Chapter 255 Money is not important, but having money is important
"We need supplies, food, and weapons," Thorin asked the man. "Can you help us?"
"Desperate times call for desperate measures!" Aaronclutched his forehead and shook his head, feeling utterly speechless.
Honestly, he understood Thorin's mood; after all, they were almost at the Lonely Mountain, and going to face the Dragon unprepared was no different from a suicide mission.
But, if you're going to ask for help, at least find someone with a bit of financial means!
It was already difficult enough for this fellow to feed his own family; supplies and food might be an issue, let alone weapons.
The man didn't answer. Instead, he touched the arrow marks on the barrels. "I know where these barrels came from."
"What's wrong?"
"I don't know what business you had with the Elves, but it seems the outcome wasn't good.
Only the Master of Lake-town can bring people into town, and doing business with the King of Mirkwood is his only source of income. To avoid angering Thranduil, he will have you thrown into prison."
As the man spoke, he prepared to pack up and set sail. He could bring ordinary merchants into town, but these people were clearly not merchants. Bringing people who had offended the Elves into town would involve certain risks.
"Wait a moment," Aaron suddenly said, then pulled a gold coin from his pocket and tossed it to the man. "What's your name?"
"Bard."
"Alright, Bard, I completely understand your difficulties, but nothing ventured, nothing gained..."
Bard looked at the gold coin in his hand, a flicker of struggle in his eyes. "I have children to feed; I'm not keen on taking risks."
"Understood." Aaron snapped his fingers and slipped another gold coin into his hand. "Risk and reward are proportional, aren't they?"
"But if the Master of Lake-town catches us..."
"There must be other ways to enter the town!" Aaron patted his shoulder meaningfully. "I don't believe a man with that kind of archery skill is truly a nobody."
Bard looked at Aaron in surprise, as if he had made up his mind. "How much can you pay me?"
"We'll pay double," Balin immediately said... Meanwhile, in Mirkwood.
The captured Orc was brought before the throne by Taurieland Legolas.
After Thranduil finished his formal speech, Legolas began to interrogate the Orc about its purpose.
This Orc was extremely arrogant, showing no awareness of being a prisoner, yet in some ways, it was remarkably cooperative.
First, it told them that the Dwarves were about to suffer casualties; Kili had been struck by a Morgul arrow and didn't have long to live.
This news made Tauriel uneasy. If it weren't for the King's command, she would have killed this Orc in a heartbeat.
Next, it severely disparaged Thorin Oakenshield: that Dwarf could never become King.
Legolas found this point quite agreeable; as long as Smaugwas alive, no one would dare enter the Lonely Mountain.
Finally, it frankly stated that the age of the Orcs was coming, and its master served the Supreme One.
Upon hearing'Supreme One,' Thranduil also lost his composure. Having lived for countless years, he instantly understood many things and immediately cut off the Orc's head.
"Double the guards on the borders, all roads, and waterways. No one is to act without my command.
No one can enter or leave this kingdom."
Thranduil issued an order to close the kingdom's borders. He knew the world might not be peaceful from now on, but it had nothing to do with Mirkwood. As long as the flames of war didn't reach here, he had no need to get involved.
Though Legolas was puzzled, it was the King's and his father's command, so he could only obey.
However, as he ordered the gates closed, he learned from the guards that Tauriel had gone into the forest fully armed, which completely unsettled him.
In utter desperation, he could only leave Mirkwood to find Tauriel and bring her back... Bard piloted the boat, cautiously navigating around the thin ice on the lake, slowly moving forward in the dense fog.
"Careful."
Bofur suddenly shouted, as a large area of ruined walls appeared in the thick fog.
Bard immediately steered the boat, avoiding these obstacles.
"Good skill!" Aaron said meaningfully. "A person like you shouldn't be doing so poorly, even your clothes are torn like this."
"None of your business."
"But I want to know," Aaron said. "Currently, I only know that Lake-town has a somewhat incompetent Master of Lake-town. I need to understand more information."
Bard sighed helplessly. "It has nothing to do with you. Don't make me say it a third time."
"Alright! What I need to figure out, I will figure out.
But before that, I have something else I'd like to trouble you with."
"What is it?" Bard frowned.
"I need medicine, all the medicinal materials you can find.
Because one of our fools doesn't want to hold the team back and is just enduring his injuries alone, I need to find a way to cure him."
Bard glanced at Kili. "Is it him?"
"Obviously," Aaron shrugged. "I also need tools for brewing medicine. Of course, I will pay you a corresponding reward, guaranteed not to disappoint you."
"I understand."
"Brothers, get out your money," Balin said. "We have to pay for our boat ride."
The Dwarves all pulled out their purses, pooling a pile of silver coins.
Balin counted them, his expression slightly sinking. "There's a small problem here; we're ten silver coins short."
As he finished speaking, everyone's gaze fell on Aaron, who was talking to Bard.
