Chapter 49 Line Up to Spin Thread!

“Qi Family Saber?”

Everyone stared at the broken blade lying in two pieces on the ground, their heads spinning in disbelief.

Heavens above, where had they ever seen such a sharp weapon?

In the past, whether it was farm tools or knives, they dared not even knock them lightly against one another. A minor collision meant a chipped edge; a heavier one meant the blade snapping in two.

Not only was this saber razor-sharp, but its weight, length, and balance made it feel perfectly comfortable whether slashing, chopping, or thrusting. Whoever held it felt an uncanny sensation of unity between person and blade.

It was indescribably smooth in the hand.

Only the name sounded somewhat strange.

Li Chen also felt that “Qi Family Saber” was not quite suitable. He cleared his throat lightly and made a pun. “A marvelous weapon, a wondrous blade. Thus it may be called the Qi Family Saber. But that was spoken casually and need not be taken seriously. If we truly name it, then let it be…”

“This blade was personally invented and forged by you, Brother Chen. Why not call it the Li Family Saber? That sounds much better!”

Liu Chenxu blurted out.

“Mm, that will do. Let it be called the Li Family Saber.”

Li Chen nodded slightly and accepted the suggestion, though inwardly he felt a trace of embarrassment.

Just like that, he had directly claimed it. It felt a little shameless.

He swung the blade a couple of times. It felt average to him. Barely acceptable.

There were still several levels between this and the blade he truly desired.

If he could use coke refined from coal to smelt steel and further strengthen the oxygen system, the quality could improve dramatically.

Given the technological level of this era, there was still room for advancement.

For now, this would suffice. Further improvements could wait.

In truth, even this blade was already astonishing.

“Brother Chen, no matter what you do, you’re always this incredible. You… you’re practically a god…”

Zhao Dashi stared at the saber, drooling with envy.

Liu Chenxu and Hou Xiaobai were equally stunned. Their admiration for Li Chen bordered on worship.

In their hearts, he was already divine.

And not just in their hearts.

In Zhao the Blacksmith’s eyes, Li Chen was also a god. The god of blacksmiths.

Ink powder, borax, walnut shell residue, saltpeter water. And with such things, he could forge a peerless divine weapon?

It was unimaginable.

Those ingredients seemed more suited for Taoist priests refining elixirs.

Could it be that Chen’er had learned some immortal arts?

Zhao the Blacksmith’s gaze toward Li Chen changed once more.

Li Chen had no idea the man’s imagination was running wild.

He tossed the blade to Zhao Dashi and the others to play with and turned to Zhao the Blacksmith. “Uncle Zhao, please guide me. What aspects of my smelting method need improvement?”

Zhao the Blacksmith rolled his eyes and said gruffly, “Chen’er, are you mocking your Uncle Zhao? I’ve forged iron all my life and never seen such a method. I’ve never seen anyone produce such a divine weapon on their first try. And you want me to guide you? You’re embarrassing me!”

“No, Uncle Zhao, you misunderstand.”

Li Chen waved his hands quickly. “What I mean is, if you think this method is acceptable, I’ll write down the formula clearly for you later. In the future, you can help me smelt iron, alright?”

“What? Write down the formula for me? Chen’er, you’re serious?”

Zhao the Blacksmith was overwhelmed with joy, yet his eyes widened in disbelief.

A secret method capable of forging such a divine weapon was priceless.

If it spread outside, it could spark war. And he would simply give it to him?

“Of course I’m serious.”

“You… you’re not afraid I’ll leak the secret?”

“Of course not. Dashi and I are brothers who’ve faced life and death together. You’re Dashi’s father. If I can’t trust you, who can I trust?”

Li Chen smiled and shook his head.

He had full confidence.

Though Zhao the Blacksmith and Zhao Dashi were not particularly clever and were sometimes privately mocked as a foolish father and son, they were renowned for their honesty and loyalty.

He trusted them completely.

Sure enough, Zhao the Blacksmith nodded fiercely. “Enough said. If I receive this formula, even if I stake my life on it, I’ll guard it well. Besides Dashi and me, no one else will ever know.”

