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Free Web Novel,Novel online - All in oicq.net -> Fantasy -> Butterfly in the storm Text Chapter 2 The route of flowing gold (5)
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- (viii+viii¡¯)
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The night of October 20, 1666
The Temporary Headquarters of the Free Army of the Republic of Entre in Westport (formerly the Embassy of St. Sen.
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Before being awakened by the sudden cheers, Zhang Shiyi dreamed of Hengqu.
At that time, she was sitting in the corner of the guest lounge in the wing of the banquet hall, waiting for the celebration banquet to begin.
The banquet venue is located in the ancient elf empire-style mansion on Third Avenue in Westport. Standing at the top of the steps made of white marble and looking down, you will have the illusion that you are the ruler of this city.
The owner of this two-hundred-year-old mansion was once the Cannisyar family, a wealthy elf merchant with a long history. Later they decided to donate the building to the Sensen Senate in exchange for the privilege of running the Elven East Company.
But just three hours ago, the Gendarmerie annihilated the Elf Guards and all the private soldiers of the Cannisyar family, and occupied this mansion located in the center of Westport, on the same street as the Civic Hall, and the Elf East next to it. headquarter.
This legation is as big as a palace, consisting of a six-story main building and seven or eight auxiliary buildings. The auxiliary buildings even include a weapons workshop, a guard fortress, a magician's tower and a church of the Sun God. The Elf Oriental Company next to it is connected to it. There are warehouses, office buildings and other buildings there, and there is even a huge shopping mall open to the public.
Of course, all this became history after the elves decided to sneak attack the Seventh Fleet.
The victors decided to turn the old building of the Oriental Company into the headquarters of the Military Police Regiment, and convert the legation into a dormitory building for the Military Police Regiment for officers and staff. layer.
The staff brought in the assets and confiscated property from the port area, and the engineering team began to repair the damaged buildings. The Guards Company was responsible for guarding the area near the headquarters. Zhang Shiyi and several loyal wealthy families brought new attendants. and maids for the banquet, everyone was busy.
The elven captives were all sent to the port area, where Admiral Leonard Kekavi would sway them with the warmth of his compatriots and calculate how much these important hostages could extract from the hands of the Senate and major families. The ransom comes.
Good news from outside Hong Kong has also come. The messenger ship of the Seventh Fleet was entering the port, and the guests were waiting boredly for the captain to arrive with good news so that the staff of the Military Police Regiment could announce the banquet.
After all this was over, the young female Qu Shuai breathed a sigh of relief and leaned against the wall in the corner of the lounge, waiting for the banquet to officially begin.
Since she hadn¡¯t slept for two days, she almost fell asleep with her eyes open.
In her dream, she saw Hengqu.
The Hengqu she dreamed about was naturally not the holy land Hengqu located in the hinterland of the Eastern Empire, but Hengzhou and Quzhou located in the northeast of the Qianlong Islands, belonging to Fuxi Province, and facing Qingniu Prefecture across the sea.
That is the center of the Hengqu Sect of Taiping Road. Since Zhang Zai's journey to the west, the Hengqu Sect, as a minority sect, centered on Hengzhou and Quzhou and Fuxixing Province, has been in charge of the Yellow Turban Kingdoms of Taiping Road for hundreds of years.
Zhang Shiyi was born in Hengzhou and attended elementary school in Quzhou. It was also one of the few schools in the Taiping provinces that allowed women to practice martial arts and literature together with men.
She dreamed that many years ago she was about to finish elementary school and was preparing for the exam at Hengqu Academy.
Although she was less than ten years old at that time, Zhang Shiyi had already learned a lot of miscellaneous subjects, from martial arts and Taoism to alchemy and talismans.
As the only daughter of one of the most famous generals in the Zhang family, Zhang Shiyi showed extraordinary talents in civil and military affairs during her elementary school education, and was regarded as a thousand-mile horse of the Zhang family in Hengzhou.
Every teacher is full of praise for Miss Zhang, and the entire Fuxi Province has legends that Miss Zhang will be a beautiful woman with both civil and military skills in the future. Married couples who wanted to propose marriage lined up in front of Zhang's house. Potential fianc¨¦s were all over the Taiping Prefectures, Three Fortresses, Seven Provinces, and Thirty-three Military Prefectures.
