Chapter 126, Glowing Plants and the ‘Metal Prairie Horse’ Blacksmith Shop

Keir looked inside at the door of this shop selling luminous plants, and found that the inside was really, not to say beautiful, but it could also be said that it felt like a graveyard with phosphorus fire.

No way, although it is a luminous plant, it cannot emit bright yellow light or burning white light. The main light of these luminous plants is blue-green, so they look a bit strange.

The locals didn't think there was anything strange about it. It was enough to light up things in a dark home. What kind of bicycle do you want?

These luminous plants seem to be divided into several grades in terms of price. The cheapest ones, placed outside the store for display, are long strips of moss-like luminous plants.

The thick moss does not look very healthy, and many of the small moss leaves that should have been healthy green are now withered and yellow in large areas, as if they are lacking water. The bright unflowered buds on their heads are also feeble, and people can only barely see the existence of these mosses in the colorful streets around them.

The more expensive ones, which are the luminous plants that ordinary townspeople can afford, are luminous aquatic plants placed in shallow pots filled with water.

In the shallow water basin, luminous eyeball-sized plant rhizomes float under the water, turning the entire water basin into a small luminous water basin.

There is also fertilizer in a bag for sale next to it. It seems that if you want this kind of luminous aquatic plant to grow stably and brightly, you need to fertilize it.

A few townspeople were lingering here, arguing with the store clerk.

It turns out that someone didn't want to spend money on buying a fertilizer anymore and wanted to save the money. The guys were all migrant workers in the same town, so they came up with an idea. They said they could buy a larger basin and put some fish from the river in it. The leftovers and kitchen scraps from the usual meals could be used. Pour it into the fish basin and feed the swimming fish inside.

The glowing plants obtain their nutrients from the excrement of swimming fish.

"This is how this thing grows. If you don't believe it, ride a horse to the gentle lower reaches of the river during the day and you will see many of these things floating and growing in the center of the river."

Then the waiter quietly revealed to several townspeople and customers: "These are actually fished out from the river and specially cultivated by us under the escort of mercenaries hired by the boss. But you must not think about saving money." For a small amount of money, I can go fishing in the river myself! It’s too dangerous, and I’ll be caught by monsters.”

"It's better to buy the ones specially prepared in our store. The ones on display are all the strongest ones that we have personally selected and have the best luminous effect. Put a few pots in your home and they will light up day and night. It’s home.”

Keir ignored the local townspeople who were persuaded and looked at the more expensive luminous plants.

The Kendal people who were with him also looked at the store curiously. They had never seen a place selling such things. In the wild nights in their hometown, there were indeed various plants that emitted light that attracted insects. But I didn't expect that it could be sold as a commodity here.

The more expensive luminous plants are not aquatic plants. After all, the water basin is still inconvenient, and there will be a lot of bugs in it that bite the residents. If possible, try not to place such things in the open water basin.

It is much more convenient to plant it in the soil.

The next kind of luminous plant that looked familiar to Kiel was planted in the soil. It was similar to a common flowering plant, but instead of flowers blooming on the top of the plant, it grew a fist that looked like a plant fruit. Large and small luminous objects.

There are ten flower pots of this kind of plant in the shop. The light emitted by the luminous fruits of the plant is mostly green or light blue. They are arranged according to the intensity and brightness of the light. The left side is green, and the farther to the right, the brighter the light. , the top of the plant on the far right, the fruit on top is already light blue and white, which is obviously the best product this store can offer.

Keir remembered where he had seen this plant. When he was dealing with slime monsters in Kendall City last year, a chef who had briefly met and worked with him and returned from his travels had given him a fruit of this plant. .

What the other party gave me was a milky white fruit that glowed white.

This thing will automatically light up, and I heard that it will emit brighter light after being pinched, but Keir was reluctant to use it, so he could only let the thing gradually dry and flatten, and eventually turned into a kind of wrinkled and lost moisture. Looks like a fruit core.

Seeing Kiel and other foreigners outside the store looking at the products in their store, a clerk stood in the store and smiled, playfully patting the luminous plant that Kiel was looking at.

