wandering fairy

.Chapter 914 Blackmail

The scenery here is very different from other places-it is a land of rich hills with flat and soft terrain, rich and pleasant things.

In the arms of the clear river are soft and undulating hills, dense crops swaying with the wind, making the whole hills like colorful and soft breads exuding a fragrance in the wind, spreading half the land.On the pleasant wheat and alfalfa exuding a unique smell, from time to time, green and spirited birds fly past, singing their joy and happiness in the wind.And the red and green mountains in the distance are like rows of strict guards protecting this rich land.

In front of it is a manor with neat houses and even some exquisite carvings. You can see tall granaries and beautiful windmill workshops from a long distance, like rich giants standing in the stretches of farmland and countryside. Quite a quiet and amiable momentum.For those who are used to seeing the hungry and rioting people along the way, this is really a rare and good sight! But instead of seeing the temple of the Mother Earth, there is a shining golden tower of Pelor, reflecting the dazzling light. The sunlight suddenly stands between the vast green field and the tidy manor, although it is beautiful, it is a bit uncoordinated

And ~~ 'distance produces beauty' this sentence still makes sense.When the Viscountess and Dong Hezi approached this tidy small manor, the first thing they saw was the tall windmill workshop - the colorful paint had faded in many places, revealing an old texture, and the doors and windows were tightly closed to the wind. Blowing and raining, it seems that it has not been opened and used for a long time.So much so that you can see the bright green moss in the lower part and the spiders in the upper part.When they entered the manor, they saw a scene of labor in full swing—the farmers in the manor were moving grain out of the warehouse.

Everyone got out of the carriage and took a rest in the manor.Although this place is not the territory of the Viscountess, the local Countess has a good relationship with the Viscountess, so the housekeeper of the manor didn't dare to neglect, and immediately ordered someone to bring water to entertain her.Some idle Grimm asked curiously: "How much can you sell so much grain?" But the Viscountess on the seat diagonally opposite replied a little weakly: "Oh~~ not a single coin."

What's going on?The steward of the manor next to him told Grimm the truth: "It is not selling grain, but handing in grain. The king's war against the Eastern Gnoll Kingdom is still going on, and now the frontline is short of grain, so we have to send grain up again. The governor above has already The second and third came to press, and even ran to the earl to make trouble. If you don’t hand it in this week, you don’t know what trouble you will have.”

Grimm remembered the matter of the North Sensano Kingdom, and laughed softly: "So, the king uses mages and warlocks as the backstage, and then the governor will suppress you? He is not afraid to push you into a hurry, what will happen? ?” But the Viscountess next to her smiled helplessly, with a three-pointed melancholy on her elegant and clear face: “Trouble? Who can make trouble? Who will follow us to make trouble? The king’s royal mage and relatives After becoming the governor and officials of all sizes, the King’s Paelor Church drove out all the other churches. There were a lot of troubles 20 years ago, but now~~ah~~don’t mention it. Everyone has to continue Just live." The upper level is not divided, and the lower level is exclusively controlled by the Pelor Church, which is really different from Bei Sensano.

The butler of the manor on the opposite side smiled wryly: "But these days are getting more and more difficult. Our manor is running out of food. If we keep urging us to adjust food and pay taxes, everyone will be hungry. If this If the war is not over until next year, we will probably die here.”

Grimm was half-truthfully surprised and said: "Your land is so fertile that it is about to run out of oil. Do you want to die? Don't exaggerate. We are not here to ask you for food and taxes." But the Viscount next to him Madam touched her forehead repeatedly in a depressed mood and said: "The situation is like this now. Alas~~ I just hope that the war will end soon. What's the benefit of fighting those jackals? There are barren hills everywhere, and it's hard to find even a piece of cultivated land. Even if you find it There is also no suitable water source. Could it be that some broken wells are built on the mountain to carry water to irrigate the fields? Sigh~~ I am not afraid of exhausting people. His Majesty the King is a little overjoyed."

But no one can change the king's mind, so after discussing helplessly for a while, they still reluctantly bid farewell to each other.The Viscountess and her party continued to walk along the country road. From a distance, they could see that the fertile rolling hills began to turn into steep and resolute mountains, and the fertile land gradually turned into thick blue rocks.And on top of the blue rocks in the mountains, there is a towering and old castle.Like a once heroic heavy armored warrior, with a rusty long sword, he looked quietly into the distance and meditated silently in the increasingly cold wind.

The contemplation was interrupted by the waiter's voice: "My lord, they have arrived." Immediately, the countess, who was sitting in front of the chaotic copywriting, raised her tired eyes and said, "Understood, please wait in the lobby. Me and everyone Come over after you have finished talking, sir." Then he turned around and started bargaining with the businessman on the opposite side of the copywriter.

