Chapter 152 The Bet: She Would Cut Off Her Own Arm
A wise woman doesn't suffer losses in front of her. Guan Ye suppressed her anger, put her hands on her hips, and said, "Where's the miscellaneous copper sword? Don't let it delay the work in the workshop."
Wan Qixi sniffed, put one hand on his hip and pointed outside with the other, "Don't even think about finding a problem with your grandpa. The miscellaneous copper is piled up in the yard. This batch of a thousand is for the soldiers guarding the tombs outside the city. The Salt and Iron Bureau has ordered that eight hundred catties of brass be smelted according to the previous ratio. Eight hundred catties." Wan Qixi waved an "eight" gesture in front of Guan Ye's eyes, "The Salt and Iron Bureau will take delivery of this first batch after the first month of the lunar calendar. I've delivered the message. Get to work."
Guan Ye frowned. "No one can say for sure how many kilograms of brass can be smelted from a thousand miscellaneous copper swords. Not to mention the losses after entering the furnace, it's hard to say how much brass a single miscellaneous copper sword actually contains."
Wan Qixi squinted and said, "I'm just a messenger. Other things are beyond my limited perspective. Master Guan can keep these words to himself and tell the Salt and Iron Bureau."
Ah Jiu calculated the time, "After the first month? It's only been a little over a month, is there enough time?"
Wanqi Xi glanced sideways at the towering Heavenly Furnace. "Is the Xingguo Heavenly Furnace just for show? I'll give you another piece of advice since we're doing this business." Wanqi Xi leaned closer to Guan Ye, scrutinizing her young and open-minded face with narrow eyes. "Wu Shuang from the Inner Workshop is tasked with forging Xuan Tie swords. Wu Shuang has already signed a pledge to forge a hundred swords a day, ten thousand swords in three months, and replace all the old weapons of the Jin Army within a year. Guan Ye, compared to Wu Shuang, this job at Xingguo Workshop is still too simple, isn't it?"
"Impossible." The sharp-eared blacksmith couldn't help but retort when he heard what Wan Qixi said. "Black iron is hard to melt. Even the Heavenly Furnace takes several days. How could an ordinary furnace in the inner workshop possibly cast a hundred or so a day? You're just trying to fool me." As soon as he said this, the blacksmiths all stopped their work and rushed over to surround Wan Qixi.
Seeing Guan Ye remain silent, Huangpu Ying, the leader, frowned deeply and said in a hoarse voice, "Master Guan, is what Boss Wanqi said true? Forging a hundred swords a day? We've worked in the inner workshop before. Even if a hundred swords of iron were put into the furnace at the same time, and all the blacksmiths worked day and night, it would still take nearly a month to complete a hundred Xuan Tie swords. A hundred swords a day? Is Miss Wushuang a celestial being? Even our ancestor Ou Yezi probably couldn't do that."
"Tsk tsk tsk." Wan Qixi pointed at the astonished faces of the crowd. "The ancestor couldn't do it, and Wushuang isn't your ancestor. Wushuang has a secret technique that greatly enhances the burning effect, increasing it several times over. A few days ago, when the swords were presented to the emperor, the inner workshop also brought a hundred Xuan Tie swords, each one exquisite, which even the emperor praised highly. Those hundred swords only took the inner workshop a few days to make."
Seeing that the crowd still didn't quite believe him, Wan Qixi clasped his hands in a fist salute to the sky, cleared his throat, and said again, "I was right here. Would I lie to you? I even tried that sword, and not just me..." Wan Qixi looked at the crowd, "Your Lou Cangyu also tried it. How is the Xuan Tie sword from the inner workshop? If you don't believe me, go ask Lou Cangyu. Huh? Where is Lou Cangyu?"
"A secret technique for boosting combustion?" Huangpu Ying asked doubtfully. "I've never heard of any secret techniques in this place."
This man was stubborn and inflexible, and Wan Qixi wanted to poke his head. "I already said it's Wushuang's secret technique, Wushuang's secret technique. With Wushuang's help, the inner workshop will surely rise to prominence." As he spoke, he looked at Guan Ye and raised his voice a little higher, "If I were you, I would already be thinking about my way out."
The foundry workers then looked at Guan Ye, "Is the method of fueling combustion really that powerful?"
Guan Ye had heard her father mention methods of aiding combustion. To put it simply, throwing pigs, sheep, or other livestock into the furnace would also help with combustion. In other words, as her father said, burning people and burning livestock made no difference, so the idea of sacrificing living people to the furnace was nonsense. But... while using the oil from living animals to aid combustion might have some effect, it could never be that effective. In other words, even burning all the livestock and people in Rongdu within the inner city was impossible.
