The System Wanted Me to Be a Landlady (GL) - Chapter 15: Bamboo Weaving

Chapter 15: Bamboo Weaving

Bamboo weaving? Bamboo weaving!

In a flash, Song Yuyan grasped another way out.

Did she know bamboo weaving? She did, and compared to straw weaving, she was much more familiar with bamboo weaving.

After all, she learned straw weaving by chance and didn’t spend much time on it. Most of her attention was elsewhere.

But in her twenty-three years of life, besides jade, the material she handled the most and for the longest was bamboo and wood! Her grandfather was a master jade carver, so she grew up handling jade. Later, he taught her painting, building a solid foundation, and then she started learning carving.

In the years that followed, she didn’t just work with jade. Staying by her grandfather’s side for so long, she also met masters of bamboo and wood carving. Compared to jade carving, she preferred bamboo and wood carving, and from then on, she mostly worked with bamboo.

After growing more interested in bamboo, she tried everything: bamboo engraving, bamboo carving, and bamboo weaving.

Her grandfather worried she was learning too much and not mastering anything, so he openly and secretly urged her to focus on jade carving.

But every time she studied with a teacher, she earned their praise, which made her grandfather so angry he’d huff and glare. During holidays, he’d drag her back, claiming it was to “refine her carving skills.”

She knew he was just worried she’d focus on bamboo and wood carving and neglect jade carving…

Recalling the past, Song Yuyan felt a bit sentimental. She never thought the bamboo weaving she learned as a hobby would become a tool for survival here.

…

After sending Lin Yongming off, Song Yuyan tried hard to recall the original owner’s memories. She found that, besides Ming mats, Mingzhou indeed had many local products, like the熏笼 (smoking baskets), roasting baskets, straw sandals, silk, gauze, ramie, and celadon that Lin Yongming mentioned.

The goods traded with foreign merchants were mainly bamboo, wood, and straw products, celadon, vegetables, bamboo shoots, and some seafood, since bamboo and wood were abundant here, and seafood was plentiful too.

The largest mountain in Cixi County was Siming Mountain, which stretched into Yin County, and Mingzhou was named after it. Besides Siming Mountain, there were thirty-six other mountains, big and small, with names, and countless unnamed low hills.

These mountains were covered with trees and grew plenty of bamboo, especially moso bamboo.

Except for some forests claimed by powerful families, most of the trees and bamboo were ownerless, so villagers would go up the mountains to cut bamboo. They’d either make furniture or slice it into strips to weave bamboo containers.

Compared to straw mats, bamboo containers were in higher demand in daily life. For example, baskets for selling food, Tang Zhi’s vegetable baskets, roasting baskets for baking, and book baskets for storing books…

She knew nine weaving techniques and could create different types of bamboo crafts based on them. As long as Lin Yongming was willing to buy, she had to give it a try.

But the price of bamboo crafts wasn’t the same as straw mats. A straw mat could last over ten years, so people accepted a higher price. Bamboo baskets and containers, however, could get infested with bugs and start breaking after a few years, so their prices were much lower.

The only comforting thing was that bamboo could be cut for free, saving on material costs. It just took time to slice the bamboo into strips, process them, and then weave baskets.

Currently, every household used bamboo baskets, which cost about seven wen each. Smoking baskets were pricier, around thirty wen each, and large book baskets for scholars cost about eighty-five wen.

Mingzhou’s reading culture wasn’t strong, and there weren’t many scholars, so book baskets probably had little market. But steaming was a popular cooking method, so steaming baskets were in demand. Foreign merchants also liked buying roasting baskets, and every household needed bamboo boxes for storage.

…

Song Yuyan realized she had underestimated the original owner. Though she often roamed the streets, it made her very aware of market trends. Unfortunately, despite her cleverness, she used it in the wrong places.

Song Yuyan thought for a bit and took the initiative to find Tang Zhi, asking, “When does Tang Haogen rest?”

Tang Haogen worked as a clerk in the county office, handling documents for the county magistrate and chief registrar. He was a minor official, not even a low-level civil servant in modern terms, at best a contract-based secretary.

But the era’s distorted society gave even minor clerks like those in the county office the confidence to bully others.

