Subtle Details Can Startle the Gods!

"You unfilial son! Not only did you not inherit the family business, but you even overturned the Fire Sovereign Official, breaking it in two! What are we going to do now? How are we supposed to forge iron now?!"

The old woman sat on the ground, wailing and crying, occasionally slapping the ground with her hands.

Not far in front of her, a young man knelt, his face pale and his expression haggard, looking like he had been indulging in too much drinking and debauchery, his head bowed and silent.

"What's going on?" Qiu Yan found a spot to stand in the crowd and asked.

A man nearby glanced at him, noticing his scholar's robes and the long sword in his hand, and immediately became respectful. He whispered, "Sir, are you just passing through for study? It's understandable that you don't know about Star Platform Town. This is an orphan and widow from the Liu Household..."

The people nearby, seemingly intimidated by Qiu Yan's appearance, then told them everything.

Originally, this town was called Star Platform Town. Legend has it that it was the site of the Xingtai (Star Platform) of the Ba-Shu Ancient Kingdom, a place used to observe the Shang Star and formulate the calendar. However, thousands of years have passed, and the ruins of the ancient kingdom have long since disappeared. All that remains is the name Xingtai and the sacrifices to the Fire Sovereign.

The Shang Star, also known as Mars, is said to be the transformation of the god of fire, hence the people of this village worship fire.

Today, the village is renowned as a blacksmith's village, with several blacksmith shops in the town, all passed down from their ancestors.

The woman crying was one of them, and the man kneeling before her was named Liu Xin, the heir to the craftsman's shop. However, he was an uneducated man who idled away his days and had become addicted to gambling. A year ago, his father passed away, and instead of inheriting the family business, Liu Xin squandered the family's savings, causing the shop to close down.

Not long after, his savings ran out, and he even planned to sell his belongings to pay off his debts. His mother stopped him, and the two argued. In the heat of the moment, he accidentally knocked over the family's Fire Warden Tablet, which fell to the ground and broke in two.

This really frightened the mother and child.

Upon hearing this, Qiu Yan's heart stirred, and he asked directly, "I wonder what's so special about this Fire Warden Tablet?"

"Sir, you are a scholar, so naturally you don't know the function of the Fire Warden Tablet. In our Star Platform Town, generations have relied on the Fire Sovereign for their livelihood. Some are blacksmiths, some are potters, but there is a secret to it, and that secret lies in the Fire Sovereign..."

Just as the person Qiu Yan was asking was about to explain in detail, someone suddenly tugged at his sleeve, bringing him back to his senses. He quickly changed his words, saying, "In short, the Fire Sovereign burning, please protect us. Those ancestral tablets are all passed down from our ancestors; if they break, it might offend the gods!"

"I see, thank you for letting me know." Qiu Yan knew from the other party's words that something was being concealed, so he didn't press for details. However, he already had a guess in his mind, and even thought of an urgent idea, but he suppressed it for the time being.

At this point, the old woman sitting on the ground cried even more bitterly, and finally shouted that she would go to the authorities to report Liu Xin for being unfilial.

Hu Qi and Dai Guo were taken aback and asked in a low voice, "Can a mother sue her son?"

Qiu Yan overheard this and, knowing that Hu Qi and Dai Guo had doubts, explained, "The Great Rui Code state that parents can discipline their own descendants, but cannot take their lives. However, if children commit wrongdoings, parents can legally take the blame for them. Similarly, if children are unfilial, parents can sue them in court. If the investigation is found to be true, there are cases where they are flogged in the marketplace, have their heads shaved, or are forced into labor service. In severe cases, they can even be executed according to the law!"

"Goodness!"

Qiu Yan's words shocked Hu Qi and Dai Guo, making them marvel at the power of the law. Even those around them gasped. Liu Xin, who was kneeling, heard it clearly and immediately changed his expression. He knelt down, grabbed his mother's hand, and began to cry and plead, repeatedly begging to repent.

The old woman continued to cry out, "You unfilial son, now you know fear! When you broke the Fire Warden Tablet, did you ever think of this day? Now that the ancestral tablet is destroyed, the Furnace Fire will hardly reach the required temperature. How will we smelt iron and fry steel?"

"Huh?" Upon hearing this, Qiu Yan's expression changed, and he turned to the person beside him and asked, "What? You're heating the fire, don't you need Wind Fur?"

"What Wind Fur?" The person being asked looked puzzled. "I've never heard of that name before."

Little did he know how much shock this simple sentence had on Qiu Yan, and how it had a profound impact on his mind!

Composing himself slightly, Qiu Yan's eyes darted around, carefully scrutinizing the other person's face. At the same time, he released his senses and realized that the other person showed no signs of pretense, and immediately understood.

"When you're smelting iron, what do you use for heating instead of using Wind Fur?"

Upon hearing this, the man's expression changed drastically, and he rebuked, "You have no manners! This is our way of making a living; how can you just tell us like that?" With that, he turned and walked away, ignoring Qiu Yan.

But Qiu Yan listened attentively to the reprimand. He looked around the town a few times, his gaze settling on the small river that ran through it.

There is something in the sky above the river.

"No air chamber? No Water-Powered Bellows either..."

The Wind Fur is a type of air-blowing bag.

