The weather has warmed up in the past two days.

After all, Guineapoli is relatively southern, and when the sun comes out during the day, the snow and ice melt quickly, and the road is very muddy. A convoy drove slowly on the west bank of the Moore River, an all-mule-based convoy unobtrusive in the massive traffic.

Wayne, the old fisherman, was the head of the ten-car mule convoy, and as a native of Vichy in Poittu, Genoa, he had a mission. In fact, it was the first time in most of his life that he had traveled so far from his hometown.

As the New Year was approaching in a few days, he was entrusted by the rose garden and the townspeople to escort a batch of supplies to the front of the army to comfort the soldiers, of course, the children of the Vichy were not very much in the civil defense army. Mainly because of the past year, Vichy has truly felt what the Viscount has brought them, peace, stability and abundance.

The front of nearly fifty vehicles pulled by various livestock was a caravan formed by Genoese merchants, who had realized that the war in the north meant an opportunity for them to make money.

They first assembled at Fort Pattum in the northern province of Genoa, crossed the Ott Mountains, and stopped briefly in the town of Morillo, a transit base of the Genoese Civil Guard, before selling more than half of their goods at a high price in the scarcarious city of Moore.

Along the way, the original local power has not yet been restored, there are no checkpoints and tax collectors, and everyone can make a lot of money. This is especially true of the people of Moor, because the Genoese army has just liberated this place not long ago, and they have killed a number of people here, and their awe makes them afraid to make a mistake.

Most of the Genoese returned directly, while the rest wanted to try their luck at the front.

Of course, there were dangers, but they were reduced by the fact that the 1st Company of the Civil Defence Force remained in Morillo to escort a shipment of munitions to the front, and at least occasionally small bandits did not dare to approach.

And the merchants, under the banner of the Civil Conservatorship of Genoa, accompanied by the soldiers of the Civil Conservatory, who were accompanied by a genuine half company of Civil Defence soldiers, did not dare to oppress them even in the local militia groups with loose military discipline.

Walking to the town of Tolosa, the goods brought by the merchants were sold out, and their customers were the army and soldiers. The merchants can only return with regret and satisfaction, and if they are fast enough, they may be able to get home in time for the New Year.

It's a good year for these southern Genoese, if they don't mind the occasional sight of fallen rebel corpses on the side of the road.

Only Wayne escorted the vehicle to the front line with the soldiers of the 1st Company.

The road ahead is not easy to walk, not to mention the muddy roads, and some sections of the road are obviously improvised by sappers.

The officers of the 1st Company sometimes had to stop and ask the patrol soldiers they met about the whereabouts of the Genoese Civil Defence Force.

Finally, on the afternoon of the last day of 1831, Wayne met Arthur Young on patrol and made it to the Civil Defence garrison.

Wayne was warmly welcomed by Sean, and of course Wayne brought free cigarettes, alcohol, and all kinds of dried fish, dried meat, preserved fruits, and mandarins, as well as greetings from his hometown, which were even more popular with the soldiers, and the letters brought in alone filled a wagon. The soldier gave him a pile of gold and silver.

Accompanied by the sound of gunfire not far away, the Genoese Civil Protection had a lively New Year, and they could already see the walls of Daguerre.

Meanwhile, in the far south of the town of Vichy, the rose garden.

The butler Cleveland put together a good meal, although the host was out on a campaign, but the host explained that the New Year would look like a New Year, and the people who went to the banquet were the same as last year, except that there was more Pierre, the business director.

The orphans adopted by Sean have all grown a lot taller, and a few of the older ones are all big and small in appearance.

Cleveland did not forget to prepare red envelopes, which the owner made a special mention in the last letter, which should become a tradition in the rose garden. He also made a special trip to Rhône in the morning to present a red envelope to the future earl on behalf of his master.

Standing in the rose garden, you can see the whole picture of the town of Vichy. In the past year, the economic development of Vichy has been booming, with factories of all kinds flourishing and commerce flourishing with the opening of factories and the development of the port.

The war seems to have had only a positive effect on the region, which led to the manufacture of textiles, clothing, leather goods and munitions. Not to mention the amazing growth of the tea economy, a new industry here, and now Rocky Hill is surrounded by tea plantations, most of which belong to Sean.

The development of commerce and industry has led to the development of the service industry, and Sean's collective shareholding at the beginning has allowed the townspeople to live a relatively prosperous life by renting out the land, while the business-minded townspeople run their own hotels and shops.

Rose helped clean up the banquet and returned to the house.

She went to Sean's study, where she came to clean it once a day, and the windows were spotlessly clean.

A pot of daffodils is in full bloom.

She sat in Sean's usual seat and stayed until dark. Someone struck a match and lit a candle.

