When the Saint comes, she does not collect food

Chapter 656: Horn Town and Red Mill Pier

On January 1447, 1, the afterglow of the New Year's Day parade still lingered over the Holy See.

Colorful pennants were hung on clotheslines between the houses, and the air smelled of cheese, bread and the sulfur of fireballs.

Wearing the newly spun linen wool blend short jackets from the Shengxieting Textile Factory, citizens took to the streets to enjoy the last few days of the week-long holiday.

But Horn couldn't do that. After enjoying five days of vacation, he had to embark on a journey south.

Horn's fleet heading south was quite large, consisting of 25 ships and 600 crew members.

Among them were an escort of 500 guards, 20 high-ranking monks of the Evangelical Court in charge of ceremonial arrangements and diplomatic affairs, 40 service personnel including cooks, porters, and servants, 20 guards of honor, and 20 recorders and clerks.

With their sails inflated and their oars waving, these ships lined up in the icy river, broke the floating ice in the river, and headed south.

Starting from Fort Jeanne, Horn and his party sailed in the unmelted snow without stopping for long, and spent eight days sailing all the way to the border of the Thousand River Valley and Black Snake Bay.

When Horn stood on the bow and gazed towards the south, he could even see the tall walls and towers of the Red Copper Fortress.

However, it was now occupied by the Kushite knights, and the black and red sun flag with golden tassels was placed on the top of the city wall.

All kinds of ships, from sailboats to small fishing boats, are moored next to the dock, which is filled with neatly stacked wooden boxes and scattered ropes.

The sails fluttered in the wind, and the crew, sailors and porters were busy carrying cargo, loading grain, fish, spices and silk into different categories.

Wheat-skinned merchants in linen waistcoats and alchemists in black robes from Black Snake Bay came and went on the streets.

"This town is called Horn Town, and this pier is called Moulin Rouge Pier," Domenico said with a grin. "These are names given voluntarily by the villagers out of respect for you."

Horn nodded noncommittally, and Jeanne couldn't help but frown.

Horn could use reason to conclude that this was flattery, but Jeanne intuitively felt that they might not be so sincere.

When you first walk onto the long street of Horn Town, you can feel the difference. After all, this is a brand new town full of different customs.

This long Galar Street is paved with cobblestones and mortar, and is lined with low wooden houses and shops, with various iconic signs hanging under the eaves.

There is a blacksmith shop, an oil and sugar shop, a grocery store, a shoemaker's shop, a tavern...everything a small town should have is here.

However, the difference is that since this place adopts a new planning similar to that of the Holy See, the town is composed of four neatly arranged blocks, with the width of the roads and the height of the houses being consistent.

It is full of a unique sense of order, which is what makes Horn satisfied.

The houses in the town are mainly built with wood, thatch or bricks and tiles, and mortar is used to bond them together. The walls are mostly painted with low-quality lime that is white with a reddish tint, and the windows are made of oil paper separated by wooden strips.

The house smells of wood smoke from the stove and the everyday aromas of the living quarters within - like pickled fish, hay or greasy vegetable soup.

Although these houses look simple, the people walking in and out of them might be a Kush knight or his butler.

When Horn walked from the dock to the town hall, he often saw vendors carrying goods and trucks coming and going, with cloth, pottery and soybean oil dotted among them.

After the Thousand River Valley became independent and the Red Copper Fortress was breached, the smuggling trade that was originally on the narrow water surface quickly concentrated in Horn Town.

A large number of merchants and alchemists from Black Snake Bay came to Horn Town with their goods. Some stayed here, while others went north to transport their goods to Jeanne d'Arc for sale.

Horn Town is basically a transit station and service port, and its positioning is similar to that of Xiaochi City. Although it was established by the Kush Knights, as Horn conquered the entire Thousand River Valley, Alco's grandmother Vivian slowly handed over the administrative rights of Jinhe Township and Ibe Township.

The monks of the Congregation of the Holy Fathers entered the villages and manors and began the slow process of centurionization.

However, it is precisely because of the existence of the Kush Foundation that a way out is provided for the knights, so compared to the fierce scenes in Hotam County and Lower River County, this place is much smoother.

Sitting in the specially vacated reception room on the second floor of the town hall, Horn changed his shoes first, then asked Domenico, "Where is Grandmother Vivian? It just so happens that I am going south this time, and I want to visit the elder and listen to some of her life experiences."

"Unfortunately." Domenico coughed. "Grandmother caught a cold in the winter and has been bedridden for the past few days. She is unconscious and I'm afraid she won't be able to meet you."

Sick? At this time of the year?
Horn turned his head and glanced at Gritz, the Cheka commissioner of the area.

Gretz, who knelt in front of Jeanne hoping to kill the devil, had been working as an orderly. However, after becoming a Saint's Favored One, he did not choose to enter the military academy, but instead transferred to the Cheka.

Because the Cheka is the only law enforcer that can use almost unlimited means to interrogate demons.

Commissioner Grizzi put his gear iron hand behind his back, met Horn's gaze and nodded, indicating that what Domenico said was true.

This old lady dares to use such a trick at her age. Isn't she afraid of getting sick and dying? She is really desperate.

"Is that so?" Horn stared at Domenico with a half-smile. "That's really unfortunate. After all, I'm looking forward to talking to my grandmother."

"Although the old grandmother is bedridden, she gave us instructions when she was awake." Domenico lowered his head, not daring to look Horn in the eye, "She said that the Kush Foundation has spread its business too far, and there is a shortage of gold pounds, so some projects may be difficult to complete on time.

So she hopes to redeem the mortgaged manor and land ownership again, that is, to still pay according to the perpetual lease, but with an interest, and after a period of payment, the ownership will be completely transferred to the farmers. "

Would you trade the ownership of the fields on the Ibe Plain for Horn's noble hand?
Horn asked suspiciously, "Can those knights accept such conditions?"

"They will agree." Domenico said with a smile, "After all, they were the ones who proposed taking more infrastructure orders."

Horn understood instantly that the Kush Knights hoped to make a fortune through these infrastructure projects, so naturally the more the better, but if they expanded their business, they would definitely run out of money.

If the idea of ​​completely depriving the knights of ownership is proposed at this time, the grandmother will naturally raise the banner to suppress the knights' agreement.

By depriving land ownership, the potential threat of localism was alleviated, but in Horn's view it was not enough.

Because the Ibe Plain lies across the trade route between the Holy Court and the Black Snake Bay.

The old grandmother had already made concessions and was also ill. Horn could not force her any further. After all, the Ibe Plain was full of Kush people. Was it really necessary to forcibly relocate them all?
"In that case, I'll come back to visit you after I come back from Black Snake Bay." Horn snapped his fingers. "I brought a lot of herbs from the Holy Court, which will come in handy right now. Jeanna, go and give them to Grandma in person."

Jeanne nodded in understanding.

After Jeanne personally visited his grandmother, Horn continued on his journey. Not long after leaving Horn Town, the ice and snow around him became less and less, and the heat and humidity in the air also continued to increase.

As the heat continued to rise, Horn could feel the terrain descending, and the surrounding evergreen trees gradually turned into deciduous plants and tall coconut trees.

By mid-January, he had to change into light woolen clothes, as if spring had arrived.

At this time, the ship had already arrived at the first stop of his southern tour, Black Snake Bay.

"That's the base camp of Ruo'an's party, the largest town in the northern county of Black Snake Bay." Standing at the bow, Robert, the guide, had his face brushed by the moist and warm wind. He pointed at the more than one-meter-high embankment in the distance and said, "Long Dike City."

(End of this chapter)