Chapter 898: Negotiations and Compromises Between Both Sides

"Why can't the mine outside the village be left to the human villagers living here?" Jier asked in return.

Without waiting for the other party to answer, he pressed further: "Mine, mine, does this mine actually have a name? We can't just keep calling it that, right?"

The old Dwarf, however, did not take the bait. He glared at the young man, Jier, and without answering the human's question, he went on with his own thoughts: "Giving up the mine is impossible. You must understand, first of all, it does not belong to me, nor is it the property of the Dwarf Miners under my command."

"Then who does it belong to?" Jier asked.

"It belongs to the Aimuli Kingdom, and my family, the 'Shitai Family', is responsible for the mining and maintenance of the mine! Do you understand now, kid? It is not someone's private property. Everyone present, including me, the official manager of this mine, has no authority to decide its ownership. And you, you humans, cannot step inside even a single inch." The old Dwarf finished speaking with a serious expression, and Jier frowned.

He shook his head: "That's not right, old man. You can say that, but you are going to leave this place, and I will assist you in leaving. So, once you are gone, won't this empty mine be for the villagers here to handle however they please?"

"Hmph, it's not that simple. Since things have come to this, we, the abandoned people, must eventually leave, but the mine is not something others can just walk into whenever they want. Young man, the mine belongs to us Dwarves, even after we leave."

"I'm telling you, we will block all entrances and exits to the mine, and the interior is dangerous and complex. Before we leave, we will revoke all safety guarantees regarding the work. Additionally, I hope you warn those villagers that a Dwarf mine is not an ordinary Shandong without defensive measures! Before we leave, we will activate all defensive facilities and traps inside the mine!" The old Dwarf said a lot in one breath, but his attitude was very clear, and Jier felt it quite obviously.

He had to wave his hands to show he understood: "I understand, I understand. Actually, I personally am not that curious about your mine, but after you leave this place, the mine outside the village will inevitably become the common property of the villagers. Even if I say the empty mine still belongs to the Dwarves, the villagers will still consider it their own thing afterward. This is the nature of life, I think you Dwarves would be the same, right?"

The old Dwarf snorted unhappily: "Hmph, hard to say. At least the loyalty of us Dwarves far exceeds that of you humans."

Jier did not bicker with this old fossil: "Ah, yes, yes, yes, everything you say is right. I will pass on what you said to the village elders later. As for what they will do after you leave, that is not for me to manage, and you, well, you probably won't be able to manage it by then anyway."

"Hmph, they will suffer quite a bit, and by then they will naturally lose the idea of going in to poke around." The old Dwarf stroked his beard triumphantly with a slight smile on his face, presumably thinking of something that made him happy.

"So, we have discussed two things now, right? The mine outside the village belongs to you Dwarves, but you Dwarves will not concern yourselves with the situation of the mine after you leave. Of course, you believe the mine will give the villagers who enter rashly a hard time; that is a matter for the future. And the other thing, the Dwarf houses in the village and the property inside belong to the Dwarves, and you cannot take them on your journey home, so you agree to exchange these fixed assets for some things you can use on your journey."

Jier summarized the previous discussion; these were the things the two had discussed and tacitly agreed upon. The old Dwarf also stroked his beard and nodded, but the old Dwarf did not know that Jier had actually planned for this matter long ago. For example, if one side is leaving and one side is staying, couldn't some beneficial exchanges of items and supplies occur between the two?

"So, let us continue the discussion. Next is about the current standoff and yesterday's battles," Jier said.

"The armed standoff needs to stop after the negotiation, and we must ensure that neither side will have another armed conflict in the short term. What are your thoughts?" Jier asked.

"Then let your..."

The old Dwarf had just started when he realized it was wrong and stopped. He frowned and thought for a while, but had no good solution. He certainly was not willing to let the Dwarves put down their weapons first or unilaterally. Letting the humans retreat and go home to stay, given the current situation, was obviously also impossible.

Jier smiled and proposed his plan: "Perhaps it could be like this: both of our sides throw the weapons and equipment we currently have into one place to be concentrated, and send a small number of people from both sides to guard them. This way, the others won't have weapons to fight with, and the fighting naturally won't be able to start."

The old Dwarf retorted: "You're thinking of things too ideally, aren't you? Both sides put down their weapons? Young man, look at the things in the hands of the Dwarf Warriors behind me. Are those the kind of weapons that can match the pitchforks and manure buckets in the hands of the villagers behind you? Those iron forks can't even hurt the bodies of our Dwarf Warriors because they can't even pierce our armor; they can only do farm work. Not to mention that even those metal utensils were forged for them by us Dwarves. To use the metal farm tools we Dwarves forged to resist us, how shameful."

The old Dwarf looked disdainful, pointing his finger contemptuously at the sickles and pitchforks in the hands of the villagers behind Jier.

Jier retorted: "Oh, but I heard from the villagers that those metal farm tools were exchanged with you Dwarves for the crops they grew and the poultry and livestock they raised? Is that the case? Can you answer me 'honestly'?"

