走在闽南的都市中，你看到的除了钢筋水泥，还有隐藏其中的红砖瓦顶。

In the cities of south Fujian, besides the buildings made of steel and concrete, you will see the house with red tile roof as well

【我叫方瑞泉，来自漳州龙海，现在是烧窑师傅。 My name is Fang Ruiquan, I’m from Longhai of Zhangzhou city and I’m a kiln man currently】

方瑞泉出生于烧窑世家，孩童时候，祖父便逼他学习砖瓦烧制，希望他能传承这份古老的手艺。

Fang Ruiquan was born in a family where family members are kilning brick and tile for generations. When he was a child, his father forced him to learn how to kiln brick and tile, expecting him to inherit this age-old craftsmanship.

【八岁的时候帮忙烧小火，在十三岁左右开始学习砖瓦制作。He started learning how to make brick and tile at the age of 13 starting with tending the fire】

然而，长大成人后，方瑞泉逃离这繁琐而乏味的窑场，他要去追求自己的人生。

However, when he is grown-up, FangRuiquan left busy and boring kilning workshop to pursue his own dream.

【我在兵营里当两年兵，退伍归来做过面包房，摆过地摊做过烧烤。I have served in the army for two years and after leaving the army, I ever worked in bakery and sold barbecue in the street for a living 】

八年的闯荡，无尽的辛酸，或许，最初出发的地方，便是自己最终的归宿。他决定，重建方家窑场。

Over eight years’ doing different jobs for a living with endless bitterness, he realized that the place he started his first job would probably be the place he finally will belong to, so he decided to rebuild the kiln workshop for his family.

新窑建造完全依循古法，红砖混着泥土，没有钢筋水泥，却牢牢耸立，更经得起时间打磨。

The new kiln is built completely following the ancient way: red bricks mixed with clay are strong enough and stand the test of time even without steel and concrete.

一砖一瓦之中，满是烧窑人的匠心与智慧。从准备到制胚，从入窑到出窑，六个环节，却要花费一个季度的等待。

Each piece of brick and tile is the reflection of kiln man’s ingenuity and wisdom. It takes three months to make bricks and tiles through six processes from preparation to making kiln embryo, from getting into the kiln to opening the kiln.

【龙海上码一带跟漳州市区这一块，这一块的土质它既没有盐酸矿物质，砂石砂砾含量也比较少。The soil of Shangma area of Longhai and downtown of Zhangzhou doesn’t contain hydrochloric acid minerals and the percentage of sand gravel is very low.】

选土为脊，以水练泥，接下来的制胚极为关键，要时刻注重对土质水份的掌控，并把握天气湿度的变化。然后进入整个烧结过程中最为讲究的入窑、排窑。

The raw material is soil and water and the process of making the embryo is extremely important and we need to have good control of the water percentage in the soil and humility change of weather as well. And then it comes to getting the embryo into the kiln and making the arrangement in the kiln, the most critical steps in the whole kilning process.

【中间比较恒温，而且持火力是最好的，最均匀的位置，烧出来的瓦片会比较漂亮，在我们正前方我们通常放些小的砖块。 The middle area in kilin is with constant temperature and also the best area of well-proportioned firepower, so the tile kilned in this area will be better. In front of us we normally will place some small bricks 】

装窑完毕，起火前要祭拜窑神，简朴却庄严的仪式中，真正的博弈才刚刚开始。从小火到大火，从常温到1200度，这个过程和火候的掌控是决定成败的关键。

After finishing entering kiln process and before igniting the wood, we need to hold the simple and serious ceremony of worshipping kiln deity and after that the kilning officially gets started.From fire to fire, The good control of fire temperature from the normal temperature to the 1200 degree centigrade is key to successful kilning

【我们是用土跟火做一个博弈。博弈赢了，我们出来的都是瓦片，博弈输了，我们出来的一些都是碎瓦砾。Actually it looks like that we play a clay-fire game, if wins, we get all bricks, if fails, what we get are just some rubbles 】

历经近100天的劳作，出窑了，天还没亮，方瑞泉就坐在窑前静静等待。

Almost 100 days later when it’s time to open the kiln and before the daybreak, Fang Ruiquan has been waiting quietly before the kiln

开窑，灰蒙蒙的草木灰在空气中弥漫。

When opening the kiln, the grey plant ash is pervading through the air

【通常出来的话能达到80%的话，我们内心就一直在偷笑了。If there are 80% good bricks or tiles coming out, the kilning succeeds and we would be happy from the bottom of our heart】

水土交融，薪木燃烧，浴火而生。闽南厝瓦，从历史深处而来，厚载水土之德，蕴含木火之力，千年传承，造就了闽南红砖厝的建筑大美。

The mixture of water and clay is kilned by wood fire to make the brick and tile. The tile used for house roof in South Fujian has long history and made out of water and clay under wood fire. The process has been thousands of years old and passed down to now days, contributing to the grand beauty of red brick architecture in South Fujian.

（新媒体编辑：陈乃嘉）