Chapter 76 Teaching All Qi Cultivators in the World to Fall Down
It turns out that when you're in a bad mood, you'll often encounter things that make your mood even worse.
The old craftsman put down the wine pot and opened it again.
He sat alone in the corner, drinking his sorrowful wine in silence.
He ate so much this morning; this pot of wine probably won't be enough for him to drink while he's forging swords tonight.
It's like someone who has completely reformed themselves, who has already set a brand new self-discipline schedule for waking up at 7 a.m. tomorrow, accurate to the millisecond, but tonight they can't help but indulge a little before being self-disciplined and play until 6 a.m.
This is how the old craftsman feels now.
Breakfast stall.
"Boss lady, why isn't the steamed rice cake ready yet?"
Among the group of swordsmiths chatting at the next table, a young man spoke with an impatient expression.
From the moment he entered, the young man was surrounded by other swordsmiths, seemingly the center of a small group.
He was dressed in a clean blue craftsman's robe, his hair was tied up in a rather elegant style, and his expression was aloof.
While the other swordsmiths chatted, the young man in blue took out a wooden chopstick, twirling it between his fingers, seemingly too lazy to insert it.
However, when he overheard his companions discussing the new magistrate, he sneered and made a few sarcastic remarks.
The moment the young man in blue uttered his impatient words, the female kitchen staff immediately became flustered.
The leading female worker wiped her hands on her apron, bent down, and looked apologetic.
"Excuse me, gentlemen, the new batch of steamed rice cakes is not yet cooked..."
A middle-aged swordsman, who had been making jokes as soon as he entered, chuckled:
"Boss lady, hurry up! Don't delay Brother Chen's work. We idlers can wait, it doesn't matter if we're late from slacking off. But Brother Chen is different. He's the son of the master craftsman Chen, and the youngest newly promoted swordsmith in our sword shop. He's going to the Jia San sword furnace to forge swords after dinner. If you delay even a moment, your little stall can't afford to lose money."
The female worker in charge panicked even more and hurriedly stepped forward to humbly apologize.
The ancient Yue sword shop, located on the west bank of Butterfly Creek, had four grades of swords: A, B, C, and D.
All the top-grade sword furnaces are located in excellent locations near Butterfly Creek, and the top-grade No. 3 sword furnace is naturally among the best.
As everyone knows, apart from the legendary Jia Yi Sword Forge, which is said to be a mere fictitious structure and has never existed, and the Jia Er Sword Forge, which gathers top craftsmen and only forges swords for imperial tribute, the most powerful sword for the Gu Yue Sword Shop is the Jia San Sword Forge.
The young man in the blue shirt gave a light snort. Facing the awe-inspiring gazes of the female workers and the envious looks from the surrounding diners, he nonchalantly played with his chopsticks, remaining noncommittal.
In reality, he only got into the Jia San Sword Forge to work as his father's assistant because of his father's connections, but that didn't stop him from being someone unattainable in the eyes of everyone at this stall.
The young man in the blue shirt seemed to enjoy the atmosphere that centered around him.
Just then, a young woman in a cloth skirt, carrying a plate of steaming rice cakes, walked out of the kitchen in the makeshift shed and, under everyone's watchful eyes, placed it on the table next to the young man in blue and the others, where only an old man in hemp clothing was sitting.
Aqing turned around and went back to weaving tassels.
The old craftsman casually pulled out a pair of chopsticks, neatly arranged them, and prepared to eat.
The young man in blue immediately frowned, and the middle-aged swordsman next to him, seeing this, immediately frowned in displeasure.
"Boss lady, didn't you say the new batch wasn't cooked yet? How come some people are already eating it? Are you trying to fool us? Or did they pay more?"
"No, no, this is a regular customer. Ah Qing heats up a special dish for him every morning..."
"Never mind, I won't eat it."
The young man in blue stood up to leave, but his sycophantic companion immediately pulled him back.
