My name is Wei Qing, and I want to fight the Xiongnu.

Upon hearing Xu Youdao's attempt to strike up a conversation, Wei Qing waved his ring-pommel sword and said, "What's it to you?"

Xu Yun laughed upon hearing this. He couldn't let himself be the only one getting scolded; he would let the young man experience the skill of roasting others.

Xu Youdao was rebuked, but he still smiled and said, "Please don't take offense, young master. I am not very talented, but I do know a little about the way of appraising swords."

Wei Qing glanced at him, frowned slightly, and said, "What does that have to do with me?"

Xu Youdao blinked, thinking to himself, "Is this young man sick? Can't he speak properly?"

Why are you so angry, like you've taken some kind of gunpowder? Your words are practically spitting fire.

Despite his frustration, Xu Youdao, true to his character and ability to adapt, continued with an air of elegance: "Young master, you may not know this, but most of the weapons on the top floor of the Hundred Weapons Pavilion were forged by several renowned sword-making families. I happen to belong to the Xu family. If you are interested in these weapons, I can answer your questions. If you wish to purchase them, I can offer a discount."

Upon hearing this, Wei Qing glanced at Xu Yun, his meaning being nothing more than: You are all from the Xu family, so how come he can help with discounts, but you are speechless?

Xu Yun was heartbroken.

The Xu family and its descendants cannot be generalized. Xu Youdao's ancestors moved into Chang'an, the capital city, two hundred years ago and have been rooted there for a long time.

How many years has it been since I came to Chang'an, the capital city, with my father?

Even though his lineage possesses advanced technology, in terms of connections, it is still far inferior to Xu Youdao's lineage.

Xu Youdao glanced at his nominal uncle with a smile that concealed a dagger, then respectfully asked Wei Qing, "Well? What do you think, young master?"

Wei Qing brandished his ring-pommel sword, then suddenly looked at the crystal pillar beside him. He saw that the crystal pillar, made of some unknown material, had only a scratch of less than two millimeters.

He touched the blade and looked at the two descendants of the Xu family, saying, "Saving money is certainly good, but how do I know if the weapon you recommend to me is good or bad? If you recommend a piece of junk, even if it's discounted twice, I'll still lose a lot. Should I go to you or the Hundred Weapons Pavilion then?"

After saying that, Wei Qing took out the wood-chopping knife that had been nicked in several places from behind his back and slashed at the crystal pillar in the same way.

With a sharp, deafening sound, a crack appeared on the crystal pillar, and then the crack spread rapidly in all directions...

........

The chapter tonight will probably be quite late.

Chapter 45: Buying a Knife and Turning it into Selling a Knife?

The crystal pillar was chopped up, but it wasn't worth much, so Wei Qing didn't need to compensate for it.

The addition of another nick on the machete made Wei Qing feel a pang of heartache.

This isn't Pingyang County; raising swords here won't be so easy.

Xu Yun and Xu Youdao, who were standing nearby, were horrified. This guy was really willing to do that.

The manager of the Hundred Weapons Pavilion on the top floor heard the sound of the crystal pillar shattering and quickly came over.

He wasn't there to demand an explanation; he just wanted to see what had happened.

After clarifying the whole story, he bluntly asked, "Young master, if I may ask, are you interested in selling this precious...wood-chopping knife? Our establishment is willing to purchase it at a high price."

Blood Blade is extremely rare; it's no exaggeration to say it's something you can only hope to encounter once in a while.

Therefore, Bloodblade was never able to establish a market. How can you establish a market without a source of goods?

This thing is far rarer than the masks of the Hunnic shamans. To cultivate a Blood Blade, you would need at least ten Hunnic shamans.

Those who have this ability usually don't lack this little bit of money.

Therefore, he would never easily sell his sword unless absolutely necessary.

More often, they are passed down to future generations or given as gifts to younger generations.

As for their descendants and younger generations, it's even less likely they would sell the Blood Blade.

Such unfilial behavior will be condemned to the skies.

However, when Bloodblade is truly trading, its significance in showing off far outweighs its practical value.

A Blood Blade of the same strength costs as more than a dozen ordinary weapons; this thing is only for showing off.

Generally speaking, the most sought-after blood-stained blades are those with a sword-like appearance, followed by knives, and then spears.

The reason for this is twofold: firstly, swords are best suited for showing off, and secondly, swords have the fewest bloodstains on their surface.

Blood Blade usually only appears on the battlefield.

The most suitable weapon on the battlefield is always a long-handled weapon like a spear.

Therefore, swords with blood-stained blades are extremely rare, making them valuable. Combined with their stylish appearance, their price remains high.

As for the gun... I'll say it again, the Bloodblade's value for showing off far outweighs its practical value.

