Chapter 2681: The Capital (Part 37)

"The Master wishes to seize his family's property?"

"Once the Qiankun Mirror is obtained, what significance do such properties hold? This is merely a preliminary probe. Send word to Liu Sha—tell him that weapons and soldiers are approaching, and he should find a way to search for the treasure."

With the plan settled, there was no reason to delay. Immediately upon returning to the residence, Wang Yehao summoned Jin Wenchi to arrange two matters. The first was an invitation to Tian Hongyu, requesting his company for the Lantern Festival lamp viewing; the accompanying gift list specifically included a pair of Australian glazed glass cups. The second was a reply to Wang Zunde, noting that Viceroy Xiong Wencan had pacified the Zheng family and brought peace to the seas of Fujian and Zhejiang—achievements the Emperor regarded quite favorably. In contrast, the waters of Liangguang were overrun with bandit groups rising everywhere; there were even thieves who had occupied a county for two years without being dislodged. If Lord Wang continued to show no accomplishments, the court discussions would likely turn unfavorable toward him.

After seeing Wang Yehao off, Mr. Zhou did not return to the courtyard to play in the snow but sat alone in the room, lost in thought. Observing his teacher's distant expression, Zhou Lezhi approached and whispered, "Teacher, should these precious vessels be put away and given to Jieyi for safekeeping?"

The words roused him as if from a dream. The Teacher gave a soft "En" and said, "Don't give them to Jieyi. Store these things in the study instead."

"Wait!" Zhou Lezhi was just about to begin tidying when the Teacher stopped him again. He walked to the table alone and examined the "rare goods" with careful attention.

He picked up a glass vessel shaped like a fruit plate and murmured, "Ten yuan." Then he picked up a powder box, studied it closely, and muttered, "Ivory... fake?" Finally, he lifted the wine bottle, clear as water, and examined it for quite some time. He inspected the cap on top, shook his head, and set it down.

"Tell me—what problems do you see with these items?" the Teacher suddenly asked Zhou Lezhi.

Zhou Lezhi picked them up and examined each carefully for a while. "They're beautifully made. Clearly not the work of clumsy hands."

"Nonsense!" the Teacher scoffed. "How did I teach you to analyze materials?"

"Yes, yes," Zhou Lezhi hurriedly looked again. "This glass vessel is transparent throughout, but there are a small number of air bubbles within, indicating limited degassing technology..."

"Correct."

"The glass is pure and clear—the decolorization technology is relatively good—but it still carries a noticeable green tint, suggesting the raw material contains iron, and the decolorization during smelting was incomplete."

"To be precise, it's ferrous iron—divalent iron," Mr. Zhou corrected.

"Yes," Zhou Lezhi agreed casually. He was still thoroughly confused about concepts like monovalent and divalent.

"Well said regarding the material. What about the form?"

"The surface bears marks left during demolding, indicating this plate was cast using a mold. Possibly an iron mold."

"En." Mr. Zhou seemed satisfied with the answer. "If you were to attempt it yourself, assuming all conditions were met, could you produce glass vessels of similar quality?"

Zhou Lezhi considered for a moment. "I could not. There are too many processes involved that I don't understand."

Mr. Zhou nodded. "Very good. Regarding glass-making processes, I myself only know fragments—I understand the principles, but the actual execution involves countless details requiring study. Here, craftsmen treat such techniques as closely guarded secrets, never to be passed on..."

"But technology requires exchange to progress," Zhou Lezhi hastened to recite the words his teacher had spoken countless times.

"Exactly so." Mr. Zhou's enthusiasm for discourse seemed particularly high today. "Then why is everyone so unwilling to share their knowledge?"

"Master teaching apprentice starves the master..." Zhou Lezhi blurted out, then immediately realized how inappropriate this sounded—after all, their relationship was firmly that of master and apprentice.

"Hahaha! What you said is not wrong. In the seventeenth... in this era, teaching the apprentice will starve the master. So whether apprentices or various workshops, all treat their craft as secrets, never teaching them easily, let alone disclosing them publicly." Mr. Zhou continued, "Then tell me—why does such a situation arise?"

"Because... originally only a few families possessed the skill. If everyone could do it, it would no longer be valuable."

"Would you say this glass vessel is good or not?"

"Of course it's good. Beautiful and clean. Excellent for holding anything—once dirty, a simple wash with water makes it spotless again."

"It has many other benefits as well."

"Corrosion resistant, aging resistant..." Zhou Lezhi had been accompanying his teacher in the laboratory recently; his ears had practically grown calluses from hearing about glass's advantages.

"With so many benefits, logically everyone should want to use it. So why does no one?"

"Too few. Too expensive."

In the following half hour, Zhou Lezhi listened to a lesson on market supply and demand, gaining a preliminary yet comprehensive understanding of concepts such as "productive forces," "market," "technological progress," "cost," and "profit."

When the Teacher imparted knowledge, he always began with concrete examples and connected them to reality. Often, concepts that seemed difficult to grasp could be explained with remarkable clarity. This kind of instruction was not limited to formal class time but occurred anytime and anywhere. As a result, learning many subjects was never boring—quite interesting, in fact.

Sometimes the Teacher would speak of things in "Australia," where he had cultivated the Dao, including how abundant the productive forces were there—everyone could eat white rice, had meat to eat, and lived in large houses. Such descriptions filled Zhou Lezhi with envy, though he also suspected his teacher was exaggerating.

