HTLCCBFT Chapter 220

Has The Lord’s Career Chart Been Filled Today? – Chapter 220

A month later.

It was already mid to late spring, and the afternoon sun had quietly taken on a few strands of irritating summer heat. When it beat down on travelers hurrying along with their heads down, it drew more sweat from their rough, wheat-colored skin.

This group consisted of thirty-two people, including their leader. Their attire was more or less filled with contradictions: the linen shirts they wore were neither new nor old—not exactly tattered, but patched in various sizes at the most friction-prone areas. On their feet, they either wore the cheapest straw sandals or went barefoot, with thick calluses covering their fingers and soles. Their hair, unwashed for days, was dirty, and they carried simple packs holding only a small amount of dry rations and a few pieces of clothing. Bringing up the rear of the line were two crudely made carts, clearly makeshift and pulled solely by human effort.

The fact that they couldn’t even afford the cheapest blind horse was enough to reveal their financial hardship.

They were like a flock of docile sheep, quietly heading toward the sheepfold even without a sheepdog to guide them.

The journey from Iron City to Copper City, and then along the main road from Copper City to Albury, took ten days and ten nights in total.

Yet even after passing through the gates of Albury, no one in the sweat-drenched group suggested stopping in the city to rest for a few days. Instead, they all chose to continue trudging forward with their heads down.

There was no other choice—they had no extra money or food to spare.

Uncertain whether those unbelievably generous promises would be fulfilled, these thirty-two individuals who had still chosen to set out were undoubtedly gambling with both their money and their lives.

Through merchants who frequently traveled between the southern cities, they had all heard consistent accounts that “the roads between the three cities under Duke Oliver’s rule are particularly easy to travel, and there are often guards on patrol, making them very safe.” Yet everyone remained half-convinced.

It wasn’t for any other reason, but… the idea that a noble lord would spend great effort and money on such a project without charging a single copper coin in tolls, purely to ensure the safety of travelers, was simply too unbelievable!

After some discussion, they still couldn’t resist the temptation of the notices plastered all over the city’s alleys in just a few days—for example, a stonemason could earn a generous salary of three gold coins per month! If they were experienced, highly skilled, and able to improve existing techniques, they could receive an additional reward of at least three gold coins!

Good heavens.

What an enormous fortune!

Even as freemen possessing a skill that could be called a “craft,” their lives in the Iron territory were far from comfortable.

Especially after relations between the southern cities and the royal capital had become tense, although those at the bottom knew nothing, they clearly felt that the tasks assigned by the castle were becoming heavier, while the pay was dwindling.

While most people barely endured it, a few painfully yet keenly realized this: once such intense exploitation appeared, and the lord realized they could further increase their labor, the situation would only worsen.

They had to try to find another way out.

If they had been hesitant before, unsure of what to do, these notices with conditions so favorable they seemed like lies became their only hope.

Those daring enough to embark on this venture were adult men whose families already had sons old enough to start earning money. Even if they never returned, their families wouldn’t be completely unable to survive. To minimize potential losses, they prepared for the possibility of not coming back and carried as little money as possible—averaging only two silver coins per person.

This pitiful amount had to cover their living expenses for the previous month and their travel expenses back to Iron City in case their hopes were dashed.

However, since leaving Iron City, passing through Albury with trepidation, and then turning toward Gregor City from Albury, their initially anxious hearts grew increasingly steady.

They hadn’t yet seen Gregor City’s appearance, but they knew Albury well—residents of Iron, Copper, and Gemstone cities were all acutely aware that just a year and a half ago, it had suffered a rebel attack, with nearly the entire territory destroyed.

Even the boldest merchants had once been afraid to trade in that city.

The impact on the residents of the three cities was nearly devastating: unable to obtain necessary supplies from the more convenient and cheaper Albury, they had to turn to another city to the north, which inevitably led to a sharp surge in prices.

They clearly remembered last spring when the prices of all goods in the small market at least doubled or tripled!

