Chapter 69 All-Knowing Master & Golden Gate

Chapter 69

Although I didn't find the kitchen knife I wanted to buy from Lao Liu during this trip to Liu Village, I actually found a very skilled carpenter there!

Bai Cen had been secretly complaining that his master had to bring a food box even when going to Liu Village, but now he was silent.

The food boxes made by this old man Zhu are even more beautiful than those in the restaurant in Shanhe Town, and they are also quite ingenious.

"Uncle Zhu, can this mark be engraved here?" Wang Sumo sat upright at the desk.

The white-haired old man, Zhu, examined it carefully and said, "Young lady, which martial arts sect's symbol is this? Symbols can't be carved casually. If these martial arts sects investigate, my life will be in danger."

After Zhu Weng finished his routine business, before he could even react, Bai Cen and Zhao Tong approached him from either side.

Bai Cen: "Does this resemble any martial arts sect?"

Zhao Tong: "It doesn't look like it to me. No other sect has such a unique symbol."

Actually, he meant to say "ugly".

Wang Sumo understood: "..."

Old Zhu couldn't help but laugh: "Young lady, I'm just informing you as a matter of routine, fulfilling my obligation to inform you. Indeed, young lady, there probably aren't any sects in the martial arts world that would use your mark."

“Yeah, right~” Bai Cen chuckled.

Who would use a spatula and a large ladle, with a large pot as a symbol in their back view?

Although, I must say, it's quite peculiar!

But Bai Cen was quick to speak: "This logo is humorous, ingenious, and a masterpiece."

Wang Sumo looked at him with annoyance: "That's fine."

Old Zhu couldn't help but laugh: "Then I'll carve one first, and you can take a look and see if it's feasible?"

“Okay.” Wang Sumo said gratefully.

Just then, Old Man Weng was picking out wine jars from another shop!

They say that after drinking too much fine food and wine in Zhenhusi, the aged wine they drank in this village was surprisingly delicious.

The imperial court explicitly prohibited private brewing, so the grain liquor we drank was either government-run or authorized by the government, and it wasn't exactly pure. In such a remote place as Liu Village, the villagers didn't brew much liquor at home, and no one checked. So, when they drank it occasionally, it was surprisingly intoxicating!

Weng He was preparing to take a vat with him.

They also had to wait. Wang Sumo, Bai Cen, and Zhao Tong were waiting for Zhu Weng to carve the mark on the food box.

Bai Cen and Zhao Tong both knew that Wang Sumo liked these kinds of random things. The food boxes here from Zhu Weng were more unique than those in Shanhe Town. Although Wang Sumo's logo was strange, they were still somewhat looking forward to it.

As more and more people arrived at Bazhenlou, the large entourage should have a more eye-catching sign.

The spatula, the large spoon, and the bottom of the pot—it all seems too straightforward.

So there are expectations, but none are very high.

But when Zhu Weng's pattern was meticulously carved onto the lid of the food box, "Wow!"

All three of them were pleasantly surprised!

What I initially thought would be an ordinary logo actually turned out to be somewhat hazy and attractive, especially when it was on the food container.

"It's actually quite beautiful!" Bai Cen himself couldn't believe it.

"It seems pretty good," Zhao Tong remarked.

The happiest of all was Wang Sumo: "I told you it looked good!"

Holding it in her hands, Wang Sumo was overjoyed. The simpler it was, the purer and more evocative it seemed at this moment.

"Uncle Zhu, could you make a few more for me?" Wang Sumo wanted to take more with him.

"Master, the carriage might not be able to hold that many." Bai Cen reminded him that now Old Master Weng was the accountant. Before, no one cared what, how, or how much was bought at Bazhenlou; everyone did it according to their mood. But now there were rules to follow. These food boxes were meant to take up space, and if they were bought too many, there wouldn't be room for anything else.

"There's still a big jar of wine at Old Master Weng's place!" Bai Cen said in a low voice, "Old Master Weng said that if you don't drink wine with your meal, it won't taste half as good. You promised him, so you still have to leave room for the wine jar. The food box really can't hold too much. Whether it's heavy or not is another matter, but it really can't be piled up."

"Right, Lao Zhao?" Bai Cen started pulling people in.

Zhao Tong crossed his arms and nodded seriously.

“Uncle Zhu, I’ll take twenty.” Wang Sumo was the first to listen to advice. “If you help me put on all the badges, I’ll pay you 30% more for each one.”

