On the 4th of June, Laurist arrived at Syrovas Island.
"My respects to you, Earl Norton. I am Serliham of the Chikder Merchant Guild. I have come to show the Norton Family our goodwill. " Serliham, who was dressed in the new noble attire of the Ford Trade Union, bowed respectfully to Laurist, who was sitting at the head of the table, and presented the list of gifts.
Schwald took the list and placed it on the small table beside Laurist. Laurist glanced at the list and saw a long list of gifts. There were jewels and accessories, fashionable clothes, treasured swords and armor, fine wine and tonics, and four famous Zino horses. The total value was estimated to be twenty or thirty thousand gold fuds. Back in Morent City, he could only earn a thousand or eight hundred gold coins a year, but a single gift from the Chikder Merchant Guild was enough for a silver swordsman to work hard for twenty to thirty years.
"Please take a seat." Laurist gestured with his hand. "As the young master of the Chikder Merchant Guild, Lord Serliham, what brings you to Syrovas Island?"
Serliham smiled bitterly. "Count Serliham, you should know why I am here. To tell you the truth, because of my third brother's misdeeds, he offended Count Serliham and the Norton Family, causing you to view our merchant guild as an enemy. Because of the war between the Trade Union and the Telimbo Kingdom, we were unable to mend our relationship with your family in time. This deepened the misunderstanding between us, causing us to suffer immeasurable losses …
"I have come to see Count Serliham in hopes of resolving the enmity between us and resuming friendly relations. "Count Serliham, please forgive the members of the northern merchant fleet who fell into your family's hands. The Chikder Merchant Guild is willing to pay a ransom for them. "Count Serliham, please do not reject my request. The Norton Family destroyed the Haneabada Kingdom and freed more than four hundred thousand slaves. This is a very benevolent act, so please do not make things difficult for the sailors and crew who made a living at sea for their families …
"To them, joining the fleet is just a job, a job for their families to eat and wear. They still have families who are looking forward to their reunion. Sir Count, please let me know if you have any dissatisfaction. Our Chikede Merchant Association will do our best to compensate you. My main purpose for coming here is to ask you to grant them freedom and let me bring them back to see their loved ones … "
Laurist watched with interest as this young master of the Chamber of Commerce, who was only a few years older than him, stood in front of him and spoke with fervor and assurance. He was very frank, and his attitude was very sincere. It was easy for people to have a good impression of him.
"Please sit down, Lord Theringham." Once again, Laurist invited Therham to take a seat. "I'm sure you understand why I'm against the Chamber of Commerce. In fact, you also know that the Norton Family is at war with the Chamber of Commerce. It's just that neither of us has declared war. This war was started by the Chamber of Commerce."
"Count, please call me by my name. I don't deserve to be called Young Master or Your Excellency." Therham cupped his hands. "I understand. Apart from redeeming the sailors of the northern fleet, I'm also here to resolve the enmity between us. The Chikede Merchant Association does not wish to have a war with the Norton Family …
I believe Count Therham knows that the Chikede Merchant Association used to target Silovas Island in order to obtain territory for the Chamber of Commerce. However, now that we have obtained Ulubahar Mountain as our territory, the main reason for our enmity has disappeared. I'm here to ask Count Therham to forgive the Chamber of Commerce for offending your family. Let us live in peace again and not let the blood of the innocent spill over the sea. "
"Therham, you said that you don't want the blood of the innocent to spill over the sea, but do you know that the blood of the innocent people on Silovas Island has already dyed the entire Silovas Island red? Do you know why the Norton Family sent troops to destroy the Haneabada Kingdom? "Laurist asked with a serious expression.
"Count Therham, I understand. My third brother leaked information about your family's territory in the Haneabada Kingdom because he was drunk and depressed, but it was truly an unintentional mistake. My second brother and I have always opposed my third brother's northern strategy. To our Chamber of Commerce, Silovas Island is too far away from the southern sea that our Chamber of Commerce has traditionally controlled. Apart from being an island, it is not suitable for our Chamber of Commerce's territory.
Moreover, we were engaged in a glass war at the time, so we put the northern strategy on hold indefinitely. This made my third brother depressed, so he went out to sea to relieve his boredom. That's why he got drunk at the banquet held by the Haneabada Kingdom to welcome him. He unconsciously revealed the truth about Silovas Island, and as a result, the slave traders and slave hunters of the Haneabada Kingdom set their sights on the refugees on Silovas Island. This is something we did not expect …
This is not us shirking our responsibility, but at the end of last year, our Chamber of Commerce's northern fleet did not return, causing us to panic. It was only in March that we received news that your family had destroyed the Haneabada Kingdom, and our northern fleet had also fallen into your hands. My father specifically went to ask my third brother, but at that time, my third brother had no recollection of it at all. However, his personal servants still remembered my third brother's complaints about the Chamber of Commerce not carrying out the northern strategy after getting drunk at the banquet.
