Volume 2 [Chapter 76] Sail carefully to the ship of ten thousand years

Roy was the first to realize that something was wrong.

This stretch of less than ten kilometers took them through at least six checkpoints. Especially on the east and west banks of the Xilai River, the checkpoint has reached the point of three steps, one post, five steps and one sentry.

The levels are rudimentary, just a log or a tree trunk with no bark at all running across the road.

However, the soldiers guarding were all armed to the teeth.

Judging by the armor coat of arms, these soldiers were all from Viscount Wenger. Although it was still the domain of Baron Smith in Medin City, they were just as if they were their own. Strict and brutal inspections were carried out on every civilian and convoy that passed, and a fee was charged for customs clearance.

In addition to the soldiers, the Black Clergy from the Inquisition also appeared on the level. It is said that the perpetrators of the attack on the Holy See convoy were being apprehended.

At first, the "real murderer" Roy didn't have any other abnormal feelings except for the scrutiny of the black-clothed priest's eyes sweeping over him.

After all, after the outbreak of war, as more and more people were displaced, the security situation in Lulian began to deteriorate dramatically. According to the road safety bulletin issued by [Ignorance], more than ten caravans have been looted on the road to Muni City in just four or five days.

For this reason, [Ignorance] has put up a red warning flag representing danger on the traffic safety level in this area. While the city security officers in major cities also sent more troops to strengthen patrols on the surrounding roads, they also warned pedestrians and caravans to travel together and hire as many guards as possible for safety.

And the checkpoints set up by Viscount Wenger, especially those of the black-clothed priests, made the thieves and bandits active in the vicinity wisely choose to stay away from this area, and also gave the pedestrian caravans who came along the way a more or less sense of security. Although there is a suspicion of collecting money to collect money, it is not a good thing for the people who come and go.

Moreover, the fees for customs clearance are not too high.

To take the example of Roy's caravan, a total of twenty wagons ten meters long, eight wheels, and four heavy horses towed by four heavy horses collected only ten gold langs. Compared to the tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of goods on the carriage, it is simply not a lot of money.

The only thing that makes Roy a little strange is that the level charges a low fee for caravans, but not for passers-by. Everyone who passes through the checkpoint needs to pay a customs clearance fee for Intex. A family of three requires three Yintaishi. After six levels, there are eighteen Yintaishi. This is a small amount of money for the caravan, but for ordinary civilians, it is already a month's living expenses for a family.

However, this doubt only flashed in my mind, and it was immediately put aside, and I didn't think about it deeply.

Until he found that after passing through one level after another, not only the originally dense flow of refugees and the mercenary knights running back and forth became sparse unconsciously. Even the other caravans that were connected along the way had gradually distanced themselves from each other, and they gradually felt a little strange.

Doe then looked closely, and apart from the crunching of the wheels and hooves of the twenty wagons of the caravan he was in, there was only the dust in the sun and the rustling of the wind-blown leaves in the jungle on either side of the road.

This does not bode well.

Following William's wanderings for nearly ten years, the experience of the big head in this regard, not to mention that it is stronger than his eighteen- or nineteen-year-old peers, even many mercenaries who have been running around all year round may not be able to compare.

You must know that the land of redemption is barren and bitter cold, and it is a breeding ground for thieves and horse bandits. For hundreds of years, horse bandits roaring like the wind and bandits roaring in the mountains and forests have always threatened the traffic safety of the mainland, even if they were as powerful as the Romans Empire.

Whether you are a nobleman or a commoner, a traveler or a merchant, there is always a band of bandits on fast horses rushing out of the woods with shouts, shooting you down with bows and arrows, cutting you down with knives, smashing open the chests of your carriage with axes, looting and vanishing from view like steam.

As a child, Roy witnessed or experienced no less than thirty raids, and for a time he even lived in barbarian tribes and roaming convoys of Gisai, which had a tradition of raiding. The bandits as a group and their habitual methods could not be clearer. There are usually three types of bandits in the Land of Redemption.

One is the group of thieves who gather in the mountains and forests.

Most of them live in cottages or castles hidden deep in the mountains and dense forests, with a tight organizational structure, their own farmland, their families and children, small horse teams and the most basic armament. It can be said that a group of thieves is a small society in its own right. This is the most common bandit organization in the human world, and at the same time, it is also the most closely connected to society. In the cities, in the countryside, there are their industries and organizations.

In addition to raiding, they also hunt or take on missions. Many people like to hand over tasks that can't be released to the public to people who aren't bound by the law. Therefore, in a sense, the thieves can be summarized as an alternative mercenary group.

Or to put it more bluntly - some mercenary groups are actually thieves.

The second is the most hated horse bandits.

