"Why did Knight Bellunick stay in Northern Field Town for three years?" Laurist asked.
Laurist brought Serdkamp to an open two-wheeled carriage, driven by Steward Cordan himself. The carriage was pulled by two fine horses from the north, speeding towards Northern Field Town.
"My lord, because our family's manor has no apothecary. The head of the Dunbasen Family in Northern Field Town is the only level 1 apothecary in our family's territory. Sir Bellunick's medical needs are all handled by the Dunbasen Family, "Steward Cordan replied.
"The Dunbasen Family? Tell me about their origins, "Laurist said.
Steward Cordan spoke as he drove the carriage, "My lord, when our Norton Family was recruiting guards, the first head of the Dunbasen Family was an apprentice apothecary. He joined the guards. After his family's financial situation improved, he sent his son to his previous apothecary teacher to learn. Ten years later, his son became a level 1 apothecary and returned to Northern Field Town, replacing his father as a guard. Relying on the inheritance of the family, the children of the Dunbasen Family all became apprentices or apothecaries.
"Our family once tried to recruit people from the Dunbasen Family, but we were rejected. The family didn't mind seeing that they were the only apothecaries in the territory. However, we made an agreement with them that when the family's soldiers are injured, they must provide treatment first. This is how we have worked with the Dunbasen Family for the past two hundred years. That's why after Knight Bellunick was injured, he stayed in Northern Field Town for the sake of convenience.
"What's the situation in Northern Field Town now?" Laurist asked again.
"My lord, Northern Field Town is now under the control of the families of the four guards. In the past two hundred years, the families of the guards have gone through many storms, and it's common for them to go through ups and downs. Right now, the guards of Northern Field Town are under the control of the Hassan Family, the Morin Family, the Dunbasen Family, and the Cupid Family, the four largest families in Northern Field Town. Morosin, the lord's first bastard son, had been born to a Morin mother. This time, the Morin Family has joined forces with the other three families to support Morosinger's ascension. Their condition is that after Morosinger becomes the head of the Norton Family, the four families will become vassal Knight families, and Beiye Town will be given to them as a Knight's Domain. This way, Beiye Town will be freed from the Norton Family's nominal control. "
Among the nobles of Galintea's territory, it was rare to see a knight's territory being bestowed upon their family's knights. This was very different from the Feudal World of the Middle Ages that Laurist knew of. In that Feudal World, there were more knight territories, and the knight territories would fight and annex each other, gradually expanding the territory.
In Galinthea, the nobles didn't bestow their family's knights with fiefdoms, but an annuity or a knight's manor. This also had something to do with the Qi rank of the family's knights. A Silver-ranked family knight would be given an annuity. Only after serving the family for tens of years and being loyal to them would they be granted a Knight's Manor. This Knight's Manor would then become the ancestral property of the knight, and his descendants would automatically have the title of a knight. Thus, in Galintea, becoming a family knight of a territory noble meant becoming a quasi-noble.
If a territory noble recruited a Gold-ranked family knight or promoted a Silver-ranked subordinate knight to Gold-ranked, the territory noble would have to consider whether or not to bestow a Knight's Manor to them. Generally speaking, a Knight's Manor included a castle, a thousand acres of plantations, and a hundred acres of grazing land, forests, and lakes. Other than the fact that there were no villages or towns, it was also a disguised Knight's Domain.
Although Laurist had recruited so many friends to become family knights, when they settled down in the North, Laurist would have to consider how many Knight's Manors to build in the family's territory. However, Laurist was prepared to leave these matters to Fatty Shi, so he didn't have to worry about it.
There were also cases of bestowing a territory to the family knights under them. Usually, it was when the family knight made a great contribution or became a Great Swordmaster. For example, the second prince had two Great Swordmasters under him, and they were each bestowed a town as a Knight's Domain. Another reason was the expansion of the territory. High-ranking nobles would bestow low-ranking titles and territories to their family knights, making them their vassal families.
For example, the four major families of Northern Field Town, as members of the garrison, wanted to become a knight's territory in Northern Field Town. This showed their ambition and intention to compete with the Norton Family, the nominal leader of the Northern Field Town. Once they had their way, they would be able to get rid of their status as commoners and ascend to the ranks of nobles. Even though they would still be considered as vassals of the Norton family, they would have greater autonomy. They could even ignore orders from the Norton family and act on their own.