Because of this, my third brother was slapped twice by my father and was ordered to go to the Ulubaja Mountains to reclaim the wasteland. My father said that because my third brother had inadvertently caused damage to your family, we would give all the ships of the northern fleet that we had landed in your family to your family. You just need to bring back the men of the fleet.
Count, in fact, regardless of whether my third brother leaked the information about Silovas Island, in fact, no one can deny that the slave owners of the Haneabada Kingdom are targeting the more than 200,000 refugees in the two southwestern provinces of the Andenak Kingdom. And your family has recruited 50,000 to 60,000 refugees to develop and build on the island. Sooner or later, it will attract the attention of the slave traders and slave hunters. My third brother merely said some inappropriate words at the inappropriate time and place. He was only venting the depression in his heart. He did not intentionally target your family. "
"You are very good with words …" Laurist looked at the round-faced Therliham and shook his head. "It has been a year, and we cannot investigate whether the third young master of the Chikede Chamber of Commerce did it intentionally or not. The slave traders and slave hunters of the Haneabada Kingdom attacked Silovas Island and turned it into hell. And the Norton Family returned blood for blood. We also sent troops to destroy this evil kingdom. We chopped off the heads of all the people of this kingdom and built a capital to warn those who came later …
We captured the northern fleet of the Chikede Chamber of Commerce because the Norton Family and the Chikede Chamber of Commerce are enemies. The third young master of the Chikede Chamber of Commerce has always been hostile to our family. He even coveted our family's Silovas Island and wanted to make it the territory of the Chamber of Commerce to realize your so-called northern strategy. The second reason is that the northern fleet of the Chamber of Commerce just happened to arrive at Nubit Port after we occupied the Haneabada Islands. They were tactful enough to lay down their weapons and surrender. They did not put up any unnecessary resistance, so I only prepared to let them serve three years of labor.
The Norton Family is not unreasonable, nor will we bully the weak. We love peace and are not afraid of war. The Chikede Chamber of Commerce wants to end the hostility and war between us. I agree with your idea, but you have to show us the sincerity of your apology. It was you who started the war, but it is not up to you to end it. I really want to know what price the Chikede Chamber of Commerce is prepared to pay for this. "
Therrikamp sighed and stood up. At the beginning of March this year, more than a dozen medium-sized ships released by the Norton Family and requisitioned arrived at Hidden Gold Bay. Nearly a thousand freed slaves disembarked from the ships. They brought with them a shocking piece of news: the Haneabada Kingdom had been destroyed by the Norton Family, and the young Count of the Norton Family had ordered the heads of all the commoners and nobles of the kingdom to be chopped off. He used the heads to build a huge pyramid of human heads in Nubit Port …
This news caused a stir in the entire Chamber of Commerce, and as more and more requisitioned ships and freed slaves arrived, the Norton Family's reputation skyrocketed. All of a sudden, the reputation of the Norton family skyrocketed. Of course, it wasn't just because of their beauty, but because of their cruelty.
In the history of war on the Galinthea Continent, massacres of cities and captives were not uncommon, but there had never been a case of a kingdom being slaughtered. The Norton Family's massacre this time could be said to be shocking and cruel. Even the scholars and experts who wrote the war history of the continent and the reporters of the major newspapers in Morent City did not dare to go to the Haneabada Archipelago to find out what was going on. They were afraid that the Norton Family would kill without batting an eye and put their heads on the pyramid of human heads …
However, when an old student of Dawn College revealed that the head of the Norton Family, Count Norton, was the legendary Black Iron Locke of the academy, the invincible silver, all kinds of reporters flocked to the Norton Family, causing Old Dean Levins to be restless day and night. In the end, the old cunning fox had an idea. He wrote a letter of introduction to all the reporters who came to harass him, swearing that as long as they had the letter of introduction, the Norton Family's armed forces would not make things difficult for them. Only then did the reporters decide to go to the Haneabada Archipelago to see the famous pyramid of human heads.
So the reporters found a few requisitioned ships and went to the Haneabada Kingdom. It took them one and a half months to go back and forth. When they returned in May, they wrote a lot of articles. The newspapers were full of how the Norton Family and the Haneabada Kingdom became enemies, how they sent troops to fight, how they landed, and how they captured the capital. These reporters, scholars, and experts wandered around the Haneabada Archipelago, and were warmly welcomed and taken care of by the current governor of the archipelago, Hickford. They also put in some good words for the Norton Family.
In the end, all the newspapers published a sketch of the giant pyramid of human heads, describing the formation and structure of the pyramid from various angles. Of course, the article strongly praised Governor Hickford's touching story of kneeling in front of Count Norton's tent for seven hours before the Count finally relented and pardoned more than 12,000 young women. From another angle, it proved Count Norton's heart of stone and cruel character.
