-
Add Bookmark | Recommend this book | Back to the book page | My bookshelf | Mobile Reading
Free Web Novel,Novel online - All in oicq.net -> Fantasy -> Butterfly in the storm Text Chapter 2 The route of flowing gold (1)
Previous page Return to Catalog Next page
- (iv¡¯)
*********
Time and place unknown
*********
The gel spread out in the air, and the bottom of the iron cage suddenly disappeared.
Lianren fell to the ground with the rope bag, and the eyes of the people around him were fixed on him.
"Ah, the fourth person."
¡°I said it¡¯s almost time for someone to challenge this manor beyond their own capabilities.¡±
There was sparse and unenthusiastic applause.
Several young women were chattering and gathered around.
"Welcome our new friends. If you are caught accidentally, you will be detained here for ten days."
"We are here on a first-come, first-served basis, newcomers. I was detained for nine days, and the remaining two were detained for six days and two days respectively."
¡°Don¡¯t worry about food, these gels are edible. The portion is sufficient, they won¡¯t rot, and they have a bit of apple flavor.¡±
Although the dialogue is messy, you can still understand the general idea.
The conclusion of the reasoning is also obvious.
This is a cell used to hold thieves who intend to break into this mansion and steal.
The trap set by this manor is not a burglary, security or murder trap in the usual sense.
It is an institution that automatically conducts trials and detentions.
The cell itself occasionally plays music. The style of the music is very strange.
It¡¯s not like the sound produced by a serious musical instrument with a resonant cavity. It¡¯s not melodious at all, but rather noisy.
"The owner who designed and built this mansion must be a very evil person, right?"
I couldn¡¯t help but comment in my heart. A building made of strange pride and taste.
But even the builder would never have imagined that such a heavily guarded mansion would be used as a testing ground by the local thieves guild, right?
Thinking of this, a smile appeared on his face involuntarily.
"By the way, I've never seen you before. Are you new here?"
After thinking about it, I decided to take advantage of the other party¡¯s misunderstanding first. Maybe it's useful.
"I'm from out of town, and I wanted to try my luck when passing by. Are you?"
"Phase Port Thieves Guild. You haven't reported to us yet, have you?"
In the less than honest greetings, at least his position was confirmed.
It is easy to find knowledge about the phase port in the magic network. It is the largest port in the Entre Republic and the center of western maritime trade.
The other person looked at his clothes with a hint of contempt in his tone.
"A white dress, tsk tsk, it must cost a few hundred gold coins. No wonder you want to sneak in when you dress like a young lady coming to a banquet? Unfortunately, you are unlucky. This is an empty house, and the tricks of elegant thieves will not work."
"I didn't wear this, I just got it."
It¡¯s not really a lie. Who knows who the owner of this house is, so it is not wrong to say that this dress was stolen.
The expressions of several female thieves changed drastically, and they rushed forward and started touching the clothes.
"It's really, really silk. It must cost several hundred gold pounds."
"It's definitely not something that people like you can afford. You're probably the first one to enter the clothing room in this castle."
"Who are you? You must be famous for your ability to break through so many traps, right?"
He twisted a few times uncomfortably and pulled back his sleeves. A female thief with long black hair bit her lip and let go of her hand unwillingly.
"my name¡¡"
Be silent. I can't remember anything about the name.
"It's not a name, it's a guild code. Names are definitely inconvenient. I am 'Cui Jie', this is 'Yin Plate', and she is 'Mink'. What is your code name?"
The origins of those code names were immediately clear. It was obvious that they were stolen goods.
The more valuable the stolen goods are, the more powerful the code name soundsprobably.
"Well"
Of course I can¡¯t remember the code name either. Besides, my situation doesn't look like that of a thief.
Another female thief with short chestnut hair opened her mouth to come to the rescue.
¡°With this person¡¯s skills, it may not be convenient to even give out the code name. Anyway, our Hong Kong Phase Association does not force members to register their true identities and pay their income. All they need to do is pay membership fees.¡±
"Since everyone is locked up here together, of course you will pay your dues, right?"
