Xia Chengyi strode toward the blacksmith shop in the north of the town.
While the young man was panting as he ran all the way to the door of the shop, he saw the tall and burly figure of Han Dadong in the distance from the corner of his eye.
Although Han Dadong looks tall and burly, and looks like he doesn't bother strangers, his temperament is completely different from his figure. He is loyal and takes special care of the apprentices in the shop. Every day, the apprentices in the shop have lunch cooked by Master Han himself. , a bowl of white rice, a piece of braised pork, topped with a spoonful of meat sauce, the rice can be added to several bowls, this is what the blacksmith's apprentice eats for lunch every day.
Xia Chengyi said hello to Han Dadong and hurriedly entered the shop and started working. Strangely enough, although Xia Chengyi looked thin, Xia Chengyi did most of the hard work in the shop by himself, no less powerful than any young man. Man.
Xia Chengyi didn't stop what he was doing until three o'clock in the morning. Xia Chengyi took out a breath and stretched his muscles and bones, making crackling sounds. Thanks to Xia Qingfeng's sword manual, Xia Chengyi has never felt tired at all. If it had been the past, I would have been too exhausted to run away, not to mention paralyzing on the ground.
"Let's eat!"
With an order, everyone dropped what they were busy doing.
Xia Chengyi squatted on the threshold holding a bowl, eating white rice covered in gravy one bite at a time. He hid the braised pork at the bottom of the bowl so that he could still have a piece of meat after he finished cooking.
The boy ate with gusto.
A sneaky figure appeared behind the door and stuck his head out, calling softly to Xia Chengyi, "Xia Chengyi, look here."
Xia Chengyi raised his head and followed the sound, only to find Han Gan hiding secretly by the door.
Han Gan looked around and found that no one was looking at Xia Chengyi, so he trotted and pulled Xia Chengyi to the corner.
Xia Chengyi didn't have time to put down the bowl and chopsticks before he was dragged over by Han Gan, still holding the bowl and chopsticks in his hand, which was quite funny.
Han Gan put his hands on his hips and asked, "Xia Chengyi, have you seen my father's face today?"
Xia Chengyi sat on the threshold, put down the bowls and chopsticks in his hands, raised his head, recalled something, and said, "Master Han's face looks fine today. Did you get into trouble again and make your father angry?"
Han Gan clasped his hands behind his back and said angrily: "Old Xia, you have to learn more from Xia Yao in speaking and doing things. Look at you, what do you mean I made my father angry again? I can't just care about my father. That’s why you ask that?”
Xia Chengyi twitched the corner of his mouth.
As for how they met, it was not a coincidence. At that time, Xia Chengyi tied a fish basket and stepped into the stream to catch the fish hidden in the stone slabs under the river bed. On the bank, a boy was squatting on the bank and playing in the water. Unexpectedly, his feet slipped and he fell into the stream. Although the stream was not deep, he was still a child after all. He fell into the water and disappeared instantly. At that time, Xia Chengyi quickly let go of the fish in his hand, plunged it into the water, and fished the boy out. As a result, he saw that the boy's face was pale, which frightened Xia Chengyi, for fear that the boy would die if he rolled his eyes. .
In the end, the boy coughed several times, choked out a mouthful of water, and then slowly opened his eyes. As a result, he saw a face that was darker than black coal. He trembled with fright on the spot. He quickly covered his eyes with his hands and silently said, "Uncle Ghosts and Gods, I am." This lean meat doesn't taste good at all. Why don't you go with someone with thin skin and tender meat? I know there are several wealthy families around here. They are extremely rich and have shiny faces. You can eat them one by one when the time comes. , ensuring delicious meat quality.
Xia Chengyi suddenly laughed angrily, and asked the boy with a dark face if I was that dark. Only then did the boy react. He opened his eyes slightly and realized that the person in front of him was not some ghost or god.
The boy rolled his eyes, and a carp jumped up from the ground. He laughed and said, I was joking with you just now. My name is Han Gan. If you don't mind me, you will be the one who cuts off the chicken heads and burns the yellow paper. Good brothers now.
