Chronicle of Farming in Muxianfu

Chapter 24 Meeting Xiao Heng Again
(For those who like this book, please give me two recommendation tickets. The red wine has been passed on for half a month, and the recommendation has not passed [-]!

I walked away from the nests of several book friends, and I was really shocked. Everyone's books are so popular!
Only red wine is too pathetic!

I will work hard to code words, if you still like it, please support it! )
The bullock cart drove slowly, and still entered the city at noon. The two made an appointment to meet at the inn where they stayed last time in the evening. Then Er Niu went to buy things entrusted by the villagers, and Mu Ai found a home. In less than a quarter of an hour from the ready-made clothing store, when she came out, she had already changed into a sapphire blue brocade gown, wrapped around her waist with a wide band embroidered with dark patterns of silver threads, and tied her hair with hollow moiré silver hoops. son.I went to a nearby dealership and hired a carriage, gave the address, and then sat in the carriage with my eyes closed and meditated. After walking for two sticks of incense, the coachman shouted, "Master, the place you are looking for has arrived."

Mu Aili jumped out of the car, paid the fare, and turned around to look at the yard in front of him. According to the clothing store owner's wife, this is the home of Mr. Zhou, the best house builder in Kao City.

Judging from the width in front of the door, this small courtyard should not be big, with gray walls and red doors, simple and elegant, but it is a pity that the courtyard cannot be seen for the time being.

Just as he was about to go up the steps and knock on the door for a visit, the door suddenly opened from the inside, and the old and the young came out together, talking and laughing.When Mu Ai saw the younger man, she was slightly taken aback, thinking that this world is really small, she knows this man, Xiao Heng, the owner of Xiankelou.

Similarly, Xiao Heng also saw her, as if he couldn't believe it. He took a closer look, stepped down the steps with a look of surprise, and bowed his hands, "Oh, Brother Mu! Why is my brother having such a headache these days?" Looking for you, I didn't expect to meet you here today, what a coincidence! It's only been a month, and brother Mu's demeanor is even better than before, brother Yu almost didn't recognize him."

"Where do we never meet again in life, Brother Xiao, how has this always been?" Mu Ai smiled faintly, and exchanged polite greetings with him.

"Okay, okay, brother Yu is angry with customers, and forgot that this is in front of Mr. Zhou's door. Brother Mu is here, but he wants to visit Mr. Zhou?"

"Yes, my younger brother wants to build a house. I heard people say that Mr. Zhou is very skilled, so I came here to visit." Mu Ai straightforwardly explained her purpose.

Xiao Heng just smiled when he heard that, "That's such a coincidence, the courtyard I entrusted Mr. Zhou to repair has just been completed, come, let me introduce you."

"Thank you brother Xiao." Mu Ai cupped her hands in thanks.

The two walked up the steps together, while Mu Ai walked up and looked up at the old man standing in front of the door, about sixty years old, with a stone-blue gown and black cloth shoes, gray hair, neatly combed, rosy face, and long beard , a kind and wise elder demeanor.

At the same time, the old man was also looking at Mu Ai, this young man said that he could be 20 years old, with polite manners and gorgeous clothes, obviously he was not a poor person.Look at his black hair like ink, tied tightly on the top of his head with simple silver buckles, leaving a few strands draped over his shoulders.The exposed face is like white jade. Strictly speaking, her appearance can only be regarded as an upper-middle appearance, but the old man keenly discovered that there is a faint brilliance in her brows, which makes her whole body reveal a kind of gentleness. Like jade, the feeling of floating out of the dust.

"Mr. Zhou, Xiao was really rude when he met an old man suddenly. I hope you will forgive me." Xiao Heng apologized to the old man very respectfully.

The old man was not angry at all, and shook his head with a smile, "Boss Xiao, you are welcome."

