Chapter 3: The Merchant's Dilemma

The man at the front was not tall and a little fat, with a yarmulke hat pinned to it, a fine silk robe, and a leather bag around his waist.

Parallel to him was a tall, middle-aged strong man, wearing a semi-naked piece of heavy armor with grooves and scratches, and a bandage around his waist and back, which was stained with blood, probably because he had just bandaged it. He carried a half-metal garden shield with horns and a steel sword that braved the cold light. Not surprisingly, this is supposed to be a mercenary, and has just experienced a fierce battle.

The last one was a black-haired female swordsman, and yes, this girl had the same black hair and black eyes as Mei Fei, and had a similar oriental face. She held a peculiarly shaped short sword in her hand, and she didn't bring any protective props except for a pair of tight clothes that made her already delicate body full of youthful energy.

In fact, Mayfield had already discovered this group of people, and the reason at first was none other than the black-haired girl. As Maefie entered the tavern, he noticed that the group's eyes hadn't left him since he entered.

When the guards noticed that the two men and a woman were approaching Mayfei, they quickly lined up in a line of defense and stopped them in the middle of the road.

The leading merchant took the two companions back a few steps in amusement, and explained to the guards, "I heard that this lord is looking for a guide to the Blue Water City, and we are here to apply. ”

Matthew was already in front of Mayfei, one of his hands already on the hilt of his sword, and the other hand held up in front of him to signal the other party not to approach. As an experienced veteran, there is no carelessness at this time. Matthew looked at the men suspiciously, and because they were armed with weapons, he didn't answer immediately, so both sides were frozen there for the time being.

But at this moment, Mei Fei waved his hand to break the situation: "You all sit back and let those guides come over." ”

He knew in his heart that these people would not be some kind of killer assassins. How could there be such a swaggering assassin? Three people with two weapons crashed directly into the arms of the knights, isn't this self-defeating? Even if the guy disguised as a shop guy sneaks up on the target, it is much easier to get than this.

After receiving the order, the knights of the guards slowly retreated, but they did not let their guard down because of this, and they never even took their eyes off them for a moment.

The merchant didn't even dare to take a breath when he passed by these escort knights. He travels back and forth to the imperial capital all year round, and the information is not too closed. This time period will appear here for young nobles, plus that special noble coat of arms. Nine times out of ten, he could guess the identity of the other party, and naturally knew that if these guards really started, they would be much more powerful than those mercenaries.

Mei Fei looked at the men with interest, especially the black-haired female swordsman. It's not just because of her good looks, but also because Mayfe rarely sees Orientals in the empire.

While Mayfi was looking at them, they were also observing the young man. Finding that the young nobleman did not show displeasure, the merchant who took the lead puffed up his breath and took the lead in opening his mouth to identify himself: "My lord, my name is Tam, and I am a merchant from the Wendy Chamber of Commerce. Then he pointed to the two behind him: "They are the mercenaries who traveled with me, we have all been to Bishui City, and we have some understanding of the situation there." ”

The Wendy's Chamber of Commerce is a large chamber of commerce, and they have members all over the empire, and they are quite famous in the circle of nobles. From the businessman's point of view, he was completely right. Mei Fei did know about this Wendy Chamber of Commerce, and he smiled and didn't plan to continue to detour with the other party: "You should have found me more than just to be my guide, right?"

A merchant with two thugs followed by a group of mercenaries who came to serve as his guides? The phenomenon itself would be difficult to explain if they had no other purpose.

was uncovered by the young master of the Marshal of the North family's words, and Tamu didn't know how to explain it. I secretly blamed myself for losing my square inch to find such a loophole reason to talk. The three of them were stunned for a moment and didn't know how to answer, but fortunately, the young nobleman didn't seem to have the intention of pursuing it. So the merchant gritted his teeth and simply said his true purpose without hiding it: "Then I will be blunt." My lord, we want to hire your army for the time being. ”

"Tell me first, what happened to you. After listening to the three men's request, Mayfield neither refused nor accepted, and pointed to the chair opposite, intending to hear the reason for it first.

As for the request to hire an army, he was not too resistant, and it was not without precedent for merchants to hire aristocratic troops. In fact, if the goods carried at the beginning are too valuable, and the merchant is not worried about handing them over to the general mercenary group———— as long as the return is only rich enough, the mercenary group can also become a thief group. And at this time, they will consider hiring the army of the great nobles to escort them with a lot of money. After all, under the banner of the great nobles, ordinary bandits and thieves would never dare to use their brains.

But none of the above should have happened in a tavern in such a remote town, and even if neither side knew the details.

Mayfi didn't immediately refuse, which reassured Tam. He glanced at the guards and sat down when he saw that the latter did not stop us: "We have just been attacked by a group of thieves and lost all our goods. I hope you can help me reclaim the goods, and of course I'm willing to pay for it whether it succeeds or not. ”

"What is it?" Mayfy was not in a hurry, he was going to hear what had happened first.

"A handful of seeds and tools," Tamu recounted, "a handful of seeds and tools, and a few hundred horses of silk, and some fine wine, and a small amount of spices and salt, and twenty-five wagons. ”

Mei Fei nodded: "How many thieves have you encountered, and where did they do it?" ”

At this time, the strong mercenary on the side saw that Tamu was a little hesitant and took the initiative to take over the conversation again, "About two hundred people, I haven't seen them carrying horses." The location was near a hillside twenty kilometers east of Kunaer. Before we broke through, we took all the horses pulling the cart away, and they could only rely on people to pull the carriage, so it should not be far. ”

There were not many places in the south of the empire where horses could be raised, and horses were scarce and almost overwhelmingly controlled by the nobility everywhere. It is difficult for thieves to get even ordinary horses, not to mention war horses with higher quality requirements and special training, Mei Fei was not surprised by this, he looked at this mercenary, "How many of you still have them." ”

"In addition to the wounded and some of the captured companions, there were more than fifty people. Speaking of this, the strong man's face was a little bad, and they could be regarded as a defeat in the previous battle.

"Then even with my group of guards, we are only more than a hundred people. The number of enemies is two to three times that of us. Mayfield shook the glass in her hand and looked at Tam with a smirk. He realized that the merchant did not seem to be simple, "Does Mr. Tam think we have a chance of winning?" ”

Hearing Mei Fei deliberately ask him, Tam's hands and feet suddenly felt a little cold, and he lowered his head weakly and did not dare to look at the young man's eyes: "I have been to the Northern Regions a few times, and I have heard about your deeds, and the people there are all praising the justice and mercy of the lord. I don't think you'll let this group of thugs harm innocent people. ”

At this time, the black-haired female swordsman, who had not spoken, stared at the guards who were still drinking in the tavern and suddenly spoke: "As long as there is one, thirty elite cavalry, it is enough." ”

"Oh?" Ignoring the jerky and very incongruous pronunciation, Mei Fei glanced at the black-haired female swordsman with some curiosity, "What do you want to do." ”

"They, just now, got their hands on it. Tonight, no, be on guard. The black-haired female swordsman paused, "We, we can, night attack." ”

Mayfield thought about it, and this plan seemed very feasible. Then he glanced at the group of guards who were staring at him and the black-haired female swordsman, and couldn't help laughing: "Well, it seems that my knights are very fond of you." ”

The black-haired female swordsman was stunned for a moment, and soon a red cloud appeared on her face, and then she glared at Mei Fei fiercely.