Dragonborn from Lord of the Rings

Chapter 91 Long Lake Town

Bilbo and the Dwarf walked down the Jungle River, and walked, and walked, until the afternoon, when everyone was complaining and their stomachs were growling, and at last they came to a stone pier.

There is a hut here, and a barge for cargo.

Then the dwarves suddenly became excited again.

"There is no other way!" Thorin said. "This boat just allows us to pass through this great lake!"

At this time, the cheers of the dwarves also startled a person.

He is Bard, the direct descendant of Ji Rui'an, the former lord of River Valley City.But because of the ravages of the evil dragon Smaug, his family has completely declined, and now he can only maintain his life by working for the mayor of Long Lake Town and transporting wooden barrels flowing down from the upper woodland kingdom.

So, when he saw thirteen dwarves and a halfling coming down the river, Bud was very surprised.

Because this river has always been a trade channel between Changhu Town and the elves, the mayor trades with the elf king upstream through this river to collect taxes and tolls, and no one else has ever stepped in.

Not to mention, Sorin and the others had an extraordinary temperament at first glance, unlike ordinary travelers.

So he immediately took out his bow and arrow, and asked them vigilantly, "Who are you and why are you here?"

"I'm Bahrain, and these are my family and friends. We're just businessmen who came from the Blue Mountains and went to visit relatives in the Iron Hills." Bahrain stepped forward and dealt with the man in front of him: "But we got lost in the forest, and we couldn't even salute. Lost, if possible, sir, would you be kind enough to send us to Long Lake by boat?"

"Without the mayor's pass, no one can enter or leave Longhu Town!" Bud didn't fully believe the dwarves, he kept looking at Thorin and the others with his sharp eyes, and said thoughtfully: "The merchants don't have you! Temperament! Although I am old and dizzy, I am not completely blind! Tell me, dwarves, why should I help you? Help a group of liars pretending to be businessmen!"

Although there was only one archer, all the weapons of the dwarves had been lost in Thranduil's palace, and they were all bare-handed at the moment, so they didn't want to quarrel with him at this time.

"But there is a way, isn't there?" Balin's tone became more kind, he crossed his hands, and looked harmless: "Look, we don't have weapons, and we are not bad people. We are businessmen, but we don't want to make trouble Something unpleasant happened!"

Bahrain was very keenly aware that the archers were wearing very old clothes, their shoes were even patched a few times, and their faces were quite sallow, so he said meaningfully: "We can pay! Double ! As long as you can send us to Long Lake Town."

Bud's sharp gaze softened a bit, and his bow and arrows aimed at the dwarves also lowered. "But I have to know who you are first. Why are you going to Long Lake?" He said, "Forgive me, I help the mayor transport wooden barrels to make ends meet. Transporting people is not my job. But It's strange that there are a bit too many barrels sent this month."

While saying this, Bard's eyes kept staring at the expression of the dwarf, as if he was about to discover something.

Sorin and Duvalin were expressionless, Felicili and Doripov were a little embarrassed, Bomber muttered something, Groin Oreil gave him a hand, and everyone else had their own expressions , so Bard seemed to understand something.

Balin still said kindly: "We just want to find a warm place to rest our feet. As you can see, we are cold, tired, and hungry. We don't want to cause any trouble. If you can help us a little If you are busy, you can also get some windfall money, the best of both worlds, isn't it?"

Bud put down his bow and arrow and said, "Double?"

"Double!"

The two held hands together.

This scene fully demonstrated that money touches people's hearts, and that the dwarves are not the only race in Central Continent who have a special passion for things that are shining with gold and silver.

Of course, there was also the reason that although Bard noticed that Thorin and the others had extraordinary auras, he never thought that the dwarves were actually going to challenge the dragon.Otherwise, the archer should hesitate more.

Although Bahrain perfectly solved the tool for crossing the lake, there was a new problem soon!That is: the dwarves refused to do what Bard said, and got into the big wooden barrels one after another, avoiding the guards' eyes!

They said, "Turin's beard is on top! I've sworn I'll never get into barrels, boxes, cabinets, anything with wooden letters! Don't even think about it!"

"We pay you by person, not by item!"

