The sound of the whistle broke the tranquility of the central plain, black smoke billowed from the front of the train, and a punk-style steam train passed through the endless wheat fields at a speed of about fifty kilometers per hour.
Children on both sides of the railway cheered and chased the steel giant, with uncontrollable excitement on their faces. Even the adults working in the fields couldn't help but stop what they were doing.
Judging from the normal development progress, a few years is definitely not enough time for the steam train to reach this level, but in a magical world, the solutions to many things will change strangely.
The steam engine head engraved with a combustion-supporting array made the fire on the front of the car very strong. The first-generation train could run to a height of fifty. A railway artery from the North to the South China Sea allowed the Royal Capital to control the southern territory unprecedentedly.
The nobles who had been the emperors in the south had always been somewhat submissive to the kingdom. They were rectified by Pare and were obedient for a period of time. After Pare left, they started to fight again.
Especially the brief chaos when Richard just took over the Golden Dragon City made the old forces in the south feel that they were doing well again, and even vaguely proposed that the Hunter family give them greater autonomy in exchange for their control over the Hunter family.
support.
The reason why some gentlemen in the south have this idea is entirely due to inertia. The kingdom is too vast. Except for the dragon knights, the time it takes to travel from the Golden Dragon City to the southern end is basically measured in months.
Except for the central Great Plains, the kingdom implements indirect management of other territories. At most, it controls some major cities in the south. When the center is stronger, they are more obedient. When the center is weak, they frantically poach the kingdom's corners.
The habits formed over hundreds of years made many southern nobles a little confused with Richard. They were still thinking about the past. It wasn't until a group of giant dragons flew over the sky that most people became sober. But
I still have the dream that the imperial power would not go to the countryside.
You care about your big city, at worst I can shrink my territory and send you some taxes to give you some face so that everyone can live in peace.
It wasn't until the railway was built to the south that groups of Northern troops arrived from the royal capital to important southern towns in just a few days. They took over several aristocratic territories that had been treacherously used, and they understood what it means to be unstoppable in the torrent of the times.
A real earldom, the territory of two or three prefecture-level cities, Jinlongdu only exchanges more than a few thousand acres of land, retains some floating wealth, and adds a title annuity, which is considered stable and excessive, and the more powerful ones have to
Exchange somewhere else.
The Baron Viscount below basically had several hundred acres of land to spend.
It is inevitable that there will be dissatisfaction, but if there are people who are dissatisfied and want to resist, it just so happens that Richard doesn't even want to give him the land and annuity, so he killed the meritorious officials of the Northern Army to make some room.
…
The rumbling sound of the train continued, and the long whistle reminded the villagers ahead to stay away from the railway. These days, if you are hit by a train, you will not pay a dime.
In a luxurious carriage, two well-dressed men held up wine glasses and admired the receding scenery outside the carriage.
"This train is much more comfortable than a carriage. In the past, when I went to the royal capital, the carriage bumped so hard that I could spit out my gall."
The older middle-aged man lowered his head and had a drink with some emotion, while the other younger man looked dissatisfied at the children chasing the train.
"Humph, there's nothing good about it. The untouchables outside saw us and didn't even kneel down on either side. They dared to chase the car. There are no rules at all. If we were on a carriage, I would have to stop and let them remember."
"Ahem"
Hearing the other party complaining, the middle-aged man coughed twice and did not answer.
He is different from the other party. Although his family is still a viscount family, he himself has no talent in cultivation and was assigned to take care of the family business early on.
Although he was born in a noble family, his status was much higher than that of commoners, but compared to those children who had cultivated to the knight level, he was no more than a senior servant at home.
He worked hard to take care of the family business, but the wealth he earned had little to do with him. Looking at the common people, he didn't have such a strong sense of superiority. After all, when he went out on weekdays, no one would kneel by the roadside like he was waiting for a master.
But this time, Richard forced the southern aristocrats to divide their families and property, which allowed a marginalized member of the family like him to get a fortune of his own. With his outstanding management ability, he quickly accumulated a considerable amount of wealth. He was regarded as the leader of this big wave.
The profit maker below.
The identity of the other party is a bit remarkable in comparison. There is no need to use clichés. After just a few words, the other party revealed all his information. The son of an earl, a young knight, and a strong contender for the position of earl.
The actual controlling family in a southern county.
Except for the families at the top, this family used to be almost the top carnivore class in the kingdom. Of course, this family was also the one whose interests were most severely damaged in this change.
The high-ranking nobles have become big landowners with few privileges. Even if they can endure it, they will still show some resentment unintentionally.
"Calm down, don't forget, besides our carriage, there are also many people crammed in the carriage behind us. We can't just elevate their status."
