jade carver

It took Lao Xia three full months to finish the jade carvings in his hand. The selected work was named "Daiyu Playing Parrots". The whole work was ingeniously conceived. Looking at his own parrot.The most amazing thing is that the parrot is standing on one leg in the cage. The feathers on the body are carved vividly. When the wind blows, you can still see the cage tied to the chain of jade buttons fluctuating with the wind. Even the caged bird seems to be alive. .

The entire jade carving is beautiful and moving, and the color is exquisite, and the chain of buttons that hold the figure and the birdcage together is really extravagant.It should be known that it is very difficult to obtain good materials for this style, especially the ones that are interlocking. It is not only delicate, but also pays more attention to the unity and harmony of color and material.Among other things, Lao Xia's hand carving is definitely ranked in the top one or two.

Junior Brother Yun looked carefully at the side, deeply moved, "Brother, it would be great if the master is still here. I remember that the master taught us this style of chain buttons when I was learning jadeite? I didn't see the world at that time, but I saw the master. Start with such an expensive and large piece of jadeite, and drink it, my heart almost popped out of my throat..."

Lao Xia narrowed his eyes, one of his eyes was damaged, and it was really difficult for him to look at this jade carving for three months.When he heard Junior Brother Yun talking, he also thought of the happy and harmonious family back then, "That's right, don't talk about you, I also felt a little bit in my heart at the time. What did Senior Brother Xu say, oh, 'Master, isn't that knife? Cut on the emerald, it is cut on my heart'!"

Junior Brother Yun laughed along with him. He was younger than the senior brothers, and he had withdrawn earlier. When he recalled the past, he always remembered the warmth of those years. "It's a pity, senior brother Xu is not here, if he sees this piece of jade being polished like this, he will definitely be happy in his heart."

Lao Xia snorted, "Him? He won't be at a disadvantage. Let's carve it with painstaking efforts. Why don't we put it in his shop and sell it for money? This talent is really rich in fame and fortune." Even so, there was something in his tone. There was an indescribable sense of relief, and Lao Xia was grateful for Old Man Xu's timely help.It's just that I have been used to contradicting for more than ten years, but now it has become a habit to grind my mouth.

Junior brother Yun also knew that the two senior brothers always quarreled, so he just smiled and didn't say anything more.

Lao Xia attaches great importance to this jade carving in his hand, and he entrusts all his inheritance to it.I invited the familiar elders to help find a polishing master, who polished and illuminated it carefully, even the grinding tools were made by the master, and the surface texture was not damaged at all.

When it comes to cleaning and waxing, be 12 very careful.This jade is afraid of acid, so it can only be washed with alkali, and the washing water is also hot and cold. Lao Xia has been watching from the side, for fear that something may go wrong.He refused to leave when it came time for waxing. Fortunately, this is a veteran craftsman who used the earthen method of raising jade safely, and directly set up a large pot to steam and roast to melt the wax.

The wax shavings peeled off from the master's hand little by little, and spread a layer on the surface of the jade. The other person immediately wore gloves and took a small brush to brush it evenly in time.There is a particular point here, the wax should be wiped while it is hot, and it will be easier to remove it when it is cold.

This is all labor-intensive work, and Lao Xia is not too tired, standing there like a supervisor and watching others finish it.The master finished his work and came over to talk to Lao Xia, they had known each other many years ago, and they were quite open to jokes, "Why, Master Xia, are you still afraid that I will hack your things? You stand here and make me nervous, as if I made the white jade palace lantern that your master attended the state banquet all over again!"

The corners of Lao Xia's mouth opened a little, as if he was smiling, but it was unnatural to smile after being frozen for too long, "I'm naturally relieved of you, but it's really important to me, and I don't feel at ease looking at it without me .”

The master master was smashing and smashing his mouth. He had served many jade carving masters before, and he still had some vision. "That's right, the one you sent this time is much better than the ones from previous years. Such a fine jade carving even tempts me. But even if we kidnap it and run away, we don't want to hurt it in the slightest."

Lao Xia listened to the master talking and joking, his eyes were full of smiles, his evaluation of things was very pertinent, no matter who it was, a good thing is a good thing.So he opened his mouth and answered, "No, I dare say that even if the Gu family and the Jin family have made exactly the same patterns, they can't compare to my carver!"