The three people in front of her seemed not to allow her to say "no".
"Then it's settled. During the phase port, youHow about using a temporary code name'Bai Si'? With your ability, the name of "Baishi of Phase Port" will soon be as famous as your original name. "
? ? It is indeed the name of the stolen goods. But there seems to be no choice.
He looked down at his clothes and smiled helplessly. You can't suggest calling her "princess" on your own.
"'White silk'sounds good."
*********
Late at night on October 19, 1666
The country of twin islands, Intre South Phase Port (portphase)
*********
Before the industrial revolution, shipping was the only mode of transportation that could travel day and night.
In fact, sea transport is more powerful than traveling day and night: a sea ship cannot even stop before it anchors. As long as there are no shipwrecks or pirates, shipping by sea is the most cost-effective. Maritime transportation in the Lu Xinhai and Intre Narrow Seas existed long before written history.
But for those who were sailing on a sea-going ship for the first time, such as Major Nemen Soleton and most of his military police regiment, the great advantage of "day and night" was simply the worst nightmare.
The seasickness at sea is several times more terrifying than the ferry on the inland river, and it is completely different from the previous experience on the ship from the port to the navy. The waves rose and fell day and night, and the deck beneath their feet was constantly shaking. Occasionally it would be so strong that the entire hull would be lifted.
What¡¯s even more unfortunate is that the Seventh Fleet had to take the open sea route this time, which at least tripled the suffering of seasickness.
That¡¯s because the Intre Narrow Sea, which separates the Twin Islands from Fates, is still under threat from the combined elf-empire fleet.
After defeating the Fifth Fleet, the combined fleet captured three strong military ports in the Narrow Sea, which served as the bases of the Imperial Fleet and the Elf Fleet. Now these three military ports are protected by the ceasefire agreement and are a constant threat to the Narrow Sea shipping lanes. When they encountered a Free Army squadron, they would fly a war-free flag, and when they encountered a lone merchant ship, they would fly a privateering flag and pounce on them unceremoniously.
As a counterattack, one-third of the warships of the Seventh Fleet also dispersed into the narrow sea, using themselves as bait to engage in a brutal strangulation battle with the privateers. Wei Taiping is not afraid of the elves and the imperials joining forces; even the remaining two-thirds are enough to compete with the combined fleet.
The remaining fleet is together with the remnants of the original Fifth Fleet -< >. Of course, those remnants no longer use the name "Fifth Fleet". Their current designation is "Seventh Fleet Narrow Sea Squadron", headed by Vice Admiral Leonard Kekaway and Daro Sala. Led by Rear Admiral Mi.
They plan to circumnavigate the entire West Intre Island in half a month and reach the Phase Port at the junction of the two islands via the Great Southern Ocean Channel.
Plans are always more ideal than reality. Three weeks have passed and the fleet has not yet reached its destination.
The huge waves of the Atlantic Ocean can sweep across the entire deck, and occasionally you can hear the song of whales in the distance. The weak connection of the magic network even goes deep into the sea, and is connected with the mysterious civilizations that sunk under the ocean.
In the first few days after boarding the ship, more than half of the people lived a miserable life of vomiting after eating, and then eating after vomiting. The horses in the regiment were even worse. More than half of them had died of illness, and all the horse meat became a supplement for the sailors.
Even if the number of chaplains in the military police regiment is twice the standard, they can only use sacred magic to relieve the pain of seasickness and illness for seasick patients. A junior priest can handle more than a dozen people a day, which is a drop in the bucket compared to the more than two thousand officers and soldiers of the ** Military Police Regiment. If Naimen had not arranged for extra magicians to be on board in advance, he would have lost 10% to 20% of his officers and soldiers in the past few weeks.
Being able to find so many magic users, the young major felt that he was indeed lucky.