Xia Chengyi got to know Han Gan inexplicably like this. Later, Xia Chengyi found out that Han Gan went to the stream that day because he wanted to catch a golden carp in the stream, but unfortunately he didn't hurry up and let it escape.
"I said, Lao Xia, are you listening to me?"
Xia Chengyi put away his thoughts and looked at Han Gan, who looked old-fashioned and arrogant.
Han Qian sat down next to Xia Chengyi and said earnestly: "Xia Chengyi, it's not me who's talking about you, you're just too dull and too conventional. Just talk about digging the canal. My father asked you to dig it alone." It’s true that you are chiseling out alone, and so is Old Han. If you, a person like you who can’t carry a few ounces of meat, insist on asking you to do this job, I think he is deliberately targeting you!”
Han Gan was speaking with indignation, and his expression was passionate, as if the old Han he was talking about was not his biological father.
And a figure quietly appeared a few feet behind Han Gan.
Xia Chengyi caught a glimpse of the tall and burly figure from the corner of his eye. He sat upright for a moment, watching his nose and heart, not daring to say another word to avoid getting into trouble.
Han Gan stopped mid-sentence when he saw no movement around him, and asked out of curiosity, "Xia Chengyi, why didn't you say anything?"
"Tell me, did my father target you on purpose? Or did he deliberately make things difficult for you because he didn't like you?"
Xia Chengyi coughed, and his eyes hinted to Han Qian to stop talking.
Just as Han Gan was about to speak, a warm big hand covered his little head, and then a deep voice sounded.
"What are you talking about about your father?"
Han Gan's body suddenly stiffened, and he stuttered: "Dad...Dad, are you here?"
That figure was none other than Master Han from the blacksmith shop.
Han Dadong rubbed Han Gan's little head and asked with a smile: "What were you yelling about just now? Why don't you tell me about it?"
Han Gan shook his head quickly and said: "I told Xia Chengyi to be smarter and learn more skills from dad. Looking at how thin he is, he might starve to death if he loses his job as an apprentice in our shop in the future. Which street is it on, right? Xia Chengyi?"
Xia Chengyi was also willing to cooperate with Han Gan and nodded in agreement with what Han Gan had said before.
Han Dadong turned to Xia Chengyi and said, "You go to the sword furnace in the afternoon to see how they forge swords. You can put the rest of the work at hand aside for the time being."
Xia Chengyi nodded and left.
After Xia Chengyi left, Han Dadong also sat next to Han Gan.
Han Gan was a little indignant and said: "Dad, why did you always let Xia Chengyi do all kinds of dirty work before? It's not like you don't know the situation in his family. Besides, look at Xia Chengyi who can't carry a few pounds of meat. He is also busy with these heavy and tiring tasks every day, which means he is submissive and has a good temper. If it were anyone else, he would give up the job after only a few days."
The middle-aged man shook his head and said, "Godson, dad has his own reasons for doing this, and you can't see that Xia Chengyi's work is no worse than those young men now."
Han Gan curled his lips and muttered in a low voice: "Anyone can practice doing so much work every day."
The man smiled and said, "You do care about him."
Han Gan said arrogantly: "Of course, no matter what, Xia Chengyi is a good brother of me, Han Gan, who chops off chicken heads and burns yellow paper to worship me. I have to go out of my way to protect my brothers! Now it's time for brothers to step forward when they are in trouble. "
The middle-aged man laughed loudly, "As expected of me, Han Dadong's son."
Han Gan avoided Han Dadong's big hand and said disgustedly: "Dad, did you not wash your hands after touching the spatula?"
The middle-aged man chuckled.
One big and one small sat on the threshold, looking into the distance.
Han Gan was thinking about how to skip classes in the afternoon instead of going to the school. When he thought of Xia Yao, Han Gan felt scared. The little devil Han who was fearless was very afraid of Xia Yao.
The middle-aged man said something out of nowhere, "Did you steal your pretty sister's clothes a few days ago?"
