In mid-February, Art prepares to host a special family feast at the Valley Wooden Castle. The invitees were mainly officers above the rank of company commander of the Main Battle Corps of the Wells Corps, the Southern Garrison Corps (including the County Soldier Company, the Fort Andermatt Company and the Sapp Company) and the Valley Garrison Corps.

Art intends to use the banquet to strengthen the ties between the officers of all ranks, and at the same time to learn about the situation of the soldiers of the various units of the Wells Legion in recent days.

To this end, Art specially instructed the people of the civil administration to purchase a batch of high-quality beef and mutton and some fresh fruits and vegetables from the county, intending to treat these loyal subordinates who have followed him all the way to this day.

On the second Sunday of February, the officers of the various divisions of the regiment gathered at the wooden fort in the valley as scheduled.

At noon, after the Earl's private chef had ordered his servants to place all sorts of fragrant and hot food on the table, the officers sat down on either side of the table in order of rank.

Art, Earl of Wales, sat at the top.

"Everyone!"

After seeing everyone seated, Art spoke.

"Today, I have specially instructed the servants of the palace to prepare these sumptuous meals for the high-ranking officers of the Welsh Regiment present here. The first is to strengthen the contacts and exchanges between the various ministries and bring you together. Secondly, I had previously instructed the sergeant major and Kazak to be responsible for counting the merits of the officers and soldiers at all levels of the corps, as well as the evaluation of military ranks and the battle losses of each department, and it is time to report on them. ”

"Adult~"

Angus stood up suddenly.

Art waved Angus to sit down and speak.

"Today is the family feast of the officers of the Welsh Regiment, and these ceremonial things are exempt."

"Yes, sir."

Angus then sat down.

"Come, everyone~"

Art raised his glass.

"As Earl of Wales and Captain of the Legion of Wales, I would like to take this opportunity to make a toast. You are all high-ranking officers of the Legion who were born and died with me. Without you, we would not be where we are today, and I would not be the Earl of Wales. Therefore, I salute you with this cup of wine! Dry! ”

"!"

The crowd drank it all.

"Okay, now everyone can eat and drink as they please, just like at home, and they don't have to be restrained."

"Lord Earl Xie!"

Looking at the abundant food in front of them, this group of soldiers grabbed the meat on the plate and stuffed it into their mouths, their mouths full of oil.

"Now, let's talk about the casualties of the soldiers. Sergeant Major, you come first. ”

Angus quickly swallowed the unchewed beef in his mouth, almost taking a breath, and swallowed the beer in his glass. The crowd burst into laughter.

"Report ~ cough cough ~ report to your lordship, the various units of the Southern Xinjiang Garrison Corps have suffered a total of more than 807 people, of which 35 were killed in battle."

Art nodded and continued: "Kazak, Odo is not here, you are currently temporarily acting as the head of the first sub-regiment, you can talk about the damage of the main battle legion." ”

Art finished and shoved a piece of beef into his mouth.

"Report to your lord, the first sub-regiment suffered a total of one hundred and forty-six casualties, of which seventy-six soldiers were killed, forty-five were seriously wounded, and the rest were lightly wounded."

It's a figure that Art doesn't want to see. As the core strength of the Legion, the elite soldiers of the Welsh Legion have played a huge role in all operations. Unexpectedly, the battle of Thorne City made him suffer such a big loss. I couldn't help but feel a pain in my heart.

Art picked up his glass and drank down a large glass of wine.

After adjusting his mood, Art continued: "Bass, tell me about the situation of the valley garrison~"

"Yes, sir. The Valley Garrison Corps suffered one hundred and five casualties. Of these, 45 were killed, 32 were seriously injured and the rest were slightly injured. ”

After several high-ranking officers of the Legion had finished reporting, Art suddenly stood up with his wine glass. The crowd also stood up.

"Ladies and gentlemen, these dead and wounded soldiers are the pride and glory of my Wells Legion. Today, let us take this opportunity to pay tribute to those soldiers who have departed, and may their souls rest in heaven~"

With that, everyone poured the wine from their glasses on top to commemorate the soldiers who died in battle.

"One more thing, I have previously entrusted the matter of counting the merits of officers and soldiers at all levels to the sergeant major and Kazak. Tell us about the situation. ”

"Yes, sir."

"According to the rules of the legion, this ......"

…………

In the middle of the feast, Art informed the officers present that Odo had formed a garrison of the Westlands in Beauna.