In addition to the luxuriously decorated carriages at the front of the train, the carriages at the back also serve civilians, and a few bundles of straw can accommodate hundreds of people.
The young nobleman finally calmed down for a moment, picked up the wine glass on the table and drank it in one gulp, as if to relieve his depression.
However, maybe a cup of horse piss confused his mind, and he couldn't help but open his mouth that he had just closed.
"These idiots don't deserve to be on this train at all. It's the idiot from Beidi who took the Golden Dragon Capital bus, which made me suffer this kind of humiliation."
As soon as he said this, the expression on the middle-aged man's face, who had originally planned to coax a few words with potential customers, suddenly turned to panic.
He no longer thought about talking to the other party, but quickly glanced at the car, trying to find an empty seat and move quickly.
Although the carriage is noisy, the people who can get a seat on this train are not ordinary people, and the proportion of knights is not low. The stupid young man did not deliberately lower his voice when he spoke just now. Many people looked over in surprise.
The originally noisy carriage suddenly became quiet. A man with a beard who was dressed in old-fashioned but very capable clothes not only stared at him, but also stood up and walked over aggressively.
"what are you doing!"
The young nobleman had already realized something was wrong at this time, and the heavy atmosphere in the suddenly quiet carriage instantly made him half sober.
The bearded man in old-fashioned clothes opposite him could tell at first glance that he was not here to have a friendly exchange with him. With his temperament and style, wasn't he just that of a group of vicious Yankees?
"I'll show you Mudleg's fist!"
The bearded man's words were not a bluff. Before he finished speaking, a clenched iron fist appeared in front of the young noble's eyes, with a faint glow of fighting spirit glowing around the fist.
The bearded man was obviously not joking, he was using his fighting spirit, and he was going to strike hard.
"boom!"
After a dull sound, the entire carriage became eerily quiet.
A heavy punch hit the face, and the aristocratic young man's nose bone was directly broken. He fainted with almost no ability to resist, and fell limply on the sofa.
Ordinarily, this young nobleman who has been trained since childhood also has the cultivation of a knight. His physical fitness is not inferior to that of his opponent, so he should not have fallen so easily.
But he was just a rookie knight with no combat experience. The bearded man across from him walked up to him and already assumed a fighting posture. He was still sitting in a daze in the distance, with his face open and his fists not even clenched.
He received the punch as if he were welcoming a guest.
In addition, he felt guilty after saying those words, and his momentum was greatly reduced. When he met a northern knight with a hot temper and rich fighting experience, he was knocked down with one move.
"What's going on! Who the hell is causing trouble on the train! Don't you understand the rules? How dare you fight in the car with grudges!"
The sound of fighting with grudges was quite obvious in the closed car, and the police officer in the car immediately rushed over with curses.
The Sheriff, who was wearing leather armor and missing an arm, was not polite to the distinguished passengers in the car at all. This disabled officer of the Northland Army only knew how to abide by military regulations in the army, and he had to abide by them in this car.
Rules in the car.
Anyone who dares to disobey the rules will usually be picked up and thrown out of the window by him. Even though he is missing an arm, his remaining hand can still easily handle most people.
"Just you two...fighting?"
The police sergeant in the carriage came over aggressively. Looking at the noble young man who had passed out in his position, his tone became hesitant, and the word "fight" was somewhat uncertain.
"It was my hand that moved it."
The bearded man admitted openly. The Sheriff glanced at him, lowered his body slightly, and touched the iron bar around his waist with his remaining hand, feeling extremely vigilant.
With his rough skin and calloused hands, he was not an easy master to deal with at first glance.
"Who are you! Don't you know the rules on the car?"
"I am Handel, the captain of the third legion of the Dragon Army. I am rushing by car to attend the ceremony in Golden Dragon City!"
Strictly speaking, the bearded man has been given land, received the title of baron, and is also the garrison officer of a town in the south. He is no longer a member of the Dragon Army, but when talking about his identity, he is still more willing to mention it.
His position in the Dragon Army.
"Oh? People from Long Army?"
"Were you there during the battle to invade the orc capital?"
When the Sheriff heard that the other party was the squad leader of the Dragon Army, he relaxed a lot. As a disabled officer of the Northland Army, he naturally became closer to soldiers who were also from the Northland, and his tone of voice softened a lot.
few.
"Well, our flag regiment did not have the main attack in that battle. After opening the hole with artillery, the third group entered the city and fought with a group of orc warriors hiding in a house, and won some battle merits."
"Yes, I heard that the dragon almost roasted the orc king in that battle."
"It's not that exaggerated, but there are indeed many dragons in the sky, and there are also black-winged and white-winged bird-man legions participating in the battle. They cut down the orc warriors like they were chopping vegetables."
