"Su... Su Changkong..." Yang Chao and the others were startled when they saw this, knowing that Su Changkong's impulsiveness within the White Jade Gang was unquestionably irrational!
Cai Tong's expression darkened slightly as he saw Su Changkong heading out of the workshop.
And the White Jade Gang disciple clad in armor to Cai Tong's left, seeing this, immediately furrowed his brow and barked, "So you'll do it if you say you'll do it! And you won't if you say you won't?"
"Stop right there!"
The young disciple shouted, wanting to show himself off in front of Cai Tong. He reached out to grab Su Changkong's shoulder, intending to press him down to the ground.
But before the young disciple could seize Su Changkong's shoulder, Su Changkong's large palm had already gripped his wrist, using his arm strength to fling him to the side with force!
"Bam!"
The young disciple only felt an irresistible tremendous force that propelled his body uncontrollably to the side, crashing heavily into the workshop door with a loud "bam," causing the door frame to tremble violently.
Clad in armor, the young disciple was left dazed and saw stars, feeling as if his body was falling apart in pain.
But that was the least of it. Making a spectacle of himself in front of everyone made the young disciple's eyes redden with rage as he roared, "You little scoundrel! You're asking for death!"
"Clang!"
The young disciple drew the long blade at his waist, and the other nearby White Jade Gang disciples also drew their weapons, vaguely forming an encirclement.
Su Changkong felt helpless in his heart. Sometimes, not being able to control his temper escalated matters, but he couldn't really blame himself. He was low-key by nature, not wanting to stir up trouble, but he couldn't just stretch out his face meekly for others to strike if they intended to oppress him.
"What do you think you're doing? You want to touch someone from Black Iron Manor?"
Yang Chao cursed and stepped forward at this moment.
Su Changkong was their Black Iron Manor's most talented Forging Master, and Yang Chao, being the eldest here, couldn't just watch as Su Changkong fell into peril.
"We may not be well-read, but that doesn't mean we're easy to bully! If it comes to it, we'll just quit! And we won't take your silver either!"
The others also angrily said, tightly clutching their iron hammers, their emotions riding high.
They were all from Black Iron Manor. At a time like this, they had to stand united; otherwise, the White Jade Gang would just think they were easy to bully and look down on them even more. So, seeing that the White Jade Gang disciples were about to start a fight, everyone stood up for each other.
This scene touched Su Changkong's heart slightly. Having come from another world, he had little sense of belonging to Black Iron Manor, yet Yang Chao and the others didn't hesitate to stand by his side.
For a moment, tensions mounted on both sides, but Cai Tong came to his senses, glared at the other White Jade Gang disciples and scolded, "What are you doing? Has practicing martial arts made you lose your minds? Do you have to resort to blades and spears at the slightest provocation? Put your blades down!"
"Yes..."
The White Jade Gang disciples obediently sheathed their blades.
Cai Tong looked sincerely at Su Changkong and the others, "You all are talents hired by the White Jade Gang. Everyone got a bit heated just now; there's no need for this."
Clearly, the White Jade Gang still needed the help of Su Changkong and others to forge armor and wouldn't fall out with them over such a trivial matter. With Cai Tong playing peacemaker, Yang Chao and the rest also calmed down.
Then Cai Tong said to Su Changkong, "Young Master Bai is indeed not present in the gang, but if there's anything you need, you can tell me, and I will relay the message."
"Sure." Su Changkong had no intention of insisting on seeing Bai Shao. As long as the White Jade Gang could help him achieve his purpose, that would suffice.
Su Changkong took out a list from his bosom and said to Cai Tong, "Lord Cai, I would like to purchase some of the herbs listed here."
Cai Tong took the list and glanced over it, his eyes showing surprise as he said, "Are these herbs for body strengthening?"
Cai Tong wasn't well-versed in herbs, but he could recognize that some of the herbs on the list were indeed nourishing.
Su Changkong calmly said, "Since I was young, I have been frail and sickly. The physician instructed me to regularly use these herbs."
"Frail and frequently ill?"
The disciple from White Jade Gang, who Su Changkong had flung to collide against the door earlier, twitched at the corner of his mouth. Is this what they called frail and frequently ill?
The list naturally contained the medicinal herbs needed for the Vital Qi Spread, but to be cautious, Su Changkong intentionally added a few unnecessary herbs to the list. This way, he could avoid drawing attention and conceal his true purpose for buying these herbs.
"Alright, the cost of the medicine will be deducted from your reward, and it will be delivered to you in a couple of days."
Cai Tong tucked the note into his chest.
Initially intending to brush Su Changkong off, he almost provoked a major outrage from the people of Black Iron Manor, nearly causing a conflict. To keep the peace and ensure they worked properly, Cai Tong had no choice but to agree. Thankfully, Su Changkong's demands weren't excessive.
With the resources of the White Jade Gang, purchasing some medicinal herbs was a trivial matter!
Afterward, Cai Tong left and informed the disciples guarding the door to notify him if anything happened.
"Sometimes, playing nice just doesn't solve the problem..." Su Changkong was somewhat speechless, but at least he had achieved his goal.
Yang Chao and the others also breathed a sigh of relief. It was a good thing that no real conflict had erupted; otherwise, on White Jade Gang's turf, they could only be at others' mercy!
"Su Changkong's strength is really something. That guy was muscular and likely a martial artist, even clad in heavy iron armor, yet he was sent flying straight into the door by Su!"
At the same time, Yang Chao and the others were amazed at the display of strength Su Changkong had just shown.
However, they merely thought that Su Changkong, being a blacksmith, naturally had greater strength than the average person, including the disciple from the White Jade Gang who had suffered a minor setback at Su's hands, also attributed his loss to being unprepared.
"Let's continue working."
The minor disturbance came to an end, and Su Changkong and the others continued with their work, forging more armor.
The first piece of armor had taken Su Changkong and the twenty others five days to complete, but with previous experience, the following ones were produced much faster. Combining everyone's efforts, it was possible to forge a complete set of armor in just three to four days, or even two to three days.
As for the prior incident, Cai Tong did not shirk his duties towards Su Changkong. Three days later, in the evening, Cai Tong arrived with a package for Su Changkong. He handed over the package, "This is the medicinal herbs you asked for, with a total cost of one hundred taels of silver."
"Hmm, thank you."
A glint of light flashed in Su Changkong's eyes as he took the package from Cai Tong's hands.
Some of the medicinal herbs that were hard to find on the market could be easily obtained with the connections of White Jade Gang.
And the cost of the medicine was deducted from Su Changkong's compensation.
As dusk fell and it was time to rest, the busy workers went to eat and take a break.
The routine at the White Jade Gang wasn't much different from that at Black Iron Manor; work every day, knock off on time. However, the food at White Jade Gang was a notch above Black Iron Manor's, after all, they had deep pockets!
After dinner and practicing the Five Animal Frolics for a while, Su Changkong returned to his living quarters and opened the package brought by Cai Tong.
In the package were all sorts of separately packaged medicinal herbs, many of which were difficult to obtain on the market.
"Gold Thread Flower one gram, Snake Yan Fruit two grams, Pill Red Grass one and a half grams... Grind them into powder, mix, and take with water."
Following the prescription of the Vital Qi Spread, Su Changkong used a small scale to measure out the required amounts, then took a pestle and ground the herbs into powder in a bowl, stirred in boiling water until evenly mixed, and his muddy bowl of medicine was ready.
"This smell... it's a bit pungent."
Upon smelling it, Su Changkong found the smell very pungent, the whole bowl of medicine showing a dark color.
Gulp!
Without much hesitation, Su Changkong tilted his head back and downed it all in one gulp!