Hearing Lao Xia's proud tone, the apprentice who was brushing the wax raised his head and glanced at him. He has been here with the master for many years, and he has never seen such a boast of his own things.With just one glance, I was immediately taught by my master, "What are you looking around for! Why don't you hurry up and work on what you have in your hands, and keep your hands steady!"

The selection was held in mid-August, and Junior Brother Yun had asked someone to inquire about it in advance. This time, the big families had a tacit understanding, and they were not willing to throw the most precious things in.I don't know who made the news. It seems that at the end of the competition, all jade carvings will be auctioned off, and it is rumored that all jade carvings will be donated to the National Museum.I don't know if the donation to the museum is true, but the location of the selection is really in a provincial museum.

It is rare for the Hu family, Gu family, and Jin family to have the same views, and they only took high-quality jade materials to catch up with new jobs, and they were not willing to touch their families.Lao Xia and the others are bachelors, they don't have any family background, but they really took out the best things in their hands.

The Hu family is rich and powerful, and they used excellent Xinjiang Hetian Qingyu.Like Lao Xia's previous idea, they also used chain buttons.The Hu family made a white jade bottle with solid three-linked rings on it, making people feel heartache for him when they see it.But this job is a bit inferior to other families, and jade materials alone can't support it.

The Gu family also made bottles, but they were obviously delicate.The white jade bottle of the ancient family is in the Hindustan style, the jade is warm and lustrous, and the bottle body is round.Decorations in the shape of flowers, fruits, and leaves are wrapped around the bottle body, and the wide leaves are strung together. It looks lifelike, but it feels like nothing to the touch. Such a bas-relief covering the traces is really wonderful.Moreover, this white jade is exquisitely carved, the thin body is almost translucent, and it looks crystal clear under the light, which is really eye-catching.

The Jin family also chose white jade, but the workmanship was more exquisite, one jade pot and two jade cups.What's interesting is that the whole jade pot holds the delicate lotus flower that is about to bloom on the whole round lotus leaf, and the jade cup is a shape formed by bending the lotus leaf in the same style.The outer walls of both the jade pot and the jade cup are lined with double-yin lines to depict the leaf veins. The leaf stems spread from the bottom to the top, and the curves play around, rising to the side of the cup, forming a natural foot and handle.The whole set of tea sets has the style of the Southern Song Dynasty, and the carving is mature and delicate, which is really a rare and excellent product.

Lao Xia scanned around, and among the nearly thousand pieces of jade carvings sent here, only these three families can be compared with them.The things he and Junior Brother Yun brought this time, no matter in terms of materials or workmanship, are considered top-notch in every way, which can be heard from the words gathered by the three major families to comment.Lao Xia is not a newcomer who has just started. The people here who are familiar with him are all old guys. Before the results were announced, some people came to congratulate him.

The first one to come was the old man from the Gu family. He was familiar with Lao Xia's master, and he could be regarded as watching the development of Lao Xia's senior brothers. Appreciate. "Not bad, not bad, very much like your master back then! Xiao Xia, you are more skillful this time than before!"

Old Xia Qian gave way, but before he could say anything more, he heard the people around rushing towards a place.

"Go and have a look! It's a palace lantern!"

"Fu's Palace Lantern!"

Lao Xia's heart skipped a beat, the Fu family, isn't that his teacher?Since the master left, most of the people in the sect dispersed and no longer mentioned the name of the master's sect, but only used the surname Fu of the younger brother as a title.Could it be that the younger brother brought someone here?

The faces of the old men of the big families were also a bit strange. They had heard of the internal strife in the Fu family, but they didn't expect to have a fight on this occasion. They glanced at each other and followed the crowd to see what happened.

The palace lanterns of the Fu family were hung high there, and they were not carefully placed on the tray like these people.The ancestors of the Fu family used to be court jade carvings, and once this palace lantern was taken out, it was extremely magnificent.

But it's just imposing, it looks like a high-quality white jade texture, but the upper part of the cloud is like shadows and has not been dealt with clearly, and there are sharp-eyed people underneath, it is inevitable to mutter.

The middle-aged man standing under the palace lantern was slightly arched, but his expression was smiling. It was Senior Brother Xu whom he hadn't seen for a long time.Brother Xu saw the discussion among the crowd, but he didn't try to defend himself, he just reported the model of the palace lantern. "A white jade 'Jie Jie Gao' palace lantern, 24.6 cm high, 17.5 cm wide, painted in color, embedded with pearls and turquoise...",

The people below straightened their ears and listened, and became quiet when they heard one item was reported.