Jier emphasized the word "honestly," and the meaning was self-evident.

I answered honestly before, now it is your turn; is your answer honest or not?

The old Dwarf was stumped at once. He couldn't say no, could he? Then what have they, these Dwarves who don't farm or raise poultry and livestock, been living on all these years? He couldn't say they relied entirely on hunting to survive, could he?

"Previously, we did exchange some agricultural products with the humans in the village, but those were decisions made decades ago. My memory of the details is blurry. Oh my, I have to admit I'm getting old. I am also advanced in years, and it's a pity I don't have many decades left to live," the old Dwarf immediately brushed over the relevant topic and used his old age to muddle through.

Jier rolled his eyes. He still has decades to live? Good heavens, most humans don't even live for a few decades in their entire lives, and yet your old age is longer than the entire life of most humans?

Jier did not stand on ceremony and took the initiative to pat the Hunting Longsword on his left belt, proposing: "It seems you feel the weight of those things is not enough? How about this one of mine? How about it? Shall it be placed together with the other weapons and be guarded by others? And the other weapons on my warhorse?"

The old Dwarf remained silent, seemingly pondering and judging.

Since there was a chance, Jier added: "Me being empty-handed represents that my side has given up a lot of armed force. This sincerity and attitude are already the best. If you don't agree, then I have no choice; it's fine for both of us to keep deadlocked like this. But you have to consider that many of your warrior subordinates are currently injured, and the villagers behind me will constantly have other villagers who muster up the courage to stand out and join them, strengthening the team resisting the Dwarves."

This time, Jier shook his finger triumphantly: "You know, although there are many villagers behind me, they are not even half of the people in the village. If the other half also sees clearly who has the upper hand in the current stalemate and subsequently joins us, the choices you Dwarves can make will only become fewer and fewer as time goes on!"

The words seemed to influence and move the old Dwarf who was thinking in silence. Finally, the old Dwarf said: "Are you sure your weapons and equipment will also be guarded together?"

Jier corrected: "Note, only weapons; the armor worn on the body is not included. How about it? Let you take some advantage."

When it came to this point, the old Dwarf naturally had no hesitation about taking advantage and directly confirmed this item with Jier.

At this moment, Jier faintly heard sounds coming from outside the village, in the direction of Huitou Forest, but it was blurry and unclear, only seeming somewhat familiar to him.

"Next is about yesterday's battle," Jier said.

The old Dwarf was a bit puzzled; what was there to discuss about yesterday's battle?

Jier took the initiative to explain: "I must state this beforehand to avoid being discussed behind my back by others later. Old Mr. 'Iron Fist', is that what you are called?"

The old Dwarf frowned unhappily and corrected: "Only we Dwarves can directly call my nickname. Young man, you can call me Aobosi, or Old Shitai."

"Then, Mr. Aobosi, I must first complain: when we were in Huitou Forest, it was you and another Dwarf who ambushed me. My subsequent fighting all belongs to the category of counterattacking. Since the cause of the battle was not me, then looking at the results of the battle, I naturally bear no corresponding responsibility."

"Isn't this nonsense? That's how fighting is—killing, and only the winner has the qualification to speak." The old Dwarf was a bit puzzled; he didn't know what this human meant by insisting on discussing these things. Weren't these all obvious things?

Jier smiled and nodded, saying: "Since that is the case, because of your attacks—and it was more than one attack—I wounded you at the edge of the forest, and after leaving the forest, I was pursued and besieged by other Dwarf Warriors. Therefore, I should not bear any blame or hostility for the series of injuries caused by the battle. Am I right?"

The old Dwarf caught on a bit at this point. He was silent for a moment and gently rubbed the bandaged area on his head with his finger; a faint pain came through.

"Hmph, rest assured, we will not trouble you again. We are not as good as you in force, and we can't complain about losing the battle. Those boys understand this principle. We even have to thank you, right? After all, you didn't kill any Dwarves when you counterattacked." The old Dwarf Aobosi sighed heavily, feeling a bit awkward and even more resigned.

But Jier's words were clearly not finished: "Since you said so, then if I don't need to be responsible for the results of the battle outside the village, then I naturally don't need to be responsible for the battle in the center of the village yesterday afternoon either, right? After all... when it comes down to it, the surrounding houses were not destroyed by me. Although there was a reason for the battle, the ones who directly destroyed the houses were those terrifying Dwarf Warriors over there who were bare-armed and using Double-handed Heavy Weapons."

The old Dwarf looked like he had eaten a secret burger, but Jier's words were reasonable, and with the previous words as a foundation, he and the other Dwarves naturally had no reason to blame this visiting Knight for the destruction of their own houses.

Feeling a bit annoyed at this topic, the old Dwarf waved his hand vigorously: "Fine, fine, I can't beat you. These property losses caused by the battle will naturally not be blamed on you. You can rest assured."