“…… Odo's letter said that he had organized his officers to recruit 200 young and strong soldiers, and that he was continuing to recruit them while he was working hard to organize training. In addition, the food, grass, baggage, weapons and salaries promised by the palace have all been in place. ”

"But~"

Arte paused, put down the roast rabbit in his hand, and wiped his hands.

"Lord Marquis has also sent five junior officers to the Legion of the West."

Everyone immediately put down the food in their hands and turned to look at Art.

"My lord, those guys are obviously the eyes of the Marquis who planted them in our western garrison legion~"

Angus couldn't help but say. As a high-ranking officer in the Legion, he was clear about Flender's intentions.

Art reached out to stop Angus from continuing.

"Sergeant Major, guys, try to keep these words as few as possible. If it reaches the ears of the Marquis, I'm afraid everyone won't be happy~"

The crowd answered no more.

"In addition, the company responsible for the defense of Fort Marcy has been formed and has begun to patrol the perimeter......"

After listening to the military affairs report, Art learned about the situation reported by the ideological and political officer Dunnis about the mood of the legionnaires in recent days.

The legionnaires had been back in the valley for a long time, but had not yet received their rewards, and there was some suspicion. In addition, Art had become the Earl of Wales, but there was no news of their military exploits, and they began to talk about it.

In response to this situation, Yate instructed the officers present to restrain the people below and implement the military rewards as soon as they were discussed and approved by him and the senior officers.

The banquet lasted until the evening. After having eaten and drunk enough, the officers of all ranks returned to their respective stations.

…………

At night, Art writes and draws alone in the secret room of the bedroom on the second floor. The wooden table was full of scattered papers. It can be vaguely seen that the candle on the candlestick has almost burned to the end, and the wax oil under the candlestick has accumulated a thick layer ~

Directly in front of Arte, the two stacks of neatly arranged papers are faintly visible...... The words "Three Counties and Two Fortresses in the Provincial Border......", "The Village between the Valleys was upgraded to the Bunker between the Valleys......" and "The Valley Wooden Fort Academy was upgraded to the Wells Civil Affairs College", and the other stack was "...... The Welsh Corps maintained its current size, reorganized the Southern Xinjiang Garrison Corps, streamlined the Valley Garrison Corps", "improved the peasant and military system in Wales Province, and hid troops in the civilian ......"

The quill in his hand had begun to drip ink and soak through the paper, but he couldn't put it down for a long time.

Tick~

A drop of ink fell onto the slightly yellowed white paper.

Arte simply put the blank piece of paper with the words "Lord of Wales" on the candle and let the flames swallow it. The ashes of the paper fell all over the ground.

"The scene is big, it's not well balanced~"

Art rubbed his temples and sighed in quick succession......

Just as Art was about to be overwhelmed by what was in front of him, the thick wooden door of the chamber was gently pushed open. Lottie walked in with a glass of fresh, steaming milk.

"Honey, it's already late at night, it's time to rest."

With that, he handed the milk to Art and turned behind Art to rub his shoulders.

"Honey, you still feel sorry for me~"

Art touched Lottie's smooth hand, and a wave of warmth rose.

"You go to sleep first, I still have to think about Jinxun for my subordinates. Over the years, they have followed me step by step, and it is not easy. I must reward them well, or who will die for me in the future. But this matter is not as easy as imagined, the Marquis gave me the name of a province, and I have only a county and a valley...... Do you think this counts as an internal worry? ”

Lottie leaned over Art's face and kissed him. Seeing his beloved working so hard every day, I can't help but feel a little sad in my heart~

After Lottie left, Art continued to pick up the quills and began to write again. It wasn't until dawn on the second day that I dragged my tired body into the warm quilt, and fell asleep as soon as I touched the bed~

…………

The southern part of the Princedom of Burgundy, the capital of the Duchy of Lombardy, Milan, and the palace hall.

The Duke of Lombardy convened a great council to discuss the change of regime in northern Lombardy.

Almost overnight, a Princedom of Burgundy suddenly appeared in the north, supported by the Kingdom of France. Although the Hou State was first established, the country was still weak. But with the support of the Kingdom of France behind it, the status cannot be underestimated. What's more, France is still a country that covets the land of other countries~ This makes it difficult for the Duke of Lombard to sit on his feet.

