novelraw Chapter 29: A True Waste
Chapter 29: A True Waste
Chapter 29: A True Waste
Wen Gu discovered that Blacksmith Yu’s smithing skills were likely decent, but his creative talents were a bit lacking.
Setting aside creativity, if one knew what they wanted, he could probably forge it. Why was he still unemployed?
Wen Gu had already learned from He Da that this was the only blacksmith remaining in the county town.
Such a rare talent, and yet several folk forces in the city left him idle until now?
What a waste!
Wen Gu pondered, revealing nothing on his face, and asked, "Do you sell this iron you use for smoothing clothes?"
Blacksmith Yu didn’t hesitate: “Not for sale, we need it for personal use.”
When cooking, the iron could be heated directly, serving multiple purposes even if not for smoothing clothes, and could even be used as a weapon.
The iron was not for sale, but other items were.Thinking of the grain Wen Gu had brought out earlier, Blacksmith Yu said, "I also have a small shovel. If you want it, you can trade it for the paper packet you had earlier."
"What kind of small shovel?" Wen Gu asked.
Blacksmith Yu's gaze shifted slightly, not daring to meet his eyes.
"It's a... um... incense ceremony tool, but it can also be used for digging now."
Many people nowadays were fond of incense, and the incense culture was flourishing.
Before the world became chaotic, a merchant ordered a set of incense ceremony tools from him, slightly larger than the current popular ones.
They normally used items like the incense spoon and tweezers, or they had already traded them away. This item was surplus.
However, he lacked experience with such elegant and refined small items, so the first time he forged it, there was a slight deviation.
Blacksmith Yu quickly brought out the item.
It looked a bit like a miniature branding iron.
"Is this an incense ash press for burning incense with a separator?" Wen Gu searched his memory.
"Yes, it's for pressing the incense ash, just a bit larger, but it's usable!" Blacksmith Yu said.
It did resemble it somewhat, but it completely lacked the elegance of incense ceremony tools. Instead, it had a rough, murderous aura, as if it could be used for torture after being heated.
Blacksmith Yu remained silent.
He had noticed the problem when he forged it and wanted to fix it, but then the world fell into chaos, and he couldn't bother with such things.
Zhou Shan took the oversized incense ash press, his brow furrowed.
It was too small to be used as a weapon, and too awkward to be a spatula; one might as well carve a spatula directly from wood.
"It could work as a small shovel for digging herbs," he said.
"Yes, it can be used for digging," Blacksmith Yu's voice was a little tense, looking at them, worried it wouldn't sell.
Wen Gu nodded, "That's fine too. We're continuing north, and it's getting colder. Having a sturdier tool for digging things from the ground will indeed be useful."
Blacksmith Yu's ears perked up. "Are you also heading north?"
"Indeed," Wen Gu replied. "He Da mentioned that Magistrate Tan of this place also spoke to you about seeking refuge in the north before he left."
"He did," Blacksmith Yu responded with only that one sentence, then fell silent, his eyes fixed on the small paper packet in Wen Gu's hand.
Wen Gu observed Blacksmith Yu's expression when he mentioned He Da.
Blacksmith Yu's reaction was indifferent.
It seemed He Da was neither a well-known good person nor a notorious scoundrel in the county town. An unknown figure.
Wen Gu whispered a few words to Zhou Shan. Instead of handing over the small paper packet, he took out a large paper packet and opened it.
Blacksmith Yu’s eyes were glued to it.
There was also some movement from inside the house behind him.
Zhou Shan, beside him, tightened his grip on his saber, his expression guarded.
Wen Gu didn't look into the house, but spoke sincerely and slowly, "We'll take this incense press. Besides that, we have something else to ask."
Blacksmith Yu took a deep breath, forcing his gaze away from the paper packet with difficulty. "Ask away."
"We are heading north to visit relatives and pass through here. We are unfamiliar with the routes around here…"
Wen Gu handed the large paper packet to his cousin and then took out his notebook and charcoal pencil, inquiring about the distribution of villages and towns around the county and the current situation, asking which places to avoid and which were safer.
