The morning of the fifteenth day began with raised voices.
I woke to the sound of my father shouting—not in anger, but in the desperate tone of a man who'd run out of options and was now grasping at increasingly absurd solutions.
"We could hire mercenaries from Frost Wolf territory. Offer them a percentage of future profits—"
"With what contract?" My eldest sister's voice cut through sharply. "Who would enforce such an agreement? The moment they realize we're worthless, they'll either leave or simply take what they want by force."
"Then what do you suggest, Huiyue?" Father's frustration was palpable even through the walls. "Should we simply kneel before that snake Bai Wuchang and beg for mercy?"
Silence. Then my mother's quieter voice: "Perhaps... perhaps we should consider his proposal. For Huiyue's marriage. If it would save the clan—"
"No." My father's voice was steel. "I will not sell my daughter to that villain. There must be another way."
I sat up slowly, my body still protesting the movement but less violently than before. Two weeks of gradual recovery had made a noticeable difference. I could sit up without help now, even stand for short periods without feeling like my legs would give out.
Liu Ruyan entered moments later, as if she'd been waiting just outside for signs of movement. Her timing was always impeccable.
"The family council is... intense this morning," she observed quietly as she helped me into my robes. "Your father received another letter from the Blood Serpent Gang yesterday evening. They've moved up their visit."
My hands stilled. "Moved it up? To when?"
"One week from today. Instead of two."
Seven days. We'd just lost half our preparation time.
"Why the change?"
"The letter said that Bai Wuchang has other business in the region and wishes to 'settle accounts' sooner." Liu Ruyan's expression was grim. "But the servants who brought the message were making threats. Talking about what happens to families who default on debts."
I closed my eyes, running through calculations. Seven days wasn't enough time to implement the forge improvements I'd been planning with Wenxuan. We'd barely begun documenting the current processes, much less testing modifications.
*Think. There has to be another approach.*
"Is Wenxuan awake?"
"He's been in the library since before dawn, working on the financial analyses you requested."
"Good. And my eldest sister—is she available?"
Liu Ruyan looked surprised. "Lady Huiyue? She's preparing to leave for Frostfang Town this morning. She has meetings with merchants to try securing advance payments on future orders."
"Can you ask her to delay for one hour? Tell her... tell her I have information that might affect her negotiations."
"少主, are you certain? Lady Huiyue is very focused on her work. She may not appreciate—"
"Then tell her I'm dying again and want to see my sister one last time," I said dryly. "Everyone expects me to be on death's door anyway. Might as well use it."
Liu Ruyan's lips twitched in what might have been a suppressed smile. "As you wish, 少主."
After she left, I pulled up the Memory Treasure Vault interface. Seven days. I needed to accelerate the timeline, which meant taking bigger risks.
*Query: Rapid metallurgical improvements achievable within one week using medieval Chinese technology and minimal capital investment.*
The information came in a focused stream, and with it, the now-familiar ache behind my eyes. But the system's integration was high enough—currently at 71%—that I could process the data without a nosebleed.
The answer was both encouraging and daunting. Yes, there were improvements that could be implemented quickly. But they required precise execution, and any failure would waste the limited time and resources we had left.
*It's a gamble,* I thought. *But we're already gambling. At least this way the odds might be slightly less terrible.*
**[MEMORY TREASURE VAULT]**
**DAILY SEARCHES REMAINING: 2/3**
**INTEGRATION STATUS: 72% COMPLETE**
**STRATEGIC ASSESSMENT: HIGH-RISK, HIGH-REWARD SCENARIO DETECTED**
**RECOMMENDATION: PROCEED WITH CAUTION**
Liu Ruyan returned within twenty minutes, accompanied by my eldest sister.
Tie Huiyue was twenty-two but carried herself with the authority of someone a decade older. She was dressed for travel in practical riding clothes, her hair bound in a tight bun, a leather satchel over one shoulder. Everything about her posture said she was a woman with places to be and no time for delays.
