“Three people will be in a team, and all teams will start work together. If seven days is insufficient, we will use ten days! This is the blueprint for the first weapon, let’s begin!”
Wang Chong opened a blueprint and shouted to the craftsmen.
Wang Chong didn’t know how to forge weapons, but all those who were here were one of the best craftsmen. Wei Hao had chosen them over the rest, so how could they be inferior? Furthermore, they posed countless questions to Wang Chong over the refinement and forging, almost nitpicking the details. If they weren’t the top craftsmen, they wouldn’t be behaving in such a way.
The more talented a craftsman was, the more arrogant they tended to be. They didn’t want inferior goods to be created under their hands. Just by the fact that they nitpicked the details itself showed that they were capable.
Ding ding dang dang!
Soon, the craftsmen got to work once more. Other than Wang Chong, no one knew of cold forging, an entirely new forging method in the era. For the first time, it was appearing in this world.
“Little sister! When the weapons are done, I need you to help me with something.”
Wang Chong suddenly turned around to say.
“What is it?”
Wang Family’s little sister yawned in boredom. When she heard ‘Sindhu’ and ‘Hyderbad’, she thought that it was something fun. Yet, it turned out to be ‘forging. Boring!
“Help me hammer these weapons once more! Three thousand times for every weapon!”
Wang Chong said.
Shua! Wei Hao was impressed and he shot a thumbs up. Wang Chong, you sure are incredible! To think that you would think of using Xiao Yao’s unrivaled strength to hammer metal.
With her strength, the quality of these weapons would be raised by an entire level.
However, it was wishful thinking on the duo’s part.
“No way!”
Wang Family’s little sister rolled her eyes. Without even thinking about it, she rejected him outright. To think that he would try to use her as free labor, did he think that she was a three-year-old kid? He must be dreaming.
“A hundred gold taels! I won’t work for free!”
Without any hesitation, Wang Chong shot her a thumbs up.
“Ah!”
The Wang Family’s little sister eyes lit up. Abruptly, her eyes widened into perfect circles. It seemed like she was truly moved by her brother’s words. A hundred taels… of gold! She might be young, but she could still tell the difference between gold and silver.
She only had ten silver taels every month, and Wang Chong was promising to give her a hundred gold taels! If she had that much money, wouldn’t she be rich?
Just by thinking of it made her agitated!
“I refuse!”
Wang Family’s little sister pouted and she abruptly turned her head over, rejecting Wang Chong’s offer. Wang Chong and Wei Hao were astounded. Just when they thought that they had miscalculated her and that the Wang Family’s little sister was truly unwilling to work, they heard her voice echo by their ears:
“Two hundred taels! Not a single tael less! ——Otherwise… Otherwise, I will tell it to my mother! I will have her teach you a lesson.”
“…”
The primary astonishment turned into a bizarre expression as Wang Chong and Wei Hao heard her words, especially when she said the final sentence. Wei Hao couldn’t hold it in any longer and burst into laughter. Clutching his stomach, he nearly died of laughing.
“Hahaha… Truly hilarious! Wang Chong, to think that you would have such a day! Haha, Xiao Yao, there is no need to stand on ceremony with him. Your brother is truly a wealthy man now. If he refuses to pay up, have your mother teach him a lesson!”
Seeing the serious look on Wang Xiao Yao’s face, his lungs nearly collapsed from all the laughter.
Wang Chong shook his head awkwardly. This time, they had really made a joke of themselves before Wei Hao. As expected, this little sister of his was a true money-grubber, exactly the way she was in the past.
“Deal!”
He had a lot of money on his hand now. Using Wei Hao’s words, he was a tycoon now. Two hundred gold taels wasn’t a big matter for him now.
“Yay!”
The Wang Family’s little sister clenched her fist in agitation and her face flushed. She was only trying him out, but to think that she would succeed. But soon, Wang Family’s little sister seemed to have thought of something and she immediately calmed down. With a doubtful look, she glanced at Wang Chong:
“Two hundred gold taels right? Gold is not the same as silver. Third Brother, you cannot lie to me!”
