North Sea, Svalbard Island, neighboring town.
Svalo Island has a typical winter island climate. There are no so-called four seasons. The temperature on the island is below zero for almost 3/4 of the year. Such a severe cold climate has also caused the agricultural development of the island to stagnate, and vegetables and fruits basically have to be imported.
The harsh living environment has also made it impossible for the local people's living standards to improve. People have no way to obtain survival materials from the land, so they can only rely on the resource-rich sea.
Fortunately, there are hundreds of different species of tropical fish living in the waters around Svalo Island. Due to the climate, these tropical fish often obtain less fat than in the cold weather by eating a lot, which is why the fish in this area are generally larger in size.
The people on Svalo Island can barely make ends meet by relying on fishing and hunting.
Now, Lieutenant General Onigumo, who was sent by Yoshikazu Tsugakuni to collect the heavenly gold, encountered some minor troubles in the neighboring town and was hindered.
The cold wind was howling, and the streets of the neighboring town were sparsely populated. Lieutenant General Ghost Spider, wearing a thin suit and a cloak, was leading his subordinates across the long street towards the harbor, ignoring the biting cold wind.
Beside him, Luo was wearing a cotton coat, holding a long sword in both hands, and was following Ghost Spider slowly.
The navy who just came out of the Duke's Mansion seemed to have just encountered some "setbacks". All of them looked unhappy. The leader, Ghost Spider, had a serious face and low pressure around him. It was almost as if the word "unhappy" was written on his face.
On both sides of the road, there are rows of houses. In order to withstand the severe cold, ordinary residents of the neighboring town built houses with relatively small floor areas. At a glance, they are all square bungalows, and there are almost no buildings higher than four meters.
The whole town gave people a very backward and dilapidated feeling, and there was a faint smell of salted fish in the air, which made the accompanying sailors sniff involuntarily.
In such a severe winter, people can still smell the scent of salted fish in the air, which shows how strong this smell is in the entire town. If the weather were warmer, these navy soldiers might not be able to stand this smell.
As Luo followed Lieutenant General Ghost Spider closely, his eyes swept across the houses on both sides of the road, and a hint of nostalgia appeared on his face.
The climate conditions here are actually very similar to those in his hometown. Even the faint salty smell in the air is the same as what Luo remembers.
Although this small town is not as wealthy as his hometown, looking at the scenery here reminds Luo of some childhood memories.
He couldn't help but think of his deceased parents and sister.
Thinking of this, Luo couldn't help but soften his heart:
"Lieutenant General Ghost Spider, what Duke Taiwu said shouldn't be a lie."
"Haven't we also collected relevant information about Svalo Island? This principality is really not rich."
"For a country like this, it is difficult to maintain the expenses of Tianshangjin."
"In previous years, the fortune and harvest were relatively good, and His Excellency the Duke was even able to collect gold from the people."
"This year, due to the impact of an unknown tsunami and earthquake, the local fishermen's harvest has been drastically reduced. It's no wonder that the Duke is unable to pay the Heavenly Gold."
"Our navy is now responsible for collecting the Heavenly Gold. This must be different from when the Celestial Dragons collected the Heavenly Gold, right?"
"I think you should make a petition to the General of Succession to exempt this principality from the heavenly gold?"
Luo was deeply influenced by Rosinante and was a kind young man.
Speaking of which, the trouble that Spider Demon and his crew encountered on Svalo Island was not because of any pirates that were too powerful to be defeated, but simply because they could not collect the Sky Gold.
The actual ruler of Svalo Island is Taiwu, a duke, and this island is his fiefdom.
Duke Taiwu behaved very submissively when the navy came to collect the Heavenly Gold. Subjectively speaking, he cooperated to the utmost. However, when it came to paying the Heavenly Gold, the Duke began to cry poor.
He said frankly that he had no way to collect the Heavenly Gold from the people. His words were all for the consideration of ordinary people. He said that if those people paid the Heavenly Gold, many people would have difficulty making a living and would not be able to survive in such a harsh environment.
