People in the Middle Ages, draw cards to get promoted

Chapter 178 Otto
The scene that happened in the city of Alandele soon reached Lothar's ears.

As a lord, Lothar deals with such trivial matters every day.

Lothar praised the order knight's handling method: "Good job, go to my clerk to get ten silver dinars, and give them to the couple, as my congratulatory gift to them."

"In addition, tell all the peasants and soldiers that if any of them is willing to start a family in Alandele, I will also send the same amount of congratulatory gifts, and at the same time exempt them from marriage tax."

Serfs in this era were required to pay a tax to the lord when they got married.

This is probably also the origin of the so-called "right of the first night" legend. In fact, few lords are willing to "enjoy" those commoner women.

Heavy labor will soon destroy the youth of a beautiful woman.

Lothar told the knight again: "It is not allowed to marry a pagan, so you can act as a temporary witness and preside over the wedding and conversion ceremony for them."

"It's still the same bargaining chip. As long as you convert to righteous faith, you can get the land."

The knight asked: "Then if the married couple are originally Christians?"

Lothar said: "Then give them more land according to our regulations in Hebron."

The knight was a little worried: "But my lord, do we really have so much land in our hands?"

"It will happen soon. I will confiscate some of the pagan land and lease iron farm tools to converts to help them reclaim wasteland and build irrigation canals."

Lothar said in a deep voice.

There is no shortage of land in Transjordan. The land here is vast, equivalent to one-third of the entire Kingdom of Jerusalem.

But there are less than 10 people here, equivalent to one-tenth of the entire Kingdom of Jerusalem.

A considerable part of the reason is that the land reclamation here is too difficult and lacks oases, water sources, and irrigation facilities.

Land desertification is a serious problem in future generations, let alone in this era.

This requires continuous investment from him as the lord, which is a long-term expenditure.

It is also the reason why the new Habsburg built around the tree of life will surely become the most valuable territory under Lothar in the future.

Under Lothar's command, the citizens who enjoy the best treatment are naturally Frankish immigrants from the European continent who have the same language and race as Lothar.

Although their number is small, they are Lothar's most trustworthy objects.

Followed by Catholic believers of other ethnic groups, including converts.

Further down, there are the remnants of the Orthodox Christians of the empire, the believers of the Apostolic Church in Armenia, heretical Christians such as Copticism, and finally the pagans.

It is necessary to divide the steps, so as to make "conversion" more meaningful.

But at the same time, this kind of stepwise nature is not so serious that the oppressive colonial rule of various ethnic groups is layer upon layer.

...

jaffa.

The handsome man with regular facial features and a pair of brown eyes, with the support of his personal knight, slowly walked down the steps of the Kirk boat that had landed on the shore.

It was the first time in half a month that he set foot on solid ground, and the man couldn't help but sigh, "We finally arrived at the Holy Land. I forgot how long we've been wandering on the sea."

He wore a burqa dyed with yellow dye, with a red standing lion painted on the chest, a knight's sword at his waist, and a ridged helmet.

"About half a month?"

replied the knight.

Otto, who came from Aargau, said with a smile: "It feels like half a century has passed - the sun in the Holy Land is really poisonous, completely different from that in the Swiss mountains."

A group of people walked onto the pier.

On the ridge not far away, a woman is picking threshed rye to avoid being eaten by birds.

The sailors on the pier, chanting, loaded and unloaded the square, broad-bellied Kirk.

Messy farmsteads dot the countryside.

Witnessing this scene with his own eyes, the knight couldn't help but be fascinated: "This is the holy land, according to the legend - the paradise of milk and honey."

Otto said: "I heard that the nobles here use soft fabrics to pave the floor instead of rushes. Even the poorest poor can receive free black bread in the monastery."

"It is here that Lothar took the title of Earl of Transjordan. If compared to the empire, his status in the Kingdom of Jerusalem is no less than that of Henry the Lion of Saxony."

"In the future, you will all serve under his command."

The knights said with some anticipation: "It's really hard to imagine that Master Lothar, who was still a little immature on the training ground in the past, has become a big prince."

"Moreover, it's not a title obtained by marriage!"

Otto's expression was a bit complicated: "Indeed, he has made a great feat."

"Hi, my lord, your coat of arms seems familiar."

The knight walking towards them greeted the crowd with a smile on their faces: "I am the vassal of Princess Sibilla and the guard of Jaffa Port. It is an honor to meet you."

Otto quickly replied in fluent Latin with a Swabian accent: "I am also very honored to have met such a heroic and extraordinary knight as soon as I arrived at the Holy Land.

