There is a thick layer of snow in the forest, but in this snow-covered world, there are still some fungi and hazelnuts popping up, at this time even fierce beasts such as dogs and bears will not come out to feed in this ice and snow, not to mention that it is too close to the farmhouse, but at this time you can hear the sound of humming, only to see a few pigs with brown hard hair, with fangs sticking out of their mouths, arching the snow with their hard mouths, looking for fungi and hazelnuts to eat in the snow, when these pigs happily look for food in the snow, A farmer in a felt hat walked out of the farmhouse with a stubby stick in his hand, and strode out into the woods, where the boar-like animals were not afraid, still looking for the hazelnuts hidden under the snow.

"Drink~~~." The farmer ignored the other pigs, and he looked at one of them, which was fat under the cherry tree, and raised his short stick and struck it on the pig's head, which was not the first time he had done such a thing, but he succeeded in striking it a few times, and the pig let out a terrible neigh.

"Ping~~~." When the boar-like animal was struck to death, the farmer put the pig on his right shoulder and carried the heavy pig to the path outside the farmhouse, where a carriage was waiting.

"You're early." The man in the carriage nodded at the peasant, and the peasant hurriedly put the pig on the wagon and took off his hat, the man sitting in the carriage was not an ordinary person, it was a tax collector from the castle, and his carriage was loaded with the taxes collected from the territory every month.

"My lord, this pig is my tax." The peasant put his hat on his chest, and the officials and peasants from Mecklenburg did not dare to make a mistake, and the pig he offered looked like a wild boar was a real domestic pig, and the domestic pig of the Middle Ages was not completely domesticated, but it was not a white and fat look, and even in some cases it was not inferior to a real wild boar.

"Enough. I'll make a note of it, the Countess is pregnant, and your pig can make a delicious and nutritious bowl of chop soup, and the Count will be grateful to you. The tax collector laughed and picked up a roll of parchment and ticked off the farmer's taxes, for they still had a long way to go. There were five German mercenaries and three javelinmen guarding the tax collector.

As the tax collector had said, as more and more supplies were collected in the wagons, they had finally collected the taxes from the farmhouse near the castle, and the tax collector returned to the castle with the supplies, and the fat pig was sent directly into the lord's kitchen, and the fat cook commanded the servants to carry the pig onto the chopping board, and in this age of scarcity, everything had to be used to the fullest, and the pig's head and brain marrow could be stewed into a good pot of soup. The meat part can be made into a delicious meat steak, and the other parts of the offal and intestines can also be chopped into a mixed soup, when Arrod first found out, he couldn't help but be surprised, because in later generations, those white-skinned people saw the people of the Celestial Empire eat these with a disgusted face, but in fact, their ancestors ate no less than the people of the Celestial Empire.

"Two bowls of delicious chop soup, send them to the princess." Soon the delicious chop soup was prepared in the lord's kitchen, and a small attendant in a square robe carefully served the soup with a metal lid.

"Delicious chop soup. It's a pity we don't have a better seasoning, and I miss the mutton steamed bun so much. Arold and Princess Josie sat side by side on the big bed. Surrounded by servants serving them, Arold invented a small wooden table to hold food without having to get up.

"We have sheep, and there are shepherds outside the castle, do you remember a hundred goats?" Princess Josie scooped a spoonful of soup with a spoon and sucked it into her mouth, and the thick soup was very delicious. But Arrod's soul came from a country with a well-developed culinary civilization, and he knew that these foods were simply rare delicacies for the peasants of the Middle Ages, but only relatively speaking.

"Yes, of course." Arold nodded, and he got up from the bed after eating the chop soup in three or two bites. As lord he had a lot to do, not least the military reform of Mecklenburg, which had to be consulted with his important courtiers.

In the council hall of Mecklenburg, Arold's important courtiers were full of them, except for Harvey, who could not rush back, and the palace minister, Brother Elvet and others, were all summoned in the council chamber, and they did not know why they were summoned here, and there seemed to be nothing special to do when the heavy snow closed the territory.

"Lord Count." The courtiers stood on either side of a long wooden table, Arold sat in his master's place, and Brother Elvet and the others bowed to Arold before they sat down.

"I'm calling you here today because I have a decision." Arold looked at the courtiers sitting on either side of him, and he said in a firm tone.

"Yes, Lord Count." The courtiers respectfully said that they were listening, and looking at Ah Ruode's serious expression, they knew that this must be a big deal.

"First of all, I want to ask Andrew, how will our soldiers be rewarded if they have done something for their meritorious deeds?" Arold didn't tell everyone directly, but asked Andrew, the deputy head of the German mercenary regiment.