If it's not burning live animals, then what is it?
Guan Ye recalled the meteorite melted in the Heavenly Furnace. How could a meteorite that had remained undamaged for dozens of days suddenly melt? Was it truly due to Jiang Muyun's pure Yin body sacrificing itself to the furnace? Countless sleepless nights had passed, Guan Ye pondering what had melted the meteorite. Pei Chu had said: "The secret of the meteorite lies within Jiang Muyun..." At first, Guan Ye hadn't given it much thought; flesh and blood had melted, how could the answer be found? Pei Chu was overwhelmed with grief and spoke incoherently, his words meaningless. But today, those words echoed in her ears, and something seemed to be hidden within them.
"Look, Master Founder Guan is terrified." Wan Qixi pointed at Guan Ye and laughed. "Let's go, we still have to deliver iron ore to the inner workshop."
Wanqixi took a few big steps, then turned around and glanced at Guan Ye. Guan Ye's eyes didn't blink for a long time. Ajiu's eyes were like swords, signaling Wanqixi to leave quickly.
Ajiu knew, of course, that these few words wouldn't frighten Guan Ye. Guan Xiaotian's daughter wasn't someone who would be easily intimidated by a few empty words. Guan Ye was thinking; perhaps she had already figured something out. Guan Xiaotian had been with his daughter for over a decade, watching her grow up. Even if he hadn't shown off, he still needed to eat. His only livelihood was blacksmithing, and he would only pass on the Tianhu technique to Guan Ye.
However… Ajiu stared at Wanqixi, who had a sly smile on his lips. How much could Guan Xiaotian, an outsider, possibly know about the Heavenly Swan Technique? Wanqixi then provocatively flicked the tip of his nose at Guan Ye and swaggered away, sniffling.
"Go ahead and get busy." Guan Ye put down the newly forged sword in her hand. "After you finish what you're doing, go and take stock of the miscellaneous copper swords that have been delivered. Try forging a few in an ordinary furnace first."
"Alright." Huangpu Ying gestured for everyone to disperse, "I'll do whatever Master Guan says."
In the courtyard were a thousand miscellaneous bronze swords that Wan Qixi had just brought over. Guan Ye casually picked one up, sniffed it, and said, "They're really a mixed bag." Guan Ye held the sword horizontally to A Jiu, "Use your sword to cut it in half and see."
“I wouldn’t bear to let you test your sword skills either.” Ajiu smiled knowingly. “Where is Feng Shisan?”
"—The Thirteenth Young Master is here." Feng Shisan strode over with the gait of a martial arts performer. "Sword testing is my specialty."
Feng Shisan tightened his stance, gripped the hilt of the mixed copper sword with both hands, raised an eyebrow to signal Ajiu to begin. Ajiu drew his sword, swung it with all his might, and slashed down. With a clang, the mixed copper sword broke into several pieces. Feng Shisan didn't even sway, rubbed his wrist, and showed a relaxed expression.
Guan Ye picked up the broken sword. The broken part was a mixture of iron and minerals, and the texture was loose. Was such a thing worthy of being held by the soldiers of the Great Jin? Was it too late to exchange the old for the new?
"Is there brass in here?" Feng Shisan leaned closer. "How much?"
Guan Ye weighed the options and said, "A thousand swords would require 800 catties of brass to be refined, and each sword would yield eight taels. This sword is 2.7 feet long at the pommel and weighs about 7 catties. According to the Salt and Iron Bureau's calculations, that means brass accounts for a little over 10%. However... we'll only know for sure after refining it."
Feng Shisan swallowed hard, glaring at Guan Ye, and said, "You can tell the size and weight just by lifting it like that?"
Guan Ye laughed at him for making a fuss, "Is it that difficult? My hands are the scales, and my eyes are the rulers. If you can't even do this, how can you be a blacksmith?"
Feng Shisan's eyes darted around, and he snatched Ajiu's sword, raising it at Guan Ye. "This sword, just look at it. How many feet long? How many pounds? If you can give a rough estimate, I..."
"How are you?"
Feng Shisan choked for a moment, "I'll just call you Grandma Guan."
"Tch." Guan Ye scoffed. "I've already gambled with Lou Cangyu. Calling him out won't get me any more meat. It's pointless."
"Then let's go." Feng Shisan didn't believe Guan Ye had the ability, so he decided to take a gamble. "Shi Yage!" Feng Shisan patted his chest. "On New Year's Eve, I'll treat you to drinks and meat at Shi Yage, how about it?"
