In the banquet hall, Tang En and Brad chatted. Under the guidance of Tang En, the topics they talked about gradually deepened from the beginning.
The more they talked, the stronger the surprise in Brad's heart.
Why?
Because Tang En asked him questions about how to govern the city, how to manage the residents, and how to guide the residents to develop the city.
Brad was not stupid. Was His Majesty the Regent really so bored that he passed by just to talk about some unimportant questions?
He knew very well that the position of the castellan of the Hanging Axe Castle was still empty. Although Justin was temporarily acting as the castellan, as the leader, he would eventually return to the army to develop. It was impossible for him to be the castellan for a long time.
Now, Tang En's questions gave Brad a signal, and he began to answer Tang En's questions with full attention.
But as time went by, Tang En's questions became stranger and stranger, and Brad's answering speed became slower and slower. Often, he would think for a long time about a question.
He did not dare to answer casually!
If any of the answers dissatisfied His Majesty, how could his dream come true?
Didn't Brad see that he was sweating?
After finally answering the previous question, Tang En suddenly asked, "What do you think is the most important thing in a city?"
What was the most important thing?
Brad was dumbfounded.
What was the most important thing in a city?
People? Wealth? Defensive ability? Military strength? Or environment?
This question was too broad, and because it was broad, it was more difficult to answer. Only by focusing on the preferences of the questioner could a correct answer be given.
But … Brad did not know what Tang En's preferences were!
After thinking hard for a long time, Brad carefully asked, "Safety?"
In fact, according to Prandal customs, Brad's answer was not wrong. This high-magic world was very dangerous, and magical beasts would jump out from time to time to make trouble. If a city could not protect its residents, who would live there?
Therefore, safety was a point that Prandal people attached great importance to.
Tang En smiled faintly. "A sense of security is not wrong, but it needs to be deeper."
A little deeper?
Brad was dumbfounded. If one were to ask him to build a manor, wrangle with the nobles, or even ride a horse to kill some bandits, it wouldn't be a problem. After all, he was a Dark Iron Seer. But asking him to think about these problems was really difficult for him.
A sense of security was not wrong, but what could a sense of security bring? More people? More … wealth?
"Wealth?"
The corner of Tang En's mouth twitched. "Wrong."
Seeing Brad break out in a cold sweat, Tang En dispelled the idea of continuing to test him. He already had a general understanding of Brad's situation.
He often did good deeds and earned a good reputation. This fellow was considered a noble with a conscience. Secondly, he had some basic knowledge of management. Furthermore, he was not considered a member of the Aristocratic Party. He was considered a neutral noble, so he could be used without worry.
But to expect him to have modern logical thinking and management awareness, it would be better to just kill him.
"Listen carefully, the most important thing in a city," Tang En had already made up his mind, so he decided to give some pointers, "is happiness."
"Happiness?"
What the hell was that?
Living in a strange world like Prandal, the elite class determined the direction of the world. Things like humanistic care basically did not exist. Most of the nobles only cared about satisfying their own desires, let alone the thoughts of the commoners at the bottom.
But in order to fight against Chaos in the future, Tang En had to break this custom.
No matter how ordinary a person was, as long as they had enough weapons and equipment, they could cause considerable damage to the creatures of Chaos. Everyone was a precious fighting force.
But if they wanted to stand up bravely against the invasion of Chaos, they needed a strong motivation.
What was that motivation?
The belief to protect the home.
"Happiness is an important indicator to determine whether a city has potential."
Tang En explained while drinking tea. "A city can not be rich enough, can not be prosperous enough, can not be convenient enough, but it can't be without human feelings."
"The most important thing for people to be alive is to be happy. A qualified manager can let the residents of the city feel the omnipresent humanistic care, let them like the city, and think that they will be happy and blissful living here."
"As long as people feel happy in the city, they will contribute their own strength to the development of the city. They will spontaneously maintain the order of the city, and the city will become better and better."
"Even if the city is not strong enough and encounters danger, if the people really like the city, they will not be stingy and give their strength to protect the city."
"Think about it, if a city has been developing by exploiting and oppressing the people, making the people hate the city from the bottom of their hearts, will they protect the city in the face of danger?"
Tang En looked at Brad who was deep in thought. "Even if you use the order of the castellan and threaten them with swords to go to the battlefield, how useful can they be in a negative state of mind?"
"But, Your Majesty."
Brad asked with a puzzled look. "If a city needs these people to defend, then the city is basically hopeless, right?"
That's right, if even the Apocalypse could not resist the threat and died in battle, leaving only the civilians to protect their homes, it meant that the situation was already very dangerous. In such a dangerous situation, what use could the civilians play?
