The battle on the border spread throughout the county of Middlesex in just a few days, and after repelling the attacks of the Kingdom of Kent, Morol showed his iron skill as an earl.

Whoever had helped the Kent invaders was dragged to the market by him and executed in public, and even several knights who had surrendered were executed. In addition, he executed all the Kent soldiers captured in the battle, and stuck their heads along the border line with wooden stakes. The drastic means greatly deterred the forces that were originally a little ready to move.

The moniker of "The Lord" Morlore also spread in Middlesex and the surrounding area. Many people gathered around after tea and dinner, excitedly discussing the process of this battle. Bards took the opportunity to perform in taverns and bazaars to earn more money for themselves.

The Lord's Mansion of London City, when Evan heard the news of the great victory at the front, he immediately invited the butler of the Lord's Mansion and politely asked the butler to start preparing the banquet. The butler, who was originally a little suspicious of Ai Wen, no longer dared to show any hesitation at this time, and hurriedly began to make busy preparations.

As for Aven, he continues to wander around the city of London, he stays in the Barony of Hull most of the time, and rarely has the opportunity to come to London City, so take this opportunity to take a good look at what London City looks like in his mind, and check by the way, if he wants to come to London City to do business in the future, what type of goods are most suitable to prepare.

Four or five days later, the Earl of Morloll finally returned to the city of London with a large army. When they arrived at the city gate, they immediately saw Aven and the steward of the lord's mansion and the guards of the city of London at the gate, and on both sides of the streets inside the city gate, there were many onlookers with excited faces from the families of the soldiers who participated in the battle.

"Congratulations to the Earl and the barons on their triumph, with the help of the butler, the subordinates have prepared a banquet, please move to the Lord's Palace." Morol laughed, and a little smug flashed in his heart, even if it was a person as good as Evan, wasn't he under my hands and serving me?

However, he soon ordered the barons to settle their armies before going to the lord's palace in the city to celebrate the occasion. He himself led his direct escort back to the lord's mansion.

It was almost dusk when the banquet officially began. The most prominent people in the city of London received an invitation from the Earl of Morlore to attend the feast. Among them were not only knights and nobles, but also leaders of the Chamber of Commerce, and some well-known performers.

Like the banquets of later generations, the banquets of the Middle Ages were also full of scenes of class and comparison and ostentation. At the center of the feast was the Count of Morlor, who sat at the top of the table, and all of them stood or sat according to their class.

The closest to the Earl of Morloll were the barons of Middlesex, whispering to each other, as if discussing a reward for the meeting. However, Aven's father, Elruth, was not among them, and he was now sitting in the corner, alone destroying the meat on his plate, and in his words, instead of bragging, he should take the opportunity to eat more delicious food to fill his stomach.

Ai Wen came to ask his father about the situation, but he was also ruthlessly refused, and the latter said that he was eating and had no time to speak. In desperation, Evan had no choice but to give up.

The outer layer of the barons is the average knightly noble, and this layer has the largest number of people. They gathered in groups of three or five, boasting to each other about their heroic performance on the battlefield, and the people around them who did not participate in the battle listened carefully, with a look of envy and regret on their faces. From time to time, there were bursts of exclamations from the crowd, as if they had heard something terrible.

After saying hello to a few of his father's friends, Evan stepped out, walked to a window alone with a wine glass, and silently watched the scene outside the window. Truth be told, Evan doesn't like this kind of banquet, he prefers to be alone and quietly savor the taste of victory, reflecting on the imperfections of the whole battle. However, at his father's request, Evan did not refuse, and reluctantly agreed to stay at the banquet for a while.

On the outermost level are the presidents of the chambers of commerce and the well-known people in the city. These people all nominally received an invitation from the Count of Morol, but all understood that it was nothing more than a façade. The Count of Morloll invited them only to get more out of them, whether it was financial, material, or verbal support.

So why are these people still willing to eat it? There are nothing more than two words in it, although the Count of Morol will take some of the benefits from them, but the rest alone is enough for them to make a lot of money, not to mention that if they have a relationship with a powerful family at the banquet, with a substantial backstage, there will be more room for development in the future, and it is even possible to ascend to the sky in one step.

"You're the son of Baron Elruth, Lord Aven?" Just as Evan was bored looking at the scenery, a young girl slowly walked beside him. Ai Wen turned his head to see that the girl was wearing a milky white dress and long skirt, and many places were embroidered with gold wire borders, so you don't have to guess to know that this dress is expensive.

