Chapter 777 Entering the City
"..—Sir, let's enter the city!"
Angus walked aside and made a gesture of invitation.
At turned to Odo and said: "Odo, pass on the order. All the troops are stationed outside the city. They must not disturb the people, loot, or make trouble. Anyone who disobeys the order will be severely punished!"
At will be severely punished! "
Ater then kicked the horse's belly lightly and walked slowly towards the city of Tira with the priest Robert, the earl guard and some of the Chinese army officials.
At this time, the city gate was already crowded with citizens of Tira City who were watching the excitement.
".-Look, the big man wearing armor and riding a maroon horse must be the Earl of the North."
"So impressive! I heard that Walder Burley and Von Byron were defeated by him one after another, and even the Duke is no match for this guy~"
"Do you know? I heard that this man was originally from Lombardy, but he was forced to live in Burgundy because he was framed by Walder Burley and people from the church."
"It's incredible that such a small person could cause the palace to suffer consecutive defeats in such a short period of time. I'm afraid Milan will become a territory under his name soon -"
The crowd of onlookers spoke to each other and pointed at Art and others not far from the city gate.
"Hey, it's coming, it's coming!"
At this time, a vendor in the crowd shouted excitedly, and these normally well-informed citizens of Tira City pushed and moved forward, raising their toes to join in the fun.
· The legionnaires responsible for maintaining order surrounded the crowd, separating Art from the onlookers.
Hate is riding his maroon war horse, and his fine plate armor is shining in the sunlight. Coupled with the long sword at his waist and the black cloak that dances in the wind, he looks more like a hero returning in triumph, and is warmly welcomed by the people.
Perhaps influenced by the warm climate and open atmosphere of the southern continent, the residents of Tila City were particularly enthusiastic towards this nobleman from the north. They took out bread and wine from the baskets in their hands and handed them to the soldiers passing by.
Att was smiling all over his face and kept waving to the crowd.
When the priest Robert who was following him saw this scene, he couldn't help but whispered: "Sir, it seems that your original decision was right. These guys who have not been robbed by the soldiers love you and welcome you as much as the people in your territory. This is like pointing a sword at him. Their necks make it much easier for them to surrender to you. "
"Of course!" Art looked proud, "After all, no one wants to surrender to a lord who can only use a sword to make them serve."
Robert nodded approvingly.
While talking, the group of people had already passed through the North City Gate.
Yat looked at the shops and residences on both sides of the bright and wide streets that were obviously different from those in the Northland, and was full of curiosity about this largest port city in the southern continent.
The streets are neat and clean. Compared with the Paris he has been to, this place is simply paradise.
The shops along the street are densely packed and neatly stocked with all kinds of goods transported by sea. Precious commodities such as valuable spices, porcelain and silk are common here. And goods such as furs and ironware from the north can also have a place.
As the largest port city in southern Lombardy, traders can find almost any goods they need here.
As a commercial capital with a long history, merchants of different skin colors and distinctive clothes can be seen on the streets. They come from all over the world, either selling their own goods here, or acquiring rare and exotic treasures from other places and reselling them to dignitaries in need.
Through the center of the city, the masts on the giant freighters anchored at the docks are clearly visible. The thick cables kept swaying in the sea breeze, and the linen sails whirred.
The city of Tira relied on these sailing ships to transport goods to and from the sea, creating its unique prosperity here.
As a city that developed on commerce and trade, the houses here incorporate architectural styles from all over the world.
There are both Mediterranean-style French romantic manor houses and mysterious Central Asian buildings. Merchants from the north tend to live in stone houses, while foreign merchants who are accustomed to wooden structures can also hire craftsmen to build a beautiful wooden house according to their own needs.
The ideas here are open, and few people exclude others because they have different cultural perspectives from their own.
Not long after, Art, led by Angus, arrived outside the southwest corner of the mansion that originally belonged to Earl Dylan, the lord of Tira City.
This mansion is about two hundred feet long and one hundred and eighty feet wide. The outer walls are made of giant stone slabs with exquisitely carved patterns.
Looking up, the tower standing high up there is very oppressive. The four pillars are connected by arches in the middle, and a huge copper jar hangs in the air.
The bottom of the tower is in a regular square shape, which is the residential area for the lords of Tira City and their families. There are eight arched windows on the surrounding walls, beautifully decorated with colorful colored glazes.
