Great Xuanwu Sheng

Chapter 183 Smelter

 “It’s just that I have more experience, so I don’t deserve Mr. Chen’s praise.”

When Yan Guang heard Chen Mu's words, his expression softened a lot. Sure enough, Chen Mu was not only as talented as he was in the rumors, he was also calm and peaceful, without any youthful arrogance. In order to show the majesty of Dusi, he criticized all his arrangements and then made random changes.

The more this happened, the more Yan Guang lamented why Chen Mu was not born in the Xue family. If Chen Mu's surname was Xue... well, it would actually be better to have the surname Yan.

"Master Yan's dispatch has at least saved tens of thousands of households in Jingyu County from death by floods. Such an achievement is not worthy of praise... But I walked along the river all the way. The terrain in these two places is too low-lying. If there is further turmoil in the ground, , there is still a risk of spreading to the west, so the nearest villages here should be temporarily relocated, and another person will be sent to monitor the area day and night. If there is any change, a report will be made immediately, and the villages further away will also immediately go up the mountain to take refuge. .”

Chen Mu responded, then pointed at the map and clicked twice on several places.

Based on the overall situation in Jingyu County, he did not intend to make more useless arrangements. However, he came all the way and visited the scene in person. He had a clearer grasp of the actual situation in some places and could still add a lot of details.

Yan Guang glanced at the map and immediately said: "Master Chen is talking about..."

 Say it.

He then turned to look at County Magistrate Jing Yu and said in a deep voice, "Don't do it right away!"

The county magistrate Jingyu responded quickly and went out quickly.

 Chen Mu looked at the map again and felt that based on the current situation, there was generally no problem, unless there were other unrest in the ground. However, there were basically scouts in various places to investigate the situation, and they would immediately report any situation.

Jingyu County is the territory of the Xue family, and Yan Guang is an in-law of the Xue family, so he is naturally dedicated to this place. As for Pingyu County, it belongs to the Xue family. According to some information he has received before, there is also Jingyu County. Judging from the situation here, it should be similar. Even if the details are not all in place, the overall response is no problem.

 “Okay, that’s all for now.”

 Chen Mu finally looked at the map and stood up.

Upon seeing this, Yan Guang said: "Master Chen has worked hard. Magistrate Zou has arranged a courtyard for Master Chen to rest in the back."

 “No need, I’ll go for a walk in the city.”

 Chen Mu shook his head.

He turned around and walked out of the office.

Yan Guang followed beside him and sent Chen Mu out of the county house. Looking at Chen Mu's back disappearing in the drizzle, he sighed and returned to the county house.

 …

Chen Mu walked along the street, looking around, and suddenly asked the officials following him: "Is there any famous smelter in Jingyu County?"

 Now that there is no need to intervene in the general management affairs until there are no new changes, then it is his turn to deal with trivial matters. The first thing that comes to mind is naturally the piece of Xuanhuo Mine he obtained earlier.

Using this piece of black fire ore to temper the Flowing Silver Knife and forge it into a top-notch treasure comparable to Cheng Houhua's Qinghan Sword. It will undoubtedly increase his strength, and he can also better deal with tide disasters and other changes. .

However, forging top-notch treasures is not something ordinary craftsmen can do. The smelters of the Yu family can barely do it. The best is the smelting master 'Fang Yi' from the Yu County Smelting Department. It is said that he is the highest level among the smelting craftsmen in Yu County. characters.

At this time, he was in Jingyu County, and he was beyond reach. It was impossible for him to run all the way back to Yucheng to forge the sword.

 “Smelter?”

The official next to him was startled, and then he pondered: "There is no branch of the Smelting Department in Jingyu County, and the craftsmen in the smelting shops outside just make ordinary knives... Well, by the way, that person may still be in Jingyu County. county."

Chen Mu looked at the official without asking any questions, and just waited for his next words.

The official immediately narrated: "Your Excellency, Master Fang Yi from Yu County was a native of Jingyu County when he was young. He once worked as a laborer under a smelter named "Qi Ge" and later practiced smelting skills. He was so proficient that he was taken to the Smelting Department by people from the county, but it is said that Master Fang Yi comes back to Jingyu every year to visit Master Qi and respects him very much."

At this point, he hesitated slightly and said: "However, although Master Fang Yi was once the apprentice of that craftsman Qi, it is normal for the master to be better than the master in smelting. The smelting level of the craftsman Qi is actually It may not be very high, maybe it is because Master Fang Yi was under his care when he was young that he respects him very much. Moreover, Master Qi is now over seventy years old and no longer engages in the smelting business. Even though he was skilled in the past, Now that I’m older, maybe…”

 Chen Mu listened to the description of the dismissed officials and had a general understanding of the situation.

After thinking for a while, he said: "Ask where this Master Qi lives, and I will pay him a visit."

It is true that as the attendant said, the smelting level of the craftsman Qi may not be very high, and he is also very old, but it is not a big deal to go and take a look.

"yes."

The subordinate official withdrew in response and came back soon, saluting: "My lord, the craftsman Qi lives in Xiajing Street, not far from here. I will show you the way."