After the luminous fruit at the top was slapped, the leaves of the entire plant trembled, and then shrank shyly, but the fruit above its head emitted a brighter light.

"This is how this thing is used." The other party explained to the foreigners.

Keir's eyes lit up and he guessed why this thing was so expensive.

It turns out that it comes with a natural "switch". When you get up, tap it and the room will light up. When it is not needed, the light emitted by the fruit is only average. It is a natural way to save energy.

The energy source of the light emitted by plants is naturally the nutrients in the soil, which can save some light and indirectly save the cost of fertilizers.

Of course, there is only one of the most expensive luminous plants in the store.

It was a magical green plant placed in a woven straw basket. The small main body was placed in the basket and hung on the wall. From the main body above, many vines with leaves hung down.

Each leaf emits a faint white light, but the main body of the real light is a small green 'mouth' specially grown on the vine. The mouth is wide open, and for some unknown reason emits a bright white light that can attract mosquitoes.

As long as the surrounding small flying insects are attracted by the white light, the small glowing mouth will suddenly extend a section, closing the small flying insects left and right and catching them in the mouth.

The closed mouth no longer glowed, but the mouth started chewing from side to side, and then opened again after a while, glowing again to attract mosquitoes.

This thing emits the brightest light, does not require feeding, and is the most expensive.

When Keir was satisfied, he led his men and continued forward, following the faint sound of forging ahead and walking towards the blacksmith shop.

-

It is really prosperous here, and it is probably safer, so the prosperity that would have been scattered to various villages along the road is all gathered here.

There is an old woman setting up a mysterious tent beside the road, playing with a glowing crystal ball to predict the future to the surprised young businessmen. If the other party doesn't believe it, she also has rats. She can pay to cut open a rat and make predictions by interpreting the internal organs flowing out of the rat.

If you still don't believe it, the old woman still has a way. She plays with the dried turtle and "resurrects" the turtle by pouring water on it. The lines on the turtle's back that were originally unclear are clearly distinguishable again. This is "magical" The method can always convince the guests who come to seek answers, so that the other party can get a satisfactory interpretation of the answer.

Of course, the final offering of coins is indispensable.

Although Keir didn't understand the principle of resurrecting after pouring water, the prophecy and method of the old woman made him very sure that she was a liar.

He led others to join in the fun and watched the prophecy stall for a while, then left, because this old woman was very assertive and would only give prophecies to the five highest bidders after opening every day.

"Who knows if she only has five turtles that can be resurrected from dehydration?" Keir guessed maliciously.

It's not that he doesn't believe that there are real prophecy methods in other worlds, but after all, this is a prophecy, it can't be so cheap and casual, right?

No matter what, you can't just set up a tent stall on the street and make predictions, and the charge is no more than one gold coin. It just doesn't make sense.

The prophets in the poems and stories, all of them who are not very arrogant, have to ask the heroes with superior strength to ask for them again and again before they reluctantly give them prophecies.

Moreover, prophecies usually only appear once in a story or poem, and I don’t know what the reason is.

How did Keir know that the god of prophecy of mankind is no longer the first, or even among the top ten gods in the history of human civilization.

This is a god who has experienced many disasters since his emergence. On average, each god of prophecy has been in power for less than a thousand years, and the earlier the god of prophecy, the shorter the life cycle of the god.

After the collapse of the Magic Empire, things were much better when the God of Prophecy took over.

The God of Prophecy who is currently in power has been in power for five hundred years!

Although it is still much shorter than the existence of the empire, it is already a strange thing that makes those in high positions marvel.

-

Except for the old woman who set up a stall to prophesy and deceive traders, the lively streets became more lively as the time officially entered the night.

On the building with colorful walls painted with attractive bed images, behind the expensive wooden windows that opened one by one on the second floor, there were young women who had already dressed up. Facing the men passing by under the windows, they either smiled and waved, or If they are too hot, they will sprinkle fragrant water on their fair chests to seduce them. Otherwise, they will boldly greet the young men who have seen them. What's worse, they will throw wooden hand-carved wooden sculptures with their own images and pseudonyms at the clothes. On the body of a gorgeous wealthy businessman.