While polearms are practical, they're not great for showing off, and most importantly, who would carry around a long spear for no reason?

As for a machete... most people wouldn't actually buy one of those.

Not only is it expensive, but its appearance is also awful.

But Hundred Weapons Pavilion is different. Hundred Weapons Pavilion is not a person, but a shop, a weapons shop.

The weapon shop acquires Blood Blade not to show off or to kill people, but for collection.

When it comes to collecting, what difference does it make whether it's a knife, a sword, a gun, a halberd, or even a woodcutter's knife?

It could even be said that the machete has a higher collectible value, as rarity is always a key factor in collecting.

Secondly, collecting is about collecting the stories behind the weapons. Killing a dozen or so Hun shamans with a woodcutter's knife is definitely more legendary and has more collectible value than killing them with swords, spears, or halberds.

A blood-stained blade shaped like a woodcutter's knife—I'd never seen one before, let alone imagined that someone would use this broken thing to kill a group of Xiongnu barbarians.

This is also the real reason why the manager suddenly proposed to acquire the company.

When Wei Qing heard that the manager wanted to buy it, he asked, "How much?"

Xu Yun, who was standing next to him, was stunned. What did that mean?

You're actually selling it?!

Wei Qing thought to himself that if the price was reasonable, he would definitely sell it; for him, the machete was just convenient for chopping people.

The steward was overjoyed to see that Wei Qing was truly interested.

From Wei Qing's words and actions, he could quickly deduce that Wei Qing must have come from a poor family in the border region and had killed many Xiongnu barbarians by chance.

Otherwise, it would be impossible to explain why the Blood Blade was actually a woodcutter's knife.

The life-or-death struggle on the battlefield is not a friendly sparring match; it's a matter of stopping short of a fight.

Given the choice of a stronger, more powerful weapon, no one would choose a machete that is neither handy nor very threatening.

People get killed, they really die!

While the manager was overjoyed, he was also somewhat confused. How much should he pay for the acquisition?

How do I know how much money is appropriate?

I've never made any acquisitions!

Not only has the manager never made any acquisitions, but the entire Hundred Weapons Pavilion has never engaged in any transactions involving Blood Blade.

The pavilion does indeed have a considerable collection of blood blades, but those were all obtained by the pavilion master through connections; they were favors, not things bought with money.

In fact, upon hearing that Wei Qing was truly interested in selling, not only the steward but also Xu Yun was interested in acquiring it.

His lineage has no shortage of money.

When they came to Chang'an, the capital of the Northern Zhao Kingdom, the royal family gave them a lot of money.

But in the royal city of Chang'an, there are some things that money can't buy, such as connections.

Even a blood-stained blade shaped like a woodcutter's knife is an excellent gift choice.

Secondly, if a deal can be struck, it would also be good to befriend this young man, killing two birds with one stone.

If the price isn't outrageous, the wealthy Xu Yun might actually have some ideas.

However, it was the steward of the pavilion who asked for the price; if he were to bid against it, he would offend the Hundred Weapons Pavilion.

Xu Youdao, standing nearby, looked at Xu Yun, also because he was about to make a move.

Xu Youdao wanted to buy it, but only to give it away as a gift—not to the human race, but to the Xiongnu barbarians.

His lineage is currently doing business with the Xiongnu barbarians, and they need a stepping stone.

The Blood Blade happened to be the gift most favored by the Xiongnu barbarians.

As for the fact that the Blood Blade Drinker drank the blood of the Xiongnu barbarians, so what?

It was commonplace for the Xiongnu barbarians to fight amongst themselves.

It is true that the Xiongnu barbarians looked down on the human race, but it is also true that they respected the strong among the human race.

If it truly originated from a human, it might actually be a good thing for the Xiongnu barbarians.

They could then claim they killed a human, and that the Blood Blade... was a trophy!

However, after looking at Xu Yun and the steward, he gave up; he had no money...

"Since you are interested, young master, why don't you... why don't you name a price?"

The manager simply passed the buck, saying, "Since you want to sell, then name your price."

Anyway, you ask for an exorbitant price, and I'll negotiate it down to the bottom.

Wei Qing thought to himself, "Should I name a price?"

Then I'll have to ask for an exorbitant amount, won't I?

Thinking this, he simply held up five fingers!

Hardware?

No, no, no, five thousand gold pieces!

"Plus a handy weapon, don't try to fool me with this junk."

Wei Qing was, after all, a man who had seen the world, no longer a frog in a well.

Judging from the numerous nicks and chips in the machete, it was still far superior to the weapons on the top floor of the Hundred Weapons Pavilion.

These junk items are priced at 10,000 gold. So, if I give them a discount and sell them for 5,000 gold, plus a handy weapon as a bonus, is that too much to ask?