The old things I repaired have become fine

Chapter 652 Shen Le: Connections? I have no connections, but I do have a demonic connection!
"What? You want to restore this kiln? Restore it to the point where it can still fire porcelain?"

Professor Zhang scrutinized Shen Le from head to toe, left to right, as if he had suddenly transformed into a porcelain figurine—or a porcelain kiln that had collapsed halfway.

Shen Le felt a little nervous under her gaze and had to take two steps back so that the old professor could look up at him more comfortably without having to tilt her neck back and fold it up.

After waiting patiently for a while, Professor Zhang finally spoke:
"You know, a museum has already been built here at Xing Kiln, right?"

"I know."

"You know, even the Xing Kiln Museum only exposes the excavated kiln sites to the public; it hasn't restored or rebuilt those ancient kilns, has it?"

"I know... They restore the porcelain firing process in other places, in a dedicated production workshop. They don't need to restore the ancient kiln at all..."

"So what's the point of restoring this kiln? There are already duplicate projects, so the higher-ups won't give you funding!"

Even if you were to re-fire it, you'd need a whole host of approvals, including fire safety and environmental impact assessments. That's not how you protect cultural relics!

Building another museum in this desolate, remote corner is simply impossible!
Even if the project isn't duplicated, who will manage and maintain the kiln you're re-firing in the future?

Shen Le: "...Would you believe me if I said my family's porcelain tower asked me to do this...?"

Believe it or not, we can't just not do it. Shen Le looked around, dragged the special affairs bureau guy over, and shoved him in front of the professor:
"Please help me talk to the professor and tell him that the Special Affairs Bureau can handle all the approvals and stuff!"

Guy: ? ? ?
What exactly happened? Could you have given me a heads-up beforehand?

Fortunately, the Special Affairs Bureau was as helpful as ever.

After Shen Le called Gu Yulin, the call was transferred through several layers to an unknown higher level. Once the higher-ups understood that "this was necessary for the repair of tactical weapons," the call was quickly transferred to the local authorities.

The Special Affairs Bureau promised to handle all the approvals and that if the weapon was successfully repaired, they would reimburse the cost of restoring the kiln—or purchase/rent a porcelain flying sword from Shen Le, the cost of which would cover the cost of restoring the kiln.

The only thing that Professor Zhang and his team need to do is provide academic assistance to help Shen Le restore the porcelain kiln.

Of course, if local assistance is needed, that's no problem either. The local Xing Kiln Research Institute, its partner studios, and their staff can all be called in to help…

It's just a matter of money!

Shen Le is not short of money...

"Alright, let's discuss how to restore this kiln. First, let's quickly excavate the remaining kilns..."

The kiln that Shen Le specifically requested to be repaired had a collapsed firebox and half of the kiln bed; only the kiln tail was thankfully intact.

To repair it, we need to know what it originally looked like. The best way to know its original appearance is to excavate the other two kilns:

Hopefully, the damage will be minimal; the firebox of this kiln will remain intact, and at least a section of the top of that kiln's kiln bed will still be visible, allowing them to see the original form of the kiln.
At least, we can see how the refractory bricks on the kiln roof were originally laid out...

"Alright, I'll go help the others then." Shen Le sighed and, following Professor Zhang's instructions, obediently picked up a shovel and joined the team.

After digging in the mud all day, they were called to their room by the teacher at night. A crowd of five or six students huddled around, each typing away furiously on their keyboards.
"Come on, help me look up some information. There aren't many cases of ancient kiln restoration and refiring across the country. Luckily, there are still a few, so we don't have to start from scratch..."

Good news: Someone has indeed done it.

The bad news: Researchers working on the restoration of ancient kilns are concentrated in one place: Ganzhou and Jingdezhen. In this field, the level of expertise at Jingdezhen Ceramic University is unparalleled…

Good news: Shen Le has someone in Jingdezhen—no, I mean, a demon—who can be consulted.

The bad news: Even if someone is familiar with these papers, they might not be able to understand them...

Shen Le was looking at a paper titled "Research and Numerical Simulation of the Structure of Gourd Kilns in the Ming Dynasty of China" with a worried expression, almost wanting to bang his head on the ground, no, on the computer screen.

Can someone tell him why he needs to use things like turbulence and discrete equations when he's just researching the restoration of an ancient kiln?

He can't understand it at all!
When he was a graduate student, he did get involved in some fluid mechanics—mainly to prevent houses from being blown down by typhoons—but it didn’t have to be this detailed!

