Social fables written with animals as protagonists have appeared in many civilizations with a long history.
The story of the cunning fox deceiving the crow; the story of the crow drinking water; the story of the frog boiling in warm water; it may not matter whether these series of fables are connected with the true nature of animals, and whether such things can happen in reality. They are just philosophical stories told in obscure ways when people cannot directly point out social ills.
Among the books I bought after arriving on the East Coast, there was one fable that our little Mira found the most difficult to understand.
It only uses brief language, with no foreshadowing or any inner ingenious description. In just a few sentences, it describes some details of people catching crabs on the beaches of Northland.
"'When there's only one crab, you keep the lid tightly closed,' says the farmer, 'in case the nimble creature escapes.'"
"'And when you catch more than one crab, the lid doesn't have to be closed and there's no problem because every time one of the crabs tries to escape, the other one will instinctively pull it off.'" Although It was written in Lamani, but the source of the fable is said to be Suomir. Perhaps there is a loss of information in the translation between languages, or perhaps the Suomir people are not as good at speaking as the Lamanites. This story seems obscure compared to other very vivid fables included in that book. Explain a lot.
The Luoan girl that day didn't understand what it referred to. When looking for answers from his teacher, Henry's answer at that time was just: "Society is too old." There was no further answer to such incomprehensible words.
Some things are difficult to explain clearly without experiencing them.
Those who understand will naturally understand, while those who don’t understand will still be talking to the wrong person no matter how much they talk about it.
The original sage had no further explanation for the reason. After arriving in Suomir, he entered the Talwar-Suta area for four or five days.
She got it.
As we mentioned in the past, Talva-Suta is an important line of defense to the center of the northern kingdom of Aurora, and has a status as the throat of Suomir. The complex terrain and the large and small fortresses built over thousands of years make this place a tough nut to crack. But the north and the south are not always in a state of war. Considering the demand for transportation, there are naturally easy-to-pass roads here in peaceful days.
"The wide mountain roads built with royal financial support and many bridge systems are the first choice for businessmen and travelers. The roads here are the smoothest and best, and there are free stone houses on the road where you can rest and shelter from the wind and rain. , of course you need to bring your own food and bedding for cover, but there are sturdy houses where you can stay temporarily for free, which is one of the reasons why this fairy tale country is so fascinating——"
The above is an excerpt from Raman's book "Take a Journey to the North - Go to the Land of Fairy Tales", which is the best-selling small manual among the upper-class noble circles of the Padrosi Empire.
This book sells for about 15 Ella silver coins and is equipped with exquisite engravings. The local customs and customs of Suomir are introduced in detail, but it still has a small, just small, inconspicuous problem.
That is--
author--
It was obvious that he had never been to Suomir.
A group of soldiers stopped in front of the passing wooden bridge.
They are not very old. Rather than being regular soldiers, they are more like gangsters.
The three of them had been in the Talwar-Sutta area for five days, and the pancakes they bought from the owner of the morning tea shop in Cuihu Town came in unexpected use. After giving some to a family of Lamani businessmen who met by chance on the road and came from an eastern town, the talkative middle-aged businessman who reminded Henry and Mira of Uncle Mario they had met in the south in the past explained a lot to them. Anecdotes about Suomir today.
Among them, one sentence he repeatedly emphasized using traditional Lamanite proverbs is, "It is easy for the king of hell, but it is difficult for the devil to deal with."
Talwar-Sutta, had a large garrison.
The large number of them was originally led by the Great Swordsman troops with traditional high status. Many unreasonable and heavy taxes, including the "firewood tax" that made the Great Swordsmen infamous, were actually imposed to ensure the normal operation of the Talwar-Sutta defense line.
The Great Swordsmen themselves were not actually rich.
After they were expelled from the country, the Lamanized Dragon Wing Knights, whom the royal family focused on supporting, naturally did not look too kindly on the legacy of these predecessors.
The outstanding non-commissioned officers and officers who were loyal to the Great Swordsman were basically forced to leave. Plus salary deductions. Although overall the kingdom's economic level has indeed increased since the introduction of exchanges with the empire, this wealth has not been shared by the Talwa-Suta garrison.
When he was in Green Lake Town, it was already known to everyone that the quartermaster of Talwa Suta would secretly resell military supplies at high prices. But when they actually came here, the three of them realized that the situation was worse than they imagined.
