Chapter 8: The Making Of A Jade Plaque

Lu Zijin remained in the study until the Hour of Xu before returning to her bedroom.

The Lu family’s businesses spanned countless trades, and every day she had an endless stream of matters to handle.

Although Lu Zijin delegated authority and allowed those below her to manage affairs, she still regularly inspected each shop in person and conducted routine account audits every month.

By the time she returned to her bedroom, she was already feeling somewhat fatigued.

She had the servants prepare bathwater, took a soak, and then went to bed early.

***

On the other side, Wei Lan completed the fourth step of jade carving that afternoon—chong tuo, smoothing the jade’s edges into rounded contours.

This step also required the rotary lathe.

Wei Lan sat before the lathe, removed the thin steel disk from the wooden shaft, and replaced it with a thicker steel disk.

She poured red sand mixed with water over the jade, then pressed the jade against the thick steel disk.

Her legs worked the wooden pedals below, the hemp cords driving the thick steel disk on the table to rotate, gradually grinding down the jade’s edges and corners.

After this step, the jade’s overall shape was largely complete.

Wei Lan carefully smoothed every edge, even grinding out two small symmetrical points at the very top.

She ate dinner, then returned to the jade-carving room to continue with the next processes.

Wei Lan rinsed the jasper with water.

In modern terms, this would be called a plain safety plaque, but in Wei Lan’s eyes, it did not even qualify as a semi-finished product.

After sitting down, she removed the thick steel disk used for chong tuo and replaced it with a steel disk approximately 0.6 centimeters thick.

Wei Lan pressed the jasper against it and worked the pedals beneath her feet, beginning to polish the jade plaque.

This was the fifth step in jade-making, mo tuo.

Unlike the fourth step, which only rounded the edges, this step refined the jade’s outer surface, making it delicate and smooth.

By the time she completed the entire mo tuo process, the sky was already nearing dusk.

The subsequent carving steps were the most taxing on the eyes.

With no artificial lighting in ancient times, Wei Lan stopped and decided to continue the remaining processes the next morning after daylight.

She stood up, brushed off the stone dust clinging to her clothes, and returned to her bedroom, instructing the servants to heat water for bathing.

At this moment, Li Zhufeng and Zhao Linghui were sitting together in one of the rooms.

Hearing movement outside, Zhao Linghui asked, “So?

You went to see the steward today.

What was his attitude toward the Mistress Consort?”

Li Zhufeng shook her head.

“It’s hard to tell, but I think he probably doesn’t take her seriously.

Otherwise, how could a mere steward have the right to question what the Mistress Consort does?”

“That’s true.

As long as we don’t provoke her and keep things presentable on the surface, that’s enough.

Following her is unlucky anyway,” Zhao Linghui sighed.

“Exactly.

The young miss was about to discuss marriage with the cousin young master before.

Then the eldest young master passed away, and to keep outsiders from encroaching on the Lu family, the young miss brought her in as a live-in spouse.

It’s not like she truly likes her.

If the Mistress Consort were the cousin young master, it’d be worth currying favor.

After all, the cousin young master is also in business and grew up with the young miss.”

Li Zhufeng sighed as well.

For servants like them, the fastest way to gain benefits was to follow a capable master, but clearly, Wei Lan was of no use at all.

Wei Lan, however, had no idea what was being said behind her back.

She was still thinking about how she should cut into the jade the next day to remove all the black specks.

Once her hair had dried, she went to bed early.

In her previous life, she had worked herself to death by staying up late.

In this life, she intended to cherish both her life and her eyesight.

***

Early the next morning, Wei Lan finished breakfast and plunged straight back into the jade workshop.

The sixth step of traditional jade carving was tao tang, hollowing out the interior.

This step was meant for openwork pieces such as snuff bottles, where the center needed to be hollowed.

Wei Lan was carving a jade plaque, so this step could be skipped entirely.

She moved directly to another worktable.

Her primary task that morning was shang hua.

Put simply, this was the actual carving stage in modern jade work.

In modern times, Wei Lan could have used an electric rotary drill—flexible and convenient—but now she had no choice but to rely on ancient tools.

This process required many chisels for ya tuo.

It likewise depended on foot pedals to generate force, with the wooden shaft driving the chisels to carve lines into the jade’s hard surface.

Wei Lan worked with extreme care.

A single mistake at this stage could ruin the entire piece of jade.

Fortunately, she had used this type of tool before.

Otherwise, adapting would have been nearly impossible.

Soon, as Wei Lan worked, the chisels left line after line of patterns across the jade’s surface.

She deliberately used these lines to remove the small black specks in the jade’s outer layer.

Her carving was exceptionally delicate.

