No matter where they are, human thoughts are always of the same kind..lā
The capital city of a country represents the face of the country, and as the most symbolic existence among a group of people, the main camp where the chiefs, priests and their families live naturally have to have corresponding momentum and display based on the size of the tribe. Show due dignity.
To be fair, as a clan that should belong to the middle and lower reaches of the Abu Sera grassland, the main camp of the Aries clan is designed to be quite grand and majestic. Judging from the exterior and the several passages seen inside, the overall general structure should be a main hall for entertaining guests and several living rooms. Using a lot of animal skins, gold and silver as decoration, and a thick wooden frame that looks a bit old, this main business is at least as big as a two-story villa on the West Coast.
On the grassland, it is obviously an enviable and luxurious mansion. After all, there are not many places where you can get wood. Except for heading north to the city-state alliance, the south is basically an endless prairie with few trees. . Naturally, it is impossible to transport and preserve such a camp simply by using horses. The existence of oxcarts and horse-drawn carriages is very slow and makes them vulnerable to attacks. Therefore, of course, only the high-ranking nobles among the powerful ethnic groups can live there. Strong construction of the main large size.
Just like the glass on the West Coast that only the rich can afford, the high-ranking nobles and powerful people everywhere like to show off rare things. However, after getting used to the beautiful and huge castles designed by dwarf architects in the south, the group of five people who came here were not much shocked. They were just used to all this.
"Aliya Said, Salamku. (Noble leader, I wish you good health)" the fifty-year-old scout Barrett lowered his head respectfully to the other party and spoke. His words were not very serious. It's fluent and fortunately enough for communication.
In fact, among the city-states in the southern border, there are also many naturalized people from the grasslands who came from Thoradin. Those people speak the language of the grasslands much better than Baret, who is only half-blood and has obviously lived in the southern border for a longer time. But Inyagi and the others chose Barrett, obviously due to cultural conflict.
It's a bit ironic to say that when the prairie people talk about nobles and priests, just like the people on the west coast and the south, they pay attention to pure blood, but when it comes to outsiders who can speak their own language and have prairie blood, they instead treat mixed-race people. Much more tolerant than pure-blooded naturalized people.
In the final analysis, this is still the influence of culture. I don’t know why the more powerful the country from ancient times to the present, the higher the restrictions on women. Perhaps it is because developed civilizations are dominated by men. The major empires, including those on the west coast, Regardless of the kingdom, women - especially women from noble families, have always been regarded as tools for political marriage and do not have any independent power.
On the contrary, among the grassland nomads who are regarded as barbarians by civilized society, the status of women and men is almost equal. Among the warriors standing in the hall at this moment, there are two female warriors with short black hair. When it comes to love, prairie people are equally unrestrained and free.
Men can prey on women as wives, and similarly, women with force can do the same to men. Under this prerequisite, mixed-race children like Barrett will naturally not be rare. Compared with those cowards who were born in the grassland but betrayed the grassland, many mixed-race children who are just the fruit of love have a much higher status in the grassland. If there are four levels of disgust and hatred, the naturalized people should be the most hated. The second most hostile are the southern merchants, and the third most hostile are mercenaries like Henry, who are the most friendly to mixed-race people.
Because Yaji and the others obviously knew this, they brought a mixed-race child like Barrett this time. As for how they knew it, even if no one had done this before, they didn't already have a relationship with Bai Li seven or eight years ago. Has the Yang clan ever had a transaction?
Many things that happened at that time were probably enough for this fat caravan leader to remember for a lifetime.
"Kumsala, Mu'ud. (May you also be healthy, young stranger)" The peaceful and polite greetings began when entering the main hall, and the gray hair and dark skin of the man sitting on the animal skin back chair were The leader of the Aries clan, who looked to be about seventy years old without a beard, said this, then tilted his head, and several prairie warriors, including the two women, came over.
"Muhannadine, Otta!" the other party said in a somewhat rough tone, and at the same time held the weapon in his hand. The mercenary under Felix behind Mira and Henry was a little nervous, but the one in front Barrett immediately shouted in Lamani: "It's okay! They just asked us to hand over our weapons. If we want to talk in front of the clan leader, we are not allowed to carry weapons!"
