Chapter 10 Chapter 9: Fighting is the Daily Expense of a Merchant

Bai Aoyi is an old man who is too old to be afraid of anything.Since the last riot, he's lived solitary here on the frontier with a collection of books he salvaged from the destruction.He didn't have anything of his own, so he didn't have to worry about losing anything, so he didn't make any excuses when facing the intruders. "Your door is open." The stranger explained. This person's tone was simple and piercing, but Bai Aoyi did not miss the strange-shaped steel firearm hanging around his waist, and in the dark small room, Bai Aoyi saw the halo of the force shield surrounding this person.

He said with a tired face: "There is no need to close the door. Do you have anything to do with me?" "Yes." The visitor was still standing in the room and asked, he was tall and strong: "You are the only room around here?" "It's desolate here." Bai Onon said, "But there's a small town to the east, do you want me to tell you how to get there?" "Wait a minute. May I sit?" "As long as the chair can support you." The old man said with a straight face.The chairs are as old as people, but seem to have had a glorious past as well.

The visitor said: "My name is Marlowe, and I come from a distant province." Bai Aoyi nodded and said with a smile: "Your tongue has long since given up on itself. I am Bai Aoyi from Silvany—a former nobleman of the empire." "Then this is indeed Silvaner. I'm just relying on old maps to guide me." "That is indeed old, and it refers to the wrong position of the planet." When the other party's eyes were absorbed, Bai Aoyi remained motionless, but noticed that the nuclear energy shield around the man had disappeared.He couldn't help feeling rather unsatisfied, admitting that he was no longer worth guarding against outsiders--or even, for better or worse, against the enemy.

He said: "My house is bare and my supplies are limited. If your stomach can bear black bread and dry corn, I can give you some." Marlowe shook his head: "No, I've eaten, and I can't stay long. I just need to know how to get to the administrative center." "Just say no. Even if I'm so poor, a few words won't hurt anything. Are you going to the capital of the planet, or the provincial capital of the empire?" The young man narrowed his eyes: "Isn't it the same size? Isn't this Silvany?" The old nobleman nodded slowly: "Silvaner is right, but Silvaner is no longer the capital of the Norman province. Your old map is completely wrong. The position of the stars can remain unchanged for thousands of years, but Political boundaries have never been stable."

"Bad. Really bad. Is the new provincial capital far away?" "On Osha II, twenty seconds away, your map will point it out. How old is it?" "One hundred and fifty years." "So old?" The old man waved his hand: "The history of this period is really a mess. Do you know these historical sites?" Marlowe shook his head slowly. Bai Oi said: "You are lucky. During this period, all provinces have suffered bad luck, except the reign of Stanley VI, and he has been dead for fifty years. Since then, mutiny has led to destruction, And the destruction triggered another rebellion." Bai Aoyi wondered if it was too noisy; but life here is very lonely, and it is rare to have the opportunity to talk to people,

Marlowe suddenly shrieked: "Destruction, huh? Sounds like the province is pretty much broken." "Perhaps not by absolute standards. The natural resources of twenty-five first-class planets can last a long time, but compared with the affluence of the last century, we have come a long way downhill—and we can't see it yet." There is no turning point. Young man, why are you so interested in these things? You look refreshed and bright-eyed!" The merchant was just close enough to see that his face was flushed, and the old man's blank eyes seemed to be pleased with seeing right through him.

He said, "Listen now. I'm a trader - from the edge of the galaxy. I found some old maps, and I've come to open up new markets. Naturally, talking about the Barrens makes me panic. Unless this planet has money waiting for you Come to earn money, otherwise it is impossible to earn money, how is Silvaner doing now? Let’s use an analogy.” The old man leaned forward: "I can't tell. Maybe you can still make money. But, you will be a businessman? You look more like a soldier. You keep your hands in the holster, and you have a scar on your jaw." Marlowe raised his head sharply: "There is no law in the place I came from. Fighting and scars are the daily expenses of businessmen. But fighting must be profitable; if you can make money without fighting, that would be even better. Well, is there enough money here, is it worth my life? It's easy to fight with people."

"It's very easy." Bai Aoyi agreed: "You can go to Red Star to add people to the remnants of Huesca, although I don't know if you will call their behavior as making money or robbery. Or you can rely on our lenient people The current governor—this upright man assassinated the late emperor, he coerced the young master to command the princes, and benefited the people by killing, stabbing, and plundering." "It seems that your friendship with the Governor is not very good, Mr. Bai." Marlowe said, "What if I am his spy?" "A secret agent?" Bai Aoyi said sharply, "What else can you take away?"

