My hotel is full of emperors throughout history.

"Fine! You guys eat first! I refuse to believe we can't break this thing!"

Old Zhu was so anxious!

He's seen all sorts of storms and tough challenges in his life.

Could someone really be stumped by a tiny iron bar used for building houses in later generations?!

After saying this, he didn't even bother to say goodbye to Li Shimin, Ying Zheng, and the others, and rushed out of Chen Mo's inn courtyard.

The people left in the courtyard looked at each other, their expressions varied.

Back in the Ming Dynasty, during the Hongwu reign, in a certain area of ​​the imperial palace, there was a workshop area that he had recently established.

Night had fallen, but the place was illuminated as brightly as day by countless torches and lanterns!

Zhu Yuanzhang changed into a set of convenient everyday clothes and rolled up his sleeves.

Before them stood the most outstanding group of blacksmiths and master craftsmen from the Ministry of Works of the Ming Dynasty.

They knelt on the ground, trembling with fear, not understanding why His Majesty had summoned them so urgently in the middle of the night and personally come to this filthy place.

"Get up, all of you!"

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand impatiently, then threw the rebar onto the solid bluestone floor in front of everyone with a "clatter".

"See that? It's this thing!"

Zhu Yuanzhang pointed to the rebar.

"Do everything in your power to break it! Whoever breaks it first will be promoted three ranks and rewarded with a thousand taels of gold!"

Upon hearing this, the craftsmen instantly became as energetic as if they had been injected with chicken blood.

They touched the rebar one by one, observed it carefully, tapped it with their hands, and listened to the sound.

The most senior master craftsman, who had once forged Zhu Yuanzhang's sword, pondered for a moment and then said respectfully.

"Your Majesty, this object appears to be ordinary iron, but judging from its sound and texture, it seems... unusually dense and tough. Allow us to test its strength with knives and axes first."

"allow!"

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand.

Immediately, a burly craftsman swung a heavy iron hammer, while another used iron pliers to hold the rebar in place. With all their might, they smashed it down!

"when--!!!"

The deafening roar sent sparks flying! The craftsman holding the pliers was so shocked that his arm went numb and his hand ached.

Looking at the rebar again, apart from a barely perceptible shallow mark left where it was hit, it was completely unharmed!

The old craftsman's expression changed.

He then ordered his men to bring the best steel chisels and heavy hammers, and to strike a single point repeatedly!

"Ding! Ding! Dong! Dong!"

The sound was piercing, and the tip of the steel chisel wore down and cracked at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The rebar still only had some scratches and white spots on the surface, without even a decent dent.

Zhu Yuanzhang's face darkened.

"Use a saw! Cut it open!"

The craftsmen immediately replaced their saws with the best ones.

Two people work together, pulling back and forth with all their might.

The ear-piercing scraping sound lasted for almost the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, leaving the craftsman drenched in sweat.

The result was that the saw blade was almost worn flat, leaving only a shallow, almost negligible mark on the rebar, perhaps less than the depth of a hair!

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty..."

The old craftsman's voice trembled as he knelt on the ground.

"This thing...this thing is far more durable than anything I've ever seen in my life! Ordinary knives, axes, saws, and chisels...I'm afraid they wouldn't even be able to damage it in the slightest!"

"waste!"

Zhu Yuanzhang cursed angrily.

"Then let's use fire! A raging fire! Let's heat it until it's red-hot and see if it's still hard!"

Soon, a makeshift high-powered forging furnace was ignited, the blower was turned up to its maximum, and the temperature inside the furnace rose sharply.

The rebar was thrown into the raging flames and burned for a full half hour until it turned completely red, like a crimson python.

"Quick! Clamp it out! Quench it with water! Smash it with a hammer!"

Zhu Yuanzhang personally directed the operation.

The red-hot rebar was quickly clamped out and plunged into the cold well water with a "sizzle," stirring up a large cloud of white mist.

Before it had completely cooled down, several of the strongest craftsmen swung their sledgehammers and, while it was still warm, took turns smashing it down with all their might.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The dull thuds of impact continued.

However, when the rebar had completely cooled down and everyone wearily stopped to check it, they discovered in despair that...

Aside from being slightly bent due to uneven hammering and quenching, the bending was negligible and there was still no sign of breakage!

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the rebar that had endured being cleaved by a knife, chiseled by an axe, sawed, burned by fire, quenched by water, and bombarded by a heavy hammer, yet remained completely unharmed. His face turned from ashen to deathly pale.

"Why the hell is it that something used for building houses is so rigid?!"