He said this, and the sage also used his eyes to signal Mira not to resist. Everyone untied their armed belts, took down their weapons and handed them to the warriors. They didn't take them too far, and they all just held them in their hands. Went to both sides. After being disarmed, the group of people were able to walk to the wicker chairs in front of the patriarch for entertaining guests and take their seats. However, when Henry's sword was taken away, the patriarch sitting on the chair suddenly frowned and glanced at the sage. , and then suddenly spoke.
"Wude, Lamandia? Petalocidia?" He said to Henry. Barrett next to him was stunned for a moment, then looked at the sage and translated for him: "The patriarch is asking you, Are you from Laman, Padrosi?" he said, and the latter stretched out his hand and waved to indicate that no translation was needed: "I speak Sumu." Henry said, and then turned around He turned towards the leader of the Aries clan and spoke.
"Indeed, but how did you recognize it, noble chief." As if there was no language in the world that he didn't know, Henry spoke the grassland language he called Sumu more fluently than Barrett. The language said this - the leader of the Aries clan was obviously stunned for a moment, then nodded slowly and replied: "That sword is mentioned on the sheepskin paintings of our tribe."
"More than a hundred years ago, a Lamanite and a Padrosi man came to Abu Sera and helped my great-grandfather, the first generation leader of the Aries clan." The clan leader continued: "He waved It was such a big sword that he defeated three terrifying dragon lizards with his own strength, which opened the eyes of my great-grandfather and my grandfather who was still young at the time. It was also after this that they left behind the words "Never underestimate them" Outsiders, try to have more contact with them and learn from them the ancestral teachings of broadening your horizons."
"This is why I will contact you for the second time. Many clans on the grassland are too arrogant now. Absera's natural resources are very scarce. We don't have enough wood and metal, and we don't even have enough." stones. They have been fighting with the people living in the stone castle for hundreds of years. Although people celebrate every time they plunder slaves and materials, the tribesmen do not realize that there are more and more slaves and the real Abu Sera people There’s less and less of that.”
"If we only know how to use war and force to solve everything, one day, the Absera people will be destroyed by the people who live in the stone castle..." Maybe it's because I'm older, or maybe I just remembered something, The patriarch said to Henry, and then let out a long sigh.
Everyone in the camp at this moment is either a person like Mira and Yinyaji who cannot understand Sumu language, or a close associate of the clan leader. Therefore, this kind of people will be ignored by the grassland people-or Abusai as they call themselves. Pulling people in - words that are seen as weak speeches are fortunately not recorded and spread by people with ulterior motives.
Having said that, he would express his political views to a person he had just met. It is obvious that the patriarch is already a little dim-sighted. Fortunately, our sage is not a bad person, and they also need to use the connections the old patriarch has to do something, so both Barrett and Henry wisely chose to ignore what the other party just said - sage The reporter then said to the old patriarch.
"Honorable leader, this time we are here not only to trade with you, but also to get some news from you." Henry said this, and the old patriarch of the Aries clan frowned his sparse eyebrows. Perhaps he also realized that the speech he just made was inappropriate, so he put on a dignified and indifferent look again, and said, "Oh? Go ahead."
He asked, and Henry looked back at Mira before he began to narrate in his usual unhurried manner.
In the long history of Rigal, countless wars have occurred in various places.
As the most famous event in the last half century, the kingdom of the Luoans fell apart under the unstoppable and powerful attack of the dragon cavalry of the expanding Otolo Empire. From the beginning of our story, it has never left the two protagonists. sight.
Most of the Roan people who were unwilling to succumb to the empire chose to flee and spread through the Grigori Canyon towards countries such as Avenella and Sivalier on the west coast. Except for the remaining ones who were recruited, The initial incomplete statistics of this part of the people who fled were about three million - this is already larger than the population of Avenella. Although many people died in the escape life, the remaining people Scattered in various places, although they were struggling, they still survived.
But most of these Luoan people who live miserable lives on the west coast are just civilians. The Otolo Empire will not and does not want to massacre all of them who fled the empire, although they have the strength, and if they do, they can achieve majesty within a certain period of time. and a deterrent effect, but it will inevitably arouse fear in other ethnic groups that submit to the empire.
