The artist pulls out a weeping willow tree

The return journey took an extra half an hour because of the detour, and by the time we had stored the wood and returned the car it was still not time for dinner.

Old Man Ji decided to take Jixiang to process the wood. If this kind of wood with beautiful patterns were to be dried naturally, it would take a very long time, so it is usually dried by machine.

So Ji Kuli Xiang came online again. Looking at Ji Xiang who was carrying hundreds of kilograms of wood effortlessly, old man Ji lowered his eyes to hide the deep thought in his eyes.

Jixiang, who got a tube of original nutrient solution, couldn't help but protest.

Old Man Ji changed the tube of nutrient solution for Jixiang to one with a cucumber flavor because Jixiang had really put in a lot of effort today. Jixiang was reluctantly satisfied.

The next morning, after finishing processing all the wood, Jixiang looked at the deep purple-red wood that looked like top-grade red sandalwood and decided to make some traditional furniture with mortise and tenon joints.

Desks, armchairs, official hat chairs, rose chairs, Zen chairs, treasure cabinets and screens are all decorated with exquisite carvings of traditional patterns.

It took a week for Jixiang to finally complete the planned furniture.

Unexpectedly, Old Man Ji showed up immediately, and it was obvious that he had been paying attention to Jixiang recently.

"Mr. Zhang, the neighbor who borrowed our flying car is very interested in these furniture."

Jixiang understood immediately, and pointed at the simple and heavy cabinet with gorgeous and exquisite carvings and confirmed: "Is he sure he wants this cabinet?"

Old Man Ji nodded and said, "Do you have any idea of ​​selling the remaining furniture? I think they will be very popular."

This was a pleasant surprise for Jixiang, who originally wanted to use it for himself. He readily agreed and urged Old Man Ji to release it in the circle as soon as possible.

Because Jixiang is only six years old and has not reached the age for the Star Network to be fully open, he can only release information and conduct transactions within the circle through Old Man Ji.

Only when you reach the age of twelve can Jixiang use the complete and unlimited Star Network social platform.

For interstellar people under the age of twelve, social platforms can only link to the accounts of immediate family members, teachers, classmates, and neighbors in the residential community.

This stems from the various tragedies that have occurred in the interstellar space due to improper use of the star network and children's lack of judgment.

Although Jixiang's work was traded with the help of old man Ji, the name was a code name in the circle that Jixiang got himself, called Ruyi, which means "auspicious and wishful".

In fact, in the interstellar language system, both "吉祥" and "如意" are a bit difficult to pronounce and unclear, but they are not bad if you read them more often and become fluent.

Originally, Old Man Ji suggested that Jixiang change his name to one that was more in line with interstellar culture and easier to remember. However, Jixiang felt uncomfortable with it and insisted on using the code name Ruyi. So Old Man Ji let it go and let her do what she wanted.

The video of the actual furniture that Old Man Ji carefully shot was uploaded to the Star Network account, causing an uproar in the Star Network chat group spontaneously organized by the curiosity culture circle.

Shining Gold (Mr. Jin): Hey, let me see, this is Xiao Ruyi’s work, this symmetrical and complex special pattern is definitely her work.

Fashion Designer: Ruyi’s works always bring me new inspiration, even though I am a fashion designer.

Lieqi Benqi (group owner): What is the name of the combination of these furnitures? It looks very interesting. It is one-piece, but I don’t see any fixing parts other than wood, and it seems that no adhesive is used.

Curious figure collector: I think my figures need a new home design.

Domineering Sweetie (Dog Owner of the Patrol Dog): My sweetie also needs a special dog house like this.

……

Old Man Ji was very happy with the reactions of his group members. The next step was to wait for friends in the circle who were really interested to chat privately about the transaction.

Jixiang was also very happy about this unexpected surprise, but he couldn't help but mutter: "Why is there no market for my Chinese paintings? Why, why, why!"

Jixiang, who was still brooding over it, began his life of explosive sales, from joy in the beginning to numbness and mechanicality in the end.

In total, we received twelve furniture customization orders, each of which took seven to ten days to complete. It took three or four months to complete it.

Jixiang's purse finally became fatter.

During this period, Jixiang also specifically asked Old Man Ji about the consequences of these works entering the market and being reproduced by capital.

Old Man Ji first expressed his disdain for the factory assembly line products, and then asked Young Master Jixiang to think about it.

It is difficult for the curious products of ancient civilization to become popular. Genuine cultural relics do not necessarily have high collection value, and their research value is also different.

The selling point of the exotic reproductions of ancient civilizations is that they are actually purely handmade, which falls into the category of arts and crafts and has a limited audience.

However, those interstellar traditional handicrafts that have a large market often have clear inheritance requirements, and it is difficult for ordinary people to easily have the opportunity to learn them.

Craftsmen who are engaged in the reproduction of ancient civilizations are basically those who have studied ancient civilizations or specialize in the study of ancient civilizations. Reproduction is not just about resemblance in appearance, but also about the restoration of techniques and tools as much as possible.

Old man Ji studied under the great master in the field of ancient civilization research, Mr. Gu Qingming. The old man passed away more than 20 years ago, but no one has surpassed his achievements so far.

Originally, Old Man Ji wanted to engage in the study of ancient civilization, but his talent was not in academic research, so he just worked as a craftsman in the hope of carrying forward his teacher's academic achievements.

Jixiang clapped his hands loudly, showing great support and expressing his affirmation and appreciation for Old Man Ji's lofty ideals.

However, Jixiang believes that judging from the fact that old man Ji likes to keep accounts, is obsessed with money, and exploits child laborers, there must be a reason why academic research cannot make money and even has to pay for it.

Jixiang, who just turned seven, has finally paid off his debts and all he needs to do is pay his living expenses regularly.

The living expenses were calculated to two decimal places:

Jixiang sighed deeply.

Old Man Ji is a complicated person. He is stingy, but he never cares how much Jixiang spends. Of course, that's also because Jixiang doesn't have any large expenses at the moment, and Jixiang can't escape the debt anyway.

You could say he was not stingy. Apart from the 500 star coins he spent on buying Jixiang, Jixiang paid for all the expenses afterwards.

Old Man Ji is happy to pay for necessary expenses, but he will be frugal when it comes to non-essential or replaceable items, such as the original nutrient solution that he always buys, and the occasional discounted nutrient solution of other flavors that are about to expire.

Jixiang has been drinking the original nutrient solution for three whole months and has not drunk any other flavored nutrient solution in the meantime. Jixiang deeply feels that his taste buds have suffered inhuman torture.

But Jixiang's wallet could not afford any extra spending because he was notified to go to school.

Although online courses are good, they have limitations after all. Many learning projects must be carried out under the professional guidance of teachers.

For example, mental stimulation and practice.

Now seven years old, Jixiang’s latest medical examination report shows that her body has recovered after careful nursing and she can start mental training.

Ji, who almost only drinks the original nutrient solution, has never seen the world: ...

Knowing that Jixiang was just malnourished and that drinking nutrient solution would be enough, Old Man Ji said: ...The children's version of the physical examination report is a bit too lively. Let's change to the adult version next time.