The Quiet Weapons, Bows and Crossbows

Jiang You's lips twitched slightly. A grown man was called Hua'er?

But now was clearly not the time to dwell on such things.

She nodded, readily agreeing. "Yes, that's me. Hua Ge mentioned you can customize special weapons here?"

Li Qiang's eyebrows rose slightly. "Got money? I have the goods, but they aren't cheap."

"I need to see samples. You must have samples you've made for others, right?"

"Heh, quite cautious for a young girl."

Li Qiang chuckled and gestured for Jiang You to follow him. He then turned and went into the shop, entering a small room.

The room was furnished with many kinds of weapons, from swords and spears to modern, improved versions.

Li Qiang chuckled again. "Everything in this room is just for show, looks good but isn't practical. They're fine for cutting fruit or vegetables, but in a real fight, they're all trash!"

He turned a switch on a display shelf, and a secret room entrance appeared.

"Please, come in."

Li Qiang looked at her with a half-smile. "Little girl, have you ever watched crime movies? This secret room, doesn't it look like a cage..."

He stood in the dim light, his smile appearing rather sinister. His demeanor was quite intimidating.

Jiang You looked left and right, found a switch, and turned on the main lights.

As the lights came on, the creepy feeling instantly vanished. Li Qiang, his face covered in a thick beard, gave an awkward laugh.

"Heh, I was just... just making a little joke. Hahaha, don't you think it's funny?"

"I didn't realize you were so humorous," Jiang You replied politely.

"Haha, I do have a bit of humor in me!"

He seemed quite proud, laughing heartily as he led the way into the secret room.

Jiang You followed him in. Inside, her eyes were met with rows of neatly arranged crossbows, as well as long and short swords, and crossbow bolts.

These items were clearly different from those outside, all of them gleaming with a cold light. The items outside were art pieces, while these inside were real weapons.

Jiang You's target was crossbows and similar weapons. Compared to the noise produced by firearms, the silent crossbows offered more significant advantages for surprise attacks and stealth. Moreover, crossbows, as cold weapons, were easier to replicate.

Among the various crossbows, Jiang You finally selected a modified version of the Great Yellow Crossbow.

Seeing her eyes fixed on the Great Yellow Crossbow, Li Qiang explained. "This Great Yellow Crossbow is also known as the 'Yellow Shoulder Crossbow,' originating from the Han Dynasty. It has strong lethality and a long range. 'Only the strong can use it,' so it has high requirements for the wielder. Unless the user is extremely strong, they cannot unleash the Great Yellow Crossbow's true potential. Its original range was about four hundred meters, but I combined the strengths of the Great Yellow Crossbow and the Divine Arm Crossbow, taking the essence and discarding the dross. After modification, this Great Yellow Crossbow is smaller and lighter than the original, and its range can reach about six hundred meters. Plus, it can load ten crossbow bolts at once, allowing for ten consecutive shots! I ask you, isn't that amazing?! Although my modified Great Yellow Crossbow has a larger frame compared to a gun, unlike a handgun, it's not as convenient for carrying around, but its power is not much less!"

Li Qiang introduced his creation with some excitement.

As he was getting excited, he suddenly caught sight of the slender Jiang You out of the corner of his eye and sighed with disappointment. "But the Great Yellow Crossbow still has demanding requirements for its user. Little girl, this kind of crossbow is suitable for strong men. I think you might prefer a more portable crossbow."

Li Qiang picked up another, smaller and more exquisitely crafted Sleeve Dart. "This one is more suitable for girls. See how small and delicate it is? I even painted it pink. Isn't it pretty?"

Jiang You frowned, looking at the pink Sleeve Dart in his hand with disdain. She pointed at the Great Yellow Crossbow and said, "I want this one."

Seeing that she was persistent, Li Qiang moved a wooden stake as thick as a water barrel from the corner, raising an eyebrow. "If you don't believe me, you can try it first and see if you can handle this crossbow."

It wasn't that he looked down on her, but even he struggled to use the Great Yellow Crossbow.

Let alone a scrawny little girl.

These young girls nowadays, to lose weight, they probably eat only leaves every day, right?

Skinny as if malnourished.

Once she tried the Great Yellow Crossbow herself, she would give up.

It was only suitable for truly strong men!

Li Qiang secretly waited to see the overconfident little girl make a fool of herself.

Before he could even laugh, Jiang You directly grabbed a small crossbow from the side, immediately aimed at the target, and shot an arrow.

With a "whoosh," the arrow pierced the wooden stake and embedded itself firmly in the wall behind, its tail humming.

Just as Li Qiang's surprised expression appeared, he saw her shift her aim and two more arrows flew out rapidly.

"Clang!"

The other two arrows also embedded themselves firmly in the wall. Li Qiang walked closer and his pupils instantly contracted.

