"Bring the blades!" Teng Yongfan commanded, and the clansmen one by one unslung the cloth bundles from their backs, drawing out bundles of Bihan Swords from the animal hide wrappings.

The stacks of Bihan Swords thudded onto the ground with a low resonance. The cavalry leader, seated in his chair, glanced down at the swords with haughty disdain. "Old Zhang, inspect every single one of these Bihan Swords thoroughly. Prevent these mountain folk from passing off inferior goods!"

"Yes, my lord," a tall, middle-aged man strode forward, simultaneously calling out to the others, "Come over here, everyone, look at every blade carefully."

The ropes were undone, clank! The Bihan Swords scattered across the floor.

The guards, one by one, picked up the Bihan Swords to examine them closely. The swords emitted a faint green light along their entire length, and gripping the hilt brought a wave of coolness; the edges were razor-sharp—definitely fine blades.

"My lord," Old Zhang tossed a Bihan Sword to the cavalry leader.

The leader caught the Bihan Sword, scrutinized it for a moment, and nodded slightly. "They seem acceptable enough. I wonder how they perform in use."

"My lords, please rest assured," Teng Yongfan said with a confident smile. "Before every single Bihan Sword was delivered, we rigorously tested them. No Bihan Sword ever sold by our Teng Family Village has ever been substandard."

"Hmph, we'll know after inspection," the cavalry leader glanced at Old Zhang, who understood the unspoken instruction immediately.

"Bring the timber," the guard named 'Old Zhang' called out loudly.

Large bundles of firewood were carried in and dumped directly onto the ground, scattering wood everywhere.

"Use the Bihan Swords to chop this timber, one by one, and test them," Old Zhang instructed.

The guards began hacking wantonly at the timber with the Bihan Swords. The logs split open cleanly at every strike, and not a single blade curled its edge. Seeing this, Teng Yongfan merely sneered inwardly; the unique craftsmanship of the Bihan Sword was the result of millennia of refinement by the ancestors of the Teng Family Village—how could it possibly be flawed?

"Hm?" The cavalry leader suddenly stood up, took a Bihan Sword from a guard's hand, and gently stroked the edge with his right hand. Immediately, his expression darkened.

A jolt of dread went through the contingent from the Teng Family Village.

"What is this? How is the edge of this blade curled?" The cavalry leader roared with fury, violently tossing the Bihan Sword aside. It landed with a clang directly in front of Teng Qingshan and the others.

"How is that possible?" Teng Yongfan hurriedly picked it up.

The clansmen around him looked and confirmed it: the Bihan Sword's edge was indeed curled.

Teng Yongfan’s face drained of color.

According to the agreement drawn up, any quality issue would lead to serious trouble.

"Impossible, absolutely impossible," Teng Yongfan shook his head frantically, panic etched on his face. "I inspected every single one myself. How could this happen?"

"Impossible," the leader sneered.

"My lord!" Teng Qingshan's voice suddenly rang out, astonishingly loud, carrying for what seemed like hundreds of feet. The cavalry leader’s expression shifted, and he snarled, "Boy, lower your voice! You're disturbing the great master resting ahead. All of you can prepare to rot in prison."

Teng Qingshan was nearly ten years old, appearing just as a youth.

"My lord, do you perhaps possess inner force? The legendary Neijin?" Teng Qingshan looked at the leader with an expression of envy and excitement.

The leader froze.

"Just now, when you touched that Bihan Sword, the sharp edge..." Teng Qingshan didn't finish his sentence before the leader's face twisted with sudden anger, and he bellowed, "Silence, brat!"

Innocence bloomed on Teng Qingshan's face, but a cold smile played in his heart. Others might not have seen it, but Teng Qingshan’s Six Senses were incredibly acute; he had clearly noticed that the perfectly intact blade had curled the moment the leader ran his hand over the edge. In fact, Teng Qingshan could have done the same thing.

Applying the subtle force of inner energy laterally against the blade edge—it would inevitably curl. Teng Qingshan realized the leader was clearly intending to default on the payment under false pretenses, turning the tables on them.

"What is going on here?" A voice sounded, and a group emerged from the manor. Leading them was a middle-aged man dressed in black fur robes, his complexion fair, clearly someone accustomed to luxury. Beside him was an adorable girl playfully clad in white mink fur, sporting two small braids. Behind them followed two servants and two personal bodyguards.

"Master," the assembly in the courtyard immediately bowed low.

"Oh, the Bihan Swords have arrived? Since they’re here, pay them quickly and send them away. Why all the racket!" the middle-aged man said, frowning slightly.

"Yes, Master," the leader replied.

"Hey, Qin San, what were you arguing about?" The mischievous young girl asked, batting her large eyes curiously, then turned her gaze toward the Teng clan members clad in animal skins.

The cavalry leader bowed deeply. "Miss, it’s like this: we placed an order with them, and they delivered. We were just inspecting the goods... however, one of the Bihan Swords is of very poor quality; its edge even curled when chopping wood." Hearing this, the lovely girl looked at Teng Qingshan and his group, furrowed her brow, and scoffed, "A Bihan Sword that costs one hundred and fifty taels apiece—that expensive—and it curls chopping wood? How can we accept such weaponry!"

