Due to the trade fair, the wharf has been densely packed with ships, which stretch to tens of meters away. Montaigne and the others had no choice but to anchor on the periphery and prop up a wooden boat to land.

After the group entered the city, Montaigne had to go to the fair to register information in advance, and the old man with long eyebrows had to lead many disciples to walk around the streets.

After the two sides said goodbye, Ba Fenghan and Cheng Xue were penniless, but fortunately, Ba Fenghan knocked off a few pieces of ice pith when he walked out of the sleeping iceberg in Xuezang.

He and Cheng Xue went to the pawnshop and exchanged a piece of ice pith the size of a fingernail for five silver tickets of one hundred taels, and then the two came to a restaurant.

At this time, the first floor was already full, and the two were arranged by the shopkeeper to sit at a table near the window on the second floor, and outside the window was the bustling street.

Ba Fenghan ordered a pot of wine and a few delicious dishes.

After the dishes were served, he filled the two cups with wine, and pushed one cup in front of Cheng Xue, and asked, "What are your plans for the next step?"

Cheng Xue didn't drink or answer immediately, through the window, her gaze stayed on the crowd coming and going on the street.

It's hilarious, but it has nothing to do with her.

Ba Fenghan drank to himself, and was not in a hurry to hear the answer.

After three glasses of wine, Cheng Xue's gaze still stayed on the crowd of people, and she murmured softly: "My home is in Nanlu, the fleet has sunk, Uncle Mu is also dead, and all contact with Nanlu has been cut off." ”

Cheng Xue said, her eyes gradually blurred with tears: "When I was on the boat, I heard them say that someone would answer me when I arrived here, but I didn't know who it was and where to pick it up. ”

Ba Fenghan's hand slowly lowered, and Cheng Xue's answer surprised him.

Since the Hokuriku spirits were forced to migrate here from the southern continent a long time ago, it is impossible to tell the difference by words alone, the only difference is that there are no spirits in the southern land, and there are no warriors in the northern land, and even if there are, they are already dead and dead.

The grievances between the warriors of the Southern Continent and the spirits of the Northern Continent have not been diluted in the slightest since ancient times.

Although Ba Fenghan's home is far away in the imperial capital of Yan Kingdom, and he is not a person from Hanxiao City, the imperial capital is well-informed, and he has never heard of a caravan coming and going between the north and the south before.

The Yan Kingdom is located at the southernmost tip of the North Continent, and the guard against the South Continent has always been strict, and it is even more impossible for the Holy Lord to risk the world not to have any cooperation with the South Continent.

Since the caravan was planning to come here on the eve of the fair, the purpose was obvious, and it was impossible for the city lord of Hanxiao City to be unaware of it.

If the lord of the castle acquiesces, then this matter is very interesting.

"I didn't expect Nanriku's tentacles to reach here. Ba Feng was cold.

Even if the city lord of Hanxiao City knew, it was impossible for him to take Cheng Xue to the city lord's mansion, like this kind of behind-the-scenes deed, the fewer people who knew about it, the better, maybe there would be a murder and extermination.

Bai Fenghan couldn't think of any other way for a while, and said: "The fair lasts for a week, I will stay here before the end, find an inn for a while, and I will help you inquire about the news tomorrow, and eat first." ”

Cheng Xue nodded, and the two of them didn't say anything after that.

Three years ago, Ba Fenghan and his two companions lived in the Tongfu Inn just one street away from the trade fair, and three years later, Ba Fenghan still chose to stay here.

Since there are only three days left before the start of the fair, all the inns in the city are overcrowded, and the prices are also rising, and the coins paid for the hotel have also changed from the mundane silver taels on weekdays to the spirit stones that are only used in the spirit trade.

The silver taels that Ba Fenghan had just exchanged were useless, and there were only two Tianzi rooms left in the inn, and he needed to pay ten lower-grade spirit stones a day.

One hundred lower-grade spirit stones are equal to one medium-grade spirit stone, and fifty medium-grade spirit stones are equal to one high-grade spirit stone.

The two of them lived until the end of the fair, and they had to pay two medium-grade spirit stones.

Bai Fenghan picked out the smallest one of the remaining five pieces of ice pith and handed it to Dian Xiaoer, asking if he could use it instead of the spirit stone.

After showing it to the shopkeeper, the shopkeeper said: "The quality of this ice pith is unknown, and there is no precedent for this in our store, but the shopkeeper is happy today and agrees that you will use it to deduct the room fee." ”

"Two guest officers, please come with me. ”

The two of them went to the third floor under the leadership of the shopkeeper.

The corridor is in the shape of a 'hui', with a patio in the middle, and the rooms are arranged along the corridor, and the rooms of the two people are just facing each other from the north and south across the patio.

After arranging accommodation, it was getting late, and the two went back to their rooms to rest.

In the early morning of the next day, after eating the breakfast provided by the inn, Cheng Xue still felt weak and weak, and had not recovered, and was instructed by Bafeng Han to go back to the room to rest, while he went out alone to inquire about the news.

In a tavern, after chatting with a drunkard sharing a table, I learned that the news that Cheng Xue's fleet was destroyed by the iceberg group that appeared out of thin air had spread in the city.

Listening to the stories of the people was like seeing them with his own eyes, he probably guessed that there should be surviving sailors who had arrived in Hanxiao City.

Ba Fenghan was not surprised by this, at that time, the sea area where the caravan was located was on the waterway, and there were ships coming and going from time to time, so naturally there would be sailors who were rescued.

Ba Fenghan went to gambling houses, teahouses, and bazaars, where the gossip spread very quickly, and after chatting with individual customers, the source of the news was roughly determined.

In the southwest corner of the city, the gate of a dilapidated City God Temple facing the street is closed.

To the right of the temple is a deep alley, in which a crooked-necked pine tree grows tenaciously next to the wall of the temple, and half of its lush canopy has reached into the temple.

Seeing that there was no one around, Bafeng jumped onto the tree and looked through the canopy into the City God Temple.

The courtyard was overgrown with coniferous bushes, and the ground was littered with broken tiles, and among them was a large cauldron with a fire that was about to be extinguished, and a hodgepodge of boiling in the pot seemed to be leftovers from diners who didn't want them from restaurants.

The City God's Hall at the end of the courtyard was even more dilapidated, and the sound of shaking the dice cup could be heard inside, mixed with the shouting and scolding of men.

The number of people is not visible from the outside, but listening to the sound has determined that there are three.

Ba Fenghan was not in a hurry to leave, and stayed on the tree for about two teas, during which the two of them walked out and carried the cauldron into the hall, one of them had a white cloth wrapped in his head, and the entire left side of his face was wrapped, and the mottled blood stains on the cloth had turned black.

From what they said, Ba Fenghan had already determined that this group of people was the caravan sailors who had escaped death.

On the way back to the inn, Ba Feng thought to himself: if the city lord of Hanxiao was related to the caravan of Nanlu, why didn't he kill these people before the news spread, but let everyone who spread the news know about it? Or did the city lord not know about it, but the people below were hiding it from him?

In either case, it seems to be related to the government. Otherwise, the whole fleet of Nanlu has such a big goal, and it will not be able to hide people's eyes and ears, if there are no people in the government operating behind the scenes, it will be difficult for the fleet to enter the city after it arrives before the details are investigated, and even if it is lucky enough to enter the city, it will be revealed when the information is entered at the fair.

After all, this is a trade fair with a government background, and the inventory of sellers is very strict.

It is impossible for the caravan to set off without careful consideration, and since it has crossed the ocean from the South Continent, it must have made sufficient preparations.