Westeros doesn't have construction groups, engineering companies, and the like – organizations and people that live on infrastructure.

The nobles of the northern border all live in ancestral castles, and they are basically super thrifty parties who have not moved their land for dozens or hundreds of years, tinkering for another year, and naturally no one is willing to take the initiative to take on the task of "building a new stronghold", which has never been touched, is probably very troublesome, and will lose a lot of money.

The Night's Watch Logistics Department is different, under the leadership of Egger, they already have the qualifications to establish the King's Landing Industrial Park, build Houguan Town from scratch, and make large-scale repairs to many new ancient fortresses along the Great Wall...... Although he is not experienced in a hundred battles, he has already experienced most of the mistakes he can make and the detours he can take, and he is already standing out from the crowd in the north of this neck.

This is the fundamental reason why when Egger took the initiative to apply, he easily won the project without encountering any resistance.

Everyone is willing to help, but it is not so easy to ask them to pay out of their pockets. As soon as Egger's words for funding fell, the hall that had just been hotly discussed suddenly became cold, everyone, look at me, I look at you, no one took the initiative to talk.

Robb also frowned, pondered for a while, and shook his head: "Egg, we feel the kindness of the Night's Watch Legion, but the establishment of a navy is a military act of the North against the Iron Islands, and it should not increase the pressure on the defenders of the Great Wall. In this way, you make a list of all the construction costs of the port and the stronghold, and I will reimburse all of them and reasonably distribute them to the princes of the north...... The laborers and the garrison, even the rent of the coast of the land granted, would be compensated and remunerated as appropriate, and the brothers of the Night's Watch would not lose a penny. ”

"As for the rest, as you can see, although we have won a lot of loot in the West, we are still at war, and the expenses are very high. The economic situation of each family is different, and it is really inappropriate for me to make decisions for all the adults, so let's discuss this matter privately after the meeting, and each family will provide support as much as possible based on the actual situation and ability!"

......

I wanted to strike while the iron was hot, so I took the opportunity of most of the nobles in the north to gather together, saving me from running all over the map to find them one by one, but I didn't think about it but didn't get a positive response.

But when you think about it calmly, Robb's statement makes sense - he is only the guardian of the north, not the full owner and emperor of the north, and it is impossible to order all the vassals to lend them to the night watchman with a wave of his hand. In this matter, it is a little inappropriate to mention it in public.

Let's talk about it privately, the days of difficult fundraising in the early days of the establishment of the night watchman industry are still vivid, and I once personally went into battle and created a great business, and now my status and fame are not what they used to be, will I still be afraid of things?

But self-confidence is one thing, and when I went to visit the major princes one by one to discuss the loan after a break, I ran into trouble.

It's not that the princes of the northern realm are stingy, but that Egger, the 998th commander, was cheated by the 997th seniors in front of him:

Since its inception, the Night's Watch has operated on the backing of the northern princes - the share of outside help was smaller when the land grant was not in decline, and the land grant grew larger and larger as it became depleted...... By the time Iger had crossed over, the productivity of the land grant was infinitely close to zero, and it was almost entirely the North that was "raising" the last defenders of the Great Wall.

The commander-in-chief of the Night's Watch said "borrow" = "want", which is a recognized attempt throughout the North.

Fighting the Wildlings, of course, now that they're the Strangers, it's obviously cheaper and easier to sponsor a professional army than to raise and train the peasants yourself. The border with the outside of Cyprus is the northern border, and this money can only be borne by the most direct beneficiary, and cannot be pushed on the heads of the other six countries.

So, if a man in black comes to ask for money, he will definitely get it out, but don't expect to get it back, so don't be too generous - that's how the people of the North are used to borrowing money from the Night's Watch.

Egger temporarily raised funds in the king, as long as he explained to the princes that he was "starting a business", with Tyrion's guarantee and the evidence of actual goods, the more daring dared to invest. But now he has come to the nobles of the North as the Lord of the Great Wall...... He really wanted to borrow it, and decided that he would pay it back when he had the ability, but unfortunately the nobles in the north didn't believe it.

The latter often prefer to "give" him a hundred rather than "lend" him a thousand - anyway, if he goes out, he will not come back, so what difference does it make if he says different things?

The stereotype that has been passed down from generation to generation for so many years is so unbreakable that Egger can't be reversed in a few words, not to mention that in addition to this stereotype and convention, Iger also faces another problem: he can't explain what he wants so much money for.

......

Having raised legions of the Night's Watch for hundreds of years, the princes of the North knew exactly how much it would cost to defend the Wall. How much did it cost to arm a thousand Night's Watchmen before, but now even if Iger were to count all the men of the right age in the land grant—let's just say 10,000 men—it would only be ten times the cost.

With a grain loan from the Iron Vault, a Night's Watch industry and an income, what do you, the Night's Watch Commander-in-Chief, want so much money for, to fill your own pockets...... Or a rebellion?

Iger couldn't take out the gunpowder, and then honestly said - I was trying to build a cross-era military industrial system, hoping to put firearms into actual combat in batches. In the future, it will not only be able to bombard the strange ghosts, but it may also be used to deal with the stone castles of the nobles of the Seven Kingdoms...... But the amount of money required is huge, and it needs to be invested, right?

The nobles in the north who hold the financial power of their respective families are all family members who "know that firewood, rice, oil, and salt are expensive", and they basically have a scale in their hearts about the cost of food, clothing, housing, and transportation, feeding the army and feeding the people.

