Chapter Twenty-Eight: The City of Rangers

If you walk into a small town in Beihai at sunset, gently wake up an old man who is dozing, and then sit down in front of him to show that you are willing to listen to his story, then he will definitely tell you the story of the legendary fortress--- which is called the City of Rangers, and there is called Chanda. ()

Long before Martin joined the army, long before Sir Harlaus's Northern Expedition, long before the enthusiastic nonsense of Swadi's ancestors, Chanda stood on the North Sea Plain of the Karad Empire.

The city is so old, even older than the memory of the ancient trees.

It is believed that the ancestors of the Karad people and the ancestors of the Chanda people were not a group of people, but that the Chanda people came from overseas and were colonists who came to the mainland in ancient times to pioneer and reclaim.

It is said that at the end of the sea, there is a civilization that is even more elegant and advanced than Karad--- and that is the relatives of the Zen people. That civilization was rich in poets, wine, and legends.

To this day, people still sing the praises of the epic written by a blind man in that civilization, and that poem celebrates the heroic and unyielding struggle. It is said that the Karadian civilization at that time was at best a barbarian tribe compared to that civilization--- although the Karad themselves had always regarded themselves as the center of civilization.

The more common theory is that a long time ago, the civilization on the other side of the sea had a population boom due to the progress of agriculture, which forced the local population to find a more suitable place to settle. Population pressures and commercial demands led to the civilization to colonize outward, perhaps a thousand years ago or more, when a colonization fleet landed in what is now the North Sea, and they named the continent --- new land of Calradia, and they established several colonies at the mouth of the sea, one of which was a small and inconspicuous colonial town.

Soon, the new colony was under rapid attack by the ancestors of the indigenous --- Karad people on the mainland. In the course of hundreds of years of conflict, the Chanda people gradually assimilated the Karad people by virtue of the superiority of civilization. The aristocratic armies of the Chanda led an army of servants with the naturalized Karadians as the main force, and the colonists of foreign civilizations soon expanded their influence across the continent.

The continent became a colony of foreign civilizations and established a civil republic. Hundreds of years later, the continent was rid of the alien civilization--- by which time it had already declined, and the nascent continental civilization proudly called itself the Karad people --- the newly-born people. The Kalad Empire occupied every piece of land on the continent as it is known today. Buildings from that era can be found on almost every corner, and even those that seem completely unworkable today have the magnificent architecture left by the Karadians--- abandoned fortresses on snow-capped mountains, ore veins on islands in the sea, and miles of bunkers in the mountains.

The Kalladians of that era were nascent and tolerant--- driving out the armies of the alien civilization, but allowing the few cities they left behind to remain self-governing, such as Zenda.

The lineage of the Chanda is so old that when people find documents in the snowy mountains that cannot be deciphered from the Karadian era, they can easily read them by the scholars of the Zenda--- who will tell the excavator that the pages are a tribune election list and the parchment scroll is a baker's account book.

Time passed, the Kallad Empire collapsed with a sigh, and the ancient republican form of government was gone forever.

The city of Chanda, which insisted on maintaining its self-government, gradually became an outlier, and its form of government, which easily reminded the Karadians of their past political life, was hated by the first generals. Zen people know that they are weak--- the mother country at the end of the sea has weakened, and they are too busy to take care of themselves, and Zen people can only rely on themselves.

Through advanced commerce and moderate and honest rule, the Chanda people maintained the autonomy of their own small piece of land--- of course, the Chanda City Protectors of the past generations have tried to keep a low profile and not mix things outside the mainland at will. It has become impossible to restore the glorious republican era, and what the Zen people can do is to protect the flame of hope left by the classical era as much as possible--- and hope that it will one day shine again.

In order to protect themselves--- the Chanda people established a complete military system, and for a long time, the number of fleets of the Chanda fleet was far ahead of all its opponents, although later the fleet of the Chanda people disappeared due to the shrinkage of commerce.

The level of developed commercial exchanges and technology has made Chanda the richest region on the mainland. Using the wealth in their hands, the Chan people have always maintained a considerable military strength, especially the Ranger Knights of the Chan Da people are the most outstanding.

Those knights were selected from all the citizens of Chanda--- whether they were nobles or ordinary citizens, as long as they were of high moral character and excellent martial arts, they could enter the Knights. Moreover, the Zen people stipulated that every male citizen between the ages of 12 and 14 must go to the military camp for three years of training, including horsemanship, archery, and basic tactical combat. This tradition of all-for-all warfare dates back to the colonial period, when the weakly populated colonies had to demand strict combat qualities from their citizens in order to confront the outnumbered natives.

The Zen people have done a great job, and have been guarding their city steadily and successfully for hundreds of years after the collapse of the Kallad era.

If Beihai hadn't been as messy as it was later, perhaps scholars would still go to Chanda today to listen to lectures, watch citizens' campaigns, and read out-of-print ancient books in the library, but Chanda no longer exists, and the city of rangers has been betrayed and burned.