Since the defeat of the Fifth Fleet, the number of ships heading to Intre has dropped sharply, and countless merchants, refugees and tourists have been stranded in Fort Forti. As soon as they heard that the Seventh Fleet was returning to Intre, people planning to hitchhike formed a long line. The military police regiment of Naimen is responsible for managing these civilians accompanying the ship and preventing them from causing trouble at sea.
It is true that there are all kinds of weirdos who plan to go to Intre. It is no wonder that the Seventh Fleet readily threw this hot potato out.
There are more than 20,000 citizens of the free countries, covering all walks of life, from wealthy merchants and bankers to circuses and thieves. There are more than 1,000 imperial subjects and elves combined. There are not many military policemen left. Even if each ship could carry an additional hundred passengers, the entire transportation plan would require the use of more than two hundred battleships and armed merchant ships.
He didn¡¯t know how many spies and spies planned to take this opportunity to sneak into Intre, but he knew that there must be many. He sternly rejected any civilian andHe did not agree to the request of the Americans to board the flagship and main battleships, even though some people requested it repeatedly through various channels. If a hijacking incident like the one at Fort Forti happened again, Naimen had no confidence in resolving the crisis with these people who were so seasick that they couldn't distinguish between up and down.
Naimen and his staff divided the troops they had on hand into a guard force and a reserve force. A group of about ten people from the security force are responsible for maintaining law and order on each ship. Those among the passengers who can use magic are also under their surveillance. The reserve force is concentrated in the Fifth Fleet, which is a few large ships in the Narrow Sea Squadron. After all, Naimen is familiar with its chief and deputy commanders, and it is more secure to place the headquarters here than on Wei Taiping's battleship.
Every day, the fleet will choose a time when the wind is relatively gentle to retract the sails and form the fleet to confirm the position of each ship relative to the main fleet. A sailing fleet as large as the Seventh Fleet would be more than ten nautical miles long, and each squadron would have to use a telescope to see each other.
Naimen will seize this time to check the attrition situation of each squadron, and transfer the sick people back to the relatively large battleship to alleviate their condition.
Taking advantage of the opportunity of exchanging with sick ships, Neimen would change ships every day, talk to adventurers who were planning to go to Intre, and also seek information from locals who were preparing to return to Phase Port. During these three weeks, every night he was sorting out the scattered information he had obtained, and rewriting the vague ideas in his mind into actual plans and orders.
¡°The Citizen¡¯s Central Bank of Jourloc, the Land Bank Plan of the Empire, the Currency Exchange Bank of Lenny, the goldsmiths and underwriters of Intre¡¡±
The definition of bank obtained from Anne seems to be subtly different from the existing banks above.
Naimen doesn¡¯t know what these differences are specifically, but if a system can survive more than two hundred years later, it must have its unique advantages. He wrote down the names of the largest goldsmiths and insurance companies in Phase Port on a piece of paper, and decided to visit them first after landing. Naimen himself doesn't know much about how a bank works - but if there are so many existing big banks, he should be able to negotiate a more suitable method.
"Lang De and Sons, Memphis and Linke Trading Company, Pure Gold Comprehensive Trading, Federal Exchange that's about it."
Naimen nodded with satisfaction and took the plan he had been working on for three weeks into his arms. Although he may not be successful, he still feels quite certain.
Strange to say, the more I concentrate on meditating and practicing magic, the more seasick I feel. When I start writing a draft plan, I forget the plank under my feet. Just like sometimes I toss and turn in bed unable to fall asleep, but when I start working, I feel more energetic the more I work.
"No, it seems that it has indeed slowed down Did the team form in the middle of the night today? It's really strange."
Hearing the cry of "Reef the sails! Drop the anchor!" from outside the cabin, Naimen stood up, stretched out incompletely in the small cabin, rubbed his shoulders and got out of the narrow hatch.
In his memory, this was the first time in three weeks that a fleet formation was conducted late at night. Since semaphores cannot be seen at night and can only communicate with each other using lights and cannons, naval officers generally avoid conducting complex formation operations at night.
