"There she is, my lord. Do you see her?"
The beggar pointed to a broken shack not far away, and Uriel followed his direction and looked over.
The shed was made of rough wood, with a few colorful skeins of dirty cloth hanging from it. The crooked window frames were covered with candy wrappers, old newspapers and sequins, but they were still dull. A table was set up outside, with a lot of bottles and cans, and wooden pieces were stuffed into the gaps to block it. Thick furs were placed in front of the door. If you look carefully, the table is just a removed door panel. A woman with disheveled hair is wrapped in something unknown. The blanket was something like a bath towel, covering his face, revealing a protruding nose and two dry eyes.
"A woman."
"Her name is Tess. She was a wanderer when she was young. All the men in the street know her. She also has a son who is a gangster."
Uriel couldn't help but feel a little timid after hearing this.
It's not that he's afraid of gangsters... but as a good citizen who doesn't steal, rob or break the law, Uriel has never been exposed to the famous half-grey and half-black profession like Liuying. Originally, there was no room for gangsters to survive in Yotsuba City, and even thieves would not look down on him, a poor little apprentice.
Or not timid.
Winnie Watts is no better than Four Leaf City. It is full of thieves, swindlers, lawless wanderers, unemployed youths and the most unmentionable gangsters. Demon hunting and brutal massacres have greatly weakened the Lancoste family's control over the city, and until now it doesn't even have a lord.
Chaos and fighting are the main themes of Whinney Watts, which lacks food and warm sunshine. Therefore, when people's basic survival cannot be guaranteed, the normal order can only be replaced by a simpler, more direct, and older elimination method. And this kind of life-and-death elimination often does not help the development of the entire society.
To be honest, he felt a little sympathy for Danlfien. The innocent and simple little princess of the four-leaf collar was about to have such a territory. Not to mention ruling the Ice Territory, she would be frightened as soon as she entered the city.
But no one can call it barbaric - the nobility and the gang of villains have a common language with each other. They work together in a tacit understanding, firmly pressing down one layer after another, controlling and sharing power and resources. This is a social system that cannot be more stable.
However, women are also the lowest class of people and have more choices. As long as they spread their legs and act like bitches, many men who sell their labor will give them money. It's funny how people call them bitches to their faces and then hang around these bitches when they're alone.
"Don't worry," said the beggar, "Tess's son Raf, we call him Tie Deng. Tie Deng never comes to the market, and he will slap this woman in the face whenever he sees her face."
"Even if she worked as a prostitute, it's still him who is the mother, right?"
"That's the problem, my lord. Everyone knows that Tess is Iron Stamp's mother and a bitch, and no one cares about it... But anyone who survived fifteen years ago knows that there was a Yankee She fell in love with Tess, and she planned to sell her pedals to the bachelor blacksmith on the street corner as a coolie. No wonder her son hated her."
These stories made Uriel feel sick all over.
Not knowing what his state of mind was, he asked: "What happened next?"
"Later? There was no later. The White Disaster came, and they were the executioner knights in white iron shells... The Yankee was caught by the patrol cavalry and hanged in prison. The blacksmith who had been a bachelor for half his life also died, but the bitch and her son were killed. Escaped." The beggar scratched the pocket on his thigh and kept looking at Uriel's pocket.
The "White Disaster" mentioned occurred fifteen years ago, and undoubtedly refers to the Venetian Massacre. This is what the locals say and is not so official.
A sad chill ran through his body. Uriel didn't know whether to blame the evildoers who burned, killed, and looted, or to lament the soil that breeds crime and corruption. He knew that the White Plague and the Demon Hunting Movement were by no means the root causes.
So the apprentice threw him a Black City gold coin. The tramp thought of something again, and his face became gloomy: "Gaia is really blind, that bastard should die at the hands of the White Disaster." It seems that he is also a believer of the goddess, the most insincere but accustomed to talking about it. That kind of thing. "Tie Deng has killed as many people as one street, only less than his boss 'Judge' Quillen. It's okay now, Tie Deng was the leader before, and the Wheel Gang at that time was no different from wild dogs and jackals. "
"The Wheel Gang?"
