Sun Laohan was startled and stared blankly at Guan Zhongbo, "Old Guan, what's gotten into you? Who visits someone and immediately predicts disaster upon entering the door?"
During Guan Zhongbo's time back in the northern frontier, he had maintained correspondence with Sun Laohan...
Although he had always known Old Guan was superstitious and enjoyed fortune-telling, he had never spoken of good or bad omens.
Today's Guan Zhongbo was a bit strange...
"Old Sun, I ask you, has anything happened to the Yun family recently?" Guan Zhongbo asked with a serious expression.
Sun Laohan: "???"
The Yun family in Dashui Village had always been smooth sailing, and they hadn't encountered any major issues...
But after a moment's thought, Sun Laohan realized and slapped his thigh, "Oh, I remember now! Xi Tian suddenly fainted a couple of days ago and was unconscious for two full days and nights!"
"Wh-what?" Guan Zhongbo's mouth twitched, his eyelids jumping. "Then how is she... how is she now?"
On his way to Dashui Village, he had a premonition that something was going to happen to the Yun family.
He hadn't expected it to come true.
Sun Laohan sighed, "That girl is blessed with great fortune. She didn't take any medicine, and she woke up as if nothing had happened..."
The doctor in town couldn't figure out what was wrong. Anyway, the whole thing was very strange.
After hearing this, Guan Zhongbo glanced towards the courtyard, "Is Xi Tian at home?"
"She seemed to have gone out with Young Master Xiao just now..." Sun Laohan replied.
Guan Zhongbo stood still, pondered for a moment, then went in to greet the Yun family, and returned to the guest room to start fiddling with talismans.
Gao Jingde and Yun Xiaobao ran in to watch the fun.
Seeing Uncle Guan arranging yellow paper slips on the table, covered with strange symbols, they asked, "Uncle Guan, what are you doing?"
"This old man is saving your little aunt..." Guan Zhongbo sighed softly.
Gao Jingde: "???"
Yun Xiaobao: "???"
These slips of paper could save their little aunt's life?
Besides, their little aunt was lively and healthy now, why did she need saving...
At the same time, in a general store in town.
The shopkeeper carefully examined the mahjong tiles and shook his head, "Young lady, your items are made too exquisitely and delicately. With the craftsmanship of our shop's artisans, we can't produce such fine pieces. You should try another place..."
Because modern mahjong tiles are made from low-nitrogen cellulose, their main raw materials are plastic or camphor.
They are then melted at high temperatures and sealed into shape.
Therefore, without such advanced technology in ancient times, other methods would have to be found...
Little Xi Tian smiled sweetly, "Shopkeeper, you don't need to make them exactly the same. A rougher finish is fine!"
After all, there were only a few types of patterns in mahjong. As long as the customers could see them clearly, it was enough.
The shopkeeper had never seen such peculiar items, so he couldn't help but be surprised, "Young lady, can you tell me what these things are used for?"
If they were all made according to the original design, the cost of counterfeiting would be quite high...
Moreover, this young lady ordered forty sets of mahjong at once. Each set had one hundred and thirty-six tiles, which multiplied by forty was five thousand four hundred and forty tiles.
If each mahjong tile cost three copper coins, then forty-five hundred and forty mahjong tiles would cost over one hundred and sixty taels of silver...
Thinking of this, the shopkeeper gave Little Xi Tian a deep look, feeling very puzzled.
Who was this young lady, and could she really afford so much money?
"Shopkeeper, you don't need to know too much!" Xiao Jinheng stepped forward and said faintly, "You just need to make the mahjong tiles according to the requirements. The wages will not be lacking..."
"Oh dear, young master, you think too highly of me!" The shopkeeper returned the mahjong tiles to Little Xi Tian and rubbed his hands. "I am skilled at making bracelets and combs, but I can't make such exquisite items..."
If mahjong tiles were made of fine jade and intricately carved, the cost would likely increase several dozen times.
The shopkeeper said this to help Little Xi Tian save some money.
Xiao Jinheng frowned upon hearing this, "They don't need to be too refined, as long as the shape is similar!"
If the artisans in town couldn't make them, he would call over the old men from the Ministry of Works and ensure the little village girl's wish was fulfilled no matter what...
The shopkeeper didn't know what to say, sitting behind the counter and shaking his head repeatedly.
Seeing this, Little Xi Tian had a sudden flash of inspiration and thought of a good idea, "Shopkeeper, are there many stones in the mountains around here that can be used for stone carving?"
There are many types of stones for stone carving, such as bluestone, granite, sandstone, marble, etc...
The shopkeeper pondered for a moment and murmured, "There's quite a bit of sandstone, but it's all in the deep mountains. I can't go into the mountains to dig for stones just to make a few sets of mahjong, can I?"
"Not at all!" Little Xi Tian smiled sweetly, stood on her tiptoes, and leaned closer to the counter. "Shopkeeper, how about we use bamboo instead of stone? Even high-quality bamboo tubes are cheaper than stone. If you're willing to do it, I'll have someone deliver the bamboo in a few days..."
In fact, besides bamboo, ox bones or ivory could also be used to make mahjong tiles, but the cost would be too high.
The shopkeeper's eyes lit up upon hearing this, "You know, this method is really effective. Young lady, how are you so smart, haha!"
Xiao Jinheng: "..."
The little monster has always been smart!
Both parties reached an agreement, and as soon as the bamboo arrived from the south, the shopkeeper could start working with his employees...
Walking out of the general store, Xiao Jinheng glanced at Kong Xingzhuo, "Immediately contact Minister Gu and have him transport a batch of high-quality bamboo from the south. There must be no mistakes!"
Gu Baoquan, the Minister of Works, was in charge of the court's engineering, transportation, economy, civil construction, textiles, mining, and so on...
Therefore, having Minister Gu transport a batch of bamboo was not a difficult task at all.
Kong Xingzhuo responded, "Understood!"
The farmland in Dashui Village was growing well under the nourishment of several spring rains, and the wheat seedlings swayed gently in the warm breeze.
Camel Peak Mountain was also lush and green, with green waters and verdant mountains surrounding Dashui Village, exuding auspiciousness under the spring sunlight...
Although the scenery here was unique, the few people drifting on the ocean far away were suffering greatly.
Under the gloomy weather, strong winds stirred up huge waves, like a fierce beast opening its bloody maw, madly devouring everything on the sea.
In such harsh conditions, there should have been no signs of human survival...
Yet, in the midst of the wind and rain, a solitary passenger ship appeared and disappeared in the crests of the waves.