Chapter 552 Spring

The weather is getting warmer and the snow is melting.

The ice and snow on the northwest highlands melted into gurgling water. The streams gathered and poured into the river, and then divided into several branches in the low-lying land south of the giant wood crossing, flowing all the way to the southeast along the terrain, criss-crossing the low-lying land. The water channel irrigated a piece of fertile soil near the entrance of the giant tree, making it one of the largest grain-producing areas in the Holy Spirit Plains, and also making it an important area that the rebels in the east and the royal family fought for repeatedly.

The flames of war were burning very close. It was briefly extinguished in winter, but as the weather warmed, the haze of war returned to this land as the water in the rivers rose again.

The gray-haired Sam took his children to the upper reaches of the river. The stones piled up on the "harvest stone" last year were especially there, but there were only a few missing. Most of them were animals passing by to drink water. It was kicked away, but under the remaining stones, some rough carvings can still be vaguely seen, using crude techniques to depict the sacred emblems of the three gods of fertility.

Sam stepped forward and cleaned the old stones on the Harvest Stone with an almost pious attitude. Then he took out the red ginger grass he brought with him, squeezed out the grass juice and applied it on the Harvest Stone. In the God's emblem, the two sons picked up new stones of suitable size from the nearby river bank, placed them on the flat surface on top of the harvest stone, and piled them into a small pile. After doing this, The youngest daughter came over and inserted a green twig in the middle of the pile of rocks.

Sam lowered his head and murmured in a low voice: "Goddess of Spring, you are the first messenger of the Moon of Resurrection. May the red ginger grass dye your skirt red and lead you to this land. On the land..."

The children lowered their heads together and prayed together with their father.

In human belief, the fertility god is composed of three different goddesses. The eldest sister is the earth mother goddess Gaia, also known as the god of life and the mother of the earth. She controls the entire earth and growth. Among all the plants on the earth, Eve, the goddess of harvest, is the sister of the Mother Goddess of the Earth. She specializes in the crops of plants to protect the harvest of mortals. Flora, the goddess of spring, is the youngest of the three gods of fertility. But she is also the most lively one -

The Ansu people believe that whenever the Moon of Recovery comes and the ice and snow on the earth melt, Flora, the goddess of spring, will be the first to run out of her palace and come to Go to the earth to look for evidence of the end of winter. Red ginger grass can attract the goddess's attention. The earliest green branches of the Resurrection Moon can please her. She will remember the position of each green branch in the spring. After returning to the palace, she will tell the Harvest Goddess what happened on the earth - the farmers' harvest for the year will be guaranteed.

Almost all farmers believe in the three gods of fertility - even if they are also believers in the Holy Light or the Blood God, they will not neglect to worship the fertility gods every spring.

But just by harvesting three to five kilograms more grain...can we really survive in peace of mind?

After the short prayer, Sam raised his head and looked at the green branches in the middle of the pile of rocks that were gradually turning into dust and drifting in the wind.He breathed slightly: "The goddess has accepted our worship, and this year's harvest will not be bad."

"Last year's harvest was not bad, but we are still hungry," the eldest son muttered in a low voice, "The goddess only It can guarantee a good harvest, but it also has to be hungry."

"Don't talk nonsense in front of the gods!" Sam immediately turned around and glared at his son, "That's because the nobles are at war, of course we are. We have to hand over the food!"

The two sons looked at each other, and then the younger son spoke: "Father, I saw soldiers again when I went out today. They passed by on the north road. , heading east."

"That's Count Thorin's cavalry," Sam said, shaking his head. He had been a farmer all his life and didn't dare to get involved with the noble soldiers." You didn't provoke them, did you?"

"I stayed away!" The younger son shook his head vigorously, "They are very scary - they are also carrying swords that I have never seen before, and they are wearing He was wearing armor that he had never seen before, and he was riding on a tall horse with a fierce look. "...The weather is getting warmer every day, and I'm afraid there will be another fight."

