Becoming a Martial Master: Starting as a Swordsmith

Liu hugged and cried.

Upon seeing this, Master Li's heart immediately softened!

Liu's eyes reddened, and she gently wiped the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief, choking back tears as she said:

"Sir, Zhao Dezhu is my distant cousin. He's always been honest and law-abiding; there's no way he would abscond with such money. In my opinion, it's probably just that the officials are too lazy to investigate thoroughly and have simply made up a pretext to pin the blame on a dead man. It's a pity that my cousin's fate is unknown, and he has to bear such a stigma..."

As she spoke, her voice trembled with sobs, and her face showed a pitiful expression.

Li Jiwu also lowered his head at the opportune moment, his tone very sincere: "Father, this matter was indeed due to my oversight, and I am willing to accept the punishment. However, Zhao Dezhu has never made any mistakes while working in the household, and there are indeed many suspicious points in this case. I hope Father will take this into consideration."

Looking at his second son's sincere attitude of bowing his head and admitting his mistake, and then at Liu Shi beside him who was about to cry, and considering that his eldest son had just made a contribution and the mansion was in the midst of a celebration, Master Li really couldn't afford to lose his temper at this time.

He was silent for a moment, then finally sighed deeply and waved his hand: "That's enough, that's enough. Since this has already happened, the person is dead and the money is lost, there's no point in pursuing it any further. If there's any news from the authorities, keep an eye on things. After all, Zhao Dezhu is your second aunt's cousin. Whether he's alive or dead, there has to be an explanation."

He paused, glanced at Li Jiwu again, and softened his tone: "Don't blame yourself too much. Get up. Just be more careful when hiring people in the future."

Li Jiwu then straightened up, his face filled with gratitude, and bowed his head, saying, "Thank you for your forgiveness, Father."

The whole incident was thus glossed over with a few words.

.......

The next day, Li Chengwen couldn't wait to arrive at the knife-forging compound.

As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, he caused a small commotion inside.

Several craftsmen who were swinging hammers quickly put down their work and stepped forward to greet them. Li Chengwen waved his hand and said with a smile, "Don't be shy, just do what you're doing. I just came to see everyone and say a few words."

He walked around the courtyard with his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping over the rows of neat workstations and orderly stacks of materials, and nodded in satisfaction.

"Hmm, not bad! The yard has been running smoothly while I was away, and the work hasn't fallen behind. Everyone's worked hard! Once the government's order arrives, let's put in even more effort, and if we finish it well, I'll treat everyone to drinks!"

Upon hearing this, the expressions on everyone's faces became somewhat subtle.

Several of the masters who had once been close to Zhao Dezhu lowered their heads guiltily, not daring to meet Li Chengwen's gaze.

They knew in their hearts that a lot of unpleasant things had happened in the courtyard during Li Chengwen's absence.

Fortunately, Zhao Dezhu had disappeared, and those messy things had been suppressed. Li Chengwen seemed to know nothing about it.

Li Chengwen was completely unaware of the strangeness of the crowd. After looking around, his gaze fell on Shen Chu, who was engrossed in sharpening a knife in the corner.

His eyes lit up, and he strode over.

"Shen Chu!"

Shen Chu looked up at the sound and saw Li Chengwen. She quickly put down her work and said, "Young Master, you're back!"

Li Chengwen smiled and patted him on the shoulder, gesturing for him to come aside and talk to him.

The two walked to the corner of the courtyard, and Li Chengwen mysteriously took a bundle off his back, carefully placed it on the stone platform, and peeled off the layers of silk cloth wrapping it.

After the silk cloth was opened, a dark silver luster came into Shen Chu's view.

This is a fist-sized piece of iron, with a deep, dark silver luster throughout, and fine, evenly distributed patterns naturally on its surface.

Under the sunlight, the patterns seemed to come alive, refracting a flowing, water-like luster.

Once Shen Chu's gaze fell upon the piece of iron, she couldn't look away.

"I bought this from an old blacksmith when I was doing business in Qingyang County."

Li Chengwen's tone carried a hint of smugness, yet also a touch of sincerity.

"It's said that this thing is called 'Silver-Veined Meteorite Iron,' a rare and precious item. The old blacksmith originally refused to sell it no matter what, but I had to plead with him and even raise the price before I finally managed to get it from him."

He reached out and patted Shen Chu on the shoulder, smiling:

"All you ever do is forge iron, your mind is always on blacksmithing. This stuff is perfect for you. Take it, make good use of it, forge a decent weapon, don't waste this good piece of material!"

Shen Chu took the silver-patterned meteorite iron with both hands. The moment he touched it, a cool and heavy sensation spread from his palms throughout his entire arm.

He looked down and carefully examined the patterns on the surface of the iron, feeling the texture and density that were completely different from ordinary iron. He had already made up his mind.

The quality of this material is far superior to any iron he has ever seen in the Li residence.

He suddenly had a strong intuition:

If you want to upgrade the [Thousand Hammers and Hundred Refinements] skill and improve your physical constitution, you'll probably have to rely on this piece of silver-patterned meteorite iron!

He raised his head, looked at Li Chengwen's smiling, chubby face, and nodded solemnly: "Thank you, young master. I will certainly not let this talent down, nor will I disappoint your expectations."

Hearing Shen Chu's words, Li Chengwen nodded in satisfaction and smiled, "I'm relieved to hear that. Keep up the good work, you'll definitely amount to something!"

He offered a few more words of encouragement, then continued to wander around the courtyard.

Shen Chu watched the young master walk away, then looked down at the heavy silver-patterned meteorite in her hand. She carefully wrapped it again in silk cloth and tucked it into her bosom.

He was itching to test the quality of this fine material.

But after glancing at the people coming and going in the courtyard, he suppressed the urge.

He understood the principle of not flaunting wealth in a crowded and noisy compound.

It's not too late to think about it slowly after I finish work in the evening and go back to my room.

Shen Chu took a deep breath to calm herself down, then picked up the forging hammer again and continued working.

Meanwhile, Li Chengwen, with his hands behind his back, hummed a little tune as he strolled around the courtyard.

He was in a great mood and everything seemed pleasing to the eye. He kept nodding and greeting the drivers he passed along the way.

However, as he walked around, he suddenly felt that something was wrong.

Normally, whenever I show up, Zhao Dezhu would always greet me with a smile and fawn over me. Why is there no sign of him today?

He frowned, grabbed an older worker, and asked, "Old Wu, where's Zhao Dezhu? I haven't seen him."

When asked this question, the old craftsman's expression immediately became somewhat unnatural, and he stammered, "Young Master... Manager Zhao... he..."