Wang Chong burst into laughter. This lass! She was the one who demanded two hundred gold taels from him. Yet, when he promised her that, she did not believe him and started to doubt him. This fortune came too easily for her!
“Of course! When did your brother ever lied to you? Here are two hundred gold taels. If you don’t believe me, I can pass this to you first.”
Wang Chong took out the gold from his embrace and passed it over.
Even though two hundred gold taels was a significant sum, using it to employ the ‘herculean’ Origin Energy Tier 9 little sister of his was still acceptable by Wang Chong.
In his previous life, the reason why Wootz steel could be sold for tens of thousand, sometimes even a hundred thousand, was not only because Wootz steel was a precious commodity. More importantly, it was due to the aesthetics the weapon possessed.
Every single Wootz steel weapon was crafted painstakingly to perfection. Even though Hyderabad was where the ore came from, Abbasid Caliphate and Damascus were the true hubs of Wootz steel.
The Hyderabad ore had just emerged and everything was in its primary phase. Wang Chong still didn’t have any competitors. What Wang Chong wanted to do wasn’t to sell ‘Hyderabad ores’ but to build his own brand!
Those who use several tens of thousand and even hundreds of thousands to buy Wootz steel weapons weren’t fools either. If Wootz steel didn’t possess quality that was unmatched by the other weapons of its tier and required great technique and technology to forge, no one would be willing to spend the money on it.
Cold forging was an important process of the forging and required the blacksmith to use all of his strength into every single hammer for thousands of times. The greater the strength exerted into it, the stronger the weapon would be.
On this aspect, given his little sister’s unrivaled strength which was equivalent to that of an Origin Energy Tier 9 expert, Wang Chong was certain that the weapons forged out of Wootz steel would definitely possess incredible quality and outstanding aesthetics.
“Deal! Don’t you dare renege on your promise!”
Seeing the two hundred taels of gold, Wang Family’s little sister’s eyes nearly popped out. Taking it from Wang Chong’s hands, she stared at him nervously, as though afraid that he would go back on his words.
“But brother, where did you get so much money from?”
Wang Family’s little sister eventually found what was amiss of the situation. That fatty, Youngster Wei, only said that her brother had earned a lot of money, but he didn’t say where did the money come from.
“Another ten taels, don’t tell anything to mother!”
Wang Chong stuffed another golden ingot to her.
“Deal!”
After gaining possession of so many gold taels, Wang Family’s little sister was overjoyed. At this point, she no longer cared where Wang Chong got the money from.
“Heck, she truly is a money-grubber!”
Seeing the sight, Wei Hao perspired profusely.
With the ‘expert’ little sister working, the progress of the Wootz steel’s forging increased significantly. Wang Chong wasn’t in a hurry either. He spent his days cultivating and overlooking the progress of the craftsmen, waiting patiently for the day of the completion of the cold-forged Wootz steel weapons.
Yesterday, I had a friend edit Chapter 36 for me a
nd the first thing she pointed out was that I did the hanyupinyin for Yao Kuang Yi wrongly. It should be Yao Guang Yi T_T
Chapter 36: Outburst in the Capital
Time slowly passed.
Wang Chong spent his time cultivating while waiting patiently for the cold-forged Wootz steel weapons to be completed. But ten days from then, a sudden news from the borders rattled the capital.
Yao Guang Yi! A famous general of the Great Tang known for his schemes and wits, the third son of ‘Old Master Yao’. When the Hu crossed the border and stepped on Great Tang’s border, he abruptly led his army out from his deployment location for no apparent reason and appeared on ‘Duke Jiu’s’ second son’s, Wang Yan, deployment location!
But what was bizarre about the situation was that General Wang Yan, who was closest to the invasion point and should have been guarding his location, happened to move his campground back 50 li before the Hu invaded!
li -> 0.5km
Thus, such a bizarre sight appeared for the first time by the borders:
The general who should have been guarding his location was looking at the battle from behind while the general who shouldn’t have appeared in the location took over the guarding general’s position to destroy the invading Hu army!
