“What are you doing?”
Iron Hammer shoved the young man aside, stepping in front of Jin Feng.
His right hand gripped the hilt of his sword.
Jin Feng’s left hand slipped into his sleeve at once.
“Big brother, don’t misunderstand, we met yesterday at Miss Little North’s tea gathering.”
The young man quickly explained.
Jin Feng looked him over and indeed recognised him from yesterday.
“Oh, I remember now, you’re that Young Master Zhou.”
Iron Hammer also recognised the young man.
“I, Zhou Yuanqiang, greet Mr Jin.”
The young man bowed respectfully to Jin Feng, “My apologies, I was too excited to see you and just wanted to say hello. I didn’t mean to startle you.”
“It’s fine.”
Since he was only greeting them, Jin Feng waved it off and prepared to leave with Iron Hammer.
But Zhou Yuanqiang didn’t seem ready to go, quickly catching up to Jin Feng and asking familiarly, “Sir, are you here at the smelting yard for something?”
“To buy some things.”
The street was public, so Jin Feng couldn’t shoo him away and answered casually.
“My family has lived at the smelting yard for generations. Tell me what you need, and I’ll guide you,” Zhou Yuanqiang said enthusiastically.
Having a local guide didn’t seem bad.
Jin Feng thought for a moment, pulled out a list from his pocket, and handed it over.
Zhou Yuanqiang read the list and asked in surprise, “These are all things blacksmiths use. What are you buying them for?”
“I’m a blacksmith.”
“What? You’re a blacksmith?”
Zhou Yuanqiang’s mouth dropped open in shock.
Last night, he had read Jin Feng’s poems countless times. To him, someone who could write such poetry must come from a scholarly family, not be a blacksmith.
“What’s with that look?” Jin Feng asked with a smile.
“Nothing, your poems are unparalleled. I thought you must be from a scholarly family, not a blacksmith.”
Far from looking down on Jin Feng, Zhou Yuanqiang respected him even more for it.
“My family has been blacksmiths for generations. It’s only in my generation that I started reading and writing.”
Jin Feng asked, “Can you get the things on the list?”
Most items on the list were for ancient iron-smelting methods and should be easy to find, but a few were rare, and Jin Feng wasn’t sure if they were available in Dakang.
“My family sells smelting materials. We have most of what’s on your list, but for cobalt ore, you’ll need to go to the ceramics yard.”
Zhou Yuanqiang returned the list, “I have a friend whose family deals in ceramics. If you want, I can have him send some over at the lowest price.”
To make tungsten steel, besides tungsten, cobalt was needed.
Cobalt ore had been used historically, often for colouring ceramics.
Jin Feng had no way to find cobalt ore mines, so he had to buy it.
“Then I’ll trouble you, Young Master Zhou. Just tell me how much silver it’ll cost.”
Seeing Zhou Yuanqiang’s intent to get closer, Jin Feng didn’t refuse.
“No trouble at all. It’s my honour to help you,” Zhou Yuanqiang said with a smile, “You’re the biggest celebrity in the county now. If word got out you needed help, people would line up to offer it.”
“What celebrity?” Jin Feng asked, puzzled.
“You probably don’t know yet, but last night, your poems spread across the county. Miss Little North is now called the Thousand-Gold Girl because of your line about her smile being worth a thousand gold. Chunfeng House announced that starting today, attending her tea gathering costs ten taels of silver.”
Zhou Yuanqiang smiled, “Now, countless courtesans are eager to meet you. If you agreed, many would offer themselves to you. Your talent is extraordinary, yet you choose to live humbly in the mountains as a blacksmith. You’re truly a model for us all.”
“This…”
Jin Feng shook his head with a wry smile.
He came to the county to handle business, but ended up causing such a stir.
“You flatter me,” Jin Feng waved it off, not wanting to dwell on the topic, “I’m in a bit of a hurry. Let’s go buy the things.”
“Alright, please follow me.”
Zhou Yuanqiang hurried ahead to lead the way, bringing them to a shop called Zhou’s Trading Company.
“This is my family’s shop. Please wait a moment, I’ll have someone gather what you need.”
Zhou Yuanqiang poured tea for Jin Feng and Iron Hammer, then went to the back.
Soon, two assistants came in and started packing items into baskets.
With only one carriage, Jin Feng couldn’t take much, so he kept the quantities small. The assistants quickly prepared everything.
“Young Master Zhou, how much is it?”
Jin Feng pulled out his money pouch.
“It’s my honour that you came to my shop. How could I charge you?”
Zhou Yuanqiang waved his hands repeatedly.
“If I come back to buy more and you don’t charge me, I’ll return these and won’t come again.”
In his past life, even in tough times, Jin Feng never took advantage of others. Now, with no shortage of silver, he certainly wouldn’t.
“Sir, you…”
Seeing Jin Feng’s firm stance, Zhou Yuanqiang had the assistants calculate, “Total is thirty-three taels and six qian. Just give me thirty taels.”
After building the ironworks and buying smelting materials, Jin Feng knew the market rates. Zhou Yuanqiang’s price was very low, and waiving over three taels meant little profit.
This time, Jin Feng didn’t argue, smiling as he handed over three ten-tael silver ingots.
“Thank you for supporting my family’s business.”
Zhou Yuanqiang accepted the silver with a smile.
Later, Jin Feng followed Zhou Yuanqiang to the ceramics yard to buy some cobalt ore.
In the afternoon, he visited an herb wholesale market, buying a mix of miscellaneous items and several jars of old wine.
For the next few days, he holed up in his room, focusing on preparing a potion, with Guan Xiaorou delivering his meals.
He emerged only the day before the courtesan contest.
“Sir, you’re finally out! If you stayed in any longer, I wouldn’t dare go outside,” Qing Mulan complained the moment she saw him.
“What happened?” Jin Feng turned to ask.
“Your fame in Guangyuan County now surpasses the governor’s. Every day, countless people send invitations wanting to meet you,” Qing Mulan said, “Even my uncle’s sisters asked if I could bring them to see you.”
Jin Feng couldn’t help but laugh.
He never imagined he’d have fans.
“Brother Feng, is the potion ready?” Tang Dongdong ran in from outside, asking urgently before steadying herself.
“Here.”
Jin Feng pulled a small bottle from his pocket, shaking it with a smile.
Tang Dongdong let out a long sigh of relief.
After lunch, Jin Feng prepared to take Iron Hammer to Chunfeng House to see Tang Xiaobei again.
Knowing people were waiting at the entrance, he deliberately took Iron Hammer through the back door used by the inn’s workers. But, to his surprise, someone was waiting there too.
And it was a pretty young woman.