Brother Xu's eyes were full of complacency, and he wished his toes would float up, "Everyone, watch out, I'll order it and let's take a closer look!"

There was already a groove for fuel in the palace lantern, Master Xu put incense into it and lit it, a ray of fire lit up from inside, not much brighter than a candle.But just such a split of light makes the whole palace lantern "move" alive.It looked like a dirty place before, but under the internal light, it seemed to be smoky, and it looked like a sea of ​​clouds.

In the depths of the sea of ​​clouds, there seemed to be some unreal figures reading, one or two, and gradually more people...

"Double sets! Double sets of interlayer palace lanterns!" Someone shouted in a low voice, looking at the lofty palace lanterns even more obsessively.

Lao Xia's face froze, how could he not recognize that this was Master's famous work!This is not only a double-set interlayer, but what is even more rare is that it is taken from a whole piece of white jade, and the jade marks on it have not been changed.The inner wall of the palace lantern is as thin as paper, but the textures and patterns of the two layers reflect each other under the internal light, making the characters on it seem to be walking.

If it wasn't for this, how could he be elected to the state banquet?

"Ahem! Everyone, our master...ah, no, I mean how about the lamps of the Fu family?" Brother Xu had shown enough, and blew out the lamps inside. "We attach great importance to this competition, and we have worked out all the details of our hometown! Hey, Gu Gu, Jin Lao, what do you say?"

The old men of the Gu family and the Jin family didn't speak, they were defeated by their masters back then, and if they were taken out now, they would be defeated as well.The old man of the Gu family was still kind, he thought for a while and then answered, "Of course we can't compare with Mr. Fu." He made a detour, but he didn't admit that he is worse than the Fu family now.

Master Xu Quan didn't understand the meaning, he smiled like a flower, and he didn't blush when he spoke. "Acceptance, acquiescence!"

The old man of the Jin family was not convinced, he had a strong temper, and pointed out directly, "Didn't you hear that we said that we can't compare with Mr. Fu, and we didn't say that the Fu family is today! You use Mr. Fu's things to fight for fame. Don't you feel ashamed!"

Brother Xu rubbed his nose, still smiling, "I also helped the old master with this lamp back then, and I did it for a while, now I can take it out, right?"

Mr. Jin didn't expect him to be so thick-skinned, so he snorted angrily and walked aside, not to look any further.

Lao Xia was also a little uneasy, he was not sure what the purpose of allowing senior brother to come this time.

Lao Xia didn't understand until the final ranking was announced.

The top five shortlisted include the Fu family's white jade "Backgammon" palace lantern, Lao Xia's Daiyu opera parrot, and the Gu family, Jin family, and Hu family are naturally also listed.The organizer was very smart, and did not rank as usual, but awarded the jade carving master qualification certificates to the top five candidates, and selected more than a dozen jade carving craftsmen, which is considered complete.

Brother Xu found Lao Xia holding the certificate, congratulating and congratulating, "Look, what did I say, Junior Brother Xia? As long as Junior Brother makes a move, there is nothing that can't be done! Hehe, it would be great if the master is still here, he Seeing that we can win more awards, the old man must be very happy and praise..." Senior Brother Xu glanced at the palace lantern surrounded by stewards and bodyguards not far away, with a sad expression on his face. "It's a pity that this time the jade carvings are not allowed to be donated to the museum, otherwise it would be good to keep them, and save the master's life's painstaking efforts to be sold at a low price."

Lao Xia couldn't believe it, "He, he wants to sell the master's palace lantern?!"

Brother Xu nodded, with a look of emotion on his face, "I can bring it this time, it's just to give him a good name and sell him a few cents more. There are not many left in the factory."

Even Junior Brother Yun was a little sad now.After all, they watched the master carve these out with their own eyes, and witnessed their brilliance with their own eyes. Now that they heard it, they felt really uncomfortable.

"Forget it, let it make another contribution today, and it's also considered the master's love for me. I just asked the judges, and I heard that one person can nominate three places. Well, just let Junjie and Xiaowen, Xiaowen Brother Wu, let’s go together..." Brother Xu rubbed his chin and said a few words, then winked at Lao Xia and the others, "Which ones do you recommend, have you thought about it yet?"

The author has something to say:

Senior Brother Xu showed his domineering arrogance: Humph, let me tell you, no one has been able to snatch the food from me yet!These three places are all surnamed Xu!