Love and passion, cutting up the wasteland.

Chapter 644: Little Noble (Combined Chapter)

"This damn place..." Shi Cha wiped the sand crust on his head and realized that it was a mixture of dried sweat and dust, and then he cursed angrily.

Behind him, a dozen fully armored warriors stood respectfully.

"Master, I remember there is an inn run by local drifters ahead," one of the older warriors stepped forward to comfort him, "We can stop by before heading to the lagoon."

Hearing the warrior address him like this, no matter how many times he heard it, Shi Cha was still secretly delighted in his heart, but he said, "I hope you didn't take the wrong path."

The Shi family is a sword-bearing noble family. In the past, they were a family of moderate size. Although they were not the top family in Kaiton City, they had considerable connections and status.

However, the grace of a gentleman is cut off after three generations. As it was passed down from generation to generation, by the time of Shi Cha's father's generation, the family had fallen into decline, and their daily expenses could only barely maintain the status quo corresponding to their title.

After his father passed away, Shi Cha inherited the title. His disappointed brother secretly took away half of the family's wealth and formed a caravan. It is said that he sneaked into the direction of the Shak Kingdom and there has been no news of him since then.

This wave of passive separation.

This made the already poor situation even worse.

The most powerful group in Kaidun City is the Scrap Master, which specializes in forging. It is controlled by the Lord Tianxin's family and several major families, but the Shi family has not been able to participate in this industry.

As the business situation became worse and worse, Shi Cha thought of his runaway brother, and simply followed suit, forming a caravan to travel between the North and South United Cities.

As a result, he actually made a name for himself in the past few years. Not only did his business grow bigger and bigger, he also officially joined the Chamber of Commerce with one of its branches.

Although it cannot compare with those high-level chambers of commerce, at least it can be regarded as joining the Merchant Guild... For ordinary merchants, this is the highest pursuit in their lifetime.

After returning from North United City, Shi Cha not only hired several famous local wandering warriors, but also planned to use his savings over the years to formally return to Kaiton City to enter the military armor industry. For a declining sword-bearing noble like him, no matter how successful he was outside, he still wanted to bring honor to his ancestors and revive his family in his hometown.

It's a knot in my heart.

Following the old warrior's address, the other armored warriors also saluted with a respectful look, which made Shi Cha feel very comfortable.

He sighed in his heart.

The north is indeed different from home.

In the Northern United City, the traditional power of the sword-bearing nobles collapsed, and the retainers and samurai who originally belonged to the aristocratic families lost their support.

They either join the imperial army and receive salaries from the central royal family, or wander the market, willing to work for money and become mercenaries.

In the south, the lords still retained the tradition of raising hooded guards - Shi Cha's family had fallen on hard times, and it was considered good enough to have a few servants at home. Naturally, they did not have the ability to train martial arts and cultivate loyal hooded guards from a young age.

Even if they wanted to recruit more, no other Hooded Guards would come to join them. Betraying their master is a great shame.

It is even not tolerated by the laws of the city-state.

To a certain extent, the number of hooded guards one has is also a reflection of a family's background, and it is not something that a nouveau riche can achieve quickly.

On the contrary, Shi Cha went to the North United City and easily recruited so many good men - not to mention the defense on the road, these people would be enough to help him hold up the situation even if they returned to Kaiton City.

The young noble glanced around and suddenly frowned, and a trace of gloom appeared on his face, which was originally full of joy.

At the end of the team, there was a young warrior with his eyes half lowered. He just followed silently, unlike the hired warriors before who came forward to flatter.

Seems out of place.

However, when he saw this person, Shi Cha just frowned slightly, and his forehead quickly relaxed again.

There are many arrogant people among the wandering warriors, not to mention that he has the qualifications.

This warrior may be the strongest among the people he hired.

The broker said that he had superb swordsmanship, and Shi Cha didn't know whether it was true or not... But just by looking at the scars on his face and on the back of his hands, as well as the broad-backed giant blade that was different from the gorgeous swords of other warriors, he knew that this man had actually been on the battlefield.

The data also proves that he had indeed returned from the front line of Iron Valley. If he had not offended his superiors, he would not have fallen to the point of betraying himself.

