Sheng Tang: What is Liu Jianjun going to do today?

Chapter 45 Liu Jianjun wants to make a strange basin

The mighty general is so pitiful.

but……

It's so delicious.

Li Xian ate with his mouth full of rich chicken soup, and even felt that he had never eaten anything so delicious when he was the crown prince.

He finally understood why Liu Jianjun was so picky about food.

If he ate such delicious food every day, he wouldn't be used to eating anything else.

"Liu Jianjun, how did you make such delicious food?" Li Xian asked, his mouth full of chicken, his words muffled.

"Eat quickly, and then come with me to the market."

"You don't want to eat?"

"I finished eating a long time ago. This is what's left for you. Can't you see there's only one chicken leg here?"

Li Xian: "..."

He, the Prince of Pei, the former crown prince, when has he ever eaten leftovers?!
Despite feeling deeply indignant, Li Xian honestly finished the entire can of chicken.

Because this is the last ripple of the mighty general.

Looking at the empty pottery jar, Li Xian felt a little reluctant, but he didn't forget his business. He put down his chopsticks and asked, "What are we going to the market for?"

"Let's buy something." Liu Jianjun stood up. "Alright, leave the tableware here and let the servants collect it. Where is the best blacksmith shop in Chang'an?"

"East Market, Ironworks."

……

The East Market of Chang'an City is one of the two major commercial centers in Chang'an City. The only market that can rival it is the West Market, which is famous for its foreign trade.

The East Market has centralized trading areas categorized by industry, called "Hang," among which "Iron Hang" is a street specializing in the manufacture and sale of ironware.

The entire East Market has 220 trades, with ironwork being an important category. It not only sells everyday items such as nails and tools, but can also undertake weapons processing, except for those officially controlled by the government.

After Li Xian led Liu Jianjun to the East Market Ironworks, Liu Jianjun moved like an eel among the blacksmith shops of all sizes.

Li Xian was curious about what Liu Jianjun was going to prepare to receive Taiping and Li Xian, and what kind of things he was looking for among these blacksmith shops. Then, he saw Liu Jianjun stop in front of a blacksmith shop.

Li Xian followed and found Liu Jianjun gesturing and talking to the blacksmith, saying, "I want to forge one this big, a bit deep, about half a foot deep..."

The old craftsman frowned, clearly having never heard of what Liu Jianjun was talking about. After a long pause, he tentatively asked, "A basin?"

"Um...more or less, just make it like the basin, but make me a copper strip in the middle to separate it, like this." Liu Jianjun said, while gesturing a curved line in the air.

Li Xian also looked completely bewildered.

He didn't know what Liu Jianjun was gesturing about.

But the blacksmith seemed to understand Liu Jianjun's words, and suddenly realized, "Oh! The customer means to make a basin shaped like a yin-yang fish!"

Liu Jianjun clapped his hands and exclaimed in delight, "That's it! Just remove those two fish eyes and leave the copper strip in the middle. How much will that cost... Oh, and use the best brass! Money's no object!"

Just then, Liu Jianjun saw Li Xian following him over, walked over, and gestured, urging, "Pay up, pay up!"

The blacksmith glanced at Li Xian. Although Li Xian was only dressed in casual clothes, he was clearly a wealthy and influential person. Therefore, he didn't directly ask Liu Jianjun for the deposit, but instead said, "The customer will come back to collect it in two days..."

Before the blacksmith could finish speaking, Liu Jianjun stopped asking Li Xian to pay.

Then he turned his head and widened his eyes: "What the hell? It takes two days to make something like this? Didn't you say you were the best blacksmith in Chang'an?!" The old master immediately explained with a bitter face: "The basin the customer ordered is fine, I can finish it in half an hour, but if a copper strip is added in the middle, it will be much more troublesome!"

At this point, Li Xian roughly understood what Liu Jianjun wanted to attack.

He smiled and explained to the old craftsman, "The copper strip added to the middle of the basin must first be melted and cast, and then hammered together with the bottom of the basin. This process requires both keeping the basin intact and ensuring a tight fit. Two days is already considered fast. Even the imperial craftsmen in the palace can only do this much."

Hearing Li Xian say this, the old master craftsman became even more respectful, repeatedly bowing to Li Xian and saying, "Sir, you are a wise man!"

Liu Jianjun seemed to have figured out the difficulty at this moment, and looked worried: "It's so troublesome, are we supposed to make two pots? But it doesn't look right to have two pots for a table of people... Oh well, never mind, master chef, then we won't use the copper strip in the middle, just do as I just said..."

Before Liu Jianjun could finish speaking, Li Xian interrupted, "Master, do you think we could do this? You can make two half-basins in the shape of the yin-yang fish, then put a copper ring around them and tie them together to form a whole basin. This way, we can save the trouble of melting and casting the copper sheet in the middle..."

Before Li Xian could finish speaking, Liu Jianjun's eyes lit up: "Great job, Xianzi! You've come up with this idea!"

Li Xian glared at him and said with displeasure, "Do you really think I'm a fool?"

At this moment, the blacksmith understood Li Xian's meaning and nodded repeatedly: "This method is brilliant! In this way, I can forge it in just three hours!"

Then he paused, and said apologetically, "It's just... the price of two basins and the price of one basin..."

Li Xian smiled and said, "It's alright, we'll pay the full amount and come back to pick it up later."

"Xianzi is so generous, paying in full right away!" Liu Jianjun flattered.

Li Xian glared at him amusedly, then asked how much the pot cost, before taking out some loose silver from his pocket and handing it over.

The blacksmith took the silver pieces and was about to get a scale to weigh them when Li Xian said, "No need. If there's any left over, just use more materials."

The blacksmith nodded repeatedly in thanks, beaming with joy: "Thank you so much, esteemed guest! I will certainly make it for you first!"

When Li Xian saw Liu Jianjun give him another thumbs up, he was instantly extremely satisfied.

He knew this meant Liu Jianjun was praising him.

……

It would take three hours to break that strange basin, so the two of them naturally wouldn't just wait there.

Liu Jianjun suggested they stroll around the East Market, and Li Xian, having nothing else to do, nodded in agreement.

Then, out of curiosity, he asked, "What are you doing with that strange basin?"

"What basin! That's a pot! Xianzi and Taiping are coming over, right? I'll make you a hot pot then. It's the middle of winter, hot pot is the perfect thing to eat... Never mind, you'll see when the time comes."

After Liu Jianjun finished speaking, he leaned closer and asked, "By the way, could you tell me what their hobbies and interests are? That way I can cater to their interests."

Li Xian said irritably, "What Xianzi? Why aren't you calling him..."

Li Xian paused here, feeling that there were too many people around, so he forcibly swallowed the words "Crown Prince" and continued, "Why do you still call him Xianzi!"

"I don't care about all that, you handle this." Liu Jianjun said shamelessly, "I don't care what your ex-boyfriend is called either, you're quite happy about it, aren't you?"

Liu Jianjun said this and started walking forward.

Li Xian wondered when he had shown any liking for the name Xianzi. Just as he was about to object, he heard Liu Jianjun's excited voice coming from the front: "Quick! Xianzi, what's this?"

Li Xian hurriedly chased after him: "Coming!"

……

(End of this chapter)