"Interesting, I haven't tried it yet." Guan Ye's eyes lit up. "The sword is two feet three inches long and weighs... six and a half pounds, no more than an ounce. A promise is a promise, you made this bet yourself, so you can't go back on your word."
Before Feng Shisan could even speak, Ji Fang, holding the scales, and Xiao Ma, with a ruler, were already behind him. "Come on, come on, no need for you to bother, Shisan, let's do it together."
"A little over six jin and four liang." Ji Fang held the scale right up to Feng Shisan's eyes. "Take a look and see if it's right?"
Xiao Ma gestured with a ruler, "The sword is two feet and three inches long, exactly this much. Does Young Master Thirteen want to verify it?"
Feng Shisan's Adam's apple bobbed once, then again. His large, copper-bell-shaped eyes scanned Guan Ye, who stood proudly in the courtyard, over and over again. Everyone said Guan Ye was amazing, but he himself didn't think she was anything special. But now, looking at her again... Feng Shisan only saw large silver ingots, and only one thought crossed his mind: How much silver does Shi Yage spend per meal?
“It won’t cost much.” Xiao Ma saw what Feng Shisan was thinking. “New Year’s Eve is ten percent more expensive than usual. The few of us will only spend three to five taels of silver at most. Don’t worry, we’re brothers, we’ll treat you to drinks.”
"I want to see dancers dance!" Ji Fang swayed his waist and waved his hand, "They'll dance around me."
Xiao Ma put his arm around Ji Fang and said, "Dancers and singers are not charged extra, which is already a bargain for Thirteen Young Master."
"Wait!" Feng Shisan roared thunderously, "New Year's Eve, heaven is on my side! The New Year's Eve palace banquet, the emperor specifically requested Ajiu and Guan Ye to go! Once this opportunity is missed, there will be no more food!"
Just as Ji Fang was about to scream, Guan Ye covered his mouth and said, "Thirteenth Young Master can't escape. The palace banquet lasted until 7 PM, which is quite something. Shiya Pavilion is still having a night of singing and dancing. Ah Jiu and I will come find you as soon as we leave the palace."
Xiao Ma laughed again: "Don't think about saving money. On New Year's Eve... I'll bring another person."
"Huh?" Ji Fang blinked a few times. "I know, it's... her? Miss Mei?"
Guan Ye was both surprised and delighted. "Little Ma has made something of himself. Miss Mei must be overjoyed."
Mentioning Mei Xiaojing, Ji Fang's cheeks flushed slightly. Afraid of being noticed by others, he quietly hid behind Feng Shisan. Ajiu put his arms around Guan Ye and Xiao Ma, "The New Year is just around the corner. We must celebrate it properly. Things will definitely get better every day from now on."
"Eat me clean, and then I'll eat your food!" Feng Shisan laughed heartily, his eyes narrowed as if he could already see the wonderful scene of New Year's Eve, with the sounds of music filling the air and everyone clinking glasses—it was simply wonderful.
“Speaking of which…” Ji Fang looked around, “Where is Cang Yu? I haven’t seen him since this morning.”
Xiao Ma stopped laughing and snorted, "He's the second young master of the Pei family, how can we control him? Where else can he go? If this continues, I wouldn't be surprised if he joins the inner guard one day. He might as well just become a swordsman in the inner guard."
Ji Fang waved his hand, "We're all brothers, I believe Cang Yuxin is still on our side."
Ignoring the fact that his brothers were watching, Ajiu took Guan Ye's hand and walked to the furnace in the backyard. Ji Fang leaned towards Feng Shisan, pointed at the two of them, and whispered, "How about we make a bet? Ajiu or Xiao Ma, whose wedding banquet will we attend first?"
Another bet? If you lose again, you'll be left with nothing but your underwear. Muttering to himself, Feng Shisan shouldered his sword and walked away. "Betting my ass!"
Neifang
As he watched the truckloads of iron swords being transported, Lou Cangyu's heart surged with excitement. He had heard about the pledge Wushuang had made. Wushuang had told Chen Ao and the Salt and Iron Bureau that if they could not deliver ten thousand Xuan Tie swords by the end of the first month, she would cut off her own arm, leave the inner workshop and Rongdu, and never wield a sword again in this life.
Lou Cangyu had no worries about whether Wushuang could fulfill the oath of cutting off his arm. He knew that Wushuang would definitely be able to complete it on schedule. Wushuang was Jiang Muyun. Whether he escaped death or was reborn, Wushuang was omnipotent. He could even melt meteorites. What were a mere ten thousand Xuan Tie swords?
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