Emperor's Edict. (Pingnan Literature Network)

Over the past few years, His Majesty Harauth has sent envoys large and small to his empire, who have surveyed the lands, armies, and annual incomes of the lieges. For the envoys from His Majesty, the lords of various places naturally responded with vigilance, and they took out a large amount of wealth to bribe the envoys in an attempt to find out His Majesty's true intentions. However, even the bribed emissaries were often left to guess His Majesty's intentions, for Haraus had not explained anything other than to ask them to verify the changes in the lords' territories. These envoys only revealed one piece of information, that is, Haraus gathered around him a large number of advisers, and these advisers would gather every day to discuss something with His Majesty, and most of the advisers were born burghers, and few were nobles.

Although the nobles did not know the purpose of such a 'consultation', it would certainly not be a good thing. The most optimistic idea is that His Majesty just wants to get a sum of inheritance tax and land transfer money from the inheritance of the lords and the transfer of the land; The least optimistic idea is that the emperor will use territorial legal issues to toss the nobles, and even annex the lands of the nobles.

But when the emperor's edict was issued, it still surprised all the nobles.

The Emperor's edicts were sometimes even more powerful than the laws prevailing in Swadia and Rhodok. Most of those laws come from customs and habits from ancient times to the present, and have been passed down from generation to generation and become familiar laws. Whenever a new case arose, whether it was a judge appointed by the emperor or an itinerant judge authorized by the nobility, the judgment would be based on similar cases in the past. However, the Emperor's Edict does not need to consider these issues, it is a new 'law' made by the Emperor from his own point of view, and can bypass tradition to set new rules.

For example, the emperor's edict two hundred years ago granted the same citizenship rights to the Rhodoks and Swadians. This allowed the Rhodoks to quickly integrate into the Swadians, and became known as the South Swadians. There were also imperial edicts ordering the frontiers to open their borders, allowing barbarians to migrate in as mercenaries and allies. Of course, one of the most notorious imperial edicts came from the emperors in the east. They are governed by the laws of mortals. Blatantly demanding that the Church surrender its property and trying to control the patriarchs everywhere. Although the rift in the church has existed for a long time. But the role of the emperor in tearing the servants of heaven apart in the world is not insignificant.

And this imperial edict that has just appeared has nothing to do with money or faith. It's about imperial power.

His Majesty demanded the right to appoint mayors of all free municipalities and bishops, and established a minimum amount of taxes to be paid by the lords of the various regions, and the nobles no longer had the right to post tax collectors in the cities, which was transferred to the royal family, and in the case of land, His Majesty the Emperor also established a new tax law for taxation according to the size of the land, which was different from the previous practice of levying taxes according to titles.

The emperor's edict sprinkled with more than 70 laws. The eyes of the nobles almost fell out of their sockets.

His Majesty was always called a nobleman, and in such an atmosphere they seemed to have forgotten that Haraus himself was an emperor. Although at the beginning of the acquisition of the throne, in order to curry favor with the nobles in order to stabilize the situation. Emperor Haraus gave the nobles a lot of favors, but now that the political situation is stable, Haraus is no longer willing to be a nobleman, he is the emperor, and he wants to be the undoubted master of the empire.

Interestingly, this edict is almost identical to the measures that Fitre has taken in recent years. When Frederick began to clean up the nobles, the nobles around Harlaus generally thought that Frederick was about to be finished, and the reckless young man thought that with his troops of six or seven thousand men, he could tame all the nobles, but after all these years, Frederick was not only unscathed, but his rebels were increasing.

Haraus had always condemned Frederick's seizure of the lord's wealth, but he couldn't help but notice that the soldiers mobilized by the two counties in the area that Frederick had reformed could rival the soldiers of Harlaus's three counties. What made people even more angry was that Harlaus's vassals not only gave him a small number of soldiers, but they themselves kept complaining that the emperor had requisitioned their soldiers without compensation, and on Frederick's side, the nobles were naturally very resentful, but they never dared to complain to the emperor in person. Several impulsive nobles have already been stripped of their titles and exiled to the barren frontiers. Over the years, there have been a steady stream of bankrupt nobles who have defected to Haraus, much to the delight of His Majesty the Emperor Harlaus, but these nobles have not affected the war, their wealth has been rewarded by Frederick to generals and soldiers, their land has been used to feed larger armies, and their troops now only know Emperor Frederick and no longer care about their life or death.

