Chapter 126 Can I also befriend them, even if I'm a swordsman?

Ajiu enveloped Guan Ye's hand as if holding the most precious treasure in the world. His dry lips lightly touched the back of Guan Ye's hand. "Your hands are very cold too. Let me warm them for you."

Guan Ye didn't pull her hand away, letting Ajiu cherish her. "Where's your yellow carriage? It takes quite a while to walk back from the palace. What? Does the Emperor not like you anymore?"

Ah Jiu chuckled softly, letting her hand that was holding Guan Ye's drop and shaking it. "You talk like nobody cares. If you don't care about something, why would I care about it? Let's go. You've talked so much. Don't you want to eat?"

Winter days are short. After walking for a while, the two saw that the houses along the street had already hung up lit lanterns. Ajiu pulled Guan Ye closer to him and said, "Tell me, what did you do while I was away?"

"Xiao Ma and I went to Gongcheng Money Exchange and met the young master and young lady of the Mei family. These cousins ​​are like immortals, young in age but with remarkable demeanor. They are both people worth befriending." Guan Ye's voice rose as she spoke with great enthusiasm.

Ajiu held her hand tightly and said, "In the eyes of the Mei siblings, you are also someone they should befriend."

"Really?" Guan Ye suddenly stopped, hooking her little finger close to A Jiu's eyes. "I'm just an unknown nobody in the capital, yet I can associate with them?"

Ajiu couldn't help but chuckle, reaching out to pinch Guan Ye's cheek. "The hundred Eagle Guard swords are almost finished, and your fame in the capital is just around the corner. The people waiting to befriend you will line up from Xingguo Ward to Zhuque Gate. By then, whether you can befriend them will depend on your own will. Don't forget..." Ajiu lowered her voice, "You are the blacksmith of the Meteor Sword."

“But…” Guan Ye frowned, “Besides you, no one else knows that I forged the Meteor Sword.”

Ajiu was speechless for a moment, then kneaded Guan Ye's hand in his palm and pulled her into the workshop.

On the day of the Great Cold, Xingguo Workshop finally forged one hundred Flowing Gold Swords. Seeing one hundred identical swords displayed in the forging workshop, the knowledgeable inner workshop blacksmiths knew at a glance that today was the real deal.

Most of the people in Xingguo Ward were puzzled by what they saw. They noticed the blacksmiths in the inner workshop discussing among themselves. Curious to ask, they were afraid of being looked down upon, so they quietly approached Pei Bi, glancing at the hundred swords and listening intently for Pei Bi to explain.

—"Swords that may appear to be identical are also graded. The imperial court buys and sells them, and they are also the swords of the Eagle Guard. Only the best one can be selected from them and then displayed to the emperor by a swordsman. Only those that pass the emperor's gate can be called the Xingguo Sword."

"I see." Everyone exclaimed in amazement, "Manager Pei has really broadened our horizons again."

"But," someone questioned, "how can you tell the quality of a row of swords at a glance? They're all made by top masters, it's probably difficult."

Huangpu Ying stepped out of the queue. "It is difficult, but not impossible. Experienced foundry masters have their own ways of discerning the truth."

"Master Huangpu is considered a veteran foundry in the inner workshop. Can you pick the best one?" someone who didn't want to miss out on trouble provoked.

Huangpu Ying showed no anger. He swung his burly arms and approached the sword formation, stroking his chin as he carefully examined each sword. He had almost plucked all the stubble off his chin. "I, Huangpu Ying, am not very talented. At most, I can only classify them by grade. As for picking out a top-quality sword... I am not confident. I still need to... ask a more skilled master."

Then Xun looked at Guan Ye and said, "Master Guan, why don't you give it a try?"

"Guan Ye, he's calling you." Ji Fang rubbed his hands together, eager to get started. He had never seen a sword formation like this before. Although he didn't like swords, now that he was a swordsman, he was itching to see a good sword. If it weren't for so many people surrounding him, Ji Fang would have loved to rush up and choose a suitable one to have a good spar with Lou Cangyu and the others.

