Chapter 10 Andre Lu Huntington
Outside the north gate of Eston West City, the knights of the First Battalion of the Kingdom Knights' Eston West City Branch were lined up.
"Boss, didn't they say you were promoted to deputy regimental commander? Why did they suddenly send in a paratrooper?" Huipa Fa Dila, the Knight Squad's vice-captain, muttered to their captain indignantly. "So early in the morning, and they want us to lead a team to greet them? What kind of behavior is that?"
Captain Peru Fa Pertxu, a burly, tough man who looked like a small hill, slapped him on the back of the head. "What nonsense! This is etiquette! Etiquette! They are the royal family!"
"Tsk, it's just a side branch of the 'Lu' class." Huipa said disdainfully, "It's only a little bit better than us!"
The captain tugged at his ear in frustration, "A little better? Do you want to see what you're saying? His last name is Huntington! It's the national surname! Just based on this, he can walk around this city like a tyrant!
"What about you? You're just a commoner! Behave yourself and don't cause any more trouble!"
"Oh..." Huipa rubbed his ears angrily and continued to mutter, "I didn't say anything wrong!"
Bilu shook his head, pulled him aside, away from the others, and whispered in his ear in a very low voice, "You think he asked us to come and greet you? You are totally wrong!
"Andre Lu Huntington has been transferred to three cities before, and each time he's turned the local situation upside down! He hates to see injustices, false cases, or miscarriages of justice. He'll relentlessly uncover any trace of favoritism, fraud, or deception!
"The inexperienced Knights of the first city simply assumed he was just a figurative figurehead and ignored him! And what happened?! He disguised himself and sneaked into the city, where he remained for three whole days!
"He knew every last bit of the city's cats, rats, insects, ants, chickens, dogs, and thieves. On the fourth morning, he made a dazzling appearance in the imperial armor and wiped out all the corrupt officials in the black and white worlds!
"Our boss has spoken. We can't afford to offend this great god! We're guarding here in advance because we're afraid he'll sneak into the city on his own!"
Huipa swallowed hard, realizing the severity of the situation. "Could it be that he was following the king's orders..."
"Whether he had the king's orders or not, we don't know," the captain said. "But anyone who has the courage to rely on his status as a low-ranking member of the royal family to stir up such bloody storms and escape unscathed every time must have the royal family's support behind him.
"While the higher-ups are fighting, we should keep our heads down and behave ourselves. We must not stir up trouble at this critical juncture! The boss said he won't be here for long!"
Graypa's eyes rolled, and he whispered, "Then... what about that kid in jail? He's the genius botanist, Holly Ho Axe, whom we arrested for a follower of the Evil Moon Eyes after accepting his aunt's favor..."
"..." The captain's face twisted instantly: "Why didn't you clean it up?!"
"No, he is a genius botanist after all. Besides, there are people who have been smoothing the way for him, so it is difficult for me to do anything..." Huipa defended guiltily.
"...Forget it, let's keep him like this for now!" The captain gritted his teeth. "...There are so many people in the cell anyway, Andrei wouldn't just run in for no reason! Making any noise now would only draw his attention.
"When we transport the prisoners to the capital someday, we'll quietly slip that kid in there and have someone take care of him, and that'll be all!"
He thought for a moment and asked, "Who do you say has been smoothing things over for him?"
"Yes, it's a gossipy wolf lady in the city, Melon Ho Talia. She's a very nosy person with a wide network of contacts, and she's quite troublesome..."
"Send someone to keep an eye on her and don't let her complain!"
"Okay."
"Everyone! Keep your eyes open! Don't miss anyone!" the captain shouted. "If you don't see them, I'll punish you!"
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The knights of the First Battalion of the Kingdom Knights' Eston West City Branch never imagined that the person they were going to welcome had already entered the city under cover of darkness the night before.
At this moment, he was wearing the rough leather armor favored by street thugs, with a coarse cloth cloak wrapped around his body. He crossed his arms in front of his chest, leaned against the alley wall, and leaned one of his long legs against the wall. He held a piece of straw in his mouth leisurely, chewing the stem bit by bit.
The coarse cloth was wrapped around his head and face several times, covering his handsome features but not his pair of green eyes that were as bright as the morning stars.
He leaned quietly against the wall, watching the people coming and going, listening to their arguments, discussions, laughter and gossip... In just an hour or two, he had a general understanding of the recent major and minor events in the city.
"Master." A short figure emerged from the alley. It was his squire, Jericho Ho Chulin. The young man was dressed in rags, his face smeared with soot, looking like an orphan wandering around with no one to rely on.
Jericho reported in a low voice: "Found it."
"Let's go and take a look." Andrei spit out the straw in his mouth and said, "Lead the way."
Looking at the map, Eston West City formed a nearly perfect rhombus, with the four gates located at the vertices. A main road ran through the city, running east-west and north-south, dividing it into four sections with varying degrees of development.
The northern half is called the Upper City, and the southern half is called the Lower City. Generally speaking, the north of the city is rich and the south is poor, and people from both sides rarely interact unless necessary.
The area close to the northeast has the best security and is the most affluent. The closer to the central square where the main roads intersect, the more prosperous it is. The headquarters of the Kingdom Knights' Eston West City Branch is stationed here, and next to it is the Crescent Cathedral of the state religion "Lunar Worship".
The conditions in the northwest are slightly worse. There are many businesses here, as well as several schools, and the environment is relatively orderly.
The southeast, however, was even less so. It was once a bustling commercial center, but with the accidental death of Grand Master of Potions Mi Funa in the capital three years ago, her brewing workshop closed down and fell into disrepair. Overnight, the bustling business suddenly became deserted, rapidly declining and withering.
The southwest is a complete slum, with all kinds of people mixed together. It is a gathering place for killers, thieves, mercenaries and desperadoes. It is also a dark area where a lot of intelligence flows and converges. Andre stayed here for one night and has obtained a lot of intelligence.
The thin attendants moved nimbly through the similar streets, and the tall man followed them slowly. They soon stopped in front of a three-and-a-half-story wooden building. The door of the building was closed, and a half-fallen sign was hung on the door. The words had been blurred by the wind and rain: [... Brewing Workshop].
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