By the time the bargaining was over, she was already so tired that she wanted to sleep, but she had to force herself to straighten out the increasingly heavy earl clothes, and came to the neat and colorful living room with bright and clean windows, although the bustling carpet There were more mercenaries like priests and mages on the sofa." But she didn't have the energy to take care of it, but regretfully stepped forward and took the Viscountess's hand and said, "I'm really sorry, I promised to give you a part of the money.But ~~ah~~ just two days ago, the governor sent someone to urge the food, and listed a bunch of 'patriotic donation fees, military support fees' and so on.Our family has also been targeted, so now~~ah~~ I'm afraid we won't be able to spend that much money.And the cash on hand is almost gone, I have to trouble you to wait for a few days, and I will give it to you when the cash comes back. "

The Viscountess' hands were a little stiff, but her friend had difficulties, so she couldn't force her.He just nodded politely and replied: "Okay, I can still go to the provincial capital to find a solution, you should deal with your own affairs first. These tax officials who ransacked the house and the governor who killed the family are not easy to deal with. Our man It’s just that it’s okay to bump into a wall and cause trouble for you.”

The two elegant and depressed ladies chatted and comforted each other for a while before turning the topic to Dong Hezi and the others: "This is Pastor Aililu, the servant of the God of Qi Element. He happened to be on the way with me, so he came together "The 'Priest Elilu' also said in passing: "The main reason is that your country produces some rare magic raw materials, and I like to study plant raw materials so I wandered around. I don't know if there are any special plant raw materials in the local area. ?”

The countess in strict attire replied with a polite smile: "Yes, there are some, but I have something to do, so I can't accompany you to inspect. Tomorrow, I will find a local guide to show you around. I hope to find What you need." After a few chats, they went to dinner together.

Early the next morning, when the bright and soft sunlight was pouring down on the entire castle, the countess was in a better mood in a small open space in the castle~~Feeding the sheep and feeding a few strong wild goats, they looked rough and dusty. It looks like he hasn't returned to the sheepfold for several months, and has been wandering around in the wild.

"This is a wild goat, right?" came the voice of 'Priest Alilo' and his tall dark blue robes from behind: "You are also a ranger? I can't tell." The countess here is a bit Uncomfortably asked back: "Why did you say that? Go outside the castle at night to listen to those village women who love to chew their tongues~~ Uh, I'm curious, how do you know?"

The pastor Alilu replied: "Looking at your hands and bones, you can tell that you are not an ordinary weak person. You should have practiced martial arts. Smell your smell and look at your affinity for wild animals. You are probably a ranger." It seems that you are very good at dealing with animals. It is really rare for these wild goats to remain calm and continue to eat in front of a stranger like me." When the other party smiled awkwardly: "You are too flattering." While hiding his nervous eyes, Dong Hezi suddenly said: "Actually, I have also learned the skills of rangers before, so I kept two pets, the big badger and the little wild boar. It's a pity that their conditions have never met my ideal. So I suddenly want to ask you some ways to raise animals. I wonder if I can teach you?"

The countess in casual clothes gradually calmed down and replied: "In a few days, I will go to other places to collect some receivables. If I have time, I will help you solve the problem. Oh, at that time, you may also go to the provincial capital with our friends Right. Hehehe~~See, I forgot about this."

Since she wanted to cover up again and again, she naturally had her own concerns.Dong Hezi, who looked at her with a smile and said nothing, didn't ask any further.Just at this moment, an anxious attendant ran over to the countess's ear and lowered his anxious voice, "The sheriff came again and said that we are suspected of selling illegal salt. Go and have a look."

When the countess hurried through the arched corridors with simple and simple carvings, and came to the living room with large windows and bright sunlight, the old acquaintance sheriff was leading a group of bright and mighty young men in impatient Waiting, and seeing the other party coming, he immediately patted the comfortable sofa with a strange smile and yelled: "Your Excellency is really busy with work, I don't know who are you talking about illegal business with?"

Some anxious female countess just said in a blunt tone: "What do you mean? I don't understand~~" Seeing that the other party took out a bag of clean edible salt in his hand, he shouted loudly: "This is in the The piece of salt found on your site is the same as other spell ingredients, and it is exclusively sold by the king. And I have checked the records of past merchants in the past few days, and there is no caravan authorized to buy and sell salt. That is to say, this It was a private salt dealer who accidentally dropped it on the side of the road. You have serious suspicions, and you must go back to me immediately to explain."

The countess just said: "You are blackmailing me. I know you have hated our family for a long time, and now you have to find a chance to avenge yourself? Let me tell you, your bad idea is not easy to succeed, and I am not easy to mess with. You can assist in the investigation." , want me to go with you now? Dreaming"

"Hmph" the security officer on the opposite side immediately scolded with a stern face, "What do you think you are? You are a subject of the king, and you are one of thousands of subjects on the issue of selling private salt." , you nobles also have no immunity. The salt industry belongs to the king, not to you. Huh, please go and do a small investigation and you won’t even agree. Hehehe~~ Then I’ll get a search warrant from the top 'Check, check' your castle"