Xingar.
This is a large and lively city, even more lively than Lion City.
As we all know, if many people are willing to go to a city, it is either because it is safe enough and people and property can be protected; or it is chaotic enough there and they can find a lot of excitement...
And Xingar is obviously the latter.
There is a long row of tattered corpses hanging on the outer wall of the city, almost completely covered by dense flies. When the wind blows, a black mist will rise from the swaying corpses.
The smell of rotting corpses and rotting vegetables filled the air, mixed with the smell of spices and opium in the market, forming a unique smell belonging to Xingar.
Only herbal medicine stalls will reveal some exotic aromas from foreign countries - the kind that will make you dizzy after smelling it.
Snack vendors fanned their dirty straw hats and hawked meat skewers. The meat skewered on bamboo sticks was grilled on a stove fueled by cow and horse dung until it sizzled and shone with oil. However, the origin of this meat was quite suspicious...
Bundles of silk were crowded on the counter, but blood stains could be seen on many of the satin surfaces.
Weapon dealers also mostly have old weapons, and basically every weapon has dark brown stains that cannot be cleaned off.
Some Dexian people, who are clearly outlaws at a glance, also openly sell their trophies on the Xingar market - including chopped clothing, shoes and hats, deformed gold and silver jewelry, and even some shields and armors with clear heraldry.
The drug dealers set up their pipes and straw mats directly on the street. Many drug addicts were lying on their sides on the straw mats and puffing in public, and there seemed to be people waiting in line beside the straw mats in an orderly manner - this was probably the most "orderly" scene that could be seen in the entire chaotic market.
In the middle of the market is a huge exhibition stand, on which slave traders are waving whips to display their goods - some strong young men and women with their hands and feet bound, all naked, and every part of the body is inspected by customers on the stand. From time to time, the dealers will open the slave's mouth to let the guests see the teeth.
Of course, the slaves sold publicly are low-end goods. Next to the slave booth is the livestock market where horses and donkeys are sold. The sales process on both sides looks exactly the same.
There were quite a few customers entering the market, but most of the locals with white cloths on their heads covered their wallets tightly and put their hands on the hilts of their swords, as if they were always guarding their backs.
And customers from out of town... wish them good luck.
Anyway, the seemingly harmless urchins around are waiting for the opportunity. Occasionally, some suspicious gadgets will be revealed from their sleeves - small blades used to cut wallets.
In addition to the market, the streets and alleys are also full of people from all walks of life.
There are members of the Knights who still wear black armor and horned helmets on hot days;
Snake Worship Cult warrior with full body green viper costume;
There are also pagans wearing brown cloaks, warriors carrying long-handled knives, and men in black playing with daggers...
These various people look very different. The only thing they have in common is that they all have the same look - the kind of dangerous look that only thugs who have been killing people and setting fires for a long time have.
These heretics and murderers walked freely in the streets, while the guards in the city wearing pointed helmets and wielding spears completely turned a blind eye to them.
There are many tall courtyards on the street, which seem to be the headquarters of various organizations, but there are almost no gate guards. Probably no one would dare to stay in front of these courtyards - even the guards in the city avoid the entrances of those courtyards.
The murder contracts were publicly posted in various taverns in Xingar, and some were posted outside the doors of some taverns... From time to time, people would take a look, but most of them would leave quickly. Maybe they were just checking to see if their names appeared on the wall.
In the more dilapidated alleys in the city, dirty wild dogs are fighting with young orphans in the garbage. Some members of Crimson Brotherhood are pointing and recruiting members from these young children.
Some stricken women stood at the door of low, dark houses wearing colorful and revealing skirts, providing special services for a few coins. Most of them wore veils, probably to cover up some traces of pain and disease.
The 'prophet' in tattered robes was also preaching in the alley about the benefits of believing in cults. Behind them, in the small temple that was even tattered than the robes, human sacrifices were being carried out openly. Fire and blood might indeed bring them some believers.
Only those who are mad at first sight can walk unimpeded in these mean streets. Their madness may be caused by contact with gods, or it may be caused by poison, but in any case, only madmen are inviolable...
The groans of lame beggars, the greasy cries of vendors, the melodious calls of prostitutes soliciting customers, the whining and barking of wild dogs after being kicked, the angry roars of victims, the chants of priests in various accents...
All this constitutes a symphony called 'Xingar'.
Disharmonious, but very "free".
And at the very center of Xingar, a tambourine sound with an unknown rhythm drives the heartbeat of the city.
But the center of the city is not the castle of the city lord, but a luxurious building that is taller than the castle.
The city lord of Xingar is named Tahir, a caliph.
Although he nominally serves 'Bahad Khan' Kadan, his service is almost limited to periodically trying to issue new orders in the city and nailing 'outlaws' to the city walls.
