Chapter 206 Insect Plague (Ⅱ)

When Joan returned to Leiden Academy, it was completely dark.

He rushed in before the cafeteria closed and filled his stomach indiscriminately. On the way back to the dormitory, I heard someone calling my name, and when I looked back, it turned out to be Thomas Chap.

"Joan, these two days you go out early in the morning and come back after dark, what are you busy with?"

"It's just doing odd jobs to make some extra money."

"What's so hard work?" Thomas asked with concern.

"Help them eliminate the pests in the manor." Joan opened his arms and gestured, "The big and fierce ones, such as digging insects."

"Hey! This sounds very interesting, please tell me in detail." Thomas asked excitedly.

Joan had no choice but to selectively tell about the deworming experience at Custis Manor today.

"Thomas, I heard that monsters similar to diggers have appeared in many farmlands and pastures around Leiden City recently. Is your plantation okay?"

"It's nothing to blame!"

Thomas smiled wryly.

"I took time to go back home this weekend. When I got home, I found that my grandfather, father and uncles were not there. Only the women were at home. They complained to me that there was a pest infestation in the fields recently, and they ate up nearly a hundred acres of wheat fields in one night. Even the lumberyard is not peaceful, and the good logs have been gnawed to pieces, so they can only be used as firewood..."

"In order to deal with these nasty big bugs, my grandfather led the men and servants of the family to patrol the fields and woods in shifts with shotguns and crossbows, hunting monster bugs day and night, and I don't know when they will be able to kill all the pests." Thomas looked depressed.

"Eating wheat seedlings and wood..." Joan frowned, "Thomas, wheat seedlings and wood are not the food that diggers like."

If the records in the monster illustrated book are to be believed, the diggers prefer to attack humans and animals, and fresh flesh and blood is their favorite meal.

"I didn't say they were diggers at first!" Thomas argued aggrievedly.

"Then tell me, what kind of pests are making trouble in your plantation."

"That's what you're asking. In fact, I hurried back to the academy today just to go to the library to find information about those monsters."

Thomas became excited again, put his arms around Joan's shoulders, and told about the relevant information he collected today.

"According to the analysis and comparison, I found that there are mainly two types of pests that damage crops and trees!"

"The first one is called 'giant stag beetle', also known as 'big stag beetle'. It likes to eat the soft inner core of trees. It is as big as a horse. The monster power of this giant worm can crush the entire house when it hits with all its strength!"

"There is also a kind of pest, which is smaller than the giant staghorn beetle, similar in shape to an ordinary beetle, about the size of a wolf dog, with a dark red head, and a brown-black body covered with a carapace. It is called the 'giant bomber beetle', and A more descriptive name would be 'Giant Farting Beetle'."

"Giant farting beetle... what a strange name."

Joan stopped at the stairs on the second floor of the dormitory, barely holding back her laughter.

"When I was looking up information on similar monsters in the library yesterday, I also saw illustrations of giant farting beetles, and I was very impressed."

"It is said that there is a sac-shaped gland at the end of the abdomen of this strange insect, which can produce a special highly toxic liquid. When it is in danger, it will spray the venom from the tail and make a loud explosion sound. It's like farting."

"The venom sprayed by the farting beetle outside the body will undergo a complex alchemical reaction when it comes into contact with the air, instantly vaporize, and release a super high temperature."

"If the enemy of the giant farting beetle is sprayed by this liquid, it will suffer double damage from the toxin and high temperature. Even if it does not die, it will peel off its skin."

"Exactly!" Thomas patted Joan on the shoulder, "Okay, let's not talk about these disgusting Bala monsters, how about sitting in my room and having a cup of tea?"

"Okay, I happen to have something I want to ask you about."

Joan followed Thomas into the living room on the second floor.

Not long after sitting down, Thomas’s servant Bobby brought a large tray and swiftly set out hot high-quality black tea, a sugar bowl, a milk jug, and a large plate of tea-serving snacks on the coffee table—freshly baked , waffles baked until golden and crisp and topped with a tablespoon of maple syrup.

Joan ate a piece of waffle with black tea, and couldn't help admiring: "Bobby's craftsmanship is really good."

"Of course, otherwise I wouldn't have brought Bobby to school."

Thomas crossed his legs and complimented the valet triumphantly.

"Edward once intended to exchange his gray colt with the blood of the champion of the Fall Race Meeting for Bobby. If the exchange object is another servant, this is indeed a good deal, but for my Bobby, that is not possible!"

Thomas shook his finger, showing a touch of pride in his expression.

When Bobby heard what his master said, he was so moved that he almost shed tears on the spot.

The same words fell into Joan's ears, but he felt a little uncomfortable.

In this year, the manor owners in the New World still used the "serf" and even "slave" system inherited from their mother country. Not only can servants be used for trading, they are even regarded as a currency by wealthy lords just like gold and silver.

Edward proposed to exchange Thomas' well-behaved and capable servants with good-blooded foals. This is a common transaction in the upper class. It neither breaks the law nor violates the traditional morals of the agricultural society in the southern part of the New World, including Bobby himself. , no one will be offended.

However, Joan still felt that something was wrong with this matter.

Maybe it's because he was born and grew up in a rural town with simple folk customs and less strict barriers for all social classes, or maybe it's because he read too many miscellaneous books, many of which were masterpieces written by enlightened thinkers in the old continent, and subtly formed a simple and simple life. The concept of equality means that people should not be forcibly classified into different classes because of their different origins, and they should not be bought and sold like cattle and horses against their own wishes.

Of course, these thoughts are not clear, and Joan does not plan to have an in-depth discussion with Master Thomas on the issue of "whether human beings are born free".

In order to get rid of the haze in his heart, he took the initiative to change the subject and asked Thomas about George Vassar's family situation.

"You mean George Vassar, the Major Vassar who was suspended for violating military orders?"

Thomas shrugged sympathetically.

"Actually, you should ask Edward. His father, General Charles Gates, is Major Vassar's immediate boss. Major Vassar was suspended because he offended General Gates."

Joan shook her head and said in a low voice, "I don't want to talk to Edward about these things, so as not to embarrass him and me."

"Okay then, I'll tell you what I know."

Thomas crossed his legs and opened the conversation.