For Bert, these months were the most fulfilling and happiest of his life; he was immensely grateful to have been chosen by his family to join Duke Tywin's secret army, and also delighted to have been captured by Lord Linde, otherwise, he would not have been able to fully utilize his knowledge as he was now.
Although he was nominally Lord Linde's Official, his authority had long exceeded that of an Official; in addition to the honorary title of Tengshi Town Reconstruction Consultant, he was now also the Tax Official and Harbor Master of Tengshi Town's dock.
Both the Tax Official and Harbor Master were positions of real power, especially the Harbor Master position, which put him in charge of everything from cargo ship scheduling to warehouse usage; he had been staying at the dock for the past month, not returning to the barracks.
"Will your goods be out of storage tomorrow? Have you found a ship already? Oh, you're sharing a ship with someone else." Bert asked routinely while signing the delivery order, handing it to the merchant in front of him without lifting his head, and reminding him, "Although the Mander River is not very turbulent, you still need to be careful.
Also, even if you capsize north of Bitterbridge, don't worry; note the location of the capsizing, and we will send people along the river to search and see if we can help you recover your goods.
Alright, next!"
"I have a shipment to Highgarden that's very urgent; can you arrange a ship for me in advance? I can give you some extra benefits." A merchant stepped forward and immediately took out a small pouch full of coins, placing it on Bert's desk; from the gaps in the pouch, it was clear that it contained silver stags.
Bert did not lift his head, directly picked up the bag of money and threw it into a wooden frame nearby, saying emotionlessly, "Bribing an Official, confiscation of the bribe money, one day in the confinement room, and a fine of ten silver stags.
Guard!"
Following Bert's call, the two guard soldiers standing behind him stepped forward, ready to escort the man to the confinement room in the ruined barracks.
But the merchant clearly had no intention of surrendering, and his escorts behind him also stepped forward, creating a standoff.
"I advise you not to resist; even if you escape from me, you will…" Bert showed no panic, his gaze shifting from the cargo list on the table as he looked up at the merchant, but upon clearly seeing the merchant standing before him, he immediately froze and couldn't help but exclaim, "Father, why are you here?"
"It seems you're doing very well." The merchant standing before him was Sir Rhys Farwell; he looked at Bert with satisfaction, smiling.
Bert, with a wide smile, was about to say something when he suddenly remembered something, immediately reining in his smile and returning to his initial serious expression, saying to Sir Rhys, "Sir Rhys Farwell, your act of bribery has violated the regulations of Tengshi Town; I must now penalize you, please cooperate and do not resist." After speaking, he instructed the two guards, "Take him to the confinement room."
Upon hearing Bert's order, both soldiers froze, unsure whether they should follow the command.
"Didn't you hear my order? Do I need to emphasize the military law issued by Lord Linde?" Bert said with a serious expression.
The two soldiers exchanged glances, then took a step forward and said to Sir Rhys, "Sir, please come with us! Do not resist."
Watching this scene, Sir Rhys Farwell's face showed surprise, as if looking at a stranger as he gazed at his second son, then he smiled again, raising a hand to signal his guards not to act, telling them to return to the town's inn and wait for him, then he said to the two soldiers, "Lead the way!"
After speaking, he motioned for the soldiers to lead the way, and the three of them walked towards the ruined barracks together.
At this moment, all the merchants at the dock, who were handling various affairs, fell silent, and their gazes towards Bert held a hint of awe.
At the same time, Lord Linde, Nameria, and Jon had just walked out of the barracks and were heading towards the dock when the escorted Sir Rhys Farwell came walking towards them, and they quickly passed each other.
Lord Linde and Nameria looked at Sir Rhys Farwell, then shifted their gaze; after Lord Linde helped Nameria establish the territorial laws of Tengshi Town, it was not the first time someone had been fined and confined for violating the regulations.
They were not worried about offending great nobles; most of the merchants who came here now were ordinary people or exclusive purchasing agents for certain nobles, whose status inherently determined that they could not resist when facing the regulations of Tengshi Town.
