The fur-laden boats on the Sanggan River in Datong Prefecture reeked of musk and rancid fat. Shen Xitang’s leather boots ground the charred scrolls of the *Illustrated Records of the Nine Frontiers* into dust. Xiao Heng’s Xiuchun Saber cleaved through a camouflaged tannery, and as bundles of sable fur ignited, scorched marks dated "The 17th Year of Tianqi" were revealed to be labeled in Hungarian with instructions for "Eger Fortress moisture-proof gunpowder techniques," concealing parameters for Danube warship waterproofing.
"Lord Thousand-Householder, inspect this scraping knife." Her fingertips traced the spiral grooves on the bronze blade. "This 'nine-turn leather-tanning' method was documented when Yu Qian inspected the borders during the Zhengton reign. How could it be stamped with the quenching mark of the Crown of Saint Stephen?"
Drums suddenly rolled within the tannery. Thirty leather-workers in fox-fur hats charged from the smoke, the intricate engravings on their bone awls identical to the fuse designs for artillery shells recorded in Sun Yuanhua’s *Divine Mechanics of the Western Methods* from the Tianqi reign. Shen Xitang’s Silver Silk shredded a pelt of ermine, revealing a remnant page of the *Tisza River Secret Ledger*. Beside official documents claiming "a false report of half a million border trades," a Croatian notation read: "Resold in Zagreb as stitching thread for gunpowder bags."
Chapter 211