"Hey, hey, hey, why are you all looking at me like that?" Aaron instinctively covered his money pouch. "I've paid for more than half of the expenses on this journey. Even if I made a small fortune along the way, you can't always pick on a kid!"
Everyone remained silent, just staring intently at him.
Aaron rolled his eyes, realizing that he probably couldn't refuse to pay the money.
"It proves that money isn't important, but having money is very important," Aaron said with a sigh, then took out ten gold coins and put them into Bard's pocket. "The extra is a deposit for finding the medicine."
Bard didn't refuse; he indeed needed money.
The boat continued across the lake until he could see the town through the thick fog, then he stopped.
"There are guards ahead. Get into the barrels quickly.
If you don't want to be discovered, do as I say."
Everyone exchanged glances but decided to trust him for now.
Bard went ashore, and Bilbo observed from a distance through a hole in a wooden barrel.
"What's he doing?" Dwalin asked.
"He's talking to someone... He's pointing at us... They're shaking hands."
"Can you say less?" Aaron said, exasperated. "It sounds like Bard sold us out."
"Maybe he already is selling us out," Dwalin grumbled.
"Everyone calm down, this is a normal negotiation, don't be impulsive," Aaron immediately said. "Don't mess things up before we're sure he's betrayed us."
As his words fell, everyone heard the sound of chains being pulled, followed by a large quantity of fish being dumped into the barrels, covering them.
Now everyone understood what Bilbo's three sentences meant, but this method was truly unbearable.
With these fish as cover, Bard dared to take them through the checkpoint.
"Stop the boat, cargo inspection, please show your documents." The man from the checkpoint came out of the house with a lamp. "Oh, it's you, Bard."
"Good morning, Percy."
"Anything to declare?"
"No, but I'm cold and hungry." Bard handed him a document. "Just want to go home."
"Same here." Percy took the document and went back inside to stamp it. "Alright, everything's good."
"Wait a moment." A pale-faced, hunched man snatched the document. The moment Bard saw him, his expression turned grim.
"Entrusted to transport barrels from Mirkwood.
Only now the barrels are full, aren't they, Bard?
If I remember correctly, according to the registry, you're a boatman, not a fisherman."
"That's none of your business."
"You're wrong. Anything that concerns the Master of Lake-town concerns me."
Lackey, a pure lackey.
Aaron immediately labeled this person, while secretly cursing his bad luck for encountering such a person on duty.
Hopefully, Bard can get through it! Otherwise, he would have to intervene.
He hadn't learned Imperio yet, but he was very familiar with the Memory Charm.
"Come on, Alfred, have a heart. Everyone needs to eat," Bardsaid helplessly.
But Alfred had no such 'heart,' immediately labeling these fish as illegal and ordering his subordinates to dump them all out.
No matter how much Bard tried to appeal to the town's residents' need for food, Alfred remained unmoved.
Seeing Alfred still stubborn, Bard could only resort to mentioning the Master of Lake-town. "What if people hear that the Master of Lake-town is dumping fish into the lake?
If they revolt, then it will be your business, won't it!"
Upon hearing this, Alfred's already pale face grew even paler. He immediately waved his hand, telling his subordinates to stop dumping the fish.
"Always trying to be a hero, aren't you, Bard?
Always trying to protect the common folk. They might support you now, but your good days of rowing won't last much longer."
The gate opened, and the boat smoothly passed through security.
"The Master of Lake-town is always watching you. You'd better remember that. We know where you live," Alfred said coldly.
"It's a small town," Bard retorted. "Everyone knows where everyone else lives."
Once the boat reached a safe spot, Bard kicked over the barrels, and the members of the expedition team climbed out of the pile of fish, covered in a fishy smell.
Bard paid a silver coin and a boatload of fish to an acquaintance on shore, asking him not to speak of what he had seen.
Aaron took a deep breath of the not-so-fresh air, then truly began to take in Lake-town.
The entire town was built on the lake, but it had no vitality whatsoever. Dirty, messy, and poor—that was his first impression of the place.
"I understand why you're so poor. People who can survive in a place like this probably just think about getting by, right?"
"At least we're alive," Bard said calmly.
"Heh! A man like you shouldn't be buried here," Aaron said earnestly. "You should have a broader world. You would have a place in the human capital."
Bard smiled and shook his head, subtly changing the subject. "Let's go to my house first!"
"No, your house is probably being watched right now.
That lackey sounds incompetent, but lackeys' threats are usually true," Aaron muttered. "For your safety and your family's, I suggest we go somewhere else."
"No one else can accommodate so many of you," Bard shook his head. "You can only go to my house."
"Aaron, it's alright," Balin said calmly. "I'm sure Mr. Bard has a route to avoid the watchers."
"I do, but..." Bard looked troubled. "You might not be able to accept it."
"We can accept it, we must accept it, we have to accept it," Bilbo said. They had endured so much hardship and suffering on this journey; safety was truly more important than anything else.