Chapter 58 (2/2)

“What is wrong with you?” Lin Xiao asked. He hadn’t expected the shop owner to speak so loudly so when he heard the other’s voice, he admit he almost jumped from the surprise.

“No, what is wrong with you?! That sword was made from Shuogang, ah! Shuogang! That kind of steel is not available in this land! To get it, you must have them shipped from the sea but the risks is very high,” the shop owner told Lin Xiao.

“Is it?” Lin Xiao asked before his eyes landed on Bai Chenyi.

“Yes. The steel can be fetched at high price and because of that, any ships carrying that materials are targets for sea pirates,” Bai Chenyi said. “Out of 100 shipments, maybe only less than 10 will arrive safely.”

“I’ll do it!” the young blacksmith suddenly exclaimed. “I’ve had the chance to work with Shuogang with my old man before. I promise I won’t waste too much of the materials!”

“Alright. I will prepare the materials. Tomorrow, come to the Xia family residence by Chen Shi to pick them up,” Long Yinlian said before gesturing to Lin Xiao and Xia Yushen. “You will be making three sets. One of them is for this child here. The other two will be a pair, for both of them.”

“A pair? So one of the pair… is for this boy?”

“For him, for when he have his coming of age ceremony,” Long Yinlian replied.

“I understand. Then, I will go and prepare my forge now! Please excuse me,” the young blacksmith saluted them and was about to leave when he suddenly remembered that he has yet to introduce himself.

“How rude of me. Esteemed master, I am called Ji Xiangru. May I have the honour of knowing your name, Esteemed master?”

“Long Yinlian. And the word you are forging for will belong to my two disciples, Lin Xiao and Xia Yushen,” Long Yinlian replied.

“I understand. Thank you, Master Long. I will see you tomorrow,” Ji Xiangru once again saluted Long Yinlian before finally leaving the shop.

“Umm… Esteemed guest, can I speak with you?” the shop owner timidly called at Long Yinlian.

“If it is about Shuogang then I apologize. I will not sell it,” Long Yinlian quickly said before the shop owner could even voice out his request.

Hearing that he was rejected even before he could say anything, the shop owner could only sigh. “Not even 5 jins?”

“I’m sorry,” Long Yinlian once more, rejected him.

“Alright. Alright, I won’t ask anymore. Now you already got what you wish, is there anything else that my humble shop can offer you?” the shop owner asked.

“Yes. The three weapons will take a while to be finished, but I promised my young disciple that I’ll get him a weapon today. Do you have anything for him?”

The shop owner looked over to Xia Yushen who shyly hid behind Long Yinlian. A low laughter escaped his lips before he beckoned for Xia Yushen to come closer. “Boy, if you don’t show yourself how will I know if I have anything that will be good for you?”

Hearing this, Xia Yushen hesitated. Then he looked up at Long Yinlian, then at Lin Xiao, as if asking the two if he should listen to the shop owner.

“Xiao Shen, go on,” Lin Xiao coaxed. Only then did he come forward.

“This boy is small. Still a young sprout. Are you sure you want to give him a live weapon? What if he injured himself?”

“I won’t! Shizun and Big brother Lin taught me well! Ah’Shen won’t make mistake and injure myself!” Xia Yushen quickly replied, gone was his nervousness from before and instead, confidence was plastered on his face.

“Is that so?” the shop owner chuckled. “Well, unfortunately, my shop doesn’t have anything for a child like you anymore,” he added.

Xia Yushen’s face showed a hint of disappointment. But the shop owner’s next sentence made him excited again.

“But, there is another shop down the streets that’s specialized in making hidden weapons…”

Lin Xiao upon hearing this sentence felt a sense of Deja Vu.

“From a sword hidden in an umbrella to poison needle hiddden in a jade pin, they have it there.”

‘Sure enough! Its the same shop he tried to recommend me before!’

“Although that shop is tailored for female warriors, I’m sure they have something small and light enough for you to use,” the shop owner finished his sentence.

“Alright, we’ll go there. But, Boss, before this you also recommended me the same shop. Usually, people would be competitive and tried to get more customer. But you happily recommend us that one particular shop… Why?” Lin Xiao asked out of curiosity.

“There’s no why, ah! I just want the best for my guest even if you didn’t buy anything! Ah, maybe my explanation is not that clear. How about I go and lead you there instead?!” the shop owner excitedly offered himself.

“Your shop?”

“It’s fine! I can close it for a while!” the shop owner replied before he got around the counter and went to his shop entrance. “Well, what are you waiting for? Let’s go. The shop I mentions only open at specific time. If we go there now, we might still be able to see Xiao Me-… I mean, we may still be able to make it before they close!”

The slip up was enough for Lin Xiao and his group to have a slight suspicion on the shop owner’s real intention.

‘That excited face… that impatient look… you’re going there to see a woman, aren’t you!?’ Lin Xiao thought as he then picked Xia Yushen up and helped lead Long Yinlian out. While Bai Chenyi, quietly followed as he performs his duty as a guard.