Chapter 42 Her Amazing Skills: She's No Longer a Small Boat

"A female swordsman!" Mu Chenbi exclaimed in disbelief.

“There are very few swordsmen in the world who can enter the weapons workshop, and female swordsmen have not been seen for many years.” Cui Jin put down his bamboo chopsticks. “Anyone who can enter the inner workshop at this critical juncture must be an extraordinary person. It seems that His Highness’s uncle will never relinquish the important power of the inner workshop. The ownership of the sword will still be contested.”

Suddenly, Mu Chenbi felt a surge of excitement. One was a female blacksmith with calloused hands who could recognize diamond sand, and the other was a mysterious and unknown female swordsman with superb swordsmanship... This must be the imperial art that his father had mentioned. If it weren't for the words "Blade Control," even if he stayed stuck in the past for another ten or a hundred years, he would never have seen what he had today.

"I understand!" Mu Chenbi stood up straight, his brows furrowed with satisfaction.

"Has I solved Your Highness's problem?" Cui Jin asked, shaking the little wine left in the pot.

"Not only did you unravel it, you also taught me how to do it." Mu Chenbi snatched the wine pot and personally filled his cup. "The Imperial Blade must truly live up to its name and convince everyone. Since the Inner Workshop wants to fight hard and regain its honor, how can Father and I refuse? Xingguo Workshop has been lying low for many years. Although the Meteor Sword is rare, it was not forged under everyone's noses. There will always be dissenting voices. Xingguo Workshop will not tolerate the doubts of petty people. The court should also give them the opportunity to prove themselves and establish the reputation of the Imperial Blade. One day, the Pei family will know the court's good intentions."

Cui Jin nodded repeatedly, raised his cup, tilted his head back, and drank it all. He finished the fish food in the center of the lake, but the koi carp, which had been searching for him for a long time, disappeared after he had finished eating. Then, the lake returned to silence, and the koi carp sank into the deep lake, leaving only the shimmering light of its scales.

Rongdu Xingguofang

—“Corundum?”

Looking at the ore Guan Ye brought back, Pei Bi looked doubtful. His ancestor Pei Chong's Golden Sword was forged from this material. It was an indestructible treasure and was said to be very rare. Guan Ye had only been in Rongdu for a few days, yet she had found this item in the neighborhood. Pei Bi looked at Pei Yuan, wondering if it was a fake.

With a single glance from Pei Yuan, Pei Bi understood immediately. He quickly took out a whetstone and, after only a few strokes, the broken edge revealed a golden light, almost identical to the blade of the flowing gold sword.

“The color is the same, but it’s hard to say…” Pei Bi was still not convinced that Guan Ye had the ability. “Master, we’ve just returned to Rongdu. I’m afraid someone has set a trap to make us expose our weaknesses.”

Pei Yuan stared intently at Guan Ye. He didn't know why he had brought Guan Ye back to Rongdu. Was it because she was the most capable sword slave in the ward, because of her courage in standing up when Jiang Muyun was taken away, or because of the fate that brought her to Canglang Island as well?

Pei Bi remembered that before leaving the island, during the ancestral worship ceremony at the ancestral hall, everyone swore a blood oath. Guan Ye, being a woman, was not required to participate, but she still drank the blood wine offered by everyone without hesitation. Wiping her lips with the back of her hand, her expression was resolute. No one knew her origins. Why would someone with a choice choose to come to Canglang Island? Since there was no other way to go, then everyone was the same, sharing the same fate.

"You know about corundum?" Pei Yuan's voice was menacing.

"I know," Guan Ye said calmly. "The young master mentioned it to me."

"Chu'er," Pei Yuan sneered, "If I remember correctly, you haven't served him for very long, yet he's already telling you so much?"

Guan Ye's palms were sweaty, but she remained calm. "I went to the Young Master's Academy as soon as I arrived on the island. I know the Casting Classic by heart. It is written in the book about diamonds, so it is not too difficult to identify them."