The girl said a little shyly, "I'm sorry I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Monica, and I am the daughter of the Count of Morlor." With deep meaning in his eyes, Ewen looked at the girl in front of him, who came to him for no reason, and I am afraid that there were other meanings in it, "Aven, the son of Baron Elruth. I wonder if Miss Monica has come to talk to me, or if the Earl has something to do with me?"

Monica was stunned for a moment, as the daughter of the earl, she had naturally experienced countless trials of aristocratic communication, and the estrangement and flatness in Aven's tone, how could she not hear it. Could it be that this great beauty took the initiative to come to you, don't you think why?

Although she complained about Evan in her heart, Monica still maintained a perfect smile on the surface, "Father is not looking for you, don't misunderstand Lord Aven. I saw you standing alone by the window, looking a little lonely, and I was afraid that I would neglect you, so I came to ask your lordship." Evan quietly glanced at the Count Morol on the throne, who was still talking and laughing with the surrounding family, and seemed to be completely unaware of the situation.

"Thank you Miss Monica for your concern, but I've always been a loner and I'm not used to this kind of lively scene. Please apologize to the Earl on my behalf, I was rude. Miss Monica might as well take this opportunity to chat with the Earl more and strengthen the relationship between relatives, so that she doesn't have to pay attention to me all the time."

Ai Wen said and continued to turn his head to look out the window, not knowing whether to tell it to himself or to Monica next to him, "The twisted melon is not sweet, and the people who are forcibly matched together will definitely not be happy, why force a smile when you are unhappy, and why refuse to help when you need help." Monica listened quietly, a flash of surprise flashed in her heart, she hesitated for a while, after all, she did not ask the doubts in her heart, so she had to apologize and return to Count Morol.

"I said you little guy, you haven't even spoken a few words, and you sent them away?" Elrus walked over slowly and teased, "What, this doesn't suit your heart?" Ai Wen glanced at his father and said calmly, "Pretentious, with a set on her face and a set in her heart, she thinks she can hide it from everyone, but she doesn't know that the clown is herself."

Hearing Aven's comment, Elrus laughed loudly, causing everyone in the banquet hall to look at him curiously, and even the Count of Morol looked at his friend in surprise. He looked at his daughter beside him, pondered for a moment, and then roughly guessed something, and couldn't help but shake his head at the moment.

"Be in control, but don't be rude. After all, we are knights, not savages." Erruth gave him a word of advice, and chatted with a few old friends in the crowd.

The co-authors who drove the Britons away were all civilized people, really civilized...... Ai Wen complained angrily in his heart.

After three rounds of drinking, the Count of Morlor, who was sitting in the first place, finally stood up, and everyone in the banquet hall suddenly stopped what they were doing and looked at Count Morlor.

"We have endured a great deal of hardship and paid a great price in this battle, many of the valiant knights have sacrificed their lives, and many of those present have suffered great losses, but we have finally won and driven all the Kents entrenched in the south of the territory back to their lands." Count Morol glanced at the crowd and finally stopped at Evan in the corner, "Now I will reward you for your wonderful performance in this battle."

Evan noticed that the barons were still expressionless and calm, as if they had already known the final result, while the ordinary knights and nobles looked at Count Morol with some apprehension and expectation, hoping to get the reward they wanted from him.

It is a pity that the distribution of power and interests is just the opposite, power is a pyramid distribution, the higher the number of people, the greater the power, the more people below, the less power. The distribution of interests is the opposite, with the whole in an inverted pyramid shape, with the largest interests at the top and then gradually decreasing until the bottom. No matter how much the reward is awarded, the Count of Morloll will always get the biggest and best piece of the cake.

"Baron Ellus, in this battle, he led his non-commissioned officers to lurk in the convoy, attacked the enemy from the inside, and opened the door of the enemy camp, helping the army to rush into the enemy camp, and at the same time leading the soldiers to deliver a fatal blow to the enemy. During the battle, he personally killed fifteen enemy soldiers, one knight, and captured more than twenty people. Here, a piece of chain mail, a knight's sword, a warhorse, a hundred gold coins, two hundred silver coins, and five hundred bronze coins are to be rewarded."

Ayrus stepped forward and fell to his knees to thank Count Morol for his reward. Evan furrowed his eyebrows slightly, he didn't know what he had gained from this battle, but what his father had received as the first reward for the baron seemed to be a little ...... Few? After rewarding Baron Ellus, Count Morol also rewarded the other barons. In addition to rewarding armor and money, barons with southern territories were allowed to reduce or even not pay this year's lord tax. 、

Is it so poor...... Listening to the reward of the Earl of Morloll, Aven felt even more confused in his heart, in his memory, the county of Middlesex was located at the mouth of the sea, the water transportation was convenient, the gateway to and from England, just the collection of toll taxes on the caravans should be able to make a lot of money, not to mention London, a huge city left by the Romans.

