"Rumors? What rumors? ”

Angus's words piqued Charlotte's interest.

"Lord Earl......"

Angus glanced at the priest Lottie and several former demon hunters accompanying the convoy, considered the words for a moment, and continued:

"Rumor has it that you betrayed your family, betrayed Castel, and betrayed the interests of the Countel of Castel to the Church in order to succeed in your succession to the title."

Charlotte: ......

Grass, what's the deal with this feeling of wanting to refute, but not knowing how to refute?

"Is it the vow I made to the church in Boulder last year?"

Charlotte asked.

Baron Angus thought for a moment and said:

"It's somewhat related, but not quite."

Charlotte was confused:

"How do you say that?"

Baron Angus replied respectfully:

"The promise you made last year in Boulder, known to Castel, has a great influence in aristocratic circles, and many families strongly oppose it......"

"However, the High Priest of Boulder was arrested and tried by the Inquisition of the Church, and everyone knows that you made an empty promise with the High Priest at that time, so this matter is gradually not mentioned."

"It's just that after you succeeded to the throne, this matter was brought up again."

"But this is not the root cause, maybe the nobles care a lot about who the feudal lord above their heads is, but for the vast majority of the lords, I don't think they care whether it is the church or the nobility that rules them, after all...... In many cases, the taxes of the clerical authorities are lower. ”

Charlotte said.

After speaking, she looked at Baron Angus again:

"Not to mention, after I took the throne, I also hinted at the arrival of the emissary of the territory, and the empty promise was just a delaying ploy by me to balance the pressure of the Duke's palace and other nobles."

"Here's the problem, to this day, the vast majority of nobles, including me, believe that you don't really want to dedicate Castel to the church in the future, but the fact that you stand with the church is a fact."

Duke Angus said.

Charlotte's heart moved slightly:

"Oh? So, don't the nobles and lords of Castres want to see me get too close to the church? ”

Baron Angus nodded:

"Yes, you set out from Boulder with the church-appointed priests, and the matter was summoned to the county by magic just as you set out on your journey."

"Recently, there has been a new argument that you are not really planning to promise Castel to the Church in the future, but to bring Castel back under the Church's faith......"

"Many people are saying that with your succession, the church will also reunite the rule of faith in the Castel Lord, re-collect tithes, and make up all past taxes at once......"

Charlotte: ......

She knew what the tithing was, similar to a certain church in the history of the Blue Star in the past life, it was a religious tax levied by the Holy Court on the inhabitants.

The Holy Law clearly states that tithing is the duty of every resident of the faith of the Holy Court, and the amount of the payment is one-tenth of the harvest of agricultural and animal products.

Incidentally, there was tithes in the Duchy of Boulder.

Not only the Duchy of Boulder, but also any of the Duchies or Counties that Charlotte passed through along the way.

Tithing has become a daily routine in the Miriaya world, and if it is placed in some theocratic domains, in addition to tithes, the people also have to pay various other taxes to the church, such as land taxes, transaction taxes, etc......

The Holy Court is not for charity, and the patronage of the Church is also for Quintana.

But that's not the point.

The focus is on two other meanings revealed by Baron Angus's words.

One is that the beliefs of the Castells are not completely unified.

Second, on this basis, it is very likely that the Holy Court has not had a substantial religious reign here for many years.

"Aren't the beliefs of the Castels unified?"

Charlotte asked, surprised.

This matter has never been mentioned in the materials of Castell's Manor!

"Yes, our Castel Territory has been on the periphery of the Holy Court's religious rule since ancient times, and there were indeed many Divine Believers at that time when the first Count of Castel opened up the territory. But as the county grew, more and more immigrants came from the interior and the north, most of whom were opponents of the church, and those from the north were ...... Inherently unbelievers and heretics. ”

"To this day...... The faith in the territory has long been more confused. ”

Baron Angus said.

Charlotte: ......

No wonder even if she didn't recognize last year's promise, the Holy Court still supported her as a lord, and the real situation of Castel was actually heretics everywhere!

The "miracles" in her succession ceremony are so vast, and the name of the saint is almost confirmed, so it is no wonder that such a lord will be hostile to the locals.

"The Holy Court...... How long has it been since a tithe tax has been collected in Castel? ”

Charlotte asked again.

Baron Angus scratched his head:

"I'm afraid...... It must have been more than 100 years, right? ”

Charlotte: ......

Compared with the transcendent protection of the church, tithes are not heavy, nor are they light.

But if the rumor says that it is all made up at once, the tax amount of more than 100 years ...... It's an exaggeration.

It's just that Charlotte never said anything about making up tithes, and she didn't even know about the fact that Castel hadn't paid taxes to the church for hundreds of years.

Clearly, there is someone behind this rumor.

"This is a false statement, and I only know for the first time today that the rule of the Church has long been in existence in Castel."

Charlotte shook her head.

Baron Angus breathed a sigh of relief, and suddenly smiled:

"That's right, I don't think you would do that."

Charlotte: ......

You must have thought I'd do this with such a relieved look, right?

Would you do that?!

Baron Angus, though a nobleman, was an honest and serious knight.

Even he couldn't hold Charlotte's true thoughts, and it was normal for this rumor to spread all over Castel.

To be honest, Charlotte didn't take the tithing rumors to heart.

This kind of talk about making up for hundreds of years of taxes at once is self-defeating.

Charlotte didn't even think of collecting taxes for the church again, because she wasn't really a holy believer......

But she clearly felt the malice of the rumor-monger behind her.

And...... Tithes, which seem to be the most important thing, are not.

What really hurts is the rhetoric that pits her against her people by her inclination toward the church, the deeper meaning behind the tithes, the phrase "re-bringing Castel under the faith of the church."

Originally, Charlotte was planning to act under the banner of the Holy Court.