Facing Spider Demon, Duke Taiwu frankly stated that he was incapable and hoped that the navy could collect the full amount of Heavenly Gold on their own. As the ruler of the principality, he would fully support the actions of the navy headquarters.
Duke Taiwu's words were equivalent to putting all the blame on the navy, but Spider-Ghost only brought a limited number of people with him on this trip, and his understanding of the principality was limited. If he were to be responsible for such a matter, Spider-Ghost would not be able to handle it at all.
During the negotiations with Duke Taiwu, Spider Ghost was at a disadvantage, but Taiwu had no intention of continuing to embarrass Spider Ghost, and finally gave Spider Ghost a way out.
If the Navy Headquarters has no way to collect the Heavenly Gold directly from the people, then let the Navy Headquarters give it a year's grace period, and by this time next year, it will definitely hand over the Heavenly Gold in full.
Although Tai Wu's words sound nice, any smart person knows that this is just his "delaying tactic". This year he used the excuse of "bad year" to refuse to pay the heavenly gold, and next year he could have the same reasons.
To put it bluntly, it's nothing more than Duke Taiwu bullying people like Ghost Spider because they "don't understand business."
As for Luo
When he personally strolled through the desolate streets of the neighboring town and felt the bleak and silent atmosphere here, he actually believed what Duke Taiwu said and hoped that the navy could make some concessions.
It's not because Luo is a traitor or anything else, it's just because Luo remembered the time when he was a commoner, and he put himself in others' shoes, so he made such a suggestion.
It is normal for Luo to have such thoughts in his heart.
But as a navy, they absolutely cannot leave here in such disgrace.
"Luo, you think too simply."
"It's not just as simple as exempting them from a year's worth of heavenly gold."
"This is a matter concerning the dignity of our navy. We absolutely cannot compromise on this matter. Once this loophole is opened, countless troubles will be waiting for us!"
Ghost Spider is a taciturn and hot-tempered vice admiral. In the eyes of other navy officers, he is a serious and difficult to approach vice admiral.
In fact, this is indeed the case.
If the person who said this to him was not Luo, but someone else, he would have scolded him a long time ago.
The reason why he could still talk to Luo calmly about these things was not only because Luo was the adopted grandson of Marshal Zhan Guo, but more importantly, Luo was an extremely talented young officer. In time, Luo would surely become the pillar of their navy.
Ghost Spider valued the young man Luo, so he patiently planned to teach him a lesson.
Luo escaped from the control of the Don Quixote family early and became a member of the navy, which was both a good thing and a bad thing.
Under Doflamingo's command, Law was able to witness all the evil in the world. While he was able to stick to his original intention and retain some kindness, he would no longer have any filters for human nature and would no longer have any naive ideas in his mind.
But now Law has returned to the Naval Headquarters early and grew up in a relatively "greenhouse" environment. This has given him more hope for human nature and he feels that there are still more good people in the world.
After all, in his opinion, those generals, colleagues, and partners who were familiar with him in the Navy Headquarters could be considered good people, but he ignored the kindness others showed him. It was not entirely for him personally, but more for his adoptive father and nominal grandfather.
"Countless troubles?!"
"Lieutenant General Ghost Spider, are you exaggerating a bit?"
The young Luo was obviously not as experienced as Ghost Spider, and there was some doubt on his slightly immature face.
Turning his head slightly to glance at Luo beside him, Ghost Spider sighed softly:
"If I really did as he said and asked the general for it, and the general agreed, it would be like setting a bad precedent."
"Svalo Island can refuse to pay the Heavenly Gold due to a bad year, but what about the other countries in the North Sea?!"
"Will other countries follow suit after seeing Svalbard avoid the Heavenly Gold by claiming 'bad times'?"
"Does our navy only allow Svalo Island to have a 'bad year'?"
"Taking possession of Heavenly Gold requires drastic measures. Once such a gap is opened, it will be unbearable."
"Think about it again."
"The lieutenant general who came to collect the heavenly gold today is me. What if it was someone else?"
