Season of the wind, the first day of the second month.

In the assembly room of Blackcastle, the Duke of York and Sylvia sat side by side at the head of the long walnut table, and the lords of the vassal families sat around the long table. The House of York is holding a family meeting after the Season Patrol.

Patrolling during the wind season is an extremely important part of the lord's job. Every year before harvesting the crops, the lord must personally inspect every town and village in the domain, check the growth of the crops, the number of cattle and sheep, the output of the workshop, prepare for the collection of offerings, listen to the advice of the vassals, accept the courtesies of the lords, and declare his sovereignty to calm the people. If you are a vassal lord of a great noble, you must also meet with your lord, report the situation of the territory, and make suggestions or ask for assistance.

This was the York's first Season Patrol Family Meeting after the ant plague, and every vassal lord in attendance had a happy and relaxed smile on their faces.

"This year, we are going to have a bumper harvest at our house in Tellandon, and the wheat is growing very well, almost every ear is full. It is estimated that about 300 pounds of wheat can be harvested per acre of farmland, and the seeds we have sown are only 80 pounds, which is less than half of the previous year, and the ratio of planting to harvest is an astonishing 1:4. There are also those sweet potatoes, which are impossible to count at all, and the number of those cattle and sheep has also increased exponentially. I think that in another year, the family will be self-sufficient in food, and in another two years, it will be able to surpass the level before the ant plague. In four years, both grain production and the number of cattle and sheep will be on the same scale as in our eastern provinces. ”

"The only regret is that for this year's hunt, I can only hunt some timid bobtail deer and yellow sheep, because the wild boars are all in my pigsty. ”

The Earl of Trandon's speech elicited a good-natured laugh, and the situation of each family here was not much different.

The laughter gradually stopped, and the amorous Sylvia said lightly: "I once said that you will be exempted from the three-year offering, and this will not change. ”

The lords present saluted Sylvia as a sign of respect, and Sylvia said, "Now, let's discuss the unified sale of bricks. ”

The lords put away their smiles, their eyes crossed but no one spoke, and the atmosphere on the field suddenly became delicate. Sylvia's eyes fluttered, and she smiled coquettishly: "It seems that everyone has no opinion on Sir Anthony's proposal, so let's follow it." ”

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone's eyes turned to Viscount Fred York, the younger brother of the Duke of York. Fred secretly complained in his heart, and at this time he could only bite the bullet and say: "Your Highness, this bumper harvest is good, but buying wheat straw is a big burden. The purchase of cattle, sheep and barley has already exhausted my savings, and I have to pay for the construction of a stream reservoir by hiring freemen. I don't have any income right now, and I hope my family will allow me to sell a batch of refined iron ingots to maintain the cost of the territory. ”

When Anthony, the Home Minister, returned to Blackcastle and proposed a strategy of using bricks to raise canals, the vassal lords of the House of York were very happy, they had already tasted the sweetness of the new farming and pastoral system, and the stream reservoir and artificial canals themselves were an extension and guarantee of the new farming and pastoral system. Then Anthony proposed that Viscount Randall should lead the sales of green bricks, unify pricing, and unify sales, and gave sufficient reasons and detailed plans. However, most of the vassal lords were very dissatisfied, they did not know that the agricultural and pastoral system and water conservancy projects were all the work of Victor, but believed that although Victor was meritorious to the family, he could not take advantage of Sylvia's favor to interfere in the internal affairs of other families. In addition to the benefits brought by the green bricks, the vassal lords were more worried about Victor's influence on Sylvia, but because of Sylvia's authority, no one wanted to come forward.

Fred did not say a word about the sale of the bricks, but instead asked for the sale of the iron ingots, and the lords secretly scolded him for his cunning. Sure enough, the Duke of York jumped out and loudly objected: "I will never agree! We have not been developing the centaur hills for a long time, and the family's own refined iron reserves are not enough, how can we rashly sell refined iron ingots? Selling refined iron ingots at the most difficult time for the family will only be stuck by other families." They will force us to sign an agreement to sell iron cheaply for support. So what have we become? Are the miners of other families? Everyone, tighten your pockets, and never let the refined iron ore flow out! In a few years, the price of refined iron, our York family can be half the master!"

"Then I really can't help it. Nor will Kinsor fall from the sky. Fred shrugged his shoulders and said helplessly.

