Xie Yushu and Qu Xiaodie chatted and laughed all the way, and soon found Li Daniu's blacksmith shop. The shop was not big, with two storefronts. Outside the door, there was an iron furnace, and a burly man in his twenties with a dark complexion and a square face was hammering away. The shop door was open, and you could see hoes, sickles and other farm tools hanging inside.
If Xiao Yi hadn't told her beforehand, she really wouldn't have realized that this ordinary little shop could produce such good weapons!
The burly man, seeing Xie Yushu and Qu Xiaodie stop in front of him, didn't stop what he was doing, and without even looking up, said...
"You two can come inside and pick out whatever you want to buy. If you're not buying anything, go somewhere else and don't cause trouble here!"
Xie Yushu and Qu Xiaodie were stunned!
Are all sellers this arrogant now?
Qu Xiaodie immediately wanted to step forward to argue, but Xie Yushu held her back. Only then did she understand why Xiao Yi said his bad temper was the reason why his shop wasn't popular.
It would be a miracle if you got popular just by talking like that!
Take out the blueprints directly
"I want to have a set of knives made. The blueprints are here. Can you take a look and see if you can make them?"
The man only said one sentence
"Wait!"
He continued to clang and bang the kitchen knife in his hand.
"How can this guy be like this! He's not the only blacksmith shop on this street. We can always go to another one!" Qu Xiaodie complained.
Xie Yushu said
"The item I need to be forged is extremely intricate; an ordinary blacksmith shop probably couldn't make it. I only found this place because of a recommendation. I'll wait a bit! If they can't make it here either, I'll have to go further afield!"
Moreover, she was unfamiliar with the place and the information was limited, so it was really not easy for her to find a great person.
Qu Xiaodie had no choice but to wait patiently.
The blacksmith, upon hearing this, looked up at Xie Yushu and said...
"If I can't do it, then no one in this Jinyang area can!"
Qu Xiaodie scoffed.
"Quite the boast!"
In the short time that they were talking, the man seemed to have finished wiping the kitchen knife in his hand. He wiped his hands and took the blueprints from Xie Yushu's hand.
At first glance, he frowned slightly, but the next moment, his face filled with shock, and he finally looked up at Xie Yushu.
"Where did you get these blueprints, young lady?"
"If everyone had such clear and intuitive blueprints, why would I waste my breath talking to them? They all ramble on and on, unable to explain themselves clearly. I kindly gave them the cheapest and most practical blueprints, and these bastards still complain that mine looks bad!"
The big man was both praising and feeling wronged!
"I drew the blueprints myself!"
The burly man glanced at Xie Yushu and sighed.
"Girl, you're so skillful! What are you making? I recognize these knives, but what are these others?"
"This is a set of surgical instruments. Those three are scalpels, these two are forceps, these three are hemostats, and these five are needles: two small, two medium, and one large. As for these two thin ones, they are suture needles. They are all for saving lives, so you must follow the dimensions I wrote down. I wonder if this gentleman can make it?"
The burly man stroked his chin and said...
"It is possible to forge it, but it will take a lot of effort. Besides, it's difficult to achieve the desired effect with ordinary iron!"
Xie Yushu took out a piece of iron that Xiao Yi had given her and handed it to him.
What do you think of this piece of iron?
The man took the iron and said excitedly
"Meteorite! Who is Brother Xiao Yi to you?"
"Uh... I'm a man!"
"Oh, it's your sister-in-law! Why didn't you say so earlier? I'm Li Daniu, and I'm sworn brothers with Xiao Yi. His eighteen-foot spear, yes. And this short knife you're holding, that's the one we gave you!"
"Where's my buddy? It's been three or four years since I've seen him! What's he doing?"
"He injured his leg and has difficulty moving around. I made this set of knives to treat his injury! He's the one who sent me here!"
Li Daniu was shocked.
"My brother injured his leg? Where do you live? I need to go see him."
"We are currently living in Fenghuangzui Village, Yonghe County, Tai'an Prefecture. We would certainly welcome Brother Li to visit us!"
"You actually found yourselves in Tai'an Prefecture! Tai'an Prefecture has suffered from severe drought for the past two years, and you..."
"Oh dear! Look at my brain! Sister-in-law, and this young lady, you haven't eaten yet, have you? Come in, come in and have something to eat!" Li Daniu said, shouting at the top of his lungs.
"Wife! Wife! Come out, come on over!" ("Qie" is a Northern dialect word meaning "guest")
As soon as Li Daniu finished speaking, a woman in her twenties with a big belly hurriedly walked out of the house, followed by two children of three or four years old.
The woman had delicate features and, somewhat shyly, held one child's hand in each hand, watching Xie Yushu and Qu Xiaodie.
Who are these two?
Li Daniu's enthusiastic introduction
"This is a brother I knew from my younger days, Xiao Yi. And this is his wife? "
Xie Yushu continued...
"This is my god-sister, Qu Xiaodie!"
Hello, sister-in-law.
"Hey! Sister-in-law, Little Die, come inside quickly! I'll go cook!"
Xie Yushu grabbed the woman and said
"Sister-in-law, don't bother. We need to catch the boat back soon, and we just ate, so we're not hungry!"
"Sister-in-law, you don't need to be so polite. Your area has suffered from disasters these past two years, and life has been difficult. You've come all this way, how can you leave without having a meal? Xiao Yi and I are brothers, so please don't stand on ceremony!"
Li Daniu was a simple and honest man. Thinking about how Xie Yushu had suffered all the hardships she must have endured while fleeing the famine, he told his wife to pull Xie Yushu and Qu Xiaodie into the house.
"Brother Li, sister-in-law, listen to me. I really don't have time to stay this time. A while ago, some of the villagers from our village went hunting in the mountains. This time, we came to sell the hides. We just sold the hides and bought some grain, and we're all in a hurry to go home! After all, our families are waiting for us to cook rice. If I go back for a day, your brother will go hungry for one less day! Besides, there are children waiting for us at home."
"I'll come back in a few days to pick up the knife, and I'll definitely have eaten before I leave, okay?"
"Well, then go pack some food and vegetables for your sister-in-law!" Li Daniu said to his wife.
"No need, sister-in-law, we've already bought grain, seventy or eighty pounds, I can't carry any more!"
Li Daniu then said
"Okay, then! Just let me know if you need anything."
"Of course, Brother Li. Can you take a look and see if there's any left over after making these knives from this meteorite iron?"
Li Daniu asked after hearing this.
"What else would you like to hit, sister-in-law?"
"If there's any left, I'd like to make another hairpin. The more inconspicuous the hairpin looks, the better. But I need two functions: one is that the hairpin is hollow, and the other is that the tip of the hairpin is sharp, but it can't be seen from the outside."
The hairpin should be about the length of a palm and the thickness of my little finger! That's about the thickness of my little finger!
Xie Yushu was afraid that if this careless man made the hairpin to be as thick as his little finger, the hairpin would be too ugly.
Li Daniu weighed the meteorite in his hand, glanced at Xie Yushu's outstretched little finger, and nodded.
"It's usable, it's only about the thickness of chopsticks! I know what I'm doing!"
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