They are afraid of not knowing when they will become the next target of massacre, and the resulting rebellious emotions will lead to division. Otolo is still in the process of expansion, and its competition with the long-established but still powerful Rumanato Empire and other Lamanite kingdoms southwest of Tambul has never stopped. Whether it was twenty years ago or now, they The last thing we need is to create new conflicts internally.
Having said that, the empire was not so friendly and tolerant towards the high-ranking nobles of Luoan who also survived the attack and fled Moldonisk.
These proud white-haired warriors love their kingdom and land so deeply that they would not hesitate to compete with flying dragons with their small human bodies. Their love for the royal family is naturally deep-seated. If the royal family or other blood-connected nobles are still alive, then there will definitely be someone ready to incite the Roan people in Otolo to revolt.
As long as they exist, the empire's rule over the Luoan people in the territory will not be stable, so eradicating the weeds was extremely urgent for the Otolo Empire back then.
Having said that, this small kingdom that has been defeated by the iron heel of the empire has experienced many years of war. Their individual strength is even inferior to that of the Otolo people. Although they are almost the same in terms of body and physique, the Imperials rarely have brave men who can defeat the Luoans in single combat.
The frontal army was unstoppable. Stronger military strength and commanders were the fundamental reason for the empire's victory. However, when it came to the pursuit of a small number of elite troops, the Otolo people were repeatedly defeated by Luoan, who was known as a fighting nation and was not afraid of death. The hand of a warrior.
Although it has top-level combat capabilities such as powerful flying dragons and flying dragon knights manned by elite nobles, the empire can only send out ordinary infantry and cavalry. After all, although the dragon knights are powerful, they are very rare. They are not bad when used to attack armies or castles. Knowing that there are still threats from a series of Laman countries in the south such as Rumanato, sending out valuable strategies He went to hunt down the defeated Luoan royal family. After weighing it, this choice was very difficult.
So to sum up, in the end, the pursuit force of the Otolo Empire failed unexpectedly, becoming a major failure in the career of the great emperor. The royal family of Luoan and many other nobles of the duke family successfully escaped with hundreds of loyal guards.
There are many theories about where they ended up. Some said they broke into pieces and hid in places like Avenella and Sivalier; some said they crossed the sea by boat and sought refuge on the far east coast; Others said that they came to a vast expanse that even the tentacles of the Otolo Empire could not reach.
Abu Serra savanna.
But as far as Henry knew, all three were in fact correct.
As the saying goes, don't put all your eggs in one basket, and the last royal family of the Luoan people naturally understood this truth. However, the Luoan royal family that was broken into pieces and remained on the west coast must be like looking for a needle in a haystack, and those who went to the east coast must have defected to Padrosi, the enemy of the Otolo Empire. For various reasons, they are now considered to be on the same side. It is obviously very difficult for the two of them on the Yavenella side to find the Luoan royal family there.
After weighing the pros and cons and the probability of success, the only one left with a glimmer of hope is naturally the Abu Serra Prairie in the south.
The merchants in the southern border had some private contacts and transactions with the grassland nomads. The sages knew it as a matter of course, and through the cooperative relationship with the Felix family, they dispatched this team on the surface. It was a team that came to buy and sell slaves, and the real purpose was naturally to come here to find the lost Luoan royal family.
Why he came to search for these Luoan royal family, and what his purpose was after searching for them, the sage has not fully revealed to Mira at this moment. It was just that after he told the patriarch of the Aries clan his general needs through this brief description of removing the bad and extracting the essence, the other party fell into deep thought for a short time.
"... I do know one of the white-haired clans." The other party nodded, and Yin Yaji behind him promptly ordered the two young business assistants to donate some benefits to the clan leader - basically all of them were Some expensive and rare spices and salt, the old patriarch smiled with satisfaction, and then continued.
"It's just... they were annexed by the Broken Tooth Clan eight years ago, and Broken Tooth was defeated and disbanded during the siege of the people who lived in the Stone Castle five years ago. Most of them are now slaves of other clans. We need to find them. them……"
"It's a bit difficult." The patriarch said, and Henry turned his head silently and looked at the people behind him. Barrett was trying hard to translate for them. As the words continued, Mira and others sat on the chairs. The expressions of several people became more and more solemn. (To be continued.)