“There are four methods for distinguishing objects: look, touch, carve, and weigh. The ancient methods are useful, but they are not without error. Money is a small matter, but if people find out that Xingguo Fang can’t even distinguish the authenticity of diamond sand, how will we be able to establish ourselves in Rongdu in the future?” Pei Yuan stared at her aggressively. “Guan Ye, if you can’t even convince me, how will you convince other outsiders?”

“I need a scale, two full urns of water, two empty basins, and…” Guan Ye mustered her courage, “to borrow the broken sword of the Pei family ancestor.”

"Insolence!" Pei Bi shouted, "How dare you borrow our ancestral relics!"

“The shop owner said he would close his eyes to prove it to everyone, why not give it a try?” Ah Jiu, who had been silent until now, said at the right moment, “Only by trying can we know if it’s true or not.”

"Go and fetch it for Guan Ye." Pei Yuan waved his hand. "I also want to know how much more she can do."

Father is right. Pei Chong's Golden Sword was indeed broken into three pieces. Guan Ye examined it inch by inch. There were two breaks in the three pieces. One break was smooth, indicating that it was cleaved straight by a sharp weapon. The other break was slightly rough, indicating that the opponent used a lot of force. The sword and the man became one, and the combined force of the two broke it.

Only a top-tier sword and a master swordsman could destroy the Meteor Sword to this extent. It seems Pei Chong's defeat was not unjust.

Hearing that Guan Ye wanted to test the diamond powder, everyone who had already gone to bed gathered in the courtyard. Feng Shisan yawned and pulled Xiao Ma over, saying, "What's the matter that woke me up? I didn't understand. Guan Ye? What does Guan Ye want to test?"

“Corundum.” The little horse pulled him forward, “Guan Ye and A Jiu found rare corundum. Pei Chong’s broken sword was forged from corundum.”

Upon hearing the words "broken sword," Lou Cangyu rubbed his sleepy eyes and perked up. He had no intention of squeezing into the front with others and found an inconspicuous spot to gaze at it from afar.

Feng Shisan shuddered. He didn't know what diamond sand was either, but Pei Chong was an extraordinary ancestor of the Pei family. If it was related to him, it must be a big deal. Seeing that Xiao Ma couldn't move even half a step after squeezing for a long time, Feng Shisan stretched out his long arms and pushed his way through the wall of people, finally standing at the very front.

In the center of the courtyard, as Guan Ye had requested, a steelyard, two earthenware urns filled with water, and an empty basin were prepared. Guan Ye weighed the broken stone from the ghost market, "two ounces and three qian."

"Eek?" the crowd exclaimed softly, "Something the size of a fingernail is so heavy?"

“It is indeed two ounces and three mace, not a penny less.” Ah Jiu weighed it again and showed it to everyone.

Guan Ye picked up a broken sword and put it on the scale. "One pound, three ounces, and five mace."

"What's this?" The crowd began to whisper among themselves. "Two ounces and one pound, it's not that different."

“One pound, three ounces, and five mace,” Ajiu presented to Pei Yuan, “not a penny off.”

Pei Yuan remained still, raising his eyebrows slightly to signal them to continue.

"Little Ma," Feng Shisan said, increasingly confused, "what are they doing? I hope they don't anger the shop owner again."

Xiao Ma had read some books in his youth and was considered somewhat learned than others. He vaguely guessed what Guan Ye had done, but couldn't quite put his finger on it. He knew that the more he said, the more mistakes he would make, so he could only pretend to be engrossed in watching and ignore Feng Shisan.

After noting down the weight of the two objects, Guan Ye held the broken stone in one hand and the broken sword in the other. With a flick of her fingers, both objects fell into the water-filled jar. Amidst the low gasps of the crowd, the water overflowed and dripped into the empty basin.

"Drain the water to test the object!" Little Ma's eyes widened. "I remember now!"

Feng Shisan was already stunned and couldn't hear what he was saying anymore. He grabbed Xiao Ma's sleeve and asked anxiously, "What's next? Is that all?"

Guan Ye brought out the urn and placed it, along with the water, onto the large scale used to weigh iron. "I have already weighed the empty basin. After deducting the weight of the basin, the water weighs one tael and one mace." After saying that, she put on another basin. "This basin with the broken sword weighs... nine taels and seven mace."

