Chapter 15

Mother Will Transcribe Characters

The workspace for the mistress was later arranged. In Lijin’s mind, the sixty-two taels spent had been a worthy investment. Although tonight’s dinner brought questions from her children about why a new table was mounted against the wall, their mother had already prepared her response. “That is mother’s workplace.”

“What will you be doing, Mother? You are still unwell—I fear that…” Liming asked anxiously, her concern evident in her tone.

“I will be transcribing characters. It is not as difficult as embroidery.”

“That is even harder than embroidery, Mother!”  Lijìn, the second daughter, exclaimed in surprise. “I never knew you could transcribe characters…”

“I want to watch. I want to watch. I want to watch.” Jiusi eagerly pleaded, his eyes sparkling as if he had discovered a priceless present. Lijin laughed heartily, then promised to show them after dinner. Thus, the evening’s activity was set—Lijin was surrounded by her children, who eagerly watched her write with eyes full of concentration.

The mother ground the ink, teaching all three of them the process. Producing high-quality ink from a superior inkstone required focus, making it a form of meditation in itself. Jiusi, having heard of this from his calligraphy teacher, nodded in understanding and allowed his elder sisters to experience this new art form first. “What should I write… hmm…” Lijin wanted her first piece to leave a lasting impression on her children. Searching through the knowledge in her mind, she quickly found a poem—one that even young children in China knew, and which carried a meaningful lesson.

锄禾日当午，The farmer tills under the blazing sun.

汗滴禾下土。Sweat drips down onto the field.

谁知盘中餐，Who understands the food in their bowls,

粒粒皆辛苦。Each grain hard-earned with toil?

(A poem about the hardships of farmers, written during the Tang Dynasty by Li Shen (李绅).)

This poem was widely popular among parents and guardians who wished to teach their children not to be picky with food and to appreciate its value. Lijin borrowed these words and characters, revealing them to this world for the first time.

In her heart, she mused that since this was an entirely different world, borrowing knowledge in this way should not be an issue. After all, she was no great poet. She could compose Thai poetry, but she lacked an in-depth understanding of ancient Chinese verses. Simply remembering countless works was already a gift to her mind.

The children gazed, entranced, at the powerful characters on the paper. They were beautifully crafted, embodying the hardships of farmers in a profound way. Although they did not understand every character, once their mother read the poem aloud, their minds began to process its meaning. Jiusi grasped it first. Liming and Lijìn, who had little experience writing but could somewhat read, understood it shortly after.

“I will never be picky about food. I will never waste even a single bite!” The three siblings nodded in unison, wholeheartedly accepting their mother’s lesson. The mother’s heart swelled with warmth, and she affectionately patted their heads.

“I hate vegetables… but I will follow Mother’s teachings.”

“Good child, good child.” Lijin smiled gently. “When I have free time, I will transcribe more for you to learn, all right?” The children nodded enthusiastically.

They had never known their mother possessed such an incredible skill. If it were not a secret they had to keep, they would have wanted to shout to the world about how amazing their mother, Lijin, was. After displaying a small part of her abilities, Ning-ning took the three young masters to wash up and rest. Meanwhile, Lijin continued to move about, cleaning as a way to exercise.

Once she had lightly exercised to aid digestion, she gathered her tools and prepared herself. The oil lamp’s light was not very bright, but it was enough to allow her to write at night. However, rather than immediately starting her transcription while still covered in sweat, she chose to prepare for Ning-ning’s task—cutting the paper with a sharp knife, guided by the ordered wooden ruler.

"Warm water is ready, madam," the maid called out to her mistress. Hearing this, Lijin stretched her body and removed her garments before indulging in the warmth of the evening bath. Her body, weary from the day's exhaustion, began to relax significantly.

"Stay and help me with some work tonight, Ning-ning. It shouldn’t go past the Hai hour (21:00 – 22:59)."

"Understood, madam," the maid replied while attending to her mistress. Seeing that Lijin’s body had gained more vitality compared to before, Ning-ning felt proud—she had never imagined her mistress would recover so quickly. Once every inch of her was clean, Lijin, feeling refreshed both physically and mentally, dressed herself. Out of habit, she wrapped a fine cloth around her head to dry her hair faster. Then, she focused her mind on the work she had to complete over the next two shichen.