At the tip of each of these two arrows, a cockroach was impaled through the chest.

If he remembered correctly, this little girl took almost no time to hesitate from aiming to shooting; the entire process was as natural as eating or sleeping.

Although the crossbow she used wasn't the Great Yellow Crossbow, her accuracy... was simply unbeatable!

With such precision and skill, even he had only seen one or two people like her.

And those two were top individuals from special forces. Yet this girl in front of him, judging by her age, was at most eighteen or nineteen.

Had she been practicing archery since she was in the womb?!

Seeing Jiang You's skill, Li Qiang immediately hid the contempt in his eyes.

He stared in shock at the girl in front of him, who looked no older than seventeen or eighteen.

At this age, she probably just finished her college entrance exams this year, right?

Are kids these days this fierce?

Jiang You said calmly, "Skills can be trained, and so can strength. Just because I can't use the Great Yellow Crossbow now doesn't mean I won't be able to tomorrow or the day after.

In short, I have money, will you sell it or not?

If not, I'll find someone else.

I don't believe that with money, I won't be able to use it?!"

Her body's nutrition hadn't caught up yet, and she was a bit weak. Her strength training hadn't even begun.

After strengthening her training later, she would definitely be able to master the Great Yellow Crossbow.

The man quickly concealed his shock and shook his head, feigning a regretful expression.

"I didn't expect the little cockroach I raised for eight years to end up dying by your hand. Sigh. But it was a swift death, so at least it didn't suffer much.

He sighed theatrically, "Sell it, of course, I'll sell it! The customer is my ancestor! Heh heh!"

Jiang You's lips curved slightly, very satisfied with the performance of the crossbow.

She ordered two of these small crossbows.

Then she turned her gaze to the bows and arrows.

She tried a few more bows and arrows and finally chose one that suited her.

"What's the price for this crossbow and bow I tried earlier?"

"Crossbow bolts are twenty thousand each, and arrows are twenty-five each."

Jiang You frowned slightly.

"I'm not the kind of buyer who only buys one or two. I need fifty crossbow bolts.

Fifty arrows, and I'll also need some arrowheads, so I think you can adjust your price."

She still had over a million, but judging by the prices Li Qiang quoted, it was clearly not enough.

However, she had tried buying from online stores or other shops before. While those places were cheaper, you got what you paid for. Compared to the weapons in Li Qiang's hands, they were far inferior.

Crossbow bolts and arrows both had a lifespan, and repeated repairs didn't make much sense, so she couldn't just buy a few.

Of course, buying too many was also useless.

Because as mutated plants and animals evolved after the apocalypse, within two years, weapons crafted from evolutionary materials would have much greater power and range.

A big customer!

Upon hearing Jiang You say she wanted fifty crossbows and fifty bows, Li Qiang's expression immediately turned serious.

"Are you serious? Not joking?"

Jiang You shook her head, "I don't have a sense of humor, I don't joke."

Li Qiang immediately pulled out his calculator and started typing rapidly.

A few minutes later, he looked like he'd just had a limb cut off. "Crossbows are fifteen thousand, and arrows are twenty bucks a piece!"

Hearing the price, Jiang You made a show of turning to leave.

Li Qiang stopped her. "When you're doing business, you ask a high price and then negotiate. If you're going to walk away at the drop of a hat, there's no sincerity in it! Why don't you make an offer first? What if I agree?"

In an era dominated by firearms, even the best cold weapons didn't have much of a chance. Especially with strict regulations, who would buy these things for their homes? Aside from a few enthusiasts, Li Qiang's business was practically non-existent. He wasn't like Hua'er, whose antique business could go half a year without a sale and then make up for it in one go. He was a craftsman, living by his skill. If he didn't enjoy tinkering with these things himself, he would have quit long ago. He was already several months behind on rent, and Li Qiang was at his wit's end. Seeing a big customer walk in, he admitted he might have gotten a little carried away and the price was a bit high, but why was she leaving so quickly? Why didn't she make an offer first! Although the quantity was large, he had plenty of peers who could help him out. As long as they paid, they could rush out any amount of goods!

Jiang You thought about how Ge Chunhua haggled when she went to the market to buy clothes. And the golden rule of haggling: "Cut it in half, cut it right down the middle!" After a moment's hesitation, she said, "Crossbows for ten thousand, arrows for ten bucks!?" Was that too aggressive? It wasn't easy to find people who could make exquisite cold weapons these days, and finding another way to get them in a short period wouldn't be simple. Before she could even raise her price, Li Qiang nodded without hesitation. "No problem!" His decisive attitude left Jiang You feeling inexplicably frustrated. If he had just hesitated for a few more seconds, she wouldn't regret it so much.

Jiang You: Damn it, I offered too much! Li Qiang: Good thing there's still profit to be made!