Chapter Five: Uzsteel, Marrying a Wife?
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The cavalry saber was one of the most suitable close-combat weapons for cavalry, its lethality far surpassing the knives and swords of this era. Li Xiao had crafted the cavalry saber, and once it proved effective on future battlefields, it was bound to be imitated by others and rival factions. After all, there were no patents back then; anyone could immediately discern the shape of the saber.
Did Li Xiao not worry that enemies might use the same weapon against him? Using their own tactics against them?
Of course not! How could Li Xiao allow such a vulnerability? He wasn’t afraid of others forging cavalry sabers!
Because the cavalry saber’s structure differed slightly from other battle knives—it had a narrower, thinner blade. Moreover, when clashing blades with an opponent, the saber’s stress points differed, resulting in greater pressure on the cavalry saber.
If forged with ordinary steel, the saber would be nothing but a useless blade, breaking after only a few uses.
The true secret of the cavalry saber lay not in the blade itself, but in the material used— a special kind of steel!
“Is this cavalry saber forged from Uzis steel?” The old man said calmly and with certainty upon seeing Li Xiao.
Every blacksmith knew of Uzis steel. It had existed long ago, dating back to when Emperor Wu of Han sent Zhang Qian to the Western Regions, partly to ally with the Greater Yuezhi against the Xiongnu, and partly to acquire the Western Region’s refined metal—Uzis steel.
Uzis steel was produced by a humble tribe in southern India and was among the strongest steels in the world.
It also bore the famous name Damascus steel!
The Indians sold Uzis steel to Damascus, where local craftsmen forged blades known as Damascus swords.
With the centuries-long Crusades, the fame of Damascus swords spread worldwide.
Yet only a rare few pieces of Uzis steel were sold outside.
Thus, Damascus swords were scarce, and in the Western Regions and Central Plains, blades forged from Uzis steel were even rarer.
Its rarity was almost comparable to weapons forged from meteorite iron—true legendary blades.
The old man recognized the iron block Li Xiao held because he had once forged a Uzis steel blade for the Kül Khan while serving the royal court alongside his father in his youth.
Li Xiao immediately praised, “Grandfather, you truly are the finest blacksmith master in the Northern Frontier—recognizing Uzis steel at a glance.”
“Impressive, impressive.”
Seeing Li Xiao give a thumbs-up and joke, the old man snorted lightly, unimpressed.
In a calm voice, he said, “Uzis steel’s hardness is several times that of ordinary steel. It took considerable effort to forge this cavalry saber.”
The old man walked ahead with his hands behind his back, composed on the surface but far from calm inside.
What baffled him was that such precious Uzis steel had been forged by his own grandson.
About ten days ago, Li Xiao had gathered a heap of hematite from the river, stoked a furnace in the backyard, and prepared to smelt the ore with his two younger brothers.
The old man had paid little attention and did not intervene, thinking the three boys were just fooling around, venting their restless energy.
But to his astonishment, Li Xiao had actually extracted pure iron.
And after the old man forged it, he found it was no ordinary pure iron—it was the legendary Uzis steel!
The pinnacle of steel!
The old man’s shock at the time was unimaginable.
Uzis steel’s rarity meant it was priceless and extremely scarce in the Northern Frontier.
Every ingot was immediately bought by powerful nobles in the royal court at high prices to be forged into heirloom weapons.
He could not fathom how such rare Uzis steel had been produced by his grandson.
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And it was forged right under his watchful eye—there was no way it had been purchased; the Li family could never afford Uzis steel.
“This Uzis steel is indeed difficult to forge. Thank you for your hard work, Grandfather,” Li Xiao said gratefully.
“It wasn’t so much hard work as surprising—you actually found a way to forge Uzis steel,” the old man replied.
Forging weapons from Uzis steel was every blacksmith’s dream.
Whoever invented the forging method would hold a status in the blacksmithing world comparable to the legendary Ou Yezi.
Yet this goal, pursued for countless years by Central Plains smiths, had been achieved by his fifteen-year-old eldest grandson.
The old man was deeply moved but restrained his emotions to maintain his usual calm demeanor.
“I grew up watching you forge iron many times—it looked so arduous and complicated,” Li Xiao said.
“A few days ago, I happened to think about smelting iron using a crucible to hold molten iron.”
“Just trying it out, I didn’t expect it to actually work.” Li Xiao smiled with genuine surprise.
In truth, in his previous life stationed at the border, Li Xiao had often read various books—martial arts novels, geography magazines, historical records, and even many books on advanced technology.
These had been deeply imprinted in his mind, perhaps because of the time-travel effect.
The forging method for Uzis steel was something Li Xiao had found in one of those books.
The crucial and most mysterious step was using a crucible made of clay and graphite to contain the molten iron.
Then adding coke and leaves from certain plants, sealing the crucible and heating it to about 1,200 degrees Celsius.
After a day, it was cooled to around 800 degrees while iron filings replaced carbon in the molten iron.
The process was simple but required meticulous attention to detail; failing any step would ruin the entire batch.
