Perhaps the city of Fudo lacks a bit of holiness, a bit of mystery, and a bit of aesthetic appeal compared to the Holy City of Anno with its thousand towers.

  Perhaps Fudo is less solemn and less imposing than the Eternal Royal Capital of Tindin.

  However, even the most widely traveled bards have to admit that the city of Fudo, which never sleeps, is the richest and most wonderful city they have ever seen.

  The chill of the gloomy winter hangs over the city like a thick fog.

  The sky is overcast, and there is no sign of the sun.

  The thick and dark clouds tore open a gap at noon. After taking a morning break, the continuous rainy weather that had lasted for several days started again, and a silver-thread-like curtain of rain fell pattering down.

  Forlan. Fryer stood in the stone hallway of the apartment, complaining about this terrible weather.

  He was a slender young man, and his mouth was always tightly pursed into a thin line.

  His brown pupils, the same color as his hair, made him seem somewhat indifferent.

  As the saying goes, Forlan was born with a cold face.

  "Fryer is a handsome young man, but he just looks a bit too cool," many girls commented.

  The bad weather made the transportation business in Fudo unexpectedly prosperous. Carriages carrying passengers flowed continuously, and the wheels splashed the muddy water on the potholed ground everywhere.

  The coachmen bravely maneuvered their carriages to avoid pedestrians and various obstacles, speeding along the not-so-spacious roads.

  A shabby carriage stopped in front of Forlan. "My lord, where are you going?" the coachman asked respectfully.

  The people who made a living here showed kind tolerance towards this lord who was so poor that he didn't even have a private carriage and had to live in the old city area.

  After all, having a real nobleman as a neighbor was something that made people feel proud and gave them something to brag about.

  What's more, Lord Forlan had always been courteous, and his upbringing and demeanor were quite different from those of the common people in the old city area.

  "Please take me to the Golden Goose Tavern. Thank you," Forlan grabbed the handle outside the carriage and stepped up into the carriage in one stride.

  The carriage rode steadily, but the cold rain mixed with ice pellets poured in through the cracks in the damaged carriage awning, making Forlan shiver. He instinctively pulled up his collar.

  About twenty minutes later, they arrived at the destination.

  The red roof, the exaggerated large signboard, and the loud noise of the drunkards constantly came out from the windows, which could be heard from a distance.

  The Golden Goose Tavern was perhaps the liveliest place near the Green Agate Square.

  There were cheap food, beer that could bring joy, passionate and unrestrained barmaids, and the famous small rooms on the second floor.

  It might sound vulgar, but every normal man could find his own pleasure here.

  Forlan took out a silver coin from his purse and handed it to the coachman. He watched the coachman rummage through his pockets for change. The coachman's red and swollen hands were already covered with frostbite.

  If it weren't for tomorrow's bread, who would be willing to come out and suffer in such cold weather to earn a living?

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  Feeling pity, Forlan waved his hand, indicating that the coachman didn't need to give the change back.

  Then he turned around, walked up the two steps, and pushed open the somewhat weathered red-lacquered wooden door of the tavern.

  It was warm inside the Golden Goose Tavern. Forlan stretched his somewhat stiff body, nodded to several regular customers who greeted him, and walked towards the table where a group of Eastern merchants were gathered in the corner.

  Fudo was located on the eastern border of the Byron Empire and was originally just a border fishing village.

  However, more than a hundred years ago, the Marmolke merchants, with their fleets loaded with valuable goods, crossed the turbulent and the Sea of Silence, and came here.

  So it quickly developed into the most prosperous commercial city in the entire empire.

  The first stop on the Western Continent of the trading route connecting the East and the West, known as the Spice Route, was Fudo.

  Spices, silk, glass, seasonings, and many rare and unheard-of items and luxury goods, as long as they could be transported to Fudo without any loss, could immediately be exchanged for a hundred times the profit.

  And transporting the wool, swords, and armors here back to the East could also earn a profit that would satisfy any greedy merchant.

  This was the reason why countless merchants flocked here, willing to risk their lives to travel back and forth between the two places.

  The Golden Horn Bay. The merchants named this wide and excellent estuary where Fudo was located with this wealthy name.

  "You... hello, everyone. I am the consignor Forlan," Forlan stammered as he greeted the merchants in the Eastern language.

  Seeing the somewhat wary looks in the merchants' eyes, Forlan quickly took out a piece of paper.

  This was a delivery order issued to him by Alibaba, a quite powerful figure among the merchants traveling back and forth on the Spice Route.

  A merchant who seemed to be the leader took the delivery order, looked at it carefully, and showed a faint smile.

  They had already heard about this special customer.

  Because Forlan always requested to buy some very strange plants, and sometimes even only needed certain specific roots or leaves.