Jier nodded with satisfaction. He demanded to establish this relationship of responsibility at this time, not for the sake of a little verbal advantage, but because he would let these Dwarves 'assist' him in fighting later when he took them away. The Dwarves needed him as a leader to find a reliable way to return to their hometown, and Jier needed the combat power of these Dwarves to assist him in defeating some enemies.

The Defeated Soldiers who abducted the people of Changmai Cunzi were naturally not his match, and he didn't need these Dwarves to participate, but don't forget, on the road he came from, in Yemei Town, there were still parasitic vine plants of unknown scale, unfathomable strength, and dangerous weirdness.

"So, finally, the most important item, which is your Dwarves' journey home? Tell me, Mr. Aobosi, what do you think about this? What help do you need me to provide?" Jier asked at last.

The old Dwarf stroked his beard: "Finally, we have reached the key point. Young man, I believe you also understand that the fundamental reason for all the problems in this valley, leading to the Dwarves and humans making such a scene, is actually that our group of Dwarf Miners failed to catch the Great Retreat a hundred years ago—oh, no, it was ninety-four years ago."

When the old Dwarf said this, although his face was covered by a gray beard, Jier still saw a lot of loneliness in the other's eyes.

"Sigh, it is truly shameful to say, and also a bit sad. We were perhaps forgotten."

The old Dwarf looked sighful, and he continued: "Many old miners in the mine actually realized this problem, but after so many years, they have made a scene, they have argued, and their anger has dissipated. Or rather, many people have deliberately forgotten it."

"Everyone keeps their mouths shut about this, just thinking that the news of the evacuation back then failed to reach us. Sigh, can you imagine? It was only after your #￥ Kingdom had been established for several years that we learned the news of the great change from humans who had wandered in here by mistake."

The old Dwarf shook his head heavily.

"Fortunately, now we are finally leaving, leaving this place that is like an invisible prison. Hehe, 'invisible prison', this kind of description, no one has ever dared to say it in front of me before. But I understand everything. They always say I have lost the courage to adventure and am a settler who tries to live here permanently. But they don't carefully recall, don't turn those heads full of Mineral Ore—wasn't the adventurous exploration of the captain of the garrison soldiers of our original mine decades ago pushed by me single-handedly?"

Although Jier was interested in hearing the old Dwarf talk more about the things that happened in the past, it should not be now. They were not in some tavern, drinking thick, fragrant ale and eating freshly roasted Cured meat and Roasted Chicken, but at a negotiation site for a standoff. Both sides had many warriors behind them ready for battle at any time.

"Yes, yes, yes, Mr. Aobosi, can you please come out of your memories first? Let's discuss more about how to help you return home, shall we?" Jier had a smile on his face, but his hands waved back and forth, interrupting the old Dwarf's rambling and long-winded speech.

Glaring up at the young Knight with dissatisfaction, the old Dwarf still put away the opened memory story and pragmatically started talking about matters worth discussing.

"We have never prepared to leave this place, so we need at least two months of Dwarf calendar time."

"Impossible. If I were wandering here, I could wait for you for two months. Uh, the two months of the Dwarfs aren't much different from our Human two months, right?"

"There is a difference, but ours is more precise and reliable, unlike your Human calendar which is as crude and constantly modified and patched as a toddler's diaper. Young man, two months is not a long time; compared to the fact that we have no choice this time but to summon our Yongqi and risk taking the first step, it is even too short."

Jier slapped his forehead, having no choice but to briefly explain to the other party where he came from, who he was with, and why he had come to the Southern Province of the Saint Hors Kingdom.

"You said war?"

Jier shrugged: "Why are you so surprised? Do you mean to say that Dwarf kingdoms never fight each other?"

The old Dwarf sneered: "At least since the time of my ancestors, I have never heard of a war initiated between two Dwarf kingdoms."

"Do you mean you Dwarfs don't fight? That's impossible, right? I heard that the Western Province has wars almost every year with Dwarfs who want to take back this land; you Dwarfs are very good at fighting." Jier looked surprised.

"I have heard this news, but unfortunately, they haven't been able to achieve victory all these years, otherwise we wouldn't have had to hide here for so many years. Actually, we Dwarfs also fight wars often, but not between kingdoms, but rather wars between various families within the kingdom."

Jier held up a finger: "Just like the Noble wars on the Human side! Land, spouses, inheritance rights, Shanglu, wealth, and so on, all trigger wars."

"It's even more complicated than that." The old Dwarf sighed, but quickly turned the topic back: "Let's not talk about this. Since you are going to participate in the wars between your Human kingdoms, how will you fulfill your promise to return us Dwarf Miner folk to our homeland? Is it possible for us to go west along the road you came from, pass through the south side of the Grass Sea, then cross the border, and arrive directly at our Dwarf kingdom?"

Jier shook his head: "Don't even think about it! Going west seems the closest and fastest, but it is actually impossible."

"Why?"