"It's the gangsters from Venevoise, sir. They specialize in robbing businessmen."
Uriel forced himself to cheer up. "Then sell the stolen goods at the market?"
"Of course. Who's going to keep them?"
"What's the relationship between the Wheel Gang and the Lancoste family?"
The beggar stopped talking, so Uriel had to add more money. This time he only added half, but of course he had change.
"Just like any gang that can survive in the city, Mr. Generous." The homeless man ignored the itching of his neck and scalp and took the coins with both hands. "The Lancoste family is the nemesis of the Wheel Gang, and no gang member dares to be arrogant in front of the patrol. Unfortunately, the gang is too cunning, and there is no precedent for the Rangers to arrest members of the Wheel Gang."
Uriel knew what he meant. "Does the gang pay taxes?"
"How can you not hand it over? Before the noose is put around the neck, let alone people, sometimes the hunting dogs that are more than half the body length are counted per person."
"The Ice Land Earl's family always strictly abides by the laws of the kingdom." The apprentice handed him the last part of the change and whispered. He walked towards Liuying, and a skilled smile immediately appeared on Tess's old, sagging face.
However, Uriel passed the stall and only glanced at the logo on the spices. The old woman lowered her head again, huddled her hands and face in the blanket, and remained motionless in the cold wind.
…
If there is any place in Whinniworth that reflects the fact that it is still a flaming moon, then perhaps only Lancoste's manor can qualify. When Wilfred walked through the courtyard in front of the inner gate of the castle again, the gravel road was lined with royal blue cornflowers and perennial flax, as well as large clusters of pansies.
The well-maintained flowers have not experienced cold wind and bitter rain, and their petals are deep and shallow, full of charm. He couldn't help but wonder how long it had been since he smelled flowers.
Even as a master of appraisal, Wilfred rarely had the opportunity to visit Lancaster's castle. The buildings here are not as soft and elegant as those in Yotsuba City, and they are not as towering as those in Iron Claw City, but the most obvious features are still clear at a glance - the stone walls are as thick as mountain walls, and the edges and corners are more like churches.
There are round towers at the four corners of the castle, and different flags stand in the center: the grey-bottomed silver eagle of Lancoste in the ice, the flaming heart-shaped leaf of the four-leaf Wiggins; and the steel dragon of the royal family Talbot. The three claw marks on the huge body are very obvious.
Now someone is trying to hang a fourth flag, which depicts a golden and red sun.
Although everyone knew that the Paladins of the Glorious Council were only temporarily staying in Venevoise, it was not a bad thing to lower their attitude when facing the mysterious organization, and they might be able to please the other party in exchange for some benefits. Sir Neddon was not Tracy, and he had no trouble doing the job of sycophancy.
"Come this way, Mr. Wilfred. Miss Arabella is already waiting for you," the attendant said.
Things should develop like this: they stepped onto the stairs lightly, and a warm warmth hit their faces as soon as they opened the door. The fire was burning brightly in the fireplace, and the priestess in pure white was waiting quietly with hot tea in her hands.
If not for this unexpected wind.
When Wilfred passed the last ten feet of the gravel road, the heraldry master suddenly saw the cornflowers at his feet swaying uniformly forward, and snowflakes began to scrape his face from the sky.
Could it be that this last pure land cannot escape the clutches of the God of Winter?
"Wait! Stop!"
But it would be better if it was just like that - Wilfred suddenly heard an explosive roar, and the meaning contained in it made him tremble all over.
His legs and feet were filled with lead, and his thinking slowed down. Then warmth suddenly came, and Wilfred was surprised by the change between cold and heat, when a hand penetrated his chest.
Joey withdrew his hand, and the ice sculpture cracked in half, and the appraisal master's head, shoulders and neck fell to pieces on the ground.