“This…” Feng Shisan was even more confused. “They’re completely unrelated.”

"For every inch of material, there is one pound of gold, fourteen ounces of silver, twelve ounces of jade, seven and a half ounces of copper, nine and a half ounces of lead, six ounces of iron, and three ounces of stone..." Little Ma murmured blankly, "Each thing has its own nature, its own inherent characteristics. So that's how it is. I understand now."

"I don't understand!" Feng Shisan was so anxious he wanted to shout, "Tell me quickly!"

Xiao Ma stared at Guan Ye in surprise. She even knew about the blue copper in the mines of Canglang Island. Everything has its own nature, so she naturally understood it as well. "There's no need to say more. The answer is already obvious."

"Two ounces and three mace of crushed stone, one ounce and one mace of water, one pound, three ounces and five mace of broken sword, nine ounces and seven mace of water, each half the price." Pei Bi calculated with his fingers, "Master, half the price for each, the ore Guan Ye brought back is indeed the same as the Flowing Gold Sword, it seems..."

“It really is diamond sand.” Pei Yuan laughed with relief. “Guan Ye, is this also something the ‘Casting Classic’ taught you? I’ve read this book thoroughly, but I don’t remember this part.”

"Young Master's ability to draw inferences from one instance is also something he taught me," Guan Ye said, wiping her wet hands as she looked at A Jiu.

“Chu’er is well-versed in ancient books, and it is a great regret of mine that he is unwilling to come to Rongdu.” Pei Yuan sighed, then burst into laughter. “May the heavens bless the Pei family. Although Chu’er did not come, you, Guan Ye, are still here. Vajra sand is rare. In three days, I will send someone with you to the Ghost Market to transport it back. In the future, you should also help out with the affairs of the foundry.”

Guan Ye took the broken sword out of the urn, carefully wiped it clean, put the broken sword back into the sword box, closed the sword box, and finally let out a low sigh.

As the crowd dispersed, Feng Shisan refused to return to his room. "Guan Ye, what method did you use just now? How did you find corundum in just one jar of water? And you, Xiao Ma, I didn't understand a single word of your muttering. No one is going to sleep until you explain yourself clearly today."

Ji Fang scratched his head, "This is beyond my understanding, Thirteenth Young Master. We only know a few words. There's a lot to learn about Guan Ye, so let's not delve into it."

"Ah Jiu," Feng Shisan roared, "do you understand?"

Ah Jiu chuckled softly, "Guan Ye understands, that's enough."

Seeing the two leave together, Feng Shisan, with his sword slung over his shoulder, pointed at their retreating figures and said, "I don't understand this either. Everyone's so confused. What's going on?"

"You're such a blockhead." Ji Fang smiled like an aunt. "It's one thing if you don't understand Guan Ye's methods, but can't even Thirteenth Young Master see through the two of them?"

"You mean..." Feng Shisan blinked his big eyes. Although he was a rough man, he was not ignorant of matters of the heart. When the words were about to come out, it was as if something was blocking his way, and he felt a little embarrassed.

"They've gotten together." Lou Cangyu suddenly appeared, "I thought Ajiu was too proud, but she's been captured by a little sword slave."

“She is not Xiao Jiannu.” Xiao Ma turned his back. “With her in Xingguo Ward, it is a blessing for the ward and for us.”

Lou Cangyu, too lazy to argue with them any longer, yawned and turned to go back into the house. Ji Fang looked around and followed him back. After standing there for a while, Feng Shisan tapped Xiao Ma's stiff shoulder with the hilt of his sword. "Aren't you going back? What? Could it be that you've also taken a fancy to Guan Ye?"

"In Rongdu yamen, to appeal for justice, one must first endure thirty strokes of the rod. Someone even offered to take the blows for me, but I don't know if it will still count when the day comes."

"Your family's injustice is something you have to bear yourself," Feng Shisan retorted with a chuckle. "Last time, I was just teasing you."

Little Ma turned his head to look for Guan Ye again. The dark night was dotted with starlight, and the Rongdu Sea was deep and still, but it was no longer just a small boat.