Haraus is happy to have a good name, but if that good name means constant defeats in the competition of Frederick, then Haraus has to make a change. Once the Emperor Frederick of the Frost Fort went to war, he deprived the nobles of the right to negotiate alone, and even if they captured the nobles belonging to Frederick, they could not order their troops to withdraw from the battlefield, but on Harlaus's side, every time a battle started, once a nobleman was captured, their soldiers would turn around and flee, or ask Emperor Harauth to pay for ransom, otherwise they would refuse to fight. These unruly aristocratic levies were far less obedient than the mercenaries and mobilized peasant soldiers.

Frederick had long ago set out to expand his standing army, kicking the nobles out of the barracks. This expensive army had to pay even more than mercenaries, and there were not as many as the improvised army of nobles, and almost every nobleman around Harlaus thought Frederick was an idiot. They had become accustomed to hastily mobilizing huge numbers of soldiers after the start of battle, plus elite mercenaries hired by the Emperor and a small subordinate army, to wreak havoc on any enemy on the battlefield. But that force was clearly getting stronger, and Frederick's standing army had experienced thirteen defeats, large and small, and after thirteen defeats, it became stronger and better at fighting. What Harlaus coveted most was that Frederick appointed the officers of the standing army as casually as if he were his own servants. Without any reason or a single gold coin, Frederick could replace a disgruntled officer at will, commanding a warlike army as if he were his own finger.

It's all there. All of them made Emperor Harauth more and more irritable.

Music, poetry, paintings, women in bed, a group of women in bed, no matter what the tricks, no matter what kind of tricks, no longer made the emperor happy. He has more land, a larger population, more soldiers, and a better reputation than Frederick, but he can only match him on the battlefield. And even gradually fall into the downwind.

The Emperor's edict affirmed the status of the nobles in the Empire. But it also affirmed the supreme status of the emperor as a superlative nobleman. Such a trick could not deceive the nobles, it was just a statement in disguise: "The nobles are only servants of the emperor." The Emperor is by no means a member of the aristocracy". What is the difference between this and Fitre?

The emperor's edict was issued in the imperial palace, and the nobles who heard the edict immediately quarreled and asked to meet His Majesty, while the courtiers left by the nobles from other places in the city hurried out of the city. Report the situation to your own adult. While the nobles were still furious in their rage, martial law had already begun in the city, and the envoys, who had not had time to leave the city, reluctantly turned back to the city and consulted with their companions in the dark room.

The timing of the Emperor's edict was also very 'appropriate', and last month the Emperor invited the great nobles from all over the world to the capital to visit his new palace--- the ornate buildings built next to the swamp. Today, four of the six dukes of the empire are stranded in the capital. More than half of the counts also entered the city, but the barons remained mostly in the field, and they had to assist the heirs of the feudal lords in administering the domain when the count left the fiefdom. And always ready to respond to the orders of the emperor. There are only two dukes stranded: the Duke of Beihai and the Duke of Repole.

The Duke of Beihai is reorganizing a recently defeated army on the Dehrim front to deal with the forces of Fitreli, who may attack at any moment in the city. Another duke--- whom people called him the pebble in His Majesty's shoes--- Reporet refused the emperor's invitation when the emperor summoned him to a banquet, citing the grief of losing his son. Haraus also sent a second messenger to appease the grieving duke, a clumsy trick that made many nobles think that the emperor had gone too far, but one could only guess what was going on in the duke's house, but no one knew what was really going on.

The attitude of the baroness of Costholm surprised me the most.

I thought she would be worried about her husband's family, but now she only thinks of herself as the lord of Godsmoy, a vassal of His Majesty the Emperor, and has no intention of making contact with Duke Repole. She was one of the first nobles to sign her name under the imperial edict after the imperial edict was issued.

The confinement of the city gates made the atmosphere in the city serious in a day, and the citizens began to travel less, and most of the people asked the people around them about what was going on. Vicious rumors of Harlaus dying in a woman's belly are circulating, and even more vicious than this rumor is that Harlaus died on a man's ass. In response to this vivious slander, several 'Fitreux's spies' were soon arrested in the city, and one was hanged in the square.

The nobles were forbidden to communicate with each other and were not allowed to leave the city until the royal decree of consent was signed. Around the official residence where the nobles stayed, there were already soldiers on guard and watching from afar. This annoyed the nobles, and even Frederick wouldn't do such a thing! What did Haraus think of the aristocracy!

A drunken baron in his mansion scolded Emperor Harauth for being a scoundrel who only fooled around with Salander women, and he himself hugged a Salander dancer who had gotten his hands from Harlaus's banquet. Before the baron could react, the woman quietly left, and within an hour, the baron was taken by the soldiers to the emperor's bedchamber, where he saw the emperor reading in his nightgown.