While she was studying hard in elementary school, a young mercenary general came across the sea from Intre and was hired by Commander Qu of Boyang Castle to train a new army for the madman who wanted to conquer his homeland eastward.
With him came the Taiping Kingdoms, including light and heavy muskets, field artillery, range tables various technologies that were completed in the Fourth Freedom War that just passed.
Zhang Shiyi still remembers the day when news came that Qingniu Mansion, which had not fallen for about two hundred years, had fallen.
The use of force to seize the throne of the successor has not happened for decades; the usurper's capture of Qingniu Mansion is as distant as a legend.
She dreamed that she had left her book behind and mentioned her?Steel Snake Wooden Spear, and the father known as "Seyide" finally practiced the ancestral spear martial arts
Cheers came from outside, waking Zhang Shiyi from his sleep. The short nap was not enough to replenish her physical strength, but instead made her feel sleepier.
The dream ends here.
Zhang Shiyi knew that everything in the dream did not really happen.
The former heir who fled the Qingniu Mansion in a hurry appointed his father as the Grand Marshal of the Rebellion, commanding 57,000 elite troops in the Sixth Military Prefecture in the west of the mansion.
He had to lead his troops across the Fulong Sea, march across the four rivers, attack the rebels, and regain the Qingniu Mansion. He had no time to compete with his only daughter in martial arts.
Her father never came back. Only three months later, Hengzhou and Quzhou were captured by the new army trained by the newly appointed successor division.
Under the attack of the new army trained by the mercenary general, the towering city walls of the old era are meaningless. What has been proven on the Western battlefield is also valid in the Taiping countries and the Eastern Empire.
Of course, what has been proven in Eastern dramas is equally valid in the Taiping Sect countries and the West.
Because of the relationship between "high achievements and shocking the master", the employer planned to take the life of the mercenary general.
In order to escape the assassination plan of the new heir, the mercenary general contacted the navy in Fuzhong and Fudong provinces, and led a small number of direct troops to flee to the Eastern Empire.
On the eastern coast of the empire, Taiping believers and Western merchants have a small, desolate settlement that they rented a few years ago
That was more than ten years ago¡ªI don¡¯t remember the exact time very clearly.
That small settlement later became the most prosperous commercial port in the Eastern Empire, Lingyang Gate.
The admiral of that navy became the commander of the most powerful fleet in the free nations.
And that mercenary general became Lieutenant Luo of the Eastern Empire, became the protector of Luodu in the Western Tang Dynasty, and finally returned to his homeland and became the marshal of the Hongyi people who commanded the world's troops Zhang Shiyi even read it. A drama with him as the protagonist.
And when she took over as the commander-in-chief of Qu, she took her tribe members who had lost their homeland and property and were sentenced to exile. They left their homes and came to Hongyi, the land of the Intre people.
The former eldest lady became an exile settling in a foreign country.
The petite female Qu Shuai stretched her body, found a mirror, corrected her appearance, and quietly walked out of the lounge.
Compared with the previous banquet on the ship, the number of people attending this banquet was much smaller, but the level was much higher: as long as their homes were not razed by the military police, the figures of family patriarchs or business bank chairmen were all present here. More than one person noticed Zhang Shiyi's figure and looked at her with a mixture of envy and jealousy.
Everyone in the banquet hall was cheering the name of the naval admiral.
"Long live Marshal Wei!"
"Long live the Seventh Fleet!"
In the middle of the crowd was the squadron commander sent back by Wei Taiping to deliver the good news. The navy marshal specially sent a squadron commander with blond hair and blue eyes, who looked like a Westerner, back to report the news.
The man was eloquently announcing the success of the Seventh Fleet - in fact, everyone already knew that it must be a great victory. If it wasn't a great victory, why would a squadron commander and the entire squadron be sent back to report the good news?
