Chapter 46 Proving the Dao Have you ever heard of the name Guan Xiaotian...?

The rules for the sword-testing set by the imperial court were not complicated. Black iron was the most common material for forging swords in military equipment, but it also had obvious weaknesses. Iron weapons were heavy. The black iron swords commonly used in the army weighed between seven or eight jin (3.5-4 catties) and more than ten jin (5 kg). If the sword was too light, its killing power would be weak. However, if it was too heavy, it would be clumsy and difficult to use. Nothing in ancient times could be perfect. The black iron sword that the imperial court wanted this time had to weigh no more than five jin (2.5 kg), be as tough as heavy weapons, and be made primarily of black iron, with the other ingredients adjusted as appropriate. If the swordsmen could not determine a winner, the lighter one would win.

"—I dare to ask the Imperial Preceptor a question: should Xingguo Ward not have left the island?" Pei Yuan's eyes were filled with confusion. He had not experienced the bizarre defeat in the sword trial a hundred years ago, but the shame was ingrained in his bones, causing every member of the Pei family to feel ashamed and indignant to this day. Living in seclusion in Canglang, Xingguo Ward had not held a sword trial for nearly a hundred years, and even the swordsmen had only been trained in the last few years. The outside world was unpredictable, and Pei Yuan, as the head of the ward, could not see through the mystery outside the island.

“Why would Master Pei think that way?” Cui Jin’s single eye shone brightly. “Xingguo Workshop has already caught the Emperor’s attention by forging the Meteor Sword, which no one else can forge. The mere Xuan Tie Sword is certainly no problem for them. Master Pei, there is no need to worry.”

"If the sword test is lost, I'm afraid there will be no place for me in Xingguo Ward in Rongdu. I'll have to go back to where I came from. My few days in Rongdu will be nothing but a dream." Pei Yuan sighed to the sky, his eyes filled with sorrow.

"Master of the workshop." Lou Cangyu hurriedly took half a step forward. "The swords haven't even been tested yet, how can we know who will win or lose? The Grand Preceptor is right. Xingguo Workshop can even forge the Meteor Sword. What is there to fear from mere Xuan Iron?" Seeing Pei Yuan's gloomy face and Pei Bi glaring at him, Lou Cangyu quickly knelt on one knee, bowed his head, and said, "This subordinate spoke without thinking. Please forgive me, Grand Preceptor and Master of the workshop."

Cui Jin looked at the silent A Jiu, raised an eyebrow and asked, "What do you think?"

Ajiu stood proudly in the night wind like a tree. "The Imperial Advisor is right. The so-called sword-testing with the inner palace is just to silence the gossip and make the term 'Blade Control' more legitimate. This is the method of proving the Dao, and it is an opportunity given to us by the court."

Cui Jin was very satisfied with Ajiu's answer, and turned to look at Pei Yuan, "Does Master Pei not trust his own weapon workshop, nor his own swordsmen?"

"Guan Ye." Cui Jin suddenly called out Guan Ye's name, "Did your young master Pei teach you forging techniques?"

Guan Ye paused for a moment, then took a few steps closer and said, “Young Master, your explanation of the ‘Casting Classic’ is excellent. I have benefited greatly from it and have long wanted to try it.”

"Even a mere sword slave has such ambition." Cui Jin clicked his tongue in admiration, giving Guan Ye a thumbs up. "With such a promising young talent in Xingguo Ward, how could they not achieve great things?"

As Cui Jin spoke, he stood up, lightly twirling the white jade pendant at his waist, and walked out of the courtyard. He suddenly stopped beside the people in the courtyard, turned around, and carefully looked at Guan Ye's resolute face. Her brows were filled with heroic spirit. As he approached step by step, she remained unmoved, surrounded by a calm composure that would not show even if Mount Tai collapsed in front of her.

“The State of Jin has not had a female blacksmith for many years.” Cui Jin sighed softly and whispered in Guan Ye’s ear, “There are quite a few blacksmiths with the surname Guan. The number one blacksmith in the world in the past was also surnamed Guan, Guan Xiaotian. Have you ever heard of this name?”