One of the more unruly swordsmiths stood up abruptly, snatched the steaming plate of rice cakes from under the old craftsman's chopsticks, placed it on the table in front of the young man in blue, and tossed out only a perfunctory remark:
"Sorry, sorry, please wait for the next round."
The old craftsman held a pair of neatly arranged chopsticks in his hand, raised them in the air, and silently stared at the empty tabletop.
Not moving at all.
Everyone turned to look, but after a while, the hunched old man, all alone, still didn't move.
The female workers could only acquiesce and did not try to stop it.
The breakfast stalls are bustling again in the early morning.
The group of young men in blue continued eating and drinking.
The old craftsman ignored the proprietress's apology, picked up the half-empty pot of yellow wine and continued drinking; this pot of wine certainly wouldn't last until the evening.
He understood a principle when he was young.
If apologies were effective, what would be the point of swords in this world?
It took half an hour longer than usual for the new steamed rice cakes to be served, and the proprietress even added two more.
The old craftsman didn't say anything, silently finished his meal, put down his chopsticks, and got up to leave.
With a thud.
Another pot of wine appeared on the table.
The old craftsman discovered that it was exactly the same as the pot in his hand.
The old man lifted his withered eyelids and saw the delicate face of the girl in the cloth skirt.
She ran to the kitchen and brought out a pot of wine for him.
It turns out that this errand girl wasn't buying fresh pots every day, but rather stocking up on several pots.
The road has widened.
"I'll write it down." The voice was a little hoarse.
The old craftsman, who doesn't like to talk much, spoke in the early morning.
The woman in the cloth skirt didn't reply. She turned and ran back to the wooden stool, climbed up and sat down, continuing to weave tassels with her head down and her two slender legs swinging gently.
The old craftsman picked up two jugs of wine and calmly walked through the bustling market, unnoticed by anyone along the way.
The old man returned to the sword-making workshop halfway up the mountain. As soon as he entered, he said to a servant waiting with his hands at his sides:
"Call Liu Ziwen and Liu Zian over."
Without saying a word, the servant immediately went out.
A short while later, a sickly-looking young man in brocade robes arrived first; it was Liu Zian.
Upon entering, he stood with his hands at his sides and eyes lowered, speaking respectfully:
"My elder brother is still in Dong'an County. We have already sent someone to fetch him. Please wait a moment, sir."
"We can't wait any longer. Go back and talk to him."
The old craftsman rose from beside the furnace, passed by Liu Zian, and walked out the door to the lawn. Facing Butterfly Creek, he sipped his wine and observed the surrounding air.
Liu Zian dismissed the servants with a glance, followed the old man to the windy lawn, stood behind him, and waited patiently.
What is the story behind the Broken Wing Canal?
"He's a new county magistrate, and he's somewhat out of our control."
"Ha, is there anything in Longcheng County that can escape the control of your Liu family?" the old craftsman, who hadn't left the area for many years, asked rhetorically.
"You flatter me, sir. This new magistrate is indeed a difficult case; there are some things my brother is still hesitant about whether to do..."
The old craftsman interrupted coldly:
"I don't care what you two do, or how difficult it is, I'll only mention one thing."
“Please speak, sir,” Liu Zian said solemnly.
"The water level of Butterfly Creek must not change within three months. It must remain unchanged. Whether it is the Bending Wing Canal or the plum rain floods of Yunmengze, the water level on the west bank of this downstream section must remain unchanged!"
The old craftsman said coldly, "Three months from now, I don't care if there's a raging flood."
Liu Zian was taken aback, then trembled all over, and asked with a dry mouth, "What does the old gentleman mean...?"
"Within three months."
The old craftsman took another sip of wine; today there was an extra pot of yellow wine, enough for everyone.
He exhaled a breath of alcohol and nodded: "It will definitely be born within three months."
"Good...good...good!" Liu Zian nodded emphatically, saying "good" three times in a row, "Is it finally coming...?"
