Chapter 714: The Caravan Yields the Road, Duoen Town in the Afternoon

Jier narrowed his eyes, sizing up the person who was truly in charge of the caravan that had just arrived.

The other party was a pot-bellied Fatty, whose protective leather armor, hastily pulled on, was stretched out of shape by his massive stomach; and underneath the leather armor, there was not only that exaggerated belly but also a luxurious merchant's cloak he had originally been wearing.

The poor cloak was caught between the fat and the taut leather armor, its vibrant bright blue color wrinkled and distorted.

"M-my lord, Sir Knight. Of course, a-and the Priest lord from the Agricultural God Church. Good afternoon to you both, may the God of Wealth protect us, that we could meet each other in such a desolate and dangerous place."

From over ten meters away, while still slowing down his horses, this Caravan Steward began to exchange pleasantries with Jier and Bata'er Jiaoshi as if they were old acquaintances, despite them being strangers.

Bata'er Jiaoshi frowned; generally speaking, in front of a Church Priest, few people would mention another god or another church, but this middle-aged pot-bellied Fatty, who was clearly no novice merchant, had done exactly that.

It seemed he not only didn't care about him, a lowly Shepherd Priest, but also didn't care about offending him.

However, the Priest soon spotted a gemstone badge hanging from the other man's neck, one that had been deliberately pulled out from under his clothes.

While Jier was talking to the man, the young Priest observed carefully and recognized it from the knowledge he had studied as a Fifth-Grade Prosperity Badge, issued by the Church of the God of Wealth to those who had contributed to regional prosperity.

That item had protective and shielding effects, but its primary function was to signify the wearer's core status within the Church of the God of Wealth's territory.

A merchant who possessed such a thing was no ordinary merchant. It not only represented the support and protection of the Church of the God of Wealth behind them but also represented powerful strength and background.

"Qiao-Jier, a Knight from Kendall County. As you can see, the hundreds of people behind are the refugees I am protecting and leading together with Luosa-Bata'er Jiaoshi of the Agricultural God Church."

When introduced by the warrior Jier, Bata'er Jiaoshi raised his Amber Metal Long Staff in his left hand to signal to the two men in front.

The middle-aged, obese Merchant put on a smiling face and, without even looking at Bata'er Jiaoshi, flatteringly said to Jier: "I wondered where such a heroic knight had come from; so it is a valiant young Knight from Kendall County in the northern border region! Indeed, people from the north of the Kingdom are exceptionally brave. That elite army I saw from afar in the town a few days ago seems to have come from the same place."

Jier raised an eyebrow, but wearing his face mask, no one saw his expression: "Indeed, I was dispatched from that very army. The town? Has the army led by Kendall Baron already passed through Duoen Town?"

"Passed, they passed. I saw the army right outside Duoen Town at the time; they were truly orderly and valiant. Hmph, much stronger than those useless pies in the south. I really don't know how those people lost the battle, losing so miserably last year, making the current regional situation so poor. I used to be able to sit in the Merchant Guild, but now I have to lead the team myself."

He suddenly slapped his forehead, which also pushed his luxurious hat back slightly; everyone could see that the exposed part of his scalp was not lush—it was less barren even when the grasslands of the Western Province were at their driest.

"Look at me, I haven't even introduced myself; how discourteous of me. You two, I am the Vice President of the famous 'Burning Furnace' Merchant Guild nearby, Nobi Norris, a little gluttonous merchant who has to eat good food every day to be satisfied enough to sleep. Although I am gluttonous, my trading business has always been renowned everywhere for being reliable and precise."

Jier waved his hand, not wanting any further connection with the man: "Put the introductions aside, let's get back to business. Now there are two groups of people, front and back, and only one Shanglu. So, who clears the way, and who goes first?"

The two men opposite looked at each other, and the middle-aged fat Merchant named Nobi immediately put on a smiling face and said: "Look at what you're saying, you are a Knight lord, and you are performing the good deed of caring for those refugees who have fled their farming; for a person of such high moral character as you, of course, you have priority to pass. This is the way of the world!"

