Chapter Twenty-Four: A Satisfying Day

  This is not a kitchen knife, it's clearly a deadly weapon. If you use this to cut vegetables, I'm afraid it won't just be the vegetables that get cut, the table will also be cut in half.

  He put down the kitchen knife and said, "Is this what you forged?!"

  "Yes!" The little leopard nodded, a pleased smile appearing on his face. Being able to forge a kitchen knife with materials used for making high-quality weapons that was even sharper than those, was enough to show off his talent in ironwork.

  It is worth noting that Wu's iron shop operates various iron businesses, from small farm tools such as hoes and plows to civilian scissors and kitchen knives, and even military equipment such as armor and weapons. It can be said that they have a monopoly on both military and civilian goods, covering all kinds of ironware in the world.

  Because of this, the various blacksmiths in the Wu family are mainly divided into three categories. One category specializes in forging military weapons and equipment, while another category forges civilian tools. The two are clearly distinguished, but the status of forging military equipment is much higher than that of forging civilian products.

  After all, the requirements for military equipment are much higher than those for civilian equipment. Every single piece of armor is related to a soldier's life, so even the Wu family iron shop cannot be careless. In the Wu family iron shop, there are specialized blacksmiths who make this type of weapon. These blacksmiths, even if they are not masters, have at least ten or more years of experience.

  The third category of Wu's Arsenal is for the people in Jianghu, who also need weapons. The weapons made for them are different from the previous two categories. Most people in Jianghu are not sophisticated and don't have high standards for their weapons, as long as they are sharp and sturdy. These weapons don't require master craftsmen to make, just some skilled blacksmiths with good techniques. Wu's family has no shortage of such people. However, there are also some famous figures who have very high requirements for their weapons, needing custom-made ones with many specific demands. These demands are difficult for ordinary craftsmen to meet, but fortunately, such people are not common, so the demand is not large. With Wu's family's foundation of master craftsmen, they can satisfy this demand.

  The ironware shop in Qingyang Village is small, belonging to the lowest level of Wu's Ironware Shop, with only one craftsman who is also an apprentice. He rarely takes action and only deals with two types of business: ordinary civilian ironware and ordinary martial arts weapons for Jianghu people.

  So, the blacksmiths here are also divided into two types. However, the requirements for making weapons have always been much higher than those for making kitchen knives and other household items. As a result, their treatment is much better than that of the other type of blacksmith. Not to mention anything else, just in terms of wages, they earn at least twice as much as those who make civilian ironware.

  An apprentice like a young leopard, originally didn't have wages. The ironwork shop provided you with food and clothes, and also taught you skills, yet you still want wages? Isn't this too heartless?

  However, although there is no salary, there are rewards. If you can create some high-quality items, the iron shop will reward you. The amount of the reward depends on the value of the items you create. Of course, this also has the meaning of encouraging these apprentices to learn their skills diligently and create more high-quality items. Naturally, these so-called "high-quality items" refer to civilian-use items only. As for weapons, only those who have graduated from their apprenticeship, that is, true ironworkers, can touch them. In Wu's iron shop, there is a rule: as long as an apprentice can create a qualified weapon, they can get rid of their apprentice status and become an ironworker with a salary.

  Generally speaking, from apprentice to qualified blacksmith, it takes at least five years for an ordinary person, but this little leopard has only been here for half a year and has already reached this level, which really surprises Qin Xuanlong. However, being surprised is one thing, looking at the forging standard shown by the vegetable knife in his hand, Qin Xuanlong has determined that the little leopard's forging standard has already reached the standard of forging weapons. At the same time, he also saw from it that this kid's future prospects are much brighter than his own. Since that's the case, why not sell him a favor now and maybe help himself in the future.

  As one of the affairs of Wujia Iron Shop, he naturally understood the origin of Xiao Baozi. This young man came from a mountain village and became an apprentice in this Wujia family simply because there were too many males in his household and they couldn't afford to raise him, so he left home and became an apprentice. At that time, no one would have thought that this young man was actually a genius.

  But even if he is a genius, now he is just a little kid, and what achievements he will get are things of the future. Now, he is just a poor boy. If at this time, helping him out would be like giving charcoal in snowy weather. Therefore, Qin Xuanlong made such a decision. In his view, no matter how talented Xiao Baozi is, he is only an eight-year-old child and will definitely be grateful to himself for this matter.

  The little leopard was indeed grateful to him, but not as grateful as he imagined. With memories of two lifetimes, it wasn't hard for him to guess what Qin Xuanlong had in mind. However, this kind of thing would be beneficial to everyone, so why wouldn't they accept it?

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  Time flies so fast, it has been more than half a year since Xiao Bao successfully got rid of his apprentice status and became a qualified blacksmith.

  For more than half a year, Xiao Bao has been living a comfortable life. The monthly salary of the blacksmith is considered top-notch in Qingyang Village, and even if a large part of it is used to supplement his family's expenses, what's left over is enough for him to live a very comfortable life. Moreover, there are bonuses to be earned at Wu's ironwork shop.

  After more than half a year of tempering and forging, Little Leopard has basically combined theory and practice in the manufacture of weapons. In terms of craftsmanship, he is already one of the best in the entire Wu family ironwork shop.

  He made a decision that was the same as Old Xing's, to let Xiao Bao participate in the first round of selection for the entire Wu family after he turned ten years old. He believed that with Xiao Bao's current level, he would be able to stand out in the selection and, combined with his age, would definitely be valued by the Wu family and become a core member.

  The little leopard understood that the key to his excellence lay in two factors, and the most important one was still the epiphany he had when hitting the wooden stakes in the backyard. That epiphany allowed him to gain a perfect understanding of the rhythm and intensity of hammering, which benefited him greatly. For a long time afterwards, the little leopard tried countless times to enter that state again, but all were in vain, and he could only give up. Even if he hadn't maintained his eyes in that strange state, he wouldn't have been able to fully grasp what he had gained from that epiphany.

  "It's a good thing my eyes are weird enough!" Little leopard walked on the main street, breathing in the fresh air, feeling the warm sunshine, and curled up a hint of complacency at the corner of his mouth.

  Another factor is his Li Huo Xin Fa, a fire-based skill that, although not high-level, greatly improved Xiao Bao Zi's control over the temperature of the fire. Ordinary blacksmiths rely on experience to grasp the temperature, but Xiao Bao Zi is different - he has internal energy within his body that allows him to detect the temperature of objects at any time using his own inner fire energy.

  So he is very satisfied with his current life.

  Can't be more satisfied? There's enough money to spend, the workload is not big, and you can learn your favorite martial arts. Is there anything more enjoyable than this in the world?

  It's all gone!

  At least the little leopard thinks it's gone.