CHAPTER 252: CHAPTER 247 CRAFTSMAN

Fu Tinghan watched Zhao Erlang practice with the spear, and after drawing a fitting spear shaft for him, handed it over to the craftsman to make.

The people from Chenzhou also brought along two craftsmen, oh no, one craftsman and one apprentice.

Zhao Hanzhang was stunned to see them in the front hall of the county government; she never expected Chang Ning to actually persuade them to send people over.

Zhao Hanzhang examined the two and asked, "What are your names?"

The young man standing at the front bowed and said, "I am Hu Jin."

Zhao Hanzhang looked at the other.

The other was actually about the same age as Hu Jin, but tall and strong, he also bowed and said, "I am Lv Hu."

His voice was like a great bell, very sonorous.

Zhao Hanzhang looked at him suspiciously, "Are you also a craftsman?"

He didn’t seem like it; he looked more like one of her camp warriors.

Lv Hu replied in a muffled voice, "I am still an apprentice."

Zhao Hanzhang nodded and asked, "How long have you been learning woodblock printing?"

Coincidentally, both had been learning woodblock printing for the same duration, starting at six years old and now twelve years in.

Hu Jin was capable of leading independently as a craftsman, while Lv Hu was still an apprentice.

This was said by the manager from Chenzhou.

The manager from Chenzhou stated, although they were willing to send craftsmen to Zhao Hanzhang, they had to ask their opinion, and currently, only these two were willing to come to Zhao Hanzhang.

Among them, Hu Jin’s skills were quite good.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Hanzhang felt touched and glanced up to find Lv Hu reluctantly lowering his head.

Zhao Hanzhang asked, "Do they have family, and can their family also be sent here?"

The manager laughed and said, "Hu Jin’s family came with him, Lv Hu only has himself."

Zhao Hanzhang nodded and immediately arranged accommodations for the two near the bookstore, ensuring they were well-treated.

She didn’t immediately promise anything, and the manager, being sensible, left without mentioning the banquets after sending the people.

Once the people left, Zhao Hanzhang immediately sought the two and asked, "Are you enrolled as slave households or craftsman households?"

Both respectfully replied, "We are enrolled as craftsman households."

Zhao Hanzhang felt even more satisfied, instructing them to take their residence books to Xiping County to settle down; from today, they and their families would be considered people of her Xiping County.

Zhao Hanzhang directly took them to the bookstore, of course, getting started right away was impossible, she simply wanted to inquire about their woodblock printing process to gauge their abilities.

Lv Hu mostly listened, with Hu Jin explaining the entire time.

The key technologies in woodblock printing were carving, inking, and maintaining the blocks, all of which Hu Jin was very proficient at, indicating he was indeed a seasoned craftsman.

Zhao Hanzhang wrote a line and asked him to carve it.

Hu Jin understood it was a test but wasn’t fazed, he pressed the paper onto the woodblock, then took out his carving knife and began carving following the traces.

While watching, Zhao Hanzhang asked, "Do you recognize words?"

Hu Jin paused briefly and said, "Not many, only a few."

"Do you recognize the line I wrote?"

Hu Jin put down the carving knife, took the paper, and read it aloud word by word, "Lao, Zi, Tian, Xia, Di, Yi."

Zhao Hanzhang was very satisfied and said, "Actually, you don’t need to pause."

She watched Hu Jin carve the raised script, process it, and then began inking for printing; the printed words weren’t much different from her handwriting.

Her eyes shone brightly as she looked at the freshly printed text, feeling very satisfied, "I’ll give you two days to settle your families, two days later choose a few smart students from the school to help, I’ll provide you with manuscripts for you to carve."

Hu Jin hesitated for a moment before agreeing.

Zhao Hanzhang smiled, "Don’t worry, work well with me, I won’t treat you poorly, wages will be thirty percent higher than the Chen Family’s, and if you have other requests, feel free to bring them up, if I can fulfill them, I will."

Although Zhao Hanzhang spoke generously, neither dared to propose conditions.

The bookstore was also managed by Zhao Qing, Zhao Hanzhang was very interested in the bookstore, primarily because the first books she planned to print were two primers she had transcribed from memory.

So she hadn’t let the Zhao Family manage it for now and planned to explore it herself.

The main reason was that only two people were there, and it didn’t require much management.

Once Zhao Hanzhang left, Hu Jin glanced at Lv Hu and hesitantly asked, "Junior apprentice, would you like to come to my house?"

Lv Hu turned and left.

Zhao Hanzhang was unaware of what happened between them; she just assessed Hu Jin’s skills, appreciating Chenzhou’s goodwill, and told Chang Ning, "Inform Chenzhou to prepare for the banquet two days later, I’ll take him to it."

Seeing her satisfaction, Chang Ning smiled and acknowledged before asking, "Do you want to send someone to investigate the two?"

Zhao Hanzhang waved dismissively, "There’s no secret in the bookstore."

Even the technical staff were from elsewhere, what secret could there be?

Chang Ning agreed but thought, "How could Lv Hu have no family? It should still be checked."

Zhao Hanzhang sighed, "Sir, I’m not opposed to investigating, but I’m short on people right now."

Chang Ning said nothing thereafter.

Ultimately, his cautious nature led him to find a couple of government officials from the county government to investigate in Ancheng County.

Lv Hu...did have family, but...he was divided out.

The news returned quickly, just the night before their banquet, Fu Tinghan accompanied Zhao Hanzhang as they listened to a sorrowful story about an underachiever.

"Hu Jin and Lv Hu both apprenticed under Master Lv, oh, Master Lv is Lv Hu’s father, he has three sons, all learning woodblock printing under him, but Lv Hu is rather ordinary in talent, even with Master Lv favoring him, he is still an apprentice after twelve years."

Even Zhao Erlang was captivated, holding his chopsticks as he listened blankly, and asked, "What happened then?"

"Then he was divided out of the household," Chang Ning glanced at Zhao Erlang before adding, "His family separated him, the officials inquired, it’s deemed he can’t graduate as a craftsman, so he’d have to do odd jobs, apprentices at the Chen Family Bookstore are raised from a young age, and after learning, they receive wages, it’s said he hasn’t earned even one cent for his home yet."

Too pitiful.

Zhao Erlang empathized, thinking of himself, and hurriedly looked at his sister, "Sister, will you drive him away?"

"Why would I drive him away?" Zhao Hanzhang smiled, "His unsuitability as a craftsman doesn’t mean he’s unfit for other roles, it’s merely because his ancestors were craftsmen, so he can only choose this."

Although she lost a usable apprentice, Zhao Hanzhang wasn’t too regrettful, after all, they’re all hers, if one place isn’t suitable, just change the location.

"Now there’s no one in the bookstore, though his skills are average, he’s an apprentice at a bookstore for twelve years, his experience is still better than most, let him assist Hu Jin, and eventually train him," Zhao Hanzhang stated, "We’ll cultivate our own people while continuing to seek craftsmen."

This was unrelated to Chang Ning, as he lacked connections, these matters were all handled by Ji Yuan.