shopkeeper’s actions could be considered a great help.

As soon as the two bid farewell to the shopkeeper, they headed straight to the government office.

This time, Gu Qiming came to register his household, which did not require him to enter into the government office. The officer led them to the dedicated household registration office.

The officer looked imposing and grumbled, “Why are you here now to apply for household registration? Why didn’t you do it sooner? Every year, it’s people like you...”

Lin Xing hurriedly forced a smile, “My Lord, please forgive me. My husband is a scavenger and he just recovered from a serious illness. When the house was transferred, he didn’t take care of it. He thought it was nothing. Now that he has recovered from his illness, he came over as soon as he had time.”

Gu Qiming took out two pieces of broken silver from his bosom: “Please keep this money for now. It’s a small token of my appreciation. Can sir do us a small favor...”

The officer saw that he was as strong as a bear, how could he look like someone who had just recovered from a serious illness? He saw that he was quite sensible and put the money into his pocket with great care and said, “All right, come in and register.”

Obtaining a household registration in Shiqiao Town was not difficult. The local officials were fairly easy-going, and with the silver to smooth things over, Gu Qiming managed to complete the household registration process in under half an hour.

After completing the household registration, Gu Qiming pulled Lin Xing to the street to eat a bowl of rice noodles.

The soup was made by simmering pork bones, and on top of the creamy white soup were scattered bright green scallions. The slender noodles were smooth yet chewy, contributing a nice contrast in texture.

Gu Qiming specially ordered an extra bowl of wontons, seven wen a bowl. They looked quite large, but there was only a tiny bit of meat. Gu Qiming gave half a bowl to Lin Xing, and the two of them ate under the sun, sweat dripping down their faces.

The pair discussed what else to buy as they ate.

Gu Qiming had an urge to eat crab. Ever since he came here, he hadn’t eaten anything other than fish, so he had an urge to take a bite out of a crab. He didn’t know if this town had any for sale.

Street food vendors were clamoring in the town. Usually, Lin Xing was reluctant to buy food when he came to town alone, but since his family was now well-off, Gu Qiming decided to buy a few more snacks to take home.

“Let’s buy some seafood to take back. They won’t spoil if we keep them in water.”

“Sure, we’ll go to the wharf later to take a look. If we see any, we’ll buy some.”

Today he had earned fifty taels of silver, and at this moment, Lin Xing didn’t care what he could or couldn’t bear to part with; he didn’t want to spoil Gu Qiming’s mood.

Shiqiao Town was actually not small; it was adjacent to a river port and had three docks, which made it a fairly large town.

Surrounding villages spread out densely, their neighboring Lin Family Village usually comes to this town to purchase goods.

But the area where they are currently at can’t be considered prosperous. If one goes further east, that’s where every few steps, there is an inn, and every three steps, there is a fabric shop. However, that’s not something that their coin purses can afford.

Lin Xing brought Gu Ge to the westernmost ferry terminal, which he knew fairly well since he frequented the western market.

Gu Qiming was dying to eat some crabs, so he went around looking for a stall. By the fisherman’s feet was a basket of lively blue crabs scrambling about. They were not small; each one was the size of half his palm.

Lin Xing also thought that the crab had a good appearance. He carefully picked up one and asked, “Boss, how much do you sell this blue crab for?”

“Fifty wen a catty, buy three catties and get a fish basket for free.”

“Alright then, give me three catties.”

While the boss was packing some blue crabs, Gu Qiming took advantage of the time to buy a few catties of river shrimp. He bought various sizes so that when they were busy farming, they wouldn’t have to bother with cooking too much and could still eat well.

When they got home, both of them were carrying large and small bags. In their hands and on their backs, those who didn’t know would think that someone was returning a dowry gift. Lin Xing had even found a water tank that hadn’t been used in a long time, filled it with water and poured the shrimp and crabs in, just keeping them in clean water.

After that, the two bought quite a few snacks on the street to take back with them. Gu Qiming wanted to buy everything he saw; if Lin Xing hadn’t stopped him, he really might have ended up moving the entire shop back with them.

In particular, he bought six of Old Lady Cao’s meat pies in one go.

The meat pie from their family’s store was cooked on an open flame, the exterior golden brown and crispy, while the interior was fluffy. It was also filled with a minced meat mixture that oozed out with each bite. The two of them finished a whole half of the pie while walking down the street, and they both sang nothing but praises for it.

Not only did Gu Qiming buy meat pies, he also pestered Lin Xing into buying even more pastries – a bit of each: cloud-sliced cakes, tuckahoe cakes, and osmanthus cakes too.

While he himself wasn’t particularly interested in these desserts, he could tell that Lin Xing liked sweet things, but was reluctant to buy them for himself, so he pestered him into buying a bit of everything.

‘I can also deliver some to A-Fu. The little fellow loves these sweet and soft treats.’

For dinner, there were naturally hot flatbreads. Lin Xing specially baked them again over the open fire, otherwise they would not be crispy and delicious.

Lin Xing ate two out of the six pastries, and the remaining ones ended up in Gu Qiming’s belly.

After dinner, Gu Qiming enjoyed the cool air in the courtyard while holding a fan. The night sky was dotted with stars, a captivating sight rarely seen in modern urban areas.

He arrived in this world in June, and now, with more than half a month gone by, he has no idea what the current date is.

Rather than puzzling over it, it’s better not to think at all. Tomorrow, there’s still rice to be harvested; there are duties to attend to. Moreover, right now, he has even more critical tasks at hand…

He sat in the courtyard and waited for a while before Lin Xing came out of the storeroom carrying two sickles. After a quick polish, they could get to work tomorrow.

Gu Qiming saw him coming out and took the sickle from his hands, dabbing some water on it to help with the sharpening.

The courtyard was silent except for the whirring sound of a knife being sharpened and the occasional chirp of some indiscernible insect. Lin Xing, upon hearing Gu Qiming suddenly ask, “Xingxing, when will we get married?” was taken aback.

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