"Hmph! Look at that guilty look of yours! "
Wang Zhu Yan harrumphed. Her expression didn't change, but the edges of her lips curled up slightly, revealing a hint of glee:
"If not for the fact that I'm on good terms with Duke of Zhao's Princess Qianqian, you wouldn't think that you could hide this matter from me, right?"
"Second Sister, how would I dare to!"
Wang Chong hurriedly admitted defeat:
"Even if you give me ten guts, I wouldn't lie to you!"
Only the heavens knew why his cousin was so resourceful, there was nothing that could hide from her. Yet, she was older than him, and he had to address her as' Second Sister '. Furthermore, he wasn't a match for her!
A wise man doesn't fight when the odds are against him, so he quickly admitted his mistake!
"It's good that you know!"
Seeing the frightened expression on Wang Chong's face, Wang Zhu Yan couldn't help but chuckle. This lad, she had to teach him a lesson from time to time lest he gets carried away.
"Initially, I wanted to tell your mother about this matter. However, on account of your previous performance, I'll let this matter go. However, you don't lack food or clothes at home, so why did you borrow so much money? Two hundred gold taels isn't a small sum, even I don't have that much money. "
"Two hundred gold taels?"
Wang Chong was taken aback. He lifted his head abruptly and was taken aback, "Isn't it 1700 gold taels? Does cousin not know about it? "
Wang Chong immediately felt energized. Even though he didn't know what was going on, it was clear that his cousin didn't know much about this matter!
"Duke of Zhao? That means Zhao Lin? There doesn't seem to be a need for him to help me keep it a secret, right? Why did he say that it was two hundred gold taels? Could it be … Su Bai? "
Wang Chong finally understood the situation. It had been a long time since he borrowed money from the Eight Gods Pavilion, but there wasn't much news about it.
It was highly likely that she had accidentally uncovered the matter regarding his cousin!
Wang Chong had a feeling that Su Bai and the others were intentionally hiding the matter for him. However, it probably wasn't because they were thinking of him. Wang Chong guessed that they were trying to make use of this matter to deal with him in the future.
After all, the longer this matter dragged on, the more interest he would owe them!
"This brat is really up to no good."
Wang Chong thought to himself. If he was really a hedonistic son of a rich family, he might really fall into his trap.
However, Su Bai's matter could be put aside for now. To Wang Chong, the most important matter at hand was to appease this resourceful cousin of his.
"Hehe, cousin, I'm just borrowing money to buy shares and earn a little profit from doing business with others. If you don't like it, I'll return the two hundred taels of gold to them. "
With a smile on his face, Wang Chong walked up and massaged his cousin Wang Zhu Yan's arm.
"Brat, hurry up and return it. Is it that easy to borrow money from the Zhao Public House? "
Wang Zhu Yan slapped away Wang Chong's palm and chided him jokingly.
How could Wang Chong dare to refute?
"By the way, second sister, I should have prepared a small gift for you."
Wang Chong hurriedly tried to curry favor.
This' second sister 'of his was simply too resourceful. It felt as though there was nothing that could be hidden from her, causing him to feel cold sweat running down his back.
He had to make use of this opportunity to bribe her. Otherwise, who knew what kind of trouble she would cause in the future!
"Oh."
Wang Zhu Yan sat up from her bed and her eyes lit up. Stretching out her right hand, she asked. "What is it? Give it to me! "
How could Wang Chong dare to keep her in suspense? He hurriedly took out a small black object which he had prepared beforehand from his sleeves.
"What is this?"
Wang Zhu Yan glanced at the unassuming object in Wang Chong's hands and astonishment filled her face.
"This is called an eyelash curler. Don't underestimate it just because it's rough and unassuming. With just a light pinch, it would be able to curl the eyelashes of noble ladies and young ladies."
Wang Chong chuckled.
This cousin of his was different from others. She didn't like gold or silver and only liked those weird items used by girls.
For example, the nail file previously and the eyelash curler this time.
Using such items to curry favor with her was the best way to do so.
This was something that Wang Chong had comprehended during his wanton and unrestrained 'years' when he battled wits and courage with his cousin, Wang Zhu Yan. As long as he took out a small object that didn't exist in this world, Second Sister would be overjoyed.
With the 'treasure' he presented, Cousin Wang Zhu Yan would be able to flaunt it in front of her close friends for a long period of time. As long as she was happy, she wouldn't find trouble with him. Thus, Wang Chong would be happy as well.
In fact, he might even help to cover up the news.
As expected, Second Sister took Wang Chong's eyelash curler and tried to pinch it on her eyelashes in front of the copper mirror. As expected, she was overjoyed.
"Little brat, at least you're considerate. Leave the item here, leave it to Second Sister. You can come and collect it a few days later! "
Wang Zhu Yan smiled widely. She had indeed forgotten about that matter. She waved her hands furiously, chasing him away.
"Right, there's still half a month before grandfather's birthday. Don't blame Second Sister for not reminding you, this is a huge matter. We only get to meet grandfather once a year, so make sure to perform well and don't say anything wrong! "
In the end, Wang Zhu Yan called out to Wang Chong and reminded him with a serious expression.
"I understand!"
Wang Chong made a funny face. Leaving behind the WuZi Steel Sword, he turned around and left.