They were stopped in front of the bridge.
The Lamani businessman family who passed through in advance paid some tolls in a not-so-subtle way. And when the uncle was walking away on the bridge, he turned his head and glanced at them, with a hint of sympathy in his eyes.
Even though they met by chance, he only gave me a warning in advance and had no intention of further helping. This is human nature. Although it seems a bit cold, relying on strangers for help when going out is a naive idea that only the upper-class nobles of the empire have.
"Travel expenses." The sloppy garrison soldier wearing a helmet and breastplate looked at Mira with eyes that made her feel uncomfortable, and at the same time spoke to Henry.
The sage took a silent look on his horse. The people here were obviously from a squadron, 12 people in total. The breastplates and helmets were in poor repair, they were all covered in rust, and they were obviously mass-produced products that didn't fit. Some of them were antiques from many years ago. The difference from modern breastplates is the lack of an arc shape to accommodate deformation, so that when hit by a blunt object, the force will be directly transmitted to the chest cavity.
"How much?" Starting an argument for no reason is a very wrong way to survive. After all, if the money is gone, you can make more money, but if your life is gone, you have nothing.
Young and energetic mercenaries, especially male mercenaries, often fight for a bit of face and honor, eventually leading to their bodies being separated. In comparison, women are more rational and calm in this aspect.
Of course, words like "motivated" have nothing to do with our Mr. Sage, but as soon as he opened his mouth, he immediately noticed the subtle changes in the other person's expression.
It was just a very slight difference in movement, the corner of the mouth twitched a little, and then several dirty Suomir youths behind them looked at each other. Their eyes glanced at their armor, horses, and badges on their chests, and then at the Luoan girl next to them whose hair had grown longer and was tied into a short ponytail.
Henry's eyebrows moved. He gently stimulated the belly of the war horse under him with his spurs, making it move forward slowly. At the same time, he reached for the leather bag hanging on his waist.
The smile on the faces of the defenders became even wider, but the Luoan girl noticed that the sage used a very subtle movement to nudge Claymer's sword blade with the tip of his left foot, turning it into an angle suitable for pulling it out.
She was alert, and then moved the saddle to make it easier to pull out the long sword hanging on the saddle, then straightened her body and prepared to charge.
The garrison soldiers paid no attention to any detail, and their lack of training could easily be seen in their slouched stance and low alertness. The level of combat literacy of the garrison captain at the entrance of Green Lake Town is obviously a rarity in today's Suomir. Whether you look at it from a distance or pass by, the vast majority of the Suomir infantrymen are This feels more like cannon fodder making do.
This was not the case with the Talwar-Sutta defense line.
Under the threat of the highland minorities and the attack of the empire, even if the glory of the great swordsman was somewhat obscured, Suomir's infantry could still confront the Laman army and knights head-on.
But what have become of them now.
This is because the royal family abandoned tradition and learned from the Lamanites and the current mainstream of international society in Rigal to develop the knight class. The infantry military expenditure is tight, but the Talwar-Sutta defense line covering a vast area cannot be defended by just a few knights. So there still needs to be a large number of infantry garrisoned.
There is no military spending, outdated equipment, lack of training, and military pay being withheld. Nowadays, the veterans whose stance is inclined towards the Great Swordsman are old or forced to leave. It can be said that the troops stationed in the Talwa-Suta area have undergone a major change, but their stance is still embarrassing.
The instructions issued by the naive Her Majesty Queen Suomir caused the great swordsmen to leave their homes, and those with a slight sense of crisis thought that they would not give up. As for Talwar Suta, which is the traditional station of the great swordsmen, it is still a question whether there are still infantry here who are inclined to those great swordsmen.
In order to prevent them from biting back one day, the royal family and nobles need to have stronger and superior forces. So it stands to reason that insufficient training and outdated equipment are behaviors that are acquiesced or even pushed behind the scenes by senior officials.
It is not an exaggeration to say that grandpa does not love grandma.
Based on this premise, one should not have any expectations regarding the basic qualities of the Talwar-Sutta garrison. Their composition alone is deeply suspicious.
After more than twenty years, the older generation of garrison troops have retired.
Today, more than 80% of the troops stationed on this line of defense come from young people with minor criminal records.
According to the Yetina Sect's concept of "atonement", they can obtain forgiveness from the gods after serving here for three years.