There are still some risks involved in buying him...Shi Cha is a noble of South United City and is not afraid of these.

I just felt like I got a great bargain.

If you don't want to salute, then don't salute... The corners of his mouth curled up slightly. After all, he was a hired wandering warrior. It was impossible to expect him to be as loyal as the hooded guards.

Although the rules of this world are strict... they are always particularly tolerant towards capable people.

The warriors and the caravan approached the huge skeleton of an ancient beast. In the endless yellow sand, they saw a man dressed as a boss coming towards them.

There was a slightly awkward smile on the other person's face.

"I'm so sorry, everyone..." Tang Darui looked at the fully armed mercenaries and couldn't help but take a deep breath, but he could only bite the bullet and say, "Our inn is almost full. I'm afraid we can't accommodate so many of you."

The caravan before them did not have many pack animals, perhaps only a dozen or so, but they were genuine traveling merchants. Even if the lowest-ranking servants were not counted, there were dozens of official members.

It's fine when you're free on weekdays...but now someone has just moved in.

"Hmm?" Shi Cha frowned. He also discovered that there was a group of sheep tied up at the tail vertebrae of the giant beast's skeleton.

There was nothing special about the livestock types themselves, just a few pack oxen and most of the camels...but after a quick comparison, he found that even the thinnest camel among them was much stronger than the pack animals in his own caravan.

If each of his pack animals could be like the other one, the cargo volume per trip could be increased by at least 30%, and the gross profit would also increase...

Unconsciously, the little noble's mind had been completely assimilated by the merchant. He thought: "Is it a guest from Shan?"

The trade route between the North and South United Cities has not been peaceful recently. A few days ago, plunderers from the Evil Land invaded the border, not only blocking the trade route, but also making even the civilians of the empire panic.

Shi Cha naturally didn't dare to set out.

Earlier, the imperial royal family actually issued a notice for merchants, prohibiting them from transiting through Shan. This greatly increased the distance and difficulty of traveling between the north and south, which was undoubtedly a huge blow to commerce. It stands to reason that the royal family is unlikely to issue such a ban that would harm the interests of merchant guilds.

The only possibility is.

The guild’s top brass condoned and even promoted this.

Shi Cha had no access to information at this level, so he could only obey official orders obediently. As soon as the looters retreated, he would hurry south from the disgusting area and return to the city.

What is strange is that none of the second-level franchise chambers of commerce that originally monopolized this part of the trade route rushed to set off.

This forced Shi Cha to be cautious.

"Sir, you have a very good insight..." Tang Darui recognized the other party's identity and immediately changed his tone to compliment him.

"That's fine," Shi Cha waved his hand, "I wonder if you could talk to the guests who moved in first and make some room for us?"

He didn't intend to use his power to bully others. Although he didn't take the pastoral merchants of Shandi or the Drifters' Station seriously, the area ahead was the sphere of influence of the Technology Hunters after all.

Especially the depression lagoon.

"Okay, okay." The boss nodded quickly.

In his opinion, the other party was indeed easy to talk to.

Just looking at those warriors, heading towards that station.

The warriors stopped and wiped their favorite swords, most of which had sharp edges and beautiful arcs, and were obviously worth a lot of money.

Some of them are collections from before their owner fell into poverty...but whether they have killed anyone or seen blood, I'm afraid only they themselves know.

The wandering warriors didn't care.

After all, it's valuable.

However, the scarred warrior who was at the end of the team did not make any special movements, but remained on guard.

Only a soldier like him knew how fragile the swords collected by the masters in the past were on the real battlefield.

Excluding the real top masters, the rest can be used for etiquette and assassination, but their blades will become blunt after cutting a few people in a frontal battle.

Many conscripted warriors died as a result.

Only a broad and majestic machete can cut through the sacred breastplate of the paladins. It looks rough, but it is a practical killing weapon.

The truly effective parts of his martial arts were all honed in actual combat.

However, when the warrior was on guard, his eyes suddenly drew to the skeleton of the giant beast in front of him.

His heart trembled slightly.

It was a long-lost throbbing sensation since leaving the Iron Valley, and for a moment he almost thought he was back on the battlefield.