Bud was so angry that he almost threw the money bag back to the faces of these dwarf uncles. "Then, I hope you won't be caught by the city gate guards and hung up on the city wall!" the archer said angrily.

"That's why we paid you!" Du Valin said bluntly: "If we are hung on the city wall, there must be a place for you next to us!"

At this moment, even Bilbo was a little tired. He missed his home in Bag End, the time when the Silver King and the wizard were there, the happy time in the valley, and even the songs they sang on their journey.

"Where did Lord Turka and Gandalf go, and will they come back? I've had enough of these dwarves. If I could, I really want to go back to the day before I started! I will not sign that contract again ! I won't even open the door for them again!"

Eventually, both sides took a step back.

Bard agreed that the dwarves would not get into the barrels, and the dwarves no longer asked the archers to transport them directly into Longhu Town, but just take them to the city gate. As for whether they can enter the city in the end, that is up to them. It depends on their fate.

The lower part of the Jungle River to the east was very fast, and the dwarves and Bilbo's bumpy ride in Bard's barge almost reminded them of their miserable days in the barrel.

The sun had already set when they reached Long Lake.

I saw a huge lake sparkling, and a long and narrow wooden bridge connected the mouth of the lake with a strange water town in the middle of the lake.

The city gate has a water gate like a fence, and there are archery towers on both sides. Several guards are hiding in the gate hole to be lazy.

Apart from the occasional dispute over tolls on the river, they and the wood elves were good friends.The rest of the Men lived far away, and some young men in the town did not believe that there were dragons in the mountains, and even laughed at the old men who claimed to have seen dragons flying in the air when they were young.

Therefore, the guards in Changhu Town seemed very lax.

And when they saw that Bard brought back a group of dwarves, they were all surprised.

"Bud, why are you coming back at this time? Who are the people on board?" A guard held a long gun, stood up in a panic, and asked.

Thorin got off the swaying barge and walked up to the guards, "I am Thorin, grandson of Thror, son of Thrain! King of the kingdom below the mountain." The dwarf said loudly, "I'm back. I want to see you Mayor!
Only then did Bud know that he was carrying a dwarf king.

The guard saw that Thorin's hood was wet, but his neck and waist were covered with gleaming gold, and he wore a huge ruby ​​ring on his finger. His eyes were dark and deep, and he really looked like a king. style.So I was a little overwhelmed.

"But why did the dwarf king come to us?" The captain of the guard came over and said.

"That's not your concern, now you have two choices: Either hang us here in the cold, and wait until your mayor knows you've turned a king away, and chop your heads off; or go Tell him that we have returned to our homeland at last, as prophesied! Bringing gold and silver!"

The guards and Bud also quickly remembered the prophecy about the treasure in the lonely mountain. For a while, the guards became very excited, and some stupid guys ran out of the house immediately, as if thinking that the mountain would turn into gold at night , all the lake water will immediately turn golden yellow.

Only Bud became a little nervous and restless.

"Maybe I made a wrong decision this time!" he thought. "I shouldn't have brought them back! The dragon on the mountain is not easy to mess with, and no king can shake its rule!"

"But he's in bed now, he never works at night!" said the captain.

"It's up to him to decide! Stop talking nonsense and report to him!" Du Valin jumped up and said impatiently.

The other dwarves also seemed to get off the boat and crowded under the city gate.

"We didn't bring weapons, so what do you have to worry about?" Balin said kindly, "And we only have 14 people, so it's impossible to deal with so many people in Long Lake."

The captain of the guard thought that it was indeed the case, and opened the floodgate.

The captain took six subordinates and escorted them across the bridge, through the town gate, and to the place where the market was located.This is a large circle of quiet water, surrounded by tall wooden piles. The larger houses in the town are built on this circle of wooden piles, and then there is a long wooden pier that can be descended through many steps and ladders. to the surface.

The mayor lived in the largest house in the market place.

Seeing that the dwarves could not be prevented from entering the city, Bud could only secretly dock the boat on a pier, and followed everyone to the mayor's house.

At this time, the captain had already knocked on the door of the mayor's house.

The guy who came to open the door was a sly guy named Alfred, a sycophant who always relied on the mayor's authority to bully the people of Long Lake, and was the mayor's right-hand man to exploit the people.