He stretched out his withered fingers to point to the desolate four walls of the ruined building. "Your life." "Just to find relief, five years of life is too long. But you will not be the governor's man. If you are, the instinct of self-preservation will make me shut up." "And how do you know?" The old man laughed: "You look very suspicious. Ha, I bet you think I'm trying to lure you to discredit the government. That's not the case. I've stopped asking about politics a long time ago." "Don't ask about politics? Who can get away with it? Those words you use to describe the governor-what are they? Killing poke, looting, etc., don't sound very objective. No, no, you don't look like no Ask people in politics."

The old man shrugged: "Sudden memories are always stinging. Listen! You judge for yourself! When Silvany was the provincial capital, I was a nobleman and a provincial councilor. My family has a long history and honor for generations. Great-grandfather's generation Someone once—forget it, don’t mention it; heroes don’t mention the courage of the past.” "I understand," said Marlowe, "that there was a civil war or a revolution." Bai Aoyi's face was gloomy: "In those decadent years, there were frequent civil wars, but Silvaner always stayed out of it. Under the rule of Stanley VI, the old prosperity was almost restored. But the successor emperors were all cowardly, weak The emperor created a domineering foreign vassal. Our former governor—that Huesca, who is still leading the remnants of the Red Star District to plunder merchants—he dreamed of wearing a yellow robe. He is not the first person to dream of an emperor. And, if He succeeded, and he was not the first person to usurp the throne. But he failed. Because when the commander-in-chief of the Royal Forest Army led the imperial fleet to approach the city, the people of Silvani revolted and expelled the rebellious governor." He paused slightly, Sentimental.