The previous county magistrate had already planned to leave and would certainly have gathered more information. Blacksmith Yu, having had more contact with the government officials, would also know more.
Blacksmith Yu indeed knew quite a bit. He glanced at the large paper packet and quickly told Wen Gu what he knew.
This information did not require secrecy. He had been thinking about these matters himself during this time, so he recalled it clearly and spoke fluently.
Wen Gu noticed this detail and interjected to ask a few questions. Blacksmith Yu replied quickly, not making things up.
After asking what he wanted to know, Wen Gu handed the large paper packet to Blacksmith Yu.
Blacksmith Yu took the large paper packet, feeling the texture of the grain in his hands. He paused and asked, "You are heading north to visit relatives?"
Wen Gu casually replied, "Yes, my maternal uncle is a military official in the northern lands. We are fleeing there, and at least we'll have a place to stay."
Blacksmith Yu, whose ancestors had served as military officials, felt an immediate kinship.
He chatted with Wen Gu for a few more minutes. Wen Gu gathered that Blacksmith Yu had originally intended to leave with Magistrate Tan.
For some reason, he remained here.
Although Wen Gu didn't know the inside story, Blacksmith Yu's eyes held no resentment when he mentioned it.
Wen Gu then asked about the sanitation situation in the county town.
Speaking of which, Zhou Shan was also worried. He had originally planned to have the blacksmith repair his axe, but it seemed fuel was scarce and he couldn’t fire up his furnace.
"If that's the case, we should leave as soon as possible," Zhou Shan urged.
Wen Gu nodded, "It's more dangerous inside the city than outside. With garbage everywhere, even without an epidemic of evil, other diseases could break out."
He sincerely cautioned Blacksmith Yu, "Try to go out less. When you do go out, make sure to cover your mouth and nose with a cloth, and be extremely careful about anything you eat or drink!"
Zhou Shan commented on the folk forces in the city: "Ignorant fools, they don't know what's important, and they won't amount to anything!"
Blacksmith Yu had a blank expression and glanced at Zhou Shan.
He had had extensive contact with government officials, and this man's speech and demeanor carried an official air.
Wen Gu didn't chat any further, only revealing that He Da had brought them into the city this time.
After Wen Gu and his two companions left, a young man emerged from the house. He bore some resemblance to Blacksmith Yu, but was thinner.
This was Yu Jia Lao Er, Blacksmith Yu’s younger brother.
Blacksmith Yu handed him the paper packet containing the grain. "Finally, we have some income."
Yu Er’s face, however, did not relax. "Brother, just staying idle like this isn't a solution."
Blacksmith Yu was also worried.
Half a month ago, when the county magistrate left with a group of people, the major folk forces within the city began to fight amongst themselves.
They had tried to recruit him, the sole blacksmith, but those factions were busy with their infighting and had no intention of firing up their furnaces. He had no work, and thus received no supplies.
So, Blacksmith Yu was now waiting for those factions to settle their conflict before he could receive any work.
But when would those factions reach a conclusion?
The waiting time was too long, and his family was running out of food and couldn't hold on any longer.
During this period, they had been exchanging ironware for food, and they had been severely underpriced.
But their ironware would soon be depleted.
"It's getting more dangerous in the city. Why don't we go north with them? Their relatives are officials in the north!" Yu Er suggested.
Blacksmith Yu was also tempted. His family had wanted to leave before, but the family next door had become possessed by evil spirits and gone mad. At the time, he was handling affairs at the county yamen, and his wife and daughters were at home. His brother had been injured protecting his family and was bedridden for several days, thus missing the main group's departure.
Yu Er pondered for a moment and said, "We still need to clarify. Did He Da bring them here? I'll go ask later."
Meanwhile, He Da was speaking to his younger brother in their room.
"Little brother, come, I have a surprise for you!"
He took out the books he had brought back.
"You used to really like those Confucian classics. There are even annotations written by important figures. They were almost burned today! Fortunately, I was quick!"
Some families had no firewood for cooking and didn't dare to go out to chop wood, so they burned the books in their homes.
There were too many people like that.
"Brother also met a very kind scholar today..."
(End of this chapter)