However, one thing he was certain of: whether everyone in Australia truly ate well was difficult to say, but the Teacher undoubtedly enjoyed fine meals regularly. One only needed to observe the Teacher's smooth, delicate skin to know—laboring people simply couldn't possess such complexion.

"Teacher, was this object produced in Australia?" Zhou Lezhi asked.

"No." The Teacher's answer was crisp and definitive. "This object was made right here in the Great Ming. If it were an Australian product, it certainly wouldn't be this rough."

"So it seems Australians are manufacturing locally. Perhaps right in Guangzhou."

"Your analysis makes sense." A smile appeared at the corner of Mr. Zhou's mouth. "Tell me—if you were an Australian, why would you manufacture in Guangzhou? After all, Australian glass vessels are inexpensive, and production costs there are lower."

"Didn't you just explain, Teacher? The market price of goods is affected by many factors. Although glass products are cheap in Australia, transporting them over thousands of li incurs enormous freight costs, and the round trip takes a year. As the saying goes, tofu becomes the price of meat. Naturally, making and selling locally is far more cost-effective..."

"Well said." Mr. Zhou nodded, then asked—or perhaps muttered to himself—"I wonder where they are?"

"Find that Master Guo and ask—then we'll know," Zhou Lezhi suggested. "Even if he refuses to tell, these goods can't appear from thin air; there must be transportation and loading involved. As long as we have Big Brother Liu hire more informants to watch the routes, finding the source should be simple enough."

"Heh! I didn't expect your comprehension in this area to be so sharp!" Mr. Zhou tapped the table lightly. "It's decided then—we men will travel to Guangzhou again as soon as spring arrives!"

"He wants to go to Guangzhou?" Wang Yehao frowned slightly after hearing Wang Liang's report.

"Yes. Zhou Lezhi mentioned they're preparing to set off when spring warms and flowers bloom. He also said they plan to request that the Master assign several more men with advanced martial skills—like the two Liu brothers—to accompany them."

"Understood. You may go."

Obviously, this Hearthstone Immortal had discovered some clues from Zizhenzhai's vessels, which was why he was so eager to find Guo Yi and trace the source of the goods.

Wang Yehao naturally knew the source—it was in Lingao County. But this information could not yet be revealed to him.

If he found clues in Guangzhou and proceeded to Lingao, obtained the Qiankun Mirror or found Australians to join and return with them to their country, this immensely useful chess piece would be squandered.

Only by controlling the channels of information could he effectively manipulate the Hearthstone Immortal and extract even greater value from him.

Moreover, Wang Zunde had already submitted a memorial to the court, preparing to suppress the shorn-hair bandits in Lingao. If Immortal Zhou traveled to Guangzhou at this time—given his careless and forthright manner of speaking—he might be seized as a spy. If he actually found his way to Lingao and failed to leave in time, he might perish amid the chaos of battle. That would be a tremendous loss!

Something must be done to obstruct him.

But what method to use? Wang Yehao pondered deeply. Direct persuasion was certainly out of the question; forcible prohibition would damage their relationship. The ideal approach would be something that appeared "inevitable."

He quietly summoned Liu Zhao and asked if he had any ideas—after all, these Jinyiwei investigators excelled at manipulating human hearts.

"This is not difficult," Liu Zhao replied almost without thinking. "I have a method."

"What method?"

"The simplest approach merely requires someone close to the Hearthstone Immortal to carry it out. I'm uncertain whether they can be trusted."

"Speak freely."

Thus, a change befell Mr. Zhou's enthusiastic "Spring Guangzhou Australian Search Trip" just as he was preparing to depart—Zhou Juli suddenly fell ill.

The illness struck with frightening speed. The day before, Zhou Juli had been toddling about everywhere, babbling happily with her rattle drum, her cheeks plump with baby fat. The very next day, she was bedridden, her entire being groggy, seeming to sleep yet not truly asleep.

Seeing his infant daughter lapse into such lethargy, Immortal Zhou grew frantic with worry, spinning in circles and personally keeping vigil at her bedside.

As for symptoms, they were truly peculiar. First, no fever; second, no cough... aside from her drowsy stupor, there were no other signs of illness.

Though the Hearthstone Immortal had built his reputation on the title of "Divine Doctor" and still occasionally treated patients with reportedly good results, he was utterly helpless before his daughter's ailment. He could only pace the room in anxious circles. The Teacher's temper grew increasingly volatile—he scolded Zhou Lezhi, scolded Jieyi, scolded the maids, scolded Liu Zhao... in short, everyone in the Zhou Residence received a tongue-lashing.

Under Master Wang's attentive care, several renowned local physicians were summoned. Yet they offered differing diagnoses regarding the illness, and the prescriptions they wrote each had their own particular emphases. The Teacher initially forbade using any of them, but he could not bear to watch Zhou Juli refuse both food and water while her complexion grew dimmer by the day. Eventually, he had no choice but to order them tried.

Quite a few decoctions were administered. At last, Zhou Juli's condition gradually improved. Because her body remained weak and physicians were called repeatedly for recuperation, the ordeal dragged on until June. Summer was unsuitable for long-distance travel, so the Teacher postponed his plan to visit Guangzhou until autumn.

(End of Chapter)