The adventure trip to the 'Silver Leaf City' brought a great psychological shadow to Marbury. The monsters he encountered along the way, the ant nests deep underground, and the danger of death at any time, these scenes became his irreversible nightmare.
But the nightmare in Marbury's heart turned into the paradise that the adventurers in Harmony Village longed for. They kept greeting each other, allocating manpower, confirming the team, putting on equipment and guides, and then set off, as if they were going on an outing.
"Don't they know that the current 'Silver Leaf City' is still very dangerous? Those ants, goblins and countless monsters. There are also the undead and guardian beasts wandering around the underground city. If you are not careful, they will all be wiped out."
Before entering the government center, Marbury couldn't help but ask several adventurers, and the answers he received were either 'poverty is more terrible than death', or 'Your Excellency Hugo has provided sufficient security.' Everyone said
Be confident.
Ordinary adventurers face 'poverty', while the Long-Legs family faces 'decline'. In this chaotic and dark world, it takes several generations of efforts for a force to prosper, but it only takes a few mistakes to decline. Marbury seems
Got it.
After being informed by his assistant Seth, Marbury met Zhou Qingfeng again. The first time they met was in the underground ant nest, and he was facing a teenager. But in the blink of an eye, the boy turned into a young man, and he was already tall and straight.
"Your Excellency Hugo..." Marbury walked into Zhou Qingfeng's office and wanted to salute, but found that the 'King' of the Black Forest was playing with an ant - an acidophilic ant, a very large one.
That kind of thing. One of them is very weak, but a group of them is very scary.
"Oh... Mr. Marbury, sit down wherever you want." Zhou Qingfeng had no airs and continued to stare at the acid-loving ant. At most, he shouted to Seth at the door, "Go get two glasses of water."
.”
What was supposed to be a formal meeting turned into a casual affair. Marbury had no choice but to focus on the acidophilic ant and asked, "Your Excellency, you are very interested in this ant?"
"
Zhou Qingfeng placed a piece of wood on the back of the acidophilic ant and said casually: "I want to test how much objects a worker ant can carry and find out their movement capabilities under different loads."
Several pieces of wood had been added to the poor acidophilic ant's back. When it reached a certain weight, it was so pressed that it couldn't move and had to wave its tentacles as if begging for mercy.
Marbury had been bitten by such ants and was sprayed by their acid. It was a burning pain and very uncomfortable. He could only express his confusion about Zhou Qingfeng's behavior of playing with ants. If it were normal, he might
A few words of ridicule.
But now the young city lord can only watch quietly, thinking about how to praise him. Unfortunately, his literary talent is not as good as Zhou Qingfeng's, and he can't find any good words. But Uncle Zhou himself took the initiative and asked: "
How is your father?"
"Thank you for your concern. My father's condition is much better. I also want to formally express my gratitude to you this time. I was able to escape from the underground city surrounded by acid-loving ants because of your courage and wisdom."
When the people in Cold Wind City escaped from the underground city, Zhou Qingfeng could have turned against them and attacked them. But he even spared Fabbro without any hostile behavior. Afterwards, the people in Cold Wind City were a little scared and even more puzzled.
.
"Is it just a verbal thank you?" As soon as Zhou Qingfeng raised his head, Marbury, who was bowing to him politely, was dumbfounded. He paused for a few seconds and did not receive a reply, then laughed again: "Is it really a verbal thank you?
Then why did you come to me?"
Marbury had never seen someone speak so directly. He stuttered for a moment, and the only thing he could think about was, 'How can this guy be so shameless?'. However, Uncle Zhou's teasing eyes were really penetrating, and he was stunned to see all over his face.
bright red.
"What do you want?" Marbury had his father's protection in the past. He had never encountered any troublesome people, let alone any embarrassing moments. When he came, he still had a trace of arrogance, feeling that he had condescended.
Visit...
However, Uncle Zhou didn't take this trick at all. He shook his head and said, "I can't think of anything you can give me. I don't lack money, food, population, territory, etc. On the contrary, you will ask for me, so you
That’s why he appeared here.”
Zhou Qingfeng's tone was calm, his attitude was calm, and he had a condescending feeling. Marbury was speechless for a moment, and he didn't know how to deal with it. He inexplicably remembered his father's advice before setting off...
"Victor Hugo's origins are unknown, but he must be extraordinary for being able to integrate the forces of the Black Forest in a short period of time. Judging from the composition of his subordinates, he is very tolerant and does not pay too much attention to the struggle for interests.
.This is the reason for his success.
But such a person should not and would not feel comfortable staying in the Black Forest. So what if he controls the elven ruins? It is just a ruin, and he needs to turn the ruins into wealth. So he will inevitably rush out to find a larger living space."
Facing Zhou Qingfeng's ridicule, Marbury sweated slightly on his forehead. His mind had never been thinking so hard since he was born. He grasped something and first repeated his father's words, "You need a larger living space.
"
"Of course." Zhou Qingfeng smiled, "Who doesn't need it?"
"The Black Forest is too poor. Except for a plank road, it is almost isolated from the outside world. The transportation here is too inconvenient."
"Oh, that's right. That's the worst thing about this damn place."
"You need to break out of the Black Forest and either start a war or make friends. It depends on what you choose?"
"What if I choose war?"
"The closest city to the Black Forest is the Cold Wind City of the Long-Legs family. The Black Forest is your home ground, and we can't send many troops. But if it's the Cold Wind City, how many troops can you send?"
Marbury's mind suddenly became active. He was a little nervous and his breathing was rapid. He had never thought about such a thing as a pattern, but now he was forced to think about it.
"There are 20,000 people in Cold Wind City, and our Long-Legs family has a military strength of more than 1,000 people, including more than 80 official knights. In addition, there are several good shén de jiào huì in the city, such as the God of Justice 'Tir'
church.
If you come out from the Black Forest, we and the church will definitely resist. How many people can you organize? Are you capable of defeating us?"
Zhou Qingfeng also listened with some interest and motioned for Marbury to continue.
The young master of the city sweated even more on his forehead, "In addition to Cold Wind City, there are more than a dozen big cities and hundreds of small towns in the North. We have maintained a loose alliance.
If any city is attacked, other cities are obliged to provide assistance. Are you an outsider who wants to challenge the order of the entire Northland?"
Challenge the entire Northland? Of course this is impossible.
It's no problem to ask Zhou Qingfeng to organize an expedition team of more than a dozen people. But to launch a war, he can't even raise a formal army of a hundred people. At most, he can hire a hundred scattered adventurers, but such an army
They can only bully the serfs.
Zhou Qingfeng had a smile of approval on his face.
As if he had been praised by the teacher, Marbury swallowed hard and continued to stutter: "But if you cooperate with us, you can expand externally in another way. We have contacts who can introduce you.
We can even forcibly suppress the church, at least to prevent the paladins of Tire from openly causing trouble for you. This is absolutely possible. As long as you have our permission, you can appear freely in Coldwind City.
Mr. Hugo, you need us just as we need you. Cooperating with each other is good for us. We help you connect to the wider north and even the south, and you can go further."
After saying such a long paragraph in one breath, Marbury held his breath, as if a student who was asked a question by the teacher in class was waiting for praise or reprimand. When the smile on Zhou Qingfeng's face became thicker and thicker, he breathed a sigh of relief, and then realized
My whole body was wet.
Zhou Qingfeng shouted towards the door of his office, "Seth, where did you die, you lazy guy? Why don't you make a pot of tea for Mr. Marbury? Didn't you see that the guest is thirsty?"