Bruce coughed dryly and said slowly, "I agree with His Excellency Anthony's suggestion, if we hold on for another two years, we don't need to look at the faces of other families." ”

"Hmph, of course, you don't have to worry. Who doesn't know that you Bruce and Viscount Randall have the best relationship!Lord Randall will definitely not forget you if he leads the sale of green bricks!" Grand Knight Hanas sneered.

"Hanas, what are you talking about?!" Bruce said angrily, standing up.

Hanas also ignored Bruce, who was glaring angrily, but said to Sylvia: "Your Highness, my territory is in the north, and it is most vulnerable to the invasion of monsters and beasts in the north. I urgently need to build streams and reservoirs, increase the number of villages, and expand my control over my territory. Otherwise, I would have to re-raise cattle and sheep and grow alfalfa. But my finances are very tight, and I am very difficult to buy wheat straw from the people, so can I still afford ......to pay for the construction of the stream reservoir? Well, I don't know what Lord Randall thinks of me, so please order Lord Randall to sell my bricks first. ”

Hanas was originally the Grand Knight of the Eastern Three Provinces, and after his lord was hanged by Neovist, Hanas and another Grand Knight defected to the House of York and were made barons. Sylvia originally planned to give Nicole to Hanas as his personal maid, but Nicole became Victor's lover, because of this relationship, Hanas was very worried that he would be targeted by Victor, and he didn't care about the feelings of other lords, so he jumped out in a hurry to fight for his own interests.

The lords were silent, but Sylvia knew exactly what they were thinking. Selling bricks may be a small profit, but the stream reservoirs supported by the brick trade cannot be ignored. The construction of a stream and reservoir means that there are several thousand acres of arable land, and if there is arable land, there will be output, and the new farming and animal husbandry system can be promoted. It is precisely because of her close relationship with Victor that it is difficult for Sylvia to express her position on this issue, but the Duke of York agrees with Victor's sales strategy, believing that a unified trade in bricks will help the family open up a new situation.

"Baron Hanas, your territory is more than 600 kilometers away from Randall's territory, how are you going to transport the bricks there, and what price are you going to set?" asked the Duke of York.

"This ......"

Baron Hanas was speechless, and the Duke of York continued: "In this case, I will allow you to sell the bricks outside. And who are you going to sell to? It seems to be only our eastern neighbor, the Duke of Nimes. The Duke of Nîmes has a good relationship with us, and has just lent us a large sum of money, but what about his conditions? We can only buy cattle and sheep in the Duke of Nîmes, and the price he gives is a full fifty percent higher than the market! What price do you think the Duke of Nîmes will buy the bricks? You must know that the active peddling and the door-to-door purchase are completely two prices. ”

"At the same time that we gained the territory, the family's trade routes were cut off. Although the Wimbledon Chamber of Commerce exchanged green barley and iron for our purple cane wine, the large Chamber of Commerce must remain neutral in order to survive, so it is impossible for the Marquis Sophia to give us more support. We need new trading partners to break free from the kingdom's shackles on us!"

"Viscount Randall has traded with the Southern Lord, Count Chebman, for the Green Bricks, and the Solim family has declined, and their influence over the Southern Lord is getting smaller and smaller, and the Southern Lord bloodline is now in disarray! ”

"Guys, with all due respect, you don't know business!"

The Duke of York propped up the table with great vigour, and as the most business-minded man in the family, he had always controlled the family's finances. In the realm of trade, the Duke of York was the authority of the family.

"Well, everyone's finances are in a difficult situation. I'm going to make it difficult for me to buy the wheat straw in your hands, and anyway, the wheat straw is useless, so I will trade it at 30% of your purchase price, how about it?"

The Duke of York rolled his eyes and made a look of pain. It's a pity that everyone here knows the Duke of York's temperament very well, and the Earl of Tellandon is the first to stand up and say: "No! No! The family has been exempted from our worship, how can we still let the family continue to support us." I can settle the cost of buying wheat straw myself. ”

Although they still haven't figured out what the value of wheat straw is, the rest of the lords have also said that they can overcome the difficulties. In this way, the lords of the House of York reached a consensus on the unified sale of green bricks.

After the meeting, Sylvia returned to the Rose Manor. It didn't take long for the Grand Knight Trisley to arrive.

