Dusk settled over the mountains; the last red of the sun was sinking away when San Sier returned—bringing along a new face.
He had dragged a man here, more accurately.
The blacksmith Li Da had been tricked into following him.
The two of them had escaped the chaos in Chengcheng County and trekked more than thirty li—much of it uphill. By the time they reached Gaojia Village, both were exhausted, hungry, thirsty, and one wobble away from collapsing.
"We're here. Just ahead."
San Sier pointed toward the village. "Huh—only a few days away and another rainbow-colored wall popped up. Amazing. Now this is what they call 'changing by the day and transforming by the month.'"
Li Da, who had already found the road getting emptier and wilder, felt something was off. But the moment he saw the towering, multicolored wall, he froze—then his eyes lit up like lanterns.
A wall two zhang high in the middle of nowhere.
That meant the lord who lived here was loaded.
And he even painted his walls in colors—meaning he was so rich he could afford pointless aesthetics. Men like that were usually generous with their money.
"This place… is this a fortress? A small city?"
He swallowed. "Where on earth are we?"
"Gaojia Village," San Sier replied.
"Village?" Li Da almost laughed.
He would sooner believe it was a lesser district of Xi'an than a village. Two-zhang walls and still calling it a village?
"Well, if it's a village, then this must be the village's stronghold," Li Da muttered. "But I've never heard of any wealthy 'Master Gao' in Chengcheng."
San Sier corrected him seriously: "The lord here is called Heavenly Master."
A massive question mark floated across Li Da's forehead.
"When we get inside," San Sier added, "ask less, watch more. If you offend the old master and get kicked out, I can't save you. That's what people call walking on thin ice."
Li Da was no bumpkin like Gao Chuwu. Growing up in a county town, he had seen officials, merchants, wealthy clans—he understood perfectly well the rule of entering a powerful household: ask nothing, speak little, observe everything.
They entered through the unfinished gate. Only one side of the gate was built; the other was still missing, giving the entire fortress a comical, unfinished look. Li Da assumed:
So this fort is brand new. No wonder they're recruiting blacksmiths—there's work to do.
But the next scene shocked him far more.
Inside the gate sat a group of "laborers," eating from large clay bowls. The bowls were filled to the brim with white rice, topped with fresh cabbage leaves and thick strips of dried chicken.
Even the patrol commander in the county had never fed him that well.
And these workers—why were they so… well-fed?
During a three-year drought, every commoner he saw was gaunt like dried twigs. But these "laborers" all looked strong and bright-eyed.
Li Da didn't know that since Li Daoxuan began feeding Gaojia Village, everyone ate rice, meat, vegetables, salt, and drank plenty of clean water—more than soldiers ate in normal years.
He wanted to comment, but San Sier had warned him to keep quiet.
So he swallowed his questions painfully.
San Sier brought Li Da to Gao Yiye, bowing with a grin:
"Miss Gao, I have brought the blacksmith as commanded by the Heavenly Master. This is what they call 'fulfilling one's mandate without failing.'"
Before Gao Yiye could speak, the Heavenly Master's calm voice drifted into her mind:
"Mm. Praise him. He did well."
Li Daoxuan was currently slurping a bowl of pickled-vegetable pork noodles, joyfully watching his diorama-world. He had seen San Sier and Li Da enter the box the moment they arrived.
Gao Yiye relayed the command:
"The Heavenly Master praises you—well done."
San Sier beamed.
"Heart blooming with joy."
Li Daoxuan's tone shifted to business.
"Yiye, have San Sier introduce the blacksmith."
San Sier straightened proudly:
"This is Li Da, the finest blacksmith in Chengcheng. He has forged armor for the county's patrol officer, many soldiers wield his blades. A true master craftsman."
Li Daoxuan thought:
Ah—another Li. Must be family from five hundred years ago.
Li Da, hearing the compliments, felt grateful, but still puzzled. Why was San Sier—famous in the county—bowing so humbly to this ordinary-looking village girl?
Li Daoxuan focused on him:
"Li Da, can you forge armor?"
Li Da immediately came alive.
"Reporting… Miss… I entered the Military Forge Bureau as a child. I have trained in all weapons and armor. There is nothing I cannot make."
"Oh? Confident, aren't we?" Li Daoxuan chuckled. "Can you forge firearms?"
"Yes!" Li Da said proudly. "I can forge Three-Eyed Divine Guns."
"Very good," Li Daoxuan said. "Then you can teach the villagers to forge armor."
Illegal armor-making? Treason-level crime, Li Da thought.
But then again—if this lord dared break laws, it meant he had power. And only such a man could help Li Da escape his hereditary craftsman status.
Treason? So what? Let's do it.
Li Daoxuan continued:
"Also—I have another difficult task for you."
The words difficult task only made Li Da smile confidently.
Armor? Weapons? Complicated mechanisms?
Everything was just metal—hit it long enough and you shaped it.
He puffed out his chest:
"Miss, please inform the Heavenly Master: there is no weapon I cannot forge. Whatever he desires, I shall craft it—only begging his lordship to grant me a clean, free status once accomplished, so my descendants may escape our craftsman fate."
Since he was so confident, Li Daoxuan didn't hold back.
He picked up an A5 sheet of paper—and gently placed it on the open ground behind the gate…
The "difficult task" was about to begin.