Sa. Mu muttered. He knew what his youngest son meant by the unseen swords and armor. A few days ago, he also saw a group of knights passing by the north of the village. Those knights were all wearing different equipment from last year. , it is said that those swords and armors come from the south. Count Thorin seems confident that the weapons made by the southerners can help him regain his territory and fortress, but these things are not practical for the people who are digging in the fields. It’s hard to understand, and I’m not interested in understanding.

He just hopes that this battle will be over quickly, or at least not continue to fight here. Either Wang ** will drive out the people from the East as soon as possible, or the people from the East will drive out Wang ** as soon as possible. Running, it doesn’t matter who wins or loses.

Last year, when the Easterners’ army reached the entrance of the giant tree, Count Thorin said he wanted to organize a defense, so he collected a wave of grain from neighboring villages. However, in the end, he failed to hold on and was still defeated by the Eastern Borderers. Someone called in.

After coming in, Prince Edmund confiscated the food, but captured one-third of the young men in the village to build roads. Several people died outside.

Halfway through the road construction, Wang ** and the Crusaders got together and fought back, driving the people from the east out of the giant wood crossing, but this was not a good thing - in order to support the Crusaders The knights and priests, Count Thorin collected another wave of food.

Last year was a bumper harvest, an unprecedented bumper harvest. Every family harvested 20 to 30% more.

Ten people in the village died of starvation, and eight died of exhaustion from road construction.

So it’s no wonder that my son would say such bold words in front of the gods.

“Go home, don’t meet water ghosts and evil spirits later.” Sam shook his head, grabbed the tattered hat and put it on his head, “Too many people have died recently. , the wilderness became more and more uneven at night.”

The sons and daughters followed in their father’s footsteps and walked along the relatively flat rocks along the river bank.Tan walked toward the village. The younger daughter followed the two brothers and suddenly asked out of curiosity: "I heard that John next door was selected to serve as a soldier. The knight gave their family two bags of wheat as a reward, and he also got more money this year." No need to pay taxes..."

"Don't even think about it!" Sam heard the voice coming from behind and immediately turned around and glared, "There is a real war now, and you have to fight with the East as a soldier. People work hard, and they die outside accidentally - and you two unsatisfactory brothers, do you think the knight will like them with their thin arms and legs?"

The little daughter was startled, and she quickly shrank her neck and didn't dare to say anything.

Smoke rose from the front, and the wooden fence at the entrance of the village came into Sam's sight.

A cavalryman riding a tall horse, wearing a strange-looking armor with runes on his body, and carrying a black one-handed long sword on his waist was stopping at the entrance of the village. After seeing Sam and others, this cavalryman The cavalryman immediately raised the whip in his hand: "You guys, come here!"

Sam's heart suddenly tightened.

Want to collect food again? This winter has just passed... Where is the food at home? !

But he still did not dare to neglect, and quickly led his children to the cavalry, stopped at a distance where they would not be kicked by the horse or hit by the whip, and bowed deeply: "Master Knight. ”

This is just a soldier riding a horse. Looking at his fully armed appearance, he is at most a small captain among the soldiers. He is definitely different from the "Knight Master" who has real aristocratic status. , but even if Sam knew this, he would still call the other person "Sir Knight" - this was very pleasing to the soldiers on horseback, and even if someone pursued him, he could cover it up with his stupidity and ignorance of the rules.

The cavalry was indeed very useful. The corners of the heavily armed man's mouth turned up, and he nodded with satisfaction. Then he pointed his whip at the two sons behind Sam: "Do you have two sons?"

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"Yes...yes..." Sam nodded repeatedly, "They are all honest and responsible young people..."

"It's good to be honest and honest. Duty," the cavalryman raised his chin, "Choose one, your son has been recruited."

"Ah...ah?" Sam raised his head in surprise. After a brief moment of astonishment, he said, Finally panicked, "Master, they... they can't fight! Look at their arms and legs, and the way they can't stand straight. It's not a big deal if they die on the battlefield. I'm afraid they don't even have weapons. If you don’t get up, you will be embarrassed by the lord!”

