Chapter 95: The Soft-Rice Lord

"Hmm, that is indeed the case, and this has also triggered a second reason for the discord between Tongshanbao and our Everpeak." Balin caught his breath and continued.

"Well, ancestors above!" Balin found it hard to speak, so he used this to buy himself a little time.

"It's fine, speak boldly; I won't mind such trivial matters. As descendants, we should face the merits and faults of our ancestors squarely!" Sinuoli encouraged.

"These clans that lost their homes established independent little kingdoms in the canyons of the Vault Mountains, separate from Brass Mountain. These 'Canyon Kingdoms' became their isolated sanctuaries. Here, the clansmen could rebuild their homes and reorganize their military forces to prepare for reclaiming their ancestral lands."

Balin chose to buy himself more time to organize his words by describing the current situation of those displaced Dwarf clans.

"Isn't that a good thing?" Sinuoli still did not catch the hidden meaning in Balin's words, which forced his advisor to continue.

"But these clans still hope to recover their ancestral lands, and after experiencing regrettable failed attempts, they attributed part of the reason to the inaction of the High King..."

"I was wondering why the caravans didn't go to the Vault Mountains! So that's the reason. Do these clansmen think the High King has an obligation to recover their Shanbao for them?" Sinuoli was somewhat shocked.

"Valaya above! It is inevitable that some clans oppressed by Grudges will be a bit extreme." Balin's tone suddenly became somewhat low.

Sinuoli felt a bit strange; in his memory, this young cousin had always been the relatively cheerful one in the group. Balin was the youngest and did not have much pressure from the outside world, and as Sinuoli's status rose, he had also been full of hope for the future.

But this could not change the fact that cousin Balin was also one of the homeless compatriots living under someone else's roof; speaking of those clansmen in Tongshanbao, he inevitably felt a sense of shared sorrow.

"Fine, I understand now. I will be careful tonight, though in my view, that Queen Selma might not necessarily take any action." Sinuoli nodded to end the conversation, tidied up, and prepared to attend the banquet.

Entering the Lingzhudating of Huangwu Bao, Sinuoli suddenly felt something different. The decor here seemed very new, which was unlike the historical weight of all the other fortresses he had visited before.

"Karak-Norn should be about the same age as Haojiaobao; both are fortresses built after the War of the Beard!" Sinuoli thought to himself.

"No, it might even be older than Haojiaobao, after all, the original purpose of building Huangwu Bao was to monitor the Wood Elf in Aisuoluolun Senlin."

Greeting the clansmen along the way, Sinuoli arrived at the dais. He was arranged at the lower left of the main seat, which was the position for the most distinguished guest, a spot Sinuoli fully deserved given his current status and reputation.

Suddenly, Sinuoli saw two chairs in the main seat. He rubbed his eyes, thinking he hadn't woken up properly and was seeing things. But after steadying himself, Sinuoli discovered there were indeed two chairs in the main seat!

"How can this be? This is too rare!" Sinuoli muttered to himself; such a situation was something he had never seen in any previous Dwarf fortress!

"Hi, Master Sinuoli, you don't know? This Lord Borok of ours has lost all the face of his ancestors! A guy who relies on a rich woman, as spineless as a Snotling!"

Sinuoli turned his head to look upon hearing this. The one who spoke was an elderly Dwarf sitting beside him. This was the Rune Master of Huangwu Bao, nicknamed Earthshaker, who was famous throughout the Dwarf Qunshan for his skill in using the power of the Master-class Rune of Wrath and Ruin.

This old Dwarf with a white beard and hair didn't even wait for the host of the banquet to take his seat before he started using his knife and fork to finish the steak on his plate, cursing while he chewed the beef.

"Respected Master, this, how is that so?" Sinuoli was stunned for a moment before asking.

"You come from Everpeak, so it's normal not to know the inside story!" Master Earthshaker took another sip of beer; he clearly regarded Sinuoli, his young peer, as one of his own.

"This kid Borok, counting it up, has to call me grand-uncle! It's shameful, truly shameful! Mentioning his affairs, I don't know where to hide this beard of mine!" The old Dwarf finished his beer, and while wiping his beard, he tapped his wine glass against the edge of the table.

"Back then, when Lagos of Karak Izor was looking for a son-in-law, that guy who only had gold in his eyes hyped the matter up with great momentum, probably wanting to earn more in bride price!"

Sinuoli nodded; he understood the situation Master Earthshaker was describing. Sometimes the father of a bride-to-be would choose to marry his daughter to the wealthiest suitor through semi-public or even public bidding.

"Many prominent young and middle-aged Dwarfs went at that time. It is said that the carts of treasure they brought illuminated the glaciers of the Vault Mountains in colorful hues!" The old Dwarf continued, and Sinuoli followed the description, imagining the grand spectacle of competition in his mind.

"Borok went too, but this shameful thing! He couldn't compete with others in terms of wealth, so he actually thought of competing by offering special privileges, and in the end, he even won the favor of that demon woman Selma!" The old Dwarf was of advanced age and high status, so he completely disregarded Lord Borok and his wife.

"W-what kind of privileges? Adding a chair next to the throne?" Sinuoli's gaze shifted; he judged by the time that the banquet was about to begin.

"What kind of privileges? More than this big beard of mine! Have you ever seen someone marry a wife without paying a bride price but instead earning a dowry for thousands of years? Don't mention it anymore, now the Dwarfs of Huangwu Bao can't hold their heads up in the entire Mountain Kingdom!"

Just then, Lord Borok and his wife arrived together from the back door of the hall. Hearing the last few words of Master Earthshaker, Lord Borok's face only revealed a faint, awkward smile.

But facing this highly skilled and high-ranking elder, he did not retort.

Looking at the almost expressionless, thin, dark face of this Lord, Sinuoli couldn't help but nod secretly. From the brief contact along the way, this was a very reliable Dwarf.

Ignoring the grumbling of Master Earthshaker, the Borok couple took their seats together at the main table. After Queen Selma stood up to express her welcome to the merchant representatives present, Lord Borok gave a separate welcome speech for Sinuoli.

Due to Balin's reminder, Sinuoli did not show off at the banquet; apart from the socializing he couldn't avoid, he spent the time eating and drinking with his head down.

Queen Selma was not so ignorant of social graces either; although her expression was relatively cold, she did not make things difficult for him.

When the banquet ended, Lord Borok took the initiative to invite Sinuoli to tour the interior of the fortress tomorrow, and then the guests dispersed.

Thanks to Han Daomei You Bei Dao Le, Yunkai Shuiying, the manager of the Xiagu Qingrou bar, ok2001, bookworm chewing orange peels, and book friends for the monthly tickets.

Asking for tickets, collections, and tips!