But now, perhaps, she has to reconsider her position.

However, on the other hand, the confusion of Castel's faith is also a good thing for Charlotte, so that she can fish in troubled waters.

She didn't really want to preach for the Holy Court, but to find a way to spread her faith.

And on this basis, maybe Charlotte has to find out who is behind her.

That is, she is not a true holy believer, if she is really a "holy woman" with a devout faith, this kind of remarks can really be called a snake beating.

Again, if you want to find out who your enemy is, you have to think about who will benefit after you lose, or whose interests will be affected if you come to Castel.

Although there are archival materials in the manor, to be honest, the materials from more than ten years ago do not have enough reference value in this regard, and Charlotte needs more information.

She had a hunch that it must be inseparable from the nobility in the territory.

After all, it takes a certain amount of money to make a rumor spread throughout Castel easily.

The convoy moved on.

Although he could feel the indifference and even hostility of the people to him, fortunately, he only stopped at the level of watching from the sidelines, and no one was enough to surround the team.

Except for Baron Angus, Charlotte did not meet new nobles along the way.

The Castel Territory is significantly more urbanized than the Duchy of Boulder or even the Duchy of the Moon, especially after going north.

Towns and cities of all sizes can be found almost everywhere, and the density of the population in Charlotte's opinion even exceeds that of the two counts under the direct dukedom of the kingdom, and there are especially many small nobles.

There were quite a few minor nobles along the way, but apart from inviting Charlotte to the banquet, they did not accompany Baron Angus like they did.

Charlotte also felt it clearly.

Although she successfully inherited the title, she did lack authority and dominance from top to bottom in Castel, and was more like a bare pole.

However, the situation improved markedly after entering the domain of the county of Castel.

That's right, the Lordship.

The county of Castel also had a direct domain.

In addition to the three viscounts and seventeen baronies, the remaining one-fifth of the Castel Territory is directly administered by the Castel family, with about 26,000 square kilometers and a population of about 1.8 million, accounting for one-third of the entire county's population.

To be honest, this area is also very large, and it can be completely independent into a rich county in the Crescent Kingdom.

This part of the area can be subdivided into two parts, which are located on the two obtuse sides of the obtuse triangle of Castel's collar, one on the left and one on the right.

The area on the left is directly north of the Castel Domain, where the capital Northport is located, also known as the Viscount of Northport.

That's right, Viscounts.

Strictly speaking, in addition to the Earl of Castell, Charlotte also has the title of Viscount of Northport on the top of her head.

The Viscounty of Beigang covers an area of almost 16,000 square kilometers, about the size of the Imperial Capital of the Celestial Empire, and concentrates the most elite area of the entire Castelle Territory, with a population of more than 1.5 million, and it is also the destination of Charlotte.

On the right is the border Castel silver mining area, which is almost 10,000 square kilometers, mostly hilly and low, with a population of 200,000.

Unlike the Duchy of Boulder, which has a baronial vassal, and unlike the Principality of the Crescent Kingdom, which has a count's vassal, the Castel Domain does not have a noble lord with a baron rank or above.

Here, the municipalities and the nobles of the court who did not have fiefs directly ruled the territory for the Castel family, who only had administrative districts, no ownership of the territory, and no military power.

Of course, they also have their own land, but at most only some estates.

The Viscounty of North Port was significantly more affluent than the rest of Castel's, and the official roads in the wilderness were built like the city roads in the outer city of Boulder, and the pedestrians were more decently dressed, and there was a constant stream of horse-drawn carriages on the roads.

As soon as Charlotte entered the Territory, she was warmly welcomed by the long-awaited mayors.

It was really a warm welcome, which made Charlotte subconsciously think of the leaders in her previous life, many officials in the territory came, and there were even people who wanted to be a large number of onlookers.

Not only that, but there are even soldiers standing guard on both sides, well-equipped, and the proportion of transcendents is not small, which is obviously the armed forces of Beigang.

Looking at it, the team that came to greet Charlotte probably had to be three or four hundred people, and if you added the onlookers, it would be even more, and I am afraid that the number of people would exceed 1,000.

It can only be said that not all people have listened to the rumors, or that in the direct domain of Castel, the trust of the people in the Castel family may be higher than in the non-direct jurisdiction.

And this is only at the entrance of the Directly Governed Territory, and it has not yet reached the capital Beigang.

At the head of the procession was the mayor of North Harbor, Madoc Oran, a commoner-born city magistrate.

Madock was a middle-aged man who looked to be about fifty years old, and his hair was already graying.

He looked more like a businessman than the mayor, and he was chubby, and he was always happy, like a Maitreya Buddha, which reminded Charlotte of the fat butler of the Duke of Boulder's house.

As soon as he saw Charlotte, his eyes lit up, and he rushed over with a group of municipal officials and nobles, and said happily:

"Lord Charlotte, you're finally back, and after years of not seeing, you're getting more and more beautiful."

Yes, another acquaintance I don't know.

Not to mention that Charlotte's inherited memories are not very complete, even if they are complete, the people she saw when she was a child are definitely vague after so many years.

Charlotte could only smile and nod her head.

"Lord Charlotte, I'm tired from the journey, the Earl's Court in North Harbor has been packed up and can be moved in at any time!"

Madok said with a smile on his face.

Then, he took the initiative to take over the reins of the drive, and actually drove the horse for Charlotte himself.

Surrounded by Charlotte's carriage, the mighty procession continued to drive north.

After walking for about half a day, Charlotte finally came to her final destination, the capital of the county of Castel, the economic center and trade center of the Northern Lowlands, one of the megacities with a population of more than 500,000 in the Crescent Kingdom, and a water city known as the pearl of the sea - North Port.

Scared to death, almost didn't catch up...... Even the title is blind

(End of chapter)