Triumph in Her Rise and Love-Chapter 166 - 164

Yuan Yunzhong really couldn’t bear to watch and said, "Look at the face of the Guanyin Bodhisattva."

In some places, Bodhisattvas are carved from stone, in some places from wood, and in others from clay. Jingde Town, being a major producer of porcelain, not only provides jobs for the locals but also supports many outsiders who come here to work. The visitors are particularly generous and are willing to donate money for incense oil.

The statue of the Guanyin Bodhisattva at The Eight Immortals Nunnery was carved from stone, and the face of Guanyin was even carved from white marble.

It had a compassionate expression, smiling down at all living beings. The benevolent face subtly glowed in the dimly lit great hall, appearing especially fair.

Song Jiyun looked up and saw the face of the Bodhisattva, which seemed to be coated in light, as if it had been glazed.

She couldn’t help but be moved.

An idea flashed through her mind.

"Yuan Yunzhong!" she couldn’t help but call out the name of the person next to her, "Are you suggesting, suggesting that I should make Buddha statues with jade porcelain?"

Yuan Yunzhong, whose face had been cold most of the day, finally showed a slight thaw as he coldly said, "At least you’re not completely foolish."

Song Jiyun laughed heartily, suddenly finding Yuan Yunzhong’s aloof demeanor somewhat endearing.

She didn’t care how Yuan Yunzhong saw her anymore, knelt on the cushion, and bowed three times to the Bodhisattva with her hands together, muttering, "Oh great and compassionate Guanyin, Goddess of Mercy, please bless my family with peace and good fortune, grant Young Master Yuan’s wishes, and ensure my success so I can regild your statue!"

After speaking, she said to Yuan Yunzhong, "I’ll be right back," and dashed off.

"Come back!" Yuan Yunzhong called her back with a sudden shout.

He pointed to the monks and worshippers nearby waiting at The Eight Immortals Nunnery for the Cold-dispelling Charm.

He didn’t say a word. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Apparently, he wanted Song Jiyun to guess again.

Song Jiyun blinked her starry eyes, smilingly stood hands-on-hips and said, "Got it, got it, once the Guanyin statue is done, I’ll deliver it first to The Eight Immortals Nunnery."

Yuan Yunzhong then nodded in satisfaction.

Song Jiyun felt embarrassed to leave him there alone, as if she was using him and discarding him afterward.

She called Zheng Quan over and said, "Accompany Young Master Yuan for a stroll around The Eight Immortals Nunnery. I remember there’s a shop selling Suzhou-style pastries, and their osmanthus cake is pretty good."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Quan couldn’t help but scratch his head.

Young Master Yuan was too difficult to deal with.

He really didn’t know how to take Young Master Yuan around.

While Song Jiyun had already left, he had no choice but to reluctantly gesture "please" to Yuan Yunzhong.

Without even glancing at him, Yuan Yunzhong emotionlessly said, "Call Shao Qing over, no need for you."

Although it was quite rude, Zheng Quan felt relieved as if he’d been pardoned and hurriedly ran to call Shao Qing.

Meanwhile, Song Jiyun couldn’t wait to notify the people at the Kiln Factory. They were to meet in the Song Family Accountant’s office first thing in the morning. Alone in the monastery’s meditation room, she sat looking at a foot-high stone sculpture of the Guanyin Bodhisattva, gradually calming down.

She had never felt superior to others just because she stood on the shoulders of giants. Historically, countless great figures were unprecedented and unmatched. Everyone knew making statues of deities was a big business, like the Sacrificial Porcelain. If they couldn’t sell this year, they could sell the next, never worrying about customers. But why did so few in Jingde Town make Buddha statues?

There must still be technical issues.

They were difficult to produce.

Song Jiyun kept writing and drawing, listing all the potential problems she might encounter, preparing to discuss them with Luo Zixing and the others tomorrow.

It wasn’t until the light in the room gradually dimmed and Xiang Zhan came to call her that she realized it was time to go back.