Compared with the number of bandits who abide by the rules, the horse bandits who come and go like the wind are more ferocious and dangerous.

Horse bandits usually do not have a fixed camp, and the members are all bachelors who have no family and do all kinds of evil in the wilderness. One person and two horses, coming and going, without any scruples.

Often, weakly defended towns were looted overnight by horse bandits, and by the time the army arrived, there was nothing left but corpses and the ruins of arson.

Lords may be able to tolerate a bandit entrenched in their territory, but if they notice a bandit nearby, their first instinct is to go to war, and they will not negotiate any conditions.

Because they know that no one can satisfy the appetite of these guys who have no credit and a bottom line of personality.

Greedy horse bandits will parasitize their territory like bloodsuckers until they turn a bustling city into a ghost town and then go on to find their next target.

The third is the races and tribes that have a tradition of raiding. For example, Gisai, Orcs, and Barbarians.

Most of the gisai made a living by trafficking goods, hunting and performing singing and dancing acrobatics. But when the mood comes, they will also quietly ride their show horses, which are more cunning than foxes, at night, donning armor pressed against the bottom of the box, and donning helmets or masks, acting as robbers.

Their traditional nomadic life makes it easy for them to do this kind of work far from the city.

Orcs are one of the seven major races of the continent of Avalon, with a tall and strong physique, strong fecundity, and a fierce and aggressive personality.

However, compared with humans, elves and other races with a high civilization range, orcs have a fatal flaw, that is, their intelligence is generally low, and this defect makes them in an awkward position between a civilized race and a demonic beast.

For a long time, the status of orcs has been extremely low, and in the eyes of humans, they are no different from those magical beasts with high intelligence. Many slavers liked to capture orcs to be used as coolies for heavy work. In the gladiatorial arena, orc warriors are also one of the main sources of gladiators.

Correspondingly, orcs are also unfriendly to humans.

Accustomed to living in the mountains and forests, they are natural robbers. As long as they think they can defeat their target, they will not hesitate to rush out and kill them, snatching everything from their target for food, money, goods, and even the clothes they are wearing.

As for the barbarians - fighting is an instinct rooted in their marrow.

They fight monsters, any strangers who trespass on their territory, and other neighboring tribes. Plundering has never been an end in itself, for them, but an adjunct to a hearty battle. If you can fight with the warriors of your tribe and win, they will even give you a fortune.

Bandits, horse bandits, and tribes are all recognized traffic threats in the three places of redemption. But no matter what kind of bandits appear in front of them, there is only one kind of favorite target - the lone one who is far away from the crowd.

Roy knew that, just as the prey of a migrating herd of antelopes that were most vulnerable to predators was the antelope that walked on the outermost side, or dragged at the rear, the bandits' jargon often referred to travelers or caravans who traveled alone far from the brigade as "lonely sheep."

And now the caravan he is in looks like an out-and-out "lonely sheep".

"What's wrong?" Seeing Roy frowning and looking around, Malt, who was walking side by side with him, asked curiously. ,

"I think something is wrong," Roy scratched his face thoughtfully, "and we seem to be too far away from the rest of the caravan. ”

"Far away?" Malt had little experience in this area, and looked around in confusion, "What's the matter if it's farther away, isn't it good to be quiet?"

Before, along the way, the caravan could only move slowly in the crowded crowd, and the crowded crowd and various unpleasant smells around could make Miss Mai'er suffer a lot. Now it was finally quiet, and the horse rode leisurely in the sun, and it was a pleasant time, and the big head actually said that it was too far away, and the malt pouted, the sun was shining, and the breeze was gusting, where was there any danger. The dead head is a ghostly one, a fox, and he is suspicious of everything.

"No, I have to remind them. ”

Roy's eyes rolled twice, and the more he thought about it, the more wrong it became, and he galloped forward.

As soon as Roy walked beside Ivan, a middle-aged man walking side by side with Ivan poked his head with a smile and said, "What, you're bored in the back?

The middle-aged man who spoke was about forty years old, with a round face, slightly chubby, a pair of small but bright eyes, speaking quickly and smiling, and he had an affinity that made people feel like a spring breeze.

His name was Fergus, and he was the chief of this caravan belonging to the Flintstone Consortium, and he traveled all year round in the major cities of the province of Lulian and several inland regions further north. Having just completed a thrilling and fruitful trade in Medin City, he is ready to lead a caravan to Muuni City.

From the time they left the city of Medding, Roy and the others were kindly invited by Fergus to go east with his caravan

For long journeys on the continent of Avalon, caravans are the first choice of ordinary people, except for those nobles who have their own escorts and carriages.

