Chapter Sixty: The Application of Raw Lacquer in the Second Dimension

Chapter Sixty: The Second-Dimensional Use of Raw Lacquer

The fox slipped nimbly into the Tie family’s small courtyard. Wang Rouhua had already gone to bed, and only Tie Xinyuan’s little room was still shining with lamplight.

The fox scratched at the door with its paw; Tie Xinyuan opened it and let the fox in. He lifted the fox onto the table, took out a slip of paper from its collar, glanced at the numbers written on it, and casually tossed the note into the brazier.

Wang Huaili had broken eleven bones; he probably wouldn't have the energy to meddle in outside affairs anymore. Once Tie Xinyuan was certain that Wang Huaili was out of the picture, he devoted himself to preparing the lacquer he needed. His mother had bought a small table that could be placed on the bed, but Tie Xinyuan found the bare wood unappealing and wanted to paint it.

Lacquer, in truth, is just raw lacquer. In the Song Dynasty, lacquering furniture was a troublesome process. His mother was allergic to raw lacquer; even the smell would leave her covered in red welts, so Tie Xinyuan didn't let her take part in this.

He poured rust-water into the raw lacquer; the iron rust would react with the lacquer, turning it inky black. When this lacquer was applied to a table, it would become jet black and gleam with a lustrous sheen. For this reason, this kind of lacquer was called “Ink Jade.”

Tie Xinyuan prepared a large bucket of lacquer. Clearly, his little table alone would never use up so much. According to Old Dog, Aunt Wang Yu was going to buy a large batch of tables and chairs from the woodwork shop tomorrow, so the lacquer needed to be ready in advance.

Tie Xinyuan stirred the lacquer ceaselessly with a wooden stick. When he could lift a thread of lacquer filaments from the bucket, he knew it was ready. He carefully poured the lacquer from the small bucket into a gourd, since it shouldn't be exposed to air for long, and needed to be sealed up quickly.

With the leftover lacquer, he used a broad brush to coat the little table outside the house, then warned the fox sternly not to go near it. Finally, after listening for the night-watch drums, he dragged the reluctant fox inside and went to bed.

By dawn, Tie Xinyuan was already up. He opened the gate and saw Tongzi squatting across the street, eating out of a huge rough porcelain bowl.

“Brother Yuan, do you want some? We're having wheat noodle soup today, with meat in it.”

Tie Xinyuan ran over happily and took a big bite from Tongzi’s bowl, then shook the gourd in his hand and said with a grin, “Tastes great, but I’ve got things to do—no time.”

Tongzi, alarmed, quickly pushed the bowl back in front of Tie Xinyuan. “Don’t worry, I know your quirks. I haven’t touched this bowl yet—have a little more.”

So Tie Xinyuan took a few more mouthfuls, wiped his mouth, and dashed off.

Looking back, he saw Tongzi wolfing down his food, and a genuine happiness welled up for him. Copper Coin had finally figured things out—his family’s meals had greatly improved.

In truth, Tongzi never feared hard work; he only dreaded having nothing tasty to eat. As long as he ate well, no amount of labor could faze him.

Xiao Qiao’er, Xiao Ling’er, and Shui Zhu’er had already finished two bowls of wontons at Xiao Hua’s stall. When they saw Tie Xinyuan coming, they dropped their bowls and rushed over.

Xiao Qiao’er couldn’t wait, blurting out, “Is it ready? What’s inside—urine? Dog’s blood?”

“Ink Jade!”

Xiao Qiao’er sucked in a cold breath and gave a thumbs up. “Vicious! If you get lacquered, don’t expect peace for three or five months.” (Getting lacquered refers to an allergic reaction to raw lacquer.)

Tie Xinyuan sneered, “I even added fish glue to the Ink Jade. To wash off black lacquer mixed with glue takes over a month—and that’s only after all the old skin peels away.”

Xiao Qiao’er was so delighted he could barely breathe, snatching the gourd from Tie Xinyuan and hugging it with wild laughter. “It’s Zhang Sanshui’s woodshop, isn’t it? They’re repairing the archway right now—leave this to me.”

Tie Xinyuan quickly grabbed his arm. “The most important thing is—”

Xiao Qiao’er grinned slyly. “Silent and invisible—no one will know.”

“We’re doing it this way to avoid suspicion and make it harder for them to trace our revenge. In the end, they’ll know what we’ve done. If the Wang family elders have any sense, they’ll trace it back to the source. I refuse to believe they’ll keep ignoring my mother and making her suffer.”

Xiao Qiao’er clapped Tie Xinyuan’s shoulder. “I don’t care why you want to do this. I just like helping you. From now on, leave all these jobs to me.”

With that, he shouted for Xiao Ling’er and Shui Zhu’er and strode off toward the West Market.

After bidding a hasty farewell to the busy Xiao Hua, Tie Xinyuan took the fox and headed through the alleyways toward the school. Passing by Niu Sanpa’s baked flatbread shop, he bought a hot sesame cake, split it open, stuffed it with a generous portion of braised lamb head, and took a fierce bite—the taste was unforgettable.

Business at Niu Sanpa’s shop had increased tenfold since Tie Xinyuan suggested stuffing the flatbread with lamb head. Now, their naan and meat were famous, with long queues for a taste—though Tie Xinyuan never had to wait in line.

He had refused any kickbacks from Niu Sanpa’s family, only asking for a daily flatbread set aside for him.

Mr. Guo had been in good spirits lately, his face always glowing with cheer. Even when reading Zhang Fatty’s wretched essays, he would nod along despite the urge to smack him, holding back with a sigh, patting Zhang Fatty’s head and saying gently, “Why can’t you make progress?”

