Jiang Jie had originally intended to resolve the issue with the staff's tail, but things didn't go as planned, leaving him somewhat frustrated.
But they still stayed in Dalaran for a whole day, and then took away a whole spatial ring full of Dalaran wine—the spatial ring was a personal gift from Ansirem, which won Old Chen's favor.
Hillsbrad Foothills isn't much fun, and Arathi Highlands is just so-so.
To catch up with Brann, they quickened their pace, traveling day and night. A week later, they crossed the famous Thandol Span, traversed Wetlands teeming with swamp creatures, and passed through the perilous Dun Algaz Gates, finally catching up with the Dwarves musketeer army in Loch Modan.
However, when Jiang Jie finally met these bearded men and asked which one was the "master of courting death," Prince Brann Bronzebeard, the Dwarves ' answer left him speechless.
"You're looking for Prince Brann?" The Dwarves, clearly the leader, glanced at the iconic sword Strom'kar on Jiang Jie's back, tilted his head, and pondered seriously for a moment. He seemed to finally confirm that Jiang Jie was indeed the legendary Marquis Nicholas, and then readily nodded, saying, " Prince Brann went on an adventure! He told us to return to Ironforge on our own! He didn't even take me! I'm also a member of the Adventurers' Guild! He lied about having diarrhea and then ran off when we weren't looking!"
"Adventure? Where did he go on an adventure?" Jiang Jie was a bit of a headache. Why wasn't Brann playing by the rules?
As the commander-in-chief, how could you abandon everyone else and go on an expedition instead of going home? What were you thinking? You didn't just set sail from the western port to Northrend or Uldum while you were in the Wetlands, did you?
"Oh, I can't tell you that, it's our secret!" The Dwarves lowered his voice, then looked around. Seeing that the other Dwarves were a bit far away, he quietly gave Jiang Jie a wink, moved a little further away, and then whispered, "What exactly do you want with Prince Brann?"
"Getting something from him will, of course, come with a fair price to satisfy you," Jiang Jie chuckled, then asked, "So, where did he go?"
"Well... he went to a mysterious place, related to the legendary creator..." The Dwarves's eyes darted around, and he chuckled, "Of course, I can't tell you exactly where he went. After all, it's a secret of us Dwarves, even if you're a Legendary marquis of Lordaeron, and once fought alongside General Nesingwary... Dwarves are principled!"
"Surely you can tell me where he separated from you?" Jiang Jie smiled and then glanced at Old Chen.
Old Chen pretended not to see, subconsciously hiding his right hand behind his chubby belly, while looking around as if admiring the scenery.
" Uncle Chen, I have a brewing recipe you've never seen before. The wine is fragrant, mellow, and pure Daughter's Red." Jiang Jie sighed, somewhat regretting that he had put all the wine in a ring and put it on Old Chen's hand. Now he had to ask him for help. This was really troublesome.
Old Chen's eyes lit up. He stretched out his right hand, then quickly withdrew it. He then extended his left hand, fingers spread, and after a moment's thought, assessing their respective strengths and confirming that Jiang Jie was no match for him in taking the ring, he finally brought out his right hand again, fingers spread, and waved both hands in front of Jiang Jie: "See that? Ten copies of the brewing recipe!"
" Uncle Chen, it's a real shame you're not a shrewd businessman." Jiang Jie shook his head, looking helpless. "Three portions of the recipe, take it or leave it!"
"Alright, three portions it is!" Old Chen was afraid that Jiang Jie would change his mind, so he quickly took out a wine barrel from his ring and carefully placed it on the ground.
Jiang Jie noticed that the wine barrel had been opened; an hour ago, Old Chen had filled a gourd to the brim with wine. Judging from the sounds coming from the barrel just now, it was probably less than half full.
That unscrupulous businessman!
"The wine of Dalaran." Jiang Jie pointed, a smile on his face. "Now, can you tell me? I don't need you to tell me your secrets, just tell me where you broke up with Brann. That shouldn't be difficult, right?"
The Dwarves swallowed hard, clearly already smelling the aroma of the wine. His eyes were fixed on the barrel, torn between his craving for alcohol and his principles. In the end, his fragile principles couldn't withstand the torment of his addiction; after all, he hadn't had a drink for days.
The Dwarves troops never abstained from alcohol, but they had long since run out of the liquor they bought from Stromgarde, and they were really struggling to keep up with the journey. Ironforge was still at least five days away; what were they going to do on this road...?
"If you had come an hour earlier, you would have seen him!" the Dwarves said hurriedly, then grabbed the wine barrel and ran off into the distance. Jiang Jie was stunned. Why? I'm not going to steal it from you.
Then he saw a group of Dwarves rushing towards him, each carrying a musket, like wolves eyeing lambs.
Clearly, these Dwarves hadn't drunk alcohol in a long time either.
The Dwarves have no wine to drink; isn't that going to be the death of them?
Now that I've seen the fine wine, how can I possibly stay calm?
"Run!"
Jiang Jie, his legs moving with the Lightning and Rushing Thunder Step, and in the blink of an eye he was twenty meters away. He didn't dare to stop and didn't even look back.
Old Chen reacted quickly, dashing off and rolling over twenty meters in a flash; his speed from his Chi Torpedo was indeed impressive. Actually, the Dwarves were mainly after him, since the wine ring was on his hand, and Dwarves had seen him taking the wine.
Li Li had been riding her crane through the sky, but when she saw the Dwarves' bloodshot eyes and the muskets they held, she screamed. Feeling unsafe even in the sky, she worried that these bearded men might capture her and use her to blackmail Old Chen for wine. She frantically flapped her crane's wings. "Fly! Fly! The Dwarves are going to kill me!"
Panda! I don't want to be tied up and kicked in the butt!
Aysa was still a little dazed, thinking that Dwarves were always warm and hospitable, surely they wouldn't kill them?
Ji had already taken her small hand and chased after Jiang Jie and Old Chen. He remembered the first time he met General Nesingwary, who almost hunted him like a mutant bear; these Dwarves were clearly even more ferocious.
One man and four pandas ran across the fields of Loch Modan, followed by hundreds of Dwarves carrying muskets.
"So, you have to keep your wealth hidden!" Ten minutes later, panting heavily, Jiang Jie glanced at Old Chen's ring, his hands on his knees, feeling more tense than during the Battle of the Frozen Throne.
Those Dwarves were incredibly persistent; the allure of fine wine was too great for them!
Despite their naturally short legs, they run faster than the High Elf! It seems every Dwarves who catches the scent of fine wine is a potential speedster...
For Dwarves, fine wine is as precious as minerals and jewels—something not to be missed.
"We... seem to have gone the wrong way?" Jiang Jie stopped, looked around, and froze.