Beside him, 'Blue Dog' Nusi secretly tugged at the corner of the Caravan Steward's exposed cloak and whispered a reminder: "Our carriages have already turned around, and on this wild Shanglu, if the Heavy Cargo Carriage leaves the road, it will get stuck in the wild fields."

But the middle-aged Merchant ignored his Caravan Guard Captain's whisper and continued to smile: "I will order the carriages to pull over immediately; you and the refugees under your command go first, please go first."

Jier chuckled; his sensitive ears had heard the other man's private words clearly, but he said nothing, only offering a verbal thanks before turning back with Bata'er Jiaoshi toward the group.

After Jier and the Priest rode away, the two men immediately returned to the carriage team with their twenty guard riders.

Subsequently, the young refugees resting on the ground received the command to urge them on with shouts echoing one after another; they rose from the ground one by one, shouldered their supplies again, carried the wooden poles tied with heavy objects on their shoulders, and lined up in a loose formation, waiting for the gathered crowd to stretch back into a long line to hit the road again.

"Bataer, please go to the back of the team and watch over them, direct the group there. Haha, you aren't still angry that the other party didn't pay much attention to you, are you?"

Jier said with a smile.

Bata'er Jiaoshi offered an apologetic smile, but then a worried expression appeared on his face: "This isn't right. It's not like I haven't dealt with high-level merchants from local Merchant Guilds before; they shouldn't be like this. Although the Agricultural God Church doesn't have much contact with caravans and Merchant Guilds, it isn't little either. Many Cunzi have specialty products that can be purchased by small peddlers and taken to distant big cities for sale, and Cunzi everywhere rely on those small caravans selling various sundries for support, so the contact is actually quite frequent. These small merchants and small caravans are all supported by large local Merchant Guilds."

He pursed his lips: "But this man is clearly a slick, seasoned merchant; he shouldn't have been so obviously avoidant of talking to me or making contact. Something is definitely wrong!"

But he didn't know exactly what was wrong, and guessing blindly wouldn't help, so he just muttered to himself and rode toward the back of the team.

Jier shook his head and walked to the front of the Armed Civilian group, having them form a thin, long line, trying to stretch the team out as thin and long as possible so they could quickly pass through the Shanglu cleared by the caravan carriages.

On the other side, the middle-aged Caravan Steward returned with the caravan guards to the Heavy Cargo Carriage parked on the Shanglu.

He put away his practiced professional smile and, expressionless, issued unusual orders to the drivers of each carriage as he passed them: "Turn the carriages around again, and drive them into the wild fields on both sides of the road! Quickly! No arguing! I don't want to hear how troublesome it is for the wheels to leave the ruts; I know how troublesome it is, don't complain, move immediately! Those people digging for food in the fields will be here soon, move quickly, be efficient, don't let those guys who don't even dare to farm and only know how to run away as a whole Cunzi look down on us."

The caravan drivers included those from his own Merchant Guild and professional caravan drivers hired from outside; the ones from his own guild dared to mutter a few words, but the hired drivers didn't even dare to talk back, doing exactly as the Steward said.

They didn't care how outrageous or troublesome the order was.

With the long whip tips cracking, the sturdy carriages pulled by two strong horses immediately struggled to turn around, then drove off the Shanglu, which had two grooved ruts, and pulled the long carriages into the soft wild fields beside the road.

As soon as the carriages entered, they sank slightly; thanks to the sturdiness of the 'Burning Furnace' Merchant Guild's Heavy Cargo Carriage, with many vulnerable parts reinforced with metal, the sudden sinking only caused them to sway slightly before the thick iron-rimmed wheels stepped steadily into the soft soil.

The middle-aged Steward checked back and forth with the Shop Assistant to confirm that the loaded Iron Ingot hadn't shifted and that the reinforced Rope was tightly binding the cargo boxes, then nodded with satisfaction and personally led his men to the side of the Shanglu, putting on his smiling face again.

