Lady of the Lord From the East

The newly opened bank in Sardinson County has brought great convenience to the merchants who come to do business here, reducing the risk of loss they may suffer on the trade route by half. It is very satisfying. Although they were able to travel with all kinds of money orders in the past, because there is no bank in Sardinson, the money orders can only be exchanged elsewhere. For large transactions, it is better to use money orders. If it is a small amount For transactions, drafts are not very convenient to use, and sometimes it is even more troublesome when the object of the transaction insists on accepting cash.

Now that there is a bank, these problems are easily solved, and the businessmen are very happy. They even sent gifts to celebrate the opening of the bank on the opening day. Of course, the fact that the owner of the bank is the Earl of Williams should be the most fundamental reason for them to give gifts.

And Felix had already heard about the news of robbers in the vicinity of Sardinson. He didn't pay attention to it at first, because robbers were very common in this era, and the robbers he heard were probably other things. The noble soldiers pretended to be, and the area where the robbers were active was still far away from Sardinson, so Felix prepared to wait and see for the time being, and only sent people out to inquire about the news to determine who they were.

But soon, the news brought back by the people he sent to investigate showed that this was a powerful band of robbers, with a number of about fifty people, and they were entrenched on a mountain road hundreds of kilometers away from Sardinson County. , specialized in robbing the caravan that passed by, and acted without cruelty, only robbing and not killing people, but if the caravan that was robbed was small, the people in the caravan would also be captured and sold as slaves.

In addition, the targets of their robbery were basically locked on the caravans traveling in and out of Sardinson, obviously targeting them.

In addition, according to the detected data, these robbers did not behave like ordinary robbers or knights, but instead had the feeling of mercenaries.

This has to make people ponder whether there are some unknown secrets in it.

Although mercenaries do appear to pretend to be robbers to rob, they usually do it occasionally and do it very covertly. After all, their main source of work is to accept commissions from other people to complete tasks. If they bear the reputation of robbers, Not only will they be wanted, but no one will dare to hire them anymore, so this kind of large-scale and long-term robbery, either the mercenaries have really turned into robbers, or generally only when they are hired.

Whether it is the former or the latter, there are various signs that they are targeting Sardinson. If everything goes to Sardinson's business caravans, they will encounter robbery. If things go on like this, those relatively weak businessmen will not dare to take this road. Yes, this will certainly affect Sardinson's business.

So after receiving the news, Felix thought for a while, and then he invited the Knights, held a meeting, and agreed to go out to suppress the bandits.

Sardinson's knights do not have an actual leader. The knights just spontaneously form a group of twelve according to the service time of each rotation, together with their knight attendants and auxiliary cavalry, divided into ten squads, squads Each of them chose a leader according to their strength to manage the other knights.

In the past, when Sardinson had not developed, the county could be said to be very poor, and even the old earl could not provide all the members of the Knights with meals for a long time-although the knights had fiefs, it was really their turn to serve. At that time, it was always impossible to let them eat their own food, and there were cavalry in the knights, and the cavalry were not knights, and their daily expenses were indeed borne by the lords - at that time, the number of cavalry in the knights was all Very few, the knights of the knights send two knight teams every month, one team of knights with soldiers is responsible for the security protection of the castle and manor, the other team with less than 100 cavalry patrols all over the county, and the rest People will only leave the fief when it is their turn to be on duty. Otherwise, most of the time, they will stay in their fief and wait for the call of the lord.

But this situation changed shortly after Felix took office. After the territory develops, security needs to be guaranteed. It is impossible for him to leave so many people unused, so now the 120 knights have their own needs. In charge of the affairs, the members of the Knights still have to station the castle in turn every month, but the manor is no longer in charge of the stationed knights, but two other knight squads are dispatched to take charge, and the knights who are responsible for patrolling the county have also increased to Three, and the remaining five teams, some are responsible for assisting Felix in training, some are sent out to protect the private caravan of the Earl, and some are regularly delivering goods and inquiring about news to the capital.

In short, the ten knight squads, one hundred and twenty knights and their attendants will no longer have the same leisurely days as before.

Of course, no one is complaining about life now, but no one wants to stay moldy in their fief.