The stench of rotting corpses even spread to the wealthy areas of the town, but as long as Tahir continued to deliver the goods on time, the Kadan Great Khan rarely interfered with Xingar's affairs, because he knew that even if he sent out troops, it would be impossible to conquer the forces in Xingar's city.
In fact, most Pande believe that Xingar is not so much the territory of Duchy of Dexia as it is a free territory outside of order and morality.
Because the orders and laws promulgated by Kadan Great Khan and Khalifa Tahir only serve to provide some topics for residents to chat. The power and justice of this city are completely determined by dinars.
And the person with the most dinars in this city is not the city lord Tahir, but a slave trader named 'Ramon' - so Ramon is the 'messenger of justice' in this city and the real talker of Xingar.
Fruuz's Slave Catching Group traveled thousands of miles to commit the crime at Noldo Forest because of a reward.
And the person who issued the reward was Ramon.
Ramon is quite famous. In fact, the name Ramon is even more famous than the ruler of Duchy of Dexia, 'Bahad Khan' Kadan.
Because he is the largest slave trader in Xingar and the largest slave trader and ransom broker in the Pande Continent.
In other words, he is the spokesperson for all slave traders in Xingar.
Even Li Ang is very familiar with the name Ramon, whether in his previous life or now.
Ramon's nickname is "Good Brother" - in previous lives, players would use this nickname when joking, because players would sell prisoners to him after they got them, and they met Ramon the most.
But after coming to the Pande Continent, Li Ang discovered a wonderful coincidence - Ramon actually had the nickname "Good Brother".
But this is not because he has anything to do with the brothers. In fact, Ramon is not a Crimson Brotherhood person, but his slave trading business is more successful than all Crimson Brotherhood agents.
He made Xingar's slave market the first choice for purchasing slaves in the entire continent, and was the recognized leader of all slave traders in Xingar.
Ramon got the nickname "Good Brother" mainly because he was good at making friends with people - those who ignored his "friendship" and were unwilling to treat him as a "good brother" would usually become slaves and be sold soon, or simply disappear mysteriously.
Well, it may also be found - for example, a swollen corpse was found on the lake behind Xingar.
Five of the first six judges of Xingar were found on the lake like this.
The last judge resolutely implemented the fairest Xingar style of justice - the kind that was determined by the number of dinars in his hand. Therefore, this judge had been a judge of justice for several years peacefully. After becoming Ramon's good brother, his life was quite smooth.
Therefore, Ramon must be a 'good brother' - all Xingar admit this, including the city lord Tahir...
That luxurious building, taller than Tahir's castle, is Ramon's property.
That looks like a luxury hotel.
Perhaps that is indeed the most luxurious hotel in the Pande Continent.
After all, this large building covering an area of nearly ten acres has six floors above the ground alone and provides 300 luxurious suites, enough to accommodate thousands of people comfortably.
But in fact, the real body of the building is below the ground.
There are three floors underground, and each floor has different secret rooms.
That is Ramon's slave auction house. Unlike the low-end slave booths in the Xingar market, this is the only place in the continent where those 'top-quality goods' can be sold - such as those aristocratic girls with noble blood, or the beautiful Noldo maidens.
Right now, Ramon was in a small luxurious secret room, handing a glass of wine to a middle-aged man wearing aristocratic robes.
On the stage behind him, there were some girls wearing veils - or rather just veils, playing tambourines with a cheerful rhythm.
"Good brother, are you sure Fruuz can really get the Noldor noble girl back?"
This man in aristocratic robes appears to be in his forties or fifties. He is burly and greasy, but his face is covered with a golden beard and his hair is also golden. He is obviously not Dexian people.
There were two hot and scantily clad women sitting on his left and right, posing and posing, but he didn't seem to be interested in the women next to him at the moment. He only took a sip of wine and put the cup on the table.
"I just got the news from him half an hour ago. He has already succeeded - after all, he got Noldo maidens a few years ago... I miss that auction very much..."
Ramon shook the red liquid in the cup and seemed to be nostalgic for the past.
"That is the famous work that made your auction house famous. Of course I know it... but they are just three elf girls, not Noldor nobles... What I need are noble girls! You also know that it is not easy to let an army pass through the kingdom. I took a lot of risks..."
The greasy noble reached out and pushed away the woman next to him who picked up the wine glass and intended to put it to his mouth.
Ramon shook his hand holding the wine glass, and the two women left in a wise manner.
"Elderfried, my friend, you have to believe in the power of dinars... Although Fruuz is a shameless bastard, as long as there are enough dinars in front of him, he will definitely be able to bring back the goods you need..."
Ramon seems quite confident in Fruuz's Slave Catching Group.
In other words, they have confidence in the dinar.
He raised his glass towards Elderfried, signaling for a drink.
"But, when can he get the goods back?... Good brother, I don't have much time..."
Elderfried looked anxious and picked up the wine glass but did not drink it.
