He coughed lightly, lost in thought.
What was he thinking about?
Lu Yu scratched his head. The immediate priority was how he could be thinking about Miss Zhao Ji’s “enlightenment.”
Zhao Ji, in her prime… now was the time for her development.
Besides, after Lu Yu’s “careful” “nurturing,” with all the crucian carp soup, phoenix claws, and avocados arranged, her previously unremarkable A-cup physique was showing signs of budding, showing an impulse to grow into a B-cup.
Enlightenment would have to wait until Zhao Ji grew up quickly…
Thinking of this, Lu Yu’s unruly saliva dripped from the corner of his eye, his entire face bearing four words: his heart yearned for it.
Of course, the small lotus had just revealed its tip, and a dragonfly couldn't yet stand on its head!
“Brother Yu? What are you thinking about? You’re spacing out…” Cai Zhao Ji, unaware of Lu Yu’s inner turmoil, asked softly…
Uh… Lu Yu glanced sideways at Zhao Ji’s chest, still somewhat disappointed. It was still far from the ideal size.
Of course, this look of “disappointment” did not escape Cai Zhao Ji’s eyes.
She spoke again…
“Could it be? Has the constant failure in forging Damascus steel also dampened Brother Yu’s spirits?”
That’s right…
Lu Yu quickly nodded. In the process of forging Damascus steel and Zhao Ji’s forging of… something, Lu Yu had truly worried himself sick!
“Sister Zhao Ji, I… I’m fine! It’s just…”
Lu Yu glanced at Cai Zhao Ji’s chest again… then turned his gaze to the smelting furnace, saying helplessly.
“If we continue forging like this, the Damascus steel will be depleted… Damascus steel is priceless and hard to find these days. Except for what Duke Cao has in stock, it’s not easy to buy on the market!”
“Isn’t Damascus steel already hard enough? Why forge it further? Could it be… we can forge something even harder than Damascus steel?” Cai Zhao Ji continued to ask…
Having read countless books, Cai Zhao Ji knew a bit about weapons. During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, and even the Qin Dynasty, weapons were mainly made of bronze.
It wasn’t until the Chu-Han Contention that iron weapons gradually appeared. By the time Wang Mang usurped power in the Han Dynasty, iron weapons had completely replaced bronze weapons…
In Cai Zhao Ji’s opinion, weapons forged from Damascus steel already represented the most advanced productivity…
Besides gold, was there anything harder than Damascus steel? Cai Zhao Ji was full of doubts. She couldn’t understand what her younger brother Lu Yu was pursuing.
It wasn't surprising she thought this way. Cai Zhao Ji didn’t know that men, in general, often had higher demands for hardness than women, whether it was in steel forging or other matters!
“More than just harder than Damascus steel…” Lu Yu pouted. “If it can truly be forged successfully, it would be enough to cut stone, break metal, and slice iron like mud!”
Hmm… Cai Zhao Ji paused. Did such hard things truly exist in this world? For a moment, she became somewhat curious.
“Alas…” Lu Yu sighed helplessly again. “It’s a pity. If it is to be forged successfully, a large amount of Damascus steel will likely be needed. If I were to ask Duke Cao… for such precious Damascus steel, Duke Cao might not give it.”
In short, Lu Yu shook his head. His steel forging endeavor had encountered difficulties.
Just then…
“Hahaha, tell me, what is it that I, Cao Cao, am unwilling to give?”
“Whatever you want, as long as I, Cao Cao, have it, you can take it all!”
A hearty laugh echoed, followed by light footsteps and a jovial voice… This devilishly charming laughter and voice, could it be anyone other than Cao Cao?
Lu Yu and Cai Zhao Ji quickly turned around and saw Cao Cao and Cao Ren walking towards them.
“I didn’t expect my elder brother to have time today…” Cai Zhao Ji spoke first, as polite as ever.
“Why… can’t I come and see my dear sister if I don’t have time? Come and see this intelligent and quick-witted younger brother of yours? Hahaha…” Cao Cao replied, then continued to laugh heartily!
