Although handcraft techniques follow a basic set of processes and technical patterns, they are more prominently influenced by factors such as the maker's personal aesthetics, understanding of materials, and tactile sensitivity. Tools play a crucial role in balancing and mitigating the uncertainties inherent in handcraft techniques and in standardizing forms. A Yixing potter who lacks handy and suitable tools cannot possibly create excellent works, just as Zhou Mi of the Song Dynasty stated in his essay "Brushes and Ink" from *Guixin Miscellaneous Records, First Collection*: "Yuan Hui said that a brush that does not suit one's intention is like a rotten bamboo raft or a crooked spoon—this is most apt." In his early years, Gu Jingzhou apprenticed under the renowned Yixing master Chu Ming. Chu Ming was meticulous in his approach to clay preparation and tool-making, never cutting corners. The young Gu Jingzhou was deeply influenced by his teacher's exacting standards for tools from the very beginning of his career. Over the following two years, Gu Jingzhou traveled to Shanghai to study antique reproductions, immersing himself in the study of exemplary Yixing works throughout history. He scrutinized the stylistic characteristics of various masters with utmost care, deeply comprehending their methods and pursuing them with both mind and hand. In his quest to create satisfying works, Gu Jingzhou once specifically purchased a set of nimble and sharp German-made "assorted files" during his spare time. This rigorous habit of tool usage and standardized teapot-making practice that Gu Jingzhou gradually developed served him well throughout his entire life. Today, emphasizing the standardizing role of tools in Yixing pottery formation is an important characteristic of the "Gu School" of Yixing art. As a "master of his generation," Gu Jingzhou—whether in his own tool-making, usage, and classification, or in his strict requirements for disciples during the teaching process—consistently demonstrated his pursuit of perfection and rigorous attitude toward Yixing art, forming a "Gu-style" standard for tool usage: First, tool-making must pursue excellence. From 1981 to 1982, Gu Jingzhou lectured weekly to the young and middle-aged technical backbone members of the "Yixing Special Arts Class" on the stylistic characteristics and technical standards of Yixing ware. At the very beginning of the course, Gu Jingzhou emphasized the essentials of tool-making and usage, addressing not only the standards for using tools but also setting requirements for the tools used to make tools, instilling in each student an awareness of the importance of Yixing pottery-making tools: "Tools are implements that must be used in order to do good work... If one cannot make tools, one cannot make good [work]..." --- 85