The town of Goolen is the only way to get from the village to the county town of Ford, and although it is small in size, it is very well connected by transportation and is an important hub connecting several surrounding towns.

Although the sparrow is small, it has all kinds of organs. Everywhere in the small town of Gulen, you can see shops set up along the streets, and the streets are full of people.

It was already dusk when Ron and the others arrived in the small town of Gulen, and Femmon stopped at the door of an inn, probably because it was meal time, and the hotel hall was full of guests. The boss glanced at the ...... parked outside. Ron's party, which was still a carriage, automatically ignored them and continued to greet the others.

Among the few people, Fei Menglai was the most decent, although the small vest he wore was so stretched that he couldn't even button it, but it was still the dress of a city person. Ron and Chloe, on the other hand, were too shabby, but any businessman who was a philistine would not want to deal with such a rural person.

A few people pushed open the door of the hotel, and they were greeted by a strong smell of wine. Because the town is well connected, it can be said that there is everyone in the town's hotels.

A few people came to an empty table in the corner and sat down, listening to the chatter of some of the drinkers around them.

"Have you heard? The requirements for recruiting students at Cologne Academy have been raised this time. It seems that I heard that only students who have reached the tenth level before the age of eighteen are recruited. ”

"What? Didn't you always use it before the age of twenty? This Cologne Academy temporarily changed the rules, don't those nobles have any opinion?"

"Hehe, what can you say, Cologne Academy is the best academy among the thirteen counties in the southern region, even those grand dukes probably don't want to offend, where are some small nobles dare to shout. ”

A few drunken drinkers were talking at the next table, and Femmon also told Ron some of the situation in the southern region, and it was also thanks to Fermon's original noble birth and good tutoring since he was a child, so he knew a lot about the outside world.

"The southern region is divided into thirteen counties, each of which has more than twenty towns, and this Gulen town is one of the towns under the jurisdiction of Fordshire. Although Fordshire County is not the largest of the thirteen counties, it has the highest prestige among all the counties because of the relationship between Cologne College. Fei Meng poured a large sip of yellow and clear ale, and the fat on his face trembled and continued, "Don't look at the thirteen counties in the southern region, the strength of each county is very different. Among them, the city of Arrant in the east and the town of Bruce in the west are the strongest, and the lords of these two counties are the Duke of Arrant and the Duke of Bruce respectively. ”

When Fammon said Duke Arrant, the expression on his face twitched visibly, as if he recalled something not very happy.

"Except for these two county towns, which are duke's fiefdoms issued by the king to issue hereditary repudiation documents, the other county towns basically have no city lords, and the county guards are responsible for all affairs. Although the county guard is not a nobleman, the power in his hands is comparable to that of some counts. ”

Femon told Ron everything he had learned, and it even involved some of the power entanglements between the dukes and counts. Chloe also felt an eye-opener as he listened to Fermon's narration, the farthest place he had ever been to was Fordshire, but he didn't expect that there were thirteen large cities like the county town in the southern region, which made him secretly surprised.

Since he still had to hurry, Ron didn't let Fermont drink too much, and after a few people cleaned up, they rested early.

The autumn night is slightly cool, and the town is not as brightly lit as the big city after the dead of night, and the hustle and bustle is as usual, but after all, it is a traffic artery, and you can still see some travelers galloping on horses and driving all night on the main road.

At this time, a group of two horses and a carriage passed through the streets from east to north. The first man rode a brightly haired brown horse, dressed in light leather armor and with a long sword hanging from his waist.

What is even more bizarre is that although several people are riding fast, they cannot hear the sound of horses' hooves on the road, and only some people in the vicinity may feel a slight tremor on the ground. Those who are a little farther away don't even know that there is already a group of people passing by, which can be described as amazing.

In the room of an inn, Ron suddenly opened the window to look in the direction of the north, the corners of his mouth slightly curled, and whispered to himself, "Oh, it's an introductory magic master." ”

No one knew that at this moment, an old man in the carriage suddenly frowned slightly. Immediately, he regained his composure and looked at a cute girl who was already asleep beside him.

The night passed quickly, and Ron and his party did not come out to enjoy the mountains and rivers, so naturally they would not delay time, and the carriage went along the post road, all the way north, and rested for a while at the post station in the middle, and then went to Fordshire without stopping.

At noon on the third day, the men finally reached the gates of Fordshire.

Although the county town of Ford is not big, it is only relative, and for some ordinary people, the vast city that occupies a thousand miles of land and the towering and majestic walls are enough to shock people's hearts.

The gates were guarded by only two soldiers who stood guard at the gates, but they did not hinder the passing travelers, but only ordered those who rode into the city to dismount and lead their horses into the city.

Fordshire is a new town, less than 50 years after its founding. Therefore, the maintenance of the city wall is also very perfect, and the carved scratches left by the stonemasons can still be faintly distinguished.

The layout of the county town can also be said to be quite regular, with corresponding indications at each intersection node, which is also convenient for many adventurers.

Ron and his men entered through the south gate, and not long after walking along the main road, there was the free trade zone in the city, and the huge free trade area and the adjacent central square divided the entire town of Fordshire into two parts, east and west.

Most of the residential areas in the east were inhabited by merchants and aristocrats, also known as the wealthy districts. To the southeast is where the sub-professional associations are located. To the west, there are civilians living in the chamber of commerce.

The hierarchical division of settlements was not unique to Fordshire, but was the case with almost all the cities of the Saint-Franc Empire. Nobility is a status symbol, not something that ordinary civilians can easily touch.

Walking through the free trade zone, the shouts on both sides come and go, and it is very lively. There is no chamber of commerce, there are no fixed stalls, most of them are itinerant vendors, some passing adventurers or travelers sell here, and the things sold are naturally strange and all-encompassing. If you're lucky, you'll be able to get a big bargain here, and conversely, you'll be scammed and penniless here.

For the free trade zone, there are not many constraints in the county, after all, the flow of people is too big to control. Because of this, almost every county town has a chamber of commerce. You can also buy a wide variety of things there, and although the price may be more expensive than in a free trade zone, it is guaranteed.