I looked at the numbers on the ledger, one head or two big, simply threw it aside, flipped through the several ledgers piled up in front of me and continued to ask, "Is that all?" How many gold coins did we intercept that we didn't have time to transport? ”

"Most of them were seized, but new problems have arisen."

Wangcai stared at his dizzy old eyes as hard as he could, and finally found what he wanted in the ledger that I had turned upside down.

"According to the standard you have set, the soldiers who are killed or disabled in this battle will be compensated accordingly, and the expenses will be very huge, even if the ransom that may be received is far from filling the gap, or we will postpone the distribution first, and hurry up with important things, such as rebuilding the castle and gathering manpower, buying wheat seeds and ploughing cattle, and if we don't hurry up and turn over the seeds, we will really become poorer than rats." Wangcai rubbed his head and suggested to me as if asking.

"No, we can't set this precedent, even if we tighten our belts and starve ourselves to death this year, we can't go back on our word, otherwise what will we rely on in the future to make others work for us and win the trust of the world?"

With a wave of my hand, I rejected his suggestion, and persuaded myself in a serious tone: "We can let the captives cultivate if we are short of manpower, and if the wall collapses, we can keep it and repair it when we have money, but what our warriors deserve, it must not be a cent, this is a lord's promise to his people, even if it is the end of the world, it will not be invalidated." ”

Wangcai lowered his head and didn't speak, he knew that I had made up my mind, it was difficult to change it, so I could only follow the way I said to find a way, in fact, it was easy to say, I didn't want to add nearly a thousand more laborers, but it was also equivalent to adding a thousand unfed mouths, and the harvest was not seen before the pressure was back, it was better to sell it to the slave traders to save trouble.

"Prepare, in a few days I will go to Lorraine first, use my connections to get some relief, or pull some strong men back, since the enemy can come to our house to burn and loot, why can't I paint a gourd in the same way and burn the war to other people's land! Anyway, His Majesty the Emperor is far away in Rome, and he is carrying something by himself! ”

I helped Wangcai put together the accounts that were all over the table, and suddenly remembered something and asked him, "Why hasn't there been any news of the old liar recently?" Now is the time when he needs to bleed, and it is time for Baal to fatten the fat pigs, and it is time for the master to eat some meat. ”

The rough road from Nijmegen to Berlin was bumpy, and even if I slowed down, my back was still unbearable, and I often had to stop after walking long, otherwise I doubted that my waist would suddenly break one day, and then there would be no more......

Looking at the refreshing lakes and swamps on both sides from time to time, I had no intention of playing, and I had been thinking about the question that had been lingering in my mind for a long time, why did His Majesty the Emperor place me in this place in the first place, and when the neighbors around me were not friendly, I was stunned to stuff a new earl like me, and then everyone came over symbolically to compliment, and after inquiring about the situation by the way, I went back to sharpen my knife.

The Earl of Friesland, the Duke of Lower Lorraine, and the Count of Flanders, all watched with concern the development of the county of Nijmegen, and coveted it with great eyesight, and at every opportunity to take advantage of it, I was like a catfish thrown into a school of cod, stirring up the dark tide of the Low Countries that maintained calm in the balance of power.

"Maybe it was inspired by me to play some tricks to complete the unfinished business of the ancestors, but I didn't expect that I couldn't get rid of the fate of the chess pieces no matter what, and I finally lifted a stone and shot myself in the foot."

After a series of brutal wars, I suddenly felt that my soul level had risen to a higher level invisibly, and I could see the problem more transparently and profoundly.

When I left, I tried my best to arrange the rescue plan, but I had no choice but to do my best to reduce the expenses, longing for a silver coin to be broken into an eight-petal flower, regretting the sloppiness of some big moves.

Isaac, a well-informed old liar, probably inquired about my situation early on, and was as shrewd as he would never be so stupid as to show his loyalty at this time, throw himself into the net, send back a portion of the silver coins, and then pull a very bad excuse to hide far away, for fear that I would be stripped clean and run to Carinthia to do the horse business.

The trees fell and scattered, but the roots of my big tree were still there, and the monkeys did not dare to climb to help, and the merchants who had been eager to take root in the county turned to other territories, and for a time it seemed that Nijmegen was extremely depressed, and the ups and downs of life were really sad, even the old captain who played with the water was helpless.

Just when I was at a loss, the hope of the endless road suddenly fell in front of me, and someone who had never noticed it before reached out to me.