With a trace of doubt, Naimen walked out of his single cabin, lowered his head and walked to the deck, looking for someone knowledgeable to ask.
The major is aboard the "Lucius Senator", the flanker flagship of the Narrow Sea Squadron today. It is one of the only four remaining three-decker battleships in the Fifth Fleet. It is also the seat of the deputy commander of the fleet, Rear Admiral Darrow Salami. ship. His single cabin was in the center of the upper deck. Although it was the best room on the ship besides the captain's cabin, it still had to go through several twists and turns to reach the deck.
Climbing up a few steps and walking out of the hatch, he habitually grabbed a safety rope and tied it to his belt. There is never a shortage of safety lines on an oceangoing sailboat, and almost every sailor has had his or her life saved by these simple ropes. Most of his own men were also gathered on the deck. These men in army uniforms formed a sharp contrast with the sailors around them.
As expected, Naimen saw the slightly fat body of Major General Darrow standing at the bow of the ship.
He walked up and said hello: "Your Excellency, Rear Admiral, this is"
Naimen¡¯s words suddenly choked in his throat. Following the gazes of the squadron commander and almost everyone on the deck, the reason for stopping the ship in the middle of the night was really obvious.
The reason has always been there.
The sea at night is supposed to be dark. Naimen had run onto the deck several times at night, holding on to the side of the ship and vomiting. He was very familiar with the boundless and endless darkness. There is no artificial light, only the oil lamps and torches used for lighting on the ship, and the darkness will make people feel spine-chilling.
But what appears at the end of the field of vision now is a dividing sea.?'s bright band, and dozens of light pillars pointing to the sky guarding this bright band.
The green light strip that pierces the night glitters in the waves, not only separating the sea and the sky, but also separating the Intray Narrow Sea and the Southern Ocean, and also separating the east and west islands of Intray.
Whether it is the stars above the head or the torches lit on the Seventh Fleet and the Fifth Fleet, they are nothing compared to the lights at the end of the sea.
"Welcome to Phase Port, Your Excellency, Warlord Soleton. Guarded by Phase Bridge and twenty-seven lighthouses, it is the largest port in the civilized world."
Even the smooth Major General Darrow Salami¡¯s tone was filled with pride.
Naimen knew that this was originally the home port of the Fifth Fleet, and it must be as familiar to Major General Darrow as home. He smiled slightly and followed the rear admiral's words and asked a question that the other party would definitely know the answer to.
"Why do we need twenty-seven lighthouses? I heard that even in an area as large as Emerald Bay, there is only one main channel lighthouse."
"Are you talking about the shining green lighthouse built by the Elf Empire in Emerald Bay? The Pointed Ears always boast that it is the greatest maritime structure. We admit that their thing is indeed quite big when compared to its size alone. But compared with our phase port, tsk tsk, it¡¯s not up to par.¡±
Naimen¡¯s question scratched Darrow¡¯s itch. The rear admiral, who had been cautious since the mutiny at Fort Forti, seemed to be a different person. He pointed at the lighthouses and traced the outline of the map with his hands in the air. His expression was so high that he seemed to have returned to the days when the Fifth Fleet dominated the sea.
"There is only a narrow Watergate Strait between the twin islands of Intrey. The easternmost point of the West Island and the westernmost point of the East Island face each other across the sea. But the two peninsulas are not as simple as drawn on the map. There are two peninsulas on both sides. Many headlands extend out, like two hands spread out relative to each other. Watergate Strait was originally a very dangerous waterway, and it was very difficult to navigate at night. It was impossible for ships from the Atlantic Ocean to enter the port at night. About seventy or eighty years ago, in order to To change this, the newly established Intre Council and the Phase Harbor Local Council decided to build lighthouses on all the protruding headlands on the north and south sides of Phase Harbor to mark navigation routes. At first, there were only seven lighthouses, but over the decades, With the development of trade, there are more and more wealthy merchants in the city, and the construction of lighthouses has become a symbol of the wealthy merchants' status. The latest one was just completed before this war"
As he continued to talk, signal fireworks rose from the Seventh Fleet flagship "Pingbo".