"We seized the gap between the Elf Fleet and the Imperial Fleet. The main fleet was inserted between the two. Admiral Chen of the Fourth Squadron was responsible for entangling the rear end of the Elf Fleet. When they reacted, The Imperial fleet has been cut downwind by our army and separated from the upwind Elf fleet. Mandilil Interreus's face must have turned livid! The bombardment battle lasted from dawn to dusk. The tonnage of the Empire's ships was relatively large. Big, but their sailors and gunners are not as good as ours"
Zhang Shiyi yawned and was too lazy to listen to those lengthy boasts of achievements. The people around seemed very interested: after all, this was the best proof that their betting position was correct.
"By the afternoon, the admiral of the left wing squadron of the empire could no longer hold on and hoisted the general assault flag. Baron Novia Papio was full of courage. He led the last few ships of his squadron that could still sail. The battleship hoisted the flag of "Long Live the Emperor" and charged us with full sail, trying to enter the boarding battle. His behavior separated the Imperial Fleet from the front and rear, so I commanded the fleet to insert diagonally, and the Imperial Guard Squadron was also Cut it apart. Three ships were sunk and five surrendered. The commander of the enemy's rearguard squadron surrendered, and the flagship of the left wing squadron was sunk. The captain and fleet commander sank with the ship"
Her eyes were focused on the young man standing opposite the squadron commander.
Of course Zhang Shiyi had heard those rumors. Rumor has it that he is smilingThe person who was chatting with the squadron commander was the close disciple of the mercenary general.
"The Overlord of Intre, Major Nemen Solayton."
She repeated the somewhat difficult-to-pronounce Western name in a low voice.
"This may be the last chance. No one will propose marriage to a girl who can't even go back to Quzhou and is still unmarried in her early twenties."
Zhang Shiyi picked up the wine glass from the table nearby, took a sip, and whispered to himself: "Aren't you determined to be a bad woman, Xiaoyi?"
She frowned, did not drink the remaining red wine, put the glass back, and began to move towards her goal. It is also a sour wine, but the rice wine from my hometown is better.
However, it is not easy to squeeze into the side of Nemen Solayton.
The huge crowds of people made her a little reluctant to walk in.
After the National Military Police defeated the private soldiers of various rebel families, and the Seventh Fleet also defeated the Imperial Expeditionary Fleet and forced back the Elven Fleet, everyone knew that the Free Army was about to regain control of the entire shipping route.
No matter who it is, as long as they want to continue to survive in Phase Port, they must curry favor with this fleet and the gendarmerie responsible for providing logistics for this fleet and capturing enemy ports. What's more, there is also the market share that Elf Eastern Company is about to give up.
There were crowds of people around the young major, and wealthy businessmen who were twice or twice his age were all fawning over him. All families with young female relatives at home dressed their daughters, nieces, and adopted daughters in all kinds of ways. out.
Zhang Shiyi lowered his head and looked at his evening clothes.
The oriental-style high-cut knee-length skirt with side hems is cut to facilitate movement during combat, not to seduce men. In addition, she is wearing pants under the skirt, which makes her lack of seduce men even more obvious. charm.
"If we start fighting here right away, I'm confident that I won't lose to any of them; but being a bad woman is not enough."
My appearance cannot be called ugly, but it cannot be called gorgeous either.
It is completely impossible to compare with the real ladies who wear red makeup and luxurious dresses with complicated decorations and lace decorations.
"And, among those peacocks, there is actually a phoenix hidden"
Zhang Shiyi's eyes were attracted by the most conspicuous one among the women.
The man was taller than the girls around him, and his flowing black hair seemed to shine under the magic light. Like her, this person did not wear those heavy, complicated, and luxurious fashions.
The female priest from the empire has been standing beside Naimen. She was just wearing a simple and elegant high-level female priest's attire, but she was not inferior at all. Whether it was her behavior, her elegant appearance, or her stone-like cold expression, she drove back one lady after another who tried to get close to him.
"It seems I have to retract my words. Even if we start a fight, we may not be able to defeat her."
Zhang Shiyi thought of the battle last night. At least in terms of hand-to-hand combat, the female priest and her fighting ability should be on par with each other; excluding Taoism, it is even harder to say purely in terms of martial arts.
Judging from the appearance and skin, even if the other party is older than her, I'm afraid it's not much older.
Since leaving home, Zhang Shiyi has been practicing martial arts and Taoism for more than six hours every day, so that he has the fighting skills he has today. If the opponent is indeed in his early twenties, that kind of strength must mean extraordinary talent or bloodline.
