Realm of Power

Lidastov squinted his eyes slightly and looked carefully. It was a large courtyard that looked very impressive. To the east of the gate were three smoke-emitting houses.

Under the cold sunlight, there is a pale white light and shadow, a wall made of loess, two wooden sheds made of gravel, and a few dry animal skins set up in the center of the shop. On the platform, the choking smell wafted out from between the wall tiles of these workshops and shops.

There is also a house opposite the workshop. It is three stories high. Although it is considerable in size, it is not huge. The group of crenellated walls on the top add a lot of painting quality to it.

There is a dark brown bird's nest on the gray front facade. On the background of the crow's nest, sparrows of one color fly across the lawn and courtyard. A collapsed fence separates the roads on both sides. A hanging fence hangs above the front door. The signboard is made of nanmu, with the words "Boai Road Cobbler's Shop" written in slightly faded gilt.

Along the way, Lidastov saw several shops. This shop was the largest, and he could feel the impact of the war on this place the most.

Under the guidance of his deputy, Lidastov walked into the courtyard in front of him. There were almost no people in sight. Even the workshop pond used for soaking animal skins was dry to the bottom. It looked like it had not been started for a long time. , there are many such shops in the city, and they are lifeless, just like the economy that is not improving at present,

Without the noisy caravans of all kinds in the past, it seems that the soul of the entire city has been sucked away. Those who are left are not necessarily unwilling to leave, but it is such a mess now. Rather than going to other places, it is better Staying here, at least aside from not making much money, it is still a piece of pure land in this troubled world.

"Are you sure he entered the shop?" Lidastov muttered.

"Yes, I'm sure. It's just that my subordinates found that the young man didn't seem to be welcome here." The deputy followed closely behind Lidastov with a strange expression, looked at the workshops on the left and right, and then He said in a low voice with a slightly pale face.

"Oh. Why do you say that?" Lidastov asked calmly, with an unmoving look on his face, as if he already knew

The deputy did not dare to be careless, he lowered his head and responded quickly, "My subordinates followed him and saw him entering several shops along the way, but they were all kicked out violently, and then he came to this shop reluctantly." I heard that people from the mountains are afraid to take over ordinary shops. The owner behind this shop seems to be a high-ranking noble from Aaron, so he is so bold."

"Really? It seems that the internal information we got is not false. This is indeed the largest sales place for Zanghong Erhua on the black market." After hearing what the deputy said, Lidastov, who had some knowledge of the market for Zanghong Erhua, raised his eyebrows. He raised his lips and chuckled indifferently,

He said gloomily, "If that person is really from the mountain. It's strange that he is so popular now. After nearly half a year of secret acquisitions, which store would not have a large amount of stocked goods? Now that the sales channels are suddenly cut off, it is estimated that The shops that have invested so much money are about to collapse. Otherwise, why would they be so anxious just now? But the people in the mountains don't know that there are no merchants in the outside world. Xiang must still have the idea of ​​​​raising prices, so naturally he is not welcomed by others. "

"No wonder, I heard that the annual output of Zanghong'er flowers does not exceed 30 kilograms, but as far as I know, the business alliance alone handles more than 100 kilograms. It must be these shops."

The deputy had an epiphany and expressed his confusion.

Zanghonger flowers are also extremely precious restricted goods in the business alliance. Although the Falcon Empire has prosperous trade, some products involve military secrets and military drugs. Its circulation channels have always been under the strict supervision of the Supervision Department. Otherwise, if there is a scandal of sponsoring the enemy, even Lidastov, who is relied on as a confidant, will not be able to evade it.

"You are right." Lidastov's voice stopped, with a look of approval on his face, and then he continued, "Your Majesty once said that businessmen pursue profits, and as long as they have one-third of the profits, they will If they take a desperate risk, if they have double the profit, they will become the bravest people, even if they risk beheading, the profit of Zanghongerhua and snow condensation far exceeds the profit of leather. How can these shops do this? Leaving such good goods unhandled,

It's just because the Zanghonger flower is a valuable item that is prohibited from being bought and sold by the local lords, so many shops that have the goods do not sell it openly. However, those merchants with funds have long taken advantage of the local area and secretly collected it from the flower pickers on the mountains on weekdays. I have bought a lot of Zanghonger flowers, and I can just wait for the smuggling caravan to buy them secretly, and I can make a lot of money by gouging the price. Now that there are no merchants, the huge investment has been wasted, so naturally no one will pay attention to the mountain. "People"

"So, what do you mean, sir..." the deputy asked hesitantly and confusedly. Lidastov looked at the sky in the distance and did not answer him. The coldness on his body was like a shadow hidden in the darkness. ,

The lonely figure dragged out a long black shadow in the sun. Who would know what the secret agent was thinking in his heart? Or maybe only the talented and sagacity His Majesty Falcon would have the loyalty of this secret agent.

At this time, the two heard a loud noise coming from the main hall in front.

Lidastov's face moved slightly and he quickened his pace. Before he reached the main hall, he vaguely heard a young voice coming from the room in the main hall: "Boss Antulus, you have suppressed us in the past six months." The fourth shipment has been made. If we continue to pay on credit like this, we will have no way to survive. At least give us some food today."