What she hadn’t expected was that Madam Qian not only donated a large sum of money for incense oil to The Eight Immortals Nunnery but also bought many large and small Buddha statues from there.

Having a focus is beneficial, but it’s not appropriate to put all of life’s emphasis on it.

She smiled and pointed at the stack of Buddhist statues, "Mother, are you planning to set up a Buddha hall at home?"

"Nonsense!" Madam Qian glanced at the abbot who was talking to a guest, pulled Jiyun aside, and whispered, "Young Master Yuan asked us to buy these, and he told me to keep a clear record of the prices."

The clever Jixue quietly added, "Sister, my brother-in-law also had us go outside to inquire about the prices of these statues!"

Was he conducting market research for her?

Jiyun’s gaze unintentionally shifted toward Yuan Yunzhong, who was standing beside the carriage with a stern face.

He frowned slightly, clearly growing impatient as he waited for them to get on the carriage.

Seeing this, Jixue pursed her lips and smiled, "My brother-in-law also bought me a sugar figure of the Eight Immortals crossing the sea."

Among all the sugar figure designs, the Eight Immortals crossing the sea is the largest and most expensive.

"That’s very nice!" Jiyun touched Jixue’s head and smiled, "Have you thanked Young Master Yuan?"

"I thanked him!" Jixue’s cheeks turned slightly red as she whispered, "Brother-in-law also praised me for being smart—he asked me about the prices, and I remembered them all."

Did her sister possess such a talent?

Jiyun was slightly stunned.

Jixue, oblivious to her sister’s expression, continued excitedly, "Brother-in-law said, since we are major patrons, the temple definitely charges us more than others for the statues. I wanted to negotiate with the temple’s guest master, but brother-in-law stopped me. He said we are here at the Eight Immortals Nunnery for a visit, and the abbot personally welcomed us, a courtesy not extended to others. It’s because we pay more than others. When we can afford it, we shouldn’t be too nitpicky with others..."

Yuan Yunzhong had said all this to her?!

Jiyun was incredibly surprised.

Her gaze once again fell on Yuan Yunzhong.

*

The next day, several store managers and master craftsmen from the Song Family Kiln Factory arrived as promised.

When they heard that Jiyun planned to use Jade Porcelain to craft Buddhist statues, the master craftsmen fell into silence unanimously.

"What’s the matter? Is there a difficulty that you don’t know how to discuss with me?" Jiyun smiled and motioned for the maids to pour tea for everyone present.

Luo Zixing, relying on his status as a longtime employee from the time of Jiyun’s father, whom Jiyun respected, spoke first, "When the owner was alive, it’s not that we hadn’t thought about it, but crafting Buddhist statues is different; it requires molds. There are not many who can make molds in Jingde Town, even fewer who do it well."

He paused, his speech tinged with hesitation as he continued, "That’s one thing. Another issue is the clay for the Jade Porcelain; it has always been controlled by the owner himself. If we were to mass-produce these statues, I’m unsure if we would have enough clay?"

Since Song Tao had used it, Jiyun had no intention of hiding it any longer.

She smiled and said, "There’s nothing special about the clay for Jade Porcelain. It comes from Dehua, Fujian. If we need to mass-produce Buddhist statues, we’ll just figure out a way to procure a large quantity of clay from Dehua."

Everyone was shocked.

Only master craftsman Luo Zixing seemed contemplative.

Jiyun took a sip of tea with a smile and then said, "Let’s find a way to find mold craftsmen! If that doesn’t work, we can also consider recruiting from Dehua!"

As for whether other kiln factories in Jingde Town might sense a business opportunity, that would depend on their own skills.

She had never planned to keep producing the so-called "Jade Porcelain" indefinitely.

After all, Jade Porcelain is fired at low temperatures and does not retain colors as permanently as the high-temperature porcelain from Jingde Town.

This was why her father only used Jade Porcelain for sacrificial ceramics and not for everyday ceramics when he was alive.

If the Song Family Kiln Factory was to endure, it ultimately had to aim for the high-end market and return to high-temperature porcelain production.