Qiu Yan had read an article related to this in his previous life.

Originally, he had been trapped in the Mountain God Temple for eighty years in solitude, and his memory had become somewhat blurred. However, now that the incense offerings are becoming more abundant, and after focusing his Incense Faith, his memory has become more and more amazing. The scattered memories of his previous life have gradually reappeared and become clearer when he recalls them.

The article was about the ancient iron smelting industry, but it mainly described blast furnaces, fuel, and blowers, not iron itself.

In ancient times, iron smelting and steelmaking also required heating. The flames in a simple blast furnace had a limited temperature, so a blower was needed to blow air for heating. This blower bag is one type of blower, and it is considered the most primitive and ancient type. Logically speaking, these craftsmen's families had passed down their skills from their ancestors, so even if they didn't read books, they should have some impression of it. However, the man said he had never heard of it.

"No, when I was reading the Book of Rites at home, I remembered a sentence that said, 'The son of a good blacksmith must learn to make fur coats.' It means that a good blacksmith must learn to make Wind Fur -blown fur coats. In ancient times, the division of labor in society was not clear, and there were not many craftsmen. Therefore, blacksmiths had to make their own bellows, hence the sentence. How come we don't remember that now?"

Thinking of this, Qiu Yan narrowed his eyes, a sharp glint in them, and his heart was filled with excitement.

"From the old woman's words, we can deduce that the blacksmiths of this world rely on..."

"The Divine Path... the Human Path... so that's how it is, so that's how it is, I understand! It really takes traveling thousands of miles to know. In Yuanning Prefecture, I never entered the blacksmith's shop, nor did I ever pay attention to it. I never expected that there would be such a big difference in these details! My previous thinking was imprisoned by the common sense of my previous life!"

In an instant, several thoughts flashed through his mind, gradually coalescing into a few lines.

Thinking of this, Qiu Yan turned his gaze to the woman, and an idea came to mind.

So he took a step forward, his body surging with energy, weaving through the crowd like a fish. Anyone who was touched by him would naturally slide to the side.

Hu Qi and Dai Guo exchanged a glance, puzzled, but followed. However, they had only gone halfway through the crowd when Qiu Yan had already reached the old woman.

"Madam, what you're worried about is that the furnace temperature isn't high enough to produce iron for steel. I do have a method that might help you. If you're interested, you might want to give it a try."

"You are..." The old woman looked up and saw Qiu Yan's appearance and clothes. Her expression changed slightly.

She had overheard Qiu Yan reciting the Great Rui Code in the crowd. She had initially intended to sue her son, but knowing that she might be beaten to death and have the Liu Household line end, she gave up the idea. However, thinking of her son's unfilial behavior and her shame towards her ancestors, she was overcome with grief and, in her haste, revealed the town's closely guarded secret.

Among the crowd were blacksmiths, whose expressions changed upon hearing this. Several were about to step forward, but stopped when they saw Hu Qi and Dai Guo walk to Qiu Yan's side.

The mere presence of these two burly men immediately dampened the enthusiasm of many.

"Sir, you must have misunderstood..." The old woman composed herself and shook her head, saying, "I only dislike that my son is unwilling to inherit the family business, and that is not my intention."

"Auntie, there's no need to say more. I know your concerns, but you need to think it through. Since praying to the gods can bring about a change, and there's a plan that can be implemented now, why not give it a try? I don't need your family's secret recipe. I'll just make you one thing. Whether it works or not, you won't lose anything."

After saying that, he turned to look at Liu Xin beside the old woman and said with a smile, "Brother Liu, I see regret in your eyes. You must have realized the consequences. But what's done is done. Even if someone helps you, your shop will be beyond saving, and you might even end up in court. You'd better think it over carefully."

Liu Xin had already lost his composure upon hearing about the Great Rui Code, and seeing his mother's appearance also filled him with remorse. However, he didn't know what to do. Now, after hearing Qiu Yan's words, he was somewhat moved. Thinking that the other party was a scholar and would not speak carelessly, he ignored the glances from the people in the crowd and called out for help.

Qiu Yan nodded. "Good! You should be able to make a clean break. If you can quit gambling, you can achieve great things." After saying this, he turned and walked out. Hu Qi and Dai Guo quickly followed, and the surrounding crowd parted to make way for the three of them.

After walking a distance, Dai Guo couldn't help but say, "Young master, why bother joining in this commotion? Those people clearly have ill intentions."

Qiu Yan then said, "My intervention wasn't solely for these people; I had other purposes as well. Besides, helping out is a good deed in itself. If I hadn't encountered them, it wouldn't have mattered, but since I did, there's no reason to stand by and watch them die. By the way, go to the Lin Zhong and get some timber. Hu Qi, go to town and ask if anyone has any furs..."

He described his thoughts, and naturally there was no need to be polite with the two of them; otherwise, it would be too formal.

Although Hu Qi and his companion were confused, they still obeyed the order and left.

Qiu Yan closed his eyes, stood silently, and recalled the article he had read in his previous life. He then used the Incense Faith of his divine self to meditate, combining and arranging the elements. Gradually, the outline of the blower formed in his mind. (To be continued, please search Piaotian Literature for better and faster updates!)

P. S.: Thank you to "Volcano1889" and "Amazing Life" for the donations!