The living areas are connected by stone steps that lead directly to the wide terrace below. A half-person-high guardrail was built around the platform, and the areas where the guardrails meet are decorated with sculptures of different shapes. The flower pots placed around are filled with evergreen plants, and the greenery adds a touch of vitality to this solemn lord's mansion.
After Art looked up and down this magnificent mansion, he followed Angus's footsteps and entered the gate of the mansion.
As soon as he entered the door, the fish-shaped statue in the center of the front yard caught his attention.
The statue is completely sky blue and is held up high by cylindrical stone pillars. Taking a closer look, Art couldn't help but be surprised by the superb skills of the craftsmen. The scales between the fish body are clearly visible, the texture is clear, and the surface is extremely smooth. The fish eyes made of colored glass sparkle in the sunlight, and the cool sea water gushes out of the fish's mouth and flows continuously into the blue pond below, making a gurgling sound.
Go around the statue, pass through an iron gate, and enter the front yard of the mansion. The front yard is connected to each other by corridors, which are where the servants, servants and grooms of the mansion live.
Through the front yard and through a stone door, several people entered the lord's hall.
As soon as he entered the door, Art's eyes were attracted by the bronze chair at the top.
“Oh, these southern lords really know how to enjoy it!” Ron on the side couldn’t help but sigh.
Matt walked straight to the seat, reached out and touched the cold armrest, turned around, and sat on it.
In a flash, a cool feeling hit him instantly·
Art took a long breath and asked Angus beside him: "Where is the lord of Tira City?"
"Report to your lord, he is locked up in a small room in the backyard."
Art dragged his chin with his right hand, thoughtfully.
"Didn't you get any useful information out of him?" Art spoke again.
Not yet.
Matt stood up, walked down the steps, came to the huge oak table, and knocked on the table as a habit.
Normally speaking, this guy would definitely not gather all his belongings together. Although the treasures found by Angus and others were indeed huge, Art was not satisfied with this.
After some thought, Art decided to immediately send someone to interrogate the lord of Tira City.
"Ron, you are better at interrogating prisoners, I'll leave this matter to you."
"Okay, sir." Ron raised his lips after hearing this, "Sergeant Major, you immediately invite the main merchants and nobles in the city to come to the banquet tonight in my name, and say that I have something important to discuss."
"Yes, sir."
“Also, tell Spencer to prepare a sumptuous dinner for the legion soldiers tonight to celebrate our success in taking the city of Tira!” Art said with a little excitement in his tone.
Immediately, Angus and Ron left the lord's mansion one after another.
After taking a short rest at the mansion, Art took Robert and walked towards the port pier not far away under the escort of the guards. ""——My lord, with this port, the road ahead for the European Trading Company will be much easier. "
Att put his hands behind his back and looked at the pedestrians walking on both sides of the street from time to time. He sighed with emotion: "Yes! In the past, if you wanted to traffic goods from the south to the north, you could only get the goods from these Lombard merchants at a high price. Plus the taxes collected along the way, the profit was not counted. Rich. Now that this trade route has been opened, there will be fewer obstacles for goods traveling between the north and the south, and the business's income will naturally increase." During the conversation, the two of them could already see the sailboats docked at the dock.
At pointed to the giant cargo ships in front of him and said excitedly: "With these things, the European Commercial Bank will be able to do business with people from all over the world!"
"That's it! That's it! Hahaha" Robert suddenly laughed loudly.
The two of them walked straight to the edge of the pier and watched hundreds of sailboats of various sizes docked here crowding the port. The scene was extremely spectacular.
Not far away, fishermen who went out to sea to fish came back with rich catches and docked their boats at the dock. Citizens who want to try new things rush to the pier to choose the freshest seafood.
Looking at the vast sea in the distance, Art was deeply fascinated by the blue water in front of him, so he closed his eyes slightly and took a greedy breath. He suddenly felt relaxed and happy, and his whole body was relaxed.
"Sir!"
At this time, a shout came from not far away. Art opened his eyes and saw Oliver, the deputy captain of the task force, standing on the bow of the largest sailboat, waving his arms vigorously.
Matt raised his hand to say hello in the direction of Oliver, then raised his voice and asked, "Oliver, what are you doing there?"
"These ships were punctured by us that night and are in urgent need of repair!"
Hearing what Oliver said, Art then recalled that he had ordered the task force to destroy the ships. Now it seems that it is unnecessary.
By the time the two left the pier, the sky was getting dark.
At this time, the lord's mansion was extremely busy——