Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

In a dimly lit bar within the slums, three individuals sat facing each other.

The bar was quite dilapidated, illuminated by only three or four lamps, and the drinks served were merely cheap liquor, mostly intended to satisfy the spiritual needs of the lower class, with no pretense of good taste.

The drinks were on the table, untouched by anyone.

Hope, however, was quite relaxed, with one arm draped over the chair, and asked, "If you have any questions for me, just ask them directly."

"I want to..."

"I'd like to understand the situation in the slums. Why are so many poor people gathered in the Holy City, and how do they survive?" Father Solger interjected before Lai Gou'er could finish.

Hope replied, "Is it strange that there are many poor people in the Holy City? These slums are populated by the descendants of the craftsmen who built the Holy City in the first place. They live in the slums during the day and go into the inner city at night to sweep the streets or help people repair their houses. They've been living like this for generations."

"Then... with so much wealth, hasn't the Church considered helping these people improve their lives?" Father Solger pressed further, "Besides, there are people like you in the slums. Their lives shouldn't be so terrible."

"Improve?" Hope scoffed. "The Church relies on these people to survive. If they live well, how will the Church survive?"

"My coming here to do good is just because of an accident... Two months ago, an organization called the Mutual Aid Society appeared in the slums of the Holy City. The Mutual Aid Society has been helping the poor build shacks and clean up garbage in the slums, without asking for anything in return. I came to take a look out of curiosity after hearing about it."

"I didn't expect it to be real. The slums you see now are much better than they were two months ago. Back then, the streets were full of excrement and garbage. If it weren't for the Mutual Aid Society, there would be no place to step."

"Later, I saw that they were really working hard, so I sent them a sum of money and took the time to come and see how well they were doing and whether they were wasting my money."

Lai Gou'er felt a little happy after hearing this.

The Mutual Aid Society was just a front for the Brotherhood. They had arrived in the Holy City earlier, and Xiao Shuai had already reported it.

Da Zhuang and Fobole were active in the city.

Normally, he didn't ask too much about how they did things, but he didn't expect them to actually achieve some results here.

"Isn't sanitation difficult to manage? How did they do it?" Lai Gou'er asked curiously.

Hope seemed to recall something and chuckled, "The people of the Mutual Aid Society are a bit strange. Originally, these poor people had no rules at all and would urinate and defecate in the streets. Even if toilets were built, no one would use them. Later, the Mutual Aid Society specifically organized a group of people to wander the streets. Whenever someone relieved themselves, a group of people would go up and watch, and after a while, no one dared to mess around anymore."

"Later, they distributed food and medicine, which attracted many people to join, and now they have a very high reputation in the slums."

"Father, if you want to stay comfortably in the church, then you should get along with the Mutual Aid Society. They can help you solve many troubles. Those poor people look pitiful, but sometimes they are very annoying. Don't blame me if something happens."

Father Solger nodded and then took a sip of the sour wine.

Seeing that he had nothing to say, Lai Gou'er said, "I come from an Eastern country, and I will inevitably have to deal with the Holy See when I expand my business in the future. I wonder about the relationships within the Holy City Church..."

Hope tapped the table and said, "Friend, I can drink with you, but if you want to inquire about this matter, it's not a normal price. However, I am a bit interested in Eastern goods. What are you selling?"

Lai Gou'er took out a jade pendant from his pocket and handed it over.

"How about this?"

Hope glanced at it: "The stone is worthless."

"This is jade."

"I don't care what you call it. Only gems can be sold at a high price here. This thing is not recognized outside. Do you have anything else?"

Lai Gou'er pondered for a long time: "How about porcelain?"

Porcelain!?

Hope suddenly widened his eyes, leaned forward, and placed both hands on the table: "You have Eastern porcelain... Did you come from Fika? Is the porcelain from Fika sold from your hands?"

He found it, he found a treasure!

That thing is currently priceless, circulates extremely quickly on the black market, and is in extremely high demand.

Now he unexpectedly found a clue, and Hope was overjoyed.

Lai Gou'er thought for a while and felt that it wouldn't hurt to say it, so he said yes.

Hope laughed loudly: "Good! Good! You met the right person when you met me. You shouldn't talk to the Church about this matter. They will peel off at least one layer of your skin, and five layers are a small number."

"The person who sells goods for you on the black market must have encouraged you to come. Communicating with the Church openly and honestly will inevitably be attacked if you don't cooperate. In the future, if you want to make more money, you can only rely on his channels, but you are lucky to meet me. If you cooperate with the Church, they will eat meat and you will drink soup. If you cooperate with me, everyone will eat meat together!"

Lai Gou'er frowned.

He believed most of what Hope said. Since entering the Holy City and seeing the style of the Taifu Church, he didn't really want to talk about it anymore.

It's just that he didn't expect Duke Yalvis to secretly want to do this behind his back.

However, he had only just met this person, and his identity was unknown, so he was not trustworthy.

"Mr. Hope, we just met. Why should I trust you?"

Hope slammed his hand on the table: "It won't work to do business to my extent in the Holy City without connections. My business is all over many countries. You can ask around in the Holy City. No one doesn't know me, Hope!"

"Aren't you a furniture seller? Can selling furniture make you so famous?" Lai Gou'er said lightly.

Hope chuckled: "When I, Hope, go out for a walk, I bring at least five women, and they are never the same each time. Do you think anyone wouldn't know me?"

What kind of person is this... He's over fifty and still has so much energy?

Lai Gou'er was silent for a moment: "Then you are really awesome."

Hope spread his hands: "I can prove myself. I can't fully believe what you say with your empty words. If you can prove that you can produce porcelain, then go to my house and we'll talk in detail. Even if the deal doesn't go through, I guarantee I'll tell you everything I know. You should be able to tell that I am a very straightforward person."

Lai Gou'er wasn't afraid, but he hesitated and glanced at Father Solger.

Father Solger was still drinking his wine silently. Seeing him looking at himself, he said, "You go. I'll stay here. I'll see the Pope when he has time."

Hope looked at Lai Gou'er, pointed at the priest, and revealed a row of white teeth: "I like him. Such people are rare in the Holy City!"

......