"Even if you can't stand up to that woman, at least you can't become one of those butterflies." Female Qushuai smiled and walked through the crowd, continuing to encourage herself, "That man shouldn't be exposing his thighs and chest. Something that can catch the bait.¡±
The closer Zhang Shiyi got, the more he could feel the unusual determination hidden under the young man's smile.
If she had to use an analogy, the young man felt to her like a bastion built by the new army, with murderous intent hidden under the ordinary appearance.
The bastion looks peaceful and harmless on the outside, but when you actually attack it, you realize that it is a hundred times more terrifying than high and thick walls.
His mood was not so obvious on the ship last night, but after today's battle, his "cold" side has obviously become stronger.
As a warrior, Zhang Shiyi is used to paying attention to other people's eyes. She noticed that although the Nemen man was here, his thoughts were obviously not on the girls in front of him¡ªnot even on the Orthodox priest. Behind the gentle eyes, there is a coldness that is difficult to see through.
His eyes often fly to high places or to the door.?It was like looking at something only he could see. No matter how provocative movements and hints the ladies made, they were all resolved by this young man pretending to be ignorant.
"Maybe something happened on the battlefield?"
The changes in Nemen Solayton aroused Zhang Shiyi's curiosity. She judged that Naimen might be two or three years younger than herself, but he had rich experiences that belied his age.
How did this man become the disciple of the legendary general? How did it get to this point?
When Zhang Shiyi approached Naimen, he heard that he was discussing the establishment of a new bank and taxation with several wealthy businessmen and members of the Hong Kong Parliament.
"We hope that everyone can settle all settlements and transactions with us. We will use the enemy assets seized this time to support our further expansion. Of course, appropriate business taxes are also necessary, but you can Slowly negotiate an affordable tax amount. I believe that Marshal Wei does not want to waste his troops on hunting down enemies and smuggling"
The Warlord fluently described the new organizational structure of the future phase port and "invited" the remaining wealthy families to join it.
His audience didn¡¯t seem as enthusiastic as when he was promoting his daughter.
¡°Perhaps most families are not willing to completely expose their business to the military, but the hints in Naimen¡¯s words make them think twice.
Providing new loans and dividing the interests of declining families are bait, while threats of tax evasion and smuggling are sticks. Naimen and Wei Taiping have already wiped out all the forces related to elves, and naturally they don't mind eliminating one or two more.
Seeing that everyone was noncommittal for a moment, Zhang Shiyi secretly clenched his fists and was thankful for his good luck.
¡°What a great opportunity!¡±
The topic Naimen is talking about may be a big threat to most families who rely on trade and moneylending, but it is not to her people.
The Hengqu refugees from the west and south of the gorge don't have much financial resources, and they are wanted by Qingniu Mansion and find it difficult to engage in large-scale trade. Naimen's request to establish a bank can be said to be exactly what she wants.
"We, Xiangzhou Hengqu Sect and Zhang Family, are willing to serve again at any time. Even if our limited financial resources cannot provide a lot of help, we can provide sufficient manpower, and half of the Taoist people in Donggang can be your help."
The young military governor looked at Zhang Shiyi, who was the first to express his allegiance, nodded slightly, looked at her with approval, and responded: "This is the second time you have helped me, Zhang Qushuai. As for the issue of financial resources, you don't have to be too mature." Don't worry. I know you have no shortage of sailors, and soon your Hengqu Sect will have your own ocean-going merchant fleet."
The meaning of this sentence made everyone around him stunned.
After a moment, they realized that this meant that Naimen planned to hand over the captured elf merchant fleet to the Hengqu Zhang family!
More than one person felt a pang of regret. There were more than ten Elf Eastern Company merchant ships captured in the harbor alone; considering the ships that were still on the road and had not had time to escape, as well as the ships that would be captured by the Seventh Fleet, it is not surprising that twenty or thirty were captured. That is a fortune that exceeds the entire wealth of most people in the venue!
But Zhang Shiyi did not feel happy. She noticed that the gaze of the young man opposite did not change.
