What did the Morin family's garrison captain want to see him for? Laurist summoned the Morin garrison captain with a question mark in his mind.
It turned out that the Morin garrison captain was here to protest to Laurist. He did not come alone. He had brought along a few heads of the small and medium-sized families that had been pushed out of Northern Field Town by the four big families.
The reason for the protest was that during the construction of the military stronghold, Steward Kedan, after a period of investigation, had secretly recruited close to 150 strong young men who had awakened their dou qi to become the family's soldiers. Together with their relatives in Poplar Beach, they were sent back to Maple Forest Manor.
Laurist had even specially formulated a detailed rule for the family's soldiers. Becoming a soldier of the Norton family would not only receive a generous salary, but also various training opportunities. As long as the soldier worked hard, he would be able to increase his impetus rank and status. It was not impossible for him to become a Norton family knight.
The new rule also made new changes to the family's soldiers' pension. Not only would the family members who had sacrificed themselves receive a fixed monthly pension, but they would also be exempted from taxes. Their direct descendants would also receive education from the family until they grew up. Even the disabled soldiers would receive pension and training opportunities. They would also be able to take up various administrative positions in the family's territory, ensuring that they did not have to worry about food or clothing.
In addition, the new rule stated that only the direct relatives of the family's soldiers — parents, wives, and children — could receive preferential treatment from the family. Underage siblings could live together, but they would not receive preferential treatment. Furthermore, they would have to live separately from the family for three years after they came of age. For the soldiers' children, other than the eldest son, the other children would have to be treated the same after they came of age.
Once the new rule was out, the small and medium-sized families that had been pushed out of Northern Field Town by the four big families were in an uproar. Many of the family heads did not rely on their own abilities to manage the family's affairs. They either relied on their elders to inherit the position of family head, or relied on seniority to rise to power. After being pushed out of Northern Field Town, they had hoped that the Norton family would follow the old rules of Northern Field Town after the new town was built. That way, they would still have the opportunity to act like tyrants. Who would have thought that Laurist would come up with a new rule? This was practically digging at the roots of these small and medium-sized families.
Compared to the aristocratic families that had been around for a hundred years, these commoner families were still lacking even though they had been around for a hundred years. This was because in these commoner families, the young and strong, who were the new force, had no chance to stand out. There was a lot of the older generation above them. Other than listening to the orders of the family, they had no freedom.
Therefore, compared to the leaders of these small and medium-sized families, this new rule was warmly welcomed by the young adults who had awakened their Dou Qi. Humans were selfish. After all, compared to their immediate family members, those second uncles and third uncles in the clan were nothing. The ones who suffered were themselves, but the ones who benefited were these relatives who were not even close to them. Many of the young adults had been holding back their anger for a long time, and when they saw the new rules, they eagerly submitted to the clan.
Five to six hundred of the more than two thousand laborers were gone in an instant, and many small clans had already split up and collapsed, unable to gather again. As the guards of Northern Field Town, they were naturally not blind. They had come to protest because they felt that not only had Laurist violated the agreement, but he had also subverted the Norton family's tradition of giving preferential treatment to the family members of the guards. Captain Molin of Garrison Guard represented the four major families of Northern Field Town and the small and medium-sized families in Poplar Beach to protest to Laurist, requesting that Laurist retract the new rule and restore the old tradition. He also promised that after the new town was built in Poplar Beach, the old rules of the Northern Field Town Guard would be followed.
Laurist laughed coldly. You want another Northern Field Town in your family's territory? Dream on.
Laurist refuted the protests of Captain Molin of Garrison Guard and the leaders of the small and medium-sized families. He felt that the conditions for the recruitment of soldiers had nothing to do with the Northern Field Town Guard. As a subordinate of the Norton family, the Northern Field Town Guard only had the right to obey the orders of the Lord, and did not have the right to protest. Letting Northern Field Town go was already considering the tradition of the family's ancestors.
The recruitment of soldiers this time was because the Northern Field Town Guard had disobeyed orders not to go to the front lines. The family was facing a war with Viscount Gammus, and the Northern Field Town Guard had yet to agree to transport supplies to the military camp here and take on the task of fighting the Mountain Barbarians. Because of this, the family had no choice but to recruit soldiers just in case. Laurist angrily scolded the Northern Field Town Guard for being as timid as a mouse, and only knowing how to hide in Northern Field Town like a turtle. What was the point of the family keeping such a guard? It would be better to disband it earlier …
Captain Molin of Garrison Guard and the leaders of the families silently endured Laurist's thunderous anger, and did not say anything else before retreating. Laurist thought that he had subdued these people who did not know what was good for them, and was very pleased with himself. In the end, three days later, Laurist received news that the Northern Field Town Guard at Poplar Beach had forced some of the smaller families to retreat back to Northern Field Town, and would no longer respond to any orders from the family.
