After a male student transmigrated into the body of a widow,

Chapter 175 Guanyin Soil

He did not immediately lead his men out of the city. There was not enough time today. If they left the city, they would not be able to return before the city gates were locked, and they would have to sleep in the suburbs.

After their ordeal at the inn, and knowing that someone was watching them, Gu Lin didn't dare to be so casual, even though he really wanted the man to take them to the pottery workshop.

After finding out where the man lived, Gu Lin took out some money from his purse and handed it to him. Seeing the man's confused and hesitant expression, Gu Lin said, "Take it. We'll need your help to take us to the back of your house tomorrow."

"These aren't given to you for free; consider them as income for when you don't set up your stall tomorrow."

The man's lips moved slightly. He looked down at the silver in his hand. This was far more than a day's income. Even if he worked rain or shine, he couldn't earn that much silver selling pottery for a month!

After making arrangements with the man, Gu Lin led his men back to the manor and told Da Yan that he would be leaving the city the next day. Da Yan did not ask any questions and arranged for several more guards to be assigned to him, which Gu Lin did not refuse.

The next day, Gu Lin led seven or eight guards out of the city. He had asked the man to wait for him outside the city yesterday. As soon as he left the city, Gu Lin saw the man's figure under the shade of a tree near the city gate.

Lifting the car curtain, Gu Lin said to the man, "Come on in, we'll get in and get to your house faster."

Upon hearing this, the man carefully boarded the carriage. He did not enter the carriage but sat in front of the carriage with the guards.

A clear and kind voice came from inside the car. The man heard Gu Lin ask, "I remember you said yesterday that the place to get clay is on the mountain behind your house. Is it deep in the mountains?"

Wild animals roam the mountains. If what he wanted was hidden deep within the mountains, Gu Lin thought it best not to take the risk. After all, if they were unlucky enough to encounter any of the wild boars, tigers, or bears, their group would have no chance of escape.

The man replied, "It's not in the mountains. The place where they get the clay is at the foot of the mountain, just a few steps from my home."

Hearing this, Gu Lin felt relieved and asked the man outside the carriage, "In the rush yesterday, I forgot to ask the boss's name. Do you know how to address the boss?"

Using "you" all the time is unpleasant and disrespectful.

Unexpectedly, the wealthy young man inside was so approachable that he even took the initiative to ask his name. The man was a little flattered: "My name is Bai Laosan, and I'm from Baijia Village. You can just call me Bai Laosan."

Gu Lin said, "I'll call you Boss Bai."

Hearing the way the other person addressed him, Bai Laosan felt a little embarrassed. He was just a pottery vendor who could only earn a few coins a day. How could he be called a boss? In his mind, a boss was a term used to address wealthy merchants who did big business.

Sensing Bai Laosan's restraint, Gu Lin remained silent.

The carriage swayed and rattled along the way. After about half an hour, Bai Laosan raised his voice slightly, pointed to a place in the distance, and said to Gu Lin inside the carriage, "Husband, that's my home."

Gu Lin lifted the carriage curtain and looked outside. The guards drove the carriage in the direction the man pointed.

After getting off the carriage, Gu Lin stood outside Bai Laosan's house.

Bai Laosan asked, "My family has prepared cool water at home. Would you and your fellow warriors like to come in and have some?"

Gu Lin shook his head slightly in refusal. It wasn't that he disliked the simplicity of Bai Laosan's home, but rather that he was extremely eager to see what he was looking forward to.

Don't be fooled by his calm and composed demeanor; he was actually incredibly nervous inside. Before arriving at Bai Laosan's house, Gu Lin only had anticipation, but now he was afraid that his guess was wrong.

Gu Lin just wanted to get to the back mountain as soon as possible to confirm his guess.

He said to Bai Laosan, "No need to trouble you. Please take us to the back mountain to see what this unusual clay is like."

Bai Laosan quickly agreed.

The group followed Bai Laosan up the mountain. Just as he had said, Tao Ni's location was not far from his home. Gu Lin calculated in his mind that they had walked about a hundred steps when Bai Laosan, who was leading the way, turned to look at them.

Bai Laosan pointed to a spot not far ahead and said to Gu Lin, "Husband, that clay over there is the clay I use to make pottery."

Upon hearing this, Gu Lin followed the other person's finger and quickened his pace, arriving in front of a patch of yellowish-brown earth.

Squatting down, Gu Lin reached out and grabbed a handful of yellowish-brown soil, then rubbed it between his fingers. The texture was rough like sandpaper, and a look of surprise flashed in Gu Lin's eyes.

really!

The reason why Bai Laosan's pottery is more delicate than that of other stalls is because he uses Guanyin clay when making his pottery.

