The old things I repaired have become fine

Chapter 577 Shen Le: Who can lend me a shoulder? You? Get out of here!

There is no idea for repair.

You still need to work.

This is the benefit of being trained in a professional field. Even though Shen Le has no idea how to repair these metal pieces, it does not prevent him from following the procedure and putting things on the instrument:

The CT scan has been done, as has the X-ray diffractometer. The lines on the metal sheet - or rather, the lines that should be there - have also been marked out one by one.

Shen Le was lying in front of the computer, watching in fascination. His fingers followed the lines on the pattern, one by one, gently stroking them:

"It's concave here... it's also concave here... this concave line feels different from being flattened, the curvature is very special..."

"Here... there are bumps one by one, almost invisible to the naked eye, but can be seen under CT scan... This is a very obvious linked bead pattern... I just don't know how it was added..."

"There's a bulge here... There's a shadow on the bulge... What's in the shadow?"

Shen Le turned around and around the 3D modeling image calculated by the CT, but couldn't get the point. After thinking for a while, he opened the images provided by other instruments and compared them:

"This metal sheet, the result of the X-ray diffractometer scan, is mostly silver. The raised strip... is gold... tiny dots at a time, so dense..."

Gilding? Gold plating? Gold inlay? Welding?
Shen Le used the mouse to click on the image, turning it in one direction, and then in another. Looking closely, the gold on the surface of the silver sheet was like small beads, sticking to the silver sheet;

After scanning twice more, no trace of mercury was found nearby. No mercury, which meant it was not gilded. There was a little bit of copper, but why there was copper, Shen Le could not judge for the time being...

"So what kind of craftsmanship is this? Are these small beads welded on one by one? Tsk t ...

Shen Le was shocked. These beads were so small that they were almost invisible on the dark, dirty metal sheet. They needed a CT scan to mark them out.

Just to make such a small bead, the craftsmanship is amazing. It is very difficult for modern lathes to achieve this kind of processing precision.

What on earth is this thing? Who would use it to use such a complicated process...

Shen Le thought about it carefully, but to no avail. He had probably learned it before, but his graduate studies were divided into different fields, and he hadn't touched on it for three years, so he had already returned it to the teacher.

There was no other way, he could only jump up and look through books, materials, and papers. Fortunately, the Special Affairs Bureau helped him get a CNKI account, so he didn't have to spend money to buy the electronic version of the paper...

"Hmm...Gold and silver wares from the Tang Dynasty...Craftsmanship...Gold plating, casting, welding, cutting, polishing, riveting, plating, chiseling, hammering, engraving, hollowing out..."

He was dizzy from searching the books. It wasn't that the information was complicated and hard to find, but that the atlas was full of golden light, and the titles of the papers had a few words repeated over and over again:
"Hejiacun, Hejiacun, Hejiacun, Hejiacun, Famen Temple, Famen Temple, Famen Temple..."

There was also gold, silver, gold and silver, gold and silver utensils, gold and silver utensils. After reading it, Shen Le felt dizzy and his eyes were full of stars. Apart from those few key words, it seemed that he could not recognize any words...

"Fortunately, I just read the paper and didn't do the repair myself. Speaking of which, when the gold artifacts of Hejiacun and the gold cakes of Haihunhou's tomb were being repaired, how did those teachers feel..."

Those gold cakes, each one of them round and shiny, are placed in the museum and are always the display cabinets with the most traffic.

The last time Shen Le went to an exhibition, he heard a visitor muttering:
"900 yuan times 300 grams... a gold cake is more than 20 yuan..."

They rubbed shoulders with each other, pressed their faces and noses against the glass, trying to get a little closer to the gold.

What makes people sad is that the result of doing this is that I just feel further away from them. It seems that it will be a long time before I can meet them...

Of course, Shen Le didn't want to hug these gold cakes uncontrollably. In fact, if he was happy, he could buy a batch of heavy gold bars and pile them into a beautiful mountain at home.

However, his personal attention was inevitably disturbed.

Shen Le put down the materials and walked around for a long time. He ranked first in WeChat Moments in terms of steps and ate two kilograms of spring water mutton before he calmed down and plunged into his paper:
Ah, the use of gold beads in gold and silver wares of the Tang Dynasty had reached an outstanding level.

There are four methods of making tiny gold beads: pouring beads, blasting beads, sucking beads and blowing beads.

As for which one it is, Shen Le couldn't guess it just by looking at the information. He might need to try repeatedly and rub it a few times before he can figure it out.

After all, half of the beads on the metal sheet had probably fallen off, and he needed to fill them up bit by bit, right?
Shen Le worked hard. After scanning it with various instruments, he finally had a complete understanding of the metal sheet in his hand:

"These metal pieces used to have one side facing inwards and the other side facing outwards. Although the surface is dirty, rusty, and fuzzy, and cannot be seen clearly with the naked eye or a microscope, but..."