"So, have you figured out anything?"

"No... I'm even more confused now..."

Shen Le shook her head with a bitter face. After thinking for a moment, she started flipping through other papers.

Thank goodness, I found an article for him about the revival of the Song Dynasty dragon kiln in Jingdezhen. It listed the structure and dimensions of the dragon kiln in detail, and even included a diagram.

Of course, even so, there are still countless problems to be solved:

For example, kiln refractory bricks. The paper mentions that "kiln bricks are a type of refractory material with near-acidity, similar to ordinary clay bricks, with low permeability and a temperature resistance of around 1300℃."

Great! What does "near-acidic" mean?
What exactly is the pH value?

Generally speaking, the refractory bricks used in these kilns are mostly sourced locally, and the clay used for firing the bricks is not too far from the local area.

The problem is that Jizhou and Ganzhou are a full 900 kilometers apart as the crow flies, and the soil in the two places is not only vastly different, but also completely unrelated.

You dig up some soil near Jingdezhen to make bricks, and it works very well; the porcelain that comes out in the end is perfect.

You dig up some soil near Xingtai to make bricks, and what kind of rubbish do you end up with?
"Don't worry, no problem, this is easy." Teacher Zhang was quite confident about it. She randomly selected a student:
"Dig up a piece of raw soil, then dig up several pieces of red-burnt soil of different degrees, and take them to the laboratory for testing."

"Measure the pH value, find suitable soil—you can consult a local workshop—and then, we'll simulate firing refractory bricks!"

"No problem, boss!" The student whose name was called jumped up excitedly.
"give it to me!"

Project!
A thesis!
With projects come funding, and with projects come papers.

Don't underestimate this seemingly small topic—refractory bricks from ancient porcelain kilns—there aren't many papers on this subject in China yet. This paper, once completed, could easily be published in a core journal!
To put it bluntly, many current research projects on cultural relic protection don't lack topics, but rather funding and manpower.

The most crucial issue is the lack of funding. If the money were available, manpower could be increased from the university; it's simply a matter of shifting the workforce among these "nuclear-powered oxen and horses." It's rare that my senior is willing to provide the funds, so let's do it!

Shen Le gratefully cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to Professor Zhang. Professor Zhang calmly nodded in return, then pointed to another student:
"Go and contact Jingdezhen University and tell them that we want to restore an ancient porcelain kiln. Ask them if they have experience with this kind of work and can share some of their expertise."

"I remember that building the kiln required their specialized workers? Are there any specialized workers we can borrow?"

Another student obeyed and went. Professor Zhang then called on a third student:
"Thoroughly understand this paper on numerical simulation of kilns, and try calculating the values ​​for a dragon kiln. If you can do well on the calculations, you can consider writing this as your graduation thesis!"

"No way... Boss..."

The student screamed. Professor Zhang's face darkened:
"What's wrong? They can solve these problems at Jingdezhen University, but our B University students can't solve these discrete equations?"

What were their scores on the college entrance exam, and what were ours? And I remember you were the best in math!

"But professor, fluid mechanics is physics..."

"It all boils down to algorithms! Go learn them!"

The student left in tears. Shen Le watched from the sidelines, terrified that Professor Zhang would treat everyone the same and assign him a task far beyond his capabilities.

Fortunately, when Professor Zhang looked at him, his expression changed to a kind one, with some expressions that Shen Le often saw when his mentor negotiated with the investor:
"Shen Le, do you see any remaining difficulties that need further research? Or, could you perhaps communicate with your superiors and arrange for us to practice at the local Xing Kiln workshop?"

Shen Le looked at Professor Zhang with some surprise. The professor smiled helplessly, mouthed the word "employment" to Shen Le, and silently muttered it. Shen Le suddenly understood:
The job market is tough right now, especially for those majoring in cultural relic restoration. They can't get into museums after graduation, and their families aren't wealthy enough to achieve financial independence. It's a real headache.

When Shen Le first graduated, he was unemployed immediately and had no direction at all.

Fortunately, the porcelain restoration profession offers another path: learn a little about porcelain firing from a teacher, and even if you only learn one skill, you can become an engineer in a porcelain factory or porcelain workshop in the future.

If you can fire Ru ware, fire Ru ware; if you can fire Jun ware, fire Jun ware; if you can fire Ding ware, fire Ding ware. Having a skill to rely on, I dare not say more, but earning over ten thousand a month is a sure thing.

Now, Professor Zhang is trying his best to provide students with even just a little more experimental opportunities.