Ning-ning received the paper-cutting tools and was taught how to trim the sheets smoothly. In less than a shichen, the valuable white bamboo scroll was cut down to standard-sized sheets based on the samples they had obtained from Yanyu’s bookstore. In the end, a single scroll yielded only fifty sheets.

The two original scrolls were thus reduced to just one hundred sheets of equal size. "Hmm... Less than I expected, but it will do."

"Too little, madam?" Ning-ning looked slightly puzzled. "The shopkeeper at the stationery store mentioned that a single scroll is enough to create one book."

"One hundred pages... That’s not little compared to typical books. However, what I intend to create will likely be far longer than that…"

"In that case, why not divide them into a set of books, madam? One volume could have a hundred pages, and the set could contain multiple volumes. That way, it would be easier to sell. The more valuable they are, the more scholars will want to collect them..." Ning-ning had spoken with bookstore owners and observed bookselling practices in Nihe, making her quite familiar with how books were sold or rented.

"That makes sense, but we’ll leave that for later. Right now, I must focus on transcribing…" The three books she had received varied in length—the largest contained one hundred and fifty pages, while the two smaller ones had only sixty pages each. They appeared larger than expected because the paper used was not as thin as in her previous world. Additionally, their covers were layered silk or thick mulberry paper coated with pine resin, giving them a dark-toned appearance that enhanced both their value and durability.

Lijin quickly assessed the three books and ultimately chose to start with the smallest one. The time she had left was limited, and she did not want to stay up too late and compromise her health. As soon as she dipped her brush into the ink, Ning-ning saw the scholarly aura settle upon her mistress. Not wanting to disturb her, the maid retreated outside the residence and quietly closed the door.

That night...The oil lamp was extinguished shortly after the distant sound of the night watch's gong signaled the Hai hour. Lijin remained astonished by the ability she had acquired. The power of the golden frame was truly mysterious—it made her feel like a living machine for a moment. Her emotions flowed seamlessly into her writing. Every character and phrase imprinted itself into her memory so well that she could recall exactly which words were on which page.

In just one shichen… she had completed thirty pages. Lijin chose a script with bold, clearly defined strokes. Since it was a manual on commerce, it needed to be a model for learning—every character had to be legible and free of ambiguity.

If she had another shichen, this little book would have been finished. She felt a slight thrill at how quickly she could earn money, and that was certainly good news. With that in mind, she felt assured that she would have a good night’s sleep—her bright future was unfolding just as she had planned. Just before drifting off, she recalled that there was something else she wanted to write...

That first textbook—couldn’t she refine this book further? She could write another version, expanding on its contents, adding examples, and making it more reader-friendly. She could elevate this book to an even higher level. Interesting... Truly interesting… Snore...

The loud snoring of the exhausted mistress of the rundown residence behind the Wei Manor soon filled the air, startling the maid in the adjacent room for a brief moment before she smiled.​

It was a snore so distinctive that it completely shattered the image of a refined, scholarly lady deep in thought.

.....

The next day…

The morning routine remained unchanged—sharing a meal together, engaging in lively conversation to lift spirits for the day ahead.

The household maid did not need to go outside today, giving her the opportunity to clean the residence thoroughly. During her midday break, she visited the kitchen to socialize with the other maids and sought cooking advice from Auntie Huang. As for Lijin, she had finished transcribing the two smaller books by the middle of the Wei hour (13:00 – 14:59). With that done, she allowed herself a brief moment of relaxation before beginning the final major task assigned to her.

The agreed-upon payment rate was one copper coin per character. If the entire city were literate, they would surely be quite wealthy. The first two books Lijin had copied earned her over three taels of silver—far more than the expected two taels per book as she had first heard.

Meanwhile, Principles of Governance by Li Wen contained significantly smaller characters, increasing the total count considerably. A rough estimate suggested its transcription could be worth up to twelve taels of silver.

She wasn’t sure if silver had a scent, but Lijin took a deep breath, imagining she was inhaling the fragrance of money. With great care, she ground the ink, selecting the smallest brush for the meticulous work ahead. Principles of Governance, huh…

Who was Li Wen? She had never heard of this name before, but she could already sense that he must have been an individual with remarkable insight. Once the fine brush was adequately coated in ink, she swiftly and continuously transcribed the elegant characters onto the paper.

Not only was she learning these concepts in the process, but a singular thought echoed persistently in her mind—money... money... money...​