The second young master of the Liu family trembled, clenching his fist, then loosening it, then clenching it again... He even paced back and forth on the lawn.
His face was filled with excitement, as if a dream he had cherished for ten years was about to come true.
The old craftsman frowned: "They're getting excited already. Has the Broken Wing Canal issue been resolved?"
Liu Zian calmed down a bit and gently shook his head, "Old sir, there's no need to deal with the Broken Wing Canal for now."
"What do you mean? I don't understand this, don't keep me in suspense."
Liu Zian said directly:
"The Zheyi Canal is a major water conservancy project. Straightening the canal might indeed solve the problem of flooding in Longcheng once and for all. However, it is not as technically advanced and simple as the Di Gong Sluice Gate. On the contrary, it is difficult to complete the project within three months. This kind of project will take at least 100 days."
He also breathed a sigh of relief: "And you, sir, only need the last three months, so the west bank of Butterfly Creek is temporarily safe. However, this will affect the business of the Ancient Yue Sword Shop six months from now..."
The old craftsman immediately lost interest in what followed; he had just said that he didn't care about the floods three months later.
"What about the Di Gong Sluice Gate?" the old man asked again with a cold face. "I heard it hasn't been repaired yet. What are you all dawdling about?"
Liu Zian looked a little embarrassed:
"Logically, the Di Gong Sluice Gate should have been built by the Longcheng County government; they should be in a hurry. But the current situation... the county government has been led astray by that new magistrate and has turned to digging the Broken Wing Canal..."
The old craftsman waved his hand to interrupt: "So you're not going to fix it anymore, huh?"
Liu Zian immediately shook his head vigorously.
The old craftsman turned around, stared into his eyes, and said, word by word:
"Don't give me this nonsense. I only care about the sword and the 'qi' of Butterfly Creek. You can handle the other matters. This is what you promised me when I brought it to your Liu family."
Liu Zian lowered his head and said, "I understand, sir. The Di Gong Dam will definitely be repaired, and the water level of Butterfly Creek will not rise within three months. I will discuss it with my elder brother when I get back."
The old craftsman looked at him for a while, nodded, and prepared to return to his hut.
Liu Zian looked hesitant, as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.
The old craftsman paused, too lazy to even turn his head: "Spit it out."
"It's like this, the new county magistrate is a bit of a problem. My elder brother is also trying to talk to some big shots, but I was thinking, isn't the old gentleman a big shot too? Maybe he can give us something here..."
Liu Zian paused at the appropriate time and said sincerely, "But it's alright, it's fine if the old gentleman is busy and can't spare the time."
"You're quite clever, kid."
The old craftsman chuckled softly, stood there pondering for a moment, and then said, "Alright."
He suddenly turned around, his withered finger pointing to the bustling, high-powered Jia San sword furnace by Butterfly Creek at the foot of the mountain, and calmly said:
"The first sword furnace can't be touched, but this small furnace below is mine. Although I haven't used it for quite a while... Heh, I'll make you a little gadget in a few days to solve your troubles, or give it to someone who can solve their troubles. Don't bother me for the next three months."
"Yes!" Liu Zian nodded immediately, deciding the fate of nearly a hundred swordsmiths at the foot of the mountain without a second thought.
Instead, he said with gratitude, "Thank you, sir!"
The old craftsman turned and went back into the house. On the way, he seemed to remember something, shook his head and muttered, "What kind of junk is this? It's the same kind of furnace as mine?"
Hearing this, Liu Zian, who was holding his breath, was puzzled, but he dared not ask any more questions. He remained motionless and respectfully watched the old man leave.
The old man, with his hands behind his back and pointing to the wine jug, walked towards the abandoned Jia Yi sword furnace, which had been extinguished for many years.
He is not a craftsman.
He is a swordsmith.
He wants to forge a flying sword that will cause all the Qi cultivators in the world to fall.
It's here!
(End of this chapter)
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