What knights want most is to have a way to be promoted. If they want to become real nobles, they must have enough merits to satisfy their loyal lords. When there is no battle, working hard for the lords is their only way out.

What's more, the current count is so generous, not only the fiefs, but they also have extra wages and rewards every month, and the cumulative output in a year is more than the fiefs' output, so the knights are naturally full of energy.

And when everyone was busy and half of the members were not even in the territory, Felix held a knight meeting, and naturally he couldn't get everyone together. Of course, not all knights could participate in the meeting. Under normal circumstances, only Only the captains selected by each of the ten knight squads will participate in this kind of meeting.

There are only five knights present this time. They are the team leaders of the five knights who are responsible for the security of the territory recently. Because everyone gradually has their own focus, the job rotation is not as frequent as in the past. Felix We are already considering changing the rotation time to half a year or a year, which is also convenient for everyone to carry out their own work, lest when the one-month deadline is up and there are people who cannot come back from outside the territory, there is no way to hand over.

On this point, he also asked everyone's wishes in advance, and most of them agreed, so when the next defense is switched, the new regulations should be implemented.

Among the five knights currently participating in the conference, the most favored by Felix are Kingsley and Beerus. The former has always performed well and is serious and responsible, while the latter is good at interrogation and detection, and has done a lot for Felix. It’s hard to see the light. He was the one who went to Baron Clift’s house before. The two of them can be said to be Felix’s most trusted knights. They are capable and loyal. The negative head will be held by them.

"I called you here this time to discuss the gang of robbers that have been in the vicinity recently."

The knights also heard about the robbers, and as soon as Felix spoke, they were refreshed and knew that the Count was planning to clean up these robbers.

The work of suppressing the bandits was done well, but it was a feat. For a time, several knights rushed to express their intention to go, and each of them almost patted their chests to ensure that the bandits would be wiped out and not a single one remained.

Felix didn't order directly, but first showed them the information sent back: "These people are probably mercenaries, and maybe someone instructed them, so the mission this time is not only to destroy them, but also to investigate Find out if they were instructed."

As soon as these words came out, the eyes of the remaining three knights turned to Kingsley and Beerus.

When it comes to investigations and interrogations, these two are undoubtedly the best of all.

Sure enough, after that, Felix ordered two people to set out to fight the bandits together, and asked each of them to bring five knights to form a knight squad, together with their respective knight attendants, and set off together with twenty soldiers.

It is worth mentioning that these twenty soldiers are not ordinary soldiers, but soldiers trained by Felix according to the special forces training plan. Naturally, they are not comparable to the real special forces, but they are more stable than most of the current soldiers. Win a lot.

And this bandit suppression operation, considering that the other party is entrenched on the mountain, the cavalry is not easy to move, and other ordinary soldiers may not be able to beat the mercenaries, so he released the soldiers who have been training all the time, as an actual combat exercise .

Kingsley and Beerus, as Felix's cronies, naturally knew that he had a secret troop under his command. They even helped Felix train the troop's cavalry, swordsmanship and bow and arrow, but this was the first time. Acting together with them, they are also very curious about the strength of these people.

In fact, Felix really wanted to lead a team to go out to suppress the bandits, but the spring ploughing was coming soon, and he was responsible for all the affairs in Sardinson County. When he left, these things would fall on Wei Wei. Pregnant with Liujia, how could he make her so tired, so he had to let Kingsley and Beerus lead the team to suppress the bandits.

Soon, the bandit-suppressing team was ready to go, disguised as a caravan and secretly left Sardinson, and the air defense they left behind was filled by other knights, and the lack of dozens of people did not make Sardinson's security defense. Any flaws appear.

But Felix still has plans to expand the Knights. After all, there is no need to worry about Sadinson's defense, but Thrott is still empty and there is nothing, but even so, it will develop sooner or later, so there should be a defense. Strength is also to be built.