…
Cousin Wang Zhu Yan's progress was much faster than Wang Chong had expected. Roughly three days later, Wang Chong received four WuZi Steel Swords with Strength Inscriptions.
"Heavy!"
Wang Chong held one of the swords in his hands and he could clearly feel the weight of the swords.
Upon closer inspection, one could see that on the three-foot-long sword, strands of strange veined patterns were wrapped around the sword like vines. Beneath the pitch-black body of the sword, there was a faint glow.
Compared to three days ago, the WuZi Steel Swords didn't seem to have changed much. However, Wang Chong could clearly feel that the WuZi Steel Swords were different from before.
Weng!
Wang Chong stretched his right hand out and grabbed the hilt of the sword. In an instant, a powerful surge of energy gushed into his body. Kaka sounds echoed from within Wang Chong's body, and a feeling as though water had melted into his body. Wang Chong felt as though the sword had become a part of his body.
"What incredible strength!"
In just a few short breaths, Wang Chong could clearly feel his aura rising by a notch. From Origin Energy Tier 4, he reached Origin Energy Tier 5.
Furthermore, all of this happened in an instant.
"These weaponsmiths sure are fearsome!"
This kind of strength left Wang Chong in awe. At the same time, he felt deep respect for them.
It was rumored that those who could become weaponsmiths were all formidable experts. Even though Yao Feng was one of the Eight Talents of the Capital, he was still a far cry from matching up to these weaponsmiths.
This was only possible because her cousin was very resourceful and knew many nobles, young ladies of aristocratic families, and princesses in the palace. That was why she was able to accomplish this task.
"Wang Chong, as per your request, I have cleared out the cavern. You can use everything here without any worries. Also, there are guards standing guard at the entrance. I have already passed down an order that no one is to approach while you are forging the swords! "
A voice sounded from behind. Wei Hao walked over casually and gestured for Wang Chong to be at ease.
"Un. Thank you. "
Wang Chong nodded his head and recovered from his daze.
Now that the inscriptions on the swords were done, all that was left was the final step, quenching.
"Help me keep an eye on it. By sunrise tomorrow, everything will be done. "
Wang Chong gestured to Wei Hao and his little sister. Then, he parted the black curtain at the entrance and walked in alone.
The massive cavern was empty. There wasn't a single person in sight.
Wei Hao had already cleared out the cavern for Wang Chong so that Wang Chong could focus on his work.
The final step for any weapon was quenching. However, Wang Chong didn't want anyone to be present when it came to quenching the WuZi Steel. The quenching of this steel was different from any other steel. This would be an important bargaining chip for Wang Chong to use against the Abbasid Caliphate for the Hyderabad ores in the future!
All the flames in the cavern were extinguished. This was at Wang Chong's request. However, there was a pile of pine branches on the ground, each of them around three chi tall.
Wang Chong wasn't in a hurry to quench the swords. Instead, he sat cross-legged on the cold ground and waited patiently. There were still a few hours before sunrise. As long as there was a moment before sunrise, when light and darkness alternated, that was the best time to temper the Wootz steel.
Different from the process of smelting and cold forging, the quenching process was the shortest and most important.
"Little sister, what do you think your brother is doing in there? It's just quenching, is there a need to make it so complicated? Even we aren't allowed in. I asked the swordsmiths today, and they said that this step is simple. All he has to do is to plunge it into the cold water after it's heated up. Why is your brother making it so complicated? "
A rustling voice came from outside. Wang Chong could tell that it was Wei Hao's voice.
Hearing this voice, Wang Chong couldn't help but chuckle.
Wei Hao's doubts represented the thoughts of most swordsmiths in this era. In this era, people's understanding of quenching was still at the stage of 'if the temperature of the weapon was lowered in a short period of time, the quality of the sword would be raised to a certain extent'.
In fact, most swordsmiths would plunge the sword into the cold water after they were done forging. Those who didn't take it seriously would skip it, thinking that as long as the sword wasn't too hot, it would cool down on its own.
There were very few people who treated quenching as an important step as Wang Chong.
"It will take at least six to seven years for people in this era to understand the true use of quenching!"
A thought flashed across Wang Chong's mind as he shook his head.
Wang Chong possessed knowledge that was far ahead of this era when it came to the forging of swords and sabers. Many people knew that swords and sabers needed to be quenched.
However, very few people knew that quenching was the most important step in the forging of swords and sabers. It was far more important than any other step.
Quenching could greatly increase the steel's rigidity, hardness, wear resistance, fatigue strength, toughness, and corrosion resistance. This was the fastest and biggest step in the forging of weapons.
Different weapons had different methods of quenching.
The top-notch weapons in the world all had their own unique methods of quenching.
It was a pity that due to their misunderstanding, most swordsmiths' understanding of quenching remained at the lowest level of 'water quenching'. Unbeknownst to them, by plunging a sword into cold water, it would cause great damage to the steel and charcoal contained in the sword.
Even though the surface of the sword was perfect and the quality had been raised, the internal structure of the sword was already filled with countless cracks. Such swords couldn't be used for long.
Some of the swords even broke on the spot.
That was the reason why there were so many cracked, broken, and defective weapons during the quenching process!
But it was a pity that most swordsmiths didn't pay any heed to it. They thought that there was a problem with the steel or their forging method.
This wasn't just the case in the east. Even in the west, where the weapon trade was booming, the Arab swordsmiths were the same.
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