"To be honest, Elderfried, I don't understand... why are you so anxious? And why would a noble like you spend such a high price to buy a slave?"
Ramon shook his head and smiled, "I can see that you don't like beauty..."
"Good brother... I'm just not interested in vulgar fans. Noldo Elves I'm still very interested..."
Elderfried shook his head and smiled, his eyes a little wary.
"Elderfried, it seems that you don't trust me very much... I have the best beauties in the entire continent, but you haven't even looked at them... And what you want is a Noldor noble girl - if you just want to get Noldo Elves, then any Noldo maidens is almost the same. Why do you only want noble girls?"
Ramon put away his smile, stood up, came closer to Elderfried, and said word for word, "Friend, you don't want to be good brothers with me anymore, do you?"
Elderfried's face twitched a few times, but then he laughed, "Good brother, don't be ridiculous, the drums here are so loud, I can hardly hear your voice..."
Ramon also smiled and waved, and all the girls wearing veils who were playing tambourines behind him left the secret room.
"Now there are only two of us, Elderfried, tell me the real reason - I know you are definitely not the final buyer!"
Ramon took the bottle of wine and filled the cup held by Elderfried with wine.
"Well, to be honest, I want to dedicate the Noldor noble maiden to the king! It is my king who wants... tsk... this wine is really good!"
The good brother poured the wine himself, and of course Elderfried couldn't refuse. He picked it up and took a sip. Then he felt that it was really delicious, so he took another sip.
"Dedicated to the king? You mean Ulrich? No wonder there are so many mercenary groups entering Noldo Forest... I thought you Lionheart Kingdom hired so many mercenary groups to annihilate a certain Noldor ethnic group..."
Ramon was obviously surprised. "Why would Ulrich want to get an elf noble girl? It can't be for the purpose of marrying the elf, right?"
"Humph... The king doesn't need to report to me when he does things..."
Elderfried shook his head, seemingly not wanting to reveal any secrets, but a hint of ferociousness appeared on his face. "But I have to seize this opportunity! Maybe you don't know, I was blackmailed by Ulrich before!"
Ramon frowned, and then quickly responded, "King Ulrich blackmailed you? Is it to get enough dinars to recruit a mercenary group? Your Kailledanburg has been quite wealthy these years, and it is normal for the king to borrow money..."
"It's not a loan, but a blackmail - Ulrich knew that I sold the civilians in the territory to Xingar as slaves. He used this to blackmail me and asked me to pay 100,000 dinars! Otherwise, I will not only lose my title and territory, but also my reputation..."
Elderfried said through gritted teeth, then picked up the wine glass and drank it in one gulp.
"Then you still plan to fulfill the king's wish? I don't think you are such a tolerant person..."
Ramon shook his head, with a smile on his lips again, picked up the wine bottle and poured another glass for Elderfried.
"Fulfill his wish? Hahaha... Ramon, good brother, I spent money to buy it from you, of course to sell it to him at a higher price! I have to earn back the money he extorted! And... Hiccup... give me a higher status!"
Elderfried picked up the wine glass, looked at it, burped, then raised his eyebrows and drank another glass.
Apparently, this wine is really good, even addictive, and Elderfried seems a little confused.
Ramon frowned. "I can understand that you want to change the business to make a profit... But, a Noldor noble girl can let Ulrich give you a higher status? He is not this kind of person, right... What is the reason?"
"Because the blood of virgins among the Noldor nobles... Hiccup... the virgin blood can cure the king's disease!... If I can get the Noldor noble maiden, I can... Hiccup... in turn coerce Ulrich!"
Elderfried seems to be a little crazy and starts to talk about everything.
Ramon had a deep smile on his face and his voice became softer, "Then, the king must be willing to pay a lot of money..."
Elderfried tilted his lips and showed a strange smile, "Pure Noldor noble girl... Hiccup... three hundred thousand dinars..."
He fell crookedly and the wine glass fell to the ground.
The red liquid spilled from the cup onto the carpet, dyeing the originally red carpet into blue-grey.
This is definitely not wine, probably some kind of hallucinogen!
Ramon smiled and looked at Elderfried who fell on the ground in a drunken state, and shook his head. "Since you are making so much money, how can I let you make this difference? Good brother..."
He exhaled and clapped his hands twice.
Hearing Ramon's high-five, several men in black appeared at the door of the secret room. "Sir Ramon."
A man in black who looked like a little boss came in with his head lowered. It seemed that they were both respectful and afraid of Ramon. The little boss didn't even dare to raise his head when he spoke to Ramon.
"Throw this baron to the auction house, notify Kailledanburg, and ask them to redeem him for 10,000 dinars!"
"Let all the brothers gather together and let's go to 'greet' that batch of expensive goods... According to Fruuz's habit, he should bring a small team of people back first, right? Haha..."