When Joseph heard Duke's order, he excitedly pulled out a long list from his chest pocket.

In fact, the aristocracy, as the victorious side, did not have any right of disposal other than the land and part of the private property of the losing side.

The property, food, and storage of the people of other territories can be regarded as spoils of war for the victorious side.

But Duke, a good young man in the new era, is not so heartbroken.

He strictly demanded that his soldiers not plunder civilians without permission, nor should they threaten the normal law and order of the Barony of Connaughton.

In the end, even the newly established police force was sent here as a discipline picket.

Joseph counted more of the private collections of Baron Rhine, and it was polite for Duke to take this part.

And there are also many of these things, and they squeeze oil and water out of the poor who have nothing to reap more.

It took Joseph nearly half an hour just to read the names on the list.

“...... There are many items on this list, worth about 20,000 gold coins, but of course there are more items in it that need to be sold to be exchanged for gold coins. ”

Joseph pulled his bow tie in a bit of a faux puff, letting his throat relax for a moment, ending the half-hour debriefing.

"Thank you, why did Baron Rhein prepare so many magic materials? ”

Duke nodded at Joseph, then asked his own question.

When Joseph read the list, he found that many of Baron Rhein's treasures were magical materials and gems for building magic arrays, as well as some strange materials that had never been heard of.

Thinking that he seemed to be in collusion with the cultists, Duke naturally leaned in this direction.

"This is not clear, and most of these materials are extremely common, it cannot be said that this means that he has colluded with the cultists, or maybe it is just a special hobby after he has entered middle and old age. ”

Vlavich sighed, rejecting the conjecture implied in Duke's words.

"And we now need to negotiate with Baron Rhine's agent about the redemption, and it is really important to get the greater good for us in this regard. ”

When Joseph heard the words of redemption, his eyes lit up again.

"I have already consulted with Baron Rhein's acting gentleman on this matter, and his condition is that he will be granted the right to mine the veins in the Connaughton region for twenty years, with the right of first refusal for the next thirty years. ”

"This is Connaughton's vein!"

He excitedly said the conditions for Baron Rhein's redemption, and finally did not forget to sigh again.

"Are they really going to do that? That's a big concession. ”

Vlavic was also taken aback, he didn't expect Baron Rhein to be willing to pay such a big price.

Because the mineral deposits in the Connaughton region are among the best in the entire north.

Twenty years of mining rights is enough to make each year's income dozens of times higher than the current tax of the northern fortress, and it can also gain the support of a large number of merchants.

"We'll think about that later. Although Duke was also a little excited, he still suppressed the topic first, "Is there any loss after our goods were seized by them this time?" ”

"There were no losses, and they didn't even have time to count their gains before they went to attack the northern fortresses, and then they were taught a good lesson by our valiant soldiers. ”

Joseph shook his head and said, and then said as if he remembered something: "But to talk about it, there are still some losses, and a few of our slaves are missing. ”

"The slave took advantage of the chaos to escape?" Lenia said her guess.

Joseph shook his head and denied her idea, "I asked the soldiers in charge of the escort at the time, and they were sure that the slaves disappeared after they came to the Barony of Connaughton to be guarded. ”

"There can't really be a cult ritual, right?" Duke said with a smile, "Anyway, you arrange for someone to investigate first, whether it's dead or alive, you have to find the result quickly, and we'll talk about the other ......"

Duke didn't pay much attention to this in his heart, as fugitive slavery was a very common thing in this era.

And the guards' words may not be credible, and it is possible that they themselves sold the slaves privately.

Now, in order not to be punished, he has to deal with Joseph and say that he has disappeared mysteriously.

Anyway, there is no proof of death.

Therefore, he decided to reopen the discussion on other issues, such as how to hand over the ransom and hostages with Baron Rhine's agent, as well as the connection and development of the realm to Barony Connaughton.

As soon as the discussion continued, it was dark before I knew it.

Duke's discussion with the three vassals was also coming to an end.

"In short, we still have to seek stability in everything now, and it is the last word to develop our strength first. ”

Duke made a final summary of the meeting and then stretched.

The three vassals saluted in unison, and Joseph offered an invitation to dinner.

Duke nodded to Joseph to start the dinner, then got up and walked to the dining room under the guidance of the maid who had just entered.

Vlavic and Lenia followed.

But Joseph deliberately slowed down, and finally pulled Lenia by the hand, motioning for her to step aside and speak.

"What's the matter, Joseph, is there anything you can't say in front of adults?"

Lenia said to Joseph with some displeasure that it was immoral for a knight to conspire and have intimate contact with the lord and other subordinates behind his back.

"That's right, Lenia, there may not be enough room tonight, you see......"

"Well, I thought I could deal with a night in a carriage, and it wasn't much worse than a normal room. Lenia interrupted Joseph without waiting for him to finish, waving her hand to leave.

"No, Lenya, I mean you slept in the lord's room tonight. ”

"Got it?"

When Joseph saw that Lenia was leaving, he immediately pulled her back and shouted at her in a low voice.

Lenia was a little confused when she heard Joseph's words, and instantly felt a little shy and annoyed.

But when she saw Joseph's hideous face and uneasy expression, she put aside all those thoughts that she shouldn't have.

"What's going on, you're going to be honest with me. ”

Lenia also became serious and said seriously to Joseph.

"I suspect that the castle is not clean, that there may be ghosts or evil creatures living here, and I hear strange noises every night when I sleep, but there is nothing to probe. ”

"It's very strange that I've asked people who live here for a long time and no one has ever encountered me......"

"Are you mentally weak, scaring yourself? Lenia interrupted Joseph again.

"Anyway, I want you to serve as the lord's guard for one night, as long as you survive the handover tonight. ”

Joseph stared into Lenia's eyes almost pleadingly.

Lenia couldn't help it, so she could only nod her head and agree.