Oh, I can’t say nothing at all. After Slaughter was taken over by Felix, the freedmen who moved out came back one after another. Their land was originally in Slaughter, although these freemen moved. I left, but because there were no other people here at that time, neither their land nor their houses could be sold. In addition, the king only sent people to collect taxes but not to manage them, so these vacant houses and land have been kept forever. No one took over and let them go to waste, but within two or three years, many uninhabited houses have weathered and collapsed, and the fields have become overgrown with weeds and turned into wasteland, but their ownership still belongs to the original. free people.

When these freedmen left, Sardinson had not yet begun to develop, so most of the freedmen went to the more prosperous aristocratic territories, but their life was not very good, although the nobles were happy to accept the freedmen , but they will not provide them with land. The freedmen have left the place where they originally lived, and they can't take their land with them when they leave. They can't even exchange the land for money. Naturally, they have no money to buy new land. So after leaving Slot, they only have the empty title of a free citizen, and because they are outsiders, many people can't even rent land for farming and can only work odd jobs to survive. If it weren't for Slot, there would be no lord. After taking over, they couldn't afford the high taxes and had to leave, and these free people had long since returned.

Later, after the news of the recruitment of freedmen in Sardinson County spread, these freedmen who originally belonged to Slaughter also ran to Sardinson one after another, and life gradually improved. The news of the lord spread again and again, and some free people who had not settled in Sardinson ran back to their original hometown.

Of course, these free people were also trembling when they came back. First, they didn't notify the lord when they moved out - mainly because no one could report - this kind of behavior is illegal. Second, they left the land and moved away. The people who have given up can be regarded as giving up the original land and house, and the lord can directly take back these land, so when the freedmen come back, they are also worried that the land and house have been taken back, even if they come back, they still have nothing.

And when they came back, it was true that some people found that their land was gone. This was mainly because the construction team was building a new city, and the land assigned by Felix happened to occupy part of the land and houses of the freedmen.

But the freedmen of the occupied land were not really left with nothing.

Except for a group of serfs living by the sea, there were originally no other people in Sloot County, but after Felix took over the place, he still sent a few stewards to manage them, and the freedmen who moved back consciously went to find them. A steward reported that some of them came over with a gloomy face and asked if they could rent the land of the Count for farming, because their own land was no longer there.

No one thinks that the land that has been collected by the construction team and ready to build the foundation can be returned, they only want to rent another land for farming and living, and they also know about the welfare of the freedmen in Sardinson County, although here It was Sloth, but he also belonged to Lord Count Williams. Maybe they had already registered in other noble territories, and now the freedmen who came back could also get free homesteads? This alone is enough to cheer up many free people who have lost their land.

And this kind of thing, the stewards naturally dare not make decisions without authorization, so they reported the situation to Felix, who after discussing with his wife, decided to give these free people some compensation, in addition to dividing them according to the free people's migration benefits Outside the homestead, as long as they can show the land certificate, he can make up a piece of land of the same size and quality for them. At the same time, if someone wants to rent the original cultivated land in Sloot County, they can also collect taxes according to the land reclamation. That is to say, the first year is exempt from tax, and there are corresponding tax reductions for the following years.

This is also considering that the land in Strow County has been abandoned for too long. Even if it is reclaimed, the harvest in the previous years may not be very good. Instead of earning that little rent, it is better to use it to appease the local residents.

At the same time, those freedmen who found that their land was still there after returning, because they had their own houses, so if they wanted a homestead, they had to exchange their original houses for them. At the same time, their own land could also be sold to Felix, and then In exchange for another piece of land of the same size and quality, in this way, they can also enjoy the benefits of tax relief and someone helping to repair the house. Otherwise, these benefits will be lowered accordingly. .

The reason for this provision is to facilitate him to centrally manage the freedmen. After all, the land of these freedmen is in different areas in the county, and it is very troublesome to manage. If they are centralized, they can form a village and elect The village chief is now easy to manage, and the land reclaimed by Felix will also become part of the new city in the future.

As soon as the news spread, the free people who moved back were very happy. They did not accept the lord's request. They were very active in finding out their own land certificates, going to the stewards to register, and then actively asking the stewards. We go to measure their own land, and only after the measurement can be exchanged.

They don't care where they live. Anyway, the Count has already said that the original land will be replaced. They believe that the Count will not deceive them about this kind of thing. Count Williams and others Nobles are different.