What's more, the regulations Lord Linde formulated for Nameria were not the chaotic noble laws currently practiced by nobles; summarized, there were only three articles: the first was bribery, the second was brawling, and the third was theft, somewhat similar to Tengshi Town's version of the "Three-Chapter Compact."
As for the penalties for violating the regulations, there were only two: confinement and fines; generally, minor offenses resulted in fines, while serious ones led to confinement, which was not being locked in a dungeon, but sent to the small dark rooms Lord Linde specifically prepared for cavalrymen and warriors who violated military rules, which would definitely leave a deep impression on those who broke the regulations.
This was actually a test Lord Linde was conducting for his future territory; not only the territorial laws, but even the entire Tengshi Town was part of the test.
As the group passed each other, Jon also casually glanced at the escorted Sir Rhys, initially not recognizing him, instinctively assuming it was just someone who had accidentally violated the territorial regulations, until he had walked a few steps further with Lord Linde and Nameria, only then realizing that the person being escorted was Sir Rhys, freezing in place and turning back to look at Sir Rhys to confirm he hadn't been mistaken.
"Lord, Lord!" After confirming that Sir Rhys had been escorted away, Jon quickly caught up with Lord Linde, pointing at the already distant Sir Rhys and saying, "The person just escorted away by the guards was Sir Rhys."
Hearing Jon's words, Lord Linde and Nameria both paused, then turned their heads to look at Sir Rhys.
At this moment, the escorted Sir Rhys also seemed to notice Lord Linde and Nameria's gaze, and he too turned his head to look at them, waving at Lord Linde and Nameria.
"Jon, go tell the guards to release him." Nameria quickly instructed.
"Wait, Bert is at the dock now, isn't he?" Lord Linde stopped Jon and asked.
"Yes." Jon thought for a moment and said, "He's been at the dock this whole time."
Lord Linde thought for a moment, then instructed, "Let it be! After Sir Rhys has served his confinement, we'll go visit him!"
Nameria asked doubtfully, "Won't this displease Sir Rhys?"
Lord Linde shrugged and said, "If he's displeased, then we'll hand Bert over to him for punishment; after all, it's not us who punished him, but his son."
Upon hearing this, Jon couldn't help but inwardly mourn for his cousin; he could imagine how angry his uncle would be with Bert when he came out of the small dark room.
At this moment, Sir Rhys also seemed to realize that Lord Linde and Nameria had no intention of releasing him; the smile on his face froze, and he could only follow the two guards into the barracks, then arrived in front of a row of small dark rooms that looked like toilets, and was locked inside.
Since the person they wanted to see was locked in the small dark room, Lord Linde and Nameria had no need to continue to the dock; he had Jon go to the dock to inform Bert that he already knew about him locking up Sir Rhys.
The two returned to the barracks office to continue handling the unfinished matters.
The next day, Sir Rhys was released, and Bert took a day off, waiting early outside the confinement room; after Sir Rhys was released, he immediately took Sir Rhys back to the inn where he was staying, and in the afternoon, the father and son came to the barracks to see Lord Linde and Nameria.
"Countess Nameria." Sir Rhys bowed to Nameria first upon entering the office.
Nameria slightly bowed in return, saying, "Sir Rhys, I still prefer to be called Earl, not Countess."
Sir Rhys smiled, then turned to Lord Linde and said, "Lord Linde, I have long heard of your renown, the First Swordsman of the Seven Kingdoms." He then added with a profound tone, "I didn't expect that our first meeting wouldn't showcase your exquisitely peerless dual-swordmanship; instead, I witnessed another side of you.
Do you know? You remind me of someone."
Hearing this very familiar phrase, Lord Linde paused, then chuckled, "Sir, the person you're referring to wouldn't happen to be Lord Randyll Tarly, would it?"
Sir Rhys also paused, asking doubtfully, "Has anyone else said something similar to Lord Linde?"
"Young Master Garlan Tyrell and Lord Fotimo Kleen have both said similar things." Lord Linde suddenly asked with interest, "Am I really very similar to Lord Randyll Tarly?"
Sir Rhys smiled and replied, "Not in appearance, but in certain behaviors, one can see similar shadows."