Han Gan was so frightened that he almost broke out in cold sweat. Even though his father was so amiable, he was very unambiguous when it came to spanking his little butt. Every time he got into trouble, his butt was always beaten. If he were to know that he had stolen Hua Hongyue's dirty clothes a few days ago, he would definitely be in trouble when he got back, and his butt would definitely be in danger.
Han Gan quickly denied it and said, "Dad, where did you hear this rumor? It was obviously done by a foreigner with a thief-looking face, and it has nothing to do with me at all."
Han Dadong said nothing and then stopped.
Han Qian moved his buttocks, his mind still in doubt. From time to time, he used the corner of his eye to peek at the expression on his father's face. He looked like he was thinking about something, but he really couldn't see any movement. Come.
Han Gan probed: "Dad?"
Han Dadong finally came back to his senses, "What's wrong?"
Han Gan stood up hurriedly, "Dad, I have Mr. Lu's lecture in the afternoon, so I'm going to the school first."
Han Dadong put away his expression and said seriously: "You should listen carefully to Mr. Lu's teachings in school. Don't be naughty all day long and think about skipping class. Mr. Lu is a master of Confucianism. You can learn more from him in the future." So relieved.”
Speaking of Mr. Lu, Han Dadong had a hundred respects from the bottom of his heart. Not to mention anything else, he was extremely concerned about his family affairs. If it were another village teacher, he would probably just let him go and let him go. After all, only Lu Ran would patiently teach Han Qian, over and over again. Moreover, the man was one of the few people who knew Lu Ran's true identity, so he admired Lu Ran even more for being able to condescend to teach in a remote town.
Han Qian sighed, "I understand, Dad, I will listen to the class obediently, you don't have to worry."
Han Dadong nodded and waved his hand to signal Han Gan to go about his business.
Han Gan looked around for a long time and saw Xia Chengyi's figure. He ran over and whispered to him a few times. He didn't know what he said to Xia Chengyi, but finally ran away with a bright smile.
A plump woman with sharp eyebrows stepped across the threshold, saw Han Dadong sitting on the threshold, and glared at him angrily, "What are you doing, sitting here without working and laughing like a fool? Why? , Which family’s beautiful daughter-in-law have you fallen in love with? Do you want to abandon your family? Come on, tell me which family’s voluptuous vixen dared to seduce my man like this!”
When the man saw his daughter-in-law, he said helplessly: "Daughter-in-law, what do you think? It's not like you don't know what kind of person I am."
When the woman heard this, she became angry, slapped Han Dadong's tight and hard arm, and said angrily: "I was blind to fall in love with such an unmotivated guy like you! This is what happens in our family. The blacksmith shop is not well run. I am idle every day and am not serious, wandering around. I can't earn a few coins every year. You want me and Gan'er to drink the northwest wind in the future!"
The man shrank his neck and said, "Isn't it still possible if I'm not a business owner?"
The woman was even more furious when she heard that the man dared to talk back. She placed her hands on her hips and cursed at the top of her voice: "Han Dadong! You still dare to talk back now, right? Are your wings stiff or do you no longer want the third leg? You are worthless. You bastard, you can only do tricks at home, you have tendons all over your body, and you only have the strength to bully a weak woman like me at night. When you go out, you can’t even knock her fart out with ten sticks! Why don’t you do things outside! ?”
The man hesitated to speak and held it in for a long time. In the end, he just held his head and sighed, feeling sad.
I run this blacksmith shop in a small town because I want to live a peaceful life away from the outside world. If things really break out outside, I'm afraid that the outside world will be in chaos again, and the town is already a mixed bag. , monks are constantly entering the town. I am wandering around every day just to see what kind of cultivation these monks have. If they really offend you two, I will kill them.
But how dare he tell his wife these dirty things.
Those who were working around also heard the commotion at the door of the shop, and they all poked their heads out to see what was going on. As a result, they saw the woman whose breasts deserved the word "spectacular" poking Master Han's breasts. Head, he yelled angrily.