Everyone knew about this incident that had shocked the European continent, and they knew Flender, the new ruler of the princely state, and they knew that Flender was a ruthless character who had made his fortune in mercenary warfare. In addition, the Midsummer Legion under this guy is very famous in the southern part of the continent and is often seen on the side of the belligerents. Therefore, there is a saying circulating on the mainland: where there is war, there is Flender~

The Duchy of Lombardy agreed that the coming to power of Flanders was more detrimental to Lombardy. As a result, there was a voice in the Duchy of Lombardy to suppress the princedom of Burgundy. But in the middle of the Duchy of Provence, they are also beyond the reach of the whip.

"As you know, this Flender is not an easy fellow to deal with. Even Bernard, an old and cunning guy, was defeated at his hands, this person is really not simple. I think back then, Bernard was single-handedly covering the sky in Burgundy, and it only took a long time for him to become a prisoner of Flender~"

The Duke of Lombard sighed softly and shook his head repeatedly.

"By the way, I also heard that there is a new province in the current Princedom of Burgundy, which is just to the south. Who is the keeper of this place? ”

"Back to the Duke, this person once fought with our army~"

The military vice-minister of the palace spoke.

"Oh?"

The Duke of Lombard suddenly leaned forward.

"Who is it?"

"Lord Duke, do you remember our war with Provence?"

"Of course I do! If it weren't for that old thing in Ireyaf who intervened and ruined my good deeds, the cities on the border of Provence would have been in my pocket by now! ”

The Duke of Lombardy's face suddenly became ugly, and he was angry about the Count of Burgundy's support for Provence against the Duchy of Lombardy.

"The one who guarded the southern border of the Marquis of Burgundy this time was the Count of Wales who had previously led his troops to support the Duchy of Provence."

"Wells?"

The Duke of Lombard muttered, as if the surname was somewhat familiar.

"What's his name?"

"Art. Wood. Wells! ”

Sitting at the bottom of the hall, Wald Burley was shocked (he was the bandit-turned-bandit Earl who had murdered Art's father and destroyed the Arter's family many years ago). I thought that Art and his father had been cleaned up by the people he sent, but I didn't expect that guy's life to be so big, and now he has become the count of the Marquis of Burgundy. Once that mongrel runs back to get revenge on himself, it will definitely be a big trouble~

"I said why did Flender put Bernard in an iron cage so quickly, it turns out that none of his people are idle people~"

The Duke of Lombard pondered for a moment and said, "I'll give you half a month, and call this Art. Wood. Wells's check it out for me, I'm going to see what this guy is capable of! ”

"Yes, Lord Duke!"

…………

After the council, Walder Burley returned to his mansion and immediately summoned his henchmen to the secret room.

"You immediately take a few clean people and sneak into the southern province of Wales in the Princedom of Burgundy, and ask me if the new uncle is the wolf cub he missed back then...... Once confirmed, find a chance to give him to me......"

Wade. Burley's eyes were full of murder.

"Yes, Lord Count. I'll leave early tomorrow morning~"

After the henchmen left, Wad. Burley paced back and forth in the room, fidgeting. Today at the court meeting, I suddenly heard that Art. Wood. The name Wells reminded him of the Welsh family servant who had died at home months earlier. It was this man who united himself to falsely accuse the father and son of Art, which led to the sanction of the Church and the wanted of the Duchy of Lombardy.

It's a pity that the guy has shut his mouth for good. However, now it seems that there is an answer to his death~

…………

Downstream of the valley river, after spending several days dealing with the Legionnaires' lords, Art was finally free to inspect the production and transformation of paper in the workshop area.

After trial and error, the paper made by Yat Secret was formed and named Welsh Paper after his surname.

Now it's time to put this white gold to work. But he still kept the printing press strictly secret and did not intend to reveal it for the time being.

Art intended for the clergy of the Valley Church to copy twenty hardcover Bibles from these papers and give them to the senior clergy of the Church above the diocesan bishop. In this way, the Welsh paper will shine with the light of God, and the treasury of Art will gradually be filled with the spread of this white gold.

Just as he was in a trance, the guards came to report that a young man who claimed to be Yat's "private secretary" had arrived in the valley with his family, and was now being examined at Beiguan Military Fort.

"Private Secretary? Balor! He's finally here. ”

Immediately, Art ordered the guards to send someone to answer him.

This man was met by Art during his previous tour of the South in a church library. Because of his good handwriting and some culture, Art intended to invite him to serve in the valley. However, due to the situation at home, he did not return to the valley with Yate and the others. Now it seems that he has finally figured it out~