"It is my pleasure to bask in the glory of God together, please give your name, old man."

I sat crooked in my seat in the middle of the empty hall, the broken door not tightly closed, and the wind creaked through the window facing me, creaking at the joint.

The old man standing below smiled quietly, took a step forward with a cane, making the attendants in charge of guarding on both sides very nervous, and stared at his old body by holding down the handle of the knife.

"I don't know if it's an honor to talk to you alone, including the secret whistle hidden in the corner and in the compartment behind the wall, I hope only God knows that you know what I know, and after listening to my statement, you will definitely understand what I am doing."

Kohler stuck there like a nail, and the guards around him saw that the boss didn't react, and they all pretended to be wooden and pestle in place, I pressed my headache head, and tried to recall the familiar old man in front of me, where I had seen it, but I couldn't grasp the fragment of memory, so I simply decided to break the jar and ask: "You all step back first, do you not trust this old gentleman's character or don't trust my skills?" ”

Kohler stepped forward and wanted to argue, but was persuaded by my gentle wave of his hand, he raised his head and looked at me, his eyes were full of inquiry and puzzlement, I shook my head and gave him a positive look, he was stunned for a moment, and could only reluctantly beckon his subordinates to exit the hall, and slowly close the door from the outside.

"You're still as calm and atmospheric as ever, just as calm as when I first saw you, always looking at everything with confidence, and always having some strange ideas that are out of the blue."

The old man staggered to a chair, tapped the back of the chair with his cane and asked, "Can I sit down?" ”

"Of course, as desired."

I straighten my chest, and I usually blush unnaturally when I hear praise from others, and I only hide my nervousness by pretending to be serious on the outside.

"Old man, what do you want to tell me? Judging by your dress and demeanor, you should be a merchant who does business here, my trade policy is very popular in this area, many people come from far and wide, let me guess, do you want a tax exemption certificate? ”

"After this war, I am afraid that most of the grain in the farmland in the territory will be lost, and it will be difficult for the people to collect it for a while, and your good neighbors will definitely not let go of this good opportunity to expand the number of people, and the castle has also been damaged, presumably you must be more embarrassed on hand, and it is not easy to make a living in charge."

The old man looked down and stroked the knee of his plain robe, as if looking for some thread, and in fact, although the merchant was not allowed to wear brightly colored clothing, his fine cashmere robe, with its peeking silk undergarment, was an absolute luxury beyond the reach of most small and medium-sized lords.

"I've heard that you've been stabbed in the back, and that I have some special medicine from the East, and if you agree, I'll send someone to deliver it, and of course a doctor Saracen who is well versed in medicine, and these heretics have far more medical attainments than we have for many generations."

I raised my eyebrows vigilantly, squinting my eyes and pondering the dangerous aura on this slightly mysterious old man, you must know that in order not to affect the morale of the army, the news of my injury is very tightly sealed except for a few close henchmen, and the old man who seems to be kind and kind, but he easily said the secret, which can only mean that either he is a master himself, and he can see the abnormality of my body with a sweep of his eyes, or I have his eyes and ears hidden by my side, and he is among the most intimate people, and he reports my every move to him anytime and anywhere.

For a person who cherishes his life like gold, the subtext revealed in just a few words shocked me no less than the explosion of a nuclear bomb, which was enough to attract a considerable degree of attention.

"You don't have to be nervous about the enemy, I am an old thing that poses no threat to you in any way, on the contrary, I will bring you what you need most to help you through this difficult time, and perhaps many times later, remember my name, Leonardo Gessorius of Bologna, an old Italian businessman, a speculative expert."

After speaking, he tapped his back with the soothing rhythm peculiar to the old man, and let out a bitter and stagnant coughing sound, like a trumpet with a deflated mouth.

"So this time, what do speculative experts want to make from me? Is it a title that can improve status or a franchise? But your wishful thinking may be in vain, now I have neither the strength nor the future, except for this ridiculous title of bare-bones commander, there is no bargaining chip that can be traded, for God's sake, please don't open your mouth. ”

I half-jokingly tried to peek out the hidden true purpose of his heart from a certain expression between his eyebrows and eyes, but the old man was so calm that even the wrinkles on his face did not tremble at all, and his eyes were sometimes cloudy and sometimes shrewdly flickering, and he turned into a stone Buddha unfathomably, silent and silent.

(End of chapter)