In the original owner’s memories, though, Tang Haogen wasn’t the bullying type. Instead, he was often caught between the officials and the common people, pleasing neither side.

“Why do you ask?” the system chimed in, playing along.

“…” Song Yuyan paused at its interruption.

Tang Haogen’s inability to please either side had historical reasons.

In the Tang Dynasty—Song Yuyan only now realized—the original owner had studied and, while roaming the streets, heard many historical tales. She learned that during the Five Dynasties, Chai Rong—now Emperor Zhou Taizong Guo Rong—didn’t die in 959. Though he failed to conquer Youzhou, he at least survived.

As for Zhao the Elder, who led the Chen Bridge Mutiny?

He never got the chance to don the yellow robe. But whether Guo Rong was reborn or transmigrated, after recovering from his illness, his attitude toward military generals was just like Zhao the Elder’s. He found various excuses to strip Zhao the Elder and the nine remaining brothers of his “Ten Brothers of the Righteous Society” of their military power.

System: “Yo, he might be your fellow transmigrator.”

Song Yuyan: …

Thanks for reminding me of the grudge I have against you for bringing me here.

System: *shivers*

Though the dynasty was now called Zhou, its development was strikingly similar to the Song Dynasty. After all, the economic base determined the superstructure, and the state of productivity shaped production relations. Under similar economic conditions, as long as the ruler didn’t make earth-shattering moves, history would follow similar paths.

“Why are we getting off track?” the system asked.

Song Yuyan: “I’m not talking for your benefit. Why are you getting so into playing along?”

System, aggrieved: “Oh.”

In short, the Tang Dynasty and Five Dynasties existed, but it was Guo Rong who ended the Five Dynasties and unified the land.

During the Tang Dynasty, minor clerks could rise to bureaucratic ranks through experience, a so-called “outer-to-inner” promotion. Though this system continued, in practice, clerks just moved from one office to another, still not even qualifying as low-level staff.

So, officials treated clerks like servants, and clerks, squeezed by officials, took out their frustrations on the common people. This made clerks’ status very low, and villagers often looked down on them.

Skilled clerks were usually feared by villagers, and any cursing was done in private. Only someone as good-natured as Tang Haogen would let people take advantage of him daily—including the original owner.

…

Recently, Tang Zhi mentioned Song Yuyan to Tang Haogen more often. She felt something was off with Song Yuyan and was anxious, but with no elder to confide in, she turned to Tang Haogen.

Tang Haogen advised her, “Since it’s happened, just accept it. Song Dalang has been behaving for days. If he’s pretending, he couldn’t keep it up this long. Trust him for now.”

Tang Zhi said, “I don’t distrust her, it’s just…”

She fell silent, unsure how to explain.

Song Yuyan might turn over a new leaf or reform, but even if she did, she wouldn’t change her habits.

Tang Zhi had known Song Yuyan for years. Though Song Yuyan moved here three years ago, they met when Tang Haogen studied at the Song Clan’s charity school. Their relationship was never good.

Both lost their fathers young and should’ve had common ground, but they were like oil and water. Either Song Yuyan made her cry, or she scolded Song Yuyan until she stomped in anger.

Everyone said Tang Zhi was angry because of Song Yuyan’s bad behavior, but in truth, a lot had happened between them.

They were like enemies, but not quite; like friends, but not really; just neighbors? Their relationship went beyond that, yet it was always worse than a normal neighborly bond.

As she thought, Tang Zhi teared up.

Tang Haogen, at a loss, said, “If you don’t trust him, that’s fine. He’s done so many awful things, we don’t need to trust him. Don’t cry.”

Tang Zhi said, “I’m not upset because of Brother’s words. I’m just feeling bad.”

Bad about what?

Maybe because she felt that old Song Yuyan would never come back.

But wasn’t it a good thing that Song Yuyan had changed for the better?

Tang Zhi stopped thinking about it, wiped her tears, and went to work.

But just two days after crying, she saw Song Yuyan show up at her door, and her heart ached again.

Song Yuyan: ???

I only asked when your brother gets a day off. Why do you look like I touched a sore spot?

System: “Maybe something happened to her brother.”

Song Yuyan: Shut up already!