If you are satisfied with this, it means losing. She needed more than just a merchant fleet.
She wants to return to Hengqu. The resources in the hands of this young man may be able to do this.
"Have courage, Xiaoyi. You have to break that guy's defense!"
Zhang Shiyi took a deep breath, took two quick steps forward, and directly invaded Naimen's side. Her movements were so fast and her positioning so precise, the tip of her nose could almost touch Naimen's lips.
At a distance where the two could feel each other's breathing, Zhang Shiyi keenly felt the cracks in the other person's mask. She also caught the shock on the face of the imperial female priest with the corner of her eye.
"I never expected that, Lord Nemen Thoredon, you would be someone who would forget what you said?"
She saw Naimen¡¯s head tilted back and his body took half a step back. The basis of Eastern martial arts is to break the opponent's posture and lead the fight to your own rhythm.
"You promised to call me 'Xiaoyi' last time, right? In this case, I am very worried about the conditions we agreed on before. You won't forget it, right?"
A trace of astonishment flashed across Naimen's face, and Zhang Shiyi immediately caught it.
"As for me, I am very grateful for the merchant fleet you provided to us Hengdao people. But that is different from the conditions you agreed to me. My own request?It's not that ambitious, it's just a very simple condition. "
She paused here for a moment, waiting for Naimen's response.
"I remember our agreement was to promise you a condition within my ability."
Hearing this completely expected reply, Zhang Shiyi knew that he had caught his flaw.
"My conditions are very simple. They must be within your ability, and they do not violate the interests of free countries. I just want a guest room in your mansion."
Naimen was stunned: "Aguest room?"
"Well, a guest room. It doesn't need to be too big or too good, just big enough for me to live in. In this way, I can convince my people that cooperation with the Free Army is reliable."
It¡¯s almost done, Zhang Shiyi thought, let¡¯s just give it up.
"You won't say that such a simple thing can't be done, right? I know that the Warlord has an entire floor of empty rooms."
¡°If it¡¯s just one room, it¡¯s okay¡ª¡ª¡±
"Thank you, Your Excellency. Then I will ask someone to move the luggage. I will move in tonight."
Zhang Shiyi chuckled, turned around, and left almost as fast as when he came. The single ponytail on the back of her head brushed against Naimen's cheek, leaving a fresh scent of grass.
Naimen took a few deep breaths before regaining his composure.
This is when Olia Hugh Coleman, who had been patiently standing aside, suddenly came close to his ear and whispered: "I remember, you also owe me a condition, Solayton."
"Well, that's what happened¡ª¡ª"
"Then my request is the same as hers. Give me a guest room on your floor, plus the Elf Sun God Church outside. Then I'll pack my luggage too."
The princess of the empire didn¡¯t even give him a chance to confirm, and quickly walked out of the banquet hall chasing Zhang Shiyi¡¯s back.
"It looks like this is going to be a long night"
Naimen sighed and looked around. Almost everyone was looking at him from the corner of their eyes and whispering.
¡°¡it will also be a night filled with rumors.¡±
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The night of October 20, 1666
A seemingly ordinary house in the depths of Donggang Street, Phase Port, Interrepublic
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She was awakened from her sleep.
As usual, all surveillance magic is on. She glanced through it quickly and made sure that no one had controlled the key points in her hiding place before she put on her coat and opened the door.
Before opening the door, the monitoring magic knew who was coming. Her two friends and assistants, Silver Plate and Mink. Now, among the female members of the Thieves Guild, the two of them rank quite high.
She yawned and opened the door.
"Is the situation serious? The speculation of that big shot in Westport has been punished so quickly"
Her joking was directly interrupted by the visitor.
"Sister Baisi. Cuijie is dead."
"Please lift the barrier and let us in."
A smile condensed on her face.
"How could it be! Didn't I tell you that we shouldn't participate in the adventures of those guys in Westport? Just focus on doing our own business! How could it be like this!"
What came out of my mouth was not condolences, but complaints.
"Cui Jie" is dead. The cheerful girl who was best at bargaining, rented so many houses for her, and found people to help her establish raw material procurement and sales channels, died.