Guan Ye did not refuse. She breathed softly as she walked towards the sword formation. Following the order, she flicked the sword blades with her fingers. The sound of the swords rang in her ears. Guan Ye held her breath and listened, using her hearing to distinguish the techniques used in the forging of the sword blades and the level of quenching.

"What is Guan Ye doing?" Feng Shisan leaned close to Xiao Ma's ear. "Tell me about it."

Xiao Ma put his finger to his lips and shushed him. Feng Shisan was taken aback and turned to ask Lou Cangyu, "Xiao Ma doesn't know, you tell me."

Lou Cangyu watched Guan Ye's movements. "This is the listening technique in sword testing. It is to distinguish the material and craftsmanship of the sword based on the echo of the blade. The purer the iron and the more precise the quenching time, the clearer the echo and the less noise."

"Oh." Feng Shisan pretended to understand. "How did you know?" As soon as the words left his mouth, Feng Shisan vaguely felt that he had said something wrong, and when he realized it, he wished he could cut his own tongue out.

Lou Cangyu's dark eyes were brooding, as if he hadn't heard what Feng Shisan was talking about.

"Ji Fang!" Guan Ye raised her arms and called out, gesturing for Ji Fang to come over.

"Guan Ye is calling me?" Ji Fang jumped out of the crowd excitedly, as if he had received a great honor. "Coming!" Ji Fang rolled up his sleeves high. "What do you want me to do?"

Guan Ye pointed out ten swords, raised an eyebrow, and said, "Draw the swords I pointed out."

Ji Fang had been waiting for this moment. He darted through the grass like a rabbit and pulled out nine swords in the blink of an eye. There was one more, but he was too excited just now and forgot which one it was. Damn it, he had made a huge fool of himself.

Ajiu calmly stepped forward, casually picked up a sword, and with a flick of her wrist, displayed a graceful sword flourish. She extended her arm to Guan Ye and said with a smile, "Master Guan, is this the one that was leaked?"

Guan Ye exchanged a smile with him, not in a hurry to reach out and take it, but instead glanced at Ji Fang, who was holding the sword, and said, "Give it to him first."

"Yes, ma'am."

Ji Fang, holding the heavy sword, was struggling to stand. Seeing that A Jiu was about to throw another one, Ji Fang quickly gave A Jiu a meaningful look. A Jiu understood and stopped, holding the tenth golden sword, and stood side by side with Guan Ye in the sword formation.

"What should we do next?" the impatient sword slave couldn't help but ask.

“Yes.” From the inner workshop, someone asked Huangpu Ying, “Master Guan knows forging, and she also knows sword judging? I heard that sword judging is a very complex subject, and she just…” As she spoke, she even imitated Guan Ye’s gesture and flicked the back of her hand, “and she can select them just like that?”

"Why not?" Pei Yuan's voice boomed like thunder. "In ancient times, there was an art of appraising swords. Each sword appraiser had their own techniques to distinguish their superiority or inferiority. Xingguo Workshop has been at sea for decades, and the world has lost this ancient method? It's as if even the masters in the inner workshops haven't seen it?"

Seeing that the blacksmiths behind him seemed about to challenge him, Huangpu Ying stepped forward, cupped his fists to Pei Yuan, and said, "My fellow blacksmiths and I are ignorant and rash just now. Please forgive us, Master Pei."

Pei Yuan snorted and fixed his deep gaze on Guan Ye again.

Throughout the entire process, Pei Bi never looked away. He was too curious to know if Guan Ye could truly select the best Golden Sword from among hundreds. More importantly, he had never seen the true ancient method of sword appraisal. Pei Bi knew that even the Pei family father and son had only read about it in ancient books.

When Guan Ye was young, her father had told her about the ancient art of sword appraisal. He said that in addition to the skill of listening, there was also the method of "observation." What is "observation"? Her father held up two fingers and ran them over his daughter's eyes, which means to look with your eyes. In ancient times, sword appraisers could use their eyes to observe the shape, texture, and color of the sword to judge the quality of a fine sword.

