"Hu Aiqing, why are your hands shaking?" The emperor was in a good mood. Seeing Hu Hengqiu's hand holding the letter trembling slightly, he knew that this guy was worried about money.

"I...I am so happy!" Hu Hengqiu said "happily", grinding his teeth.

"Hahahaha!" The emperor laughed heartily, "What is this?" The emperor saw words on the back of the letter.

Hu Hengqiu quickly turned over the letter and came close to the emperor to read it. He saw that there were indeed words on the back:

I was lucky enough to get a horse in exchange for it,

Please accept it with caution.

If you ask where the tax money comes from,

It’s all about wool and cotton!

"Wool? Cotton? Shouldn't it be iron and salt?" The emperor looked at Hu Hengqiu doubtfully, and Hu Hengqiu shrugged: I didn't know!

The Secretary of the Household Department did not see the content of the letter, but he saw the emperor's face. He stepped forward and asked: "Your Majesty, is it possible to exchange for horses?"

The Minister of War had a look on his face that said, "I ask the same question, I ask the same question."

The emperor was at a loss for words. He didn't know. Who knew what Chu Qing was doing? Logically speaking, if Chu Qing had obtained the franchise, salt and iron should be the main source of income.

But this limerick shows that Chu Qing did not want to rely on these two things to make a fortune. What a cautious person!

The emperor was quite pleased. If Chu Qing really went to Voss to sell salt and iron products, he would be a "royal licensed smuggler." The emperor would leave clues to the various ministries of the imperial court and the aristocratic families.

Worth Prairie.

The herdsmen's sheep shearing festival has entered its second day.

On the first day, the herdsmen drove their sheep down to the river to take a bath. The young shepherd sang in a long voice:

“It’s sheep shearing time again,

We are reunited again.

In this happy holiday,

Can my sister make me a new dress?

I will treat you well,

Always keep it in mind!"

Taking the sheep to take a bath is not only to wash away the dust, but also an important moment related to the fate of the entire flock.

Sometimes a flock of sheep is leaderless. Crossing the river is a test. Which sheep is fearless may be the leader in the future.

Becoming a new leader is a dangerous thing with only courage and not enough experience. There was once a legend that a leader led a flock of tens of millions of sheep into the abyss.

Therefore, being the leader of the flock is very important.

After the sheep have finished bathing, they need to adapt to the temperature on the shore and observe that the sheep are not feeling any discomfort before the herdsmen drive them home.

Today is the second day. Chu Qing wore a thick mask and happily visited the grand scene of herdsmen shearing sheep. Herdsmen from several villages gathered together to use the shears.

After the sheep were bathed yesterday, their wool was clean and much smoother. When the herdsmen cut the shears, they would not get tangled in the wool or hurt the sheep's bodies.

The men tied the hooves of the sheep one by one and put them on the ground. The women squatted on the ground holding scissors, waiting to start.

This is a competition between several villages. They compete every year. Chu Qing doesn’t know what the competition is in shearing sheep, is it a competition of speed? Men should be the ones to do the shearing.

Antuta, the veterinarian, took out a "Dangra" and put it to his mouth. A sharp and high-pitched flute sounded, and the women immediately started shearing the sheep.

"Dangra" is an eagle bone flute with five holes and a very pleasant sound. Antuta is used as a "starting gun". When the flute sounds, only the sound of scissors clicking is heard, and tufts of wool are cut off.

The women's hands are very fast, and the big scissors seem to have souls in their hands, wandering through the thick wool, almost invisible, but only the wool can be seen falling off.

The outer wool is a little yellowish, especially the hair on the sheep's tail is still tangled and looks dirty. Some women do not remove the tail hair; some women leave the head and chest hair of the sheep, so that the sheep can look good.

It looks more like a lion with big spiral horns; some leave the hair on the four hooves uncut.

Chu Qing was wearing a thick mask and couldn't help but cover her mouth. Although the inner layer of wool was very white, the whole place was filled with the smell of sheep mutton. It really stinked!

"Antuta, why do they leave so much hair on the sheep?" Chu Yuan asked Chu Qing's doubts.

"They mark their own sheep. Each family's sheep are sheared in different shapes so they won't be confused. The ones with hair are also rams. Rams are the most beautiful." Antuta said as he spoke.

laugh.

Now it is clear why it is the women who shear the sheep. The shapes they give the sheep are very distinctive and the wool is sheared very neatly.

Being able to cut neatly with scissors is also a technical task. It is not as smooth as an electric clipper, which can be pushed back and forth.

The place where the scissors cut will naturally leave "edges" and "pits".

People with skillful hands will turn the cut marks into the look of a "hollow" sweater, with every pit aligned and every edge aligned. If someone is not skilled enough, the edges will be uneven and the pits will be mottled.

.

There was an eight or nine-year-old boy over there participating in a sheep-shearing competition. He didn't seem to have a grandma, and his grandma was sick, so he came to compete.

The child sheared very quickly, but the sheep after shearing looked ridiculous, with the hair on its body covered in holes and lumps, which made the adults laugh.

The elderly women had already moved out of their yurts to play with the soft wool, and sat in a group, twisting the wool while watching everyone compete.

Chu Qing leaned over to take a closer look at their spinning. They used the hook at one end of the spindle made of a sheep bone rod to hook a little of the wool fiber, and the other hand holding the wool twisted the wool little by little, twisting the wool evenly.

Cut the thread, loosen the spindle, and let the weight of the spindle pull the wool into a long yarn bit by bit.

Twisting the wool with one hand, stroking the thread with the other hand and turning the spindle, the soft wool turns into wool as it passes from the left hand to the right hand.

It was an interesting process, but Chu Qing was not envious of it. The wool had not been degreased, had a strong smell, and was very hard. If it was worn on the body, even through underwear, it would prick the skin.

Furthermore, using only one spindle would produce wool too slowly. It is probably because wood is scarce here and the poor cannot make spinning wheels. In Voss, it is illegal to cut down trees without a permit.

Probably because she had been in it for a long time and didn't smell the smell, Chu Qing now no longer felt how bad it was, but she still refused to take off the mask for fear of floating fibers getting into her mouth and nose.

Chu Qing walked around and looked around, and finally returned to the sheep. The sheep that had been sheared looked much more relaxed. The weather was getting hotter and hotter, and the sheep seemed very comfortable, walking around lightly looking for grass to eat.

Chu Qing was happy when she saw the big spiral horn, which is the symbol of Tan sheep. Tan wool is the best wool.

Wool, the thicker one is called wool, the thinner one is velvet. If it is thicker, the thread spun will be too prickly to the skin, and if it is thinner it will be inelastic.

Only this kind of wool has no difference between wool and velvet. The fiber is long and soft, and the clothing made of it is not prickly but also elastic.

What a gift from God! Beautiful sweaters and scarves seemed to appear in front of Chu Qing’s eyes!

－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
Chapter completed!