People in the Qin Dynasty sought good fortune and avoided misfortune.

Chapter 509, Qin Mo and the Gongshu Family

"Your humble servant, Sun Ling, the Imperial Household Department Commander, pays his respects to Lord Zhaoming."

"No need for formalities. I am here today as the Imperial Household Department Commander on the orders of His Majesty to temporarily take over the affairs of the Imperial Household Department. I hope the Imperial Household Department Commander will not take offense."

Upon hearing Xu Qing's words, a look of joy immediately appeared on Sun Ling's haggard and tired face. She looked at Xu Qing as if she had seen a savior, and her eyes even became a little red.

"How could that be? Since His Majesty has entrusted you with the temporary management of the Imperial Workshop, I will naturally cooperate. If you need anything, please feel free to give the order, and I will do my best to assist you."

Sun Ling hurriedly stepped forward, grabbed Xu Qing's hand, and said.

"Shangfang Ling, calm down. I'm only temporarily in charge?"

Xu Qing removed Sun Ling's hand and spoke up to remind her.

“It’s alright, it’s alright. As long as you, Lord Zhaoming, can resolve the matter of the Imperial Household Department, I would be happy to give you the Imperial Household Department token, as long as you are interested in it.”

As Sun Ling spoke, she glanced at the two old men behind her out of the corner of her eye and immediately felt a headache coming on. She looked at Xu Qing with gratitude in her eyes.

Ever since Ying Zheng ordered Qin Mo and the Gongshu family to be merged into the Shangfang, he, as the Shangfang Commander, has suffered greatly. Every day he is either dealing with conflicts between the disciples of the two families or dealing with the armed fights between the two families.

He hasn't had a good night's sleep in the past month. He's been losing clumps of hair trying to resolve the conflict between the two sides. In the end, not only did he fail to resolve the issue, but the relationship between the two families has become even worse.

Ultimately, this led both sides to completely disregard his imperial decree and engage in a battle using mechanical beasts within the imperial palace.

Now that Xu Qing is willing to take over the hot potato that is the Shangfang, he is naturally extremely happy. Even if it means becoming a commoner, he is unwilling to manage the Shangfang anymore. Let whoever wants to manage the affairs between Qin Mo and the Gongshu family do so.

"I'm only taking over temporarily. Whether you or someone else will ultimately manage the Imperial Decree is up to His Majesty's decision. But before we talk about these things, shouldn't you introduce these two to me?"

Xu Qing looked at the two old men standing behind Sun Ling and said slowly.

"Yes, yes, I almost delayed your important business. Let me introduce you. This is Gongshu Chou, the head of the Gongshu family. This is Xiangli Guan, the commander of Qin Mo."

Sun Ling turned to the side and pointed to Gongshu Chou and Xiangli Guan, introducing them to Xu Qing.

Xu Qing looked at Gongshu Chou and Xiangli Guan. The hunchbacked, thin old man with a goatee and a scar on his forehead was Gongshu Chou, while the more robust man with a white beard was Qin Mo's commander, Xiangli Guan.

Just like the difference between the domineering mechanical arts of the Gongshu family and the mechanical arts of the Mo family, the two men's appearances are completely opposite. However, they are not without similarities. Both of them have a mechanical hand, but one is bronze and the other is vermilion.

"It seems that mechanical arts are not so easy to use; one might injure oneself if one is not careful."

Xu Qing looked at the two men's mechanical hands and thought to himself.

"Lord Zhaoming".

Gongshu Chou and Xiangli Guan bowed to Xu Qing.

"Greetings, Head of the Gongshu Clan; greetings, Master Xiangli," Xu Qing returned the greeting with clasped hands.

After exchanging greetings, Gongshu Chou and Xiangli Guan both looked at Xu Qing, their eyes filled with a mixture of nervousness and trepidation.

They knew very well that Xu Qing had come to Shangfang to deal with the previous feud between their two families, and they also understood how terrible the outcome of that feud had been. If nothing unexpected happened, they would definitely be severely punished.

More importantly, it was Xu Qing who dealt with them. If it were anyone else, they could have used their own abilities and status to try and salvage the situation, but who is Xu Qing? In the imperial court, he is the Zhaoming Emperor and a high-ranking official, holding a position of great power and influence.

Among the various schools of martial arts, Xu Qing is the future leader of the Taoist Heavenly Sect, the head of the Taoist scholars, and the deputy head of the medical school.

Whether in the imperial court or among the various martial arts factions, the combined status of the two of them could not compare to that of Xu Qing, and they had to comply with whatever he said.

Xu Qing glanced at Gongshu Chou and Xiangli Guan, remained silent for a moment, and then said in a calm voice.

"Since Your Majesty has entrusted me with the temporary management of the Imperial Workshop, then I will trouble Master Gongshu and Master Xiangli to show me around the Imperial Workshop."

Upon hearing this, a look of surprise flashed in the eyes of Gongshu Chou and Xiangli Guan.

If Xu Qing had simply handled things officially, it would have been fine; they could have died a quick death. But Xu Qing had them take the two of them to visit the Imperial Palace instead of having the Imperial Palace Commander take them, which made them even more uneasy.

The two glanced at Xu Qing, trying to discern his intentions from his expression, but Xu Qing's expression remained exceptionally calm, revealing nothing.