Her eyes swept over me with the sharp assessment of someone used to evaluating assets and liabilities. I saw her catalog my appearance—the pallor, the thinness, the way I sat carefully to avoid straining weak muscles—and dismiss me as a concern to be managed later.
"Hanxing." Her tone was brisk but not unkind. "Liu Ruyan said you needed to speak with me urgently. I have perhaps thirty minutes before I must leave."
"That should be sufficient, Elder Sister. Please, sit."
She remained standing. "I prefer to stand. What information do you have that affects my negotiations?"
Direct. No social niceties. I could work with that.
"You're going to Frostfang Town to secure advance payments on future weapon orders," I said. "Probably offering significant discounts in exchange for immediate payment."
Her eyes narrowed slightly. "How did you know that?"
"Because it's the logical move when you need immediate liquidity. But Elder Sister, what will you do when those merchants receive their orders three months from now and discover the quality is... adequate but not competitive?"
"We've been selling adequate weapons for years. The merchants know what they're buying."
"Yes, and they pay accordingly. Bottom-tier prices for bottom-tier goods. But what if I told you that within one week, we could produce weapons that command premium prices? The kind of work that merchants would pay advance money for at full price, not discounted?"
Huiyue's expression didn't change, but something flickered in her eyes. Interest, maybe, or suspicion. "That's impossible. Our forge capabilities haven't changed in decades. Master Han is skilled, but he's working with the same techniques and materials as always."
"What if the techniques could be improved? Significantly. Enough to produce weapons that would compete with the famous clans."
She stared at me for a long moment, then glanced at Liu Ruyan. "Has his fever returned? Is he delirious?"
"少主 has been clear-minded for over a week now," Liu Ruyan said quietly. "And he has been studying the clan's operations with Second Young Master Wenxuan. This one believes 少主 should be heard."
"Wenxuan is in on this... whatever this is?"
"He's been helping me analyze the financial situation. Elder Sister, please—give me thirty minutes. If what I propose is worthless, you've lost only travel time. But if it works..."
"If it works, you're claiming we could solve our financial crisis in seven days. Which is absurd." But she sat down, her body language radiating impatience. "You have thirty minutes. Start talking."
I took a breath, organizing my thoughts. I'd practiced this explanation with Wenxuan over the past few days, figuring out how to present modern knowledge in a way that sounded like keen observation rather than impossible expertise.
"I've been watching Master Han work. And I've noticed inefficiencies in the forging process. Small things that compound into significant quality problems."
"Such as?"
"The forge temperature is uneven. Hotter on one side than the other. This means metal heats inconsistently, which affects the final structure. The bellows design creates turbulent airflow instead of smooth, even heat distribution."
Huiyue's expression remained skeptical but attentive. "And you learned this how? By watching for a few hours?"
"By watching carefully. And by thinking about principles of heat and airflow. It's..." I searched for a comparison she'd understand. "Like noticing that a roof leaks because water flows down a particular path. You don't need to be a carpenter to observe where the water goes."
"Observing a problem and solving it are different things."
"True. But I think I know how to solve it. The bellows need to be repositioned and the air intake redesigned for laminar flow—for smooth, even air movement rather than turbulent gusts. It's a simple modification that would take perhaps two days to implement."
"And would cost?"
"Minimal materials. Mainly labor time from Master Han and his apprentices. But the result would be more consistent forge temperatures, which means more consistent metal quality."
Huiyue was quiet, processing. "What else?"
"The metal oxidizes too much during heating. That scale you see forming on the surface? It's wasted material and weakens the final blade. There are mineral compounds—borax, for instance—that can be applied to the metal during heating to prevent oxidation. It's called flux in technical terms."
"Borax." She said it slowly. "The cleaning agent?"
"The same. It has multiple uses. In metalworking, it prevents oxidation and helps remove impurities."
"How do you know this?"
I'd expected the question and had my answer prepared. "During my illness, I've had years to think. To read everything in our library, including old texts on metalworking. And to wonder why we do things certain ways. When you can't do physical work, the mind looks for other puzzles to solve."