Cao Cao loved to laugh… As long as his father or a close relative hadn't died, he could laugh all the time… To a certain extent, he was an extremely optimistic person.
However, at this particular juncture?
Could Old Cao be laughing so brightly?
Lu Yu’s eyes darted around, murmuring to himself… It seemed Cao Song had escaped death!
But he didn’t know if Cao Song was rescued by Cao Ren or by Dian Wei…
In any case, as long as he was saved… Lu Yu’s heart felt a sense of relief!
According to ancient records, Cao Cao’s territory of Yan Province had experienced a major crisis. All of Yan Province, except for three commanderies, was lost to Lü Bu’s surprise attack…
The fundamental reasons for this were twofold: first, the death of the renowned scholar Bian Rang caused a rift between the Yan Province clans and Cao Cao; second, during Cao Cao’s campaign to avenge his father and conquer Xuzhou, he ordered massacres, leaving bones exposed in the wilderness and silence in the vast lands.
These two events made the Yan Province clans particularly convinced that Cao Cao was not a wise ruler. Therefore, led by Zhang Miao, the Administrator of Chenliu, they allied with Lü Bu and took over Cao Cao’s base camp in one fell swoop…
But now, firstly, “Bian Rang” was not dead; he had been sent to the court.
Secondly, Cao Song was alive, and Cao De was also alive. For Old Cao, the loss in Langya Commandery this time… was merely the loss of some gold and silver, and some unimportant family members. Revenge was still necessary, but a massacre was not!
As long as there was no massacre, conquering Xuzhou would be much simpler, and there would be no major turmoil in Yan Province behind him!
On a small scale, Lu Yu and Sister Zhao Ji’s safety was ensured.
On a larger scale, Cao Cao’s plan to expand his territory and domain could proceed smoothly, a win-win situation!
Of course, in Lu Yu’s opinion… it would be best if Dian Wei rescued them, then Old Cao would owe him another great favor!
“I heard from Wen Lie that you’ve been quite absorbed in forging recently?”
Cao Cao spoke, deliberately not mentioning his father’s rescue, but inquiring about Lu Yu’s recent activities.
“Duke Cao, I… at most, this can be considered an experiment!” Lu Yu blurted out instinctively.
“An experiment?” Cao Cao countered…
Lu Yu scratched his head. It seemed the word “experiment” was too modern, and Old Cao couldn’t understand it! “Duke Cao… it means multiple forging attempts to arrive at the correct result, but currently… it’s still lacking!”
“How much is lacking?” Cao Cao received reports from Cao Xiu every few days.
How could he not know that Lu Yu had been trying to forge a material ten times harder than Damascus steel recently?
However… the forging process was somewhat baffling, melting Damascus steel into a liquid state and then pouring this liquid iron into the original Damascus steel.
This forging method was truly incomprehensible. Even Cao Cao found it too mysterious, and most likely, this valuable Damascus steel would be wasted.
Therefore, Cao Cao asked this question.
At this moment, Lu Yu’s eyes darted around… and he answered truthfully. “The degree of lack… is immeasurable. It requires many attempts, and it’s possible it will ultimately fail… and yield nothing!”
In front of Cao Cao, Lu Yu did not want to lie or make empty promises…
Besides, he only knew the steps of steel forging, but in actual operation, it was not as simple as in theory. The temperature of the flame, the timing of pouring molten iron into solid iron, every detail was crucial. A tiny difference could affect the entire forging process!
…
Hiss… It might fail and yield nothing?
Cao Cao’s eyes flickered, and he was evaluating this statement in his mind.
One had to know that Damascus steel was a strategic material. Besides warhorses, Damascus steel was one of the most sought-after items with money in this era. Using a warehouse full of Damascus steel for Lu Yu to “experiment,” Cao Cao’s heart wavered.
“However…”
At this moment, Lu Yu’s voice followed, and this single sentence made Cao Cao’s eyes instantly firm.
…
…