  Although they were not rare treasures, it was still troublesome to collect them.

  If there was no stock available, half of the deposit needed to be collected first, and the goods could be picked up the next time they returned.

  So only large merchant teams like those under Alibaba's command would accept his orders.

  Making money was one aspect, and more importantly, it was for the reputation of the Eastern merchants on the Spice Route.

  Forlan paid the remaining payment for the goods. The merchant went back to the guest room and, after a while, handed him a bulging small sheepskin bag.

  For the contents of this bag, Forlan not only had to wait for four months but also paid a total of twenty gold coins. This amount of money was enough for an ordinary family to live comfortably for half a year.

  If he hadn't sold a gilded picture frame left by his father, Forlan really wouldn't have been able to afford the payment.

  Tying the small sheepskin bag around his waist, Forlan found an empty seat against the wall, ordered a glass of beer, raised his glass and nodded to the Eastern merchants who were still whispering and looking at him, then took small sips of the beer.

  "Lord, I haven't seen you for several days," someone cooed softly in Forlan's ear, and a slippery little tongue quickly licked his earlobe.

  Forlan was so startled that he almost dropped his glass.

  He then realized that a young blonde barmaid had silently stood behind him, smiling like a cunning little cat.

  She was a vibrant girl. Her two green eyes, as beautiful as the highest-quality agates, were always blinking, making people feel affectionate towards her.

  Tiny faint freckles were scattered around her nose, making her look very playful.

  "Anwen, stop scaring people," Forlan said irritably, waving his hand. He took out a handkerchief and wiped the beer that had splashed on his cuff clean.

  "Wow? It's so pretty," Anwen quickly snatched the handkerchief, examined the lily pattern and the lace edge on it carefully, and then unashamedly put it into her own pocket.

  Forlan shrugged helplessly. In front of this charming little wildcat, he couldn't take out anything delicate.

  The snuffbox inlaid with silver foil, the beautifully shaped lighter, the unique collar button... I don't know how many small items had changed their owners like this.

  This kind of almost flirtatious "robbery" was a little game that he and Anwen often played, and it was also a symbol of their intimacy.

  It had to be said that Forlan was also very willing to give her some small gifts in this way.

  "What's the matter? Do you miss me?" Anwen hugged Forlan's neck, blew softly into his ear, and said, "If you want to go to the small room now, it will cost you, though."

  "I can't now. I still have to work in the afternoon," Forlan took out a black badge engraved with a balance scale and proudly waved it in front of Anwen.

  "Have you been promoted to a prosecutor?" Anwen widened her beautiful green eyes, rubbed against Forlan vigorously with her body, and let out a loud scream.

  "I'm still just a probationary one for now, but after winning a few more court cases, I believe I'll be a full-fledged prosecutor soon," Forlan showed off confidently. Anwen's joy infected him, making his heart feel very warm.

  After all, in the city of Fudo, where interests came first, only this girl sincerely wished him well.

  Forlan's family was an aristocratic family that had been in decline since a long time ago.

  From his grandfather's viscount title to his father's baron title, when it was passed down to him, apart from the lowest lord title, the family no longer had any property.

  This was also the reason why he sold the ancestral house and moved to live in the old city area.

  Fortunately, his father had a deep understanding of the law and had written a large number of notes during his lifetime. After studying these notes thoroughly, with the help of a distant relative, Forlan managed to find a job in the court.

  From the age of sixteen to twenty-three, in seven years, Forlan had memorized the code of laws by heart and also accumulated a great deal of experience.

  Sometimes, some senior judges even had to rely on his quiet prompts about the content of the legal provisions in court.

  "The Living Code of the Seventh Court," everyone affectionately called Forlan this way.

  With his intelligence, his position had been promoted again and again. From the initial recorder to the clerk, and then to the probationary prosecutor.

  If he made appropriate judgments in a few more court cases, Forlan believed that he would soon be officially promoted and become a full-fledged prosecutor.

  "Remember to pick me up when the tavern closes," Anwen's beautiful little face was flushed. She pouted her cute little nose and said, "I'll give you a gift to congratulate you. It's free."

  Forlan knew what the free gift that she had given him many times was.

  On many lonely and desolate nights, this soft and charming gift had ignited passion in his shabby little apartment.

  "Okay," Forlan patted Anwen's head affectionately and whispered to her, "Wait a little longer. Once I become a full prosecutor, I'll be able to support you."

  A moment later, from the corner against the wall of the Golden Goose Tavern, there came the commotion of a table being overturned, accompanied by the whistles of the onlookers.

  The tavern owner behind the bar looked at the two people who were hugging and had fallen to the ground and shouted loudly, "Lord, if you want to use the small room upstairs now, I can give you a 20% discount."