The Emperor asked the baron, "I heard that someone is fooling around with the Salander woman, is that so?" ”

"It's me," the baron, though drunk, broke out in a cold sweat at this time, "I like your Salander gift very much, Your Majesty. ”

"Yes," Harlaus closed the book and nodded, "I'll give you another one if you like." ”

The baron trembled, took the emperor's cold hand and kissed it, and then took the initiative to sign his name on the emperor's edict. He glanced hastily at some of the names further up the list, and saw William, Duke of Pattimont. Norman, Duke of the North Sea, Sloin. Wright, Coston, Baroness Alice, and many more. When he tried to continue, His Majesty's attendants had politely taken the Emperor's edict.

Wright's guy wasn't even in the city, but he was on the list, and he must have hooked up with the Norman family. The baron's face was cloudy for a moment.

After signing his name, the emperor said that he was tired and asked the baron to go back to rest.

The baron kissed the Emperor's hand again, and was carried out of the Emperor's chamber by two smiling Salander dancers, one left and one right.

When the baron left. I stood up with three other guards waiting at the entrance to the dormitory.

I know two of these three people. The last time the emperor was changing his headscarf, I hesitated. The samurai who came in to separate the Emperor from me were the two of them. The other was a Burke, the captain of the Emperor's hussars, a small gift from Lech to the Emperor for the Emperor's coronation. After that, he stayed in the emperor's capital to protect His Majesty the Emperor.

Burkes were polite and distant to me and were reluctant to talk to me more. He didn't make friends either, spending only time with Burke soldiers, and it is said that his only hobby was to go to a market around a square and participate in the exchange of ancient manuscripts. He was in a bad mood for the past two days. It is said that one of the booksellers at the exchange whom he respected fell and injured his back, one of his few friends in Swadia.

Sitting outside the emperor's dormitory, the events of the past few days appeared in my mind one by one.

One of the things that surprised me the most was a woman I saw at a Norman banquet.

Wright's Lady.

I have seen her in His Majesty's garden. I have also heard some rumors about her, know her relationship with General Tiha, and know that her husband is able to quickly enter the center of power in the empire because of her.

She was so young and energetic that she bore no resemblance to any duchess I can remember. She even talked to me and said she liked Aniah's cute accent, and then she asked me, "What's going on with your eyes?" ”

If it was an old noblewoman, she would not ask me about my injury, but she obviously did not belong to that kind of old-fashioned aristocracy, and she even gave me a sense of intimacy.

"The Nords did it."

She burst out laughing, "I'll tell you the truth, I've traveled to Nord before. ”

“```”

"You don't believe it," said Wright's lady with a smile, "but it's true." The Nords are very cunning, so I let a Nord cripple play it hard once. ”

"Your story must be wonderful."

"Maybe one day I'll tell you, poor Valan."

"Ma'am," I felt my throat tighten, and then spoke my words, "may I get the honor of seeing you?" ”

Ania next to her was flustered for a moment, her brows furrowed, as if she didn't expect me to ask for a noblewoman so bluntly.

Mrs. Wright tilted her head and glanced at me, her eyes glinting with an age-appropriate insight, "You won't be here to see me, young man. ”

"Yes," I said frankly, "there is very little one who as a soldier does not want to meet the famous General Wright. ”

"Haha, you're not a soldier." She thought for a moment, "I'll arrange it, after my husband returns." She smiled and left my side and headed to Duke William's table, "Remember to take Annia with you." ”

Wright and Norman came together, just one day before the Emperor's edict? This can't be a coincidence anyway.

After attending the Norman feast, I took Ania back to my scarred quarters, where she sighed as she looked at the room full of smoke and broken bricks. I could only be ashamed of her, who spent more than six hours in fear before finding the Normans to bring in the rescue.

At noon on the second day of the feast, I was taken to the palace by the emperor's envoys.

At this time, I learned that the emperor had issued an edict, and I was temporarily arranged to guard the emperor's sleeping palace.

The time in the palace was very difficult, and the three people around me sat on their stools almost without moving, and I had only been sitting for a long time before I was already sore and sweating.

After nightfall, we were replaced by four other guards, and interestingly, there were two foreigners among those four, and it seems that the emperor had a special preference for foreigners.

After three days, things finally changed.

A soldier in Robert. Led by Norman, he hurried into the emperor's bedchamber. There are not many such visits without prior notice.

I felt that although the three people around me did not have any expressions, they were no less curious than I was.

For a moment, the only sound on the aisle was the sound of our breathing.

More than ten minutes later, Robert. Norman walked out.

He looked at me and said to the four of us, "Go and see Your Majesty, you're busy." ”