It doesn't matter if the other party doesn't pick it up. The thug at the door of the pink house will kick the kid who was raised in the store from an early age, so that the other party can pass through the gaps in the crowd like a little mouse and quickly and accurately pick up the wooden sculpture that fell on the ground.

After cleaning and wiping, they are returned to the second floor upstairs.

And if someone picks up the wood carving on the ground, the child will lead the customer into the shop with a smile.

In addition to these shops everywhere, Qifeng Town also has some shops selling local specialties.

There is a chamber of commerce that hires men from local townsfolk to go out together when it is safe and the strong winds subside to harvest and transport the grass that is everywhere on the prairie, or feed it to the livestock raised in the indoor pasture, or dry it in the sun and use it as fuel or make Straw rope.

The more sophisticated ones will select strong plant stems, pound them and make cheap paper. Although these papers are not of good quality, they are indispensable for the business of various chambers of commerce.

Some people say that literacy and writing are not required to do business. This statement cannot be said to be wrong.

Of course, you don't need to be able to read and write to sell some daily gadgets in the streets and alleys of villages and towns, but as long as there are more than one person and two people cooperate in business, it is impossible to rely on verbal agreements to communicate and determine everything.

After all, if you don’t talk about other things, how can you be sure that this amount of money you earn is yours and this amount is mine? This must be written down on paper or board.

When the settlement is profitable, you can calculate who should get how much according to their respective situations.

The larger the chamber of commerce, the more paper and literate manpower it will need. And when doing business abroad, you must understand whether there are special laws and regulations in various places, taxes in various places, whether bribes are tax-free, etc.

Some large chambers of commerce can even conduct exchanges and trade with lords from various places. At this time, the requirements for manpower are even higher. Basic etiquette is a must, otherwise the noble lords will directly drive out those who do not know etiquette.

Secondly, the conversation must not be vulgar. Only those who can write can do this.

It's not that they don't swear anymore, but they can at least keep their mouths shut.

In addition, there is more than one shop specializing in selling sheep in Qifeng Town. Keir saw that on the outskirts of the bustling shop, there was a shop where people were constantly coming in and out, specializing in selling sheep that were fed to the harpies.

The healthy and plump sheep inside were bleating, unaware that the buyers who came here were interested not in the wool on their bodies, but in their lives themselves.

Walking through the dense flow of people, Kiel also blocked several hands reaching for his belt.

He broke off the visitor's fingers without leaving a trace, and the other party also silently withdrew without making a sound.

After several attempts, no one came to steal anymore.

There was also a middle-aged man with a thin stature and a serious and thin face who handed Keel a message and asked him to buy a wooden sign that could be hung on his belt to prevent pickpockets.

When pickpockets see the wooden sign, they will know that the person has paid the money and will not harass you again.

But Kil sneered and pushed away the middle-aged man who was blocking the way.

The other party didn't say anything, just crossed paths, blended into the crowd and walked away quickly.

"Little Kil, will this cause trouble?"

The blacksmith who follows the army is a little nervous. After all, they are in a foreign country and the opponent has no ability to attack them. The blacksmith who follows the army understands this, but he is afraid that the other party will use some underhanded means to disgust them.

"Those who are looking for trouble will deal with it themselves. Don't worry. Besides, we will leave here early tomorrow morning and won't come back for a long time. No matter what they do. There are many business travelers coming and going here every day. We don't want this wooden sign. Naturally The chamber of commerce and caravans that plan to develop the local area will buy that thing."

Keir concluded: "It's not like they can't make money, so why bother with us at all costs? Right?"

"That makes some sense. You have the final say anyway."

After squeezing through more people, they found the blacksmith shop at the other end of the town.

-

This blacksmith shop is not small in scale, and the entire building belongs to this blacksmith shop.