That single sentence sent Zhang Fatty—always braced for a beating—into wailing tears. Mr. Guo had to comfort him for a long time before he stopped crying.

Tie Xinyuan had great faith in Xiao Qiao’er’s knack for mischief. To him, Xiao Qiao’er was born for it—if he hadn’t met Tie Xinyuan and let Niu Er get away with things, Xiao Qiao’er would have racked up countless capital crimes by now.

Even so, Tie Xinyuan figured Xiao Qiao’er would land himself on the chopping block sooner or later. When someone finds more satisfaction in evil than in good, being beheaded by the authorities is only a matter of time.

All he could do for this brother was to keep him out of the government’s hands for as long as possible.

Mr. Guo’s lesson for the day was from the Analects, “Gongye Chang.”

Legend said this man could speak the language of birds. A crow once called out to him, “Gongye Chang, Gongye Chang, there’s a sheep on South Mountain. You eat the meat, I eat the intestines.” People followed Gongye Chang’s directions and indeed found a dead wild sheep on the mountain.

People didn’t believe he deduced this from seeing the crow circle above South Mountain; they believed he could truly understand crow language.

Such a man was considered frightening, and so he was locked up as a sorcerer.

“Confucius said of Nan Rong, ‘If the state is governed well, he will not be overlooked; if the state is in chaos, he will escape punishment.’ He married him to his brother’s daughter.”

Confucius greatly approved of those who found office when the state was ordered and escaped punishment when it was not. Tie Xinyuan thought being such a man sounded appealing, and resolved to emulate them, to see if such people could survive in the Song Dynasty.

Because this knowledge was so practical, Tie Xinyuan quickly lost himself in the school’s lessons, forgetting the tragic scene about to unfold in the West Market.

The West Market was the most bustling part of Tokyo. When the old market walls were still standing, this was where merchants gathered to do business.

Now, with the walls torn down, all the street-facing houses had become shops, but the West Market remained the city’s commercial hub.

Most businesses here dealt in wholesale; few shops catered to small sales. Today, Wang Yu had come to purchase a large batch of furniture for her newly built house. She didn’t trust such a major transaction to her steward and insisted on choosing everything herself.

Among the circle of noble ladies, this was considered disgraceful, but Wang Yu didn’t care. To her, saving money was more important than saving face.

Wearing a fine muslin skirt and even with a veil on her head, Wang Yu was strikingly conspicuous. She seemed to relish being at the center of attention, with everyone bustling around her—these were her happiest moments.

“Zhang Sanshui, Zhang Sanshui—what a fine name you’ve chosen. The steward recommended your shop, said your wares are the finest and most durable. But I’ve just looked, and they’re only so-so. Still, since the steward recommended you, I’ll give some respect to my elders. But you’d better not be skimming thirty percent off the top.”

An old man in coarse clothes trailed beside her, forcing patience. “The things you want, madam, I wouldn’t dare make any mistakes. The steward sent you to see my shop, and that’s an honor. Please, come inside. If nothing suits you, you can slap my old face and needn’t bother with any other shops. When it comes to household furnishings, Sanshui’s is second to none.”

Wang Yu smiled and pointed to the space outside the shop. “Please, bring all your wares out for me to inspect one by one. It’s too dim inside—if there are cracks in the lacquer, I won’t see them in there.”

The old shopkeeper bowed. “Madam, the pieces you want are large and heavy, most are in the storeroom, not easy to move back and forth. Besides, this is a busy street—hardly convenient. Why not come inside? If you find any fault with what you bring home, I’ll come in person to apologize, and you won’t pay a penny.”

As they were speaking, a small child, riding a bamboo hobby horse and wearing a monkey mask, barreled between them, clinging to Wang Yu’s leg and running circles around her. Another, slightly older, in a Kunlun slave mask, chased behind.

With a shriek, Wang Yu pushed the chubby boy down onto his backside. The second child pointed and shouted angrily at her, only to be seized and pummeled by the maids.

Brushing dust from her skirt, Wang Yu was about to question the shopkeeper when a half-grown boy ran over carrying a gourd, first rescuing his little brother from the maids’ clutches, then bowing deeply to beg her forgiveness for the child’s ignorance.

Wang Yu was in no mood to forgive. Two black paw prints now marked her skirt at the hips. The boy was too young for impropriety, but her skirt was ruined—the wretched child’s hands were stained with lacquer, impossible to wash out.

The head maid, her voice shrill, seized Xiao Shui’er, whose face was smudged with black, and scolded him mercilessly. Xiao Shui’er struggled to hold up the gourd, shouting, “Careful, you’ll spill it!”

Seeing how tightly Xiao Qiao’er clung to the gourd, the maid grew bolder, reaching out to snatch it, thinking that with the gourd in hand, he wouldn’t dare run.

With a crack, the gourd broke in two. A jet of black lacquer poured over the maid’s head. She screamed, and with a slap knocked the other half of the gourd from Xiao Qiao’er’s hand. As he let go, most of the lacquer splashed onto Wang Yu’s neck, sticky and thick, seeping down into her collar...

A local ruffian, having had enough of seeing women bully three children, gave Xiao Qiao’er a slap on the back of the neck and muttered, “Why aren’t you running?”

Xiao Qiao’er, seeing his brothers already lost in the crowd and Wang Yu’s servants charging over, hunched and slipped away through the throng.

As the maids chased after him amid Wang Yu’s screams, the ruffian thrust himself forward and, to the cheers of the onlookers, roared with laughter, “Looking for a man? Why not come to big brother here?”

After leaving the West Market, Xiao Qiao’er found Xiao Ling’er and Shui Zhu’er under the big willow. He pulled off their masks and flung them without hesitation into the river, washed his own face, and then took his two brothers off to enjoy the sweet drink he’d promised them.