"In your dreams," Laurist commented coldly. This Steward Kedan spoke like he was familiar with these things, and he even understood the plans of the four families. It seemed like he had done a lot of work and preparation.
Although the walls of Northern Field Town could be seen from the family's manor, it still took more than 40 minutes to reach Northern Field Town by carriage. Bei Ye Town's gates were wide open, and four listless guards were holding their spears as they chatted. When they saw the carriage, they were prepared to stop it, but when they saw that the driver was Steward Cordan, they waved their hands and allowed the carriage to enter the town's gates without a word.
"Sir, when you inherited the title and territory last night, not a single one of the guards came. If you meet the members of the garrison when you visit Lord Beruk, please restrain yourself. Even if you feel wronged, you should endure it. After all, this is their territory for many years … … "Steward Codan tactfully reminded him.
Laurist snorted lightly to show that he knew what he was doing. He sat in the carriage and began to observe the situation of Northern Field Town.
Like many small towns, Northern Field Town only had two gates in the east and west. A large road connected the two gates, dividing Northern Field Town into the north and the south. There was a small square in the middle of the road, and to the south of the square was the lord's mansion made of wood and stone. The house was made of logs and rocks, and it had a rough and bold style. However, the Norton family had not set foot in Northern Field Town in recent years, and the lord's mansion had not been taken care of, making it look dilapidated.
To the north of the small square was a grey stone hill, and at the top of the hill was the water source of Northern Field Town, the Stone Hill Fountain. The people had dug out a few water troughs on the stone hill, and the fountain flowed through the troughs to all directions of Northern Field Town, making it easy for people to get water.
Laurist noticed that most of the houses on this side of the hill were made of stone, and the streets were much cleaner. There were even a few shops. In the south, near the lord's mansion, there were many houses made of random materials, and there were even shacks.
"Sir, most of the people who live in the stone houses on the north side are the guards and their families. The people on the south side are the survivors of the family soldiers who died in battle. Although they are related to the guards, they are not treated well, and are of a lower status in Northern Field Town. Apart from these family members, there are also some descendants of those who have lost in the struggle for power in the garrison. They have the lowest status in Northern Field Town, and many of the soldiers the family recruited in the past came from these people, "Steward Cordan explained to Laurist.
"How many people are there in Northern Field Town now?" Laurist asked.
"A hundred years ago, the family did a population census. At that time, the total population of Northern Field Town was three thousand four hundred and fifty-nine people, and the family's manor and castle had one thousand eight hundred and forty-two people living there. After that, the family never did a population census again. Now, there are two thousand seven hundred people in the manor and castle. Based on this, there should be around five thousand people in Northern Field Town. But according to my observation, the total population of Beiye Town should be about seven thousand. The four families that control Beiye Town, each of them has a total population of more than three to four hundred people. Other than the family members in the garrison, they can also have close to a hundred private soldiers. This is the biggest reason why the four families can control Beiye Town. "
"How did the four great families get their wealth?" Laurist asked again.
"Sir, they occupy half of the fertile land in Northern Field Town, and the four great families make up more than eighty of the two hundred people in the garrison. The families that lost their membership in the garrison either split up or became hired farmers, farming for the four great families or serving as private soldiers. Secondly, they organize smuggling. Because the family refused to give them a caravan pass, they could only carry out smuggling activities. The main products they sell are the illicit salt they brew and the fur they poach … Sir, we have arrived. Sir Berunik lives in the lord's mansion. "Steward Cordan stopped the carriage and jumped off the driver's seat. He went to the back and opened the door.
Laurist and Thurkamp got off the carriage.
The main door of the lord's mansion was closed. Steward Cordan went to the side door and called a few times. A young man came out.
"Casey, take the carriage to the backyard. I will take sir to see Sir Berunik." Steward Cordan said to the young man.
"Sir?" The young man was startled. He looked at Laurist, then silently took care of the carriage.
"Sir, this way." Steward Cordan led the way. They entered through the side door, passed through a corridor and a courtyard, and arrived at a small courtyard to the left of the lord's mansion.
"Sir Berunik is recuperating here, sir." Steward Cordan said.
Laurist pushed open the courtyard door and saw a white-haired youth sitting on a recliner in the courtyard, trying to stand up.