No problem, getting connections is easy. Shen Le is good at that!

He used his financial power to pave the way, asking the Special Affairs Bureau to find someone to help him put in a good word, and invited the head of the local Xingyao workshop, the head of the Xingyao Research Institute, and Professor Zhang to have a meal together.

During the meal, when the topic of practicing came up, the inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage, who also owned a kiln-firing company, was quite troubled:
"To experience washing clay, kneading clay, throwing clay, and glazing, there's nothing difficult about it. The workshop has raw materials and machines readily available, and we would be very happy to have teachers come and provide guidance."

The problem is, firing, especially using traditional methods, is done in kilns that are now coal-fired; they can't be converted to wood-fired kilns!

Ah this...

Professor Zhang and Shen Le exchanged bewildered glances. After a pause, they looked pleadingly at the head of the local Xingyao Research Institute, only to receive a helpless nod in return.

"They're trying to do business. Business is about return on investment, and coal mines are easier to control than wood-fired kilns..."

Simply put, coal is of more uniform quality, burns more completely, and is more efficient. A kiln firing porcelain using coal produces a more consistent output and yields more high-quality porcelain.

Aside from specializing in antique-style porcelain, or even just performing traditional porcelain firing techniques, only a fool would use a wood-fired kiln!
Because of the difference in thermal efficiency, a kiln designed as a coal kiln cannot be filled with firewood for firing...

Of course, nowadays smaller workshops mostly use electric furnaces, which burn more completely and have more precise temperature control, making coal kilns a thing of the past...

"Well...it's alright, sorry to bother you." Professor Zhang forced a smile. Washing clay, throwing pottery—you can learn that anywhere, without paying such a high price.
Pottery-making experience centers are everywhere. If all else fails, the Xing Kiln Site Museum has a dedicated area for visitors to experience it, so there's absolutely no need to pay any price or do favors!

It's rare to find an opportunity to experience the traditional firing method. After the event, Professor Zhang still cast an expectant gaze at Shen Le:

"Shen Le, do you have any connections that you can let everyone try it out and get some practice? When you start firing the kiln later, my students and I can lend you a hand..."

Alas, the job market is tough right now, and it's especially difficult for students majoring in cultural relic restoration like them to find employment.

Learning about porcelain restoration and firing techniques can provide valuable internship experience, potentially leading to employment!
In order to give his students better job opportunities, Professor Zhang had to swallow his pride and ask Shen Le for help.

Fortunately, while Shen Le lacked connections in porcelain making, he did have a powerful connection. With Professor Zhang's earnest expectation, Shen Le decisively made a call to Mr. Zhao:
"It's like this, I need to find an old-fashioned wood-fired kiln to practice in order to re-fire the original kiln... Do you have a kiln here? A wood-fired kiln? That's great!"

Putting down his phone, he confidently smiled at Teacher Zhang:

"It's settled. They agreed to lend us the kiln and also agreed to lend us manpower to help guide us in setting up and firing the kiln. It's just..."

"Just what?"

"Um... Professor, when you and your fellow students communicate with the other party, you should remain a little calm and keep a bit of distance..."

"What's the meaning?!"

"Just like when the Special Affairs Bureau entered, we'll follow their rules..."

Professor Zhang remained silent. After a long while, she took a deep breath and smiled serenely.
"Okay, I understand. I'll keep them in check. The rest is up to you!"

Mr. Zhao's men arrived very quickly.

As a local demon entrenched in Jingdezhen, he has been the respected and revered figure among the upper echelons of Jingdezhen for many years. Anyone who wanted to study porcelain making or challenge their skills would respectfully address him as "You Know Who."

He personally spoke up, and soon three experienced bricklayers who had participated in the restoration of the ancient kiln, a core "pile master" of the kiln firing team, and two fair-skinned handsome young men traveled a long distance to come over.

Upon arriving at the site, several bricklayers bent down and repeatedly weighed the refractory bricks and burnt clay they had shoveled out of the ancient kiln in their hands.

The "stump" squinted and circled the ruined kiln, nodding and shaking his head.
The two fair-skinned, handsome young men whispered a few words to Shen Le, took a bottle and a piece of porcelain from him, circled around the kiln a few times, and then reported directly to Shen Le:

"It said that the clay they brought over there, which was meant for making bricks, wasn't the kind it had eaten before, and it couldn't get used to it!"

Professor Zhang, standing to one side: ...What the hell?!
(End of this chapter)