"Is it possible to collect the wool that falls off the sheep and make a piece of clothing out of it? Winter is coming. It should be warm, too." Li Jingyun plucked the wool off her clothes in tufts and said seriously.
Li Mingda and Su Gui were both stunned by Li Jingyun's words.
If it had been before the library was built, they would have thought their little sister was just having random ideas and that this was a wild fantasy.
When could wool be made into clothes? It was impossible! Throughout history, no one had ever managed to make clothes out of wool to keep warm.
But now, even the highly - difficult library had been completed ahead of schedule. They began to wonder if it was really possible to make such clothes.
"So how do you plan to do it? What do you need me to do?" Su Gui suddenly leaned in, looking at Li Jingyun, or rather, the wool in her hands. His eyes lit up.
He had told Li Jingyun long ago that he wanted to help her. He hadn't been of much help with the library. While the craftsmen had been working for months, he had been herding sheep for the same amount of time. Now, finally, there was a new task, and it was related to the sheep he had been herding. Naturally, he was excited.
Li Mingda was still thinking. Could this really succeed? How could they turn these messy tufts of wool into warm clothes that fit well?
If this thing could be made, how much should one piece be sold for? Would it be too expensive for ordinary people?
Questions filled Li Mingda's mind.
Li Jingyun scratched her head. Based on the manufacturing method and process provided by the system, she first determined what was needed. "Su Gui, take my token and go to the Ministry of Works to find Minister Yan or Assistant Minister Pei. Ask them to send a blacksmith over."
In the process of turning wool into yarn, a pair of brushes were needed. They were two palm - sized iron or wooden pieces covered with nails. After being covered with clean and dried wool, when the two pieces were rubbed together, a sheet of wool would form. By stretching and thinning the wool sheet and then twisting it, yarn would be made.
"Yes, ma'am!"
Su Gui took Li Jingyun's token as if he had received a precious imperial sword. After bowing respectfully, he left humming a tune.
"Sister, come and help me pluck more wool. Let's see if we can make something out of it." Li Jingyun stroked Dabao, and her hands were immediately covered with wool. She put it all into a small basin.
"Okay."
Li Mingda responded and started to help. Soon, the small basin was full. Li Mingda was about to get another basin, but Li Jingyun sprinkled some water into it and compacted the wool, leaving more than half of the basin empty.
"You're really something, Hongxuan. Following you, I'm experiencing the life of a craftsman. You just developed that milk tea and were planning to open a warm - drink shop. Now with these sweaters, it might take ten days or more. What about the warm - drink shop?" Li Mingda voiced her doubts.
In the past three months, because of the bet with the Cui family, she had seen a lot and grown a great deal. At least she had her own opinions.
Her words made Li Jingyun hesitate. There were points to be earned from both things, and she didn't want to give up either. What should she do?
"Maybe I should let Sister Xinxing manage the warm - drink shop. Didn't she say last time that she envied Sister Gaoyang for having something to do? She's bored in the palace all day and finds everything uninteresting."
Li Jingyun had an idea and thought of a win - win solution.
Don't think that she needed the system's reminder to learn something serious. She remembered things like this very clearly.
She just didn't know if it would work.
System: It's okay as long as the customers accept it.
After hearing this, Li Jingyun burst into a happy smile.
"That's good. I'm really looking forward to the opening of the warm - drink shop." Li Mingda nodded and smiled.
The two sisters chatted while working, collecting all the wool that had fallen off the sheep into one basin.
Su Gui came back, accompanied by Assistant Minister Pei and an over - forty - year - old blacksmith with calloused hands. "Greetings, Princess."
"Princess, this is Blacksmith Song. He's very skillful and can make all kinds of strange little iron gadgets." Assistant Minister Pei introduced the blacksmith.
"Good. I need a pair of brushes. They should be iron pieces as big as your hand, with nails standing on them, but the nails shouldn't be too sharp."
Li Jingyun organized her words and gestured while speaking.
She originally wanted to say the size of her own palm, but realized her hands were too small and it would be inconvenient for the craftsmen.
"Yes, Princess. I understand. Blunter nails are to prevent injuries. This is easy to make. I can finish it today."
Blacksmith Song didn't seem very talkative, but he was very smart. After Li Jingyun's brief explanation, he knew how to make it.
"So fast? Go ahead and make it." Li Jingyun was stunned.
She found that the skilled craftsmen in the Tang Dynasty were really amazing. They could make things just based on her vague descriptions, and they did an excellent job.
"Yes."
Both Assistant Minister Pei and Blacksmith Song were practical people. They left quickly after receiving the order.
When the brushes were made, Li Jingyun and the others, guided by the system, washed the wool over and over again until the smell of mutton almost disappeared.
After lunch, she searched around and finally found several large, unoccupied houses in a village outside Chang'an. She planned to set up a sweater - making factory there.
Under the system's subtle hints, her thinking had changed a lot.
At least there was an idea of a large - scale factory in her mind.
The recruitment of workers would have to be postponed for a few days. Everyone was busy with the autumn harvest, and the fields were full of people.
On the way back to the imperial city, Li Jingyun was eating a newly - made sugar figurine and thinking, "When the sweaters are made, I'll hire hundreds or thousands of female workers. Sister, how much should I pay them?"
"Well, you should ask Father or Big Brother. They'll be happy to know about the sweaters you're making."
Li Mingda also had a delicately - made sugar figurine in her hand. Since Li Jingyun started working on cement and printing books, she had left the palace more times in the past six months than in the previous five years combined.
She was quite familiar with the prices in the civilian world. However, no one had ever opened such a large - scale workshop, and there was no precedent to follow.
"You're right."
Li Jingyun said.
She didn't know that everything she had done that day had been reported to Li Shimin. Li Shimin was also thinking that if the sweaters could really be made, how big a factory would be needed and how many workers should be recruited to make as many sweaters as possible before winter.
There was no need to worry about the raw materials. There were many sheep - herders in the Tang Dynasty, and it would be easy to get some wool.