Laurist was seething with anger, and then he received news from the family that Northern Field Town had sent a tenth of this year's taxes to Maple Forest Manor, and left the grain in the empty space in front of the castle gate. They even left a letter, saying that they were not rebelling, but were only protesting the new lord's arrogance and subversion of tradition. Therefore, the grain taxes would be paid as usual, and when the new lord restored the old system in the new town, the Northern Field Town Guard would listen to the Norton Family's orders again …
Laurist suppressed the anger in his heart, and began to calculate the strength he had at hand. He wanted to see if he should first destroy Northern Field Town to vent his anger. It just so happened that it was peaceful during this period of time, and the Mountain Barbarians were participating in that whatever festival, so they did not have time to mess things up. The Kenneth Family had not sent their troops to the Monolith Castle yet, and this was indeed a good time to get rid of the Northern Field Town Family.
Damn it, the four old men from the four big families of Northern Field Town were indeed sly old foxes. They already felt that something was wrong when they saw the preferential treatment for the family's soldiers. If they did not suspect that the new lord would make a move against them, they would not have taken such drastic measures. They immediately retreated, and the few follow-up plans that he had made could not be carried out …
Did they think that they could protect themselves by hiding in Northern Field Town? Laurist laughed sinisterly. Right now, the Monolith Castle had recruited about five hundred new soldiers from the slave labor, and with the three original squads of guards and guards, they could take out six hundred people. Maple Forest Manor had a company of guards, and with the newly recruited one hundred and fifty new soldiers, they could also take out a company. With that, they would have about one thousand two hundred people, and with the seventy to eighty mercenaries here, as well as himself, Josk, Padt, and Redi, taking down Northern Field Town should not be a problem …
So I already gathered so many soldiers. The only thing I have to worry about is the number of casualties. After all, this is my first time attacking a city, and I can't rely on sneak attacks or stratagems to take down a city. I have no other choice but to take it by force. The walls of Northern Field Town were about eight to nine meters tall, and the four big families and a few small families had about two thousand strong men who could go into battle. Among them, there were about six hundred who had awakened their combat energy, and they had the advantage of numbers. This battle was not going to be easy, and I might even lose half of my men …
Laurist was most worried that the four big families would be driven to desperate measures. They were trying to protect their families, and the old, the weak, the women, and the children were all fighting to the death against the family's soldiers. No matter how powerful I am, how many can I kill in this situation? Just like what Josk said, he could shoot more than a hundred arrows in a row, and he would be crippled. If both sides were to suffer, how was he going to defend against the two thousand regular armed soldiers of the Cummins Family?
Besieging them was the only way to reduce casualties, but what I lack now is time. Northern Field Town had just harvested their wheat, and with the previous stockpile, how long do I have to besiege them? Three years? Five years? This is not realistic. After this year, the mountain barbarians will invade the family's territory again. This is for sure. Alas, Laurist realized that even though I have so many soldiers, I can't bear to use them to fight against Northern Field Town …
Loriste hesitated. Damn it, if only I had a few more months. Just as he was thinking, a fast horse galloped into the military stronghold. The rider jumped off and reported, "Sir, the Grand Duke of the Northern Region's envoy has arrived. The old chief wants you to hurry back immediately. "
… …
Strange, didn't that bullshit Duke send people to collect money in October a few years ago? It's only the beginning of August now, why are they here so early? On the way back to Maple Forest Manor, Laurist asked the messenger if Duke Lujins from the North had said anything.
The messenger shook his head and didn't say anything. He only knew that there were many people coming this time, and Knight Josk from Monolith Castle had brought a team of fully armed guards to personally escort them. The old chief then ordered him to deliver the message.
Something's wrong, Josk brought people to personally escort them? Or a fully armed guard? Thinking about it again, the messenger said that there were many people, and Laurist understood. That bullshit Duke must have heard that he had emptied out the Kenneth Family's Red River Valley Manor and wanted a share, so he sent people to threaten his family. It was obvious that the people sent this time, Josk thought that the family would be hard to deal with, so he came personally. They were supposed to be escorting, but they were actually monitoring. Otherwise, they could have just sent someone else to lead the team, and there was no way they would bring a team of fully armed guards.
