Reborn As Super Heiress-Chapter 1531 - 1515: The Struggle Over the Sword

Upon listening to Huo Sining’s articulate analysis, not only was Old Zheng captivated, but even Mr. Feng was deeply engrossed. However, he still felt a bit puzzled, unsure of what Huo Sining meant by her words:

"What’s the direct connection between the length of a sword and what we’re discussing about this sword being Lu Junyi’s weapon?"

Huo Sining glanced at Mr. Feng and said helplessly, "This is why I just asked Old Zheng about how Lu Junyi was described in ’Water Margin’."

"Typically, short people wouldn’t use long swords, and similarly, tall people aren’t accustomed to short swords."

"Lu Jingyi is nine feet tall like silver, measuring with today’s scale, he’d be at least 1.8 meters tall, right? For someone of such imposing stature to carry a short sword less than 60 centimeters long, regardless of whether he’s accustomed to using it, it would look quite inappropriate hanging on him, wouldn’t it?"

After Huo Sining made her point, both Mr. Feng and Old Zheng were left stunned, even the previously confident clerk was taken aback and embarrassed.

There’s a significant difference between ancient and modern units of measurement. In the Shang dynasty, a foot was approximately 17 centimeters. Based on that, a person nine feet tall would be 170 centimeters, leading to the origin of the term "husband."

But during the Water Margin period, specifically the era of Emperor Huizong of Song, a foot was roughly 30 centimeters.

Of course, if calculated by that measurement, Lu Junyi’s height of nine feet would be about 2.7 meters, which is fifty centimeters taller than Yao Ming, which is somewhat exaggerated.

Hence, the characters’ heights in Water Margin cannot truly be measured by normal units since both Three Kingdoms and Water Margin are Ming dynasty storytelling compilations intended for common folk.

The audience wasn’t stringent about the precise heights of characters in these tales; they only needed a general impression, so typically storytellers used feet as units.

For example, six feet is considered short, representative of Yan Qing; an average height person like Liu Bei is seven feet; slightly taller than average, like Zhang Fei, is eight feet; while towering figures like Lu Junyi and Guan Yu are nine feet. Some characters, notably Wu Dalang, are under five feet, whereas the exceptionally heroic like Lu Bu and Yu Baosi reach ten feet.

These novel characters are expressed in a romanticized manner with symbolic storytelling approaches. Hence, based on this calculation, Lu Junyi is at least 180 centimeters tall, which even by modern standards is considered a robust and towering figure, making a short sword undoubtedly unsuitable for him.

Liao Song listened to Huo Sining’s analysis and couldn’t help but give a thumbs-up.

Even though he didn’t know much about antiques, he was aware of the basic knowledge that ancient people selected swords based on height, so he agreed with Huo Sining’s perspective.

"In ancient cold weapons, a sword should be more of an ornament rather than the weapon of choice depicted in modern novels or movie animations, especially on the battlefield where generals and soldiers primarily used bows and spears, as swords were close-combat weapons and impractical for warfare." 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Huo Sining smiled, gesturing toward the sword and said:

"Therefore, in ancient times, those who liked carrying swords were often scholars, like the well-known Qu Yuan and Li Bai, both of whom carried swords. The Master Poet, in particular, loved to carry a sword everywhere, and many of his works involved swords, which in modern terms, was merely a way to show off."

"In actuality, Lu Junyi should be more proficient in spears, like Lu Bu. I remember in Water Margin, there’s a description of Lu Junyi being adept with a cudgel, invincible with a twelve-foot steel spear, illustrating that his usable weapon wasn’t a sword. Therefore, insisting that this sword is connected to Lu Junyi seems a bit far-fetched."

Huo Sining made logical and evidence-based points. Just as the others were about to agree, a voice suddenly came from behind them:

"Who says those skilled with spears can’t carry a sword? Yue Fei used the Lichuan Spear on the battlefield, but his everyday accessory was the Zhanlu Sword. These aren’t contradictory, and your assertion can only be speculative, lacking evidence that this isn’t Lu Junyi’s sword."

Hearing these words, Huo Sining froze, subconsciously turning her gaze toward the direction of the voice.

Around sixty years old, an elderly man had entered the shop unnoticed. His face was tight, and his eyes held a certain displeasure and even anger directed at Huo Sining.

Hearing the voice, the clerk immediately left Mr. Feng and Old Zheng, hurriedly approaching the old man, taking a respectful bow as he greeted, "Old Qian, you’re here."

Mr. Feng and Old Zheng also turned around with looks of respect and admiration toward the newcomer.

Upon hearing the clerk’s address and seeing Mr. Feng and Old Zheng’s reactions, Huo Sining realized instantaneously.

It seemed this elder was the authoritative figure who identified this ancient sword as Lu Junyi’s sword, Professor Qian, the external expert at Dexin Society.

Huo Sining understood why Old Qian viewed her with hostility upon entering; she had openly contradicted and overturned Professor Qian’s judgment in front of many people at Dexin Society, essentially challenging his authority and embarrassing him, which was understandable as to why he’d be displeased.

However, Huo Sining dared not agree with the elderly gentleman’s statement.

Both of the points she made individually couldn’t completely stand as evidence, but combined, they very much addressed the issue.

In contrast, Professor Qian’s assertion that the sword belonged to Lu Junyi was likely without substantial evidence. Merely moving his mouth up and down to concoct a history for an ancient sword seemed ridiculous. If antiques could be demystified this way, it would cause chaos.

Huo Sining couldn’t publicly accuse the elderly gentleman of being irresponsible as that wouldn’t be respectful to a senior in his sixties, so she chose to maintain his dignity.

Yet by staying silent, it appeared as if she conceded to some.

The old man saw Huo Sining not responding and thought she was guilty, becoming even more aggressive, instead of genuinely considering the evidence Huo Sining previously provided.

"You young people, even if ignorant, are also restless and thoughtless. You learn a little and start showing off, falsely declaring knowledge of ancient history, perceiving yourself as a master? What a joke!"