Marlowe found his tense muscles sitting on the edge of the chair, and slowly relaxed: "Please continue, sir." "Thank you," Bai Aoyi said with a tired face, "You kindly accommodate an old man. They rebelled, or should I say, we rebelled, because I am also a small leader. Huesca left Silvany and fell into ruins before our eyes and fled; and the whole planet, and the whole province, opened their doors to welcome the Commander-in-Chief and pay homage to the Emperor. I don't understand why it was done then. Maybe we are just a symbol of allegiance to the Emperor, not to him personally —that cruel, vicious imp. Perhaps we fear the siege." "What happened next?" Marlowe urged softly. "Later," the old man suddenly laughed viciously, "the commander-in-chief was very upset. What he wanted was the glory of eradicating the rebellious party, but what his subordinates wanted was the spoils of conquest. So when the people were still gathering in major cities, While cheering the Emperor and the Commander-in-Chief, he seized all the military positions. Then ordered the use of nuclear cannons against the people." "What excuse?" "The pretext was that the people had betrayed the Governor-General appointed by the Emperor. And the Commander-in-Chief became the new Governor-General, and personally brewed a month-long reign of terror of massacres and looting. Of my six sons, five died--all kinds of All kinds of crimes. I have a daughter, I hope she will be released soon, I escaped because I was too old, and came here, so old that even our Lord Governor doesn't want to bother to deal with it." He hung his gray hair Forehead: "They took everything from me, because I helped drive out the rebellious chief. Dust the glory of the commander-in-chief." Marlowe sat quietly, waiting.Marlowe then said, "How is your sixth son?" "Eh?" he grinned bitterly; "he's safe because he joined the Commander-in-Chief's army under a pseudonym as a private, and as a gunner in the Governor's SS. Oh no, I know what you're thinking, he's not a shameless man My son. He always came to visit me and bring me what he could, and he kept me alive. One day, our wise and great governor will finally be punished, and the executioner must be my son." "You tell this to a stranger? You're killing your own son." "No, I'm helping him, teaching him a new enemy. If I were a friend of the Governor—of course I'm his enemy—I'd teach him to deploy warships along the perimeter to sweep the Galactic Edge." "There are no warships on the periphery?" "Did you see that? Did you get questioned by the guards when you came in? There are not enough ships to guard the surrounding provinces against plots. It is very important to have troops to guard the barbaric outer planets. The divided galaxy border region has never been There is a danger that threatens us—until you show up here." "Me? I'm in no danger." "More will follow." Marlowe shook his head slowly: "I don't know if I understand." "Listen!" The old man spoke frantically, "As soon as you came in, I could see that you were wearing a force shield, at least when I first saw you," There was a moment of doubt in the silence, and Marlowe said, "That's right—I have." "Very well. That's showing your feet, but you don't know it. I know some things, although in this decadent age, scholars have lost sight of the times. The world is like the wind, and those who can't hold a gun and fight the trend will Get brushed off, like me. But I'm an academic anyway, and I know that in the entire history of nuclear science, a portable force shield has never been invented. There is a force shield—supplied by a huge, cumbersome power plant , to protect a city or a battleship, not a small individual." "Ah?" Marlowe's lower lip protruded, "Then what do you see?" "There are anecdotes in space that permeate and twist and twist, and are misinterpreted with each passing second—but when I was a child, there was a boat carrying strangers who didn't understand our human customs, nor Know where it came from. They talked about the magician on the frontier of the galaxy, who would light up in the dark, fly freely without external force, and be invulnerable to weapons. Everyone laughed. I laughed too. I have long known about this Forgotten to this day. You glow in the dark, and I think a gun in your hand can't hurt you. Tell me, can you fly while you sit like this?" Marlowe calmly replied, "I can't do any of these things." Bai Aoyi said with a smile: "I'm satisfied with this answer, I don't want to test the guests. But if there are magicians, if you are one of them, then one day, they, or you, will come in large numbers. Said Maybe this is also very good, we also need new blood." He muttered a few words to himself, and then said slowly: "But the other side is also active. Our new governor is also dreaming, and old Weiss Cards do the same." "Even coveting the emperor's throne?" Bai Hornon nodded; "My son heard some rumors. In the governor's personal guard, such things are always inevitable. He told me. Our new governor will not refuse the crown he has, but he will Make a good retreat first. Rumors are that if the aspiring lotus and deer do not win the battle, he intends to create a new empire in the wilderness behind. Some people say, but I can't guarantee that he has married a daughter to a small country in an unknown place in the border area Be queen." "If all the legends are true—" "I know. There are many rumors like this. I am old and full of nonsense. But what do you think?" The old man's piercing eyes stared deeply. The merchant thought for a while; "I have no opinion, but I have something to ask. Does Sylvania have nuclear power? Wait a minute, I know that the knowledge of nuclear science still exists. I mean, is there still a complete generator? Or in the Was it destroyed in recent wars?" "Destroy? Destroying the smallest power plant is not as easy as clearing half of the planet. These power plants supply the energy needed by the entire fleet, which is irreplaceable." The old man looked proud: "We have the largest power plant between Trantor and here." The best power plant." "So, if I'm going to look at these generators, what should I do first?" "Impossible!" Bai Yuyi replied decisively: "As soon as you approach the important military sites, you will be beaten to death immediately. No one can do it. Silvani's civil rights have not yet been restored." "That means all power plants are under military control?" "No, there are also some small town factories and stations that supply private temperature control, lighting, transportation, etc. But the situation is just as bad, and it is managed by the technical staff." "What kind of hall is that?" "A group of experts who supervise the power plant, hereditary titles, young people who are new to the industry have to start as apprentices and learn a strong sense of responsibility, honor, etc. No one can enter the factory except the technical staff." "I understand." "However, I didn't say that," Bai Aoyi added: "Technology is exactly what cannot be bribed. These days, nine emperors have appeared in fifty years, and seven of them have been assassinated—every warship Captains all want to usurp the governorship, and every governor dreams of becoming emperor—I think even if you are good at it, you will inevitably degenerate and chase money. But it takes more than a small sum. I don't have it, do you have it? " "Money? Does bribery have to use money?" "Money can buy everything, is there anything better?" "There are many things that money cannot buy. Now, if you are willing to tell me how to get to the nearest city with a power plant in the shortest possible time, I will be very grateful." "Wait!" Zi Aoyi stretched out his withered hands: "What's the hurry? I didn't ask you anything when you came here. In the city, the residents are still charged with the crime of disorderly party. The soldiers or guards are the first to see If they see your clothes, or hear your foreign accent, they will come to question you immediately." He got up and took out a booklet from the wardrobe in the corner: "My pass-false. I escaped with this." He put the pass into Marlowe's palm, and closed Marlowe's fingers; "The description of the characteristics does not match, but if you hold it in your hand and wave it, they probably won't look carefully." "What about you? What if you lose your pass?" The old exile shrugged his shoulders and sneered: "So what? And you have to be very careful and keep your mouth shut: your voice is rough, your idiomatic expressions are very special, and there will be a sentence or two of ancient Chinese from time to time to startle you. The less you speak, It's less likely to show off. Now I'll tell you how to get to town—" Five minutes later, Marlowe left. Shortly after leaving, he returned to the old nobleman's house before really walking away. Early the next morning, Bai Aoyi walked into his small garden and found a box by his feet.The food in the box, like the concentrated food stored on the ship, tastes and cooks in foreign style.But it's a first-class product, and it lasts a long time.