You must know that during this period, the Anglo-Saxons did not build stone cities at all, and most of the stone cities that can be seen are left over from the Romans, such as the city of London, the city of York, the city of Wessex, and so on. Also during this period, the towns in other parts of England numbered no more than 10,000 people, and some even had only a few hundred or even thousands, while the Romans left behind the cities with a population of more than 10,000.

According to Ayruss, there are conservative estimates of 20,000 or 30,000 people in the City of London. However, it now seems that even the Earl of Morlor, who is in control of the city of London, cannot offer much of a reward, and in many cases the reward is more like some kind of affirmation.

Ai Wen shook his head and sighed silently, feeling a little lost in his heart. He thought that he could make some money with this achievement and start a trade journey, but now it seems impossible. You must know that although trade is profitable, the sunk cost is also huge, and once it is cast, there is no possibility of regret. Just as Evan was feeling sorry for himself, Count Morlor's reward was just in time for him.

"Aven, the son of Elruth, as the commander of this battle, has not only shown superb command skills, but also excellent intelligence, and is an indispensable talent in the county of Middlesex. After consulting with several barons and most of the nobles, I decided to confer the title of knight on the merits, and the ceremony of consecration was to be held at a later date. At the same time, it is allowed to hold positions in the court, and future titles and fiefs will be prioritized. Finally, a chain mail, a war horse, and a knight's sword were rewarded. A hundred coins of gold, three hundred pieces of silver, and seven hundred coins of brass."

Hiss, many knights and nobles in the banquet hall gasped, and some looked at Ai Wen with hot eyes, not to mention other rewards, just receiving the knighthood title and giving priority to the knighthood fief was enough to make everyone blush.

Although the knightly class is not strictly speaking, it is a process that must be experienced to enter the aristocratic class, and it is not an exaggeration to say that it is a stepping stone. Because of this, countless people have squeezed their scalps and tried their best to become a member of the knight class in order to have the opportunity to advance to the ranks of the nobility in the future.

It's just that it is so difficult to become a nobleman, and many knights can't succeed in their entire lives, which is why so many knights participate in the Crusades, most of them are down-and-out nobles and knights without fiefs, and want to rely on the Crusades to gain titles and fiefs.

Like Aiwen, moving his mouth and saying a few words lightly, he can obtain the status of a knight, which is even more unprecedented. The Count of Morlol even made a promise to prioritize knighthood promotions and fiefdoms in the future, much to the jealousy of the knights in the banquethall.

"Lord Xie's reward, his subordinates are really flattered. After all, his subordinates just thought of a way and didn't go into battle to kill the enemy. His subordinates thought that the greatest credit for this battle went to Lord Earl and all those present." Evan said sincerely, as if that's what he thought in his heart.

"If it weren't for the Earl's trust and allowing his subordinates to make plans, this victory would not have been possible. If it weren't for the magnanimity of the barons and forgiving their subordinates for overstepping their commands, this plan might not have worked so well. If it weren't for the brave fighting, bravery, and sacrifice of life and death of all the knights present, the whole battle might have been won, but it would not have been a big victory. Therefore, the subordinates believe that the credit for this victory belongs to everyone, and the subordinates are only doing their best, which is really ashamed. The subordinates would like to propose to the Earl that more rewards be given to the warriors who participated in the war this time, and more compensation should be given to the barons whose territory has been seriously violated. Subordinates don't care about personal gains and losses, and it's the same whether there is a reward or not."

Ai Wen's loud words made many knights and nobles who were originally a little jealous in their hearts stunned, and then felt a little ashamed.

The barons looked at each other, and Aven's words completely exceeded their expectations. Several barons whose territory was in the south flashed some light in their eyes, and they were less hostile when they looked at Evan.

Hmph, little bunny, I didn't say anything, but you climbed on my head...... Count Morol glared at Ai Wen, but he was not stingy and hesitant, and according to Ai Wen's wishes, he rewarded everyone present with some money and food, and naturally everyone was very happy, and many nobles praised Count Morlor for his generosity.

The feast lasted until the end of the evening, and just as Evan was about to leave with his father, the butler of the Lord's Mansion suddenly came to Evan and whispered, "Lord Evan Earl, please go and see him immediately. He has something to say to you......