A few people watched the horses for a while, then found a saddlery shop near the horse market. They explained that they wanted to buy a good set of saddles and tacks. As long as they liked it, the price was not a problem.
Seeing the good customers, the shop owner hurriedly asked the waiters to bring tea, water and snacks, and served them diligently. He also ordered several sets of high-quality saddles to be brought out for them to see.
The so-called saddle is actually a complete set of horse equipment including saddle, stirrup, whip, saddle, stirrup seat, girth, and front and rear saddle.
The saddle was first invented by the people of Northern Xinjiang, but it is relatively simple, just like a seat cushion.
Our modern concave saddle with front and rear bridges was invented by the Xianbo people.
After this kind of saddle is fixed on the horse's back, it can restrict the rider's body from sliding forward and backward on the horse, ensuring longitudinal stability. Therefore, this kind of saddle was first called the 'two-bridge vertical saddle'.
Later, it was improved and the front saddle bridge was designed to be higher and upright, while the rear saddle bridge was relatively inclined downward. This is the 'rear saddle bridge tilt saddle'.
This style of saddle can make it easier for riders to get on and off the horse without affecting its stability. It is a great progress in design and has been passed down to this day after it was finalized.
The components of the saddle include the front saddle bridge, the rear saddle bridge, the front saddle wings, the rear saddle wings, the saddle and the saddle ribs. Generally speaking, they are made of willow and birch, because these two trees are more common in the north. , strong and durable after drying treatment.
The sets of saddles in the store are very exquisite in workmanship and gorgeously decorated. According to their use, they are divided into sitting saddles, pack saddles, wedding saddles and carriage saddles.
And the materials of saddles are also diverse, including gilt saddles, silver-inlaid saddles, cloisonné saddles, lacquer saddles...
The front and rear saddles of the saddle are also decorated in various ways, either with painted patterns, or inlaid with shell carvings, bone carvings, or even jade carvings.
There are also edge patterns or corner patterns on the saddle, cushions, saddle ridges, saddle flowers, etc. Saddle flowers are mostly made of silver or copper, and some are made of pure gold, but they are extremely rare.
The cushioned saddle is an embroidery craft, which was later improved by the Chinese. The earliest northern tribes were not so particular.
Therefore, the production of a set of saddles includes woodworking, embroidery, fur, weaving, silversmithing and other crafts, among which there are many things to pay attention to.
There are many Xianbo people, Capricorn people, and Wuhuan people in Yanyun County, among whom there are many outstanding saddle craftsmen. On the basis of their traditional crafts, craftsmen from China have innovated and improved them, forming a kind of The unique style is the world-famous Yanyun Anqing.
Someone once described Yanyun Anqing like this.
'The saddle and bridle are light and simple for galloping, weighing no more than seven kilograms. The wings of the goose on the saddle are upright in front and flat in the back. They can be turned around without hurting the arms. The stirrups are round, so the feet are neutral and not lopsided. The bottom of the stirrups is wide, so boots can be easily put in. . The leather with the stirrups was rubbed by hand without salting it, and filled with mutton fat, so it was exposed to the rain and rotted constantly. It was only more than an inch wide and was not long enough to reach the four generals, so I immediately turned around and turned around...'
Xiao Chen didn't know much about this thing, he just thought that everything was good, but Tie Kunlun was an expert, and he looked through the selection carefully. The light in the room was too dark to see clearly, so he simply took it outside to look at it.
The shopkeeper was extremely shrewd, and was afraid that he would steal the saddle away, so he nuzzled at a young boy. The young boy quickly ran out and stood next to Tie Kunlun to closely monitor him, as if to guard against thieves.
Xiao Chen chuckled, "Boss, we are all sitting here, can he still take your treasure and run away? If you are worried, I will give you money as a deposit."
With that said, Xiao Ye took out a fifty-two-weight large ingot from his wallet and threw it on the table with a loud sound.
They came out ready to spend money. There were two thousand taels of silver in the wallet on Xiao Ye's back.
Today's jin liang is based on the hexadecimal system, which means that one jin of silver is sixteen taels. A fifty-tael ingot is not five jins, but only about three jins.
Therefore, two thousand taels of silver only weighed about one hundred and twenty kilograms, and Xiao Ye felt light on his back.
"How can that be possible?" The shop owner smiled shyly, but picked up the silver and looked at it, "This silver looks to be of good quality, but fake silver filled with lead has recently appeared on the market, which has also deceived many people. "
Does this mean that your stuff is really fake?
"Boss, if you don't believe me, just cut it open and have a look. Anyway, I want to buy something in your store. I like these sets of saddle shackles very much, but I don't know how much they cost?" Xiao Chen took a fancy to them all and wanted to Buy them all back, give the best ones to Liu Ruyun, and give the others to other friends.
"That's different, too. For example, the uncle outside the door saw it, but it's gilded with silver, fine embroidery, selected cowhide, fine birch wood... If you like it, uncle, I'll give you three hundred taels of silver. Let’s go.” The shopkeeper said.
"One hundred taels!" Duan Linger raised a little finger.
"Are you guys joking with me?" the shop owner suddenly made a face.
"Just kidding, actually three hundred taels is not expensive." Duan Ling'er immediately softened his words, thinking, "Damn it, this bargaining failed again."
"We who do business are all real people. We don't dare to flatter the girl's joke. Although the materials of the other saddle shackles are slightly different, the workmanship is just as fine. They are all the work of our Yanyun master craftsmen. In terms of price, , It all depends on my reward... But if it is less than two hundred taels, the villain will not be able to obey." said the shop owner.
"The boss is right. These pairs of saddles are really exquisite. The embroidery craftsmanship alone is extraordinary." Ye Baiqing also likes them very much.
"This gentleman also has discernment, and I'm not just bragging. In this huge horse market, our store has the best. Not to mention anything else, the silver inlaid on it is all pure and sufficient..." After all the boss said, he still suspected that Xiao Chen's money was fake.
"Your boss is really noisy, why don't you just cut it and take a look." Ye Baiqing said with a smile.
"Isn't this embarrassing?" The shop owner asked a boy to get some scissors and cut one in front of everyone.
Of course it was real, and the quality was so good that the shop owner also praised it repeatedly, with a happy smile on his face.
Suddenly, an imposing and luxuriously dressed middle-aged man walked in outside the door. As soon as he entered the door, he said loudly, "Boss, I heard that your saddle is the best. Pick out a high-quality pair for me to see!"
The shopkeeper was very happy when he saw that another high-profile customer had arrived. I don't know where the sun rose today? Two big businesses came to my door early in the morning...
He hurriedly asked him to sit down, and asked the young man to bring him a few pairs of high-quality saddles for him to take a look at.
This man was extremely generous. He glanced at it and pointed at a pair of cloisonné saddles, "How much does this cost?"
"Things that can catch the eye of the uncle are naturally high-end goods. I think the uncle is also a wealthy man. If the asking price is too low, I'm afraid it will be an insult to the noble man. Do you think the price of only 200 taels is reasonable?" the shop owner said hurriedly.
"I like this thing very much. Two hundred taels is not much. I want it. I am the only one who wants to buy a horse, but I don't know if it is suitable? How about this? You send a guy to take it to the horse market with me. After a walk, if it were Chinese style, I would buy all the saddles and horses, and I would keep this as a deposit."
The high-profile guest also took out a large fifty-tael ingot and threw it on the table. He was much more generous than Xiao Chen...