You've Been a Great Help

Sun Ping examined the two chunks of dark bluish-black metal Shen Chu had smashed out, selecting the better one and tucking the other into his robes.

Then he clamped the metal into the furnace. Once it had reached the right temperature, he took it out, raised his forging hammer, and began pounding away with a steady clang.

He hammered for over an hour.

Sun Ping was utterly focused. Sweat poured down his forehead, but he didn't stop to wipe it away.

His movements were more careful and focused than usual. He put everything he had into every strike. Shen Chu watched intently from the side, occasionally helping by adding coal or bringing him water.

With the final strike, Sun Ping plunged the forged short blade into cold water.

Hiss! White steam billowed up.

Once it had cooled, Sun Ping took out the short blade, dried it with a cloth, and held it up for a closer look.

A cold gleam rippled along the blade, and the edge seemed to possess a quality unlike that of ordinary iron weapons.

Shen Chu leaned in to examine it, curiosity in his voice. "Master Sun, why does this short blade look different from the others? It feels... It feels like it's really powerful."

Sun Ping could no longer hold back. He threw his head back and burst into laughter, his voice choked with emotion.

He wiped the sweat and tears from his face, then turned and held the short blade out to Shen Chu. His voice was hoarse, but he could barely contain his excitement.

"Of course it's different! This isn't an ordinary blade. It's a low-grade short blade! I've been forging iron for decades, and today I finally forged a low-grade weapon!"

By the end, his eyes had reddened, and tears streamed down his cheeks. He hurriedly tried to wipe them away, but the more he wiped, the more they came. In the end, he gave up and let them flow, grinning like a child.

Only then did Shen Chu understand. He hurriedly clasped his hands in congratulations. "Congratulations, Master Sun! Congratulations!"

But as he bowed his head, his eyes had already caught sight of a small numerical frame floating above the short blade:

[Low-Grade Short Blade: (100/100)]

Steward Li sat in his room. The tea the servants had brought had gone from hot to cold, but he hadn't noticed. He only stared blankly at the delivery order on his desk.

Three hundred fine-iron long blades, due in seven days.

He had secretly taken stock of the storeroom. Even with all the experienced smiths working at full capacity, they could produce just over two hundred blades in seven days—and that was the optimistic estimate.

With Han Tieshan and his people gone, they were short by a full hundred blades or so. There was no way to make up the difference.

There were only two options before him.

The first was to grit his teeth and refuse to go to Han Tieshan, then fail to deliver on time.

But the Zhao Family wouldn't be easy to deal with. Besides the three thousand taels in compensation, the Li Family's reputation would be ruined. When his superiors came down on him, his days as steward would be numbered!

The second was to swallow his pride and ask Han Tieshan to come back.

Han Tieshan had left so decisively because he was certain Steward Li would have to back down. He would surely make demands—higher wages, better treatment, and perhaps even that Steward Li hand over some of his authority.

At the thought of Han Tieshan's smug face, Steward Li's teeth ground together.

He didn't want to choose either option.

But time waited for no one. If he delayed any longer, even the chance to fix things would be gone.

Steward Li closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.

So be it. Sometimes, you had to let go of your pride.

He slowly got to his feet, preparing to go to the place where Han Tieshan was staying.

Just then, footsteps sounded outside the door, followed by Shen Chu's voice. "Steward Li, I have something to report."

The moment Steward Li heard it was Shen Chu, the nameless anger in his chest flared up.

If it weren't for this kid causing trouble, how would he have ended up in such a predicament?

He forced down his anger, sat back in his chair, and said coldly, "Come in."

Shen Chu pushed the door open and entered, bowing respectfully.

Steward Li glanced at him, his tone indifferent. "What are you here for? If you've come to plead your case, don't bother. I'm in no mood to deal with you. Go back to your workstation and do your job. Spend a few more years as an apprentice and get your fundamentals down before you—"

Before he could finish, Shen Chu suddenly brought out a short blade from behind him and presented it with both hands. "Steward Li, this is a low-grade short blade that Master Sun just forged himself!"

Steward Li's words came to an abrupt halt. The rest of the sentence caught in his throat.

"What did you say?! A low-grade short blade?!"

He sprang to his feet, staring fixedly at the cold gleam rippling along the blade in Shen Chu's hands, his face filled with disbelief!

Holding the blade out in both hands, Shen Chu nodded. "Yes, Steward Li. Master Sun forged it himself just now, right in front of me. It's absolutely true."

Steward Li strode over to Shen Chu, snatched up the short blade, and turned it over in his hands several times.

The blade's cold gleam reflected in his pupils, and his breathing grew heavier and heavier.

"How is this possible... Old Sun's been forging iron for decades, and he's never made a weapon with a grade. How did he..." Steward Li muttered to himself, then suddenly looked up at Shen Chu.

"Tell me everything that happened, from beginning to end!"

Shen Chu recounted the events just as they had happened:

How he had smashed the iron according to Master Sun's instructions, how he had pounded out several unusual chunks of metal and taken them to Master Sun for advice, and how Master Sun had used one of them to forge this low-grade short blade.

After listening, Steward Li fell silent for a long while, his gaze shifting between Shen Chu and the short blade.

Suddenly, he turned, snatched up the blade, and strode outside. "Come with me!"

Shen Chu hurried after him.

They walked one behind the other down the corridor and arrived at the Sword-Forging Courtyard.

It was nearly mealtime, but Sun Ping hadn't finished for the day. He was sitting at his workstation, carefully wiping the dark bluish-black iron with a cloth, an unmistakable smile of satisfaction on his face.

"Old Sun!"

Steward Li called out from a distance.

Sun Ping looked up and saw Steward Li arriving with Shen Chu. He wasn't surprised; he smiled, stood, and clasped his hands in greeting. "Steward Li, you're here."

Steward Li hurried over, set the short blade on the table, and began talking with Sun Ping in a low voice.

They leaned their heads together and murmured for a long while, their voices rising and falling, sometimes punctuated by exclamations of astonishment.

Shen Chu tactfully stepped a few paces away, careful not to disturb them.

But he could tell that, as Steward Li spoke with Sun Ping, he kept turning to look at him from time to time.

After about the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the two finally finished talking.

Steward Li turned and walked over to Shen Chu.

Shen Chu hurriedly straightened up.

To his surprise, the gloom and resentment had vanished from Steward Li's face. Instead, it was wreathed in smiles, and his tone had softened considerably.

"Little Shen, Master Sun told me everything. You were a great help in getting him to forge this low-grade short blade."