Gu Lin recognized Guanyin clay. During many famine-stricken dynasties, Guanyin clay was a life-saving "food" for disaster victims. It has a strong water absorption capacity and can quickly fill a person's stomach when they are hungry. However, clay is clay after all and not real food. If too much Guanyin clay is consumed, the stomach will swell up like a ball. The Guanyin clay inside the stomach cannot be expelled from the body, and in the end, the person will die from bloating.

Kaolin clay is inedible, but it's a crucial ingredient for firing white porcelain. Porcelain made from it is pure white like jade, with a delicate and smooth texture. Thinking of the rough surface of the white porcelain made by the artisans of the Great Qian Dynasty, which would yellow over time, Gu Lin looked down at the Kaolin clay before him, contemplating what would happen if he used it to make white porcelain…

Gu Lin stood up, his expression unchanged, but his eyes were full of joy and laughter. He never expected that while he was in the capital, struggling with how to fire glass with craftsmen like Yu Ercheng, he would find Guanyin clay for firing white porcelain after arriving in Jibei Prefecture.

However, Gu Lin raised his eyes and scanned the entire mountain peak. Then, he turned to Bai Laosan and said, "This clay is interesting. It's different from anything I've seen before. My elders at home, like me, enjoy making pottery. I'd like to buy this mountain and give it to them. I wonder who this mountain belongs to?"

Upon hearing this, Bai Laosan stammered and asked, "Are you sure you want to buy this mountain?"

Unlike other mountains, this mountain is not covered with dense forests or abundant prey. It is barren and desolate, and in winter, you can hardly find any firewood. When the mountains were divided, no one in the village wanted this barren mountain.

Gu Lin nodded and said, "After I buy it, I want to have someone study how this clay is different from other clays. If we find something interesting, I'll bring my elders over to try it out themselves."

Hearing the young man's outrageous explanation, Bai Laosan did not doubt it; on the contrary, he believed it without a doubt.

Isn't that how the husbands and wives of wealthy families are? They can spend hundreds of taels of silver a day on things they like, let alone a barren mountain that's not worth much money.

Old Man Bai honestly replied, "This barren mountain doesn't belong to anyone; it's registered under Bai Family Village. If you want to buy it, I can ask the village chief for you."

Actually, there was no need to ask; Bai Laosan already knew the outcome. With frequent wars in the past two years, the villagers were very poor and didn't have much food. If this young master could buy the barren mountain, it would be a good thing for them.

Gu Lin said, "I'll go to your house and wait there first. You can go find the village chief and ask him if you can exchange grain for it, as long as it's not excessive."

Bai Laosan's expression shifted between surprise and delight. He nodded emphatically, then led Gu Lin and his group down the mountain at breakneck speed. After Gu Lin and the others entered their home, he immediately ran to find the village chief.

"Village Chief! Village Chief! A distinguished guest from the city wants to buy our barren mountain!"

As soon as he ran into the village chief's yard, Bai Laosan couldn't wait to shout.

"What are you yelling and jumping around for? Calm down and stop running around. You need to eat as much food as you expend!"

The village chief, leaning on his cane, walked shakily out of the house.

Unfazed by the village chief's scolding, Bai Laosan, abandoning his usual sullen demeanor, stepped forward to help the chief up. Seeing the chief's indifferent expression, clearly not having heard him clearly, he slowed his pace and raised his voice: "Village chief, someone has come to buy our village's barren mountains!"

"Buy it then. It's just a barren mountain. It can't produce fruit or be used for firewood, so it's useless."

The village chief waved his hand dismissively.

Bai Laosan took a breath and said, "They said we can exchange it for grain!"

The village chief paused, then turned and looked intently at Bai Laosan, shouting, "You're just making things worse! Hurry up and take me there!"

He shook his cane, signaling Bai Laosan to lead the way. Seeing that he was full of energy, Bai Laosan hurried on his way. Soon they arrived at Bai Laosan's house, where Gu Lin and his group were also outside.

The village chief stepped forward and saw that the young man in front of him was dressed in extraordinary clothes, not like ordinary cotton cloth, and must be a nobleman from the city.

He bowed and said, "This old man greets my husband!"

Gu Lin was standing outside Bai Laosan's house, waiting for the other party to bring people back to discuss the business in the back mountain. Unexpectedly, when he turned his head, he saw an old man bowing to him. Gu Lin quickly stepped forward and helped the village chief up, saying, "Old man, please get up. I can't accept your bow."

The guards stepped forward to help Gu Lin lift the village chief up.

Seeing that the young man in front of him seemed genuine and not just putting on an act, the village chief did not insist on bowing.

