Chapter 713: 713 Moved (seeking monthly ticket)
Su Qingyue looked through the wide-open window at the three men inside the main bedroom, all with touched expressions on their faces.
She knew in her heart that they thought the pen and ink were expensive, so they practiced day and night on the sand table, trying not to spend any money, and that’s why none of them ever brought up the idea of buying paper and pens.
“Yue’er, we don’t actually need to buy pens and paper…” Xiao Yishan went out to the yard and told her, “We village men don’t care so much about these things, just practicing on the sand table is good enough.”
She shook her head, “Practicing on the sand table is indeed a way to save paper and ink, but in order to improve your calligraphy, you still need to practice writing with a brush in a practical way. This is something we can’t save on. Starting tonight, everyone will practice writing on two sheets of rice paper.”
Xiao Yishan gratefully nodded.
Xiao Yuchuan also came up to her and said pitifully, “Wife, can you stop being so nice? In case I am so moved that I die, what will you do?”
She remained expressionless, “Of course, I’ll remarry.”
His face immediately turned serious, “No, you’re not allowed!”
“So you want me to stay a widow for you?” she challenged.
He really couldn’t bear the thought of someone else touching her, but since his second brother and fourth brother were also there, some words were not appropriate to say, so he just held his handsome face and kept silent.
“Third brother, stop talking nonsense.” Xiao Yishan chided with an icy face. “Don’t say such inauspicious things like death. Our wife has gone through a lot of trouble today, going to town and buying so many things.”
“Spending money is not really that hard,” she smiled.
“”How much do paper and pen cost? Do you have enough money on you?” Xiao Yishan asked.
“The paper, pens, inkstone, ink, and two books cost 2230 cents. The money was earned from selling the medicinal mud toothpaste these days. Second brother gave me six taels for food expenses, and I bought pork, chicken, and duck at the market price, with several taels left over.”
Xiao Yishan didn’t say much more, just feeling embarrassed, “Even the money from selling the medicinal mud toothpaste was used…”
“It’s alright,” she said casually, “Isn’t money earned to be spent? If you really care about money, then practice your calligraphy well. Once you know how to read and write, it will benefit you in the future.”
Xiao Yuchuan and Yishan both nodded in agreement.
After dinner, the main bedroom was lit with an oil lamp, with the three men sitting on each side of the square table.
Su Qingyue took up one direction as well, and handed everyone a brush pen and a sheet of rice paper.
Placing the inkstone in front of her, she poured some clean water into the inkstone from the prepared water pot. While grinding the ink stick, she explained, “When grinding ink, use clean water, and don’t pour too much. Grind the ink slowly. Good ink is smooth and silent when being ground, while inferior ink makes a coarse sound.”
She paused and said with a smile, “The ink I bought is the worst quality, so it makes a very coarse sound.”
In ancient times, ink was made by extracting soot from partially burning pine branches or oil, and then processing the soot material into solid ink blocks through various steps such as burning and gelatinization. The product was in a fixed block shape.
For this era, the process was quite complicated, which is why the ink block was so expensive, costing two hundred cents for one piece.
It’s not like modern times, where ready-made ink is available.
“Having pens and ink is good enough,” Xiao Yuchuan said, knowing the price of the ink block, “One small piece costs two hundred cents.”
“Anyway, it can be used for a long time. If we’re careful with it, it can last a long time, so there’s no need to worry,” she continued, “Hold the ink block in your hand, pay attention to my gesture. The index finger should be placed on the top of the ink block, while the thumb and middle finger should be pinched on both sides. When grinding, apply light pressure, and press down a little heavier.” She pushed the inkstone and ink towards Xiao Yishan, “Second brother, you try it.”
PS: My beloved readers, if the monthly ticket falls off the list, it will be all for naught. Don’t let Nan fall off the list, please vote for the monthly ticket~