"Well, Lord Earl, you are our sovereign, and if we win the battle, our reward will of course come from your decision." Andrew replied truthfully, in the early stage, Arold formulated a military code for the German mercenary group, although there are many regulations on military regulations, and the reward is also based on the number of enemies killed in exchange for money, which is a common practice of mercenary groups, but this practice must still be rough and does not form a system, so after every battle, the monarch will be rewarded, and the amount of property given depends on the monarch's mood.

"No, now I can give you a fair share of the reward if I am here, but if one day I am called by the Lord, who can guarantee that my children will be equally just?" Arold glanced at his courtiers, and his words made the courtiers stunned, because whether it is a nobleman or a commoner, if they serve the monarch, they are rewarded with the monarch's land and property, and the monarch is also willing to take the initiative in his hands in order to ensure his personal authority, but in this case, the human factor is very large.

"But this is the right given to you by God, it is the dividing line between the monarch and the courtiers, how can we only rely on God's will in the future, how can we control it?" Brother Elvet spoke to Arrod.

"I'm not questioning God's will, but I'm going to establish a new system of military merit. So that my soldiers can understand one thing under this system. Arold slammed the table and said loudly to his courtiers.

"What is it?" Taken aback by Arrod's action of slapping the table, the courtiers still asked curiously.

"Only the brave have access to land and possessions, and in the early days of Charlemagne, weren't the ancestors of the brave dukes all like this, who were given a great deal of land?" Arold knew that if he relied only on his own personal prestige, he would not be able to convince the courtiers at once. Fearing that they would rebel against each other, Charlemagne was brought out, the emperor who had unified Europa by the bravery of his generals, who had become dukes, counts, and minor nobles after his death.

"What are you going to do, Lord Earl?" The courtiers had to shut up when they heard Arold carry Charlemagne out of the capital, and Charlemagne's name was widely spread in Europa and was one of the favorite subjects of the bards.

"I want to establish a military merit system, as long as it is a person who can kill the enemy officer in battle, he will accumulate merit according to the number of enemy officers killed. and to acquire the corresponding land, property and social status. Of course, this is the military merit system of the Qin State, but the cultures of the East and the West are different after all, so Arold has to consult his courtiers extensively.

"Hey, Lord Count, is this practiced among all the soldiers?" Sir Ron gasped as he asked Arold uneasily.

"Yes." Arrod nodded.

"So what about the nobles? It is their duty for the peasants to serve God and their lords only by farming. Could they also be able to blend in with the sword-wielding nobles? Sir Ron's brow furrowed, though he was an illegitimate child. However, in this era of pyramidal society, it was believed that only the aristocracy was the warlike class assigned by God, and confusing this system would cause many problems.

"I understand what you mean, so this military merit system will be divided into two parts, the upper part is formulated for the nobles and knights, and it is for the nobles who fight bravely. An indicator of their merit, the lower part is for the common people, according to which they will receive land and wealth, and the upper military merit system is superior to the lower military merit system. In order to adapt to the social culture of the Middle Ages, Arold came up with a military merit system with medieval characteristics.

"Oh. Then our Earl, we would like to hear your thoughts. Brother Elvet slapped his mouth, he saw that Arrod's attitude was very firm, and it seemed that Arold had thought it out in this matter, so he said that he wanted to hear about Arold's unique system.

"Next: The first sergeant of the first rank kills an enemy officer, a piece of land, a hut, and a house

The second rank and second sergeant killed five enemy officers, three large houses of land, and two servants who were exempted from paying taxes for a year.

The third rank and third sergeant killed ten enemy officers, five pieces of land, two large houses, exempted family members from paying taxes for ten years, and five servants could be inherited by the eldest son.

Above: The first rank of the first rank Lord kills an enemy officer, grants three parts of the land, a cottage, and a servant

The second rank, the second lord, killed five enemy officers, granted five lands, promoted titles, and five servants.

The third rank, the third lord, killed ten enemy officers, granted a village of land, and promoted ten servants

The commander wins a battle, a small victory of 100 people, a small officer, a military merit, and a big officer, three military merits

More than 1,000 people have won big victories, three junior officers have three military merits, and six major officers have six military merits.

Military merit can be discounted to money, lower-class civilians, second-class military merit can be deducted, including the punishment of family members once, and the third-level punishment can be deducted three times

The aristocratic class can be punished once for military merit, and the second level can be punished three times, and the third level can be punished five times. Arold took out a copy of the military merit system he had drafted and read it aloud to the courtiers. (To be continued......)