Chapter 503: Not enough money, but craftsmanship
Going upstairs, Song Huagui found that the space of about ten square meters in front of him was just a common part connecting the stairs, elevator and the second floor.
She immediately realized that if she really wanted to enter the restaurant, she would have to turn a corner.
Most likely you have to pass through the part behind the relief wall in the vestibule.
This is due to the architectural pattern. People with a slight sense of direction can think of this as soon as they see the pattern of the vestibule.
But even so, Song Huagui has to admit that the space above the second floor can only be regarded as a passage space, but it is also unique.
Because in addition to the two gimmicks of "good luck at the head" and "lucky stars shining brightly", the walls and floors here are not simple.
The wall directly opposite the elevator upstairs echoes the portraits of the Qing Dynasty emperors at the stairs. Hanging are the portraits of the sixteen emperors of the Ming Dynasty.
If you have the intention, you can even detect it.
It starts from the portrait of Emperor Guangxu when he first steps up the stairs, continues to the portrait of Emperor Shunzhi at the entrance of the stairs, and then connects to the portrait of Emperor Chongzhen hanging on the wall of the second floor.
This kind of display method is actually subtly using the order of dynasty emperors as a guide to the guests.
Using a quiet inner suggestion, the space of the restaurant and the theme of palace cuisine are extended in an orderly and effective manner very cleverly.
This is the unique characteristic of Chinese culture. Foreigners like to be public, while Chinese people like to be reserved.
The ground is the same, although it is only paved with gray stones.
But Song Huagui still saw extremely exquisite traditional art patterns on the ground.
For example, at the entrance of the stairs and the exit of the elevator, there are "Tailored Clouds".
There is also "Shoushan Fuhai" in the center of the entire space.
This is obviously carved out bit by bit by hand.
Based on Song Huagui's artistic accomplishments, he could even conclude that the person doing this work was by no means an ordinary craftsman, but a professional art talent from the Sculpture Department of the Academy of Fine Arts.
Because no matter the layering, richness, accuracy and flexibility of these patterns, they are not comparable to the "work" done by ordinary craftsmen.
However, even though he appreciated it from the bottom of his heart, Song Huagui did not praise him verbally this time.
Even if she really thinks that Ning Weimin has done an excellent job in handling the details, far beyond her imagination, she must exercise restraint and reservation.
The reason is very simple. If you praise every place you go, will it be valuable if you say too many good things?
Not only does this lack of restraint, but it will go too far.
She was absolutely sure that there would be something more exciting later, so she thought that as the old saying goes, we should use the good steel on the blade and the good words where it counts.
In this way, we silently walked towards the turning point leading to the restaurant.
Song Huagui had already made up his mind. He had to walk into the restaurant and see the "highlight" that Ning Weimin had really arranged before he could praise him.
But things in the world are still so complicated, and many times it is not possible for people to do it just by thinking about it.
As soon as he turned around the intersection and suddenly saw the entrance of the restaurant five meters away from him, Song Huagui violated the decision he had just made and couldn't help but let out a shocked admiration.
“Oh! So beautiful! So amazing”
Can't really blame her, as this is traditional craftsmanship at its finest, merging effects with clever aesthetic applications. Let alone her, I'm afraid anyone else would inevitably lose their composure.
What kind of scene did she see?
The most intuitive thing is the red walls and blue tiles.
This is not an extended meaning, it is really a bright red palace wall with green glazed tiles.
When you turn this corner, the walls on both sides are like the real scenes in the Temple of Heaven Park.
There is also a white marble fence under the palace wall, and Danbi stones are also laid vertically in the middle of the road.
The entrance door of the restaurant is a nearly complete replica of a palace-style hanging flower door.
There is no doubt that this is the most typical palace architectural style in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
But that’s not all. If it is just a simple copy to show the palace style, it would be too rigid.
The most vivid part is at the tops of the palace walls at the left and right ends leading to the hanging flower gate.
One in front, one in the back, staggered, each stretching out a large magnolia flower.
On the left and right sides under the hanging flower door, there are two slim girls standing respectively.
Magnolia is of course not a real magnolia.
It is a cast copper branch with flowers inlaid with utensils. It is smooth, translucent, and flawless white.
The two girls are not the image of palace maids wearing flag makeup, gorgeous clothes and flower pot shoes in people's usual way of thinking.
As leaders, their image is more modern, with their hair just tied up.
The cheongsam on my body is also shorter than the normal cheongsam, it is only a knee-length skirt.
The color of the fabric is not bright red or purple, but a very elegant peacock blue background with white magnolia flowers embroidered on it. People and scenery, scenery and people, correspond to each other and are full of interest.
But is vividness and interest enough?