When put under CT, it can still reveal its mystery. On one side, the traces are chaotic, while on the other side, there are regular traces.

After Shen Le tentatively cleaned and rusted it, the regular marks revealed their true colors under a high-power magnifying glass.

"These are the marks of beating."

Professor Bai from the Dunhuang Research Institute took a look and came to a very sure conclusion. Seeing that Shen Le was still a little unconvinced, he smiled and flipped through the album:

"You will understand it if you look at it more. If you don't look at it much, it will be a bit troublesome to memorize the atlas without having an intuitive understanding. Look, this is the hammer mark on the plain gold basin unearthed in Hejia Village..."

What he showed was not only a picture, but also a paper. Shen Le looked at the blurry photo, which was taken in an unknown way, and his head drooped down little by little, his eyes almost sticking to it.

After looking at it for a long time, I still couldn't see where it was as written in the paper, "clear hammer marks can be seen upon careful observation" -

How can you tell the marks of hammering?
Can such a blurred line be considered clear? !
"It's a bit troublesome to go and see the authentic works of Hejiacun - you may be able to see them if you use some connections, but it's a long way away, and the old man won't accompany you to go through the trouble."

Professor Bai smiled and pulled him into the studio. Shen Le nodded silently as he walked:
It’s more than just using “a little” connection!

If his mentor wanted to see these high-level treasures on display, he had to go through a lot of procedures and approvals, and rely on his status as a professor at the school.

For someone like him, a pure individual who is neither in the system nor in the academic circle, he can only hope that the Special Affairs Bureau will be strong enough.

Otherwise, if you want to see things easily and have a teacher by your side to explain them to you step by step, you’re dreaming!
"Come, come, come and see the collections restored in the institute." Professor Bai opened the cabinet and carefully took out a silver plate:
"Come, look carefully, look seriously. If you really can't see it, you can touch it, but you must wear gloves to avoid getting your hand sweat on it..."

Then I might as well not touch it!
Wouldn’t it be better if I used my mental power to investigate?

Shen Le complained silently, but was also grateful for the old professor's kindness. This kind of collection, even if it is being restored, is not something that any random person can touch:

Even if you are a student in the institute, it doesn't mean that everyone can do it. Which major are you in? Which professor is in charge? What? Textile major? Why are you working on gold and silverware if you are a textile major?

go away!

"Ah, here..."

Shen Le held up a high-power magnifying glass and looked carefully. Sure enough, he saw traces of repetitive, regular, and unique marks on it.

He stared at the marks, frowning, and pondered them carefully. After a while, he raised his right hand, formed a hammer in the air, and struck it again and again:

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

He hammered with his hands and muttered something. Professor Bai took a step back and watched Shen Le hammering in the air in a trance. A satisfied smile appeared on his wrinkled face:

Very good, very good. To be able to do this kind of action means that you are putting your heart into it and thinking it through. Of course...

"Xiao Shen..." When Shen Le came back to his senses, the old professor slowly pulled out a few photos he had taken before, which were highly magnified, clicked, packaged, and sent them to his email:

"Knowledge gained from books is always shallow. You can simulate it a hundred times in the void. It's better to find a piece of silver and play with it. After one round, you will understand everything..."

"I know, Professor!"

Shen Le bowed respectfully and left. He would definitely beat them, but before beating them with silver, he hoped to find a way to restore the original appearance of these metal pieces.

Of course, it was done by means other than magic. If the old professors could do it, he should be able to do it too.

You can’t use magic for everything!
By identifying the hammering marks, Shen Le was able to identify the front and back of the metal sheet. Next, to determine the appearance of the metal sheet, he only needed to scan the front side:

"It can be seen that, especially the residue above, some traces of turquoise were swept out, and they are quite large..."

He sketched on the paper:

"Two fingertip-sized turquoise marks are deeply embedded in the grooves of the metal sheet, and there are some small turquoises next to them. It is obviously used for inlay, and the purpose of this inlay is..."

Eye?

The eyes of a beast?
Shen Le thought about it and flipped through the album on the table. He found a picture. It was a gold-glazed pottery figurine unearthed from Zheng Rentai's tomb. The figurine was wearing two layers of shoulder pads:

The upper layer is shaped like a tiger's head, and the lower layer is spit out from the tiger's mouth, which is for both beauty and to intimidate the enemy.

The two finger-sized turquoise stones are probably the roaring tigers on the shoulders. As for why there are only two turquoise stones on both sides of the tiger head...

Aren’t a lot of these metal pieces scattered and lost?

"It is worth noting that turquoise was not a popular decorative jewel among the Tang people - the Tibetans preferred this gem. But, forget it, let's wait and see after the restoration!"