"Is something inconvenient for you two?" Xu Qing asked again.

Seeing Xu Qing speak again, Gongshu Chou and Xiangli Guan had no time to think and could only agree to the matter.

“No, since Lord Zhaoming wants to visit the Shangfang, we two are naturally willing to lead the way,” the two said.

"Then I'll have to trouble you two."

After Xu Qing finished speaking, he looked at Sun Ling and gestured for him to go about his business. He said that the matter between the Gongshu family and Qin Mo could be left to Sun Ling.

"Then I shall take my leave. If you have any instructions, Lord Zhaoming, please send someone to inform me," Sun Ling said, bowing to Xu Qing.

"Go ahead."

Without the slightest hesitation, Sun Ling got up and left in one direction, his face full of a relieved smile.

Watching Sun Ling, the Imperial Envoy, leave, Gongshu Chou and Xiangli Guan exchanged a glance, but quickly looked away, their faces showing disgust and disdain.

"Lord Zhaoming, please come with me."

A smile appeared on Gongshu Chou's old face as he spoke to Xu Qing.

"it is good."

Xu Qing nodded slightly. He had naturally seen the two people's behavior just now, and he had a clearer understanding of the conflict between the Gongshu family and Qin Mo.

Gongshu Chou and Xiangli Guan led Xu Qing toward the core of the Shangfang, while Li Xin and Zhao Gao remained where they were.

The core area of ​​Shangfang contained blueprints and manufacturing methods for various advanced weapons of the Qin state. It was a highly important and forbidden area. Not to mention Li Xin and Zhao Gao, even important officials of the Qin state could not enter without an oral order or a token. They could not even pass through the gate of Shangfang.

After passing through a door, Xu Qing finally got a clear look at the rows of blast furnaces.

Orange flames flickered in dozens of blast furnaces, and large bursts of sparks occasionally shot out from the furnace openings, while thick black smoke rose slowly. Next to the blast furnaces, a row of sheds was set up, and under the sheds, strong men with bare upper bodies were swinging hammers in their hands, hammering out swords that were not yet fully formed.

"This is the casting department of Lord Zhaoming, the place where all the artifacts in the Shangfang are cast. The molten copper in these rows of blast furnaces will eventually become the sharp swords and long spears for Qin to expand its territory."

Gongshu Chou picked up a newly forged sword and presented it to Xu Qing, saying proudly.

Xu Qing took the sword and gently flicked the blade; the clear blade emitted a buzzing sound.

"What a fine sword! The forging techniques of the Gongshu family are so superb. The sharpness and toughness of this sword are in no way inferior to the iron swords of Han." Xu Qing exclaimed sincerely.

"Hehehe, Lord Zhaoming, you flatter me. My Gongshu family specializes in providing weapons for the Qin army, so naturally we must study the art of forging extensively."

Gongshu Chou stroked his beard with his mechanical hand and said with a chuckle.

Although Gongshu Chou was also a slave, his status in the Qin state was not ordinary, simply because he possessed the most powerful and offensive mechanical arts.

The Qin army's ability to win repeated victories was due not only to the soldiers' selflessness and the incentive of the military merit system, but also to the advanced weapons provided by the Gongshu family.

It is precisely for this reason that Gongshu Chou and his domineering mechanical skills are deeply loved by generals. The modified crossbows, ballistae, or chariots are extremely popular in the army and have amazing destructive power.

No soldier dislikes a weapon with high destructive power.

The more powerful a weapon is, the more heavy casualties it can inflict on the enemy on the battlefield, which in turn reduces the casualties on one's own side.

It can also increase the chances of winning the war.

"The forging techniques of the Gongshu family are just for show. When it comes to the real art of sword making, you have to look to the Mo family."

Xiangli Guan said unconvinced, then walked to Qin Mo's shed and handed a newly forged sword to Xu Qing.

"Lord Zhaoming, look at the swords forged by my Mo family. They are no weaker than those of the Gongshu family," Xiangli Guan continued.

Seeing this, Xu Qing didn't say anything more. He picked up the sharp sword in Xiang Liguan's hand and flicked it lightly. A crisp and loud sword sound rang out, which drew another round of praise from Xu Qing.

"The sword's sound is clear and bright; such a sharp sword is no exaggeration to call itself a treasure."

Xu Qing looked at the two swords in his hand and said with a smile.

Both swords are exceptionally fine, but the former is superior in sharpness, while the latter is more resilient. Each has its own merits, much like the difference between the domineering mechanical arts and the Mo family's mechanical arts.

Gongshu Chou looked at the smug Xiangli Guan, a hint of unease flashing across his face, but he didn't say anything.

In terms of casting and sword-making skills, the Gongshu family is indeed inferior to Qin Mo.

"Now that we've finished looking around here, let's move on to the next place."

Xu Qing didn't give the two a chance to argue. He casually tossed aside the sword in his hand and headed to the next place.

The thrown sword flew straight into the shed and landed perfectly in its previous position. The gleaming blade trembled slightly and emitted a faint, almost imperceptible, sword-like sound.

Upon seeing this, everyone inside the shed stopped what they were doing and stared in shock at the two sharp swords.

The two swords were in very different places, but Xu Qing was able to return them to their original positions without the slightest deviation. This ease in using force and internal energy was enough to prove how unfathomable Xu Qing's strength was.

(End of this chapter)