The Zen masters paid the price for their kindness.

When the Nords finally persuaded Chanda to send troops, the Chandas, through the support of the council, finally agreed to send troops.

The main force of the Chandas--- the Ranger Knights and their attendants, a total of 1,300 soldiers, marched east in two directions to snipe the Vickyans. The Nords fought alongside the Knights by virtue of the terrain, and soon the Vecchian cavalry was met with a formidable enemy. While the Wikiians were frustrated, the Wiki proper, east of the mountain, was also worried about the expeditionary force, and there was no doubt that the pace of the Wikibians' offensive slowed down. After a diplomatic mediation, the Vekia Expeditionary Force reconciled with the Nords.

The Nords, who had been beaten on both sides, desperately needed a long-term peace with the Wikibians.

The Wikibians' demands were simple: to bring the Chanda region into the Wikibians' sphere of influence. The Wikibians need war reparations, and if the Nords are unwilling to pay, they have two options, first, let the Chanda people pay compensation, and second, continue to fight the Wikibians.

At that time, the Svadia army was massing on its northern border, and at any time there was a possibility of re-entering the North Sea, and the Nords did not dare to risk fighting on two fronts, and after some strong protest, the Nords withdrew their forces to a hundred miles west of Chanda.

The Zendars suddenly discovered that the Nord allies they were fighting alongside had run clean overnight, exposing themselves to the murderous Vecchian army.

In the eastern snowy mountains, Vecchian soldiers entered the fortress that the Swadians had given them not long ago, blocking the road to the east of the Great Mountain. After making sure that they were safe, the Wikians headed west, ready to settle the ledger with the Zen masters.

The Chan people received an ultimatum: an indemnity of 700,000 North Sea gold coins, 3,000 horses, 1,700 pairs of full-body armor and 4,600 pairs of half-body armor, 1,400 yew bows and 200,000 arrows, and 100 bundles of bowstrings.

Chanda's house was stunned by the huge amount of money extorted by the Wikibians, which was nothing short of a fool's dream. The Chandals refused, although their legislators wanted to compromise when they felt the situation was critical, believing that it would not be a big deal for Chanda to live a difficult life for more than a decade if the reparations could be exchanged for long-term peace and stability.

But the parliament knows that they cannot choose to compromise, and that the backlash of public opinion brought about by compromise is not something they can suppress.

Enraged, the Chanda beheaded the arrogant attendants of the Vicchians, ordered all the citizens to enter the city to protect them, and then handed the Vecchians' ransom documents to the Nords--- who hoped that the treacherous ally would do something.

King Nord simply replied: "Got it".

The lonely city of Chanda was besieged, and King Nord ordered the officers to garrison it, and the generals who let go of their troops to aid Chanda in the east would face the danger of falling.

When Martin learned that Chanda was under siege, he ordered his soldiers to pack their packages and prepare for departure. He thought he was about to follow King Nord to save his allies. Most of Martin's comrades-in-arms thought so: the Zen masters helped them when they were most in danger, and now it was time to repay them. So when King Nord's order was given, Martin was stunned, and many middle- and lower-ranking officers like Martin around him were puzzled: "How can you do such a thing that is not a thing?" ”

Soon, an officer led the soldiers to leave the team on their own and go to Chanda to serve as volunteers.

Aware of the constant infiltration of soldiers from the west, the Vicchians threatened King Nord: "If your country does not stop aiding Chanda, we will consider reforming our alliance with Svadia." ”

King Nord ordered the arrest of the sergeant who sympathized with Chanda, and one of Martin's comrades was caught on the way east, tied to the door of the barracks, and whipped him.

Martin was disappointed.

Martin has never been a person who suffers from gains and losses, his hometown makes him feel depressed, he leaves his hometown, and the army makes him feel disappointed, so he leaves the army

Soon, Martin left behind one of his officers and a beautiful suit of armor and fled overnight.

Chanda City welcomed volunteer Martin half a month later.

Martin took part in the final battle of the defense of Chanda, and he saw with his own eyes the citizens of Chanda die one after another on the city walls, in the streets, and in the halls of the council. Martin lies in the pile of dead people, and is soon awakened by the flames of Zenda: the thousand-year-old city has been reduced to ashes in Martin's heartbreak, and thousands of citizens and soldiers have been captured by the Vecchians and moved to the far eastern ice fields to fill the population void there.

However, it is said that Chanda did not perish, and that many of Chanda's knights and tribunes were missing, and it is said that when Chanda was burned, a pioneer warship ventured close to the coast and rescued many of Chanda's scholars and generals. Some of the Chanda soldiers fled, and they were so disillusioned with the Nords and even more hated the Wikibians that they had nowhere else to go, and were said to have fled all the way into the swamp to join the local 'swamp ghosts'.