"Well, what an extremely genius decision. We brought together a group of impulsive young people aged 17 or 18 with criminal records, and tried to make them repent under the power of God's grace." We heard what the businessman uncle explained two days ago. Mr. Sage’s summary is obviously ironic.
But even after knowing this, they didn't have much to do. They could only hope that the people who came out to cause trouble were more experienced and had some status. Because this kind of local snake is often more aware of current affairs and not as impulsive as young people.
Unfortunately, this expectation also came to nothing.
"How much." The other party didn't answer his first question, which was trying to raise his profile. Henry did not show dissatisfaction, but approached the defenders and looked down at them on horseback to ask questions again. Showed a sense of current affairs.
These people all have the faces of Su Omir. Their average age is no more than 19 years old. Most of them have black hair and blue eyes, and a few have blue eyes. He clutched his wallet, and his attitude and words were controlled within the scope of ordinary communication.
We've mentioned in the past that young, impulsive brats are more formidable opponents than seasoned warriors. The same thing happened when Henry and Mira met. The gangsters will have a kind of arrogance, blind obedience to the group, and are young and energetic. When you treat them with the wrong word or look, things may get out of hand.
This squadron without senior high-ranking officials was extremely unstable. Fortunately, Henry knew how to deal with these people.
Summarize it in four words——
"Follow what he says"
A young man with excessive self-awareness cannot be denied. No matter how wrong you think he is, you can only go with him.
Especially those who are superior in equipment and appearance and look to be on a higher level than them. Putting on an equal and even somewhat humble attitude will make the other person feel that he or she is very important and a big shot. In this case, it is even less likely to hit the minefield.
"Haha." The posture of the sage with the orange card and mithril brooch obviously satisfied their vanity. The man at the head of the bridge squadron raised two fingers, and the people behind him looked at each other and started He laughed playfully and seemed to buy it.
Mira saw all this, while Galeva behind her frowned and clenched her fists, looking very unhappy. After this simple-minded young man heard what the businessman said about the toll issue, he said on the spot: "The road was built by Her Majesty the Queen. It was agreed that you can travel freely. Why should you pay them?" Such words. But some things cannot be summed up in a few words, and it is very troublesome for him to explain clearly because his mind is not flexible enough and he accepts death. So Henry and Mira had to tell him to control his mouth and stop talking nonsense, and let the sage take full authority to solve the problem.
"Ding bell——" Henry took out two silver coins, and he noticed that the other party's eyes were always fixed on the wallet. It is a basic rule to keep one's wealth secret when going out, but to match the attire, he cannot bring too little money, otherwise it will arouse suspicion again. Therefore, the sage arranged the size of the wallet in advance and put about 20 silver coins in the wallet. This did not arouse the suspicion of hiding money and pretending to be poor, and also prevented the other party from asking for excessive prices.
Sure enough, after taking a look at the weight of the wallet in Henry's hand, the other party added in Lamani with a strong accent: "Everyone——"
See how much money you have on hand before asking for a price. Henry obviously has a complete understanding of the psychology of the young people at the bottom.
The sage saw their undisguised smiling expressions of taking advantage of others and saw them calmly. Mira, who was behind them, thought of the fable of the crab again.
She finally understood the moral of the story.
The other party's price is based on what they are wearing and the size of their wallet.
In other words, it is a "special treatment" that only mercenaries who seem to be doing well have.
According to the words of the businessman who has left, it is natural according to common sense - these people are determined not to collect tolls from the nobles.
The only people they dare to accept are those who are in the same civilian class as themselves, and for those who are slightly better developed, the price will naturally be higher.
This situation will also exist in other areas of Suomir. Herdsmen who are prospering in animal husbandry may wake up one day and find that all their livestock have been poisoned; and a restaurant that was originally selling well suddenly hears rumors that there are some problems with its food source, and eventually becomes Nobody cares.
A few of these examples, such as those encountered now, are indeed profitable for the other party, but in more cases, they harm others but not themselves.
Born in Avenella, which is only a few hundred years old, the Luoan girl doesn't know much about this kind of thing, so it's natural.
There are many countries on the west coast, and many kingdoms and regimes are precarious, so it is difficult to form a true tradition, especially in the Avenela-speaking area. On the east coast, where the situation is relatively more stable, especially in the Kingdom of Suomir, the solidification of classes is far deeper than anyone imagined.
