Chapter 397 Secret Preparation
After nightfall, Nisburg, which had been noisy all day, finally fell silent. But this silence is only reflected in the fact that there are no longer large crowds gathering on the streets, and laughter and laughter can be heard from time to time in various pubs and other leisure places.
People’s excitement seems not to have passed yet.
In an office of the Council, more than a dozen big figures from the Corner Bay Alliance gathered together. However, what is incompatible with the happy atmosphere outside is that these big shots all have frowns and look worried.
Marcus, the current speaker of the Council, had a pipe in his mouth and smoked it. He hid his body in the thick smoke, as if this could alleviate his inner melancholy to some extent.
Marquis Joe Foster was sitting on the speaker's right. He raised his head and looked around at everyone, but no one looked back at him.
"Ahem!" He coughed a few times, attracting the attention of others.
"Sir, sitting here is not an option. We should immediately send envoys to Collins to explain the situation to the Archbishop."
"It's too late now!"
Before the Speaker could say anything, Horace, who had always advocated a tough stance on the church, stood up.
"Sir Speaker, I suggest that while the public sentiment is high, we should immediately contact the states in the Corner Bay that have a similar attitude to ours to form a formal alliance against the church. With the strength of the people, they will not dare to act rashly."
"This is too risky..."
Just as the argument started in the room, there were thumping footsteps outside.
Everyone looked at the door. The person coming was Queller Foster, the second son of the Marquis of Fortes and the current captain of the Niceburg Guard.
After he came in, he bowed to the people present and said in a deep voice: "Sir, Speaker, Members, the situation outside is basically under control. The cathedral has been cordoned off, and all the idlers have been cleared. It’s over.”
Speaker Marcus raised his eyelids, his eyes looked a little cloudy, and asked: "Are there any casualties? On both sides."
Quiller looked ugly: "Five people died and thirteen people were injured on the people's side. , Six people died on the church side, and more than 30 people were injured. However, it seems that the church knights acted first."
"Alas...it doesn't matter who makes the move first. The Archbishop's envoy is still unconscious. Are you alive?"
"Uh...yes, judging from the injury on the head, it should have been caused by hitting a hard object when it fell to the ground."
"Although I was a little frightened mentally, my body is fine. The cathedral is currently under his management."
Speaker Marcus nodded, "Okay, thank you for your hard work, go back and rest first. "
Quiller put one hand on his chest and said with a face full of shame: "Sir, if something like this happens, the guards responsible for the security of the city have an unshirkable responsibility. Please punish me. "< br>
The Speaker waved his hand and said: "No one could have expected this kind of thing. The Guard may have some responsibility, but it is not a punishment. You can summarize it internally and go on."
Kui Le said with some seriousness: "Yes."
He raised his head and looked at his father next to the speaker before leaving the office.
After the door closed, Marcus puffed out a burst of smoke, put down his pipe and said: "Everyone, I decided to use both hands. On the one hand, I sent someone to Collins to meet with Archbishop Elvis and explain. What happened today is to raise our reasonable demands. This is an action done openly. At the same time, we contact our friends who have the same demands and gain their support. Of course, this is a secret thing.”
He looked at each person in the room one by one with a scrutinizing gaze.
"I hope that the second measure will be kept strictly confidential and will never be brought to the council for discussion. Everyone here is someone I trust, and I hope no one will live up to my expectations."
Foster took the lead and stood up and solemnly promised: "Speaker Marcus, please rest assured that I will keep it strictly confidential."
Others followed suit with pledges.
Speaker Marcus nodded and said: "Very good, let's discuss the specific arrangements."
Everyone moved their seats and sat down around Marcus, lowering their voices and discussing in low voices. stand up.
Who should be chosen as the envoy to Collins, what should be said when meeting Archbishop Elvis, and how to secretly contact potential allies, these things were all carefully considered.
During the process, someone asked whether, in addition to sending an envoy to Collins to meet with the Archbishop of Corner Bay, another envoy should be sent to the Holy See headquarters to meet with His Majesty the Pope and ask him to mediate the conflict between the Corner Bay Church and the Alliance.
Many people have doubts about this suggestion. After all, the Holy See is the superior of the Corner Bay Church. There is no reason to "turn its elbows outward". It will most likely protect its shortcomings. Then the alliance not only failed to drive away the evil wolves, but also attracted the tigers. .
“I once had the honor to meet His Majesty the Pope when I went on a pilgrimage to the Holy City. He is a kind, just and kind elder. If we explain our difficulties clearly, His Majesty will surely help us. To uphold justice...at least not to take sides."
Marquis Foster stood up to support the proposal, and Speaker Marcus agreed after much hesitation.
Everyone continued to discuss until midnight, and then dispersed in the still solemn atmosphere.
"Qiao, walk slowly for a while, I have something to explain to you."