Darrow looked at the fireworks with a little surprise: "Port entry salute and banquet? At this time and place, is Marshal Wei serious?"
Naimen also stared at the flares and nodded: "I think you don't know the direction of the flares. The banquet venue should not be the flagship, but the supply ship 'Western'."
"It seems that many people will not be able to sleep well tonight. This demonstration is really simple and crude"
Darrow reluctantly stopped and shouted orders to the sailors on the deck.
"Fire a salute into the harbor!"
Every gunboat in the fleet was busy, and the loaders wasted the gunpowder on board.
The gun salute has been a custom almost as old as ship-borne artillery, used to signal to a port or a foreign fleet that its ships were not hostile. Cannons need to cool down and reload. Once all of a ship's cannons have fired, it is unlikely that it will be able to fight again in the short term.
When the entire Seventh Fleet began firing cannons, the sound seemed endless. Each squadron fires its guns at different times, and the largest four-deck gunboat has more than a hundred guns. Thousands of cannons fired one after another, causing the light of the distant lighthouse to tremble.
They are telling the same thing: the Seventh Fleet of the Free Navy is coming.
Even if the Fifth Fleet is defeated and a ceasefire agreement is signed, this blue water is still the territory of the Big Red Fleet!
With the rumbling salute, the outpost fleet of the Seventh Fleet, led by the pilot ship, began to weigh anchor and cross the strait into the Intray Narrow Sea.
Naimen looked at the map and saw that beyond the long bridge was the Intra Narrow Sea. The largest harbor in the world is just north of the bridge, on the inside of the Narrow Sea. He picked up the telescope and looked in the direction of the green light.
At this glance, he was so surprised that he could hardly close his mouth.
One giant ship after another rushed past the bridge with full sail without stopping. Their sails intersected with the bridge deck, but they passed each other without any hindrance, and no one was damaged.
"What's the magic on that bridge?"
"What magic? Is there something unexpected?" Hearing Naimen's words, Darrow hurriedly picked up his telescope, "Well, it looks likeIt¡¯s all normal¡¡±
Naimen stared at him in surprise. Was he the only one who saw those sails crossing the bridge?
Seeing the young major's expression, Darrow suddenly understood. The rear admiral smiled awkwardly and asked tentatively: "Does the Governor know the origin of the name 'Phase Port'?"
"Does it mean" Naimen suddenly reacted, "The luminous bridge itself is a magical product?"
Darrow lowered his voice: "That is the Phase Bridge. This bridge that is several nautical miles long connects the two most important cities on the twin islands of Intrey. Almost every officer knows this matter. After all, it is the entire civilization. The port with the largest throughput in the world and the most important town in Intre."
Naimen felt a fever on his face: "I have chatted with so many people from Intre in the past few weeks, and no one has mentioned this matter!"
"Maybe they think this matter is known to everyone. The most famous thing in Phase Port is the Phase Bridge."
The atmosphere suddenly became awkward. The rear admiral was too embarrassed to continue, and Naimen didn't want to continue either.
By chance, a garrison mage ran over and asked Major General Darrow for instructions - < > - at the same time, and rescued the two of them. The major general apologized to Naimen and left in a hurry to command the fleet to dock.
Naimen was the only one left near the bow. He took out the plan he had just written from his arms, sighed, and wanted to tear it up.
"You don't even understand what's going on with the most famous Phase Bridge in Phase Port. Do you plan to establish your business here, Nemen Solayton? Just rely on a rough financial plan and two thousand ships. Never been in the Army?"
¡°Perhaps Wei Taiping¡¯s initial opinion was right. This is not a problem that can be solved by the guillotine.
But I don¡¯t know why, but I still can¡¯t let go, and the pieces of paper are clenched and loosened. My fingers were trembling, but I couldn't tear up the plan that had been condensed for three weeks.
