When the Bard finished that section and jumped off the high stool to bow to the surrounding people, Xia De, who was eating, felt his pocket and pulled out two one-shilling coins, which he tossed over. His fairly high level of strength control and good luck allowed the two coins to fall directly into the red soft hat the Bard was holding.
Two shillings was considered very generous, and the Bard immediately bowed to Xia De.
Xia De asked,
"I've heard too many legendary tales. Do you have any fresh songs?"
"What would you like to hear?"
The Bard asked politely.
"Do you have anything related to rhode cards?"
"Yes! The Great City Player in Tobesk ended last Wednesday, and that much-talked-about final, as well as the controversial identities of the two finalists, are the best topics."
After speaking, he didn't even ask for Xia De's opinion, picked up his lute again, sat on the high stool, and immediately began the prelude.
The people in Sicar Inn were attracted by this fresh song, and for a time, the atmosphere in the inn was even livelier than before. Only Xia De felt a bit uncomfortable, as although what the other party sang were all facts, the way he depicted them was simply too exaggerated.
By the time Xia De finished his meal, the Bard's song about "Big City Player 1853" was not yet finished. Xia De turned to look at the restaurant and saw two men in Royal Army officer uniforms playing rhode cards at a table among the crowd, so he stood up and walked over.
Ordinary soldiers on leave were not allowed to walk around in military uniforms; only officers of lieutenant rank and above were permitted. The two playing rhode cards at the table at this time were a Captain, the one with a rougher appearance, and a Lieutenant, the one who was a bit shorter but looked younger.
Xia De pulled up a chair and sat down at the table, and the two playing cards immediately stopped and looked at him.
"Do you mind if I play a game with you?"
Xia De took out his deck of cards and spread them into an arc on the table.
Because of his previous conversation with the Bard, this request was not particularly abrupt. The two officers exchanged glances, and the older Captain asked,
"How do we bet?"
He meant they should bet money.
"We'll play ten games, drawing a minimum of two cards and a maximum of four cards per game. Ties don't count. Half a shilling per game, even if you lose everything, it's only the price of a pair of ladies' stockings, but it can provide us with some entertainment."
His analogy made both officers laugh, and the rugged-looking Captain extended his hand to Xia De:
"Joel Joseph, Captain of the Royal Army at Windy Path."
"John Watson, a Writer collecting local stories, and occasionally a Detective running errands for people."
Xia De also extended his hand and shook his.
With the Lieutenant as the referee, the two men checked their decks and then began to play. The Captain's deck only had two special-faced cards, while Xia De used a basic deck. Although ten games sounded like a lot, they finished in just half an hour.
Excluding ties, Xia De won eight of them, while the Captain won two. This was a fair game, and the stakes weren't very high, so Captain Joseph didn't intend to renege.
He was about to pay the bet, but Xia De waved his hand, telling him not to be in such a hurry:
"Excuse me, do you know Captain Lades? I've heard of his deeds in Tobesk and would like to speak with him."
Xia De first asked about his friend.
"Yes, that Captain can be considered a local celebrity. He's at Red Water Camp and should have some leave next Wednesday. You can go into the mountains, to the traveler's camp next to the military camp, and you'll surely find him."
Windy Path is the only way to cross Sicar Mountain on foot, so travelers have spontaneously formed a relatively simple camp next to the military camp as a transit point for entering the mountains, and also to trade goods with the garrison at Windy Path.
Xia De nodded. Of course, he wouldn't go looking for Captain Lades; he just wanted to know that the Captain had arrived safely:
"Speaking of Red Water Camp, do you know Captain Ronald?"
Captain Joseph raised an eyebrow, stopping his movement to take the money, realizing that the man who claimed to be a Writer had approached him not simply for a game of cards:
"There is indeed a Captain named Ronald, but he hasn't done anything that ordinary citizens would know about. Did he play cards here and owe pounds?"
"No, no. A few days ago, I met a strange man who asked me to deliver this gun to Captain Ronald, and he even gave me one pound for it."
Xia De placed the deceased Corporal's pistol on the table:
"I took someone else's money, so naturally, I have to do the job."
"I don't know when Captain Ronald will be on leave. How about I go find him, ask him for his leave time, and then come back and tell you?"
Captain Joseph asked, but Xia De shook his head:
"I'm just delivering something; there's no need to see that Captain. Please help me deliver this gun to him. I won't take the 3 shillings I just won, and I can give you some more money."
He took out some coins and pushed them to the other party, probably more than 5 shillings. These were found on the Corporal who died in 【Life and Death Gap】. Xia De only kept two shillings as his own payment and took out all the rest. As for the Corporal's body, Xia De restored it from its toy state and buried it on Sicar Mountain, where the scenery was beautiful:
"This way, my work is complete."
Captain Joseph inspected the gun. Seeing that Xia De had no intention of prying into the camp's secrets, he became less wary:
"This is very simple; I think it's no problem. So, after delivering this gun, do we need to have Captain Ronald write a receipt to prove the task is completed?"
He seemed like a responsible person.
"No need, I trust those who wear Royal Army uniforms."
Xia De gave a small compliment to the other party, and the Captain couldn't help but smile:
"Of course, the Royal Army can be trusted."
The atmosphere immediately became harmonious. Captain Joseph and his companion, Lieutenant Hoyle, had nothing to do that afternoon, so they invited Xia De to continue playing cards.
Xia De also had nothing to do that afternoon. He had an appointment to meet Priest Augustus at four o'clock today, and it was only one o'clock now, so spending some time here seemed like a good idea.
So the three planned to start a three-person card game. While Xia De was checking Lieutenant Hoyle's deck, they listened to the Bard's lute and talked about the Great City Player in Tobesk. Nearly a week had passed since Big City Player 1853 ended last Wednesday, but the story of that legendary match still excited rhode cards players around the world.
"How will we bet this time?"
Lieutenant Hoyle took the deck from Xia De's hand and asked. Seeing that none of them had special rule cards, Xia De shook his head:
"Actually, I usually don't gamble. How about we play a drinking game? The loser pays for their own drink, half a glass per game. We can get some low-alcohol, cheap fruit wine."
Xia De suggested, but Captain Joseph shook his head with a troubled expression:
"Although we're on leave now, it's best not to drink too much. It's not that I'm not confident I can win against you, but judging from the ten games just now, I'm afraid my luck won't be good this afternoon, and if we really play, I'll definitely drink the most—"
Just then—
Bang~
The originally lively inn suddenly fell silent. Captain Joseph and Lieutenant Hoyle instinctively reached for their sidearms, while Xia De, like most people on the first floor, looked up.
It was a gunshot, and the gunshot came from directly above the inn.
PS: Let's talk about the Spring Festival extra update plan. At least 20,000 words will be added on the first day of the Lunar New Year. As for how many chapters, the author will consider it again.
