Act Three: The Laws of Engaging with the World (Part Nine)
Nine
As Conrad Greene had said, the lord wished them to remain at his residence. Before looking at the bedrooms, Yakov checked his horses and his luggage. Conrad kept his promise; nothing had been touched, and the horses and donkeys were well cared for. "This is a sign of goodwill," Schumeer said. "To do business, one must first show respect."
“If I refuse, he will surely become furious,” Yakov frowned. “How does he know I have gold?”
“A penniless lord can pluck every feather from the geese flying overhead. Who knows how many spies are in the city?” Schumeer shrugged. “Instead of being overly cautious, it’s better to go with the flow.”
Using his chivalrous rhetoric, Yakov managed to decline the lord's invitation to dinner, though post-dinner discussions were inevitable. The servants brought the food to their rooms and left. Yakov glanced around; each of them had a fresh herring pie, seasoned with cinnamon and bay leaves, accompanied by a glass of red wine, and a plate of delicate almond tarts, vibrant in color and glistening with gold.
“They brought us food for Ramadan,” Schumacher teased him. “Would you like to do a prayer before the meal?”
Yakov glanced from under his helmet at the Jewish man devouring his food with cutlery. He removed his gloves, grabbed a warm herring pie with his hands, carefully turned his back, hid his face in the corner, then adjusted his helmet and quickly tossed the food into his mouth. He hadn't eaten such spiced food in a long time. The fish was delicately prepared, the pie was made from refined grains, and ghee was used generously. But Yakov only ate from behind his helmet.
Schumer looked at him and sighed, shaking his head.
Yubi was testing the bed in the room. At least the lord's room wasn't covered in straw; the mattress wasn't anything fancy, but at least it was soft and not prickly. He took off his shoes and cloak, relaxed, and lay down on it, resting his head on the wool pillow, his face turned to the side. "Schumel, I have a question," he said softly, furtively, "Why is it that Lord von Brunel believes such strange stories you tell?"
“Ha!” Schumacher swallowed a sip of light liquor. “I also want to teach you some things, which I will call three stories.”
Yubi got out of bed and listened intently.
"First, the stranger the story, the more exciting it is. No matter how reasonable a mundane story is, it is difficult to attract readers. Making people willing to listen is the first step to making people believe it. Second, telling women's stories to men and men's stories to women, love and sex can cover up all strange logical problems, and even the most impulsive and evil things can be used as an excuse."
Yubi's expression changed from expectant to distorted, as if he had smelled an extremely unpleasant odor.
“Thirdly, and most importantly,” Schumer put an almond tart into his mouth with his fork, “figure out what the audience wants; nothing else matters. Does Lord von Brunel really care what Yakov’s face looks like? He only cares about his prestige and money. Give him a story, make it believable, don’t embarrass him, and get him the money, and he’ll believe anything.”
“Three stories? That’s all lowbrow stuff.” Yakov scoffed. “You’d be better off honing your fighting skills than listening to that.”
“That’s a misconception,” Schumacher raised his voice. “No matter how skilled you are at fighting, can you conquer a city or defeat an army by yourself?”
“I can’t,” Yakov said, turning to Yubi. “But he might be able to.”
The helmet's visor was positioned in the center of a cross-shaped ornament, a dark void. But Yubi could almost see those blue eyes, usually as cold as icebergs, now burning with a chilling flame. A sharp gaze pierced through him, fixed on something far greater and more terrifying. This gaze made Yubi feel alien and uncomfortable, leaving him speechless. He got out of bed and went to his dinner—of course, Lord von Brunel had also prepared a meal for him.
“Aren’t you forbidden from eating human food?” Yakov looked up at him.
"I can chew it and spit it out!" Yubi said angrily, picking up a piece of almond tart and taking a big bite. "I like sweet things too!"
The lord summoned them only after the night bells rang. A curfew was imposed on the entire city, most merchants had been driven out, and it was eerily quiet outside. Behind this unassuming residence lay a charming little courtyard, filled with flowers. But it was the dead of winter, and the branches were bare, the flower stems withered.
“These are cornflowers,” Lord von Brunel said, half introducing and half showing off. “In my hometown, they can bloom all over the hillsides, but the winters here are too cold, and they don’t survive more than a year. Every spring, I have to send people to buy new seedlings to plant, and I have been doing this for more than twenty years.”
“Is that so?” Yakov didn’t flatter such irrelevant words at all, and just awkwardly replied.
“I didn’t arrange any maids for you, nor did I call my wife to meet you. But this is not a lack of care.” Lord von Brunel immediately ended his brief moment of homesickness, turning to Yakov with a smile. “Women! What if you bewitched them?”
“That was a long time ago,” Yakov said, repeating what he had discussed with Schumacher. “I’ve long lost that attraction, and I live only out of commitment and loyalty to the Lord. Thank you for your understanding.”