She did not even sketch a detailed design, relying solely on experience.

Before long, a scene of flowers and birds had already taken shape on the jasper.

Wei Lan soaked the jade in a nearby basin and rinsed it clean.

When she took it out to inspect it, a smile finally appeared in her eyes.

Everything had gone smoothly so far.

This piece of jasper looked completely different from its former offcut state and was already taking on a convincing form.

Wei Lan lifted the jasper.

Aside from the remaining black specks, the carved flowers and birds were already fully formed.

Still, those black specks needed to be removed.

She moved to another tool table, preparing to begin the eighth step of traditional jade carving—da zuan.

This step was used for openwork carving and was perfect for removing the black specks.

Wei Lan also wanted to give the piece more depth and layering.

This worktable differed from the ya tuo table.

It was mainly composed of a bow drill and a rolling shaft, with a diamond-tipped drill set into the lower end of the shaft.

Wei Lan sat at one end of the table.

Her left hand held the jade, pressing it beneath the diamond drill at the shaft’s tip, while her right hand pulled the bow back and forth.

The bow drove the shaft to rotate alternately, allowing the diamond drill to bore circular holes into the jade.

Naturally, the diamond drill tips could be swapped out.

Wei Lan replaced the drill head with an extremely fine one.

Then, pulling the bow back and forth with her right hand, she guided the jade beneath the drill with her left, slowly turning the black specks into staggered, intricate patterns.

Her focus was absolute.

This step required layering the surface of the jade plaque, and not a single mistake was allowed.

Wei Lan worked continuously.

Ancient tools were ultimately inferior to modern ones.

She exerted tremendous effort before finally removing every black speck from the jade plaque, carving them into a small, undulating mountain scene adorned with flowers and birds.

When Wei Lan stopped, she immersed the jade plaque in water once more and rinsed it clean.

When she took it out again, the plaque was a uniform jade-green, without the slightest impurity.

The calm surface of Wei Lan’s eyes finally rippled.

Her lips curved faintly as she looked at the jade plaque in her hands and nodded in satisfaction.

Good.

Her skills had not deserted her.

However, the openwork carving had only given the piece a rough form.

It still needed to undergo the ninth step—tou hua.

Wei Lan moved to another desk.

Holding a wire saw, she loosened one end of the steel wire, threaded it through a circular opening in the jade, and tied it back in place.

With her right hand, she pulled the saw back and forth.

The steel wire, coated with jieyu sand mixed with water, traced the final lines across the jade’s surface according to her design.

This step was also part of the fine carving process.

Because she had been exerting force continuously, blisters had already formed on her hands the day before.

Wei Lan did not pay them much mind.

She had the maids apply some medicine and then continued working.

Once she used her hands enough, calluses would form, and blisters would no longer be a problem.

At noon, Wei Lan ate a simple meal and did not even take a nap before plunging back into her jade workshop.

Because she was carving a jade plaque, the tenth step could be skipped.

That step was da yan, drilling eyeholes, usually used for items like snuff bottles.

Thus, Wei Lan went straight to the tenth step—mu tuo.

This step was essentially polishing the jade plaque.

Wei Lan sat in front of the rotary lathe, removed the thin steel disk previously used, and replaced it with a thick wooden wheel.

She pressed the jade against the wooden wheel, sprinkled jieyu sand mixed with water onto its surface, and then worked the pedals beneath her feet.

The hemp cords drove the wooden shaft above to rotate, causing the wooden wheel to spin.

Pressing the jade plaque against it achieved a rough polish.

Wei Lan polished with great care, spending nearly half an hour to complete the rough polishing.

After that came the final step—pi tuo, using cowhide to give the jade its final polish and luster.

At this stage, Wei Lan was even more cautious.

She pressed the jade against the rotating cowhide belt, polishing every surface repeatedly.

Before long, the once-dull jade plaque became a vivid, uniform green.

Wei Lan rinsed the jade plaque with water, then gently wiped it dry with a cloth.

Holding it up for inspection, she saw a fully qualified landscape jasper plaque.

Its craftsmanship was far superior to the jade plaques she had previously seen at Yuya Pavilion.

That said, ancient carving tools still limited Wei Lan’s performance.

If only she had an electric carving tool, things would have been much easier.

Wei Lan looked at the jade plaque in her hands, her brows and eyes softening.

The more she looked, the more she liked it.

She planned to spend the next few days carving several more pieces, then take them all to Yuya Pavilion to see how much her work could sell for.

After all, in modern times, she charged tens of thousands just for the carving fee of a single jade plaque, and that was the cheapest rate.

Decorative pieces or highly detailed carvings cost even more.

Wei Lan was very curious to know how much silver her jade carvings could fetch in this ancient world.