“Are they worthy of going to the battlefield?” The cavalryman waved the whip in his hand and said impatiently, “They are going to work!”

Sam was startled by the sound of the whip, but he still had the courage to ask: "Work... what work?"

"Building roads," the cavalry shouted Said, "In compliance with the order signed by the Grand Duke Victoria Wilder, Baldwin Franklin and the Prince of Wales, the Kingdom Road is repaired - the loyal Viscount Hancall has listed your homeThe list must not be disobeyed! ”

The cavalry walked away.

This is the 15th of the month of resurrection, the Ansu traditional festival of resurrection. On this day, the Kingdom Avenue has been abandoned for a century. Renovation finally began.

On the same day, after intensive preparations, the "White Sands Mining Company" led by Secretary of Commerce Padrick finally selected a site in the eastern White Sand Hills. The first mining point

The young knight Belk Loren stood on the high observation tower and watched the Cecil people busy among the rocks in the distance: As The envoy to communicate between the East and the South, as the "representative" appointed by Prince Edmund, this young man performed his duties meticulously, paying close attention to the activities of the Cecil people in this land, watching the Cecil people The excavation site of the first mining site was naturally his job.

For the Cecil people from the southwest, Belk Laurent always maintained three points of trust and seven points of vigilance. He knew that. What did the founding Duke do in the Southern Territory: A man who used force to violently destroy the entire Southern Territory aristocratic system in one year, and stormed and occupied the Rock Fortress in three days, could never be a kind person. He sent a "White Sand" "Mining companies" come over. Although they are only mining in name, who knows whether these Cecil people will infiltrate everywhere, and whether they will turn the land near the White Sand Hills into the Cecil people themselves by gradually devouring and encroaching on it?

After all, there is only a river and a small forest separating this place from the Glen Territory on the border of Cecil Principality.

Below the observation deck is a temporary mining camp. The Xir people transported a large amount of strange equipment through the Gulen area. They laid magic nets in the mine, built board houses, and cleared a simple road - although they used tools and buildings The plans are very strange, but at least so far, these southerners have only done the necessary preparations for "mining"

"Marquis of Belk, I hope this mine can satisfy you. Curiosity," a voice came from the side, "After all, in such a barren mountainous place, there is really not much scenery to see. ”

The person who spoke was a thin, dark man named Holm. Belk Loren knew that this young man without a last name was the person in charge of the “White Sand Mining Company” and the head of the Saigon Mining Company. The "mining expert" sent by Seal didn't know why it was a civilian who managed such a huge industry and commanded hundreds of workers, but he still nodded to Holm politely: "I don't see it myself either. It's for the scenery. I just came to see your mine - please don't mind me speaking directly, but I must emphasize: Although the mining rights have been given to you, this is still the land of the Eastern Territory after all. I want to pay attention to people outside the mine. responsible for every inch of land. "

Holm nodded: "Of course, Mr. Marquis, we only mine, we have no interest in any land outside the mines and roads. ”

In the distance, those Cecil people busy among the rocks finallyAfter completing some kind of preparation work, accompanied by loud whistles and several loud flutes, the miners in coarse cloth work clothes quickly ran far away from the rocks and hid behind a huge boulder.

Belk looked at this scene in amazement. He had never seen anything similar in any mining process he knew: "What are they doing?"

In the distant mine, someone waved a few times from a high place. Eye-catching flags, and then all the miners near the rocks covered their ears.

Berk Laurent looked curious: "Mining?"

A loud noise came from a distance.

Then there were more loud noises, one after another, like rolling thunder.

The entire observation deck was shaking slightly in the continuous loud noise. Under this impact that was more terrifying than the pyrotechnics and earthquakes, the area in the distance required hundreds of people to dig an entire The rocks of the moon suddenly collapsed.

Belk had almost drawn his sword in his hand. With his ears ringing, he heard the voice of the person in charge of Baisha Mining Company coming from beside him:

"Yes Yes, mining, we only mine, Mr. Marquis."