What if after recovery, this shoulder swallow will tell me its story itself and tell me where it came from?

Shen Le kept writing and drawing, constantly adding information to these fragments of metal. After about a week of tossing and turning, he had a rough idea in his mind. Next, he would try to forge silverware to try to restore its original shape...

Shen Le decisively bought a set of silversmithing tools, including wooden anvil, iron anvil, gold hammer, rubber hammer, practice mold, chiseling board, chiseling table, chiseling clamp, bracelet stick, ring stick, and so on.

I placed an order on Taobao and it arrived in three days. It only cost a few hundred yuan, but I couldn't catch up. The next thing is...

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

"Dong dong dong dong dong!"

It was crooked, and it was crooked again. Why is it so difficult to make silverware?

Obviously my requirements are not high. I just want to follow the instructions in the video and make an identical plain silver bowl. It's the simplest job, so why is it so difficult?

Am I overestimating myself and should I start by making silver rings?
Obviously, after so many times of being strengthened by the copper plates, my eyesight, hands, and physical fitness should be far superior to those of normal people!

Shen Le tried again and again. All the silver pieces he bought were so uneven that no one wanted them. He had to buy them back at the price of silver.

He lay back helplessly and started flipping through his phone:

"I remember... I rented out some houses on Nanhua Street? I think there's a silversmith among the tenants? I wonder if he's willing to teach me?

——Who did I ask to rent out the house before? Gu Yulin? Zhang Bingxin? Or the boss lady? "

It's broken, I've basically forgotten everything, I don't even remember whether I received RMB or Special Affairs Bureau points.

Anyway, the reason why I rented out the house at that time was probably to make the street more lively and not be so empty like a ghost street.

As for how much it would cost to rent it out, well, it's not a big deal anyway...

"Yes, I was in charge of it." The omnipotent Gu Yulin actually helped him find tenants. It was a pity that a good employee of the Special Affairs Bureau was about to become his personal assistant...

Shen Le sweated inwardly and silently reminded himself to remember to bring some souvenirs to others from time to time, such as spiritual herbs and fruits.

Once he becomes my assistant, he won't be able to move up for the next ten or twenty years. Forget about getting a promotion, a pay raise, or better development in a bigger city.

In that case, I should at least give him some subsidies!

"Ask the silversmith if he can teach me the most basic silversmithing skills? And pay me for it? No problem, I'll go ask him! I think he will definitely be willing..."

Not to mention paying, even if Shen Le doesn't give you a penny, do you know how many people will come crying and shouting to you?

The cat demon at the yoga studio has left several membership cards with me, hinting that I should give you one;

The bull demon who sold leather goods also gave me two bags and three belts, and asked me several times if he could deliver the gifts to the mansion;
The paper-making craftsman really has no choice. His product is too unlucky and he cannot rely on you...

Gu Yulin complained in his heart while on the phone. Soon, he called Shen Le back:
"He agreed. He asked if he wanted to fly directly over..."

"No need! I'll just go back!"

It is very hard for these monsters to run a small shop. They need to prepare materials, stock up, promote, deal with various inspections, and pay rent for themselves - although the rent is not much.

What small shop can afford to be closed for a month or two without any reason!
Shen Le said goodbye to the old professor, picked up his luggage, and went directly back to the mansion in Zhuxi Town through the earth veins.

Following the house number, I found myself at the silver shop. The silversmith was wearing a leather apron and sitting at the door of the shop, performing live silversmithing. When I looked up, the rhythm of his hands suddenly became chaotic, and he hit his finger with the hammer:

"Ow—"

"Are you hurt? Do you want to go to the hospital?"

Shen Le was startled and cast a healing spell on the spot. The silversmith quickly jumped up and waved his hands:
"It doesn't hurt! It's okay! Come in! Come in!"

He pulled Shen Le in, picked up the small table and anvil used for silversmithing, and the entire set, put them on the ground steadily, and closed the rolling door.

Shen Le wanted to ask, "Can such a thin rolling door prevent thieves?" He glanced at the door and saw that the light on the door was restrained. The rolling curtains were clearly engraved with talismans...

"Boss, please take a seat." The young silversmith pulled a folding chair over and presented it to Shen Le, following his gaze.
"I built this rolling door myself. I hammered all the talismans on it one by one. This shop looks like a tourist street with silver shops everywhere, but in fact;"

He proudly rushed into the inner room, and after a moment, he came out with a huge box:

"Selling amulets, selling all kinds of standard defensive magic tools, and customizing magic tools is my main business! You don't have to worry about me delaying business. I can make a living in this business for three years!"

Shen Le couldn't help laughing. He lowered his eyes and continued to stare at the hand that was hit by the hammer. The silversmith lowered his head and smiled, then stretched out his hand in front of Shen Le, clenched his fist, and stretched it out:
Shen Le watched helplessly as the rough, peeling, and scarred hand turned into a hand with cloud patterns...