All these newspapers were sent to Lollister by the Norton Family's knight and secret agent, Lemmed, who opened a pediatric and gynecological clinic in Morent City. Lollister did not take these newspapers to heart after reading them. When he gave the order, he had expected such a reputation. Sometimes, the more brutal one was, the more shocked and fearful the enemy would be. Lollister wanted to know if there would be any enemy who would face the Norton Family's armed forces with courage and confidence in the future …
Amidst these disturbances, the Chikder Merchant Association had been silent, silently watching the development of the situation. At the end of last year, the northern fleet did not return as scheduled, which made the Merchant Association feel that something was wrong. They had sent several ships to search for them, but none of them returned. In fact, these search ships with the Chikder Merchant Association's flag had encountered the patrolling Flying Fish and Storm of the Kingdom of Dawn in the Haneabada Archipelago. Three of these ships had been captured and two had been sunk, so none of them could return to report …
The Chikder Merchant Association had originally planned to transfer the armed fleet of the southern seas back in the spring to search for the northern fleet, but they did not expect the arrival of the requisitioned ships and freed slaves in March to let them know what had happened. The matter of the Norton Family capturing the northern fleet was not kept a secret in the Haneabada Archipelago. Many captains and sailors on the requisitioned ships knew about it, and they obtained detailed information as soon as they asked.
The only thing that made the Chikder Merchant Association rejoice was that the northern fleet did not suffer any losses. They had fallen into a trap and were forced to surrender. Later, it was said that they were transported to Syrovas Island to serve hard labor. Now, no one in the Merchant Association dared to mention anything about attacking the north. Even the third young master, Maliback, did not say anything. If he had known that the Norton Family was so powerful, he would not have dared to suggest seizing Syrovas Island. The Kingdom of Haneabada was a kingdom. Not to mention anything else, it had 14 Grand Swordsmen, but the Norton Family had easily destroyed it. The entire kingdom of 170,000 people had been beheaded and built into a pyramid of human heads. This news had always made the third young master's heart tremble.
When the chairman of the Chikder Merchant Association found out that it was his precious third son, Maliback, who had leaked the news of Syrovas Island recruiting refugees for development and construction and luring the slave masters of the Kingdom of Haneabada to attack Syrovas Island, he gave Maliback two tight slaps in the face. He then ordered him to go to the territory of the Ulubaha Merchant Association and not to leave. After that, he held a meeting with the upper echelons of the Merchant Association to discuss how to end the hostilities with the Norton Family, redeem the members of the northern fleet, and think of a way to befriend the Norton Family. Only then did the eldest young master, Serliham, come to Syrovas Island …
"Count Norton, the Chikder Merchant Association is willing to spend 200,000 gold fords to redeem all the members of the northern fleet, as an apology to the Norton Family. In addition, we are willing to purchase 56,000 sets of standard equipment from the Norton Family, numbered Fine Iron 107. According to the price you set, 89 gold fords per set, no discount required. The transaction will be completed over three years, and the payment will be made in full. What do you think? "
Serliham sighed in his heart. If he had not found the treasury of the former Duke of Ulubaha in the Duchy of Ulubaha and seized six million gold fords, even if the Chikder Merchant Association had obtained the territory, they would still feel like they were at the end of their rope. Not to mention the other things, just the 60 ships of the northern fleet alone were worth nearly a million gold fords. There was also the spices, food, and other goods that the Norton Family seized, which was equivalent to a loss of more than 1.5 million gold coins for the merchant association. Now, they still had to pay a high price to redeem their members. If he had known this would happen, he would not have acted in the first place …
Loriste tapped his fingers on the small table beside him, deep in thought …
"Have you seen the blueprints of the Peterson Merchant Association's standard equipment?" Loriste asked.
"Yes, Count Serliham. We also know that these standard equipment are produced by your noble family. Be it the style or the defensive capabilities, they are superior to those produced by the Visia Merchant Association. We have obtained the former Duchy of Ulubaha as the territory of the merchant association, and we are preparing to reorganize the two mercenary corps of the duchy into a regular garrison of 48,000 men to defend against enemies on land. Therefore, we are willing to hand over this military business to your noble family as an expression of our goodwill. "
"Also, Count Serliham, our merchant association is also willing to give up the sea spice trade route of the Shaisya Kingdom and hand it over to the Norton Family. In the future, if our merchant association needs spices, we will come to Cilovas Island to purchase them from your noble family. Right, there is also this. This is what my third brother is relying on to carry out the northern strategy. With this floating container dock, I believe that the Cursed Coast of the North will no longer be a hindrance to ships. "
Serliham took out a document and handed it over. Schwald took it and examined it briefly before handing it over to Loriste.
Loriste opened it and saw that it was a mobile dock made of floating containers that spanned across the shallow sea and reefs. Just as Serliham had said, with this, the Cursed Coast of the North would no longer be a hindrance to merchant ships. Even on days of strong winds and waves, these floating containers could be brought to the shore to avoid the wind and waves. They could even be fixed on the reefs and filled with soil to form a fixed dock …
Loriste finally smiled. "Alright, I agree to reconcile with the Chikder Merchant Association. We will remove our hostility and state of war. From today onwards, both sides will treat each other in peace."
…
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