Laurist spurred his horse on, and rushed back in the evening. A small camp had been set up in the open space in front of Maple Forest Manor Castle. The messenger said that it was the Northland Legion that had come with the messenger sent by the Duke of the North, and there were more than two hundred of them. The family refused their request to enter the castle, and only allowed them to camp outside the castle.
The castle was heavily guarded. It seemed that the old chief, Clancy, had already realized that the Duke of the North had sent so many people with bad intentions, so he ordered the family soldiers to stand guard.
Spear hurried over to greet him. "Sir, they are all in the big dining hall. They have been eating and drinking for the whole afternoon. This time, the Duke of the North sent a baron, and he also brought a Gold Knight and twenty Silver Knights. Clancy is inside with them, and so are Knight Paciko and Knight Josk. "
Laurist stopped in his tracks. "Did they say why they came this time?"
Spear shook her head. "They didn't say that. I only heard them asking when you would come back, old chief, and they were already impatient. Miss Bai Sha was here, but she ran away because of those people's filthy words. That Gold Knight even asked Miss Bai Sha to accompany him at night. If Knight Josk wasn't here just now, he would have hit Miss Bai Sha … "
Laurist snorted. "Is that woman brainless? What's she doing in a situation like this? With her 1-star Silver strength, if she really fought, she would just be sending herself to death. "
Laurist led Redi and Padt into the big dining hall. The originally noisy dining hall gradually quietened down with Laurist's footsteps.
Sitting at two long wooden tables in the middle of the dining hall were about 20 soldiers in gray standard leather armor, their faces flushed with alcohol. It seemed that they were the 20 Silver-tier knights that Steward Spear had mentioned. At the front of the long wooden table, there was a skinny middle-aged man wearing a pale blonde wig and formal attire. Beside him was a large man in chain armor. That should be the Gold Knight. On the other side of the wooden table was Clancy, who was sitting in a wooden wheelchair. Paciko stood behind him, and Josk sat next to him.
Josk hurriedly stood up and bowed with Paciko when he saw Laurist enter.
"This is our new lord, Baron Norton Lollister." Clancy introduced him to the skinny man and the armored man.
According to the etiquette of the nobles, the skinny man and the large man should stand up and say their names to show their respect. However, the two of them sat there without moving. The skinny man even mocked in a strange tone, "It seems like the new lord is very busy. You made us wait for so long. Unfortunately, it's not up to you whether he's a baron or not. Without the Grand Duke's approval, he's nothing … "
As if he hadn't heard the skinny man's sharp words, Laurist walked over to Clancy's side and said, "Grandpa Clancy, you've worked hard. Why don't you go rest? I'll handle things here."
The old man waved his hand. "It's fine. I'm not tired. You go handle it. I'll stay here and watch."
The skinny man was furious when Laurist ignored him. He slammed the table and said angrily, "Hey, I'm talking to you. Are you deaf?"
Laurist turned around and looked down at the skinny man. "Where did you come from? How dare you be so rude in front of the Raging Bear Family? "
The skinny man felt a chill run down his spine when he saw Lollister's cold and murderous gaze. He was stunned speechless for a moment, and only came to his senses when the armored man beside him patted his shoulder. The skinny man stood up with a flushed face. The wig on his head was crooked because of him. He adjusted the wig and said through gritted teeth, "I'm Baron Camorra. I'm a noble. You have to show me some respect …"
"Hehe, you're a noble. You're a fake, right? I've never seen a noble as uncultured and uncultured as you. You look like a clown … "Laurist mocked the skinny man. Redi, Padt, and the others laughed as well.
"Show me your proof of noble status. If you're a fake, I'll hang you at the castle gates. You'll be punished for your crimes." Laurist suddenly yelled. Everyone in the dining hall jumped in fright and looked over.
Laurist's sudden change in attitude caused the skinny man to turn pale. He hurriedly searched his body. "Here, here. My noble status is right beside me …"
He took out a bunch of documents and placed them on the table.
At this time, the armored man slowly said, "I can prove that he is a noble. Although the Duke has only conferred him the title of Baron for three months, he has indeed become a noble …"
"Oh, so the duke just made him a baron. No wonder he looks like a clown. What an embarrassment to us nobles. Since you were sent by the duke, tell me, why did you bring so many people to the Norton Family? "Laurist looked at the skinny man with disdain and asked casually.
… …
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