Just when Marquis Foster also stood up and was about to leave, Speaker Marcus stopped him.
The two sat down again, and there was no one else in the room at this time.
"Marcus, what's the point of keeping me here?"
The Speaker stared into his eyes: "Qiao, we must prepare for the worst case scenario, the sooner the better. "Foster asked in surprise: "You mean..."
"Yes, war!"
"How bad can things be?"
"That's why I said it's the worst case scenario."
The room fell into After the silence, Marquis Forster fell silent, and the Speaker picked up his pipe again and started smoking.
After a long time, the Marquis raised his head: "Okay, what do you need me to do?"
Marcus replied in a low voice: "Enrich our armaments warehouse. We need to stockpile weapons in large quantities to prepare for emergencies. But be careful and keep it secret."
"Okay!" Foster did not hesitate. He agreed, but Marcus also saw the doubt in his eyes.
"You must be wondering how I will arrange for you to do this, right?"
"Yes, a little bit."
The Speaker stood up and stomped around the room A few steps.
"Not long ago, the Aldo Kingdom ended its civil war."
"I know, but does this have anything to do with our current affairs?"
The Speaker nodded: "There is a big reason The merchants brought me important information - the equipment of the Aldo royal army is unusually good, not in terms of quality, but in terms of quantity and scale. Almost everyone is wearing armor. Damaged weapons can also be replenished and replaced in time, which greatly reduces the casualties of soldiers, thus contributing to the surrender of the rebels. You know how important experienced veterans are to victory. Of course, this affects to a certain extent. The business of our merchants cannot be sold at a satisfactory price due to the existence of competitors.”
The Marquis understands what the speaker means. If you want to stockpile weapons in large quantities, the more supply channels you have, the better. good.
“You mean to purchase weapons from the weapons workshops in Aldo.”
"That's right!" Marcus replied in the affirmative, "However, I just emphasized that we must do this secretly, so our procurement scope cannot be too wide, otherwise the news will easily leak. We must lock in a few Suppliers with strong manufacturing capabilities and stable channels.”
“I understand, I will select them quietly.”
“Well, what I will say next is why I chose you. After my investigation, I found that most of the equipment of Aldo's army comes from an organization called "Northwest Bay". > "Yes, Northwest Bay. That was a barbaric place in people's minds before. Even many people didn't know about this place. Now it is continuously delivering exquisite porcelain, cheap paper, and useful materials to Jiao Bay. Honeycomb fuel, cans popular with sailors, and... plenty of ironwork. Lord of Light, something magical must have happened in that land..."
Marcus paused.
"Your family has some kind of connection with the Northwest Bay? Oh...don't get me wrong."
"Yes." Marquis Foster nodded, "My second My son is a very good friend of a lord there, and my caravan often goes there to do business.”
There is nothing to hide about this kind of thing. In fact, there are many of the products mentioned by the speaker. Most of it was brought to Cape Bay by the Foster family.
“I would like to add that the things you just mentioned basically come from a place called Arda, and the lord there is the friend of my son I just mentioned.”
The Speaker nodded and said: "I suspect that the so-called 'Northwestern Industry' is also probably related to Alda. If so, I want to use your family's relationship with this lord to complete our plan to enrich our armaments. I don't know about you. What do you think?"
Foster replied seriously: "This is my unshirkable responsibility."
"Very good, I knew I was right to choose you, my old friend." The speaker felt a little emotional, and immediately reminded: "You have a special status. Going there in person will attract attention, so you have to arrange for someone who is trustworthy and has a strict tone to go."
"I know, just let my two My son went there in the name of discussing business. Anyway, my caravan often goes there.” What is the attitude of the church? Of course, don’t let him know about the conflicts between us and the church. Secondly, how much influence the Aldo royal family can have on him? In case the church puts pressure on him through the royal family and cuts off our supply of goods. "
"I will figure this out one by one."
"If this lord is a reliable person and values the friendship with your family enough, I want to hand over all our early orders to him. Of course, the premise is It's because he has sufficient supply capacity."
"This..." Marquis Foster was surprised, "Speaker, you can't put all your eggs in the same basket."
Ma. Kusi shook his head, "Secretness is more important. The fewer people who know, the better. Once someone knows about our actions to enrich our armaments, wouldn't it be very passive? Others will think that we have the intention to actively provoke a war. And Jiaowan The weapons workshop owners here, well, I don’t know how many of them are loyal believers of the church. The northwest bay is far enough away from us, and it is a good place to manufacture and store weapons. Relying on sea transportation between the two places also greatly avoids the influence of the forces on the land. Interference."
"Okay, I understand."
The Marquis nodded in agreement.
“Yeah.” Speaker Marcus squinted his eyes and took two puffs from his pipe. After explaining everything clearly, he breathed a sigh of relief.
"By the way, what's the name of this lord?"
"Paul Grayman."
(End of this chapter)