Tang En smiled meaningfully. "You will understand this kind of thing in the future. I can only tell you one thing, and that is to never underestimate the power of the people. You have to know that water can carry a boat, and it can also race a boat … Ah pui, it can also overturn a boat."
Water can carry a boat, and it can also overturn a boat?
To be honest, Tang En's words were absolutely shocking in a feudal society. If it were not for the fact that he was the king now, just these simple words alone would probably bring about a fatal disaster — of course, whether he could be killed was another matter.
Tang En wanted Prandal to change the social form as soon as possible so as to increase the overall strength to resist the final crisis. But how could it be so easy to change the social form? If he accidentally touched the interests of the stubborn classes, he was afraid that he would be out of control. After all, there were still two powerful kingdoms in the north that were keeping an eye on the Irus Empire at all times.
Brad smelled a hint of something strange. "Your Majesty, could it be that you want to —"
"Oh, I'm hungry, it's time for lunch. Brad, hasn't your cook prepared lunch yet?"
Tang En suddenly interrupted him. There were some things that he was well aware of, and now was not the time to confess. He had to slowly accumulate strength and change the way people thought. Then, he would find an opportunity to erupt and complete the transformation of the social form in one go. This was the only way.
Fortunately, this world had magic and the Divine Spell of Life. As long as there was inspiration and direction, the efficiency of productivity would increase as fast as a rocket. According to the normal development of productivity, it would take at least a few hundred years to complete the transformation from a feudal society to a capitalist society.
Brad immediately understood Tang En's idea. He nodded and said, "Your Majesty, it's almost time. Please wait a moment."
After a while, the long table in the banquet hall was filled with a sumptuous lunch. Although it was the same old dishes, there were some local specialties and unique dishes of the Hanging Axe Castle, which was enough for Tang En to have a taste of.
After lunch, Tang En and the others did not plan to stay here for too long. Tang En patted Brad's shoulder and said, "In the next few days, you should prepare. The Hanging Axe Castle can't be without a castellan."
Hearing Tang En's words, Brad, who had been absent-minded during lunch, immediately became excited as if he had been injected with chicken blood. He said, "I understand! I will live up to your expectations, Your Majesty! "
A castellan, damn it!
After waiting for so many years, it was finally here!
From now on, the Bodi family could finally straighten their backs and shout loudly, "I am also one of the king's men."
As for the terrifying words that Tang En had said, Brad had already made up his mind to keep them to himself. It was fine as long as he understood His Majesty's idea, but if others knew about it, it would definitely not be a good thing.
Anyway, His Majesty was sympathetic to the people and wanted them to live a happier life. That was easy to do. As long as he vigorously built the city, hired more civilians, and did not default on their wages, they would naturally be grateful.
At this moment, Brad still did not fully understand Tang En's idea. He only thought that Tang En wanted the civilians to live a better life. He did not know that Tang En wanted to completely break the class barrier between the nobles and the civilians so that the two could live together.
"But I need you to understand one thing. As a castellan, you have to be fair, just, and honest. If you use the power I give you to do whatever you want …"
Tang En patted Brad's shoulder. He did not finish his sentence, but Brad knew very well what he meant.
Brad's heart skipped a beat, and he said seriously, "Please rest assured, Your Majesty, I will not act recklessly."
After giving Brad a warning, Tang En kindly accepted Brad's gift. Then, they went to the stronghold of the Datang Chamber of Commerce and met with the person in charge there. They set up a transmission array and connected it to Ellington. After that, they directly left Hanging Axe Castle and set off east along the official road.
Matanni was east of Subaron, and the central city was the port city of Fehra. It was about 400 to 500 kilometers away from Hanging Axe Castle.
Matanni was a relatively wealthy territory among the few dukes in Irus. Half of the empire's wealth was produced here. On one hand, it was because there were a variety of industries here, such as mining, animal husbandry, farming, and so on. On the other hand, there was the famous natural port of Fehra in Prandal. Naturally, there was a lot of people here.
During the Month of Growth (April) and the Month of Life (May) every year, the Sea of Abyss was the best time to sail. Someone once said that Fehra was even more lively than Alinx at this time. Merchants gathered in this city from all over the world, selling specialties from all over the world. All kinds of strange things could be found here. It was a city full of miracles.
Tang En and the others planned to go out to sea from Fehra, then go south along the Shining Coast and go ashore at Clearwater City, a port city in the east of Delonitant.
It was only a day's journey from Clearwater City to Nanilla by carriage. The distance was quite close.
However, the name of Clearwater City …
Tang En was too lazy to complain.
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