"Mr. Zhou, please allow Xiao to recommend someone to you. This is my close friend, brother Mu Ai." Xiao Heng stepped forward and let Mu Ai go to him, watching her come forward to salute, "Mr. , I took the liberty to come here, please forgive me."

The old man hurriedly gave a hand, "Haha, there is no need to be polite, the weather is too hot, let's go in and have a cup of tea."

The three walked through the courtyard all the way, entered the main room and sat down, Mu Ai couldn't help admiring in her heart, as she had guessed earlier, this courtyard is really not big, it can even be said to be narrow, but along the way, stone tables, flowers, Arches, walls, and window lattices are exquisite and detailed everywhere. It is a scene at every step, which is absolutely worthy of the identity of the old master architect.

Mu Ai didn't talk too much, took a sip of tea, and straight to the point said her request.

"Mr. Zhou, I'm taking the liberty to come here today to bother you. I really have something to discuss. A few days ago, I bought a piece of land in Lijia Village, fifty miles away, and planned to build a practical and spacious house. I heard that Mr. Zhou The skills are superb, so come here and invite Mr. Zhou to come out of the mountain to host."

The old man didn't answer immediately, but looked at her with a smile for a while, and then asked, "Master Mu, if it's a farm house, there are many people who can build it, why do you have to invite the old man to go?"

Mu Ai didn't explain much, and took out a thick stack of drawings from her arms and handed them to him with both hands. "Mr. Zhou, please read these drawings, and you will know why I must invite you."

The old man took the drawing and slowly unfolded it.The first one above is a bird’s-eye view of a two-entry house. The gate, the second door, the verandah, the east and west rooms, the side rooms, the cross courtyard, and the main house are complete. The courtyard should be more compact.If it is in a mountain village with a large family population, it is really practical to build such a house.

Unfolding the second drawing, the old man frowned more and more, and couldn't help but move a few steps to the bright place next to the door to take a closer look.

Xiao Heng has been drinking tea by the side, without saying much, thinking about how to leave Muai for a glass of wine, and then ask him if he still has fragrant rice in his hand, so as to relieve his "difficult situation".Seeing the old man's expression at this time, he couldn't help but move closer to him, helping him pull the corner of the paper and watching carefully.He had just finished repairing the house, and he thought he could understand the drawings, but he couldn't understand the criss-cross patterns like corridors drawn on this drawing.

"Haha, Mr. Mu, let me make a guess. The second picture you drew is a structure similar to a flue for heating, right?"

"Yes, Mr. Zhou really lives up to his reputation. I haven't explained it yet, but you already guessed it." Mu Ai also came up close, and the three of them found seats at the door and sat down again.

Mu Ai went on to explain her new structure, "Mr. Zhou, I'm from the south. I'm not used to the climate here. I'm afraid the winter will be unbearably cold, so I thought hard and figured out this method. I named it geothermal. Looking at the complicated drawing , It’s actually very simple. It’s nothing more than building some flues under the bluestone floor we usually step on. In winter, in the side room next to it, or through the stove, the smoke goes around the bottom and is finally discharged through the chimney. In this way, the heat in the house is radiated from the ground, so there is no need to put a brazier for heating. I want to build one in each house with such geothermal heat, such as the east and west wing rooms, the main room, and the courtyard. In addition, if it is a poor house, you can use this geothermal heat It is built as high as a normal wooden bed, and when you rest at night, you can sleep with a quilt on it, which should be much warmer than a bed. Of course, the specifics of how to build it will have to be corrected by Mr. Zhou, after all, I am an amateur.”

The more the master listened to him, the brighter his eyes became, "Okay, okay, Mr. Mu is such a clever mind, I admire him very much. I will boldly accept Mr. Mu's job today. If I can really build this geothermal heat with my own hands, the people in the north will There is no need to suffer from the cold in winter.”

When Mu Ai heard that he was the first to mention the warmth and coldness of ordinary people, she didn't care about her commission at all, and she respected this wise and kind old man even more in her heart.

(End of this chapter)