No, in the end, there must be a dignified sense of ceremony and a sense of elegance without losing stability.
You know, the palace wall leading to the entrance of the restaurant is not just a palace wall, there are also flower windows lined with green glazed tiles on the wall.
Every open window is sealed with glass, and the information on the bronze plate below the window shows that every artifact on display inside is a real royal antique - a ritual offering from the Temple of Heaven Garden. device.
The most eye-catching visual center is the interior wall illuminated by warm yellow light through the hanging flower door.
The dazzling golden picture on the wall inside the restaurant is actually a copy of "The Banquet in Ziguang Pavilion" by the Qing Dynasty painter Yao Wenhan.
It's here! Through the wonderful pens of teachers and students of the Chinese Painting Department of the Academy of Fine Arts!
Miraculously restored the scene of Emperor Qianlong’s grand banquet during the Spring Festival in the 25th year of Qianlong’s reign in the Qing Dynasty!
Needless to say, in this day and age, such indoor landscaping is extremely rare.
It stands to reason that in the domestic environment, such a thing is simply impossible.
Even national museums and art galleries don’t have such vivid examples.
So it's no wonder that Song Huagui's spirit and vision were greatly affected.
“Your place is like a palace cultural museum. Where is the place to eat? It’s amazing! I think my Maxim restaurant, which is under construction, will be inferior to your design. "You should really study art! Otherwise it would be a shame!"
Song Huagui stood at the door of the restaurant and didn't go in at all.
The more she looked, the more interested she became. After looking at the jade orchid flowers, she looked at the carvings of the white marble railings.
Then admire the colorful paintings on the hanging flower door and the "Longevity" pattern with flying heads and rafter heads.
Finally, his eyes focused on the clothes of the two girls at the door, becoming more and more eager.
For no other reason than that, she has always wanted to make national costumes fashionable and promote them to the international fashion stage.
To this end, many design drafts have been conceived.
Unexpectedly, before she had the courage to show the plan to others, Ning Weimin would be ahead.
Ethnic costumes have been improved so well, and they have begun to be used in conjunction with reality.
How could she express the feeling in her heart clearly?
If she could, she really wanted to see how many apertures Ning Weimin had in his heart.
Everyone talks about the Qiqiao Exquisite Heart, but in the past she thought it was just an exaggerated joke.
But since getting to know Ning Weimin, she has become more and more convinced that this sentence has a certain possibility of truth.
Otherwise, there is no way to explain Ning Weimin’s endless whimsical ideas and business inspirations.
However, Ning Weimin seemed relatively calm about her praise this time.
This is not surprising, because he knows his own affairs well.
For him, it is no wonder that these things are visible thirty years later. He just copied them, but he does not think that he has any superior knowledge.
On the contrary, the real things in his restaurant were far more valuable to him than those outside.
So I became humble and didn’t take it seriously.
"Don't be ridiculous, my little cleverness is nothing. How can it compare with your restaurant, which was built by Japanese people, uses all imported materials, and is an exact copy of the Maxim Restaurant in Paris!"
“Every piece of glass on the wall of your restaurant is flown directly from France, and the oil paint on the glass is painted on stroke by stroke. That is the real high-end.”
"I'm just making do. I don't have enough money, and I hope it can be as artistic as your restaurant, not so tacky. It's just a last resort. I don't have enough money, so I can make do with craftsmanship. It looks pretty good. It's like that, but it's just a coincidence, and it completely takes advantage of the low price of our domestic arts and crafts."
"To tell you the truth, good food requires beautiful utensils, and good food requires beautiful scenery. These two things are almost the same. I didn’t even have the money to buy an air conditioner, so I only installed a ceiling fan..."
Song Huagui couldn’t help but be surprised again.
"Ah? There's no air conditioning? It's such a hot day, what's the point of having too many people? How can you make do with this? You're still young. You should report this to me..."< br>
But then she suddenly realized that the coolness she felt on her body seemed inconsistent with the reality.
"...Isn't it right? Don't you have air conditioning in your restaurant? I can feel the slightest chill inside. It's impossible to keep it so cool with just a ceiling fan..."
Well, now that the words were on his lips, Ning Weimin naturally pretended to be "13".
“Hey, there are foreign methods, but there are local methods. Sister, I really don’t have an air conditioner, it’s too expensive! But I can put an ice basin!”
"You don't know something. The cold storage built by my restaurant is huge! A few large pieces of 'Polar Bear' artificial ice are stored, which is enough for me to use for two or three days!"
"In terms of cost performance, artificial ice Ice can be added at will, and the cost is much less than using an air conditioner! And it’s also ancient! Isn’t that great? ”
(End of this chapter)