Fortunately, the nobles in the north are not completely inextricable: the nobles who have less contact with the Night's Watch are willing to support a few dozen or even hundreds, while those who are far north, under the direct protection of the Night's Watch, are of course several times more numerous. There are descendants who died in the war with the Iron People, and the Stark family, the lord of the North, a few percent more...... Pieced together, it also got tens of thousands of golden dragons, although it was not enough to expect, but in the future, after the completion of the coastal stronghold, it can be reimbursed, and it was not in vain.

Of the reluctance of a large group of northern nobles who shared their share according to their relatives, their families' power and the size of their fiefdoms, and tried to get rid of Egger, the new commander, as soon as possible, only one was out of the ordinary.

＊＊＊

After dark, Luce Bolton invited Iger to the walls of the Deep-Limburg to talk.

The blizzard that caught up with the Great Wall had long since stopped, and the moon appeared and disappeared behind the clouds driven by the cold wind, sprinkling its bright light intermittently over the endless wolf forest. Accompanied by the moonlight, there was a burst of ...... Like the sigh of a tree, the subtle but grand and continuous sound of leaf waves.

When the wind is strong, the sound of the leaf waves is louder, and the wind is quieter—just listening to this sound, you can understand why Shenlimburg is always particularly vulnerable to sneak attacks.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the two walked side by side along the top edge of the wooden wall, and Iger first thanked Earl Bolton.

The old skinner is ruthless and ruthless, most of them have hidden disobedience to the Stark family, and he also scattered seeds to make such a heinous and vicious thing as "Little Skin". Fortunately, in this timeline, Rams Snow, disguised as a stinky guy, was decisively killed by Iger as soon as he met him, so he didn't have time to harm the Quartet.

But one yard to one yard, what kind of person Luce Bolton is, can't change the fact that he has spoken up many times and helped himself a lot. Egger's thanks to this person with whom he had almost never dealt with before, who was obviously not an ally but who was more like an ally, was really heartfelt.

"The commander-in-chief is gracious. Even if the Earl of Castle Terror laughs, he has a chilling coldness, and if he travels to the modern world to play a villain, he will probably take away a lot of trophies: "To tell you the truth, the first time I met the Night's Watch Chief Logistics Officer in King Robert's barracks outside the Blood Gate in the Vale, I saw that you were no idle person. Sure enough, I haven't seen you for more than two years, and now even I have to call you an adult, relying on you for protection. ”

"Lord Bolton has won the award, thanks to the trust of the brothers and the support of the families in the north, I will have the opportunity to serve you as a commander in the future. I will do my best to keep the north and the seven kingdoms safe. ”

"You're welcome. Burton dismisses this brainless modesty, and does not show disdain for the fact that Iger comes from something other than Westeros, and that the culture is mostly slightly different. "My view of the world is that those who have the ability should be able to show their skills. Don't you tell me that if Carter Pike or Sir Mellister were to be Commander-in-Chief, you would be a subordinate and give up all your thoughts?"

......

The other party seems to have completely forgotten about the existence of his bastard and stinky, which is a relief. However, although he was grateful for the help of the old skinner, Egger did not forget the fact that the guy in front of him was still a dangerous person...... will not be like a child who has not been deeply involved in the world, and will open his heart and talk about everything after receiving a little favor.

He smiled and didn't answer.

"Of course, this assumption doesn't make sense now, and you became the commander-in-chief, as I hoped, taking over the Great Wall and the land grant. Burton understood and liked Egger's caution: "Let's talk about something more practical...... You came to borrow money this time, and the princes of the northern border could talk about it in private, and they all felt that you were taking advantage of the fire to rob, and wanted to take the opportunity of helping to build a military port to rub oil and exchange favors for money. ”

......

The princes of the northern realm had discussed this privately before they came to the door, and this was mostly true, otherwise it would not have been possible to give a uniform donation as if they had agreed. They were upset that the Night's Watch had come to ask for money, that was for sure, but Egger didn't believe the extent of it.

You can't have it both ways, just like some of the strategy games Iger played before he traveled back in time - money and prestige, character favorability, and a lot of the time you can only focus on one. Now he is short of money, so ...... As long as you don't provoke others to the extent that you want to deal with yourself, this kind of thing is naturally thrown away, and you don't have to take it seriously.

Wanting to take other people's money without allowing others to feel uncomfortable in their stomachs, Egger would not have such domineering thoughts.

What does Luce Bolton mean by mentioning this, to sow discord between himself and the princes of the North?

Iger didn't know how to reply for a while, so he could only argue dryly: "The land grant is not only about feeding all the night watchmen and residents, but also about trying to make this land prosperous and strong, self-sufficient and capable of resisting even if the alien ghosts cross the Wall...... And there is still a long way to go to achieve this. I can't make a complete list of expenses, but the money doesn't go into my pocket. ”

"I believe it. Bolton shrugged, his breath condensing into a white mist in the air, "I'm even sure that given enough time and resources, you can run the grant into a force far stronger than any in the North, and you can train the Night's Watch to be the most effective army in Westeros." ”

He turned his head to look at Egg, and didn't give Egg a chance to interject: "But have you thought about the long-term future? These people are willing to give money today, firstly, because they hope that you can help in the war against the Iron Civilians, and secondly, they have indeed seen the ghouls captured and displayed by Commander Mormont, and know that the Night's Watch is not cheating on money." But what about the future? After subduing the Iron Folk and surviving this winter, how will you continue to feed the 40,000 land-giving residents and maintain the Night's Watch Legion, which will be the largest standing force on the mainland by then?

In the darkness of the night, the eyes of the Earl of the Castle of Terror suddenly sharpened for a moment: "I see—you don't look like someone who can keep to himself. There's a fire in the depths of your eyes, well disguised, but alas—it's not good enough!"

——