The two countries are fighting and their future is uncertain.

The samurai almost drew the sword from his back.

The next moment.

The feeling disappeared again.

He tried to summon his keen senses, but he couldn't find it again.

"Am I too sensitive?" The scarred warrior thought to himself, "It seems that I still need a long time to recover..."

Under the skeleton's back.

Lu Meng withdrew his gaze. With his stealth ability, these people would not be able to detect him as long as he wanted.

Someone with good abilities.

he thought.

However, such an evaluation is a bit of a top-down view, just like a leisurely traveler admiring the beautiful scenery.

On the other side, the owner of the post station had already found them to explain and negotiate. His tone was not as respectful as it was to Shi Cha, but rather contained some hint of persuasion.

"...I think the customer is a nice guy and has a big business, so...if you agree, I will definitely ask for some compensation from everyone." Tang Darui said.

In front of him was Cone from the Far Traveler Clan. It seemed that the boss had completely regarded this "powerful" beast tamer of the great tribe as the leader of his group.

Before this, he had seemingly inadvertently brought out the armed forces of the other caravan, hoping that this group of Shan pastoral merchants would give up when they saw the difficulty.

For the sake of being a good person, the boss decided to not only waive all travel expenses, but also use part of his previous income as compensation... After all, the other legitimate caravan seemed to be much richer and their cargo was fully loaded, so even if he took the next order, he would not lose money.

However, what surprised him was that, even though he had exaggerated the strength of the noble businessman outside, the reactions of the people before him were not as frightened and horrified as he had expected.

Maybe a little.

But they were all a beat late.

Seems a bit perfunctory?

Could it be that all the people in the wandering tribe are so slow-witted... Tang Darui was anxious.

For him, how much he earns is secondary. But when living in the Wasteland of Bones, everyone knows that the nobles are the most difficult to serve.

If a conflict breaks out, even if the technology hunters of the Lowland Lagoon can judge impartially, the other party has the support of the South United City. What do you have?
The White Eyebrow Clan?

Everyone knows that they are the most Buddhist and introverted.

Don’t talk about first come first served. The rules of this world are inherently unfair.

This is for your own good.

Just as Tang Darui was about to speak frankly after spending some time talking, a voice interrupted him.

"Please tell them, boss: We will just rest here for half a day and leave at night. We will be free then."

The person who spoke was a woman in a windbreaker and work clothes. The high collar blocked her lips, so her expression could not be seen for a moment.

"Then... I'll go back and discuss it first."

For some reason, Tang Darui actually heard a hint of firmness from the woman's mouth, as if this was their bottom line.

Somehow, the boss relayed these words to the noble caravan in the wasteland.

This caused a commotion among the warriors.

They also didn't expect that a mere livestock merchant would actually come out to bargain when his boss had already made clear concessions.

You know, Shi Cha's caravan was immediately registered at the third-level franchised trade level in the Merchant Guild, and the annual insurance premium alone is a considerable sum.

Even though he is not as close as the president's trusted subordinates, he is already the highest level in an ordinary chamber of commerce.

After all, if he really worked for Long En, he might not have the mind to engage in formal business, and the scale of his business would not be large.

Aren't you a little ungrateful?

Even Shi Cha frowned.

I almost started to scold.

However, he quickly calmed down, thinking that this was not Southern United City after all; even if it was Southern United City, the Shi family was no longer the aristocratic family of their ancestors; even if they still had the aristocratic title, their current identity was just that of a caravan leader, and they were doing business in a business sense, so they could not act like a noble young man...

After a series of self-consolations, Shi Cha smiled again: "Okay, then we'll wait outside for half a day... But Boss, can you still send us some extra tea and food?"

"Of course." Tang Darui responded repeatedly.

The wandering warriors looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders - well, they would be blown by the wind and sand for another half a day.

However, the scarred warrior with a sword breathed a sigh of relief.

He was not the type to interact too much with others, and he just wanted to settle down in Kaidun City and start a family, and he did not intend to participate in the caravan's decision-making... But when he saw the host frowning, he actually had an urge to step forward and persuade him.

(End of this chapter)