 Chen Mu nodded slightly and walked forward along the streets. After passing through more than a dozen streets, he came to a relatively clean and quiet street, and soon arrived outside a courtyard.

at this time.

The official next to him came up and called the door. But Chen Mu stretched out his hand to stop him. He came to the door and knocked on the door knocker twice. Soon the door was opened a crack. A child looked out timidly. Chen Mu said calmly to him:

 “Chen Mu, the Supervision Department, came to visit.”

　　　…”

The child didn't say anything, and quickly closed the door again, and then the footsteps disappeared all the way.

 It didn’t take long.

The door was opened again, and an old man with silver hair walked out of the door. He bowed respectfully to Chen Mu and said, "Common people, please see Mr. Du Si."

“Old sir, you don’t have to be polite. Do you recognize me?”

Chen Mu looked at Qi Ge and asked calmly, without letting him kneel down.

He just reported the name "Chen Mu, Supervisor", but Qie Ge knew directly that he was the Supervisor, Dusi. This is normal in Yu County, but this is the county government below, and he may not know the names of the officials above.

Chige said respectfully: "Sir, Yi Zeng came to visit not long ago and told me some things about the county."

Chen Mu smiled and said straightforwardly: "I am here to ask Master Qi to forge a treasure for me..."

 Said.

He casually took out the piece of Xuanhuo Mine and put it in his palm.

As soon as Siege saw it, a glimmer of light suddenly appeared in his old eyes and he said:

 “Xuanhuo Mine.”

But after saying this, he gave a wry smile and said: "I dare not hide it, sir. I do have some experience in smelting and forging weapons in the next life. If he were young, my disciple Fang Yi would not be as accurate as me in forging weapons." , But now that I am really old, it is not impossible to forge treasures, but the level may not be as good as Fang Yi now."

In front of others, he often said that his level was far inferior to Fang Yi's, and that Fang Yi was already better than his master. But in fact, that was just an excuse because he didn't want to cause any more trouble, and he didn't want people to come to him to forge weapons from time to time.

But Chen Mu is the Supervisory Director, and he knows very well what status Chen Mu has. In front of such a big shot, he naturally does not dare to say such evasive words, and can only tell the truth.

After Chen Mu heard this, he immediately smiled and said: "I heard from people that Mr. Qi often said that he was far inferior to Master Fang. It was indeed a humble statement. Since it is 'maybe not as good', it means 'maybe' is still better than Master Fang." The standard of teachers is higher.”

Zie Ge gave a wry smile and said, "I am indeed getting older now, so I may not be able to compare with Fang Yi."

　　　.

Chen Mu took out the flowing silver knife that he carried with him, handed it over, and said: "There is no need for Mr. Qi to forge it from scratch. He only needs to temper this knife with Xuanhuo ore and integrate the Xuanhuo ore into it to give it a hint of burning flames." characteristic."

"Well."

Sieg stretched out his hand to take the flowing silver knife, then stretched out his finger, flicked it on the blade, and said with a crisp buzz: "This knife is very well forged, with almost no flaws, but it probably didn't come from As for the hands of my disciple, if it is just tempering and melting fire, I am somewhat sure that I can do better than him."

Chen Mu raised his hands to Qi Ge and said, "Mr. Qi, please take action."

Sieg quickly lowered the knife in his hand and said: "I am not worthy of your invitation. Since it is your order, I should try my best to obey it... In fact, if it takes a few more years, old man, I may not be able to forge utensils anymore." .”

Chen Mu said: "What kind of reward does Mr. Qi want?"

Hearing this, Qi Ge sighed and said: "How dare you ask for repayment when you work for your lord? It's a pity that my son has learned less than 30% of my skills. Even if he can be helped by Fang Yi, he can't find a job in the Smelting Department." Errands…”

Chen Mu said calmly: "I will say hello to the Smelting Department, but if you want to join the Smelting Department as a clerk, you have to sit up from the bottom. How far you can go in the future depends on his ability."

Qiege can train a disciple like Fang Yi. No matter how bad his son is, he will at least have some level of skill. There is nothing wrong with joining the Smelting Department as an errand. However, if ordinary people want to join the Smelting Department, unless their smelting level reaches Fang Yi's level, otherwise they will basically have no choice. It's hard to get in. After all, the treatment is much better than that of a servant of the City Guards Department, and you can live in the inner city of Yucheng.

“Thank you for your support, sir. The old man will definitely forge a good sword for you!”

 Ziege knelt down and worshiped again.

But this time Chen Mu did not help.

After Qiege had saluted, Chen Mu took a look at Qiege’s courtyard and said, “Where do you want to forge it, old sir?”

Chige said respectfully: "It's okay to go to the smelting shop on South Street, but sir, you should be able to commandeer the smelting platform in the county government?"

 “Let’s go.”

Chen Mu nodded slightly, then turned and returned to the county government office.

At this moment, Siege took a deep breath and whispered an order to the child behind him. Then he held Chen Mu's flowing silver knife and the piece of black iron ore, pocketed it in his lapel, and followed quickly.

 (End of this chapter)