“Of course you can.”
Mosaide wasn’t bothered by Wang Chong’s request at all.
Shua! He drew the saber by his waist with his right hand. The instant the saber was drawn, a cold light gleamed forth, circling an entire round around the room. Even the temperature lowered along with the appearance of the light.
The room suddenly turned silent. Wei Hao’s face abruptly darkened.
The saber was even more incredible than the one he saw back then when he was with his father, Duke of Wei!
The Charax Spasinu merchant, Mosaide, wasn’t lying. The saber in his hands was indeed top-notch. Just the cold aura that it emanated wasn’t something an average sword could compare to.
There probably weren’t many swords in the Central Plains that could match up to it.
“Here!”
Mosaide passed the saber over.
“Good saber!”
Wang Chong did not stand on ceremonies. He took Mosaide’s saber and examined it. After his reincarnation, this was the first time he was looking at a top-notch Charax Spasinu saber.
While the Central Plains favored the sword, the Abbasid Caliphate and Charax Spasinu favor sabers. Furthermore, their sabers’ structure were completely different from that in the Central Plains. Firstly, their sabers weren’t long, only around a chi long. Also, their sabers were be bent in the shape of a crescent moon.
33.3cm
Wang Chong didn’t know whether this has something to do with the culture of worshipping the moon there.
The edge of Mosaide’s saber was exceptionally sharp. It could be seen that it was painstakingly crafted and forged. As the saying goes, ‘the onset of autumn could be seen with the fall of a single leaf’. From this saber, one could tell that the weapon forging techniques in the Western Regions were extremely high. In certain aspects, they even surpassed the Central Plains.
Shua, with a flick of Wang Chong’s wrist, the cold gleam flashed through the air. Then, the corner of the table made of the resilient and tough sandalwood was silently cut through.
Kengqiang, the corner of the table fell to the floor.
“A good saber!”
Wang Chong complimented. On the other hand, standing beside him, Wei Hao’s face further darkened.
Holding the saber with both of his hands, he tried swinging it around before returning the saber back.
“Mister Mosaide, how about this, let’s change the rule slightly. Since it is a face-off between a sword and a saber, we should have a rule for the duel. If you emerge victorious, I will pay you how much my sword costs. And if you lose… I don’t need you to pay me the full price of the sword, just 1200 gold taels will do!”
“Wei Hao, I can’t possibly face everyone who comes challenging me one by one. So, let’s just operate by this rule!”
“Wang Chong! ——”
Wei Hao was shocked. With a single glance, it was clear that Mosaide’s saber wasn’t ordinary. He was just about to warn Wang Chong not to accept the challenge at all costs when Wang Chong suddenly proposed such harsh conditions.
“Hahaha, good!”
Mosaide was overjoyed. Regardless of what Wang Chong proposed, as long as he agreed to face off with him, 1200 gold taels didn’t mean much. Most of the merchants in Charax Spasinu were skilled and possessed massive wealth. As long as he could achieve his aim here, Mosaide didn’t really care about this ‘little tip’.
Also, Wang Chong’s conditions were clearly sided toward him. He didn’t have to pay the other party’s for his sword if he lost, and if he won… It’s been long since Mosaide had met with someone who could triumph against his saber.
In fact, Mosaide hoped that Wang Chong would win. This way, he could buy an even better sword!
“However, there’s one more thing. I am unable to duel with you right now. It can only be held seven days from now!”
Wang Chong said.
“That’s not a big issue, don’t worry about it!”
Mosaide chuckled, not paying much heed to it. As long as Wang Chong was willing to accept his request, he didn’t mind waiting seven days for it:
“Right, there’s one thing that I am interested about. When I entered, I saw a huge pile of metal at your doorstep. May I know what it is used for? Back in Charax Spasinu, we don’t have such a custom.”
“Hehe, you will know about it in seven days’ time.”
Wang Chong chuckled before turning around to leave.
“Right, if you don’t mind, I hope to hang my Charax Spasinu Saber on the pavilion alongside yours. Is that okay?”
Before Wang Chong could get far, Mosaide’s words rang from his back. Slyness could be heard from his tone. The reason why he came to the Central Plains wasn’t just to compete with the swords of others!
Wang Chong burst into laughter. It was exactly as he expected! These weapon merchants from the Abbasid Caliphate and Charax Spasinu would make use of all chances to showcase their weapons and advertise themselves.
However, Mosaide didn’t know that he had fallen right for Wang Chong’s plan.
Wang Chong was waiting for him to propose such an idea.
“Of course you can!”
Leaving that word behind, Wang Chong left the room.
…
“Wang Chong, you’re insane! Do you know that a huge problem will result from this?”
Wei Hao hurriedly ran out from the room, caught up with Wang Chong, and reprimanded him anxiously.
“If you base it on the price of your sword, do you know how much it will cost? 2400 taels! No, it’s 4800 taels! If you win, you earn less than half of the money, and if you lose, you’ll make such a huge loss. What are you thinking of?”
“You don’t even know whether you can rake up that 90000 gold taels for the Hyderabad ores, and the deadline for the 1700 gold tales that you borrowed in the Eight Gods Pavilion was approaching soon. Yet, you are still making such a challenge now ——You’re bringing a huge calamity to your clan, do you know that?”
Wei Hao angrily scolded with a flushed face.
When Wang Chong tested out Mosaide’s saber, it was clear that it was sharper than the saber which his father had bought from the Western Region trader. Wang Chong had clearly seen the strength of the other party’s weapon with his own eyes, but he still chose to accept the challenge. Wei Hao simply couldn’t understand the rationale behind his actions.
The reason why he promised to help Wang Chong by offering a spot in the Bluebottle Pavilion to advertise and sell his Wootz steel sword was because he wanted to give him a helping hand to earn money.