Pei Chu taught everyone to read "Xiang Li Shan Dao" in the school. He read it clearly: "On the day of the one who does not report and the one who has new weapons, the red horse is red and yellow."

Guan Ye's education was limited at that time, and she didn't quite understand the meaning of that sentence. She pondered it for half the night on the soft bed in the Lou family's house but still couldn't figure it out. The next day, she went to Pei Chu's school again. On the way, she decided that no matter how embarrassed she was, she had to ask Young Master Pei for guidance. With her eyes red from lack of sleep, before she could even speak, Pei Chu explained the meaning of yesterday's sentence to everyone:

This means that if a sword is placed in sunlight and its luster turns yellow, it is not a good sword.

After Pei Chu finished speaking, she looked at everyone and asked, "Can anyone explain why a yellow color is considered unacceptable?"

The sword servants chuckled sheepishly. They were just listening to the fun to pass the time. Young Master Pei's storytelling was so interesting, it was like a storyteller's tale. Why were they even asking questions?

Guan Ye parted her lips slightly, thought for a moment, and then withdrew her head. She only had a superficial understanding, and if she spoke rashly, she might make everyone laugh. If she said something wrong, Young Master Pei would kick her out of the school, which would be too much of a loss. It's better to be the first to stick your neck out and just listen. She had to keep her mouth shut.

Pei Chu glanced at Jiang Muyun beside her, her eyes seemingly catching a glimpse of a certain youthful face. Jiang Muyun immediately understood, pointed to the little sword slave huddled at the back, and said, "You newbie, you tell us."

Which one? Guan Ye looked around. Besides herself, who else was new?

"Stop looking, it's you." Jiang Muyun suppressed a laugh, "The one with the smeared ash on his face, you're the one."

Guan Ye reached out and touched her face. This guy was ridiculous; even with his big eyes, he couldn't see the ash on her face. Seeing everyone staring at her, and Young Master Pei looking on with interest, Guan Ye took a deep breath. It would be embarrassing to admit she didn't know, so why not just say a few words? After all, her father was the world's number one blacksmith, and she was the daughter of a master craftsman. Even if she couldn't command the wind and rain, she couldn't be a coward.

Guan Ye raised his head, cleared his throat and said, "White represents strength, yellow represents toughness. When the yellow and white colors are intertwined, and the sword is both strong and tough, it is a qualified sword."

Everyone had expected a joke, but instead they heard a loud one. Pei Chu stared at Guan Ye, who hadn't changed out of her soiled clothes yet, and his deep-set eyes shone brightly, as if he had finally found a hidden gem.

"What is white, and what is yellow?" Pei Chu asked in a low voice.

Without a second thought, Guan Ye said, "White is iron, yellow is copper. When iron and copper are fused together and forged, they can create swords that are better than those made from a single type of iron."

"How did you know?" one of the sword slaves blinked. "You, a mere porter, know that too?"

"I..." Guan Ye thought to herself, "I'm in trouble. I've gone too far with my skills. You're going to die." "It's what the young master taught me." Guan Ye pointed at Pei Chu with her arms outstretched. "You're not very bright, and your hearing isn't very good either."

Pei Chu coughed. "I did teach you a few days ago. You all need to pay attention. Is the Xingguofang casting technique going to be lost here? Follow me and recite the Casting Classic again."

Guan Ye was puzzled. Had Young Master Pei really taught her this passage? She didn't come to listen every day, so it seemed she had struck it lucky. Even the heavens were on her side; Young Master Pei had indeed taught her.

The sunlight was blinding, and Guan Ye finally realized that it wasn't a stroke of luck or divine intervention; the only ones who had ever helped her were those close to her.

"It's starting! It's starting!" The sword slaves pointed at Guan Ye excitedly.

Huangpu Ying knew that selecting the winner from different swords was already impressive, but what Guan Ye had to do was to select the best from a hundred identical swords. A hundred identical swords could not be accomplished by sword-judging skills alone; it also required the sword-judging master's innate comprehension and sensitivity to various iron ores.

Huangfu Ying no longer doubted Guan Ye's sword-making skills, but could she also judge swords?

Guan Ye also wanted to know if she could do it.