"It's you … Brother Dali …" Little Locke's memory flashed before his eyes. A white-haired young knight tossed Locke, who was seven or eight years old, high up in the air and gently caught him. Little Locke was laughing non-stop. This white-haired young knight was one of his father's most admired knight squires. He was also Little Locke's favourite big brother to play with. Little Locke always called him Brother Dali because he was strong enough to toss Locke high up in the air …
The white-haired Berunik tried a few more times, but found that he had no strength to stand up from the recliner. He could only sit back down. "Little Locke, long time no see. I didn't expect to see you as a lord when we meet again. I should call you sir."
"Yes, it's been more than ten years. You disappeared when I was ten. I even cried then." Laurist found a stool beside the recliner and sat down.
"Yes, I was still young then. I always wanted to go out and see the world, so I left my family's territory to travel. But I didn't expect to come back five years later to find you exiled to Morent City to study, "Berunik said with a smile.
"Brother Dali, what happened to your body?" Laurist asked.
"Sir, you can call me Beck. You've already grown up and become an outstanding lord. People will laugh at you if you still call me Brother Dali," Berunik said with a straight face.
"As for my body, it's already destroyed. Didn't you see it just now? I don't even have the strength to stand up, sigh … "The white-haired young knight was very depressed.
"But Dali … Alright, Brother Beck, I've never heard of someone not having the strength to stand up after recuperating for three years. Can you tell me what happened when you were injured?" Laurist asked.
"I was about ten steps away from Third Young Master's mount. No one would have thought that there would be traces of a Northern Demonic Bear in the woods at the edge of the territory's pasture. That Demonic Bear was four meters tall and suddenly pounced out of the thicket. Everyone was shocked. Third Young Master's horse was so frightened that it reared up. Third Young Master didn't have time to react and fell off the horse's back. However, one of his legs was stuck in the stirrup. The horse was startled and turned around, dragging Third Young Master as it madly ran. I saw that the situation wasn't good and threw the spear in my hand, pinning the frightened horse to the ground. “
"However, the smell of blood stimulated the Demonic Bear and it went straight for the dead horse. Third Young Master's leg was still stuck in the stirrup and his entire body was pinned down by the dead horse, unable to move. All of the guards around him had run away. I had no choice but to throw the sword in my hand over in an attempt to block the Demonic Bear. I didn't expect that the sword would pierce into the Demonic Bear's ribs, enraging the Demonic Bear and causing it to rush towards me. I fought with the Demonic Bear for half a day and was accidentally slapped away. Seeing the Demonic Bear pounce at me again, I noticed that there was a spear that the guards had thrown away when they were fleeing. I hurriedly gathered the last of my battle spirit on the tip of the spear and stabbed the Demonic Bear to death. Afterwards, I fainted. “
Although Bellunia said it casually, Laurist could imagine the danger of facing the Demonic Bear. The Demonic Bear of the Northern Lands was a fearsome beast among the Demonic Beasts. Normally, when a Silver-rank encountered a Demonic Bear, it was best to flee. Otherwise, the victor between the two would usually not be a human.
"Later, when I woke up, I realized that three days had passed. Master Dumbasen said that if I didn't wake up, I would really be hopeless. Because I was struck by the Demonic Bear's palm, the ribs on my right side were all broken and my internal organs were displaced. Lord Baron then ordered me to come to Northern Field Town to recuperate so that Master Dumbasen could treat me. A year later, my injuries stabilized. However, in the past two years, my injuries frequently relapsed and my entire body was weak. It was impossible for me to cultivate battle spirit. Yesterday, I wanted to participate in Lord's inheritance ceremony, but I vomited black blood whenever I moved … Lord, sometimes, I often wonder why I didn't die with the Demonic Bear. It would have been so straightforward. Right now, I'm just suffering … "
Laurist frowned. "What did that Master Dumbasen say?"
Bellunia leaned back on the recliner and said helplessly, "Master Dumbasen said that there was nothing he could do. Because my internal organs are displaced and damaged, my external injuries are treated quickly, but my internal recovery is very slow. I can't do any strenuous exercise, even walking quickly is forbidden. In order not to affect the recovery of my internal organs, I can't even eat bread and beef to avoid increasing the burden on my body. I can only eat two bowls of oatmeal with some salt every day, and a small bowl of meat soup every three days … Lord, I've had enough of these days … "
Laurist expressed his sympathy. He grabbed Bellunia's hand and gently stroked it to comfort him, but secretly took his pulse without batting an eyelid …
Laurist's face suddenly turned red. He was burning with anger, and a murderous aura burst forth. His voice became extremely cold, making one's hair stand on end …
"Damn it …" Laurist said.
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