Square card?

"Thank you for your concern. My original body was a furnace for refining equipment. I made countless things in the hands of the original owner, and suddenly I got a sudden inspiration. This is just a small hammer, which I use for mortals to see. It can't hurt me!"

Shen Le gave him a thumbs up. There was a rustling sound behind him, and a small inkstone emerged from the backpack, waving the lead weight and making a small circle above Shen Le's head:

[Hello, I’m Zheng Mo! Nice to meet you! Are you also a tool-turned-demon? Can we communicate more often in the future? ]

"Of course!" The silversmith was slightly surprised, and quickly went into the inner room, and pulled out another set of silversmithing tools:
"My last name is Lu. People call me Mr. Lu, but you can just call me Little Lu. Do you want to learn together? You can use this set of tools first. If they don't fit you, we can change them!"

Shen Le couldn't help laughing. He imitated Mr. Lu, put on a leather apron and leather sleeves, put the silver plate in place, and picked up the hammer.

Mr. Lu picked up the tools beside him and coughed lightly:
"Let me demonstrate. First, don't hold the hammer at the end, but hold it two-thirds of the way. This way, you will feel most comfortable when exerting force. Don't hold it too tightly...ah, Zheng Mo, just do whatever you want..."

Shen Le turned his head and saw a hammer floating up beside him. It was one of the carpenters in Zheng Mo's family...

It must be said that there is a big difference between being taught and not being taught. For a simple hammering process, which hammer to use first and which hammer to use later, the weight of the hammer, the point of impact, and the direction are all different.

Mr. Lu did not let Shen Le make the silver plate first, but took a silver bar and asked him to try:

"We are making a hairpin stem here, so we just need to flatten it. Be careful to use even force so that the width of the hairpin stem is consistent. If you look closely at the hairpin stem, the gap and depth of the hammer marks should also be consistent.

Come, look, this is the hairpin I made by hand..."

Shen Le took the hairpin and looked at it again and again, then used his mental power to penetrate into it, observing the changes in the force on the hairpin as it was hammered again and again.

After he understood everything, he handed the hairpin to Xiao Modou, picked up the hammer, thought for a long time, and tentatively struck the first blow.

Mr. Lu kept giving instructions beside him:

"Don't be in a hurry. Take your time and use even force. Keep your back straight. Don't clench your hands too tightly. Relax a little and pay attention to your breathing... inhale... inhale... inhale... inhale..."

boom!
boom!
Bang bang bang!
Shen Le was so nervous that he was sweating all over. He finally hammered the hairpin from the beginning to the end. Looking down, it was wide here, narrow there, high here, and dented there. It was crooked and horrible:

"Uh……"

"It's okay, it's okay, let's make another one. This is not difficult, it just takes practice." Mr. Lu immediately ran over and handed him another silver bar.

When I turned around, I heard a steady and even sound of hammering all around me. It was the little inkstone directing its subordinates’ hammers to strike calmly, one after another…

Shen Le: “…”

My little ones are learning much faster than me. What should I do?
After a week of intensive practice, he finally learned the basic techniques of the four hammering techniques: lo, dun, shan and guang, and was able to make a basically smooth plain silver bowl.

As for the Silver Lotus in Famen Temple, which has three layers inside and outside, a total of sixteen petals, and the curled lotus leaves are as thin as paper, and will sway with the slightest vibration, just dream about it. You may not be able to achieve it even if you practice for another ten years.

Even so, Shen Le felt that he was almost ready to try to repair the metal sheet - according to Mr. Lu, the rest was just slow work and he could practice slowly.

Shen Le found some unrepaired silver fragments from the things that were sealed because of their high spiritual power that he had given him to practice with at the research institute, and began to try carefully:
Cleaning, cleaning, cleaning. Clean it all, inject the metal element spiritual power to remove the rust, then, sensing the traces of it being hammered, carefully start to reshape and restore it.

At first, it was crooked and not right at all. After repairing three or five silver plates, silver ornaments, and silver plates, I finally found the feel:

“Dang! Dang! Dang! That’s right, just like that, follow this momentum and hit it upwards, and you can return it to its original shape!”

Shen Le was full of confidence, and he swept away all the training tools given to him by the institute. He was ready to start reshaping the metal piece.

Ding ding dang dang, after it was beaten into the original concave and convex, natural and smooth shape, it was put together again and again:

"If it's a shoulder swallow, it should fit the shoulder line when all put together... So who can lend me a shoulder?"

There was a snapping sound in front of him, followed by a rumble that became louder and louder. Shen Le turned his head and saw a clay figurine with a protruding chest and a bulging belly standing in front of him, trying to shrug:

"You? Get lost! Don't you see the huge shoulder armor on your shoulders?!"

(End of this chapter)