It was a plausible lie, close enough to truth to be believable. Huiyue studied me with new interest, reassessing.
"These improvements—if they work—how much better would our weapons be?"
"Noticeably better. Perhaps twenty to thirty percent improvement in consistency, durability, and edge retention. Enough that merchants would recognize the quality difference."
"In seven days?"
"If we start immediately. The modifications are simple but need to be tested and refined. That's why I needed to speak with you before you left for Frostfang Town."
"Because?"
"Because instead of begging for advance payments on mediocre goods, you could go with samples of superior work. Demonstrate the quality improvement. Offer exclusive contracts to merchants willing to pay premium prices for guaranteed superior products."
Huiyue leaned back in her chair, her sharp mind clearly working through the implications. "And if these improvements don't work? If I promise merchants premium quality and we deliver the same mediocre weapons we always have?"
"Then our reputation sinks even lower and we're no worse off than we already are. But Elder Sister—we're already drowning. At this point, even a slim chance is better than none."
She was quiet for a long time. Outside, I could hear the household preparing for the day—servants moving, animals being fed, the distant clang from the forge where Master Han was already working.
"Why now?" Huiyue asked finally. "You've been ill your entire life, Hanxing. Why suddenly involve yourself in clan business? Why not simply rest and let us handle things?"
It was the real question, the one I'd known would come eventually. And I couldn't give her the full truth—that I was a transmigrated soul with access to knowledge from another world. But I could give her a truth.
"Because I'm tired of being a burden," I said quietly. "Because I've watched this family struggle for years while I lay in bed doing nothing. And because when my fever broke, something changed. I started seeing patterns I hadn't noticed before. Understanding things that had been opaque. Maybe it's just that facing death makes you pay better attention to life. But whatever the reason, I think I can help. If you'll let me try."
Huiyue studied my face for what felt like an eternity. Then she stood.
"I'm delaying my trip for three days. You have that long to show me actual improvements—not theories, not explanations, but working results. If Master Han can produce even one blade of noticeably superior quality using your methods, I'll adjust my negotiations accordingly."
Relief washed over me. "Thank you, Elder Sister."
"Don't thank me yet. If this fails, you'll have wasted time we don't have." She moved toward the door, then paused. "And Hanxing? You've changed. I don't know how or why, but Liu Ruyan is right—you're different now. More present. More... aware."
"Is that good or bad?"
"I haven't decided yet. But it's interesting." She left, her footsteps already quick and purposeful.
Liu Ruyan closed the door behind her and turned to me with an expression mixing pride and concern. "少主 has committed to producing results in three days. Can it truly be done?"
"I don't know," I admitted. "But we're going to find out. Send for Wenxuan—we need to plan the implementation carefully. And ask Master Han if he would be willing to discuss some experimental modifications to his forge. Frame it as helping the sickly young master understand traditional craftsmanship."
She bowed and left, leaving me alone with my thoughts and the glowing interface of the Memory Treasure Vault.
Three days to implement improvements that normally would take weeks of testing. Seven days until the Blood Serpent Gang arrived demanding money we didn't have. And all of it dependent on my ability to translate knowledge from a modern world into applications for medieval technology.
*No pressure at all,* I thought wryly.
But for the first time since arriving in this world, I felt something other than fear or confusion. I felt purpose. The engineer in me recognized a problem that could be solved, given the right information and sufficient determination.
And maybe, just maybe, I had both.
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**[MEMORY TREASURE VAULT]**
**DAILY SEARCHES REMAINING: 2/3**
**INTEGRATION STATUS: 73% COMPLETE**
**STRATEGIC PHASE: ACTIVE IMPLEMENTATION INITIATED**
**TIMELINE: CRITICAL (3 DAYS TO PROOF OF CONCEPT)**
**SUCCESS PROBABILITY: CALCULATING...**
**RECOMMENDATION: PROCEED WITH MAXIMUM EFFICIENCY**
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