"Okay, sure!" Old Zhu was naturally pleased.

"Someone come here!" Old Man Weng called from the village. Zhao Tong understood and stepped forward. The wine jars were large, and Old Man Weng estimated that he couldn't lift them. Sure enough, a short while later, Zhao Tong was seen carrying a wine jar that was half his height.

Wang Sumo & Bai Cen: "..."

It feels like Bazhenlou is about to become Bazhen Tavern.

"Young lady, I overheard you saying you were going to Guancheng to find Old Liu?" Now that this deal is done, you're considered a regular customer. Regular customers are acquaintances, and acquaintances can talk about certain things.

Bai Cen understood: "Old Zhu, do you know about Old Liu's son?"

Bai Cen took the opportunity to ask, having only overheard a brief mention from the villagers, which was rather vague. The fact that Old Zhu was willing to speak meant there must be more to the story than it seemed. Guancheng wasn't far from here, and they would eventually have to go there anyway; knowing more was better than knowing nothing and being completely clueless.

Old Zhu was busy carving a mark when Bai Cen offered to pour him water: "Old Zhu, we came from Shuixi Village. We heard that Old Liu makes good kitchen knives, so we were thinking of having him make a few. But as soon as we arrived, we heard that Old Liu's son got into trouble. He owes money to the gambling den and has been detained. Is there any other twist in the story?"

Zhu Weng glanced at him, then at Wang Sumo, and sighed, "You two want to ask Old Liu to make you a kitchen knife?"

Wang Sumo nodded: "Yes."

Old Zhu sighed softly, "Things might not turn out well..."

Wang Sumo and Bai Cen exchanged a glance. Zhu Weng had only said half of what he wanted to say, but both of them had a bad feeling.

Sure enough, Old Zhu shook his head: "Old Liu is an honest man, and his skills are good, but I'm afraid he can't make knives for you anymore..."

"What happened, Elder Zhu?" Bai Cen pressed.

Zhu Weng took a deep breath: "Old Liu's right hand is useless. He can't hold a hammer or make a kitchen knife anymore."

Zhu Weng shook his head and continued carving the mark on his hand.

"Was it done by the people at the Guancheng Casino?" Based on the context, this was the only explanation Bai Cen could think of.

Wang Sumo also entered into listening to the excitement. In any case, Lao Liu was the best knife maker in the area, and it just so happened that it would take time to engrave the Bazhenlou logo on these food boxes. Wang Sumo was also curious about the cause and effect.

"Girls, would you like to hear the long story or the short story?" Old Zhu suddenly asked.

Bai Cen smiled; this old man Zhu was quite interesting!

Listen to it in a broad sense, or in a narrow sense; there's more to it than meets the eye.

Bai Cen suddenly felt that the old man Zhu in front of him seemed to be something more than just a simple person.

Bai Cen wanted to remind Wang Sumo, but Wang Sumo had already spoken: "Since we have time, Elder Zhu, please go ahead and explain. You've spent so much time laying the groundwork, patiently helping us carve the logo, and guiding us step by step; we should at least start from the beginning!"

Bai Cen smiled knowingly.

When did Wang Sumo need him to remind her?

She's even more shrewd than Old Man Zhu.

Zhu Weng smiled and said with satisfaction, "Miss, then I will tell you. The story is a bit long, but by the time the signs here are engraved, the story will be almost finished, so it won't delay your return to Bazhenlou."

Bai Cen laughed: "Old Zhu knows everything!"

Zhu Weng chuckled twice, then said leisurely, "Rumor has it that there is a restaurant called Bazhenlou, pulled by eight horses. The owner, whose surname is Wang, is a young woman. The Cloud Piercer and Mountain Breaker also works at Bazhenlou."

"A while ago, Miss Wang went to Qingyun Manor and brought Elder He of the manor down the mountain. Then she encountered Zhao Tong of the Rakshasa Alliance and Liu Henshui, the notorious bandit who had disappeared for many years. Elder He and Liu Henshui then left, while Miss Wang and Zhao Tong, after passing through the vicinity of Shanhe Town, also..."

"Wait a minute," Bai Cen interrupted.

Wang Sumo and Zhu Weng both looked at him.

Bai Cen took a deep breath and asked politely, "Is there only a few people at Bazhenlou? Is there no one else?"

Wang Sumo couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Zhu Weng was surprised: "Is there anyone else? I haven't heard of them."