Disappointed, Martin returned to his hometown, and then a few years later hastily pulled a group of homeless people to start a business as an executioner. It's been a lot of years.

It is said that the fate of the Zen people who moved east was extremely tragic, they were wantonly bullied by the Wiki people in the ice and snow--- in fact, bullying is not counted, but because the environment there is too difficult, the Wikibians hastily led the Zen people into the ice and snow land, but there is no preparation, so that many people died in the first winter.

For these people, the attitude of the Wikibians is also different.

Some Wikibians advocate the inclusion of these people and treat them as if they were their own citizens, as long as the Zendans abandon their flashy political habits.

There are also some Wikibians who believe that they should do everything possible to squeeze these Zen masters and make them sacrifice a little more for the happiness of Wikibians. This conflict is especially fierce at the bottom.

In a small town east of Vekia, a group of clerks, some Karadian teachers, and a group of skilled workers were distributed among the towns. For these people, the fierce Vykia Reclamation people look down on them very much.

Wikibians love sauerkraut bacon with a strong smell; likes hard liquor that makes them dizzy; A sturdy steed hoping for a gallop.

But look at the Zen people, this group of people like light, tasteless, thinly cut strips of meat; Likes to drink wine that is as mild as water; When he went out, he was so frightened that he hid to the side when he saw the fierce horse.

This group of people couldn't find a man

The most unbearable thing for the young man of Vikia is that the girl of the Vikyan often can't hide that she likes the polite little white face of the Zen master, which is simply a joke, the Wikibian defeated the Zen master on the battlefield, but in the end the Zen master snatched his lover, which made the frustrated guy of Vikya have to get himself drunk with strong wine, and then go to a certain Zen master to fight.

Ivan is the steward of a store in the town, and when he became an apprentice, he happened to be moved by the Chan people, so he was assigned by the boss to follow a few Chan masters to help, nominally to help the Chan people get used to here, but in fact to monitor the Zen people to prevent them from escaping.

Ivan didn't have much contact with these Zen masters at first, because these Zen masters always had a gloomy face, which made the unsociable Ivan have no idea where to start, but Ivan was happy to stay with people who didn't speak.

Gradually, Ivan discovered the difference between the Zen people: their work was extremely orderly and efficient, and often one afternoon of work by a Zen craftsman was worth two days of work by a Wiki craftsman.

Moreover, the utilization and saving of raw materials by Zen masters have reached an amazing point: a bucket of water Zen masters can be used for a day and used in dozens of different processes; A whole piece of material can be used cleanly, and the leftovers can also be made into small tenons and wedges; A broken scarf can be pulled off by strands of silk thread and then woven into a more beautiful piece

Ivan's wariness of the Zen master soon turned into curiosity and admiration, and he soon went from a watcher to a student. Some Zen scholars and craftsmen are bored, but they also teach the studious Ivan.

Soon, Ivan became unbearable with the discrimination and oppression of the Zen people in the town, and he approached the president of the guild and demanded that the Zen people be treated equally. The straightforwardness of the Wikibians ruined Ivan's future. Ivan's shop was afraid of the president's pressure and did not dare to reuse him, and the parents who had made a marriage contract to Ivan also disliked him, and finally Ivan was involved in a lawsuit, and after tossing all the property, Ivan had to leave the town.

After hearing that Nord was building a large number of buildings, Ivan felt that he should give it a chance, so he embarked on the road to Nord alone.

"The Ranger City just disappeared," Martin recalled to Jill.

"Well," Ivan added, "and now that we Wikians and Nords have really done something disgraceful together. It would be nice to be able to rebuild Zenda one day. ”

"Hehe", Martin smiled, "maybe there will be another day, there are still hundreds of Chanda soldiers dormant in the swamp, and I heard that they will come back if they have the chance." ”

"But the brilliance of the Zen people is their civilization, and without scholars and a large number of believers, a few soldiers cannot be revived," Ivan shook his head.

"Who the hell are these people?" In the past few days, Jill has listened to Martin and Ivan reminiscing about their previous history, and can't help but become more and more interested in this Ranger City, "Are those soldiers still in the swamp?" ”

"Yes," Martin said. "Some of them are my former comrades from the war with the Wikibians, Ivan, don't be angry when I say that. Well, I had a mortgage '''That's, seven years ago, I saw those soldiers in the swamp, and they're still there, I know. Their logo hasn't changed, 'Petrel,'" Martin said with a smile, then dipped his hand in the water in the cup and put a heraldic pattern on the table.

"Well, this is the coat of arms of the noble soldiers of Chanda, the free 'petrel'. They paint it on their shields, rust it on their banners, and weave it on their robes, and if you see someone with something like that, then he's a Zen person."

Jill frowned, thinking about something, then looked back, "Ruona, bring Renault here." ”

"What's the matter, sir?" Martin asked curiously.

"Renault has a petrel tattoo on his palm, I thought it was a Nord tradition."