"I'm not bragging, but among the many vice admirals in the Marine Headquarters, not all of them are like me."
"Has any lieutenant general been bribed by the king out of greed for money or sex? Report it to the general and use the excuse of 'a bad year.'"
"Even if General Tsugikoku Yoshida is very perceptive, what about the future?!"
"After several decades or even hundreds of years, the Marine Headquarters will have to survive. Will the Admirals of that time be able to be like Admiral Yoshida Tsugakuni?!"
Ghost Spider had a lot of thoughts in mind, and he looked very serious when he spoke to Luo. It was obvious that he really wanted to teach Luo something.
Listening carefully to Vice Admiral Ghost Spider's analysis and explanation, Luo nodded first, then shook his head and asked naively:
"Lieutenant General, can't we just be realistic?"
"What you said is nothing more than conjecture after all."
"Why don't we take a look at the situation before us and then make our decision?"
"If you report the situation here truthfully to General Tsugikoku Yoshiichi, I'm sure that with his kindness, he will definitely not bear to see ordinary people suffer because of Tianshangjin."
"We, the Navy, took this 'job' from the World Government to seek true justice, didn't we?!"
Luo can be considered as a smart man with quick wit.
He jumped out of Ghost Spider's thoughts and continued to persuade Ghost Spider. Luo could agree that what Ghost Spider said might really happen at some point in the future.
But before that, if their navy really forcibly requisitioned the Heavenly Gold on Svalo Island, it would be "immediate" that ordinary people would find it difficult to make ends meet.
Luo didn't want to see that scene, nor did he want to see the people suffer because of the navy.
“Seek truth from facts.”
"Haha, that's really something a kid your age can say."
Unable to communicate with Luo, Ghost Spider's patience was gradually wearing thin. He felt that he had fulfilled his duty as a lieutenant general to guide the younger generation by being able to talk so much with Luo. Since Luo was unable to understand, he did not want to say anything more.
After a light sarcastic remark, Ghost Spider said no more.
Luo also felt the change in Ghost Spider's mentality and silently shut his mouth, but he just shut his mouth, he would not change his mind.
A group of people were walking towards the harbor when the door of a house on the street suddenly opened with a bang. A black shadow rolled out of the door at a rapid speed and fell in the middle of the street.
Ghost Spider and his group paused and looked intently, realizing that the black shadow that rolled out of the house was actually a young man of eighteen or nineteen years old. There was blood at the corner of the man's mouth, and he was wearing only a single piece of clothing. He struggled to sit up, and then looked towards the door with a face full of resentment.
At this time, two burly men in cotton clothes were walking towards the outside of the house, dragging a basket full of fish in their hands.
"Little Sig, your father was slacking off while working, so your family is not eligible to receive this week's distribution."
"Don't look at us like that. This is all the boss's idea."
The two men glanced at Ghost Spider and other navy men, their eyes slightly evasive, but they seemed not to have forgotten what they came here for, and spoke to the young man on the ground.
After saying that, he ignored Sig's murderous look and dragged the fish away.
The heavy fish basket left a long trail in the snow.
Ghost Spider glanced at the young man and was about to leave, but Luo beside him hurried forward and kindly helped the young man up.
However, the young man called Xiao Xige did not appreciate it. He stood up, swung his arms, glanced at Luo as if he was an enemy, spat at the two men, and then slowly walked towards his home.
"Bang!"
Under the gaze of the navy, the door was slammed shut.
Luo was bewildered until Xiao Xige left, with his hand still suspended in mid-air. The look in his eyes when he left was still fresh in Luo's memory. The disgust and hatred that came from the depths of his soul was something Luo had never seen before.
"this"
Luo opened his mouth, not knowing what to say for a moment.
Ghost Spider took a deep look at Luo beside him, his eyelids drooped slightly, and suddenly said something incoherent:
"That look is unfamiliar to you, right, Luo?"
“But I’m somewhat familiar with it.”
"It looks like someone has already prepared the Heavenly Gold for us!"
"This saves us trouble."
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com