Bai Cen: "..."

"Please continue," Bai Cen said, giving up.

Old Zhu continued, "Near Shanhe Town, we also met Old Man Weng from Zhenhu Division, and then we came to Liu Village together..."

Wang Sumo crossed his arms and sighed softly: "Old Zhu, you just said, 'Are there any others? I haven't heard of them,' which means that someone told you that Bazhenlou is the place; but what you said is mostly correct, but there are no details at all, which means that the person you asked only knows the general situation and not the whole picture."

Wang Sumo hissed softly and continued, "Moreover, the people this person told you about are all well-known figures in the martial arts world. They didn't mention anyone without a name, which shows that this person is skilled at finding out things in the martial arts world."

Wang Sumo leaned closer: "I bet you're a know-it-all in the martial arts world?"

Old Zhu put down his work and bowed to her, saying, "Miss Wang is intelligent; I admire her greatly."

"You flatter me, Elder Zhu." Wang Sumo, however, was intrigued: "Does Elder Zhu know where the all-knowing expert of the martial arts world is?"

Zhu Weng looked at her: "Miss Wang is looking for him?"

Wang Sumo nodded: "I do have something I want to ask him, but he's elusive and hard to find."

Old Zhu laughed and said, "I happen to know where he is. If Miss Wang wants to find him, why don't you listen to me finish telling you about Old Liu first?"

Bai Cen whispered in his ear, "This old man needs your help."

“I know.” Wang Sumo was not surprised and said with a smile, “Uncle Zhu, please tell me.”

She still enjoys listening to lively music.

Old Zhu readily agreed: "Our village is called Liu Village. As the name suggests, most people in the village are surnamed Liu, and there are very few people with other surnames. Old Liu wasn't originally from our village. About twenty or thirty years ago, he came from outside the village, saying he came to Liu Village to visit relatives. But after searching around, he couldn't find his relatives. No one in the village knew who his relatives were, but according to him, they should be in our Liu Village."

“There was a family in the village, the Cai Gen’er family. Cai Gen’er’s grandfather’s kitchen knife broke, and he was looking everywhere for someone to help him figure out how to fix it. He happened to run into Old Liu. Old Liu only glanced at it and said that the kitchen knife couldn’t be repaired. He suggested that they just make a new one out of the old knife. Cai Gen’er’s grandfather shook his head and told him that, not to mention Liu Village, even in the nearby Xishui Village or Guancheng, there wasn’t a decent blacksmith.”

"If you want to buy a new kitchen knife, you either have to walk for half a month to Hongcheng, or you can only wait for the peddler who goes from street to street. The peddler carries kitchen knives on his load, but even if he does have them by the time he gets to our Liu Village, they may not be good ones."

"Old Liu told him, 'I'm a blacksmith. Let me show you a kitchen knife.' With no tools, he simply relied on his skills to turn that old kitchen knife into something magical, which made Grandpa Caigen very happy. Later, people in the village came to ask him to help make kitchen knives, pots, hoes, and other iron tools. Old Liu stayed in our Liu Village."

"And that's how Liu Village got a blacksmith. And Old Liu's craftsmanship was superb. Over time, he became famous in the surrounding villages and even in Guancheng. But gradually, people from the village started coming to him, asking him to make some knives and swords. Old Liu only made kitchen knives, iron pots, and hoes; he didn't make weapons for martial arts sects. Naturally, some sects were turned away. But since Old Liu really didn't get involved in martial arts matters, although they were annoyed, no one said anything."

"But one day, a dagger that Lao Liu had forged was leaked out, which offended the Golden Gate, who had previously wanted to have weapons made by him."

Bai Cen clicked his tongue and sighed softly, "This sect sounds incredibly wealthy."

Mr. Zhu nodded: "They are indeed very wealthy and powerful, so they couldn't stand it and came to confront us."

Bai Cen crossed his arms and sighed, "Sure enough, nothing good ever comes from running into a martial arts sect. This Golden Sect sounds like a troublesome sect!"

Wang Sumo, however, smiled and said, "Old Zhu, you must be Grandpa Caigen'er?"

Bai Cen: ? ? ?

Old Zhu smiled and nodded: "You can't hide it from Miss Wang."

Bai Cen: How, how did you figure that out?

[Author's Note]

The dungeon is now live!

Taking a break this weekend, there's a red envelope for this chapter, it'll be sent out tomorrow at noon. [Keep it up!]