Chapter 247: A Coachman
To me, Jayad used Strengthening Potion to become suddenly strong and defeated Lorna by surprise. Does that mean I defeated Lorna?
I won a round, and it felt good, my heart felt balanced.
After that, I let Jayad continue sparring with Lorna and left the practice field. I had other things to do today. I took out a business card.
It was the business card Sebastian the Detective left me last time. The address was on Cardoon Street, number fifteen, on the Third floor. Thinking back to the map I looked at yesterday, it seemed so far away! It was all the way to North City.
Walking there from here would be too tiring, too slow, and too troublesome. After thinking about it, I hailed a carriage for the first time since my transmigration.
Saying it was a carriage wasn’t quite right. The animal pulling the carriage in front was clearly not a horse. It could only be described as a mix between a large, strong wild boar and a yak, its tusks, which should have been at the front, had been cut off.
I was already used to seeing strange beasts from this other world that I didn’t recognize. Starting from the most ordinary carriages, I could also see carts pulled by colorful Land-trip Giant Birds that looked like ostriches, large lizards, and Herbivorous Dragons on the streets.
Coupled with the motorcade I saw that day, it seems that domesticating various strange wild beasts to help as livestock is a very common and traditional practice in this world.
The one pulling the carriage was a competent-looking middle-aged man, wearing a short jacket, his skin tanned dark from the sun, giving the impression of a laborer who frequently worked outdoors.
He lowered the carriage frame to make it easier for my small stature to climb up, then he gripped the reins and asked, “Miss, where would you like to go?”
“To Cardoon Street,” I said.
“Alright.” The coachman flicked the reins, and the beast took a step forward and trotted off briskly.
I leaned against the seat, feeling the carriage’s vibrations. This carriage wasn’t luxurious. It had only a simple canopy, a hard seat, and poor shock absorption from the wheels. In fact, the carriage compartment felt a bit old. I felt this carriage was likely used for more than just carrying people; perhaps for cargo too.
If the other carriages on the road, with their exquisite decorations, leather seats, and smooth rides, were like luxury cars, then the one I hailed was probably on the level of a three-wheeled vehicle, but correspondingly cheaper.
“Miss, you’re going to Cardoon Street? There are offices everywhere there. It doesn’t seem like a place a young lady like you would go,” the coachman struck up a conversation. For people in his profession, chatting was part of his business skills.
“I have some business to attend to,” I replied casually, steering the conversation towards what interested me. “What do you call the beast pulling your carriage?”
“Ah? Miss, you mean the Saber-fang Beast? It’s a common type of draft beast. It’s very strong and can carry a lot. It’s also very docile. Merchants and farmers really like them. They’re common in the countryside. Miss, you must rarely leave the city, right?” the coachman opened up.
“I’ve seen them, but I didn’t know their names,” I said. Parul’s memory did include them, but she genuinely didn’t know their names. “Did it originally have tusks? Did you saw them off?”
“It wasn’t me who sawed them off, it was my father. He was afraid it would accidentally injure someone. This Saber-fang Beast was left to me by my father. It was originally used for plowing our fields,” the coachman said with emotion.
“Were you originally a farmer?” I asked, interested.
“Yes, I used to be a farmer. My family has been farming for generations,” the coachman replied.
“Then why did you decide to become a coachman?” I asked again.
“My land was taken away. A Noble Farm Owner said that piece of land had been granted to him, even though it was land my family had farmed for generations,” the coachman said with some indignation.
“Ah? Then didn’t you resist?” As soon as I said it, I felt I had spoken out of turn. How could a mere farmer like him have the opportunity to resist the oppression and exploitation of a noble landlord? Unless a group of farmers banded together to resist.
“He had more people, and a gang of rioters as his subordinates. How could I resist? I even pleaded with that Farm Owner to let me stay, even as a humble farmhand. But he said he didn’t need me at all, and even threatened to take my home too,” the coachman said in a low voice.
“I could only pack up some of my belongings when they weren’t around at night and flee under the cover of darkness. In reality, I didn’t have much, just some farming tools. The most precious thing was actually this Saber-fang Beast.”
“So you became a coachman?” I continued.
“Actually, I only hauled cargo at first. I had nowhere to go then, and all I had was the Saber-fang Beast and a broken cart for hauling vegetables. I thought I at least needed to eat. At that time, several vegetable farmers asked me to haul their vegetables into the city.”
When I went to the market, I had also seen those carts hauling farm products into the city to sell, carrying carrots, potatoes, vegetables, and the like. The carts were simple and dilapidated, basically just a few planks of wood nailed together.
While this carriage was also quite old, it wasn’t broken. Clearly, he had replaced it with a carriage that could carry passengers, not the farmer’s cart from before.
The coachman continued his story: “Back then, my income was very low. I could barely feed myself each day and had no place to live, so I had to sleep in the carriage. Later, some farmers wanted to follow me into the city, so I started hauling both goods and passengers.”
“I hauled passengers for a while. At first, I ran between the countryside and the city. Later, when I saved some money, I bought a new carriage and started picking up passengers in the city. City passengers paid more.”
“How do you feel about your life now?” I curiously asked him.
“I think it’s okay. This job isn’t too tiring, and I have income every day. In the future, if I can get a better carriage, marry a wife, and have a few children, that would be great,” the coachman said.
He still had hope for his life, so he had the motivation to work hard. That was good. However, all of this was also built upon the help this Saber-fang Beast provided him. As long as this inheritance from his father remained, it could continue to bring him income.
“By the way, have you ever thought about what you’ll do if the Saber-fang Beast gets sick and can’t run anymore? Will you get a new draft beast?” I tactfully reminded the coachman. I didn’t say “die,” but logically speaking, this Saber-fang Beast should be quite old.
“Yes, I’ve thought about it. I’ve saved some money, and in a year or two, it’ll be time for my old friend to rest,” the coachman said. It seemed he had some foresight.
“What are you planning to replace it with? Don’t you think those Landstriders look pretty good?” I asked, interested.
“Landstriders? Their stamina isn’t enough. They’re very beautiful, though. Rich people like them. They’re fine for private transport, but us coachmen who run all day can’t use them to pull carriages.”
“I don’t dare to tame Earth Dragons. I wonder if buying a Herbivorous Dragon would be expensive. If not, I’d have to buy the cheapest cattle or pack animals,” the coachman listed the draft beasts he had considered.
“Screech!” At this moment, a sharp bird cry came from the sky. A black shadow eclipsed the sun. I looked up and saw a large bird flying in the sky.
“Ah, of course, those Noble lords’ Rocs or Pterosaurs are something coachmen like us can only dream of, hehe,” the coachman said, laughing with emotion.