Li Xiao and his two brothers experimented many times before finally producing this piece of Uzis steel.
Though its hardness and toughness did not match industrial-era steel, it was far stronger than contemporary steels.
“Grandfather, let’s forge Uzis steel again tomorrow.”
“We lacked experience last time and wasted quite a bit of ore.”
“This time, with you watching, I’m sure we’ll succeed on the first try.”
“Eventually, we’ll forge more Uzis steel to replace the weapons of Dad, Second Uncle, and even others in our village.”
“If the Geluolu people dare to cause trouble in Xihe Fort, we’ll make sure they don’t return.”
Li Xiao said confidently.
He did not keep the forging method secret.
After all, he was not a professional blacksmith; hiding the technique was useless. Only by passing it to skilled smiths could it reach its full potential.
Besides enhancing his own combat and survival abilities on future battlefields, Li Xiao wanted to add safety for those around him.
Imagine the young men of Hexi Fort—and even all the Han people in the Northern Frontier—each armed with Uzis steel weapons.
In battle, they could easily sever the enemy’s blades.
At that moment, even the famed Mongol cavalry would meet a tragic end facing such an army.
Of course, Li Xiao only shared the forging method with the old man and a few trusted smiths.
They would personally produce the Uzis steel.
Henceforth, it would become the Li family’s closely guarded secret.
“Yes, that’s fine. It’s late now, and it looks like rain. We’ll forge tomorrow,” the old man said calmly with a slight nod.
He then entered the house casually, took the main seat, and waited for dinner.
Li Xiao sat on his stool, a faint smile tugging at his lips as he glanced at the old man.
“You proud little old man.”
Though eager to learn the forging method, the old man’s pride prevented him from asking his grandson.
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His heart must have felt like claws scratching inside.
Li Xiao understood the old man’s pride, so he didn’t put him on the spot, instead taking the initiative to suggest forging Uzis steel together the next day.
In this way, he discreetly taught the old man the method.
If not, the old man would be too embarrassed to ask, and surely wouldn’t sleep that night.
“Dinner’s ready!”
Soon after Li Xiao and the old man sat down, a voice called from the kitchen.
A middle-aged woman appeared carrying a large basin, followed by a little girl holding a stack of bowls and chopsticks.
“Mother, you’re back?” Li Xiao exclaimed in surprise.
The woman appeared in her thirties, tall and slender, with a slightly yellowish complexion and faint crow’s feet around her eyes.
She wore a headscarf and an apron around her waist, and her manner of speaking and moving was brisk and efficient.
This was Li Xiao’s mother, Qin Dani!
Early this morning, Qin Dani had gone to visit her family thirty miles away; Li Xiao had expected her to spend the night there.
Qin Dani set the wooden basin down on the table with a clang and poked Li Xiao’s forehead, feigning anger. “You little brat, didn’t want me to come back, huh?”
“This is my home. I come and go as I please—what business is it of yours?”
Seeing Qin Dani’s demeanor, Er Hu and San Bao, who had just sat down to eat, instinctively ducked their heads.
Li Xiao smiled wryly, guessing his mother must have quarreled with his aunt at her parents’ house, so much so she didn’t want to stay overnight.
Thus, Li Xiao and his two brothers exchanged glances, took the bowls of noodles from their youngest sister, and quietly ate without a word.
As for Qin Dani, she was too upset to eat and continued complaining to the old lady about how things had gone at her family’s house, how her sister-in-law had made her miserable.
“I just wanted to bring some things to my parents—what’s wrong with that?”
“She’s worried about the village gossip, but does she even take good care of our parents?”
“If she doesn’t like me, well, I don’t like her either!”
While Qin Dani vented, the youngest sister San Feng played the role of a sympathetic listener, acting like a caring little jacket, and the old lady occasionally chimed in.
Li Xiao and his brothers, along with the old man, silently kept their heads down, saying nothing.
“But it’s not because of her that I came back. Grandma saw the rain coming and wanted me to stay home overnight.”
“But today I felt uneasy all day, afraid something might happen, so I hurried back,” Qin Dani said solemnly to her little jacket before turning her serious gaze on Li Xiao and his brothers.
“Good thing you three rascals didn’t cause me any trouble, or I’d skin you alive.”
Hearing this, Er Hu and San Bao shook their heads rapidly.
Li Xiao smiled helplessly. “Mother, don’t worry. I’m watching over them—they won’t cause trouble.”
“That’s why I’m not at ease! All those past messes were caused by you and those two idiots.”
Li Xiao smiled bitterly. “Mother, as you said, that was the past. Now I’m grown up and more responsible.”
His words fell on deaf ears—no scolding came.
Instead, Qin Dani sat across from him, eyes sparkling as she appraised him up and down.
Then suddenly smiled and turned to the old lady, saying, “Mother, Da Long is already fifteen this year. He’s grown up and should start thinking about marriage.”
Hearing this, Li Xiao almost spat out his food, barely holding back laughter.
Well then—here it comes!