I'm Otto of the Habsburgs - the coat of arms looks familiar to you, probably because my brother is the Count of Transjordan. "

The knight suddenly showed surprise: "It turns out that it is Lord Lothar's brother. You are as handsome as the Lord. Please quickly follow me into the palace of Jaffa. My master will treat you warmly."

Otto was a little overwhelmed by the knight's suddenly more eager attitude: "Noble knight, are you familiar with my brother?"

"Fresh?"

The knight couldn't help laughing: "Of course I'm familiar with it. All the knights, commoners, and nobles in Jerusalem are familiar with your brother. He brought victory to Jerusalem. He is known as the undefeated dragon slayer and invented various novelties. s things."

"We admire and envy him."

"Anyway, come with me."

"Don't worry about missing the business, because I will send a messenger to inform your brother immediately, and he will rush to the port of Jaffa to pick you up."

The knight's enthusiastic attitude made Otto feel relieved.

He followed the knight into the city of Jaffa, looking at this bustling port city, he couldn't help feeling: "The Holy Land is really rich."

"That's natural."

The knight is somewhat proud.

Compared with the barren and cold Frankish region, Jerusalem is indeed a unique place.

Of course, Transjordan is not comparable to Ripoli and the territory of the Kingdom itself.

When Lothar boasted, the word "a thousand miles of fertile soil" is definitely not a problem, but the word "fertile soil" is really doubtful.

Otto took out an apple from the saddle bag and fed it to the sweaty mount after coming to the Holy Land because it was not used to the hot climate here.

"It's no wonder that during the last Eastern Expedition, my father said that he and the knights under his command had to choose to fight on foot."

Otto patted the warhorse's slender neck: "These Gallic and Germanic horses simply cannot adapt to the very different climate of the Holy Land."

The guard officer of Jaffa Port smiled and said: "That's right, Lord Otto, you should store your mounts in the stables at the port, where they can be properly cared for, but expect them to fight in the Holy Land." , Fighting is completely unreliable."

"But you don't need to worry too much, my master will give you an excellent Arabian war horse as a substitute."

...

Otto lived in Jaffa for three days.

During these three days, he participated in one banquet after another. Thanks to Lothar's excellent reputation, he received many gifts.

Otto, he never expected Lothar to have made such a great feat.

Werewolf killer.

Dragon Slayer.

Protector of the Holy Land.

Hand of the King.

generous.

Quint's father.

the brave...

A series of nicknames, dizzying.

You know, the entire Earl of Aargau, and only Earl Werner, has a well-known nickname, which is the derogatory "cross-eyed".

In the afternoon of the third day.

Otto was taking care of his horse in the stable when he suddenly heard a familiar voice not far away.

"Otto, long time no see."

The young nobleman on horseback reined in, and the black cloak behind him was like a military flag, fluttering in the cold evening wind.

The smooth steel plate armor is covered with a red and white burqa, on which is a double-headed eagle flapping its wings.

Otto was startled, looked at Lothar for a long time, and then choked out: "You are much more handsome than when you left."

"That's natural."

Live in the air, nourish the transplanted body.

The powerful earl of the kingdom is not the same as the second son of a country earl, a landless wandering knight.

Lothar's heart rarely showed the emotion of wanting to show off: "Otto, do you still remember what we said when we parted?"

"of course."

Otto couldn't help but rolled his eyes: "You've been thinking about this matter for a long time. You said it in your letter and you said it when you met, just like a gossiping woman."

Lothar snorted, "To be honest."

"I don't understand, Otto, what's wrong with the second daughter of the Duke of Lower Lorraine?"

"Father's lawsuit has come to me."

"According to what my father said, her dowry has at least two baronies, 100 villages, all of which are fertile land, has [-] people, and the tax in kind paid to you every year can maintain an army of [-] people. An elite standing army."

Otto added with some guilt: "Actually, there are two quarries and a small copper mine."

Lothar turned over and jumped off his mount, and came to him.

"That's why I'm very puzzled, Otto, with such a generous dowry, how terrible is your fiancée that makes you want to run away from marriage."

Otto couldn't help showing a depressed expression on his face: "That's a dissolute woman. She lost her virginity a long time ago, and she hangs out with monks and servants all day long. Her first husband broke her good deed I was just pissed off."

Lothar was silent for a moment.

It turned out to be a divorce.

He coughed lightly, and advised: "The rumors may not be true, and if it's not for your bad reputation, where would it be your turn to marry this beautiful wife?"

(End of this chapter)