The twilight perfectly concealed Guan Ye's panic, and the night wind blew her hair, obscuring half of her face. Guan Ye's gaze was sharp as she stared straight ahead. "I live deep in Canglang Island and have little knowledge of what is happening outside. I have never heard of what the Imperial Preceptor is saying."

Cui Jinsong released his hand from the jade pendant. "In half a month, I wish Xingguofang a resounding success."

When news of the sword trial spread, the people in the workshop began to stir. Melting iron was not difficult; the difficulty lay in forging a sword that could win. Most importantly, the furnace was not yet completed, and the workshop even had to rebuild its stoves. The sword slaves whispered among themselves, wondering if the fact that Xingguo Workshop was starting a furnace trial before its foundation was stable was a deliberate attempt by people in the court to make things difficult for the Pei family.

Pei Bi told everyone that the imperial court firmly believed that Xingguo Workshop could forge excellent black iron swords without the Heavenly Furnace. Even without the Heavenly Furnace being lit, they still won the championship. Xingguo Workshop would convince everyone. Everyone found this reasonable and felt much more at ease.

"Where's the fried cake?" Little Ma held out his hand to Ajiu. "Forgot?"

Ji Fang swallowed hard. Xiao Ma had been talking about how delicious the fried cakes were for ages, and he was already craving them. He looked longingly at A Jiu, whose hands were empty, and said dejectedly, "He must have forgotten."

"Give me back my money." Xiao Ma practically reached into A Jiu's arms.

“The money went elsewhere.” Ajiu pushed his hand away. “I owe you the fried cake.”

Upon hearing that the money had been spent, Xiao Ma smiled knowingly, "Using my money to seduce others, you're the epitome of being blinded by lust."

"Your money?" Guan Ye retorted. "Everyone who sees it gets a share. That's our money."

Xiao Ma's face turned pale with anxiety. "I was the one who carried out that huge pile of bones, so I should get the lion's share of the profits."

Ji Fang wished he could cover Xiao Ma's mouth. To the untrained eye, it looked like they'd gotten themselves into a murder. Lou Cangyu, however, showed no interest in their idle chatter and walked straight to A Jiu, pointing at the sword in his hand and whispering, "What do you think about testing your sword with the inner guards?"

"Naturally, the capable should be in charge!" Feng Shisan, with his sharp ears, shouted and raised his sword above his head.

"What I think?" Ajiu asked, her sword behind her back. "The sect leader has already told me I don't need to practice swordsmanship anymore, does what I think matter?"

“But the Imperial Preceptor’s words all mention you, as if he is looking at you differently.” Lou Cangyu bit her lip lightly, hesitating to speak.

"The task is now complete, but the burden is too heavy." Ajiu looked at Lou Cangyu meaningfully, "We should be thanking you for stepping forward to test the sword for everyone."

"Ah Jiu, are you really not going to fight me?" Lou Cangyu's hand holding the sword trembled.

Ah Jiu ran her finger across her eyebrow. "I don't want to lose an eye."

Feng Shisan burst out laughing and put his arm around Ajiu's shoulder. "Come on, come on, we've almost finished cleaning up today. Steward Pei has prepared more meat and wine for everyone. Let's go eat and drink."

Perhaps knowing that the young man carried a heavy burden and still had hope, the backyard had prepared a lot of food as Pei Bi had instructed. Feng Shisan picked up the wine jar and smelled it. The taste was so good that he was dizzy before he even tasted it. Ji Fang dipped his finger in the wine and sipped it. It was so delicious. He sighed at the prosperity of Rongdu, where the men and women were handsome and beautiful. Even the wine was more mellow than that of Canglang Island. This jar must have been stored for at least ten years.

"It was Steward Pei who had it carried out from the wine cellar in the backyard." Feng Shisan picked up his wine bowl and chuckled. "Tianhufang is too unlucky to enjoy it, so we've gotten a good deal."

Ji Fang spat out, "Tianhufang... the wine of the dead!?"