"It's a pity that I lost my hand on the ice field. Otherwise, how could I have missed attacking the Orc King's capital?"
They were obviously here to deal with a fight, but the two of them started talking. It wasn't until the young noble who was beaten and fainted on the ground wailed and slowly tried to stand up that the Sheriff remembered the business.
"Why did you hit someone in the car? Don't you know that the rules in the car are set by Mr. Richard?"
Most of the train's police officers were veterans or officers who had retired from the Northland Army. They were loyal to Richard, but when it came to handling things, the Western Daredevils might not be as wild as them.
In the past, when encountering this kind of thing, the Sheriff would blow his whistle and several security guards would come. These Northland veterans would round up the troublemakers and beat them up, then ignore them and just go straight to the scene.
He opened the window and threw the beaten man out of the speeding train.
The reason why I have the patience to listen to the other party's explanation now depends on the fact that the other party belongs to the Northern Army.
"This guy was scolding Mr. Richard in the car just now. I couldn't bear it and punched him. Who knew he was so careless?"
"I don't……"
The young noble, who was trembling and still a little dizzy, suddenly woke up when he heard these words. The punch just now had wiped out his drunkenness. Naturally, he knew what would happen if he admitted that he had spoken rudely to Richard.
As a result, he immediately denied it.
"He said that he never scolded Lord Richard. Can any of you testify for him?"
The tendency of the Sheriff's question was obvious. Not to mention that the noble young man had just cursed. Even if he didn't say anything, no one would stand up to testify for him now.
The Sheriff glanced around. Everyone lowered their heads as if it had nothing to do with them. Even the businessman who had just spoken to the noble young man stayed away.
"boom!"
"How brave you are, you actually dare to speak rudely to Lord Richard!"
The Sheriff's loud voice shook the people in the car and couldn't help but cover their ears. The aristocratic young man who was shouted at even had his head buzzing.
"Get off the bus yourself or should I take you off?"
"What's going on?"
"It seems you want me to send you down."
"Open the window!"
After the Sheriff finished speaking, another train security guard who came over immediately opened the nearest train window, and the wind outside the window blew into the carriage.
Only then did the noble young man understand what the other party meant, that he wanted to throw him out of the car.
"No, you can't do this!"
The young man's face became extremely panicked, not that there was much danger in being thrown off. This first-generation locomotive was not very fast. If ordinary people were thrown off, they would not lose their lives unless they were particularly unlucky. Moreover, with the physical fitness of the knight,
Maybe a few scratches at most.
But being thrown out of the car window like garbage in front of everyone, this humiliation is no different from killing him.
However, the Sheriff couldn't control so much. He saw only one or two unruly people in the car, and no one was willing to jump off by himself. He had to wait for him to do it himself.
"be honest!"
Seeing that the security officer next to him had opened the car window, the security officer grabbed the other person's collar.
"boom!"
"vomit!"
The noble young man who had just stood up subconsciously wanted to resist, but his skills were not as good as those of knights like the Sheriff who had fought on the battlefield.
Before he could use up his strength, a knee hit him hard in the stomach. The severe pain made him instantly unable to resist. He was then picked up by the collar and thrown out of the window like a chicken. The security guard on the side took advantage of the situation.
Pulling down the window, the car immediately became quiet again. The whole process was so smooth and smooth that it even made people feel a little confused.
"I stress again, apart from causing trouble in the car, anyone who is disrespectful to Mr. Richard will also be thrown out of the car!"
After speaking, the Sheriff patted Handel on the shoulder.
"You did well."
Then he strode away. As for the nobleman who was just thrown off the train, it seemed that he was the son of some count?
This may have been a figure in the past, but now, an earl from the Golden Dragon Kingdom is here, and a police officer from the Northland Army dares to throw him away.
"woo woo woo woo……"
The train blew a long whistle, and a small conflict like this would not cause any ripples at all.
Maybe in the future, Richard will add a rule in the car and don't throw passengers directly out of the window...
“We’ve arrived at the Golden Dragon Capital, we’ve arrived at the Golden Dragon Capital!”
"Hurry up and get down first and then up!"
"Watch your own things, and be careful if your hands and feet are unclean. If you catch me in the car, I will break your hands immediately!"
After a long journey, the train finally passed through the Central Plains and arrived at Jinlongdu.
As soon as the carriage door opened, people in the carriage behind who had been holding it in for several days jumped out impatiently. The strong smell made people on the platform couldn't help but cover their noses.
Even Handel, who was sitting in the first-class seat, couldn't help but squeeze out a quick breath.
Among the endless crowd of heads, Handel followed the crowd and walked out of this huge station. What awaited him was an even bigger crowd...
