Silver Mine (First Update)
"Tasks in the Spirit Realm generally follow the principle of equivalent exchange; the benefits received will certainly differ depending on the degree of task completion."
Bai Xiaowen pondered for a moment and said, "I've guessed one possibility, but I can't confirm it yet, so I won't say anything for now. In any case, we need to complete this main quest properly... If the possibility I've guessed comes true, the rewards we can gain will be astonishing."
Li Shuyi nodded, then raised another question, "But that fat man just said that we have no income and are penniless. How are we going to recruit soldiers?"
"Let's take it one step at a time," Bai Xiaowen said. "This young lord is clueless about politics. Although I inherited some of his memories, I'm still completely ignorant about the situation within the territory. Let's go out and take a look first."
The two pushed open the door, and a gust of cold Northland wind blew in.
Only two words come to mind: desolate.
Ahead lay a dirt road less than two meters wide, frozen solid by the cold wind, which spared travelers the hardship of trudging through the mud—if any travelers ever came to this place.
In the distance from the lord's mansion, there were several thatched huts, scattered haphazardly, and quite dilapidated. One by one, the lord's subjects, dressed in tattered clothes, walked past with numb expressions.
Not far away by the roadside, several people wrapped in straw lay on their backs behind a stone block, sheltering from the cold wind.
Bai Xiaowen frowned and walked over. As he got closer, he realized that these people, including the elderly and children, were not dressed at all. Most of them only had a piece of dark linen wrapped around their crotches, which explained why they were using straw to keep warm.
"What are your names? Are you refugees passing through here?"
After a moment of panic, one of the men wrapped in straw, who appeared to be the leader, spoke in a low voice:
"My lord, my name is Anton ...this is my wife Molly, and the others are my neighbors..."
Bai Xiaowen sized up the man named Anton. He was clearly different from the average citizen. Although he was not tall, he was very sturdy, with large knuckles and calluses on his fingers. He was a laborer who was used to doing heavy work.
"Anton, why did you and your neighbors end up here?"
A gaunt old man beside Anton pulled him back, saying tremblingly, "I'm sorry, Lord, we shouldn't have appeared in your noble sight. We'll leave immediately..."
Bai Xiaowen was somewhat helpless; the old man had clearly misunderstood. He could only wave his hand and say a few words of reassurance before the panicked refugees calmed down.
Anton sighed and said, "My lord, we weren't originally refugees. We were miners digging for Silver Tier in the western mines... Life wasn't rich, but we managed to get by. However, last week, the Blackwind Bandits Ambush the mines, killed the guards, looted the mines and us, and burned down our homes... We had no choice but to leave and become wanderers..."
"Wait, Silver Tier mine?" Bai Xiaowen's eyes lit up slightly. "Are there silver mines in White Stone Town?"
Anton looked at Bai Xiaowen with some surprise. "Isn't the lord the owner of the mine? White Stone Fief is known for its abundant Silver Tier production. Although White Stone Town is relatively remote, it does have a small silver mine..."
"Am I the owner of the mine?"
Bai Xiaowen looked down at the hidden patch on his nobleman's robe, somewhat speechless, and shook his head, saying, "Who do you usually hand over the Silver Tier you mine?"
"Of course, it should be handed over to Jobb. He's the lord's most trusted steward..."
Bai Xiaowen's face darkened.
Jobb didn't mention the silver mine at all just now.
"It's too cold here. Come into my house, at least you can keep out the cold wind." Bai Xiaowen sighed as he looked at the miners who were wrapped in straw and shivering from the cold.
Several people hesitated, unwilling to agree.
"This is an order from the lord," Bai Xiaowen emphasized.
It was clear that these miners' families, including Anton's, were more accustomed to a commanding tone. They helped each other to their feet, thanked Bai Xiaowen, and followed him to the lord's mansion.
Li Shuyi wanted to light the fireplace, but she had no experience with it and was at a loss. Fortunately, Anton's wife Molly, was quite skilled at it and quickly got the fire going, dispelling some of the chill.
After expressing her gratitude, Li Shuyi, following her inherited memories, took out two somewhat worn-out pieces of clothing from the wardrobe on the second floor and handed them to Molly to cover her shame.
This act of kindness quickly calmed the minds of the refugees.
"Now, tell me about the Blackwind Bandits," Bai Xiaowen said.
The other refugees were still somewhat hesitant to speak in front of Bai Xiaowen, their lord. With Anton providing the main narrative and the others adding their own comments, the situation of the bandits in the White Stone Town territory gradually became clear to Bai Xiaowen.
There were more than a dozen bandit gangs of varying sizes in White Stone Town. Most of them were just a few bandits who got together and could not even be called a mob. They barely survived by half-robbing and half-hunting. There were three medium-sized bandit gangs, each with a dozen or even several dozen people. They used White Stone Town as their base and committed crimes while moving around, mainly plundering other surrounding territories.
This also led to the White Stone Town territory being heavily criticized, because Bai Xiaowen was ineffective in suppressing bandits—the lords of the surrounding territories had no right to send their troops into the White Stone Town territory.
The largest bandit gang in White Stone Town was known as "Black Wind," and was infamous for its ferocity. It was said that this bandit force numbered over a hundred. Note that this hundred refers to elite bandits capable of wielding knives and killing, not including auxiliary soldiers and servants who were merely there to make up the numbers.
Moreover, the Blackwind Bandits are different from other bandit gangs. They have a wide range of targets, not even sparing the poor White Stone Town, and they often kill and burn. The original population of White Stone Town was several thousand, but most of them fled to other territories.
After listening to the story, Bai Xiaowen asked, "What is the name of the Boss Tier of the Blackwind Bandits? How many powerful individuals are among them?"
Anton stared in disbelief and shook his head, indicating he didn't know. As soon as Bai Xiaowen spoke, he realized he had asked the wrong person; Anton was just a small-time miner with limited information.
With a bang, the door to the lord's mansion was pushed open.
"My lord, why did you let a bunch of lowly commoners in? This is the main hall of your mansion! My God, you're bringing shame upon the entire Skellboom Family! Don't you always hate these peasants the most?"
The fat man, Jobb, squeezed in and hurriedly said, then looked at Anton and the others with disgust and shooed them away. "You lowly commoners, get out of the lord's mansion right now, or I'll hang you under the eaves to dry in the wind!"
Bai Xiaowen gently tapped the table.
"Don't rush, Jobb ..." Bai Xiaowen said with a smile, "I just overheard something interesting. Let's talk about the silver mines in the territory... I'm curious, where does all the silver ore that the miners hand over go?"