The Duke quickly took out his communication bracelet and started transferring money to his family. Florence, the largest bank in the empire, is not available in every city; for example, Chaos City does not have one.
The Duke was getting anxious and consulted his attendants, but there was no such bank in Storm City, which was slightly larger, and the nearest one was in Thunder City.
The maid standing to the side had already been trained by Lilith.
"Your Grace, there's no need to rush. If you wish to auction it off, you can use assets to offset the cost if you don't have cash!"
The Duke breathed a sigh of relief, then rubbed his hands together and asked, "This culinary master—no, it's very likely that the other party has already broken through to the realm of culinary master—would you be able to introduce...?"
The maid lowered her head and remained silent.
Duke Eternal knew he was impatient; how could such a master be met so easily?
He took out a token of the Eternal Duke and gave it to the maid.
"Please be sure to convey my message to the Master: the Eternal City wishes to forge an eternal friendship with you!"
The maid was taken aback. She knew that the person she was serving in the private room belonged to a duke. She had seen many dukes in the royal city while serving Count Black Rose, but the one in front of her was the Duke of Eternity, who had ruled the Eternal City for generations. The most famous thing about the Eternal City was its special bloodline, the blood of the elves.
The Eternal City is inhabited by elves, Sky City is the world of birds, Titan City is inhabited by people with Titan blood, and Atlantis is the city of all sea creatures.
These four cities are the pillars of the empire, and the dukes who guard these four cities are of a different weight than ordinary dukes.
"I understand, and I will certainly convey it to the master! Please rest assured, Your Highness."
Holding the token of the Eternal City means having the support of the entire Eternal City.
This matter must be informed to the young lady.
The maids chosen to handle matters in the private rooms were all servants of the Black Rose Earl's mansion, born to slaves brought by Lilith's mother, and all were loyal to Lilith.
Soon, the news reached Lilith's ears, and the item ended up in her hands.
"Do you know why some people can't grow big or strong? It's because they are short-sighted and want to keep all the benefits for themselves. But I'm not like that. I can befriend anyone, but I only take what I deserve. I won't take what belongs to others. That's my way."
“I have a clear conscience, so when my father and brother raised their knives against me, I could resist without any scruples and showed no mercy.”
"Go and give Miss Qin the token of the Eternal City, and also the token of our Black Rose Merchant Guild. From now on, no matter which city Miss Qin goes to, whatever she needs, the Black Rose Merchant Guild will make sure to give it to her at cost price!"
The maid was surprised: "Miss, we also have transportation costs, warehouse costs, and some things even have to be stored in cold storage..." By only charging cost price, they are actually already losing money.
“Afu, I just told you to have a long-term vision and not just focus on immediate benefits. You all saw how popular Master Qin is today. Even the Duke wants to teach the token well. You know that a Duke is not only two ranks higher than a Earl. The Eternal Duke’s token has a sword and shield on it, which means... this Eternal Token can draw on the military power of the Eternal City.”
The various princes and nobles held their own armies and supported Peter the Great to become emperor. However, Peter the Great also gave them the greatest power. If a federation was a union of small states, family territories, and other entities, then an empire was somewhat similar to a feudal system.
The poem "Yan Ge Xing" says, "Suddenly King Xing established Jiqiu, and the Han dynasty then bestowed titles of kings and marquises upon him."
Within the feudal system, the power of dukes and princes, even those with fiefdoms or territories under their titles (like Qin Yiyi), was determined by the size of their territories and their own strength. Cities like the four pillars of the empire could have their own currencies and edicts, forming highly influential local regimes—essentially states within states. Even more formidable was that these individuals could also command their own armies.
Of course, the premise is that you can afford to raise them in the wasteland world!
The centralized empire strictly controlled one item: various types of radiation crystals. Some relied on radiation crystals to maintain a protective shield, some relied on the heat generated by radiation crystals to raise the temperature in winter, and some were fuel crystals, etc. All kinds of energy sources in the past have been transformed into energy crystals after radiation.
The empire firmly controls this point, collecting exorbitant taxes to force various territories to purchase these crystals, thus draining their reserves and leaving them with no funds to develop other things. This is one of the empire's methods.
However, some cities have their own unique characteristics, producing special talents and finding special ways to make money, enabling them to grow and thrive. The empire devised ways to restrain them and strengthened its royal army, cultivating its own blades. Disobedient elements were nipped in the bud, which barely maintained a balance.
However, for the cities that are the pillars of the four empires, it is unacceptable to kneel or pay respects to the emperor. Moreover, these four cities have been the lineage of the same race for generations. They have been managing their own territories since the beginning of the radiation and are not afraid of the emperor at all. On the contrary, they have witnessed the changing of emperors from generation to generation.
It is somewhat like the clans of ancient China.
They are still clans that can have their own armies. The elven bloodline flowed in from another planet after radiation. They are skilled in melee combat, and each of them is tall, strong, and extremely agile. They can communicate with nature, and each of them is a sharpshooter. They can also communicate with wild beasts and even sneak into the forest to communicate with mutated beasts.
Their soldiers are incredibly skilled in individual combat.
The Eternal Duke's immediate issuance of the token startled Lilith.
Moreover, she had long suspected that the Eternal Duke, who always stayed at home, had appeared nearby, wanted to buy zero-pollution food, and was giving out this token. The Eternal Duke seemed very anxious... Lilith could sense that the Eternal Duke seemed very anxious. All signs indicated that something might have happened inside the Eternal City.
Lilith's long eyelashes drooped down.
He gripped the two tokens in his hands and suddenly stood up.
"Afu, you continue to serve the Duke. I will personally deliver this token to Master Qin!"
She had already decided on her next auction venue: to do the Duke of Eternity a favor. But at the same time, she also needed to find out what had happened in the Eternal City.
She wanted Uncle An to prepare for their Black Rose Auction House's branch auction in the Eternal City.
Perfect timing! Master Qin said we could come again before winter. The Eternal City isn't too far from Storm City... perhaps... we could have the people from Sky City pick us up. They fly fast; they should arrive in a day or two...
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