A group of children stood noisily in front of the gate of a luxurious mansion, discussing the difficult problem of how to get in.
If they had stolen the bread before, they could have just crawled in through the cat hole under the wall. Everyone was familiar with that path. But today, they were here to visit the owner of this house, so they couldn't just crawl through a small hole. Even though these children were young and didn't know the ways of the world, they knew that it wasn't right.
But the gate was locked, and there were no gatekeepers nearby. How could they get in?
"Look, there seems to be something written here." One of the children pointed to a red protrusion on the gate post beside the gate. There was a sign hanging below it.
"Hmm, who can read?" Rowan asked a question that no one answered. The children all looked at each other. For as long as they could remember, getting enough to eat every day was a problem. Who could find a teacher to teach them how to read?
But even if they couldn't read, the children had their own unique skill, which was that newborn calves weren't afraid of tigers. A few Arhats nimbly stood up and slapped down on the protruding red button that could obviously be pressed.
As Ezio expected, he didn't hear a cry that sounded like a cat being killed. Instead, the eyes of the gargoyle standing on the gate post suddenly glowed red, and it said in a rather standard and deep male voice, "Who are you?"
The gargoyle could talk, but in this world of magic, it didn't scare the children. Everyone turned to look at the little fatty who used to live in this house. No matter how unwilling he was, he could only bite the bullet and say, "I'm Ezio, and I'm here to find that Magician."
The gargoyle didn't reply, but the gate latch opened automatically and opened backward. The gate opened slowly, and it made the ear-piercing sound of leaves that hadn't been oiled for a long time.
In fact, with regular maintenance, it could be done silently and quickly. After all, there were so many idle people that it wasn't a big problem to have one or two people take turns to maintain it. But this way, it lacked a sense of enlightenment. This was an inexplicable insistence of a certain someone. No matter who corrected it on their own, he would get angry.
Since the gate opened by itself, of course, they were welcome to enter. But perhaps because the sound of the door opening was too unbearable, every child felt a chill run down their spines. Some of the more timid ones even squeezed their companions beside them.
On the contrary, Ezio seemed to have cast aside his psychological burden. He waved his hand and said, "Let's go and see what that nuisance is thinking."
It was completely different from the noisy atmosphere on the way here. After entering the territory of a real magician, these children still showed a look of fear. After all, the mages were the true masters of this city, and they had power. Compared to the residents of the lower streets, the lives of the latter were never within the mages' scope of 'justice'.
Under the guidance of a Magical Apprentice, the group of children arrived at the large meeting room in the mansion. Most of the people didn't even dare to breathe loudly. Only Ezio acted as if nothing had happened. He pulled the girl with two silver tassels and chatted with her.
The large reception room was more like a one-to-many classroom. The difference was that there were no small desks in front of each seat, but there were enough chairs. However, most of the children had never seen such a clean place before. So, they were either still standing, or their butts only touched the chairs a little. They didn't dare to sit too long.
Lin didn't let the children wait too long. He didn't even use Blink to appear. He knew very well that the golden tassel on his Black Tortoise Robe was enough of a deterrent to this group of children living at the bottom of society. It would be too much to show off too much.
The moment he sat down at the front, he said to the little fatty who had run away from home for a few days, "Oh, you know you're back. But what do you want to do with so many people? "
As if in a fit of pique, Ezio turned his head away and didn't want to talk to a certain someone. Lin could only chuckle at this child's temper. This level of attitude wasn't enough for him to take action.
Rowan, who proposed to meet the magician, was duty-bound. He stood up and talked to the magician. He first saluted awkwardly and then said, "My lord, thank you for taking care of us a few days ago."
Lin smiled meaningfully. "Taking care of you? If you think it's taking care of you, then so be it. Now that you're done thanking me, what are you going to do next? "
This rhetorical question directly extinguished the children's fire. They just wanted to inquire about the magician's thoughts, but didn't think about what they would do next after a certain someone agreed to their request. The children looked at each other in dismay.
"Well, my lord, we just want to know why you're willing to help us?" Rowan braced himself and asked.
"Didn't you just say that I'm taking care of you?"
"Mhm." Rowan was speechless, not knowing how to respond.
Lin smiled and said, "If you don't know what to say, then listen to me tell you a story."
Perhaps stories are quite attractive to children, regardless of whether they are ancient or modern. Therefore, when Lin said that he was going to tell a story, everyone showed an expression of interest and waited calmly. Lin said:
"Once upon a time, there was a kind-hearted rich man and a beggar. Every day, the rich man would give the beggar ten danba (10 copper), regardless of wind or rain. … "
Just the beginning attracted a burst of exclamations from the children. In the Land of Enchantment, if a person just ate and drank, they would be able to live a very comfortable life.
"… In this way, the rich man gave ten danba every day. One day, several years later, the rich man only gave five danba and said to the beggar: 'I'm sorry, but because my child was born. In order to raise him and give him the best life, I can only give you half of the danba of the past. I'll use the rest on my child. '… "
Another exclamation was heard. Perhaps such a father is an unattainable existence for a group of orphans without parents.
"… But when the beggar heard the rich man's reason, he said angrily: 'You're taking my money to raise your child, is that right?'"
The sudden turn of the story made the children angrily curse the beggar for being ungrateful. Lin smiled and didn't speak, quietly watching the children express their emotions. But among them, there were still some who had different expressions.
Rowan didn't follow the crowd and curse the beggar in the story. Instead, he thought of the situation of his group and couldn't help but wonder if the wizard was hinting at something. But his group just came to ask, and didn't have any intention of blaming. This shouldn't be regarded as being ungrateful.
When the children's emotions were almost vented, Lin said: "You're right. The money is the rich man's own. Whether he is willing to give ten danba, five danba, or even not, it is the rich man's own decision. It has nothing to do with the beggar. He is a person who is being given alms. On what basis can he claim that the money that hasn't been given to him is his? But is the beggar the only one in the wrong? "
This was yet another question that left everyone speechless. Rowan asked timidly: "Sir, did the rich man in the story also make a mistake?"
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