Seeing that the conversation between the two parties was going very well, completely unaffected by yesterday's punishment, Bert, who had kept a tense face since entering the room, couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Afterward, Sir Rhys chatted with Nameria for a few more sentences; during the conversation, Sir Rhys cleverly avoided mentioning Nameria's rumored father, simply praising Nameria's mother, and a few simple sentences of conversation earned Nameria's goodwill, making her believe he was a trustworthy elder.
However, Lord Linde, standing by, looked at Sir Rhys with a hint of an unusual gaze; if he hadn't been certain of the person's identity, just listening to his conversational skills, Lord Linde would have had the illusion of facing Littlefinger—both were masters of rhetoric who could use words to make people drop their guard and gain trust.
It must be said that Sir Rhys's ability to become a famous great merchant in the Westerlands indeed showed his extraordinary qualities.
However, among the influential figures a decade or so later, there was no mention of Rhys Farwell, so it was likely that some unforeseen change occurred during these years.
Later, with Sir Rhys's conscious cooperation, Lord Linde's invitation for him to become the exclusive purchasing agent for his army and Nameria's Tengshi Town was quickly settled.
Sir Rhys promised Lord Linde that he could provide supplies such as grain and weapons at prices lower than market value, and could also help Lord Linde procure other rare items, and even attract merchants to settle in Tengshi Town and Lord Linde's future territory to promote their rapid prosperity.
As for what Lord Linde needed to pay, it was that before Sir Rhys voluntarily relinquished his position as exclusive purchasing agent, Lord Linde and Nameria could not have a second exclusive purchasing agent.
Lord Linde hesitated slightly regarding Sir Rhys's request, but Nameria readily agreed.
Nameria agreed so readily not because of the goodwill created by Sir Rhys's persuasive words just now, but because in the Seven Kingdoms, the exclusive purchasing agents of most lords are fixed and hereditary, just like noble families, so Sir Rhys's request seemed perfectly normal and reasonable to her.
After carefully considering it, Lord Linde temporarily found no drawbacks, so he also agreed to Sir Rhys's request.
Afterward, the three signed an oath contract; since there were no Seven Gods Church monks, they had to settle for a scholar who had finished his travels and was preparing to return to the Citadel, to serve as a witness to the oath contract.
After each had carefully put away their oath contract, Sir Rhys said to Lord Linde, "The list you previously gave to Mr. Mus, I have already started preparing; the other items are fine, but warhorses are a bit difficult and will require a longer waiting period."
Lord Linde said in a deep voice, "It's alright, there's no rush for that, take your time; if possible, also find a warhorse suitable for Nameria's stature."
"Suitable for the Earl's stature?" Sir Rhys looked at Nameria.
Nameria frowned; although spending time with Lord Linde and others during this period had gradually helped her adapt to her unusually tall stature, being stared at still made her feel strange.
Sir Rhys suddenly said, "I know of a horse that might be very suitable for the Earl's stature, but it might be difficult to acquire."
Lord Linde showed a curious expression and said, "Tell me about it."
Sir Rhys recalled, trying to describe what he knew in as few words as possible, saying, "I visited Sunspear not long ago, and in a tavern there, I heard people discussing a herd of horses discovered in the mountains near Godgrace.
Among that herd, there was a wild horse that was exceptionally tall and magnificent; it's said its body is much larger than that of ordinary wild horses.
Some horse catchers went to capture it, but they all failed because this horse is extremely intelligent and would lead people into groups of fierce beasts; many horse catchers fell for it and ultimately never made it out of the mountains."
Hearing Sir Rhys's words, a hint of interest arose in Lord Linde's heart, while Nameria frowned, clearly having some resistance, more or less, towards things from Dorne.
Lord Linde seriously considered the possibility of going to Dorne to capture that wild horse, but after repeated contemplation, he still shook his head and said, "Going to Dorne would take too long; I simply cannot leave for such an extended period." Then, turning to Nameria, he said, "I'm sorry, I cannot go help you catch that horse."
"It's alright." Nameria smiled and shook her head, saying, "The warhorse you gave me is also very good; there's no need to find another one."
Watching their conversation, Sir Rhys seemed to notice something, and a knowing smile appeared on his face.
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