There are entrance and exit gates on all four sides of the square building, with movable metal signs hanging on them. A metal horse man stands upright, and the name of the blacksmith shop is cast next to it.

‘Metal Prairie Horse’.

The blacksmith shop seems to open after dark. At this time, apprentices who have just started working are constantly shuttling through the first floor of the building, either carrying bags of fuel or carrying heavy loads of fine iron ore raw materials.

Someone pulled the horse over, and an apprentice stepped forward to check the horse's shoeing condition, and soon began to work skillfully.

There was also a caravan guard holding his meal guy, looking regretful, discussing the reinforcement of weapons with the blacksmith with a charred beard.

There are also businessmen who instruct their workers to bring scattered metal fragments in wheelbarrows and sell them to the blacksmith shop at a low price in exchange for a small bag of coins.

Everything was busy and clear. Kil saw the swords and weapons stained black with charcoal on the wall of the blacksmith shop, and a smile appeared on his face.

The blacksmith with the army took a deep breath of the hot and choking air around him, his face full of intoxication. His small blacksmith shop with the army really did not have a working atmosphere. Although Baron Kendall equipped him with an efficient dwarf furnace, he still Miss the fiery working atmosphere in the Kendall City Craftsman District.

His two apprentices carefully observed the work of the craftsmen and apprentices around them, hoping to learn some skills by watching. Participating in the army originally had the idea of ​​​​learning something in the field.

It's just that others are not fools. What is displayed outside for guests to watch is just the superficial foundation of forging and production.

The town militiamen accompanying the army looked around curiously, muttering to themselves about how the scale and finished products here compared with the craftsmen's district in Kendall City that they were proud of.

-

"Guys, welcome, welcome. At first glance, you all look like new guests. Moreover, you are quite capable in all aspects."

The person who came was a well-dressed middle-aged businessman. He was very tall. Different from the craftsmen and apprentices around him, he only looked at the respectful look of the workers around him and knew that this person was the one doing the talking in this blacksmith shop. The useful one.

He looked at the long sword on Kil's waist and immediately laughed. He looked at the blacksmith and his two apprentices who were accompanying the army, and the smile on his face dropped a bit, with a hint of caution.

"I don't know what to call a few of them, especially this young warrior?"

Keel reported his name: "Joe Keel from Kendall County." He raised his chin: "A knight's apprentice who is studying."

"Oh, amazing, so young. And Kendall County, is it the Kendall County of Kendall City?"

Keir chuckled: "Yes, you are the first person from the Western Province to know about Kendall City."

The tall businessman waved his hand: "That's because your iron products are of excellent workmanship and have been sold to us, which is amazing. Unfortunately, I rarely do business now, otherwise I would have to go north. On my last trip, go see what the craftsmen in Kendall City are like."

Kil patted the blacksmith who was accompanying the army next to him: "Haha, this is the Conquinars craftsman next to me, a craftsman who is accompanying our army."

The craftsman accompanying the army nodded, while the businessman opposite also narrowed his eyes and nodded.

Kiel was more direct and informed the other party of their intention, hoping that the other party would have enough supplies for throwing guns and maintenance materials that they needed.

"It's easy to supply maintenance supplies. You name it and I'll write it down. We have a lot of stuff here. If you pick it up one by one, you can always find something that can be replaced or used. As for throwing guns."

Keir asked doubtfully: "Weapons like throwing guns are very commonly used by the guards and soldiers of your Western Province. Isn't it possible that we don't have some in stock?"

The businessman nodded: "As you said, Keir, this is a weapon commonly used by our local people who eat this bowl of rice. We definitely have it in stock, but there is only one small problem. You have to know before buying it."

"what is the problem?"

"The price of shooting guns here will be a little more expensive than the price of shooting guns in other places."

The businessman had a smile on his face and made a little gesture in his hand.

But Keir still asked cautiously: "How much does it cost?"

The other party compared a number.

Keir was shocked: "Is your throwing spear made of gold or silver? Is it so expensive?"

The people around them burst into laughter when they heard the conversation between the two.

This is not the first time outsiders have said this.