Everyone also snickered. Everyone in the neighborhood had heard about Master Han’s shrewish daughter-in-law. She had never lost a quarrel in this small town. She was known to be invincible and no one could fight with her. And their Master Han was out of control. The famous Rake Er was obedient to his wife's orders at home, so the current scene emerged.
The woman who got more and more angry as she thought about it, twisted her man's waist hard, but found that she couldn't do it no matter how hard she tried, so she had to stop and give up, turned to look at the crowd of heads at the door, and said in a fierce voice: "What are you looking at?" Look!? You’ve never seen someone who trains his own men? Why don’t you get to work quickly! Do you want me to deduct your wages?”
Everyone dispersed and went about their own business.
Han Dadong stood up, looked at the woman who was a head shorter than him, and asked, "Why are you here in the shop today?"
The woman said angrily: "If I hadn't come here to take a look, wouldn't you have moved me all afternoon?"
Han Dadong looked resentful, but the woman really guessed it right.
When the woman saw that Han Dadong was acting like a boring gourd, she was very angry and slapped him in the face, "Can you learn from Gan'er's Mr. Lu? Don't act like a boring gourd all day long. Although Mr. Lu He's not as good-looking as you, but you can tell at a glance that he is a scholar and speaks slowly and softly. Many matchmakers in the town saw that he was still unmarried, so they were worried about him and wanted to set up a red line for him. "
Han Dadong grinned, "Isn't that because he is Mr. Lu? How can I compare to him?"
The woman was not happy when she heard this. She had no choice but to bury her own man, so the woman glared at him and said, "What nonsense are you talking about? How can the man I like be so bad? If you didn't have any merit at that time, I would I have sacrificed all my glory and wealth after traveling thousands of miles away, so why don’t I marry you?”
When the woman said this, she suddenly smiled and said, "Of course, you can still torment people at night, otherwise I would have taken Gan'er back to her parents' house."
Han Dadong chuckled.
The woman kicked him over with a charming look in her eyes: "You're dead!"
The woman sat down not long before she hurried back home to collect the grain.
Han Dadong stood up and stretched his limbs. His body crackled like firecrackers, and his body was as strong as a hill.
He turned to look at the sword stove in the shop. At this moment, Xia Chengyi was holding a blowtorch and blowing on the fire, controlling the heat in the stove little by little. The most important thing in making swords is the intensity of the heat. If it is too small, the sword embryo will not be able to form a good shape. If it is If the heat is too high, the sword embryo may be too fragile and will not be sharp in the future. Therefore, the heat of the sword furnace also determines whether a good sword can be made.
Han Dadong thought for a moment, seemed to have made a major decision, and walked towards Xia Chengyi.
Xia Chengyi was blowing fire into the stove with all his strength at this moment. Driven by the smoke, his already dark face was as black as coal at this moment. Seeing Master Han walking towards him, the young man wanted to stop what he was doing and stand up to say hello to Master Han. Unexpectedly, as soon as the young man stood up, the fire in the stove immediately weakened a bit, so he had no choice but to continue sitting in front of the stove.
Han Dadong waved his hand to signal Xia Chengyi not to get up, and he moved a bench to sit next to Xia Chengyi, looking at the brightly colored fire burning in the furnace.
Han Dadong asked in a deep voice: "Xia Chengyi, have you ever thought about learning the magic of the immortals on the mountain so that you can go out of the town and see the outside world?"
Xia Chengyi paused for a moment, but then continued to send wind into the furnace.
Xia Chengyi thought for a while and said: "Actually, I have thought about it, but I think life in a small town is pretty good. There are Mr. Lu, Master Han, and Zhong Quan in the small town. If they go outside, they will still be there." I don’t know what the character and habits are like outside, so I think it’s good not to go out.”
Han Dadong shook his head and said, "You have to leave the town eventually. You can't stay in the town your whole life."
Xia Chengyi smiled brightly, "Then wait until you need to go out. Master Han, please don't drive me away. I can help with all kinds of work inside and outside the shop."
Han Dadong laughed dumbly, "Have you never felt any resentment when I asked you to do this?"