Seeing Sylvia's happy appearance, Trisley asked in surprise, "You seem to be a little unhappy?"

Sylvia pursed her lips and smiled, "Do you know the content of the family meeting?"

Trisley nodded and said, "My brother just talked to me, and the plan to sell green bricks in a unified manner has been supported by everyone, so you should be happy." ”

Sylvia raised her eyebrows and asked, "Why should I be happy? Just because Victor is my lover?"

Actually, I'm against it, but Embiter is very supportive of Victor's strategy. A long time ago, Embiter made a similar point, he once wanted to unify the family's internal trade, and buy and sell together, but everyone resisted it. Now that Victor's views coincide with his, Embiter is keen to prove that a unified sales strategy can be more profitable. ”

"Isn't that bad?" asked Trisley, confused.

"Not at all!" said Sylvia, exasperated.

"I suddenly realized that our relationship with Victor was not as close as I thought it would be. Originally, Victor, like other vassal lords, had to sell any output in Blackcastle, and any shortages of materials could only be purchased in Blackcastle. But now? Victor has been hooking up with the Chipman family for a while, and if this continues, will Victor be counted as our Yorkist family or the southern lords? Moreover, once Victor builds a town, Blackcastle's position will be challenged! At that time, the royal family will come forward to win over Victor. ”

"Why is this happening?"

Trisley was shocked to discover that the little lord who had been completely sheltered in the family was in danger of getting out of control.

Sylvia smiled wryly, "Self-sufficiency is the key. Victor was originally completely dependent on the town of Blackcastle due to food shortages, and his agricultural and pastoral system will not only allow us to recover quickly, but he will also get rid of the food shortage himself. A self-sufficient family does not depend on anyone in itself. What's more, the east side of Randall's Territory is a loose Southern Lord bloodline, and it is easy for Victor to find a breakthrough. ”

"We've got the Temperance Gate!" Trisley said weakly.

Sylvia glanced at her and said coldly, "This is what I regret the most, I shouldn't have given that territory to Phinicos, she has no resistance to Victor at all." Phinecos even handed over her territory to Victor?!

Trisley was stunned for a moment and teased, "Are you jealous?"

Sylvia said lazily, "Sort of." Don't forget, Victor was given to me by Sophia. ”

"I think there's something wrong with your mentality. Victor has no knights after all, at least militarily he needs our protection. ”

"Fengxing's talent is far more powerful than you think. Sylvia shook her head and sighed, "Frankly tell you, Victor has cultivated Draven's combat skills, and now he is completely comparable to the Silver Knight." In fact, in the difficult terrain conditions, it was already difficult for the Silver Knight to threaten Victor. Even in close combat, ordinary knights are no match for him. If you don't take into account the factors of physical strength and defense, Victor is a great knight of the wind system!"

"Are you sure?" asked Trisley, suspiciously.

Sylvia rolled her eyes and said, "You don't think that every tryst we have is just a love affair, right? Victor's martial arts skills are personally instructed by me, and he can now embody the wind element on his weapons, and ordinary knights can't resist this kind of attack." After saying that, Sylvia looked at Trisley's beautiful face and said with a coquettish smile, "Why don't you ...... Do you try it yourself? I'm not going to be jealous. ”

Trisley blushed and said angrily, "What nonsense!"

Sylvia said: "Seriously, Victor is extremely talented in domestic affairs and business, and he also has the combat power of the silver level, we must realize that he is no longer the little baron he was at the beginning." ”

"And what are you going to do?"

"Marriage, of course! This is a tradition of the aristocracy. Sylvia smiled and said, "Choose two female trainee knights from the family and be Victor's personal maids." Victor, as the viscount of the feudal city, is not an insult to them. ”

Trisley nodded silently, the nobles could marry a wife and three valet maids, although the status of the wife was much higher than that of the valet, but the valet was also a legal partner, and their descendants also had the right to inherit the territory. This type of marriage was common among the nobility, and the marriage itself meant a blood alliance. Victor's marriage to the female apprentice knight of the House of York is equivalent to being branded by the House of York, which means that he will become the lord of the Centaur Hills family.

"When Victor marries the family's female apprentice knight, I very much look forward to him opening up the situation among the Southern Lords. ”

"What if he doesn't want to?"

Sylvia raised her eyebrows and said, "If he dares to disagree, I will invite him to the Rose Manor until he agrees!"