Another old voice argued sternly, "Food? Ask who has extra food in their hands now? There are chaos everywhere now."

"You don't even look at it, let alone you, even the people in the city, how many people have food and food, if there are caravans coming and going, forget it, but the damn parliament just issued a decree restricting the passage of caravans. ,

"Hey, we haven't seen a caravan in the city for a month, let alone those smugglers who dare to traffic in those kinds of things. Even the best things are useless if they can't be sold. As for these things, huh... .

Following a muffled groan and "pop", there was the sound of a package falling to the ground, and the sound of branches and leaves falling. It must have been someone throwing something on the ground.

Sure enough, with the light outside, Lidastov could see the main hall from a distance. The young man who attracted his attention was begging for something to an old nobleman. There were also white stems and dead branches scattered on the ground, which must be the legendary stems and leaves of the Zanghonger flower, such a precious thing. At this moment, it is like the fallen leaves swept away by the autumn wind, with no value at all.

"This is the role of merchants." Lidastov sighed rarely in his heart. As a former big smuggler, he didn't have the heart of a merchant. Merchants pursue profits, but if there are no merchants, goods from all over the world will be lost. How to circulate. No matter how precious the thing is, it's just a piece of trash.

"Master Antulus, please give me some food, otherwise how can we survive?" The young man didn't seem to notice anyone approaching, and there was a cry in his voice.

Facing the young man's pleading, the old noble insisted unmoved and said, "You understand, in the whole city now, except me, Antulus, I dare to accept your things. Is there anyone else? No, because I am the only one who still has this ability. Otherwise, you can just sell it. You can also ask for food, but the price can only be one-tenth of the previous total price, and the settlement is half a year. This is my bottom line. Come on. Man, take two bags of wheat flour and give them to this barbarian.”

The old noble turned away coldly, and happened to see Lidastov and his deputy outside.

"Who are you?" The old noble frowned slightly. No one wanted their secrets to be discovered. He blocked his fingers with his body. After making a gesture in a certain direction, the young man was immediately taken away, and there was a faint creaking sound from the corner of the wall.

"The crossbow actually has the unique blocking sound of the old generation crossbow"

The face of the deputy who was following Lidastov changed slightly, and cold sweat flowed from his forehead. Although his voice was very small, it fell on the ears of the deputy who was a soldier. It's still familiar, just like seeing the bow string drawn with your own eyes,

Samour's first-generation old-fashioned crossbow still used a foot pedal to draw the crossbow, so a huge clip was often needed to catch the bow string.

"Sir, there is an ambush in the corner." The deputy kept his eyes open, and took the opportunity to follow up, and whispered in Lidastov's ear very carefully.

"Don't be nervous, everyone who can enter this door is naturally a guest." Lidastov pretended not to hear anything, stretched out his hand to show that he had no ill intentions, and walked into the room with a solid aura and a calm face.

"I don't do business here. If you want to buy leather, go to other stores." A sharp light flashed in the old noble's eyes. He was experienced and experienced, and he saw something called danger in Lidastov. smell,

The two experienced opponents seemed to have discovered something from each other. Lidastov's footsteps paused slightly, and the corners of his mouth suddenly turned up slightly. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. This aura of aloofness in the darkness It was very familiar. I glanced sideways, and sure enough, on the third beam on the right, I saw a red sign with an inverted triangle.

“It turned out to be a former colleague.”

A sneer appeared at the corner of Lidastov's mouth, and he did not speak. Instead, he slightly raised his thumb and little finger towards the old nobleman with murderous intent on his face.

The nervous old nobleman across from him was stunned for a moment. The nervousness on his face relaxed a little, and he made another gesture. Different from Lidastov's, his middle finger and thumb were interlocked.

"Fire fox under the snow-capped mountains?" Lidastov's face moved slightly and he asked solemnly. This name is very famous in the smuggling world. It controls almost half of the smuggling routes in the southern part of the Dorok Mountains, but no one has ever known it. Having seen this person’s true appearance, no one would have imagined that the famous Fire Fox has been hiding in this small town.

But yes, this is the largest leather center in Dorok, and it is also the origin of the rare product Zanghonger flower. It is unique in terms of materials and business conditions. It is said that this shop in Antulus is the oldest shop in the city. Even as long as this city has existed, at its most glorious time, it almost monopolized more than half of the leather industry in the city.

However, in the past 10 years, with the sharp increase in competitors and interference from other forces, this giant in the leather industry has rapidly declined. Many people believe that it is due to poor management or too many competitors, resulting in the previous The monopoly has been broken, but few people still know that this family has not declined, but has invested its abundant funds in other industries, that is, smuggling.

The old nobleman opposite sneered, not caring about being called out by the other party, but asked in a cold tone, "Vekia's black hand? I heard that you no longer work in this industry, and it seems that you have managed to get into a good position." . Why do you have time to come here today? Don’t tell me that you are back to your old business.”

