I trade in both worlds

Xu Ziqing asked curiously: "Xu Xu, why doesn't your oil-paper umbrella have a pattern?"

Xu Xu poked his head out of the window and said with a smile, "Hey, you're back. Patterned umbrellas are more expensive. Most people's umbrellas are plain."

"Can an oil-paper umbrella really protect you from the rain? Will it be dripped through in a heavy rain?"

Xu Xu couldn't help laughing after hearing this: "Yes, oil-paper umbrellas are very strong. They have been specially treated so they won't be easily penetrated by raindrops."

"Xuxu, is it raining where you live?" Xu Ziqing suddenly asked.

Xu Xu looked at her in confusion and shook his head: "No, what's the matter?"

Xu Ziqing rubbed his hands excitedly, as if he was already in the rain: "I want to go to the ancient city to watch people holding oil-paper umbrellas and take a video. What do you think?"

Xu Xu looked at her inexplicably: "Most people wear hats and raincoats, and it's raining, so who would go out for no reason?"

Xu Ziqing curled his lips and said, "Why did people in ancient times love to wear straw raincoats? I heard that they are extremely heavy, and when you walk, it feels like you are carrying a basket of heavy objects. Wouldn't it be lighter and more poetic to hold an oil-paper umbrella?"

Xu Xu sighed helplessly and explained softly, "Although umbrellas are light, they are expensive and not as durable as raincoats. My family's raincoat was left by my grandfather."

Xu Ziqing sat on the sofa disappointedly: "I thought I would see passers-by wearing traditional costumes holding various oil-paper umbrellas on the ancient streets on rainy days."

Unable to bear her disappointment, Xu Xu thought for a moment and said, "There is a very famous umbrella maker in our county. Everyone calls him Hu Jiu. If you really want to take pictures, let's go to his place one day. However..."

"But what?" Xu Ziqing asked impatiently.

"It is said that Hu Jiu has a rather eccentric personality." Xu Xu said slowly, "He doesn't like dealing with people, and he doesn't like others disturbing his life. It's not necessarily that he would like to shoot it."

Xu Zi said optimistically: "Let's find a chance to try it out first. Maybe we'll be compatible with him."

"How about we go to the shop that sells the oil-paper umbrellas made by Hu Jiu one day?" Xu Xu suggested.

"That's fine." Xu Ziqing said expectantly, "It would be best if we could film the process of him making oil-paper umbrellas."

Two days later, it was the market day, and Xu Xu and Xu Ziqing once again came to Guoyue County with a camera.

The market was crowded with people, and the cries of various vendors could be heard one after another. They moved among the crowd, and were attracted by some novel stalls from time to time.

"Xuxu, look, there's a stall selling oil-paper umbrellas over there. Let's go over and take a look." Xu Ziqing shouted excitedly, pointing at a stall not far away.

The two walked up to the stall and saw that it was filled with all kinds of oil-paper umbrellas. They were colorful and had intricate patterns. The color and pattern of each umbrella were very beautiful.

"Girl, would you like to buy an umbrella?" The stall owner was a middle-aged man. He looked at Xu Ziqing with a smile.

"Yes, I heard that the oil-paper umbrellas made by Hu Jiu are very famous. I wonder if you have any here?" Xu Ziqing asked.

The stall owner heard this and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes: "Oh, so you are here to look for Hu Jiu's oil-paper umbrellas. I do have a few here, but not many, because Hu Jiu's umbrellas are rare and expensive."

"Can you show it to me?" Xu Ziqing looked at the stall owner expectantly.

The stall owner looked at them and asked, "Are you going to buy it or not? If you want to buy it, I'll show it to you. If you don't want to buy it, you can't see it."

Xu Ziqing nodded without thinking: "As long as it is an umbrella made by Hu Jiu himself, I will definitely buy it."

"Don't worry, everything I take out is made by Hu Jiu himself." As he said this, the stall owner took out a black cloth bag from under the stall and poured out six oil-paper umbrellas from it.

At first glance, the difference between these umbrellas and the other umbrellas on the stall is immediately apparent.

You can't see the pattern when the umbrella is folded, but the overall color scheme of the umbrella is obviously much more advanced than others.

Xu Ziqing wanted to reach out to take it, but was blocked by the stall owner: "Which one do you want to see? I'll open it and show you."

"I want to see them all." Xu Ziqing withdrew his hand and looked at the stall owner with a smile.

The stall owner glanced at her and casually opened a pink oil-paper umbrella to show Xu Ziqing: "This is the umbrella made by Hu Jiu. How do you think it is? It's beautiful, isn't it?"

The umbrella is like pink clouds, light and soft, with delicate flower and bird patterns painted on it, so lifelike that you can almost smell the fragrance of the flowers.

"Hmm, hmm, it's so beautiful." Xu Ziqing's eyes were glued to the umbrella table, unwilling to move away even a little.

The stall owner smiled proudly and said, "Of course, Hu Jiu's oil-paper umbrellas are famous far and wide. His umbrellas are not only colorful and auspicious, but also of high quality and durable. Many people like to buy his umbrellas, especially those literati, who are full of praise for his umbrellas."

Xu Xu carefully looked at the texture and pattern of the umbrella.

She exclaimed: "The paper of this umbrella seems to be more delicate than other umbrellas, and the pattern is more vivid. Moreover, this pink color is so special, like the color of peach blossoms just blooming, it is so beautiful."

"How much is this umbrella?" Xu Ziqing asked.

The stall owner smiled and pointed at three fingers: "Three taels."

Xu Xu looked at him in surprise: "So expensive?"

"If you think it's expensive, you can take a look at other umbrellas. They're not bad either, and the price is around two or three hundred coins," said the stall owner with a smile.

Xu Ziqing picked up a green umbrella at random from the stall and opened it. It was a plain umbrella with no pattern.

Lifting it up and putting it together with Hu Jiu's umbrella, Xu Ziqing folded the umbrella very quickly and asked casually, "How much is this one?"

The stall owner gestured “yeah” and said, “Two hundred wen.”

Xu Ziqing asked curiously: "The price difference is so big, what is the difference between Hu Jiu's umbrella and other umbrellas?"

The stall owner smiled proudly and said, "Hu Jiu is not only good at making umbrellas, but also a good painter. He does everything from selecting bamboo, making the frame, pasting the umbrellas, drawing patterns, and applying tung oil. If there are any production steps or differences, I can't see them anyway."

Xu Ziqing asked in confusion: "Why is Hu Jiu's umbrella so hard to find? Is it because so many people are scrambling to buy his umbrella?"

The stall owner shook his head: "Not really, he doesn't produce a lot, he only makes about ten umbrellas a year at most. So, his umbrellas rarely appear on the market, and only a few people can buy them."

Xu Ziqing asked curiously: "Why doesn't Hu Jiu sell more? If he sells more, won't he make more money?"

The stall owner shook his head and patiently explained: "Hu Jiu makes oil-paper umbrellas not for the sake of making money, but because he loves making umbrellas. He puts his heart and soul into every umbrella. From material selection to production, he personally checks every link and never allows any flaws. This is why his umbrellas are so rare, so precious, and so few in number."