It was already dark, and everyone ate dinner at Li Chen’s home.

Afterward, as usual, some studied while others worked.

Zhao the Blacksmith left like a man who had found treasure, clutching the formula. He likely would not sleep tonight.

Li Chen, however, was especially busy.

He had built a new spinning wheel for his young maid wife, freshly assembled.

This new spinning wheel had four parallel spindles and was foot-operated with dual pedals.

Next to the spindles, he had installed a slanted guide groove, with a copper hook needle at the end. It could automatically feed thread and clear tangled fibers.

With a press of the pedal, the four spindles spun rapidly. The spinning speed was astonishing, more than three to five times faster than the old hand-cranked single-spindle wheel.

“My heavens, this is so fast. With this spinning wheel, even a beginner like me could match the output of three or four people.”

His young maid wife exclaimed in shock.

“Yes, yes! Even a child like me can spin faster than the adults with this wheel!”

Liu Chenyi tried it twice and clapped her hands happily.

As for the others, they were already somewhat numb from Li Chen’s constant displays of brilliance, so they were not overly surprised.

“Xiaobai, study this carefully. Once you understand it, I’ll teach you how to build it. Later, we’ll expand our business. We’ll develop textile production as well.”

Li Chen turned to Hou Xiaobai.

For brothers willing to risk their lives to protect the deer and his young maid wife, there was no need to hide such things, aside from absolute secrets.

And given their loyalty, he had no concern about technical leaks.

“Alright, Brother Chen.”

Hou Xiaobai nodded firmly, examining the spinning wheel closely.

He understood this was Li Chen’s method of teaching. Whether crossbows or spinning wheels, he was first to observe, then imitate. If he encountered difficulty, he would ask Li Chen, and understanding would dawn clearly, reinforcing his memory.

Thus he studied carefully.

“Brother Chen, can we add a casing around these parts? It would prevent debris from falling in and damaging the thread or wheel. And it would also prevent others from seeing the mechanism and copying it.”

After studying for a while, Hou Xiaobai pointed to some exposed sections.

“Well said. Start making it now.”

Li Chen nodded approvingly. The boy was sharp. And it indirectly proved his loyalty. He was already thinking about preventing technological leakage.

The next morning, training continued as usual. They ate, drank bone broth and deer blood, then Liu Chenxu beat the gong. The villagers once again arrived cheerfully to work.

But when they saw the new spinning wheel, they were stunned.

The thread spun at astonishing speed.

Some curious women tried it and immediately fell in love. The speed was five to six times faster than before.

As a result, women who had no work brought their hemp fibers and lined up to try the new wheel. Some even argued over who would use it first.

A few clever ones even privately bribed his young maid wife with wild berries gathered from the mountains, hoping for a turn.

The excitement was intense. The scene grew chaotic.

Meanwhile, Li Chen went to Zhao the Blacksmith’s house to guide him through the forging process.

After a lifetime of blacksmithing, Zhao the Blacksmith’s skill was already superb.

With Li Chen’s near-modern improvements, his craftsmanship leapt forward significantly. Aside from blast furnaces, this method was nearly the best achievable in this era.

After guiding him through the entire process twice, Zhao the Blacksmith had memorized everything thoroughly and burned the written formula in front of Li Chen.

“Uncle Zhao, where do you obtain your iron?”

Li Chen asked as he helped hammer another Li Family Saber.

Yesterday’s iron had come from broken weapons seized from bandits, smashed and remelted.

There was little left.

Without raw iron, technique alone was useless.

During his trip to Pingyang County City, he had searched but found no place selling iron materials.

“We buy iron from the government-run iron mine. It’s about twenty kilometers west, at the Blackwater Mine, right next to Black Mountain. You’ll need to speak to the iron affairs overseer there.”

Zhao the Blacksmith pointed toward the northeast and smiled.

Li Chen nodded and committed it to memory.

To develop, iron was essential.

He needed iron. A great deal of iron.