"Nonsense, since I'm here, I'm naturally here to discuss business, but I don't do smuggling anymore. I want to buy openly." Lidastov shrugged noncommittally.

"I should have thought about how something like Zang Hong'er Flower could not have a peer behind it. The nonsense about 30 kilograms per year could have been made up by you as a reason to raise the price arbitrarily."

"Haha, such a cheap trick. It's just to deceive outsiders. It's completely worthless in front of our own people." A trace of pride flashed on the face of the old nobleman known as the Fire Fox, and he said, "Just like you, who is notorious Don’t you think it’s ridiculous that the gangster actually said that you want to be an aboveboard business? You’d better tell me your true intentions. Otherwise, with you, a vicious Wikidia gangster behind you, I, an old man like me, will feel uneasy. of"

"Your Excellency Antulus, are you hurting me or praising me?" Lidastov didn't take it seriously and said with a sneer. He sat down opposite the old nobleman very naturally. He picked up a glass of wine and took a sip from the table.

"Whatever you think," Fire Fox obviously didn't accept this, and asked sternly, "Don't think that I don't know anything because this is a remote area. Why would a big shot from the Supervision Department of the Falcon Empire be interested in visiting a small snow mountain like mine?" I’m afraid it’s not just a so-called transaction. Does the Falcon Empire intend to open a frontline gap here? This is too far-fetched.”

"I didn't expect this old fox to be so sharp."

Hearing Fire Fox's words, Lidastov had a calm look on his face, curled his lips disdainfully, and said to himself, "It's a pity that you only guessed the purpose. But you can never think of the real means."

"Tell me what on earth you are here for." The old noble's face became more and more gloomy, and the murderous intention to fight if he disagreed with him became more and more intense.

Lidastov spread his hands helplessly and said, "Well, I really don't have any ill intentions. Why is no one willing to believe me? I'm just here to discuss business. To put it bluntly, I need Zang Hong'er Flower."

"Zang Hong'er flower?"

Hearing Lidarstov's request, Antulus' cunning face was slightly stunned, and the tense atmosphere eased slightly.

He walked back and forth in the hall for a while, then stopped and asked in confusion, "Why do you want this? As far as I know, the Falcon Empire's army has an excellent medical team. Although it is not as effective as Zang Hongerhua, it at least prevents It covers the mortality rate of most of the wounded soldiers. If it is used by senior officers, it seems that it cannot be used in such a large amount."

"You don't need to ask about this, just tell me if you want to sell it or not." Lidastov generously took out a bill with gold thread embroidered on the edge from his arms and placed it gently on the table. I want to get the maximum amount of Zanghonger flowers in the shortest time. As much as I want, money is not an issue. Since you know my identity, you should know that I have the ability to say this."

"The golden ticket of the Business Alliance? This thing is not easy to use now. The Business Alliance is being attacked everywhere. Are you bringing this out to harm me?" The fire fox's eyes looked at the golden ticket that Lidastov took out. , he said it neither salty nor bland, but his eyes still sparkled with greed,

"Are you trying to frame me? If you can't even take a golden ticket outside the mountainous area to redeem it, then I will look down on you." Lidastov deliberately pretended to be sad and angry, and picked up the table. gold medal, making a show of wanting to take it back

"No, this isn't a business negotiation. Since it's a negotiation, you can negotiate the price. How can you be so impatient?"

Antulus quickly waved his hand to stop him. In fact, he just wanted to use this to attack Lidastov's dominant position in the negotiation, but he did not expect that Lidastov had already seen through his thoughts.

Although the Business Alliance has been restricted and hit, the Golden Tickets of the Business Alliance have risen instead of falling. This is because golden tickets can buy items at very reasonable prices in the Falcon Empire. Anything sold to the Dorok Mountains at a high price,

As time goes by, the value of the gold ticket has easily more than doubled. However, the common gold coins in the Dorok Mountains contain insufficient gold and are banned from use by the Falcon Empire. Even if you have money, you cannot buy anything. , if you only buy it domestically, its value will be greatly reduced when prices soar.

"Tell me, how much money do you have?" Lidastov smiled and flicked the golden ticket in front of him with his hand. He knew these colleagues very well. As long as he has money, he can say anything.

Antulus grunted, swallowed hard, and said hesitantly, "Is 110 kilograms enough? If it's not enough, I can have someone deliver it, but that will take some time."

Coming out of the leather workshop in Antulus, the adjutant following Lidakus asked in a low voice, confused, his boss who was walking in front and seemed to be in a good mood.

"Sir, why do we need so many Zang Honger flowers?"

Lidastov glared at him fiercely with a sinister look, and snorted coldly, "Have you forgotten even the most basic things?" "Yes, it's my subordinates who are too reckless." The deputy was frightened and sweating.

"Don't ask what you shouldn't ask. Sometimes knowing too much is not good for you." As if thinking of the deputy's loyalty just now, Lidastov's cold face was relieved, and he said inexplicably, "Don't make it like me. It's impossible to get out of it." (To be continued. Please search Piaotian Literature. The novel is better and updated faster!