This tradition comes from the journey of mankind itself and the boundless desolation of the Gobi and the howling bandits of the land of redemption. For ordinary people, walking alone in the wild is tantamount to a sheep walking into a grassland full of wolves. Even if you're lucky enough not to run into bandits, the harsh weather in the Land of Redemption and the endless number of magical beasts in the wild are enough to kill most people.

And the caravans that walk the roads of the mainland every day flow like blood in the arteries.

People can pay to ride the caravan's wagon, enjoy the protection of the caravan guards and food tents, or they can travel by car or on horseback for free. Buy food supplies for caravans when needed.

Similarly, for the purpose of making money and being safe, the caravan needed the company of more travelers. Especially knights like Ivan and Sanjie are good travel companions who are willing to travel with any caravan even if they are given money.

Fergus was easy-going and funny, shrewd but also warm and honest, so Ivan, who had not known him for a long time and was about the same age, had a very speculative conversation with him. Always riding a horse at the front of the line. Seeing Roy coming up at this moment, Fergus, who thought he was bored, immediately enthusiastically built a road.

Roy was so smart, as soon as his mind turned, he knew that Fergus was afraid that he would pull Ivan and the others out of the caravan and go alone because he was bored, so he simply gave himself ideas to have fun.

He usually secretly praised these businessmen who traveled from south to north for their cleverness, looking left and right, and said along with the words: "It's very boring, why are the people around me gone?"

As soon as they heard this question, Ivan and Sanjie became vigilant, turned their heads to look around, and their eyes were awe-inspiring.

Jem and Jesse pulled the reins and scattered their horses to both sides of the convoy, Jem took off his longbow, and Jesse's palm rested on the riding spear.

In Fergus's eyes, Roy may only be a half-grown boy, but the four red leaf knights know that the strength and wisdom hidden under Roy's simple and harmless appearance are definitely not what ordinary people can imagine. Since he raised this question, it means that there is something strange.

"What's wrong?" Fergus was stunned for a moment, looked left and right, and his face suddenly changed. Reaching out to the entrance and making a whistle, he summoned the captain of the guard and the captains of the two hired mercenary squads.

In Fergus's experience, of course, he understood the danger of a caravan suddenly disconnecting from the front and back and moving alone. Especially in the case that Ignorance Hall has put the safety level of this generation on the red warning flag, he dare not take it lightly.

"How many detectives have we sent, and what's going on?" asked the three of them, as they galloped on. Originally, the captain of the guard was chatting with the two mercenary captains, and he was summoned by Fergus with a whistle, and he was a little confused. However, the captain of the guard replied quickly, "There are dozens of road scouts. Six in the front, three on the left and right, and two more in the back. Every ten minutes, the emergency will be alerted......

As he spoke, he scratched the back of his head, turned his head to look at Ivan and the others who were on alert, and showed a look of disapproval on his face, "I didn't find any signs of abnormality." ”

"Oh?" Hearing the captain's report, Fergus's face softened a little and asked, "What about the other merchants?"

"Just now, the road detective came back and said that there was a small merchant group and a small group of civilians in the back. As for the others, the captain of the guard shrugged his shoulders: "I guess I can't bear the traffic fee, so let's take a detour."

The leader of a mercenary squad took over and said to Fergus: "Mr. Fergus, if you are worried about security, you don't have to. The road scouts we sent did not stop from start to finish, and our people were patrolling for several kilometers around the convoy. In addition, less than five kilometers ahead, there is a checkpoint. No bandit would have the audacity to do it here. ”

The captain of the other mercenary team also nodded.

When Fergus heard that there was a checkpoint in front of him, he was relieved and was groaning, but he heard the black-haired young man next to him say slowly to himself, "Be careful to sail a ship for ten thousand years, I'm afraid I'm afraid of the official bandit family." ”

As soon as he heard this, Fergus's pupils shrank sharply.

The Flint Consortium is a well-known consortium in the Solan Empire, and it is also the veteran chamber of commerce of the Golden Skull Chamber of Commerce.

The Fergus family is one of the shareholder families in the flintstone consortium. It has been on the cusp of fighting for the control of the flint consortium.

Fergus himself was only a junior of the family, but because of his outstanding ability and the care of an elder of the family, he became the youngest member of the hundreds of caravan directors of the consortium at the age of thirty-five.

Every spring and autumn, Fergus would lead caravans to coastal ports and cities near the Warcraft Mountains to buy goods and mercenaries from distant places transported by maritime merchants, and transport them to the imperial capital to sell, and then go around other regions to buy special products and transport them to the port, only two round trips a year, but very profitable.

It is precisely because of his young age that he suddenly occupies a high position, coupled with the open and secret struggle between the major shareholder families within the consortium, that Fergus has always been jealous and excluded. Those within the Consortium who wanted to wrest from him the recognized gold trade route of Lulian could go from the imperial capital all the way to the Endless Sea.

