“Brother Tao, these days you’re running the shop?” Brother Tao asked.

“Mostly just minding the shop. When things are slow, I follow Master out of the city to learn kiln firing. Though honestly, I’m not really hired help—more like an apprentice.”

“Ah, I see. Where are you now in your learning, Brother Tao?”

“Please, Mr. Chen, don’t ask. After all these years, I haven’t even mastered firing regular porcelain bowls.”

Tao Sheng gave an unwilling smile. This craft wasn’t as simple as lighting a kiln. You had to consider the heat, the weather, and all sorts of complicated things.

Hearing this, Chen Changsheng said, “So your Master isn’t limited to everyday bowls when firing porcelain?”

“To be honest, sir, a few years back, my Master fired a whole batch that went straight to Shangjing as tribute,” Tao Sheng admitted.

Chen Changsheng paused. This sounded like someone with real skill.

He had a sudden thought and asked, “Brother Tao, has your Master ever spoken of a firing technique called ‘blue-and-white porcelain’?”

Tao Sheng thought hard but shook his head.

He’d never heard Master mention it.

“What is blue-and-white porcelain like?”

Chen Changsheng said, “I heard talk of it before. Finished blue-and-white porcelain is said to have rich, vivid colors, yet clear and elegant. The blue patterns look like a landscape Scroll Painting, especially the sky-blue parts—truly captivating.”

“Haven’t seen Master make anything like that,” Tao Sheng said. “I can ask him later.”

Chen Changsheng continued, “I also heard of a special glaze technique for cups. After firing, the glaze naturally develops textures like ‘hare’s fur’ or ‘oil drops.’ Beautiful and intricate, yet carrying ancient charm—truly moving. Have you heard of this, Brother Tao?”

“Hare’s fur? Oil drops?” Tao Sheng paused. “Painted on?”

Chen Changsheng shook his head. “It naturally appears in the glaze during firing.”

Tao Sheng looked thoughtful. “Mr. Chen, you must be joking. A glaze that looks like rabbit fur?”

“I really did see it,” Chen Changsheng insisted.

Tao Sheng suddenly grew serious.

If such glazes existed…

He quickly asked, “Mr. Chen, do you know that firing method?”

Chen Changsheng responded, “Not much. I heard these cups are incredibly hard to make. The kiln must burn continuously for three whole days. Then it has to cool for four or five more. Even then, less than one in ten pieces turn out right.”

“Only ten percent?!” The low success rate shocked Tao Sheng.

As he spoke, he immediately led Chen Changsheng further inside.

“Please explain everything you know, Mr. Chen!”

Tao Sheng picked up paper and brush, ready to take notes.

Seeing this, Chen Changsheng cautioned, “Brother Tao, mastering such cups will take much trial and error. It consumes huge effort and money. You must proceed within your means.”

“Don’t worry, Mr. Chen. I know my limits,” Tao Sheng assured.

Chen Changsheng nodded, then explained everything he had heard.

The sloped dragon kiln, the protecting saggers, unexpected color changes during firing, the glaze…

He could only give a rough outline, not the precise methods.

Still, Tao Sheng scribbled down every word carefully.

He treated these notes like treasure. Once the ink dried, he stored them away securely.

“Thank you, Mr. Chen!”

Chen Changsheng offered some perspective: “Blue-and-white porcelain is far easier.”

Upon hearing this, Tao Sheng said, “Don’t worry, sir. This task is beyond me alone. If my Master takes it up, he’ll surely proceed carefully.”

Reassured, Chen Changsheng stopped worrying.

Before he left, Tao Sheng gifted him many fine porcelain bowls and dishes.

Then Tao Sheng closed the shop and raced straight toward the city outskirts.

Three miles outside Qingshan City, three kilns blazed fiercely. The heat made the whole area feel warmer.

“Master! Master!!”

Tao Sheng’s Master was surnamed Cui. His ancestors made fired bricks. By the time it reached Master Cui, the craft had slowly shifted towards porcelain.

Later, Master Cui traveled widely, learning techniques. He eventually returned to Qingshan City to specialize.

Master Cui, carefully attending to the kiln temperature, frowned at the interruption. “What? Why the rush? Weren’t you meant to mind the shop? Why come here?”

Tao Sheng swallowed and blurted, “Master, look at this!”

He rushed forward, pulling the notes from his clothes.

“What is it?” Master Cui raised an eyebrow before looking down at the paper.

“Master, see the ‘dragon kiln’? Built at a slope! Inside and outside would have different heats!”

Master Cui’s demeanor shifted abruptly. He became serious.

He visualized the design of the sloped dragon kiln.

“Brilliant! Why didn’t I think of that?”

Master Cui paused, scanning further.

His eyes brightened more and more as he read.

But after finishing, he exclaimed, “It’s incomplete! Vital details are missing! Weather conditions, firing heat control, fabric recipes for the glaze… How can key details be skipped?”

“Who gave you this?”

Tao Sheng quickly explained Chen Changsheng’s visit.

Master Cui stared at the paper, momentarily lost in thought.

“Hare’s fur…”

“Could such a glaze truly be fired?”

But the notes skipped too many critical steps.

Crucial information was completely absent.

Was it even real? Master Cui’s initial, and persistent, thought was doubt.

“Likely just nonsense. Forget it,” Master Cui dismissed, waving Tao Sheng back. “Go tend the shop.”

“But Master, what if it’s real? Master…”

“Go! Stop pestering me! If this fire’s temperature fails, the whole kiln load will be ruined!”

Master Cui chased him away, leaving Tao Sheng gone while he watched the kiln himself.

Other workers were there, but none matched Master Cui’s experience.

After Tao Sheng left, thoughts of the hare’s-fur glaze filled Master Cui’s head.

“Is such a technique real?”

Doubt started to give way to curiosity.

His concentration faltered.

At sunset, opening the kiln revealed many flawed pieces.

He had almost ruined the entire batch.

Back home, Master Cui remained deeply troubled. He kept pondering the hare’s-fur idea.

His wife noticed his unease. Asking what was wrong got no answer. He barely touched dinner before leaving the table.

That night, he tossed and turned in bed until he realized:

He would never find peace unless he tried it himself.

‘That foolish boy has troubled my mind!’

Early the very next dawn, not bothering with breakfast, he gathered workers. Together, they started digging for a new kiln base outside the city.

He had to test if the hare’s-fur glaze was possible!

Tao Sheng, troubled by Master Cui’s dismissal, skipped going to the kiln site entirely that day. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

He stayed at the shop, daydreaming about what glorious textures a successful hare’s-fur glaze might hold.

Sadly, he knew his limited funds and current skills made such an attempt impossible alone.

“Sigh…”

Tao Sheng sighed repeatedly, sitting motionless in his shop, lost in thought throughout the entire morning.