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The news of the Crown Prince, missing for half a year, being found had caused a temporary stir but had soon faded into the background.
People had their own lives to lead, especially during these challenging times when even putting food on the table was a struggle. There was little room to concern themselves with the affairs of the wealthy families in the capital.
Shen Rong and a few other young men from the Shen family continued their studies at the local school under Shen Rong’s guidance, preparing for the upcoming imperial examination scheduled for August.
Before they could take the imperial examination, they had to pass the county-level examination and the prefectural-level examination.
The Shen family had no need to worry about the education of these young boys. They hailed from humble backgrounds, and when given the opportunity to learn, they took it seriously.
Moreover, if there were any subjects they struggled with at the town school, they could always rely on Shen Rong and Ji Xun for extra guidance.
Meanwhile, Song Shi and Zhao Shi managed the paper mill, and Xiao Zhang, having recovered her health, took on the role of the household’s accountant.
The elderly members of the family were delighted to spend their days doting on their grandchildren.
In recent days, Shen Yu’an had been busy with a new endeavor—attempting to smelt steel and manufacture weapons, an area where she excelled.
In the end, Fei Yanchen was someone she looked after, and there was no reason to let him go to the capital and be mistreated by others.
During her previous trip to the mountain, she had seen Fei Yanchen’s soldiers and the weapons they carried. While these weapons were considered decent for their time, they paled in comparison to the weapons she had stored in her spatial pocket for display.
In the Great Wei, soldiers primarily wielded weapons made of bronze and iron, as these were the most common materials for weapons in this era. However, weapons made from these materials were prone to blunting.
To put it simply, if even their weapons went dull during a straightforward battle, there wouldn’t be much left to fight for. Surrendering would be the only option.
Of course, it would be even better if they could produce steel. Even if they couldn’t achieve that, refining their iron weapons would still be an improvement.
The problem was, to make steel, they needed iron, and Shen Yu’an didn’t have any!
Though she had some connections with the General’s Manor, if she were to request iron, they might become suspicious about her intentions.
If someone reported her, there would be nowhere left for her to turn.
After much consideration, Shen Yu’an decided to reach out to Fei Yanchen.
Even though he wasn’t currently present, the group he had gathered during this time was still stationed in the mountains behind Longxian Village.
The mountain range behind Longxian Village was vast and immense, and to this day, no one had been able to traverse the entire range.
In the past, there had been hunters who ventured deeper into the mountains in search of bears and other game, but none of them had returned alive. As a result, over time, people had become too afraid to venture deep into the mountains.
This situation conveniently aligned with Fei Yanchen’s strategy of hiding people within the mountain range.
One day, after lunch, Shen Yu’an used the pretext of going hunting in the mountains to secretly make her way to Fei Yanchen’s headquarters.
She still remembered the path she had taken during her previous visit, but halfway there, she encountered a foolish deer by a stream and ended up deviating from her original route.
Seeing the foolish deer lower its head to drink from the stream, Shen Yu’an retrieved a compact crossbow from her spatial pocket. She had just observed that this deer was well-fed and robust, weighing at least a few hundred pounds. It would make a substantial meal for Fei Yanchen’s brothers once she brought it back to the camp.
The unsuspecting foolish deer continued to drink water, completely unaware of the danger lurking behind it, enjoying its leisurely moment.
Swoosh!
In just a few seconds, a compact crossbow bolt, only about twenty centimeters long, flew from the crossbow and struck the deer’s neck.
Thud!
The foolish deer fell to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Shen Yu’an retrieved the crossbow into her spatial pocket and approached the fallen foolish deer. She bent down to examine the wound on the deer’s neck. Perfect! The crossbow bolt was firmly embedded in the flesh, without even a drop of blood leaking out.
She lifted the deer from the ground and intended to continue her journey up the mountain. However, while dragging the deer, a stone rolled out from underneath it, catching Shen Yu’an’s attention.
It was a stone that appeared to be a dark red color.
Shen Yu’an bent down, picked it up, and examined it in her hand. A daring idea began to take shape in her mind.
Looking at the seemingly ordinary “stone” in her hand, Shen Yu’an couldn’t contain her excitement. After using her powers to ensure that no one was nearby, she carried the “stone” into her spatial pocket.
Once inside her spatial pocket, Shen Yu’an quickly located a dusty detection device. Fortunately, the device was still operational. Shen Yu’an eagerly placed the “stone” she had brought inside it.
After a lengthy wait, the instrument finally completed its analysis, revealing the true nature of the material.
It was an unrefined iron ore.
The sudden appearance of an iron ore in the mountains strongly suggested that there was an iron deposit nearby!
Shen Yu’an, clutching the iron ore, exited her spatial pocket and stood beside a large tree. She began to extend her psychic power outward in all directions.
At this point, her psychic power could cover an area of up to two hundred meters around her. However, the mountain range was vast, and even with her psychic power pushed to its limits, she couldn’t locate the mining site.
Shen Yu’an had complete faith in her sixth sense.
She followed the direction of the largest magnetic field disturbance, which happened to be opposite to Fei Yanchen’s base.
As she walked, she used her psychic power to scout ahead, following the magnetic attraction that drew her in.
After walking for about an hour, Shen Yu’an came across a trench approximately two meters deep. Without hesitation, she jumped in.
This was the place.
Shen Yu’an took out a shovel and began to dig into the mountainside.
She dug and dug, sweat pouring down her face as she worked tirelessly. Finally, after a lot of effort, she struck something exceptionally hard. Her shovel couldn’t make a dent in it.
Shen Yu’an had already dug a one-meter-deep hole into the mountainside.
Shen Yu’an carefully used her psychic power to inspect the surroundings, ensuring that there was no one nearby. Then, she took out a high-powered flashlight and extended her body into the hole.
She saw the dark red substance mixed in with the mountain soil, identical to the piece she had found earlier.
Shen Yu’an thought to herself that it was just as she had suspected. She slowly backed out of the hole.
It seemed like she had gotten what she wished for. She had been thinking about trying to refine iron to a purer form, making weapons with even greater killing power. She had been worried about not having enough iron, and now, it seemed like a solution had presented itself.
She tried to use her psychic power to explore further into the mine, but the mine was so vast that even she couldn’t cover it all alone.
Shen Yu’an had no intention of reporting this to the imperial court on her own. This kind of good fortune was definitely meant to be shared and cooperated on with her dear Ah’Chen.
Although very few people ventured into these deep mountains, and the spot she had dug was in a two-meter-deep trench, Shen Yu’an still gathered some wild grass to cover the entrance of the hole.
After inspecting the area inside and out and finding no signs of exposure, Shen Yu’an left a psychic mark in that spot and departed.
After Fei Yanchen left, he decided to leave Fei Xi behind. Fei Dong had reservations about this decision initially because Fei Xi didn’t seem particularly bright.
Because she had gone quite a distance, it took her some time to return to the camp.
Ever since Shen Yu’an had demonstrated her abilities in front of Fei Yanchen’s subordinates last time, most of the people in the camp had gotten to know her.
As a small team patrolling the area spotted Shen Yu’an approaching, they quickly welcomed her and asked, “Miss Shen, what brings you here?”
Before their master returned to the capital, he had instructed them to treat Shen Yu’an with the same respect they showed him.
What did it mean to treat her with the same attitude as their master?
It meant that she was their future mistress!
Moreover, Shen Yu’an’s display of her abilities on that day had truly impressed these spirited young individuals. So when they saw her approaching, they eagerly welcomed her, showering her with attention.