Many commoners without substantial savings fell into the slums after that season, forced to take the most dangerous jobs in the mines just to pay their autumn poll taxes.

“I’m getting more and more confident about the pay promised on that paper.” Chatt Boxs [mfn]查特·博克斯(Chá tè·bókè sī) – Chat Box; I think it’s meant to be something like ‘chatter box'[/mfn] was the youngest member of the group, only sixteen years old. He was also one of the few who, even after what could be called an exhausting march, still managed to maintain a fairly good mood and plenty of energy.

The reason Captain Ixs[mfn]伊克斯(Yī kè sī)[/mfn] allowed him to join this “adventure” team was precisely because he was truly alone: both parents died of illness last year, he hadn’t married yet, and what was once a decent family condition had been drained by his parents’ medical treatments.

If Chatt entered the mining area, with his relatively strong physique, he could definitely find work exhausting but not too dangerous, enough to support himself.

But he refused, insisting on following his father’s good friend Uncle Ixs to Gregor City, not knowing whether it symbolized hope or despair.

Hearing his optimistic words, others who seemed naturally gloomy were subtly affected, their moods lightening slightly.

Ixs noticed the subtle change in the team’s atmosphere and smiled at Chatt, encouraging him: “Hey kid, why do you think that?”

Chatt said matter-of-factly: “The road is too easy to travel, and along the way, we’ve indeed seen many guards.”

After hearing his words, many in the group who were too tired to speak couldn’t help but nod in silent agreement.

The road was truly excellent to travel on—after all, they could recognize that the materials used to pave this road were the same high-quality ones typically found in the upper-class residential areas of Iron City!

Although their group had taken over ten days to reach this point, in reality, most of that time had been wasted during the first half of the journey—specifically, the two segments from Iron City to Copper City and then from Copper City to Albury.

Those stretches were short but incredibly difficult to traverse.

The long-neglected “road” was essentially a dirt path worn down by countless people, horse hooves, and carriage wheels through knee-deep grass, making it extremely rugged and challenging. Potholes of various sizes were hidden by grass stems, and if someone accidentally stepped into one, twisting an ankle was the least of their worries. More seriously, the makeshift carts they had temporarily built nearly shook apart from the jolting.

However, once they entered the territory of the esteemed duke, the road improved dramatically.

It became straight, wide, and, most importantly, safe.

In just three days, they had already encountered four or five patrols of guards on horseback.

The sight of those guards—heads held high, imposing in demeanor, clad in impressive uniforms and mounted on tall horses—filled Chatt with excitement.

They were the people he admired most in the world!

He emphasized, “Doesn’t all this prove that the merchants weren’t lying? Since they told the truth about the road conditions, they probably weren’t exaggerating about the affairs in Gregor City either!”

Captain Ixs nodded to his friend and deputy captain, Proer[mfn]普罗尔(Pǔluó ěr)[/mfn]. “Chatt is right. A lord willing to send out guards to protect travelers—I’ve never heard of such a thing before.”

In contrast to their group, which relied solely on walking, some merchant caravans traveling from Albury to Gregor either rode in covered carriages or on horseback, pulling carts. Even with heavy cargo, they moved much faster.

If the road conditions were poor, human legs would undoubtedly be more agile; but this was a newly expanded road, carefully planned to be the most efficient and reasonable route possible!

Every time they watched those well-dressed merchant caravans leisurely overtake them, the group couldn’t help but feel a mix of envy and astonishment.

What caught Ixs’ attention, in particular, was how all the merchants would enthusiastically greet those imposing, seemingly unapproachable guards, who would respond with slight nods. In most merchants’ eyes, the most detestable weren’t the high taxes but the greedy guards who abused their power and seized opportunities to extort wealth.

He had never seen guards whom merchants were genuinely willing to be friendly with.

But the phrase “never seen before” was starting to feel numb in his mind—especially a few days later, when they finally arrived at Gregor City.