Old Zhu cursed angrily, looking at the rebar with increasing resentment!

"Damn it, we refuse to believe we can't break you!"

"If the craftsmen aren't up to it, then let the warriors take over! Our generals are all incredibly strong, capable of lifting a cauldron; surely they can handle it!"

Old Zhu waved his hand dismissively, not caring whether it was late at night or not.

"Issue my decree: all the commanders of the Five Military Commands and the commanders of the various guards in the capital who are of great strength, come to the palace immediately!"

Within half an hour of the imperial decree being issued, groups of military officers, clad in armor, still sleepy-eyed but forcing themselves to be alert, hurriedly arrived at the palace's drill ground.

They exchanged glances, their minds filled with unease.

In the middle of the night, His Majesty urgently summons me. Could it be that the Northern Yuan is attacking the border?

Or has a rebellion broken out somewhere?

But when they saw the center of the training ground, brightly lit, there was neither a sand table nor enemy intelligence, only His Majesty and a group of dejected craftsmen.

And... there's an ordinary-looking iron bar lying on the ground?

What is that?

Everyone was completely baffled.

Seeing that most of the people had arrived, Zhu Yuanzhang didn't waste any words. He pointed to the rebar on the ground and spoke in a booming voice.

"You all saw it? That thing! Whoever can bend it, or break it! Whoever can do it will be richly rewarded!"

Upon hearing this, the ranks of military officers fell silent for a moment, then erupted into suppressed laughter and murmurs.

"Huh? That's it?"

"Your Majesty, you summoned us late at night just to... bend an iron bar?"

"This thing, I could break it with one hand!"

"Exactly! I thought it was something serious!"

For a moment, all the generals were eager to fight, feeling that the reward was practically a free gift.

Some people even almost got into a fight on the spot to claim the credit.

A powerful and burly military commander, known for his strength, stepped forward first, clasped his hands in a fist salute to Zhu Yuanzhang, and his voice boomed like thunder.

"Your Majesty! Behold my skills!"

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded.

Then, the clerk walked up to the rebar, didn't even bend over, just kicked it with his foot in a disdainful manner, then bent down, grabbed the middle of the rebar with one hand, exhaled and shouted, his arm muscles instantly bulged, and he slammed it against his knee!

This is his usual trick to show off his strength and break ordinary gun barrels!

"Hey--!"

He let out a muffled groan, his face instantly turning bright red!

The expected "crack" sound did not occur; the iron bar only trembled slightly and remained straight!

He felt as if he were trying to break a steel pillar deeply embedded in the mountain, but it wouldn't budge!

The governor was stunned, a look of disbelief and embarrassment flashing across his face.

He discarded his dismissive attitude towards the one-handed man, gripped the rebar tightly with both hands, steadied himself in a horse stance, and exerted all his strength, veins bulging on his forehead, as he exerted force once more!

"Ugh—ah—!!!"

His entire body was creaking under the strain, but the rebar, apart from being slightly slippery from the sweat on his palms, didn't even have the slightest curve!

The governor finally exhausted himself, panting heavily as he released his grip. Looking at the iron bar with a look of utter disbelief, he retreated to the side, his face flushed, unable to utter a single word.

"Hahaha! Commander Liu, did you use up all your energy on your wife last night? Watch me!"

Another commander, known for his arrogance, stepped forward, laughing loudly.

He grabbed a heavy iron hammer used for testing weapons from the side, swung it around with a whooshing sound, and smashed it hard against the rebar fixed to the ground!

"clang--!!!"

A deafening explosion! Sparks flew everywhere!

Everyone rushed over and saw that the commander had been forced back by the recoil, his hand was split open and bleeding profusely.

As for the rebar... the part that was hit finally showed a tiny dent, but it was still a long way from being "bent"!

Now, no one could laugh anymore.

Then, the third, the fourth...

One try and they were all completely silent!

Some even came up with the idea of ​​binding the ropes together and having several people pull on it together...

But it had absolutely no effect!

"What the hell is this thing?!"

"Exactly! I've lived this long and never seen anything this hard!"

"Damn! If this thing were on the battlefield, wouldn't it be invincible?"

Seeing this scene, Zhu Yuanzhang's last shred of hope was completely extinguished.

He slumped back into his chair, waved his hand, and spoke with a tone full of helplessness.

"Everyone... can leave now..."

The military officers, feeling as if they had been granted a pardon, or as if they had lost their souls, dejectedly left the training ground one by one.

Tonight, many people are destined to have sleepless nights.