Because the Knight was walking at the very front, the Refugee Team was approaching.

Jier led the dozens of Armed Civilian who made up the front of the team and approached the caravan that had cleared the Shanglu.

Seeing that the other party had indeed cleared the road without hesitation, even though the carriages were heavy and bulky—usually, it was the people on foot who cleared the way—Jier also revealed a smile.

He lifted his Steel Face Mask, revealing his young face, and showed his smiling countenance to the middle-aged fat Merchant.

Jier waved his hand, and the other party immediately bowed while sitting on his horse.

The other party was intentionally sizing up the team Jier was leading, while Jier was also carefully examining the carriages the other party had parked off the road.

The 'Burning Furnace' Merchant Guild's carriages were rare Heavy Cargo Carriage types with wide wheels, which could reduce the ground pressure on the road when carrying heavy loads, thereby providing better passability.

At the same time, one could see painted metal reinforcement parts everywhere on these carriages; they were not ordinary carriages made entirely of wood and nails.

They were not pulled by a single horse, but by two sturdy, short, and strong professional Pack Horse.

These poor creatures were all wearing blinders; usually, except for the horses of the very first carriage that could see the road, the other horses wore blinders, listening only to the small metal bells hanging from the rear of the carriage in front as an indication.

This reduced the workload of the drivers significantly, as they didn't need to use long whips to direct the two horses at every moment. Only when turning did the drivers need to flick their whips to make a sound, or lightly tap the horses' rumps when accelerating.

Meanwhile, the middle-aged fat Merchant was also smiling while carefully sizing up the hundreds of young Refugee passing before him.

"All young people, and a Knight, a Shepherd Priest of the Agricultural God Church, their purpose is a mystery; interesting, very interesting. The Agricultural God Church parish in the stalemated Borisfa City hasn't been doing nothing, after all."

He muttered to himself in a low voice, and 'Blue Dog' Nusi asked suspiciously: "Steward lord, what did you say?"

"Nothing, Nusi, nothing. I hope that when we return from this trip, we can still catch this good show. Tell your men to dismount, take out the Rope, connect the horses to the carriages, and help pull them. Look, the wheels have sunk into the soft soil."

The rear-guard Armed Civilian of the Refugee Team also quickly passed the area of the caravan carriages, and the people in the caravan immediately began to complain while trying to guide the carriages back onto the solid ground of the Shanglu.

Jier's team continued to walk safely for another two days.

Everyone relied on the plump grain seeds 'gifted by the gods' from Bata'er Jiaoshi to fill their stomachs every day, while the vegetables and food seized from the Bandit were used as extra ingredients added to the Wheat Porridge, added in small, limited amounts as seasoning.

Jier particularly disliked the smelly Salted Fish, but unexpectedly, the young Refugee liked it quite a bit. Because the Southern Province had many mountains and waters, most of the Cunzi were settled along rivers, so they had never lacked river fish and were accustomed to eating this.

However, food preservation in inland mountainous areas had always been a big problem, but fortunately, there was no shortage of Coarse Salt. Cunzi everywhere would unanimously use salt to pickle the excess fat river fish, using them as extra 'delicious' food during the winter when food was scarce, eating them mixed with dried bean powder, dried wild vegetables, and a large amount of root vegetables.

Unlike trying to chop up, boil, and stew fresh wild game caught in spring, summer, and autumn to ensure food safety, one didn't need to worry about parasites in the meat of salt-pickled Salted Fish.

Therefore, when everyone ate, they could fully enjoy the texture of the firm meat, even if the taste of the Salted Fish was barely better than nothing.

Jier does not like this stuff; it is both salty and hard, and it also has a bitter, fishy stench caused by viscera that were not cleaned properly during preparation. Therefore, besides eating the monster meat jerky that is hard enough to sharpen steel swords, he drinks more wheat porridge with wild honey added.

He does not eat much honey; every day, besides enjoying a little with his two companions, he uses it as a reward for the refugee youths who work hard, or for the middle-aged merchant Long-Bafute who is busy running around every day.