He straightened up and took the initiative to ask, "I heard that my husband wants to buy the back mountain. This back mountain is a barren mountain, but it is the property of all the villagers of Baijia Village. I cannot dispose of it at will. Could my husband give me a rough price so that I can consider it carefully?"

Listening to the village chief's words, Gu Lin did not think that the other party was playing tricks on him and trying to raise the price of the back mountain. This back mountain did not belong to one family. The other party was right to carefully consider the price issue. Otherwise, if the back mountain was sold in the end, they would not get anything. If it was divided among each household, they would not see any benefit at all, which would easily arouse the anger of the villagers.

Gu Lin pondered for a moment and then offered a price: "How about seventy shi of grain?"

"Seventy shi?!"

Bai Laosan exclaimed in surprise.

Although the village chief wasn't as easily startled as Bai Laosan, he was still visibly shocked.

Gu Lin continued to the village chief, "How about seventy shi of millet?"

The village chief's mouth trembled. He had thought that the other party would be lucky to give forty shi of grain, which was likely to be sorghum and the like. But at this time, it was good enough to have this much to eat. Forty shi of grain could last for a while if it was distributed among the households. He never expected that the young man in front of him would give seventy shi of grain, and it was all millet.

If he weren't selling mountains, he would have scolded the young man for being wasteful.

However, a hint of hesitation crossed the village chief's face; this barren mountain was indeed not worth seventy bushels of millet.

He said to the young man, “My lord, there is nothing on this barren mountain. It’s not worth this price. Forty bushels of grain will suffice.”

Apart from Gu Lin, no one present knew the benefits of Guanyin clay. Bai Laosan and the village chief thought the barren mountain was worthless, but Gu Lin knew how much benefit Guanyin clay could bring him. Seventy shi of grain was not difficult for him to obtain, but it was life-saving food for the village chief and villagers.

But he couldn't tell the two the truth. Gu Lin said, "If I like it, it's worth the price."

Gu Lin said to the village chief, "If you refuse again, I will go to another village to buy the mountain."

Seeing the young man's expression gradually turn serious, the village chief feared that the man might actually leave Baijia Village to buy wasteland in other villages, and then miss out on the seventy shi of grain, which would be a real regret for him!

Knowing that the other party was kind and offered a good price, the village chief was very grateful and thanked them, saying, "I'll transfer the property to you right now."

After working for half a day, Gu Lin finally managed to claim the barren mountain as his own. He decided to return to the city and send a message to Yu Ercheng to bring craftsmen to study how to fire white porcelain.

After being inspected by the city gate soldiers, the carriage entered the city. There are many restrictions on the movement of carriages within the city, including the requirement that carriages cannot travel too fast. Feeling the snail-like speed as he sat down, Gu Lin said to the guard outside the carriage, "You drive the carriage back first, and I will lead the people back on foot."

They kept in mind Steward Da Zhuo's instructions: as long as their husbands traveled with enough people, they would obey their husbands.

After the guards drove the carriage away, Gu Lin headed towards the mansion where he would be staying. It wasn't far from the mansion; it would only take about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea to get there. Otherwise, Gu Lin wouldn't have let the guards drive the carriage away.

As Gu Lin walked, he scanned the surrounding stalls. The aroma of donkey meat sandwiches on the street made his mouth water as he longed for the crispy outside and tender inside of the donkey meat sandwiches.

Gu Lin walked toward the stall selling donkey meat sandwiches, intending to buy two to take home for lunch.

A commotion came from not far away, accompanied by the sound of various things falling to the ground, as well as screams and shouts from men and women. Gu Lin turned his head to look.

A tall horse galloped through the middle of the street, smashing up many items on the stalls along the way, and pedestrians scattered to the sides.

Gu Lin initially thought the horse had gone out of control, but the person sitting on the tall horse was holding the reins and shouting loudly, "Get out of the way, don't hurt my horse."

Seeing the man acting arrogantly, letting his horse gallop away and even occasionally bumping into pedestrians, Gu Lin frowned. Suddenly, a short figure rushed out from the side of the street and fell in the middle of the street, but the tall horse not far away continued to gallop towards the child.

Gu Lin's eyes narrowed, and before the guards could react, he quickly ran to the center of the street, lunged at the child sitting blankly on the ground, and rolled to the side of the street with him. A tall horse galloped past the two of them, the wind whistling past Gu Lin's face. He held the child and watched the horse land, crushing the pieces of meat that had accidentally fallen from the butcher shop into a pulp.

Gu Lin felt weak in the knees and his back broke out in a cold sweat.

Almost there...

He was almost trampled into mincemeat.