"Who knocks at the door of the Great Lord of the Lake? On this cold, dark, loathsome night!"

The captain told the sycophant Alfred about the dwarves, and asked five other subordinates to bring the dwarves here. "That's them."

"Gold?" Alfred the sycophant suddenly regained his energy. He carefully observed the few dwarves led by him, and found that they were really extraordinary, and they couldn't make up their minds for a while.He thought for a while, and tentatively threatened: "Dwarf, you know, if you lie, your head will hang on the city gate!"

"As long as you have the ability!" Sorin said disdainfully. The Lonely Mountain was approaching, and his arrogance became stronger. Never lie!"

After the slick human looked at Thorin for a few seconds, he avoided the dwarf's eyes. He muttered something, then closed the door with a bang, and started running in a bang.

Not long after, the lights in the house were lit.

A heavy sound of going down the stairs was heard by everyone even outside the door.

At this time, many people had heard that a group of dwarves had come to Changhu Town.Be the king of the kingdom under the mountain!They have returned to reclaim their home in the mountains.Residents near the market gathered one after another, talking excitedly about dwarves, mountains, and prophecies.

king under the mountain,
rock-carved king,
King of the Silver Fountain,
Will return to his hometown!
His crown shall be embraced by all,
His harp resounded clear and clear,

Old songs are sung again,

Arouses golden echoes in his halls.

The trees on the hill will dance to the wind,
The green grass will bathe in the sun;
His wealth ran through the hills,
Dye the river water golden.

The mountain springs flow joyfully,
The lake shimmers and shimmers,

Farewell, all pain and sorrow,
The King of the Mountain has returned home!
Bilbo was surprised to hear one of them recite a very old prophecy, and everyone became even more excited, as if in the next moment, all of them would be rich with a bang, their homes would be filled with gold, and the prosperity and Xingsheng Tongtong returned to this town on the water.

Just then, the door was opened again.

A very fat and tall guy appeared in front of the adventure team.

He is the mayor of Changhu Town.Relying on the trade with the elves, the mayor of Changhu Town has obtained a lot of wealth.But he was extremely stingy and only gave the people of Changhu a little reward, so that they could struggle between poverty and life.

And even so, he was still not satisfied, and even relied on the sycophant Alfred and the guards in the city to impose heavy taxes on the people of Long Lake and exploit the extremely poor people.

A greedy and disgusting fellow.

And such a fellow, when he heard the news of the dwarves and the treasure in the mountain, he immediately jumped out of bed, put on his cloak and rushed out.

"You say you are the king of the kingdom below the mountain. What proof do you have?" Although the mayor looked fat in his belly and his face was fleshy, he still did not forget to ask the dwarf a very crucial question.

Duvalin, who was bumped in the wooden barrel for a long time, walked for a long time, and finally got on the boat and almost vomited, all his patience was almost exhausted at this moment, and he said angrily: "Be careful, you are questioning a king." !"

The other dwarves also looked angry.

Bilbo looked at them nervously, always feeling that the dwarves would fight the humans in Long Lake Town in the next moment.

But at this time Sorin stood up and stopped them. He raised his left hand, showed the Ring of Thorol, and said, "This is a treasure that only kings can wear! If any of you have heard of the Seven Dwarves The legend of the kingdom, you should know what this represents! This is the ring of Thror! And I am Thorin Oakenshield, my father is Thrain II, my grandfather is His Majesty Thror, and I am a righteous orphan King of the hill!"

In fact, many people don't know the Ring of Thorol, but this ring does have some kind of power. Anyone who sees these rings of power at a glance can clearly feel their extraordinaryness.

So the mayor immediately borrowed the donkey from the slope, showing a flattering smile: "Then, welcome! Welcome the king of the kingdom below the mountain!"

The people of Changhu suddenly cheered.

The mayor and the people of Long Lake Town held a grand banquet, and almost everyone attended to entertain the dwarves and Bilbo who came from afar. The enthusiasm made the hospitable hobbit a little uncomfortable.

　Thank you for seeing the water of the Yellow River coming up from the sky, medieval vodka, bald Gadgetzan, feathers follow the wind, and the monthly pass for ZGMF-X20A.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)