Li Chen picked up one of the arrow shafts and examined it closely. His eyes lit up.
The arrow had no iron head yet. The shaft was made of white birch, straight and highly elastic. It had been properly fire-treated and thoroughly dried. In his hand, it felt solid and heavy, clearly of excellent quality.
The fletching at the tail was made from domestic goose feathers, skillfully attached to ensure stable flight.
Hou Xiaobai’s father had once been a carpenter with fine craftsmanship before being conscripted to Beiyan Pass.
Hou Xiaobai had been clever and dexterous since childhood, learning carpentry from his father. Eventually, he surpassed him. A year ago, he was already able to take on jobs independently.
When Li Chen’s father was still alive, he had praised Hou Xiaobai, saying that in the future, the best craftsman in the village would be “Monkey,” Hou Xiaobai’s nickname.
A thought stirred in Li Chen’s heart. Instead of taking the arrow shafts, he pulled out a pouch of iron arrowheads he had bought from the city’s arrow shop and handed it to Hou Xiaobai.
“Monkey, I happened to buy quite a few arrowheads in the city. I was just thinking about finding some shafts to make arrows. Since you’re here, help me attach them and make some arrows. Consider it me asking you for a favor.”
Li Chen smiled.
“No problem, Brother Chen!”
Hou Xiaobai excitedly accepted the pouch, practically beaming.
He had been worrying about how to repay Li Chen for saving his life.
“Brother Chen, I… I don’t know how else to repay you. My father forged this knife himself. It took him more than half a year. He never had the heart to sell it. He said since you’re a hunter, you should have a decent blade. He told me to give it to you.”
Zhao Dashi handed over a knife.
His father was the only blacksmith in the village. Because he was registered as a craftsman and his trade was essential to daily life, he had not been conscripted to Beiyan Pass and instead made a living forging iron in the village.
Li Chen accepted the knife, drew it from its sheath, and lightly flicked the blade. It gave a short ringing hum.
He felt slightly disappointed. The quality was average.
But the sincerity behind it was enough.
He recalled the few daggers he had taken from Zhang Guang and his men. Those had been even worse, either brittle or too soft.
From this, he could tell that the era’s metallurgy was somewhat backward. Even military weapons were unlikely to be much better.
If he had time, he might try forging a blade himself.
“Brother Chen, I… I don’t have anything good to thank you with. Just… just a few books from home. Would you like them?”
Liu Chenxu stood off to the side, scratching his head, his face flushed red. He held several books but hesitated to hand them over.
His father had once been a scholar but studied his entire life without ever earning a degree, eventually passing away in frustration.
When Li Chen was young, he had even learned some characters in his private school.
Liu Chenxu was one of the few literate youths in the village. Intelligent from childhood and well-read, he had potential. But his parents had both died early, leaving him and his younger sister Liu Chenyi to rely on each other and survive on a few thin plots of farmland.
With such a family background, continuing his studies or taking the imperial exams was impossible.
Li Chen accepted them without the slightest hesitation and smiled faintly.
Liu Chenxu looked at Li Chen with gratitude in his eyes.
He knew that Li Chen was simply giving him face.
“Brother Chen, how is this crossbow so powerful? That huge wild boar was pierced clean through with a single shot!”
Hou Xiaobai squatted beside the crossbow Li Chen had set down, touching it repeatedly and clicking his tongue in amazement.
“I made it myself. Added two pulleys. That way, drawing and holding the string requires less effort, and the power increases significantly.”
Li Chen smiled.
Hou Xiaobai stared at the crossbow with shining eyes, wishing he had one of his own.
“Brother Chen, um… can I ask you something?”
Zhao Dashi rubbed his hands together, embarrassed yet full of longing.
Liu Chenxu and Hou Xiaobai stepped closer, standing beside him, staring at Li Chen with eager eyes.
“What is it? Just say it. We’re brothers. There’s no need to beg.”
Li Chen asked with a smile.
“We… we want to take you as our master. Teach us your skills so we can hunt in the mountains too. Would that be okay?”
Zhao Dashi said.
“Yes, we think the same. Brother Chen, please accept us. We swear to the heavens we’ll serve you tea, run errands, do whatever a disciple should. If we break our oath, may we be struck by lightning!”
Hou Xiaobai and Liu Chenxu cried out excitedly.
“This…”
Li Chen pondered, but a thought rose within him. If he could train a few capable companions, that would not be bad at all.
With grain, money, and brothers, there was a future.
After a moment, he looked up and asked, “You truly want to learn?”
“Of course we do. We can hunt to support our families and also attract the attention of those young women. Hehe, Brother Chen, you don’t know. Today the big girls and young wives praised you to the skies. Some of them practically had their eyes glued to you. They’d all love to marry you!”
Zhao Dashi chuckled.
They were at the age of idolizing heroes. To them, Li Chen was undoubtedly a hero. Whatever he said or did became an example to follow.
They had come that evening mainly to thank him and to ask to become his disciples. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
Especially after seeing him kill the leopard, their desire had grown even stronger.
If he could slay such a beast, how powerful must Brother Chen be?
“Don’t talk nonsense.”
Liu Chenxu shot him a glare and subtly glanced at Yu Qingwan, who was busy nearby.
Zhao Dashi stuck out his tongue and slapped his own mouth. “My loose tongue. Brother Chen, don’t mind me.”
“It was just a joke. I’m not some old-fashioned relic. It’s fine.”
Li Chen waved his hand with a smile and then made a decision.
“If you truly want to learn, then come to my door at early dawn tomorrow, after the rooster has crowed three times. I’ll teach you.”
“Great, great… Master, please accept your disciples’ bows!”
The three youths were overjoyed and immediately tried to kneel in imitation of ancient etiquette.
Li Chen quickly stepped aside, refusing their bows.
“Brothers are brothers. There’s no need for talk of master and disciple. As long as you learn well and always remember me as your Brother Chen, that’s enough.”
He waved his hand.
“Uh…”
Zhao Dashi and Hou Xiaobai were stunned, unsure how to respond.
Liu Chenxu understood and said excitedly, “Brother Chen, we understand. You will always be our Brother Chen!”
“Yes, yes! Whatever Brother Chen says goes. Anyone who doesn’t listen is this!”
Zhao Dashi and Hou Xiaobai suddenly understood. Zhao Dashi even raised two fingers like a crawling turtle as he shouted.
“It’s getting late. Let’s disperse. We’ll come again tomorrow morning.”
The steadier Liu Chenxu looked around and spoke to the other two. Reluctantly, the three finally left.
After everyone had gone, the world finally grew quiet.
Li Chen checked the surroundings carefully. Fortunately, no one had climbed over the wall or wandered into the courtyard today. Otherwise, someone might have fallen into the pits or traps.
He thought that during the day, he could lay down the wooden stakes and only set them upright at night, just in case.
“Husband…”
His maid wife called softly from inside the house.