"Apprentice, apprentice, three years of servitude," these words are not just idle chatter.,The blacksmith's shop was one of the largest in Gaoliu County, employing guards, masters, assistants, and apprentices numbering over a hundred.,The apprentices huddled in groups of three or four, squatting against the walls. Li Yuan sat hunched over his bowl in a corner, his shoulders aching from fatigue as he ate the steamed buns. A bitter feeling welled up within him.。