In the centuries since Great Tang’s establishment, never had such a sight appeared before!
The ones involved in the incident, Yao Guang Yi and Wang Yan, were keeping mum about the matter. However, this bizarre ‘assault incident’ had caused a huge uproar in the capital.
Before the Hu invasion could cause any damage, it was already destroyed by the Great Tang army. On this aspect, the ‘assault incident’ was only an insignificant skirmish by the border, not worth mentioning at all.
However, those in the capital weren’t fools. The ‘Old Master Yao’s’ third son, Yao Guang Yi, and ‘Duke Jiu’s’ second son, Wang Yan, were involved in the matter, and considering the fact that King Song and King Qi happened to be in a heated political war at the moment, the situation was definitely not as simple as it looked
Even fools could tell that if Wang Yan did not coincidentally retreat 50 li from his deployment region before Yao Guang Yi’s appearance, the significance of the matter would be completely different.
Regardless of the truth, just the political meaning behind the ‘Yao and Wang Clan working together’ to repel the invaders opened up too many hints about the relationship between the two.
People don’t believe what you say, they only believe what they see!
But now, when Yao Guang Yi’s army appeared in the zone, Wang Yan took the initiative to avoid the suspicion and retreated 50 li to stay away from the battlefield.
This made the entire incident a one-man show on Yao Guang Yi’s part, and he ended up striking down the Hu in Wang Yan’s place!
Even fools could tell how intentional the affair was, and the scheme that lay behind it.
Regardless of what the Wang Clan was up to, Wang Yan had used his actions to display the attitude of the Wang Clan!
Yao Guang Yi, a scheming old veteran of the royal court, had never lost in the past. He singlehandedly created the feud between the Song and the Qi and stripped King Song of his trusty aides. For the first time, by the border, he suffered a crushing defeat in the field he expertized in!
——Furthermore, he lost in an extremely foolish manner, making a huge laughingstock out of himself.
“Hahaha, great!”
When the news reached King Song Residence, King Song abruptly slammed his hand on the table. All of the worry and frustration he accumulated throughout recent days disappeared along with that slam.
At this moment, King Song felt extremely relaxed.
“Wang Yan, I have not judged you wrongly! I have not judged the Wang Clan wrongly! As long as I have the assistance of the Wang Clan and Duke Jiu, even if everyone were to betray me and leave my side, what do I have to fear?!”
Sitting in the main hall, delight exuded from King Song’s face. This was the most positive news he had heard in this half month.
Wang Yan had used his actions to express the attitude and stand of the Wang Clan. At this moment, the final doubts that King Song had of him disappeared along with the wind.
“Hehe, Your Highness, didn’t I say that Wang Yan wouldn’t betray you?”
At the bottom of King Song’s seat, Lu Ting looked at King Song with a smile. He was dressed in a blue robe and he held a fan in his hand.
“Hahaha, Academic Lu, you can say anything you want on the matter!”
King Song pressed against the handles of the chair and stood up from his throne.
“I would like to see what King Qi thinks of the matter. That bastard! I nearly fell for his tricks!”
Recalling everything that had just happened, King Song was still traumatized. King Qi and Yao Guang Yi had poached too many people from his side. Sometimes, he couldn’t help but doubt everyone around him, unable to find the mood to eat even.
After living in the royal court for such a long time, King Song was well aware of what his subordinates would think if they were subjected to his delusional guesses.
It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that everyone might leave him due to that.
He was just a step off from that, but right before the edge of the cliff, Wang Yan woke him up. As long as Wang Yan and the entire Wang Clan supported him, he hadn’t lost yet. He would still have an opportunity to make a comeback.
It was an utter failure of the King Qi faction in this battle!
As he thought so, he turned around to look at the old butler. Even though the latter was placid and it was impossible to see any emotion on his face, he soon understood the meaning behind his master’s gaze.
“Your Highness, your old servant admits that his mistake. I was too skeptical on this affair and wronged the Wang Clan. If possible, I would like to go ahead and apologize to General Wang directly!”