“Speaking of women,” Lord von Brunel said, pacing slowly along the courtyard. “I know that the knights of your church’s order abstain from women and never marry or have children. But I still have a troubled matter that I would like to discuss with you.”
"Please speak."
Lord von Brunel found a bench and sat down, then gestured for them to sit as well. He sighed and looked up at the moon. The night sky was clear, and the moonlight was like silver. "My wife has been in a state of emotional turmoil lately, and is restless all day long. The reason for this is related to our youngest son."
Upon hearing this, Yubi immediately perked up his ears.
“You know, this city is in a strategic location, with Tatar territory to the east,” said Lord von Brunel. “One day, our youngest son went hunting and was captured by a Tatar unit in the mountains and taken prisoner. The Tatars learned that he was the son of the city lord and demanded that we bring an equal weight of gold for ransom within seven days! You must know, my son has just turned sixteen and is about the same height as this man. But an equal weight of gold! We simply cannot afford it.”
"I couldn't produce a person's weight in gold," Yakov thought. He glanced warily under his helmet, gripping Yubi's shoulder tightly, trying to silence him. But the signal no longer worked. "When did this happen?" Yubi asked, his eyes wide.
“This happened ten days ago,” said Lord von Brunel.
“Those seven days are over!” Yubi shouted. “How are things now?”
“It’s a pity. The Tatars killed him and hung his body on the carriage for us to see.” Lord von Brunel shook his head, two tears falling from the corner of his eye. “My wife fainted on the spot when she saw this. But the Tatars said that if we wanted his body back, we would have to pay two thousand gold coins.”
“Oh, no.” Yubi lowered his head, as if feeling guilty. Behind him, Yakov and Shumel exchanged glances discreetly. Two thousand gold coins—the asking price had dropped drastically.
"My wife is deeply troubled by this matter; she weeps every day, insisting that I must ransom my son's body for a proper burial." Lord von Brunel suddenly clenched his fist. "But how can we tolerate such infidel barbarians! They murdered my son and plundered my people! I believe I must avenge them to fulfill my responsibilities as a father, a husband, a lord, and a Christian. I will send my army into their tribe, behead their Khan, and offer his head as a sacrifice to the Holy Lord!"
Yakov suddenly realized that this was being spoken to him. He frowned.
Seeing that Yakov remained silent, Lord von Brunel wiped away his tears with his sleeve. “I have a hundred elite soldiers and a thousand conscripts under my command. If war breaks out, we can annihilate this Tatar force within a month. However, it is the dead of winter, and food supplies are scarce. But my deficit is not large, only five thousand gold coins short, which I can afford to pay and serve my lord.”
Five thousand gold coins. The hungry wolf finally revealed his claws. Yakov recalled the luggage on his horse. The two chests of gold and silver utensils, after removing some particularly valuable items, were worth about five thousand gold coins. It was clear that the lord's estimate was quite accurate, intending to devour him whole—but the problem was, how could he refuse him and escape unscathed?
“My lord, I sympathize with your plight and believe in your resolve, but…” Schumer sensed Yakov’s embarrassment and immediately began to speak. To Yakov’s surprise, Lord von Brunel interrupted him with a smile.
“I’m not asking to borrow five thousand gold coins from you, knight. And don’t worry about my credit, my eloquent squire.” He clapped his hands, summoning a beautiful woman, exuding fragrance, from the doorway. She carried a large lacquered wooden box. Von Brunel stepped forward and slowly opened the lid.
A rough, yellowish-white stone lay in the center. The moment the lid was opened, the entire courtyard seemed to be filled with sweet flowers, soaking in honey and milk.
“This is a piece of ambergris. I think that something this large and intact is worth more than five thousand gold coins.” Lord von Brunel winked earnestly, his hands behind his back. “I know you’re buying lightweight, precious goods. And I happen to have something that’s hard to sell. You know, none of the spice merchants around here can afford that much. But you can buy it; consider it a favor I’m doing you, and also a donation to the Knights.”
Schumer had already shut his mouth and was only looking at Yakov.
Yakov was at a loss for words. He racked his brains, but what reason could he possibly have to refuse? Their every move within the city was under their complete surveillance; their every action and purpose was firmly in the other's grasp. This made him feel as if he had stepped into an exquisite trap. "Honestly, I think this is a good deal," Schumer said quietly, pulling Yakov aside, not caring at all that they were in front of the lord. "You two get what you want; it's a win-win situation. Isn't that wonderful?"
Yakov lowered his head to observe Yubi's reaction. He noticed that the young nobleman, who had just been chatting amiably with Lord von Brunel, had fallen silent for some reason, his expression displeased.
“Sir, this is a very big deal, I need time to consider it,” Yakov said. “I will give you an answer by this time tomorrow.”
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