This can make the stewards busy. There are only a few of them, but there are a large group of free people. Especially after the news spread, there are free people who have received the news one after another and their families have moved back from other places. When the freedmen come back, the steward will be in charge of registration, and they will be overwhelmed, not to mention measuring and exchanging land for them, arranging new residences, etc.

Originally, the surveyors were responsible for measuring the land, but those surveyors were now busy measuring and approving the wasteland for the residents in Sardinson County. Things here are a little too busy, and even the few stewards can't relax. Every day, people run around with the interns who have been assigned to measure the land.

After a period of time, they were all tired and thin, but fortunately, the matter instructed by the Count was busy.

So the freedmen who came back were arranged to be near the sea. The serfs lived in the fishing village by the sea. The main road from Princia to Sardinson was less than a kilometer away from the fishing village. A cement road was built to make it easier for people to travel together. On the other side of the cement road, there were newly divided fields, and a straight line distance of about one kilometer was a new village where the free people lived.

At present, there are two new villages that have been formed and no one has settled in. Both are large villages with a hundred or so households. The third village is also under preparation and will be filled soon.

The re-settled free people immediately got into their new fields and struggled with the lush weeds. They rented cattle and farm implements from the stewards. If they were faster, they could still catch up with this year's Spring ploughing, although the harvest in the first year is destined to be unsatisfactory, but since there is no need to pay land tax, the harvest in their fields is enough for their own chewing as long as they do not suffer major disasters, so although every household is very active The struggle in the fields does not feel hard at all.

In addition, the free people are not afraid that there will be no food to eat at home before the fields are harvested. The new city is being built in the northeast of Slot, and the pier is also being repaired on the beach in the south. Salt, and these are hard work that requires labor, and they are always recruiting people. Anyone with a little strength can take a part-time job during the slack farming season. The salary can be paid daily or monthly. As long as they are willing to work hard, they can earn The money is enough for them to support their families, and those old and weak women and children who do not have much energy can also go to the fishing village to dry fish with the serfs, or go to the roadside hotels and restaurants for the merchants to work as servants. The wages are not high but they provide meals. You won't starve to death at all.

And when the population in Sloot County is slowly picking up, security forces also need to be arranged. At present, the Knights in Felix's hands already have their own jobs, and they can't recruit people, so he is ready to To expand the number of knights, at least one more team can be responsible for the security of Sloot County.

He didn't forget that there was another owner of this land in Sloot County, but he was demoted because he offended the great nobles. There was a man who changed from earl to baron. Although he has always behaved very quietly, But judging from some of his previous actions, he was not a peaceful master. If Sloth prospered but never had a garrison, who knew if the baron who was just separated by a forest would secretly send someone to rob the village, This kind of thing is not uncommon among nobles, so it has to be guarded against.

And the news that Felix intends to award another batch of knights quickly spread in the knights. The people who were knights were fine, but those knight servants couldn't sit still. They wanted to become knights. In addition to successfully graduating from knight training, the most important thing is to find a master who is willing to accept their allegiance.

The best candidate for their allegiance is naturally the master of the Williams family, but Felix's knights are already full, although it is not impossible to continue to be knights, but because he has no extra land to distribute to knights, he will receive more knights. If knights are made, these knights probably do not have fiefs, so they can only be regarded as an honorary title and are not recognized as real knights.

So the original knight servants either waited to inherit their father's knighthood and fiefs, or waited until those knights who had no heirs retire - knights without heirs have to return their fiefs after they can't serve their loyal lords - —Or leave Sardinsonshire and look for the loyalty of other nobles.

Of course, the last option was the first choice of many young knight servants who felt that they had no chance. They would go to the capital to fight hard like Felix's friends to find a suitable owner, instead of staying in this poor border county.

But now, the prosperous Sardinson County is their first choice. Even if they have been serving as knight attendants, they are unwilling to leave. The knight attendants in other places do not have such good treatment as them.

Now, the Count is finally going to increase the number of knights. Although they are knights sent to Slot, going there means that the selected new knights will also have their own fiefs. This alone makes many knights. People are moved.