Rose woke up suddenly. An old man with white hair stood beside her and looked at her with a very sorry look:

"Anna, it seems that the comfortable life has made you lose the slightest alertness. ”

It is the king of the bloodthirsty, the sage.

Rose's face turned pale and she stood up nervously: "Magi!"

"What? are you surprised by my coming?" said the sage, "are you also prepared to disobey my orders?"

"No, I didn't. Rose said, "The order you gave me was to monitor the Viscount's every move, and I did not disobey it. ”

"But you're in love with him. The sage glanced at her, "Don't excuse yourself, you've been sitting here for two hours, and that's a foolish girl who falls in love." Don't forget, you're just a killer, killers don't need this ridiculous love, haven't you forgotten all about your training?"

The Sage's tone was calm, but it was as sharp as a knife to Rose's ears, and she remembered the brutal training she had experienced in her childhood and girlhood—such as throwing herself into a group of peers and allowing only one person to come out alive.

Yes, Rose is Anna, the hostess who Sean mistook for a bloodthirsty person.

Rose is her real name, and this delicate and beautiful face is also her true face, and she has always performed in her true colors, successfully gaining Sean's favor, but at the same time letting herself fall.

This may be what the sage calls love.

She had long expected the day when she would face the Magi, but she hadn't expected it to come too soon.

Rose's silence made the sage very angry.

His powerful right hand wrapped his grip on Rose's slender neck and lifted her up. Rose just looked at him coldly, and didn't even struggle, maybe it was her long-term submission to the powerful king, or maybe she was silently resisting.

The Magi's expression was very complicated, and he shook his hand and threw Rose into the corner like nothing. Rose slammed into the wall, then curled up on the ground in pain, clutching her throat and retching, then gasping for air.

"Why don't you resist?" asked the sage, pausing, "oh, you're sure I won't kill you!"

"Because you are my teacher, and with the murderous skills you taught me, I will never be able to defeat you. "Maybe I should practice my marksmanship." ”

"Very well, Anna, this is the consciousness of a killer. "Don't worry, I won't kill you now, it's just a small punishment." Anything that tends to get out of my control should be punished, and you are one of my most illustrious disciples, but it will be no exception. ”

The sage stood in front of the bookshelf with his hands behind his back, his eyes casually browsing the shelves:

"Tsk, history, geography, politics and business economics, our Viscount, read really extensively. ”

I took out a book casually, flipped through a few pages, and saw a bookmark inserted in it, on which was written a reading note:

"Privilege will always exist in the foreseeable future. My ideal country should be governed by a group of elites with a strong sense of responsibility, and their ethics should be bound by law, but we must not allow one person's mistakes to affect the future of the whole country, which requires our system and laws to have the ability to correct mistakes.

Science has become the only criterion for judging right and wrong, progress and backwardness.

The good and evil of the aristocratic individual are no different from those of the commoners, and he is more noble because of his education and good morals, not because of his blood. But as a class, the privileges of the aristocracy, including all classes, should be marginalized or even eliminated, and their existence greatly constrained economic development.

The bourgeoisie, especially the factory owners, represented by mechanical engineering, represented the body moving into the future, the iron and steel represented the strength of the country, and the steam engine represented the advanced productive forces. This emerging force will inevitably rebel against the aristocracy.

But the bourgeoisie's insatiable quest for profit will make them sell the ropes that hang themselves. They are fanatical and blind, so commoners and even the poor should have access to wealth, power, and relative fairness......

The ideal state is, of course, absolute freedom and justice, with the young to be supported and the old to rely on. But until then, we can try to make this world as free and just as possible than the day before......"

The sage put the bookmark back on the shelf along with the book, turned back to Rose, and said:

"It seems that I still underestimated the young viscount's insight. He's a bit idealistic, but he's missing something called ambition. He seems to advocate individual struggle, which, if more intense and active, is called ambition. If he doesn't have ambition, how can he achieve the ideals he describes?"

"The Viscount was a benevolent and just nobleman. "He's saved so many lives and hasn't asked for anything in return." ”

"Well, you don't even beg me for mercy or resist for him, so I won't explain to someone like you who is a shame in the killer profession what happens when a man has a certain amount of power?" said the sage as he shook his head, his gaze blurred and grim, "he will tremble at first, and then he will be a little complacent in the flattering or awe-inspiring gaze of others, and after tasting the taste of power, he does not like his will to be deliberately delayed or even disobeyed, which requires more power, the power of life and death." ”

The Sage is a learned man, I'm afraid there is no more erudite in this world than him, Rose admits in her heart that what the Sage said makes sense, but the Viscount is really a different person.

"Magi, do you need the Viscount to be an ambitious man?" asked Rose.

"I'd better stay away until I'm sure I'm sure I'm going to get in on him. "Anna, you know, this wasn't my original plan. ”

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