The old butler said calmly.
Back then, it was him who invited Wang Yan to the King Song Residence. It was also him to told King Song when he had chosen to trust Wang Yan to not be too trusting of others, and the truth could be determined in the future.
Facts had proven that it was all Yao Guang Yi and King Qi’s scheme to frame the Wang Clan, and that Wang Yan was a trustworthy subordinate.
Even though he was wrong, the old butler wasn’t depressed in the least. Rather, he felt happy for King Song.
“Hehe, what are you thinking of? This was my intention back then and it had nothing to do with you. I will clean up my own mess, so there’s no need for you to look for Wang Yan. When Duke Jiu’s birthday comes, I will apologize to him myself and explain this to him.”
King Song waved his hands.
The fact that Wang Yan knew that he had to retreat 50 li showed that the Wang Clan wasn’t completely oblivious on the matter. At the very least, they knew that King Song was suspicious of them.
King Song wasn’t an irresponsible person. Since he had made a mistake, he wouldn’t push the blame onto others.
“Hehe, Your Highness, don’t worry about it. Duke Jiu wouldn’t be bothered by it. I will accompany Your Highness when the time comes.”
Seeing this sight, Lu Ting chuckled beneath his hands. This was the King Song that he knew! Even though he might be blinded by a moment of folly, he would soon realize his own mistakes and admit his own faults courageously!
Given his identity as a member of royalty, this quality of his was extremely precious and rare. This was also the reason why he was so loyal to King Song.
“However, Your Highness, don’t you think that there’s something weird about the matter?”
Chuckling, Lu Ting abruptly said:
“Wang Yan’s nature tends to be straightforward and inflexible, so how would he know that Yao Guang Yi’s troop would bring his troop to his deployment area? Furthermore, how could he have known that the enemy would attack and choose to retreat 50 li in advance? This isn’t something he is cap
able of!”
“If Wang Yan was that flexible and astute, Yao Guang Yi wouldn’t have chosen to strike the Wang Clan from him and suffer such a huge failure by the border in return, becoming a laughingstock of everyone else.”
“You are saying that…”
King Song’s body jolted. Lu Ting’s reminder left him in contemplation. He was only overjoyed over the matter, and he didn’t bother to think about the bizarre parts of the matter.
Indeed! This wasn’t the first day he and Lu Ting had known Wang Yan. He was well aware of how Wang Yan operated.
Wang Yan’s actions, which caused Yao Guang Yi to be disgraced, was indeed unlike him.
“Could this be the Duke Jiu’s intentions?”
Thinking about the matter, he could only attribute the matter to the respected Old Master of the Wang Clan. If this wasn’t Wang Yan’s intentions, it could only be Old Master Wang guiding him from his back.
Also, Wang Yan would only listen to the words of the Old Master!
“Hehe, Duke Jiu had survived and stood at the apex of the royal court for decades. Even after he had retired, he was invited to the Four Quarters Embassy and the emperor also often consulted him on politics. I also hoped that he was the one. But schemes and political fights aren’t Duke Jiu’s expertise. Furthermore, no matter how incredible the Old Master is, he stays in the Four Quarters Embassy all the time and rarely goes out. If so, how could he have known that Yao Guang Yi was going to lead his army to Wang Yan’s deployment zone?”
Lu Ting said.
“It isn’t the Old Master?”
King Song frowned. He thought that he had already arrived at the answer, but Lu Ting refuted his words. If it wasn’t the Old Master, who else could it be?
Yao Guang Yi wasn’t an average person, and not everyone could win him in a battle of wits and make him a laughingstock. Not to mention, the fellow wasn’t able to say anything about the huge setback he suffered at all.
No one of the Wang Clan seemed to possess such ability.
Duke Jiu’s eldest son, Wang Gen, was a court official as well as a noble. He often went to the royal court for discussions and was skilled in politics as well, so it was possible for him to be the one. However, he was an academic official instead of a military one. He practically knew nothing about the military, needless to say, advice Wang Yan on the aspect.
The Human Emperor c1-2382 Page 37