From the perspective of people on the east coast, these "Vislan" barbarians are barbaric and cruel. If they are dissatisfied with each other, it is natural to draw swords against them.
But this kind of self-proclaimed so-called "civilization" and so-called "tradition" is extremely particular about class and correct practices in everything, and it is a method of "sweeping dirty things under the rug and pretending to be clean" in Henry's words.
Is it really good?
She recalled what had happened to Thoradin's Highlands.
What those church knights did overlapped with the current situation.
Things that she had not understood before, not coming from the historic Lamani culture, now seemed clear.
She can now feel Henry's anger firsthand.
"In the second-rate adventure novels of the Padrosi, the tyrant always acts with impunity and the people are oppressed and dare not resist."
“But real tyrants don’t need to be deliberately tyrannical.”
"Because the people will take the initiative to offer themselves."
There is no actual tyrant in Suomir, but the stable social class passed down through thousands of years of history is the tradition of this kingdom. Its core concept is like an unshakable tyrant sitting firmly on the throne, which can never be eliminated.
That sums it up in four words.
It means "keep yourself safe".
What Mira couldn't understand was the way the paladins chased and beat them in Thoradin's highlands, and there were a series of actions that she thought were ridiculous. In fact, the other party seems to think that they are the outliers and should be excluded.
It is wrong for the lower class to even think of disobeying the upper class.
You should keep to yourself and please your master without having any other thoughts or any dissent; otherwise, even your existence will be denied.
Is it foolish?
Perhaps it should be said to be sad.
Just like the fable of the crab. For those who are trying to climb up, seek development, and get a better life, even if the upper class does not exert pressure, there will always be people in the same class who think that you are not law-abiding enough and will drag you back to the bottom of the pit.
This is not something that can be summed up simply by jealousy, but comes from the solidified class ideology unique to a country with a long history.
The spiritual shackles called "tradition".
The upper class begs for mercy, while those of the same class who fare better are robbed and given special treatment.
They like to see people who are doing better than themselves suffer misfortune, make a fool of themselves, and preferably fall into a place of eternal destruction.
"..." This country is very different from Avenella.
The girl suddenly felt a sense of apology for the sage in her heart. After noticing these details, she suddenly understood the reason why Henry avoided talking about Su Omir.
Although she didn't know if it was what she had speculated, but whenever she thought about Avenella becoming like this one day, she felt a sense of boredom in her heart for no reason.
——The irritating matter was not over yet. After Henry took out 6 silver coins, the other party opened his mouth again: "Ah - you understand wrong, mercenary."
The young garrison soldier said in a frivolous and cheerful tone of voice, and his companions behind him finally couldn't help but laughed "hehe": "I don't mean 2 silver coins for each of you, but give each of us 2 silver coins." ."
"..." Mira fell silent, Galeva pursed her lower lip, but Henry still looked calm and indifferent.
He said "Oh" and threw the entire money bag over.
"Hey, you know what's going on." The young man opened his wallet and checked the Ella silver coins inside.
"Can you pass?" the sage asked, and the other party glanced at him, then at Mira and Galeva, said "tsk" and then waved his hand: "Letaleta (let's go)!" He shouted this in Suomir language, and then lazily dispersed to both sides of the bridge entrance with 11 other people.
"Let's go." Henry called over his shoulder, while Mira and Galeva walked forward silently.
"Hey -" the defenders whistled exaggeratedly when the Luoan girl passed by. Young female mercenaries are not common anywhere, and in places like this where there are especially many adolescent boys, their behavior is even more exaggerated. .
The girl ignored them and just continued to pass.
The two rode horses onto the stable wooden bridge. Although it was a bit frustrating to spend a lot of money, they did not cause greater trouble. Mira breathed a sigh of relief, but before her breathing was finished, her heart dropped again.
"Sassata (scum)." The eldest son of the hotel owner, who had been silent for a long time, couldn't help but say this in a very small voice as he passed by.
"What the hell are you talking about?" The garrison soldier who was dividing the silver coins turned his head, while the stubborn porter turned around with his lips pursed and the one-handed knife on his waist.
"Are you still considered soldiers of Her Majesty the Queen? You have no sense of honor at all!"
"Pa." Mira held her forehead.
"..." Henry looked at her and then shrugged.
"Come on, let's fight." The Luoan girl grabbed the reins, and then pulled out the sword with a "clang--" sound.
