On the way, Sir Shanton suddenly said, "Lord Richard, why do you only provide half of the normal portion of food to the prisoners of war? ”

This question was expected by Richard, so he spread his hands and replied very bluntly: "I have less than half the number of prisoners of war under my command now. Their food rations must be limited just in case. If you don't have enough to eat, you don't have the strength to run away. I know this doesn't quite fit with aristocratic conservatism, but now the situation is special. Besides, all you have to do is feed Venerable Lord Chim, isn't it?"

Sir Shanton nodded in agreement, and then said solemnly: "Richard, as one of my personal opinions, no matter how big your prejudice against Viscount Him, try not to hurt his **." In the last four generations of royal bloodlines, the viscount is the bloodline owner who has awakened the ability of the upper holy beast, so he is of great significance to the entire royal family. As far as I know, His Majesty the King, together with the House of Elders, has planned for Viscount Chim to leave at least twenty descendants. ”

"Shall I just let Chim attack my territory?" asked Richard rhetorically.

"Have you let him go?" said Sir Shanton, who was no fool, and asked with a light smile, leaving Richard speechless for a moment.

The two clashes between Sim and Richard ended in a resounding victory for Richard, and the development of events was largely deliberate on the part of Richard. As he and Quicksand had said, Viscount Sim was a rare enemy.

Sir Shanton did not continue to ask, but said to Richard: "But as long as you don't hurt the viscount's **, you haven't touched the bottom line of the royal family." The dispute between the viscount and you is purely a personal feud between the nobles, and the Duke of Glasburg and the royal family will remain neutral and will not intervene in it. In the worst-case scenario, the Viscount's father, Count Canglu, intervenes in the war, but I don't think he will openly participate in the war, and at most he will sponsor Viscount Chim's combat operations in the form of private assistance. Judging from your past achievements, Count Canglu is a threat, but it can't shake your foundation, not to mention, once he indirectly participates in the war, it means that it also gives you the legitimacy to attack his territory, I don't think he will do it. As he spoke, Sir Shanton chuckled a few more times. "The most famous specialty of Viscount Chim's domain is daffodils, but the Earl's side is rich in Lafite. ”

Richard glanced at Sir Shanton, nodded, and said, "Well, I know what to do." Then I won't give in lightly to this ransom negotiation. ”

The Emissary's residence was a single, two-story wooden building, which was as temporary as Richard's residence. But seeing the desolate scene in Richard's territory, Shanton was not too picky. After a brief wash, Shanton invited Richard to share afternoon tea in the living room. The black tea and refreshments were brought by Sir himself, and watching his gesture of making tea should pay attention to this aspect of enjoyment.

After serving a cup of tea, Shanton let the servant out of the parlor, then took out a letter and handed it to Richard, saying, "This is a letter from the Duke to you." ”

Richard opened the envelope, and inside was two pages of stationery.

After the courtesy greeting, the Duke mainly referred to the relationship between the royal family and the three dukes.

The Duke of Glasburg, who has royal blood, is a natural ally of the royal family, while the Duke of Blue Wolf and the Duke of Tulip will unite at certain times to fight against the Duke of Glasburg and the royal family. The royal family and the three dukes are at odds with each other, so in this case, politics is a very important factor.

The unique and mysterious power of the bloodline is the source of the royal family's fortune, but as time goes on, the power of the bloodline is thinning. Therefore, the appearance of Viscount Sim is particularly important to the royal family. If Chim succeeds in giving birth to offspring with the power of blood, then the royal family will be carefully cultivated, and it is very likely that he will become a generation of powerful people. But that was at least twenty or thirty years later, and the Duke implied between the lines that a strong man in the town and country had no ability to change the situation at all, let alone a possible strong man in twenty years?

Richard read the duke's hint perfectly. Viscount Sim himself is a standard gentleman and is of little use. If you consider the probability of his descendants appearing as a bloodline powerhouse, and then consider the probability of the bloodline powerhouse growing into a town powerhouse, that is, the Norland standard sanctuary, not even one percent. Richard was willing to let Perrin go, how could he kill Sim for the sake of an ethereal future sanctuary?

Richard continued to read, and then the Duke stated the importance of Viscount Chim, but it was also very subtle to reveal that the royal family valued the Viscount's fertility rather than his face. Richard couldn't help but raise his eyebrows, and re-read that paragraph, which seemed to imply that he didn't have to worry about the appearance of a powerhouse of this level in a small conflict of domestic nobles? This is the same as Richard's view on some of the dùs.

At the end of the letter, the Duke mentions that he had sent Richard a shipment of supplies as an advance payment for the next batch of builds. The supplies consisted of four city defense heavy crossbows and matching crossbow arrows, as well as enough equipment to arm two hundred warriors, although not magic heavy crossbows, but more than enough to equip his current small and humble castle.

The Duke also mentions that a battalion of 300 swordsmen was stationed not far from Richard's territory, ostensibly to increase the frontier of the Duke's expanded territory. If Richard has a situation that he can't handle, he can go there and take refuge. The command of the Swordsman Battalion will be temporarily vested in Richard to protect his arrival in Deep Rock.

Seeing this paragraph, Richard's gaze swept at a normal speed, and he didn't linger long.

On the second page, there is a list of the supplies that Shanton had brought with him, as well as the steel components that would be brought in for the castle's defenses.

After reading it, Richard lit the letter on the candle flame and burned it out. Then he said to Shanton, "Thank you very much for the generosity of the Duke, is there anything else the Duke has to say to me?"

There are many words that cannot be put on paper.

Shanton smiled and said, "The Duke asked me to tell you that he is preparing for a war against the Duchy of Baiyan, and the army should be drawn within half a month. This time, the target is Count Galeon of the Duchy of White Rock, and the Duke's real purpose is a dragon skeleton displayed in Count Galeon's castle. Well, that's it. After you've counted and collected the supplies, I'm going to rush back to Deep Rock. The Duke needs to know the current situation of Viscount Sim, and when the army has departed, I will escort the second batch of supplies over. ”

"Thank you for your hard work. But what about Baron Fontaine, the lesser, he cut me off from the duke. Richard asked. Baron Fontaine Jr. has broken away from his vassal relationship with the duke, and is located in a key point of transportation, and his military strength is still weak at this moment.

Sir Shanton groaned for a moment, and said, "I have no private advice for you in this regard. However, before I set out, I discussed this matter with the Duke, and the Duke meant that it was up to you to take care of it. ”

"Discretion?" Richard frowned, it was a very broad concept.

"Yes, with full authority! You can do whatever you deem necessary to deal with your relationship with Barony Fontaine. Shanton said.

Richard frowned again, and he understood Shanton's hint.