From afar, they could see the tall, majestic city walls, the broad city gates made of fine stone, endless fields, and an even more magnificent castle. Surrounding the castle, the urban area sprawled outward in all directions, densely packed like… like a bag with a loose tie that had been accidentally kicked, scattering its contents everywhere.

“God,” Chatt exclaimed, his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open foolishly, his heart surging with emotion. “This is the number one city in the south! The city!!! This is Gregor City!!”

His childhood dream had never been to become an ordinary miner or stonemason in Iron City with a predictable future—especially after his parents passed away living such lives. He had decided then to live according to his own will.

Even if just for a glimpse, he wanted to see the wider world.

Thankfully he came!

Chatt couldn’t bear to blink for a moment: this magnificent, beautiful city perfectly matched all his fantasies of the most wonderful city!

“Don’t just stand there daydreaming, kid.” While others in the group, also on their first long journey, were still marveling and praising the city’s grandeur among themselves, Ixs’ focus immediately fell on the wooden scaffolds scattered around the city’s outer perimeter.

The tension he had been secretly holding suddenly eased.

Those wooden frames were exactly what they needed.

As an experienced stonemason who had participated in countless construction projects large and small, though he had never used such scaffolds himself, he could immediately recognize their purpose.

Since the urban areas were indeed still under construction, the contents of that notice were highly likely to be true.

The people of Gregor genuinely needed laborers!

In Ixs’ mind, even without the promised monthly wage of 3 gold coins, it wouldn’t matter: even just 1 gold coin per month would equal two months’ earnings back in Iron Territory.

To secure their chance to stay, they were willing to work cheaper than others… as long as they could remain.

While calculating in his mind, Ixs led the group toward the city gates.

The city guards maintained stern, imposing expressions as they carefully inspected each entrant’s identification documents and goods.

“Huh.”

Proer was the first to notice something unusual.

He leaned close to Ixs’ ear and whispered, “…Am I seeing things? The guards don’t seem to be collecting money from anyone.”

Entering most cities required paying a small fee, ranging from 3 copper coins to 1 silver coin. They had prepared for this expense well in advance.

Ixs also showed an incredulous expression.

They watched the people ahead in line closely, and indeed saw no guards collecting money!

Were there other screening criteria? Their hearts sank immediately.

Unaware of his uncles’ concerns, Chatt grew increasingly excited as the queue grew shorter.

“Honorable sir… sir.” Ixs stammered slightly, carefully pulling out the identification documents for all 32 people from his chest, offering an ingratiating smile: “We came after seeing the notice posted in Iron Territory, seeking work. May we enter?”

The guard nodded slightly.

Under Ixs’ nervous gaze, he meticulously examined the documents, personally counted the members of this team who appeared both weary and exhilarated, and even asked each person a few simple questions.

After confirming everything was in order, he looked at Ixs and asked calmly: “All 32 people are craftsmen except Chatt Box? Are you the leader?”

Ixs nodded eagerly, feeling his heart about to leap from his throat: “Yes, sir!”

“Hmm.”

To everyone’s surprise, these gate guards who had maintained stoic expressions exchanged a knowing glance before offering them a subtle yet miraculously friendly smile.

“Welcome to Gregor City.”

The guard who had first spoken curled his lips slightly upward as he handed the documents to a trainee guard who had hurried over following his earlier gesture. With practiced ease, he instructed: “First take them for secondary registration, then have them collect new uniforms. They should all go to the bathhouse for washing and get their overlong hair trimmed before being assigned to settlement housing—try to place them in the same area if possible. Don’t forget to teach them basic hygiene practices like washing hands after using the toilet before taking them to the dining hall. Once they’ve eaten their fill, have Manijie [mfn]曼妮洁(Màn nī jié) – I think it’s supposed to sound like ‘Manager[/mfn] distribute other supplies… Oh, and remember to reimburse their travel expenses too.”

Compared to the flustered trainee guard, these seasoned guards—being the first batch to complete specialized training on “how to receive introduced professionals from various industries”—handled the situation with far greater composure: after all, each of them had to perform similar reception tasks at least a dozen times daily.

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