J2 D " "z}n 0 , yA m 1P D In the middle of the day, a white sailboat was speeding downwind, and its speed was amazingly fast, constantly surpassing one merchant ship after another, like the difference between a professional athlete and an ordinary gym person on the track and field.

On the bow of the white sailboat, the panda stands like a statue, staring into the distance.

There is only a white line where the sea and the sky meet, and there is no problem in sight.

"This is almost the prime time for the archipelago route. The first mate came to his side and said with a smile, "Storms will be less common, and the sea breeze and ocean currents are in the direction of the archipelago. As long as the captain is proficient in handling the ship, most of them will be able to reach the archipelago without any problems.

"Provided, don't encounter pirates. A sailor said.

"The prime time of the archipelago route is also the prime time of the pirates. The first mate sighed, "This is something that can't be helped, everyone is not stupid." ”

"It's good that we don't have to worry about pirates. He added, "Clippers like ours don't have a lot of oil, and very few pirates are going to beat our minds." Even if they try to get into trouble, most of them won't be able to catch up with us. ”

"What if we catch up?" Panda asked.

"Then you have to fight. The first mate replied, "We can't hope that pirates will only rob money and not kill people, especially a fast ship like the Harp Mermaid is exactly what pirates like." No pirate would spare such a ship, even if it had no cargo on board, and the ship itself was their target. ”

"Luckily, this has never happened. The sailor who had spoken before said with a smile.

"It's better not to happen in the future. The first mate said, "I still want to work steadily until I am fifty years old, and then retire, buy a small estate, and retire in peace." ”

"This plan is not easy to achieve, the captain and the Harp Mermaid are reliable, but the Federation is not so reliable. An old sailor approached and sighed, "I've heard that the Norma line is about to run out...... At that time, the entire federation may be completely swallowed by Thrace. ”

"That doesn't prevent me from buying a manor for retirement. The first mate said nonchalantly, "Is there a difference between being a Molai or being a Thracian, for those of us who beg for a living at sea?"

"Haha, you're right. ”

"Yes, even if it is changed to Thrace, they will still have to do business, and we will also save for retirement. ”

The sailors laughed easily, but there was always a worry in their eyes that could not be brushed away.

The panda noticed their hidden concern and shook his head secretly.

Perhaps the changes in the country did not affect the sea business of the Harp Mermaid, but there was always a simple patriotic feeling in the hearts of these sea men. Seeing that the country is in danger, but they can't do anything about it, they can only convince themselves with "it has nothing to do with me", of course, their hearts will not be comfortable.

If they were selfish and indifferent, they probably wouldn't be so sad.

After standing at the bow of the ship for a while, the panda returned to the cabin, lay down on the bed, and learned about the current situation of the Norma Line through the chat channel.

If it weren't for the fact that Duke Norma sent Younero and others to harass the Thracian army, which greatly hindered the logistics of the Thracians, I am afraid that now the entire Norma defense line has fallen into the hands of the Thracians.

The nobles of the Norma region have evacuated their important assets, and the rest are some that cannot be transported, such as land and houses. Most of them themselves left, leaving only stewards to guard the castle and manor, and by the way negotiate compromise terms with the Thracians.

The migration of civilians is still ongoing, but so far, no civilians have been willing to go to the Tara Khan Territory - after all, it is too far to know how much risk there will be along the way. And as residents of prosperous areas, they don't want to live in poor and backward areas unless they have to.

How big is the gap between Norma and Tara Khan? As far as the earth is concerned, Norma is roughly equivalent to the kind of second-tier city where there are airplanes and subways, 24-hour convenience stores at the entrance of residential areas, express food delivery can be delivered to the doorstep, and all kinds of payments can be completed as long as you go out with your mobile phone; Tara Khan is equivalent to a poor and backward area that has just completed road transportation, not to mention trains, not even highways, and relies on long-distance buses to get out.

Unless there is really no choice, the Norma are absolutely unwilling to go to Tara Khan to live.

For this situation, Anthony and the others can't do anything, people go to high places, water flows to low places, who will give up a good life, go to the poor countryside to live in poverty? If there are such people, then they themselves have to wonder, is this guy a little stupid?

According to their estimates, it was probably not until the Thracian army carried out a forced conquest in the Norma region and clashed seriously with the residents of Norma that no one would be cornered to go to Tarakhan.

But what the panda didn't know was that at this time, in the Earl's Palace in Tarakhan City, a discussion was unfolding.

"Their 'landslide' plan, I think it's better to stop it as much as possible. ”

"This plan is actually beneficial to us. ”

"I know, it's just...... A lot of people will die. ”

"Dead people are not a problem, wars always have to kill people. ”

"You can die a little less, but it's better than more dead......"

"Long-term pain is better than short-term pain, through this incident, those civilians who have illusions and are unwilling to resist can realize the reality, from the general trend, in fact, it is beneficial to Molai. ”

"I understand that, but I still think it...... I can't bear it. ”

"We didn't come up with the plan, and we didn't contribute to it, so what's there to bear?"

"We were able to stop ......"

"We can't stop it! Who are we to stop someone else? No!"

"Maybe you're right......"

"You're thinking too much, but these thoughts don't really make sense, they're just a waste of your energy. It's enough for us to do our own things well, but as for what happens to others, we can't control it, and we can't do it. ”

“...... Maybe you can still manage it. ”

"If you want to take care of it, I'd rather find a way to manage the north, to manage those forest barbarians...... Since Sword Thirteen and they went to the forest, the barbarians are slowly being united by them. When the scattered barbarians are united into a whole, they must have their own rebukes...... Let's say revenge or something. That's what worries me the most now, as for Thrace and Molai...... As long as Molai can hold Thrace for a while longer, I don't really care if he can recruit immigrants. ”

"That's not what you tell everybody else. ”

"I can't say, 'I'm worried about the Sword Thirteen and they're pushing the barbarians to advance, and then they're going to fight Tara Khan,' right......?' Since the last time the tiger guy made trouble, many people have some opinions about us, so it's better not to stimulate everyone if we can. ”

"Make a fortune with a muffled voice?"

"Of course it's a roar, but it may not work!" Count Tara Khan picked up the teacup and took a sip of the medicinal tea without any sugar and spices, which was so bitter that it made people's fingers numb, and his face was heavy, "This is our business, and others have no obligation or will come to understand our thoughts, only we ourselves think more, prepare more, and plan more." ”

His chief staff, a scholar from the royal capital, sighed softly and looked at the map of Tara Khan on the wall, silent.

After a long time, the scholar whispered: "I used to think that it was easy to govern the country, as long as you delegate all the work." ”

"I used to feel the same way. "If I could turn back the clock in time," said the Earl, "I would rather be a street hustler than this count." ”

He took another sip of tea: "But...... Time can't be turned back, we pretended to be forced by ourselves, and we have to finish it with tears in our eyes, pretending to be beautiful, right?"

"Well, that's right.