Teng Qingshan, Teng Yongfan, and the others were stunned.

One hundred and fifty taels per sword?

But the price the cavalry leader had agreed upon was only one hundred silver taels per sword, and now it seemed he didn't even intend to pay the remaining balance.

"Qin San, how are the other Bihan Swords?" the fair-complexioned middle-aged man asked indifferently.

"The other Bihan Swords are fine," the cavalry leader said quickly. "But I haven't examined them closely yet."

"Qin Da, go take a look," the middle-aged man instructed.

One of the two personal bodyguards behind him immediately walked toward the Bihan Swords, shooting a pointed look at the cavalry leader. He picked up a sword, casually twirled it a few times, then turned back. "Master, these Bihan Swords are quite good. For the general guards to use, they are definitely sufficient."

"Very well, Qin San, hand over the silver and get them out of here quickly. Making such a fuss, it’s unsightly," the middle-aged man stated coldly, then turned to his daughter beside him. "Yu'er, let's go. We are scheduled to visit your Uncle Liu today; arriving late would be improper."

"Yes, Father."

The cute young girl glanced curiously at Teng Qingshan and his group, then left with the middle-aged man.

The guard named 'Qin Da' approached the cavalry leader and spoke in a low voice. "Third Junior Brother, don't be greedy over every piece of silver. These people don't earn money easily. If this escalates and the Master gets angry, don't blame your Senior Brother for not helping you." With that, 'Qin Da' followed the Master out.

"Not giving me any face at all," the cavalry leader muttered hatefully after the group left. "Senior Brother this, Senior Brother that. Damn it, he always looks down on me. Once I reach the sixth layer, I won't have to worry about his moods."

He then shot a cold glance at Teng Yongfan and his group.

"You mountain folk, one of your Bihan Swords is curled. Still, I can’t be bothered to argue with you. Old Zhang, give them ten thousand silver notes and send them packing." the cavalry leader ordered.

Teng Qingshan frowned upon hearing this.

Ten thousand taels?

The final payment for this consignment was supposed to be ten thousand and two hundred silver taels. With a single word from the cavalry leader, two hundred taels were being withheld. Two hundred taels was no small sum. Considering the profit margin for the Teng Family Village, after accounting for labor and other expenses, the earnings were slim, and those two hundred taels were essential.

"My Lord..." Teng Yongfan was about to speak.

"Hmph," the cavalry leader's eyes turned icy. "One sword curled today, and I'm not even charging you for it. If you babble any more nonsense, watch out or I'll cripple you. Get out!"

At that moment, Old Zhang took out ten thousand silver notes and handed them to Teng Yongfan.

Teng Yongfan took the notes, examined them carefully, then said in a low voice, "Let's go!" Although the men of the Teng Family Village had spirit, they weren't foolish enough to bash their heads against a rock. Sacrificing everyone for two hundred taels wasn't worth it. They swallowed their anger and left the jurisdiction of the Yangzhou Commerce Guild.

Once outside the Yangzhou Commerce Guild premises, the Teng clansmen could no longer restrain their curses.

"That Qin San fellow, what a piece of work! Charging one hundred fifty taels per sword, but only paying one hundred. Today he was ready to withhold the money altogether," Teng Qinghu cursed angrily. "If Qingshan hadn't spoken loudly enough to attract the attention of that Master, that Qin San probably wouldn't have even paid the balance!"

Teng Yongfan looked toward Teng Qingshan with a smile. "Qingshan, why did you think of drawing the Master's attention?"

"I was desperate, so I shouted," Teng Qingshan replied with a smile. "I saw it with my own eyes, the cavalry leader touched the edge, and it curled right up." Although Teng Qingshan said this, in reality, he had deliberately spoken loudly to attract the notice of the surrounding major salt merchants.

Even if he hadn't managed to draw the attention of the Master of that manor, drawing the attention of any nearby major salt merchant would have counted as a success!

Teng Yongfan and Teng Qinghu, having lived in the village their whole lives, didn't fully grasp the mindset of those great salt merchants.

But Teng Qingshan, having been a super-assassin in his previous life, understood the psychology of the ultra-wealthy, upper echelon. For those people, money was a minor issue; reputation and 'face' were paramount. If word got out... that a certain major salt merchant had gotten into a dispute with a group of mountain folk over a trivial sum of money, that merchant would surely become a laughingstock. Therefore, regardless of the cost, within the confines of the Yangzhou Commerce Guild, that salt merchant could never afford to argue with them over such a small amount of silver.

"Regardless, this time ended without major incident," Teng Yongfan chuckled. "Qingshan, since this is your first time visiting Yicheng since growing up, before we head back, I'll take you somewhere. I need to buy a few things there myself."

"Where?" Teng Qingshan asked with some curiosity.

"The Myriad Manifestations Tower," Teng Yongfan replied.

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