Besides this, the lumberjacks who are most capable at logging also receive a large jar of sweet honey water with honey added.

Jier even personally roasted many bee pupae that consume honey; although these naturally sweet bee pupae look strange, they are exceptionally well-liked by Priest Bata'er.

On his face, which has been full of worry these past two days, it is rare to see him eating happily, and he is always muttering about promoting this new delicacy within the church to add one more way for the beekeepers exclusive to the church to earn money and get rich.

"Those rich and powerful people will like this thing; although it is a bit strange, I think those noble ladies will probably like this sweet taste?"

Jier always shrugs, feeling that his companion is wishful thinking, and that no one would voluntarily eat this thing. The first bite of roasted bee pupae the priest ate was only accepted after Jier forcibly stuffed it into the priest's mouth to let him taste the flavor.

In these past two days, Jier has also discovered more than once the gazes of those secretly spying from the shadows of the woods beneath the mountains on both the north and south sides of the Shanglu.

For some bandits with superb hiding methods, Jier could only vaguely feel that something was wrong somewhere, while some inexperienced bandits who hadn't been at it for many years were accurately located by Jier from far away, thanks to the reflection of light off the metal items on their bodies.

Following that, he would quickly approach on horseback, killing the opponent with a thrown captured throwing spear or a shot from his bow before they had time to run far.

The dead were of course brought back, their weapons and equipment stripped off for his own people to use, while the bandit corpses were dragged behind the carriage, and when they set up the Yingdi in the evening, arrangements were made to burn the corpses on a separate bonfire far away from the Yingdi.

It is estimated that because the over one hundred people in the Refugee Team had all been initially armed, even though many scouting bandits who were spying were found and killed by Jier, those Bandit Groups hiding in the deep woods did not come out to avenge their own people.

Of course, it is also possible that the scale of the bandit teams here are all small groups of ten or so people, unlike the Bandit Groups of dozens of people that are common just outside the Baishi Chengqiang Guanka, so the leaders of these bandits also lack the reputation and courage to unite other teams.

Not everyone can be like Shanlang Bani, making other cruel bandits who are also leaders of Bandit Groups submit and unite a team of over a hundred people to attack Jier and the others.

Therefore, the team led by Jier and Priest Bata'er finally passed through the Shanglu in the gap between the northern and southern mountains, which takes several days to walk, without any danger, and officially arrived at the territory ruled by the Southern Province.

The first stop was Duoen Town, built on a small plain where the view suddenly opens up.

Jier and the others, who had just walked out of the Shanglu filled with bandits, could see less than a kilometer away, upon slightly raising their heads, that place where black-gray smoke rose, without the protection of tall and sturdy walls, a gathering of messy buildings that were either dilapidated or ornate; around the town were distributed agricultural plots of various sizes and shapes, without any organized force planning or managing them—Duoen Town.

"What is the first impression the Southern Province gives me, Luosa, take a guess?"

Jier jokingly teased Priest Bata'er, who was riding a horse beside him.

The priest looked helpless: "I won't guess. This place is a huge disgrace to the entire province, especially placing it as the first place one encounters upon entering the province. If it could be moved to some other remote place, I feel that the land under our feet might have its level of chaos permanently lowered by one grade."

Xueya Siter, who was driving the carriage, smiled: "Priest Bata'er, you might think so, but I believe the people in that town don't think so at all. Jier, the town has the best food and wine in the vicinity! I can't wait to have a full meal tonight, how about you?"

Jier's eyes lit up; needless to say, his mouth had been bland for the past two days. He really needed thick beer with the aroma of grain to fill his entire stomach. Although Knight Kela had once reminded him that a true Knight needs to drink as little as possible.

But Jier had long since forgotten that completely, and although Knight Kela said so and taught him that, the Knight himself also drank quite a bit; at least every night at dinner, Kendall Baron, Knight Kela, and Knight Lumi would finish a bottle of high-end Wine that the Baron carried on his expedition.