"The Phase Bridge is located in Phase Port and is one of the highest achievements of modern magical engineering."
Anne¡¯s voice suddenly sounded in Naimen¡¯s ears. It was still that cold, emotionless voice, like a magical synthesized voice. Anne's memory bank contains future knowledge and the ability to quickly search the magic network.
¡°Phase Port is a port that connects the East and the West and is also the most important trading port in the Age of Discovery. Almost all modern financial systems originated from this port.¡±
Naimen is always unsure of the conditions for activating Annie's memory. When he wanted to, he could start it every time, but occasionally like now, the voice would start talking on its own.
"Since ancient times, the East Island and the West Island have been under the control of different forces, and the twin cities of Phase Port are the same. Elves and humans, the Eastern Governor and the Western Governor, the Holy Empire and the Yellow Turbans, until more than a hundred years ago, Ke The Man people really unified the twin cities into one city with the help of the navy.¡±
However, this time Naimen felt that he seemed to have discovered some patterns.
"Are you going to tell me that if there are problems with the plan, we can correct it, and if there are problems with the intelligence, we can re-collect it?"
Anne¡¯s voice ignored him and continued to relay information from the memory bank of the magic network.
"The fortress on the east side was once named Xiafu, which literally means "city built on the strait". It is the closest city to the west built by the Yellow Turbans. The port on the west side was once named Salonpolis. It was a city established by the Elven Empire, and was renamed Southport during the empire. When the people of Intre established the Republic, the two cities were adjusted under the same administrative division."
Naimen lowered his head and looked at the three goals he wrote on the first page of the plan.
It is necessary to rebuild Intre's collection and logistics supply system.
It is necessary to train a more powerful army and navy.
To expel the enemy fleet in the narrow sea of ??Intre.
No, actually there are more than three.
"After the founding of the Republic, the Intre Council invited the empire's strongest aerial crystal emblem architect and the most famous architect in Italy and Asia to join forces to build this bridge that can be used for both traffic and navigation. This long bridge will not affect A sailboat sails because its horizontal and vertical directions do not interfere with each other.¡±
He also has a more important private mission that cannot be told to others.
It doesn¡¯t matter if the three tasks are not completed, as long as the personal task is completed.
"That's enough, that's it. Thank you, Anne. I'll do it as soon as possible."
He wants to recover Anne Seifer's soul and body.
"Nicknames are not accepted. Please don't give random names."
Anne in the Magic Network didn¡¯t appreciate it at all. But Naimen sometimes feels that although there is no soul and body, that?The memory bank also seems to have a personality.
"There is a party coming next. Do you plan to be my female companion?"
"Your query has no results, please change the keywords."
¡°Although it¡¯s a female companion that only I can see and imagine.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t quite know what you are talking about, can you say it again in another way?¡±
While Naimen was "talking to himself", the "Lucius Senator" also rushed past the middle of the Phase Bridge. Its sails rubbed against the bridge deck, making only a slight friction sound.
Once you cross the long bridge, you can see the huge port on the west side of the Narrow Sea. There are more than 500 ships of various types parked inside, and it can be seen as far as the eye can see. It is worthy of the title of "the largest port in the civilized world".
In order to welcome the arrival of the Seventh Fleet, the entire port was brightly lit, and the "Western", which was scheduled to be the venue for the banquet, was wrapped in seven or eight kinds of magical light, shining dazzlingly.
"Are there twenty-seven lighthouses"
Naimen can probably guess Wei Taiping¡¯s purpose of holding this banquet.
It¡¯s time to really get to work. With this thought in mind, he put two medals of excellence on his left chest.
p.s.Happy Christmas Eve~~Happy~~~ - Didn't finish reading? Add this book to your favoritesI'm a member and bookmarked this chapterCopy the address of this book and recommend it to your friends for pointsChapter error? Click here to report
- Previous pageCatalogNext page