Chapter 407： send-off banquet

"Steel, guns and the industrial party across the world (

It was already night, but the city hall in Fulan Harbor was still brightly lit. Tonight, the lord of Arda, Earl Paul Greiman, hosted a grand banquet here.

The hall was crowded with people, and from time to time there was the crisp sound of wine glasses colliding.

Attending the banquet were the lords of various large and small territories in the Northwest Gulf, prestigious country gentry, and major businessmen and factory owners whose social status had risen sharply in recent years.

This banquet is of great significance, because by tomorrow, three expedition teams will set off from Fulan Port and sail to the north, west, and south respectively, so this is a grand banquet.

The fleet heading north will go north along the west coast of the mainland and reach the area outside the human world, because after passing the Rocky Mountains in the north of the Aldo Kingdom, there is a vast prairie, which is the territory of the orcs. The trade exchanges between Aldo and the orc civilization are almost all through the Inner Rodan Corridor on the northeast side of the kingdom, and few people go to the coastline north of the northwest bay. Legend has it that the ancient Bella Empire once sent a fleet to conquer the orcs by sea. , but it is only a legend, even if it is true, there is no detailed information left.

The fleet heading to the south will turn east after arriving at the Horn Bay to replenish supplies, and explore the far east along the southern coastline of the mainland. Even after Paul vigorously advocated maritime trade, the trade tentacles of the merchants in the Northwest Gulf only touched the corner of the bay, and then the merchants in the corner of the bay sold their goods to the east as second-hand dealers. However, the recent unstable situation in Jiaowan made everyone feel nervous. Once war breaks out, the role of Jiaowan as a transit point will be greatly reduced, so it is necessary to make plans in advance.

And the fleet heading to the west is even more serious. They will try to cross the ocean to see if they can reach the other end of the continent. That's right, I just want to verify whether the ground under my feet is round.

The theory of a round earth has already appeared in this world, and it is guessed by people through observation: for example, the tip of the mast of a ship coming from afar appears first, and the further north you go, the higher the horizon of the Polaris will be.

But most people just listen to something new, and have big doubts about its authenticity.

We live on a ball? Think about it and feel something is wrong.

People who believe in the theory of a round earth imagined a situation: the sphere is so big that a small part of it looks flat, but only the top part is inhabited by creatures. , reaching a place with a large enough slope, it will slide down, and finally fall vertically into the void.

"Come, come, everyone, let me introduce the three heroic captains who are about to sail."

Paul introduced to the guests the three captains, Stanford, Commander of the Northern Expedition, Glenn, Commander of the Western Expedition, and Nigel, Commander of the South-Eastern Expedition. They are all selected by the people with rich sailing experience. , leading teams to and from Northwest Gulf and Jiaowan all the year round.

"Toast to you, warriors. You are our eyes, looking into the unknown world for us."

Myron Gardner took the lead in toasting the three captains, and the others followed suit and surrounded them together.

After drinking a cup, Earl Winifred Heller, the lord of Portree, stroked his gray beard and said mysteriously: "Captain Stanford, there is a so-called 'Gate of Hell' in the extreme north of the mainland." ', and the evil demons are sealed behind the gate, if you encounter it unfortunately, you must be careful not to break the seal."

"This...Master Heller, I will be extremely careful." Captain Stanford suddenly became nervous.

Earl Malts Kent, Earl of Larnaca said: "You old man, you tell these weird stories at the Zhuang Xing Banquet. This kind of legend was not believed when we were young. You see, it scares the young people."

Haileb glared at him: "Really, I just want to liven up the atmosphere."

Everyone laughed when they heard this, and Captain Stanford blushed slightly. It turned out that Earl Heller was teasing him.

Viscount Eugene Helson from Emden asked with some concern: "Master Greiman, are you really assured that the fleet of the three captains will keep running like this?"

"how?"

"That..." Viscount Helson stammered, "What if the land is round, no matter which direction they go, what if they fall...and fall? Captain Glenn can't reach the other side of the land at all. what."

Here it is again, Paul is very speechless, he has been wasting his tongue more than once because of the concerns of the people around him.

"Okay, let me explain my speculation. Everyone, look this way!"

Paul speaks loudly to draw attention from the hall to himself.

He picked up an apple on the table next to him and tossed it lightly into the air, and the apple fell to the ground with a snap.

Paul asked, "See that?"

"Ah? What?" Everyone muttered.

"The apple fell to the ground."

"Is not this nonsensical?"

Except for people like Mellon who had already heard Paul talk about his "conjecture", everyone else felt a bit of slander in their hearts. If Paul was not the leader of the leader, he would have been full of words.

Paul talked eloquently: "Why do apples fall to the ground instead of 'falling' to the sky? Haven't you thought about it? I suspect that the earth has a force that 'grabs' the objects on it, even though the earth is a sphere, Even if we were on the other side of the sphere, we wouldn't fall into the void."

Duke Ferdinand was very confused: "How can you say this? Isn't it because the top is the top and the bottom is the bottom. Isn't it common sense in the world that objects fall down? This is our heavenly father, the Lord of Light, who created The rules set by the world."

"Oh!" Paul slapped his head and rolled his eyes, "Okay, let Captain Grant bring us all the answers."

Duke Ferdinand muttered softly: "Even if the earth is round, if there is a force holding us back, it is the mighty power of the Heavenly Father."

Captain Grant swore excitedly: "Master Greiman, please rest assured, I will definitely find out whether the earth is round or not, and verify your conjecture."

All the members of the Western Expeditionary Team have a kind of tragic awareness—the heroic awareness of accidentally falling down after reaching the end of the world.

Paul patted him on the shoulder: "Whether you can reach the other end or not, as long as half of the supplies are used up, you have to return immediately. I don't want any of you to die of starvation or thirst at sea. For the vast The ocean, we can explore slowly, without rushing."

"Yes, Lord Graiman." Captain Grant was very moved by Paul's words.

"Captain Glenn! My little apprentice, please Glenn's hand was suddenly held tightly.

The person who came was Benjamin, an old shipbuilder from the Fulan Harbor Shipyard. As the person in charge of the construction of the special ships for the expedition, Benjamin was also among the invited guests.

Benjamin and his apprentice, Vito, were the first batch of talents Arda recruited from Jiaowan. But Vito's dream is not to spend his whole life in the shipyard, but longing for an adventurous life, so after hearing about the formation of the expedition team by the lord, he actively signed up, and finally became honored to be the member of the Western Expedition Team A member responsible for the repair work of the ship.

The old boatman had tears in his eyes. He always regarded Vito as his own child. Although this child kept clamoring for adventures when he was young, which boy didn't have some outrageous wishes when he was young. He didn't expect that he would really fly when he grew up.

Benjamin held Grant's hand and asked him carefully.

"Master, it's almost done."

Vito's face flushed red behind Glenn, it was so embarrassing, as if he hadn't grown up yet.

Paul came to a young man dressed in navy uniform, "Alan, you are all ready."

The former officer cadet, now Lieutenant Allen immediately straightened up and saluted him, "Yes, my lord, my comrades and I are ready."

The ships of each expedition team are accompanied by three to four military personnel. Most of them have the skills of surveying and mapping or reconnaissance. In addition to the task of recording the sea conditions and landforms along the way and evaluating the military strength of the countries or forces they pass by, they also have An important responsibility is the management of firearms on board.

In order to enhance the ability to deal with dangers, such as pirates, Paul has prepared a small amount of firearms for each expedition team—grenades and matchlock guns, but they can only be used as a last resort, and the decision rests with the military representatives on board. inside.