"Last night when the fleet entered the harbor, 'Cui Jie' was discussing business with a group of businessmen in a hotel affiliated to the Westport Guild. When a naval battle broke out in the harbor, she wanted to return to the Eastport, but it was already too late."
"The guys from the Westport Guild knew that she was a magician now, and they forced her to take the goods to the Westport Guild headquarters to strengthen the defense. But President Westport died in the port, and they did not expect that the military police who landed were so powerful and ferocious. ¡¡±
"Silver Plate" and "Mink Skin" you tell me the news you heard.
"The small building at the Westport Guild Headquarters resisted too much, so the military police dragged in several ship-borne heavy guns and blew it down. They also threw heavy fire oil and poisonous cloud bombs into it."
"Of the more than three hundred guild members and mercenaries, only a few dozen made it out alive, and more than half of them were killed by a bayonet charge by the military police. I hid in a nearby attic and used my binoculars to see them dragging out the 'Green Ring' The body was put in a body bag wu wu"
"Mink""I couldn't talk anymore and started crying. In the past few months, the relationship between them has become very good. The business started by the four young girls has been quite big, taking up the entire business. Thirty percent of the underground magic items and magic private school business in Phase Port were even purchased by famous people from Fates and Taiping Dao countries.
"Taking advantage of their announcement of victory and relaxing Donggang's vigilance, the two of us can rush back and bring the news to my eldest sister. I heard that the Daomin people have taken the lead in declaring their surrender, and their people have taken the occupation army's orders. They captured the Donggang Guild and arrested most of the guild officials and handed them over to the occupying forces."
"Bai Si"'s eyebrows knitted together and she made a judgment.
"We can't go to the Thieves Guild. Do you remember the backup identities I prepared for everyone before? Get rid of all the identities in the underground society."
"My eldest sister is reallyhow do you say that? She is far-sighted."
"But, 'Cui Jie' she"
"I'm afraid we won't be able to visit her grave for the time being. If I were a senior official of the occupying army, I would definitely closely monitor all the people who come to claim the deceased and go to the cemetery to mourn." "Bai Si" suppressed tears, "We can't either To get revenge. At least, not now."
"But we will one day avenge her, right?"
"Well. All we can do now is remember the enemy's name and wait for the opportunity. That army cannot be stationed in Phase Port forever. Now that they are here, they must take back the surrounding areas occupied by the elves and the empire. The ports. We¡¯ll have a chance.¡±
"Remember the name of the enemy'Silver Plate', what is the name of the commander of the occupying army?"
"Naimen Solayton. I heard that he is one of the elites selected from ten thousand in the Continental Free Army."
"Well, it's a weird name." "Bai Si" commented casually, "But no matter how strong he is, we will always have a chance."
"There will really be a day, right, eldest sister?"
"As long as we continue to expand our sphere of influencethere will be a day. Maybe we need to rebuild the Thieves Guild, or even find a way to turn our small business into a lighthouse giant, but I believe that there will always be that day."
She sent the two of them away, closed the door, and wanted to go back to sleep, but she couldn't fall asleep. Worries about the future came to her mind again.
"Who am I?"
She picked up the bedside mirror and looked at her new appearance.
His face is reflected in the mirror. He has short, ear-length black hair, light yellow skin, and androgynous facial features. If he puts on men's clothing, he can be regarded as a handsome young man from the East.
No matter who looks at it, it is impossible to associate her with the blonde and blue-eyed "white stockings" that I find particularly pitiful.
This is the most basic security method. From hair, skin color to facial features, there is no magic technology that needs to be maintained. It just relies on hair dye and cosmetics to achieve the effect.
Looking at this unfamiliar face, she finally shed tears.
Yes, I will never see the smile of "Cui Jie" again.
Even my original face, I don¡¯t know how many years and months it will take before I can see it again.
But she must do it.
The pursuers from the past may arrive at any time. "Bai Si's" magic talent is so good that even she would be surprised - it can only be proof of identity or bloodline.
That means that if there is an enemy chasing you, it must be a very terrifying enemy.
Although she has no memory, she doesn¡¯t want to die. At least until I get my memory back, I don't want to die at all.
Let¡¯s move tomorrow.
Thinking this, the girl with the pseudonym "Bai Si" fell into sleep. - 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
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