"Wine is divided into dead and alive?" Xiao Ma took a big gulp. "Money that's been stepped on is still money, and wine from the dead is still wine. You're just making a fuss. Today, everyone also collected quite a few items, which are stored in the woodshed. Manager Pei said they're all old items from the armory. Use what you can, and burn what you can't in a few days. I went to check this afternoon, and it seems to have been searched several times. There's nothing usable. Guan Ye, you know a lot, why don't you go and search again? Maybe you'll find some hidden gems?"

Guan Ye seemed not to have listened to him. She took out fragments of diamond powder from her bosom. The imperial court's requirements for testing swords were that they must weigh no more than five pounds, be as tough as heavy weapons, and the main material must be black iron, with each workshop preparing its own ingredients. Guan Ye stroked the fragments. It seemed that the imperial court didn't want black iron swords, but rather someone who could refine black iron, making it lightweight without losing its sharpness, and ideally, even promote it to the army, thus changing the cumbersome nature of black iron weapons.

—It seems they intend to use this as a test to see which of the inner workshops or the Xingguo workshops can solve the court's problem. The person who came up with this idea is indeed clever.

"What are you thinking about?" Ajiu put some meat into her bowl. "Are you worried about testing your sword?"

“Five pounds of black iron? That’s probably impossible.” Feng Shisan smacked his lips. “Black iron relies on its weight for power. The swords used by generals in the army weigh more than ten pounds. The heavier they are, the greater their killing power. If a five-pound black iron sword can’t even withstand a slash from a sword, how can it go into battle to kill the enemy? The person who came up with this idea is probably an idiot.”

"That's why we need to refine our Xuan Iron." Xiao Ma sighed inwardly at the rough and simple-minded nature of the man. "One cart with two horses can carry 500 catties of military equipment and 5 catties of Xuan Iron swords. One cart can carry 100 swords. If we transport them to the border cities, we can save at least half the cost of carts, horses, feed, and wages... That's a considerable expense. How can this man be called a blockhead? He must be a shrewd strategist, testing the strength of Xingguo Warehouse."

After saying that, he looked at Guan Ye, and their eyes revealed mutual affirmation. Xiao Ma glanced at Feng Shisan's ignorance and stuck out his tongue to make a face.

"Half a month is the timeframe," Lou Cangyu murmured, counting on his fingers. "The Heavenly Furnace isn't finished yet, and ordinary furnaces can't even melt the Black Iron in half a month. What should we do?" He then glanced at Guan Ye, his eyes filled with inquiry. "You seem so confident; you must have a solution?"

The corundum comes from the northern desert. It is hard and dense. It should be able to be fused with black iron. However, the better the ore, the higher the temperature requirement. The furnace project is huge. Even with the full strength of the workshop, it would be difficult to complete it in half a month. Lou Cangyu is right. Ordinary furnaces take a lot of time to melt black iron, let alone corundum.

Guan Ye didn't know whether the person who set the question was the Emperor or Cui Jin. For a moment, Guan Ye felt that Pei Yuan's lament was right. Xingguo Fang should never have left the island. They came excitedly and returned dejectedly... Wait, Guan Ye touched her neck. It would be a blessing if she could return to the island safely. She was afraid that... Cui Jin's earth-shattering cry of "Guan Xiaotian" would expose her true colors and she would surely die in Rongdu.

"Time is of the essence." Guan Ye hurriedly stuffed her food and almost choked. A Jiu looked at her with pity and ladled her a bowl of cold water, which Guan Ye took and drank in large gulps. "Are all the old things from Tianhu Workshop in the woodshed?"

“Yes,” Ji Fang said, having finished his meal. “But Xiao Ma said it’s been turned over several times already, what else could they possibly find?”

"That's you." Xiao Ma lowered his eyes and didn't bother with any more words. "An expert sees the details, you know?"

Guan Ye finished eating and got up to go to the backyard. A Jiu put down her bowl and chopsticks and quickly followed. Feng Shisan called on the others to continue drinking. The future was uncertain, so they shouldn't think about tomorrow. It was good to enjoy one more day.

In the woodshed in the backyard, there were piles of miscellaneous items that had been cleared out over the past few days. As soon as the two of them opened the door, they were covered in dust. Guan Ye covered her face and coughed from the fumes. A Jiu brushed the dust off and stepped in front of her.