Ride and Cut

In the middle of the night, the study room was still brightly lit.

Thousands of noisy and fragmented endorsements gathered together, like ten thousand flies buzzing, and the already boring night in midsummer became even more boring because of this. No one noticed that the voice of one of the flies was getting weaker and slower.

"The essence of man is the sum of ... of ... all social relations ..."

Consciousness quickly fell into the darkness, and there seemed to be screams and shouts around him in a blur. He wanted to tell them that he was fine, that he could carry me back when he helped me up, but this effort was fleeting along with his consciousness.

...

"I have been wandering in another world for ten years, and sometimes I miss the happiness we had together in the fat house~"

"Even if the tiger's body shakes and bows, I still miss home~"

Li Cha was lying on a cart full of goods, humming a ditty that no one could understand, and covering his face with a coarse handkerchief to block the scorching midday sun.

After a while, probably finally finding the monotony of the journey unbearable, I suddenly sat up straight.

He may not have been more than twenty years old, but he was tall and well-proportioned. A leather armor was bound in a broad cowhide belt, and a pair of fine deerskin hunting boots, together with the long sword hanging from the side of the leg, together formed a vigorous and heroic spirit.

It was at this moment that he was yawning profusely, and the corners of his eyes were full of gum, which spoiled his temperament a little.

"Who is that, tell the truth to the master, when will we get to that, that..."

"Cologne." The coachman leading the horse was no longer surprised by the memory of this strange traveler, "My lord, I can already see the city walls of Cologne."

Li Cha cheered up, turned his head and looked into the distance along the road.

At the end of the gray horizon, at the junction of the sky and the earth, a thin khaki line was gradually enlarged as the carriage approached. It was the city wall in the distance.

"accelerate!"

The caravan, which had been traveling in the field for almost a week, also longed for the prosperity of the city, and the sound of horseshoes suddenly became denser. An hour later, the appearance of Kelun unfolded before Li Cha's eyes.

This is the famous city of Pompeii. The original designer spent a lot of thought, and the river passing by was slightly modified and dredged to make a natural moat.

The architectural style of the Northeast Province is simpler than that of the South. There are not many additional decorations on the city walls. Only the flag consisting of eagles and crossed swords flutters weakly on the flagpole. It is the symbol of the Augustus family, the lord of Cologne.

But just the fifteen-bladed city wall made of huge rocks has made it worthy of the name of "Majestic City".

There was a long line of people entering the city in front of the city gate, including local civilians and desert caravans driving camels. Obviously, commercial activities were very prosperous. Two silver-armored halberd soldiers were guarding the half-person-high wooden box, and they were collecting city entry taxes of varying amounts one by one.

When it was Li Cha's turn.

"I'm an aristocrat." He proudly took out his badge from his purse and lit it up, attracting envious and fearful eyes, and the caravan's two gold coins for entering the city tax was forfeited.

The tax soldier reluctantly got out of the way, the wheels creaked and turned, entered the city gate corridor and quickly came out from the other side.

"My lord." The head of the caravan smiled, holding a small barrel of craft rye beer in his hand, and said to Richard, "Thanks for your care on the way."

This strange passenger was picked up by him from the southern provinces. On the way, he voluntarily stated that he was a nobleman, and he was willing to come forward to avoid the driving tax for the caravan. The steward didn't believe it at first, how could a nobleman do such a thing?

But it turned out that what he said was true, at least ten gold coins in taxes were saved along the way.

Li Cha took the beer and glanced at no one around, then stretched out his hand and made a gesture of rubbing the index finger and middle finger together with the thumb.

The north, south, east and west of the Pompeii Empire have rich customs, some of which are even completely different, but the meaning of this gesture is basically the whole country - money.

"What are you doing?" The steward looked at Li Cha with a blank expression.

"What are you doing? What else can you do! Handling fee!" Li Cha slapped the carriage with a slap, and the heavy oak board made a "click" on the spot, revealing a vague sunken palm print. Cask of ale to send me?"

Business cannot bring products, and virtuous people should treat it with caution, let alone profit from it. A down-and-out knight is also an aristocrat, and the more down-and-out he should be, the more he should pay attention to his dignity. How is this behavior different from a ruffian?

The steward looked at Li Cha, his eyes were puzzled and unbelievable at first, and finally turned into deep admiration.

Learn from today's young people, no wonder I can only be a manager at such an old age! If you don't change your mind, how can you have your own caravan in the future?

He opened his mouth to say something, but looking at the handprints on the carriage, he finally chose silence to be golden, and honestly counted out five gold coins from his purse and handed them over, "My lord, please keep it."

"That's more or less the same." Li Cha copied it over, turned his head and left.

"Wait!" The steward suddenly stopped him from behind.

"What are you doing?"

"This wine is mine." He took the barrel viciously.

...

Holding his sword, Li Cha was running wildly on the wide streets of Cologne.

His current destination is the Kelun Noble Court, an institution that coordinates and manages the affairs of noble fiefdoms in the whole province.

This place is easy to find. From any corner of the city, you can always see the towering dome of the Noble Court as long as you look up. It is the legacy of ancient ancestors, and today's Pompeii people rarely build such tall buildings.

Some people say that it is because it is not economical to do so, others say that those exquisite geometric algorithms have long been lost, and some people say that it is because the master of the Noble Court gave birth to a son without X-eyed prohibiting the appearance of taller buildings to steal the limelight.

Li Cha's selfishness is more inclined to the last possibility.

But in any case, this building on a six-story base is the most magnificent building in Cologne.

Twenty-four granite pillars spread out symmetrically on both sides of the main entrance, supporting a huge bread-shaped curved dome. Between the two ends of the stone pillars, there are epic narrative sculptures in the round, describing the story of the ancient Nero rebellion era.

A bronze mermaid statue with two blades (one blade = one meter) hangs above the main entrance, holding a balance on the left and a law code on the right. At a glance, you can tell that it must come from the master's hand, and it can be said to be so detailed and lifelike.

Li Cha took a step towards the main entrance. Just as he stepped onto the first step of the base, a male waiter with green pupils trotted up to greet him, sending him a standard smile with eight teeth showing.

"Sir, this is the Noble Court."

The servant implicitly expressed two meanings with a reminder: if you are a nobleman, then you have found the right place; if you are not a nobleman, be sensible and get out of here.

"Licha Orlando, this behavior came from the fiefdom." Li Cha took out two crumpled parchment papers from the pig urine soaked money bag.

Green eyes took it and carefully checked the documents and signatures, especially the seal at the bottom.

The corners of Li Cha's mouth curved imperceptibly, as if implying sarcasm.

For a swordsman, excellent observation ability is a necessary basic skill. He noticed that the manservant was startled subtly when he heard his name.

The male servants serving the Noble Court must be the most well-trained, and it is difficult to see expressions on their faces other than a slight smile. This kind of expression can only show that they have been touched in their hearts.

Of course Li Cha knew why.