However, with the outbreak of war, the situation changed radically. Lulian was reduced to a war zone. Not to mention that the coastal ports are in the hands of the enemy, and even many cities close to the Demon Beast Mountain Range cannot be visited. The volume of metals, magic cores, animal skins, and other goods plummeted, but the danger index of the caravan's trade routes skyrocketed.

The trade route, which had been clenched in his hand like a golden doll, had become a red-hot soldering iron in Fergus's hand, and those who had always looked at it had withdrawn their hands and stood aside gloating and waiting to see the joke.

You must know that the consortium has a performance appraisal for the big managers every year, and the salary positions are all based on the level of performance. Fergus's previous performance was able to rank among the best, and even became the key training object of the consortium, relying on this trade route in hand. And now, the volume of trade has plummeted by 80 percent, let alone a dazzling performance, and it is extremely difficult to achieve even the most basic indicators.

More than a year after the outbreak of the war, Fergus had almost lost his hair.

If it weren't for this war, in less than two years, he would have been able to go one step further and become one of the twenty-four big treasurers of the consortium, fighting for a greater voice for the family, while his own position is also very important. But in the past year, he has been struggling to complete basic tasks in the quagmire of war.

On the surface, a large caravan supervisor with twenty large carriages, sixty guards, forty men, and twenty coachmen in command was a magnificent sight. But the pain inside is only understood by Fergus himself.

After all, in terms of status, he is just a side branch of the family. The elders who helped him were under a lot of pressure to support him to become the big supervisor. If with the full support of the family, he also lost his position as the head of the caravan, I am afraid that he will never have the future in his life!, because of this, although he knows that the city of Medin is on the front line, he may encounter war at any time. But Fergus took the risk of leading a caravan to the city of Edin to buy goods.

It has to be said that Fergus was born with a talent for business, his vision is extremely accurate, and he dares to take risks.

While the caravans of other large merchant groups were holding back due to the situation in the city, a large number of merchants, nobles, refugees and mercenaries from the coast poured into the city. In the hands of these people, there is a backlog of goods, prey harvested in the Demon Beast Mountain Range, and all kinds of property that needs to be realized.

Sometimes, risk also means opportunity. If the dust settles in Medin City, people may not be in a hurry to sell their goods. But in the days or two when the Phillips soldiers were in the city and the city of Medin was under strict martial law, the people's hearts were in turmoil, but it gave Fergus a huge business opportunity.

Because there was no competition from other large consortium caravans, and the caravans of some small merchant groups could not pose a threat to the relatively strong Fergus, so this trip, Fergus not only acquired enough goods, but even exceeded the annual trade plan.

However, this is only the first step to success.

Fergus knew that twenty cartloads of goods were worth far more than any previous trade, and had exhausted all the money he could mobilize. Once there is a mistake, it is a catastrophe. Only when these goods were safely transported to Muni City could the trade be truly successful.

Those who travel a hundred miles are half ninety. The journey from the city of Medin to the city of Muny was perhaps more dangerous than the moment when the Ferrets approached the city of Medin. To this end, in addition to the guards of the caravan itself, Fergus also hired two third-level mercenary squads and two brave-level freelancers.

"Be careful to sail the ship of ten thousand years. ”

"I'm afraid of the official bandits. ”

Fergus chewed these two sentences carefully, and then looked at Roy's gaze, which was already different from the look in his eyes when he looked at a half-grown child before.

"Order the convoy to stop on the spot," Fergus immediately decided, "and wait for the merchant group behind to come up before leaving." Road scouts were doubled to expand the scope of vigilance. One report in ten minutes is changed to one report in five minutes!

In the surprised eyes of everyone, Fergus looked at Roy, and his eyes narrowed slightly: "Send someone to see the Viscount Wenger gang in the front and rear checkpoints, and see what they are doing!"

"I have something to say to you.

I remember that the fake seal was pushed, and it happened to encounter the 512 earthquake. I was depressed at the time. Unexpectedly, a few years later, the ruling was closed, but I encountered an earthquake of my own, and it seems that I have to be careful during the closure period in the future. Ha ha.

Everyone has always been very concerned about my condition, and many friends and book friends have called to ask. Very impressed.

Thank you all. And I would like to express my sincerest apologies for such a long interruption. Nothing at the moment. Inject a long-acting insulin from 23 to 8,9 days after a meal.

This thing will stay with me for the rest of my life. Damn it.

Just as I was posting this chapter, I just received a call from my book friend Sloth, who had an empty stomach of 7.5

So, on the eve of the New Year, I would like to sincerely send you a blessing.

Good health, family Kangtai!

Offer. If you like this work, you are welcome to come (vote for recommendation, monthly pass, your support is my biggest motivation.) ）