The casual life of the flat space

Referring to the layout of the Sanheyuan, Bai Tieying planned to design the east wing as a storage room and kitchen. The difference is that because she wanted to add a kang, the east wing also served as a restaurant. However, in order to make it easier to clean, Bai Tieying added a fire wall between the stove and the kang.

When I was a child, I lived in a bungalow. Because that small town was a fusion of many regions, the kangs in every house might be different. There were floor kangs, front kangs, back kangs, opposite kangs, chessboard kangs, high and low kangs, one-line kangs, ten-thousand-line kangs... and so on.

With her childhood memories and the stress-relieving videos of raising and lowering the kang that she had watched on video applications for a while, Bai Tieying felt that she could be considered a "theoretical expert", so she was very confident that she could save the two hundred taels of silver for building the house - yes, it was originally for cheapness, but now it is to save money, the money is the same, but the purpose is different.

Once you enter the east wing, you can walk directly into the kang. On the left is the door to the storage room, which is convenient for taking things when cooking. Go forward and down three steps to reach the kitchen operation room.

In order to avoid having to take out the ash every day, Bai Tieying also built a semi-basement under the east wing, so that the ash can fall directly below through the ash storage bucket under the grate, accumulate for a period of time, and then be cleared out through the opening left at the back of the room.

The idea was good, but the shopkeeper Quan said that this could also be understood as two layers, which would violate the rules. Bai Tieying persuaded him to keep the "ash collection" design under the stove, and the other parts had to be abandoned.

Bai Tieying didn't mean to challenge "authority" on purpose, but her original world's thinking was people-oriented, how comfortable, how convenient, and even how she thought. Since it was the house she wanted to live in, it naturally had to be done according to her ideas, and she spent a lot of time and effort to talk to the shopkeeper Quan about it.

In fact, in the end, it was not necessarily that Manager Quan was convinced by her, but more likely because of her designs that were different from the current kangs. In Bai Tieying's words, "Manager Quan has shouldered too much for the warmth of the people."

"Shopkeeper Quan, the key points of my kangs are the chimneys. Only when the flue is unobstructed and smokeless can it conduct heat better, keep warm, and be quickly accepted by everyone. When the time comes, you can build one at home for display. Seeing the real thing will save you some trouble, right?"

"Well, then I'll rely on Miss Bai's support!"

"Haha, everyone told me to just call me Tieying, how come we are so distant after not seeing each other for a month? Fine, I'll draw a diagram for you right now, and you'll understand!"

As Bai Tieying spoke, he drew a diagram on the ground starting from the innermost chimney outwards. After a short while, he had drawn out the brick layout of the kitchen.

In fact, the methods of building a kang are all similar. As long as you follow these three principles: the firewood opening is lower than the smoke inlet, the smoke inlet is lower than the smoke exhaust outlet, and the head of the kang is lower than the end of the kang, the air pressure will automatically carry hot air throughout the kang, and the warmth preservation time can reach five or six hours, so you won't wake up from the cold in the middle of the night.

There are also heated beds here. The difference from the original world is that you can do whatever you want. According to the shopkeeper Quan, the heated beds in the rich families are very particular and have good effects, but they are expensive! The cost of setting up is expensive, and burning firewood and charcoal is also a considerable expense.

For those who have the conditions to build a kang, various ways of building it have emerged to save money. In addition, due to the difference in skills of the craftsmen, some kangs are not as good as fire basins, which leads to many people preferring to stay at home all winter rather than grit their teeth and build a kang.

"A three-inch board should be placed above the smoke inlet at the head of the kang, so that it can better help the hot air move upward and forward. Huilong Cave, which is the flue, should first be sealed with yellow mud on the other three sides of the stone slab except the flue side, and then covered with an arched iron sheet of the corresponding size, also sealed with yellow mud. The iron sheet should be placed so that it is higher on the flue side and lower on the kang side..."

Bai Tieying, the "theoretical expert", spoke very clearly. According to her, all of them were "dry goods", that is, secrets that masters usually do not pass on. This convinced Quan, who was a little hesitant about whether the two hundred taels were worth it. He had been an apprentice for ten years and had never heard of this from his master. Of course, it is possible that his master would not know it either.

Bai Tieying was so excited about saving the two hundred taels that it was already dark when they came to their senses. Fortunately, the foreman was smart and took the craftsmen back first, otherwise the shopkeeper would have to pay them "overtime pay".

"Oh, I'm so sorry. If you don't mind, can you have a simple meal at my house?"

"You're welcome, Tieying. My master is waiting for me outside! Besides, you just came back, so the house must be cleaned up. Uncle will invite you to dinner at the county restaurant some other day! I didn't expect you to know so much at such a young age!"

"Hey, this is all just theory. I just read a book left by an old craftsman. It's a pity that I can't find the book, otherwise I would give it to you directly, so that I don't have any misunderstandings. Now I can only rely on your experience to build a kang for my family."

"Hey, Tieying, what are you talking about? I think what you said is full of valuable information! Is that what you meant?"

"Haha, yes, that's what you said. Shopkeeper Quan, how long do you think it will take to complete my house?"

"The wall is not difficult. As long as we have enough stones, we can finish it in another five or six days. We have to start slowly with the kang. Now that we have the east wing, the others are easy. It will take at least ten days, conservatively estimated! But your 'bathroom' is called that, right?" Seeing Bai Tieying nod, Shopkeeper Quan continued:

"The ceramic pipes and vats have all been made according to your requirements. This is not difficult. The difficult part is digging a well in the house. I really can't do this, so I can't estimate the construction period."

"Oops, I didn't explain it clearly. This well is not a well in the usual sense. In other words, it is a combination of a water pressure well and a new method. By the way, have you finished the iron pipe and wellhead I asked you to make?"

"It's all done, but does it have anything to do with the well in this house?"

"Haha, that's right. Uncle Quan, this well really needs to be dug before we build the kang, otherwise we may not be able to use it. Let's dig the well tomorrow. After we dig it, we have to let it sit for ten days before we can drink it!"

"Okay, I'll do as you say!" With the "dry stuff" in mind, Manager Quan was full of confidence in his future work. He gave a word and went back in the ox cart.

Bai Tieying heard him talking about stones and guessed that maybe there were not enough stones. So he waved his hand and moved a lot of stones out of the space. As long as he made a time difference every day, the stones would be used up in a few times. As for using the space energy, Bai Tieying thought: "Save when you can, spend when you can"!