Occasionally, it would be a bottle of golden Ping Guo Jiu.

Although most of it was finished by the Baron and his close attendants, the two Knights also drank in moderation.

Jier rubbed his hands and immediately announced loudly: "Advance, tonight we will find a place to camp outside Duoen Town! Merchant Bafute! Is the sales list of goods I asked you to prepare ready?"

The middle-aged Merchant ran quickly to the front of the team, holding a list of goods for sale that had long been prepared high above his head with both hands, and immediately ran over to hand it to Knight Jier.

At the same time, in the afternoon, Duoen Town was still a chaotic, noisy, and peaceful afternoon.

Although it lacked many large and small Caravans compared to when the situation was better before, and seemed a bit lacking in popularity, the gray and black Merchants who were in the know all knew that Duoen Town in recent times was not as depressed as it looked on the surface; on the contrary, black market trade volume had surged.

Because as the number of passing Caravans decreased, the Bandit Groups that made a living by plundering Caravans gradually could not sustain their lives in the mountains, so they had to have all the bandits carry various large and small bags of supplies and goods from the group, bringing out the plundered goods that were previously hard to sell or that they were reluctant to sell from their lairs, and one after another in Duoen Town, this cesspool full of blood-stained wealth, exchanged them at low prices for the last sum of money they could get their hands on.

Then they sought their own way out.

Some Bandit Leaders were black-hearted; relying on words and past trust, they tricked their subordinate bandits into waiting peacefully outside the trading location, while they themselves, after agreeing to sell the goods in bulk and getting a large sum of money, would directly slip away and disappear with the money, leaving behind a bunch of confused bandits, who had nothing on them but stinking, dirty Beast Skin Clothing and one or two weapons, standing foolishly on the streets of Duoen Town.

These guys would mostly only confirm after waiting bitterly for half a day that they had been played by their leader, and thus, filled with murderous intent, would want to cause a huge scene.

But Duoen Town didn't have much else, but it had the most strong men who had an Iron Sword in their hands and knew nothing but the skill of killing.

Which shop didn't have twenty or thirty thugs sitting in charge of guarding the store?

Which shop didn't have thick walls and large doors to defend against robbery?

Once the shop door, as thick as a city gate, was closed, if you were inside, don't even think about running, and if you were outside, don't even think about breaking in.

Therefore, the foolish bandits whose blood had gone to their heads had to sneakily shrink into the cesspool of the 'cesspool', choosing to sell the only valuable weapon in their hands in exchange for a sum of money to leave, or choosing to be like everyone else, for the first time treating themselves as a commodity to be selected and purchased, waiting to be favored and taken in by some Merchant Guild to become a new thug, only to die later in some Merchant Guild dispute over trade opportunities.

Or, be favored by a Bandit Group leader who came from another place to pick people, flee far away to another place, and start over in a new Bandit Group.

And at this time, at the top of a conspicuous wooden slender tower on the west side of the town, a man reeking of alcohol was waking up from the warm spring sunshine; he stumbled from the waterproof thick Cloak hanging on the wooden pillar, took out a dirty, graying lady's handkerchief, dipped it in the flat beer in the wine glass beside him, and then used this wet handkerchief to wipe his chin and cheeks, which were full of short, coarse stubble.

The cool wine made his consciousness a little clearer, which reminded him of part of his job responsibilities; then, this slovenly man rested his puffy eye sockets against an expensive wooden-tubed glass Telescope standing at the top of the tower.

His arm shook the long wooden tube, pulling the magnified telescopic view facing the sky toward the lush, plant-covered ground.

Then, the man was stunned for a moment, and muttered in his mouth: "No way, an army from the north just passed by a few days ago, and another one today? Those noble lords from the Province Capital are really, really uh, have a wide circle of friends!"

Afterward, he came back to his senses and hurriedly rang the Copper Alarm Bell on another wooden pillar.

Ding ding ding! Ding ding ding! Ding ding ding!

The bell rang three times in a row, echoing throughout the town.

Then it rang again.

And again.