After resting all night in the hotel, Art came to the official room of the Lord's Hall early the next morning to wait for the summons of Viscount Pierre.
Ron has relayed Viscount Pierre’s words to Art. As a palace guard knight and patrol officer, although Art is not under the control of Viscount Pierre, he is the representative of the palace and the Marquis in Tyniec who exercises royal power, so Art has no choice but to listen to the instructions.
But after seeing Art, Pierre did not show too much blame.
"Art, I know that you are doing business out of helplessness. After all, the land entrusted to you by the palace is too barren, and it is understandable for you to make a living on your own. But the premise of all this is that you can remember and be faithful to your responsibilities. You have just won some victories in the suppression of bandits in the south. At this time, you should lead your soldiers to pursue the victory and completely eliminate the banditry in the county."
Ate sat down and listened carefully, nodding his head in agreement with an extremely respectful attitude.
"My Lord Viscount, I understand everything you said. But my soldiers need to eat and drink, need to be equipped with weapons and armor, need to be paid military salaries, injured need treatment, and meritorious service requires rewards. These all need to be supported by money. Moreover, I have left the main force of the army in the south to continue to clear out the remaining bandits."
"The end of May, that is, that is. When we wiped out the largest group of bandits in the county, more than 20 of my soldiers were killed and seriously wounded, and almost all of the survivors were injured. These soldiers who died in the battle needed to comfort their families, the seriously injured soldiers needed to be treated, and the surviving soldiers needed battle rewards to boost their morale, and the weapons and armor that were damaged in the battle needed to be replaced. You saw how many bandits my soldiers killed, but you didn't see how much money I spent every day."
"I know you want to say that I can lower the soldiers' pay and recruit cheap homeless farmers to act as soldiers, but such a group of miscellaneous soldiers can only carry farm tools and show off, how can they defeat those bloodthirsty bandits
"Sir Viscount, just by looking at the county garrison you trained, I know that you are a nobleman who is proficient in military affairs. You should know how much it costs to train a group of elite soldiers. The county garrison has the county's taxes and the palace's military expenses. As a guarantee, the number of trained soldiers is less than 200. If I don't make some money by doing business, how will I feed my soldiers and complete the tasks assigned to me by the palace? The duty of patrolling the border. "
"If the palace or Tyniec County can allocate sufficient food, military supplies, weapons and armor to me, I will definitely be able to concentrate on completing my mission."
Viscount Pierre originally wanted to call Art to reprimand him and let him focus on exterminating the bandits, which would also solve a serious problem in the palace. However, he did not expect that this guy would just come up and complain, suppressing what Pierre did not say.
"You don't have to call me poor every time you see me. The palace asked Tyniec County to provide you with food, supplies, weapons and armor, but I didn't deduct half a copper coin from you. You have recently collected bandit suppression taxes from various parts of the county, and I have never asked you for them. More than half of the war profits obtained by Fenni's suppression of bandits, and besides, you found this position of patrol officer on your own, and now you are complaining to me. "
Art was a little speechless when Pierre said this, and the two people in front of and behind the office table fell into silence for a while.
After a while, Viscount Pierre broke the silence, "In addition to reminding you not to forget your duties as a patrol officer, I also have two things to tell you."
"The first thing is that the palace has responded to your military exploits in suppressing bandits in the south last month. The palace security minister was very happy after learning about your record of "killing nearly a hundred bandits", and reported to the palace to allocate a military reward of two thousand pfennigs to you. However, when this military reward arrived in Tyniec, only one thousand pfennigs were left. You don't need to ask me why half of it is missing. I can only say that I will give you all the rewards you receive from me. In addition, the palace wrote your achievements in newspapers and spread them around the country, and your reputation grew. "
Pierre said as he picked up a money bag and a newspaper from the table and threw them to Art.
At took the money bag and put it into his arms without even looking at it, then he unfolded the sheepskin newspaper and read it.
"In May, Art Wood Wells, the southern border patrol officer, led his troops to eliminate bandits and killed nearly a hundred thugs. The palace rewarded him generously." Art read an inconspicuous short line at the end of the palace newspaper.
"A generous reward? One thousand pfennigs is not enough to compensate the families of the soldiers who died in the battle." Art expressed dissatisfaction with the stinginess of the palace.
"It's two thousand pfennigs." Viscount Pierre corrected Art.
Att sneered and put the newspaper back on the table.
Viscount Pierre ignored Art's mood and continued: "The second thing is to give you advice. You are just a newly promoted knight, but as far as I know you have more than fifty elite soldiers, and I heard that there are a lot of peasant soldiers in training in your territory, plus patrol soldiers and Border guards, this strength is already half the baron's standing army. I don't care what you use to feed these dozens or hundreds of mouths. What I care about is how you make the lords around you sleep peacefully. I am now managing Tyniec County on behalf of the palace, and I don't want turmoil and fighting among the lords in the county. "
"Also, I heard that you have recently detained passing caravans at the border. Although the territory of Shiqiao on the border is a fief granted to you by the palace, it may not be appropriate to intercept the caravans, right? And most of the caravans you impounded were carrying goods from the south traveling north. Do you know who are the people behind these caravans? Have you thought about it clearly?"
Matt did not expect that the expansion of his power had begun to have negative effects, but this was an inevitable thing during the expansion. "Thank you, Lord Viscount, for your kind advice. I know the meaning of every step I take."
Pierre felt that he had said enough, and many times he would only be a calm bystander.
"It's good that you are self-aware. In addition, you and the caravan you are bringing with you should sleep with your eyes open for some time to come."
"Jerry, take Sir Art away for me."
........................
Returning to the hotel from the Lord's Hall, the caravan steward Salter has led everyone to load all the goods into the car and stand ready.
Hitchhi Art walked to Salt and ordered: "Go ahead and tell all the caravan guards to sleep with their eyes open from today on."
Hitchhi Then he turned to Ron and Felix, who were approaching, and ordered: "You two will start from now on." A few smart and brave guards who can ride horses were selected from the convoy to form two sentinel groups. They took turns patrolling within a two-mile radius of the convoy. If they found any abnormality, they would fly to alert the police. "
"Where's LaVine? LaVine!" Art shouted to the deputy steward LaVine who was checking the cargo loading.
Raven quickly ran to Art's side.
"Raven, starting from today, every day when you light a fire for cooking at noon and when you camp at night, you will lead the guards to form a caravan formation, just like the formation in the birch forest in the south. Ron and Felix will be responsible for exploring the road during the day, and you will be responsible for the sentry post at night. You are from the legion, and all sentry matters will be in accordance with the military. The regiment requested to do it. "
Since leaving Tyniec County, the convoy led by Art has been cautious all the way. However, there has been no bandit attack or evil-minded guy eyeing the convoy along the way north."
After walking without any danger for five days, Art finally encountered a vicious wolf with its fangs exposed in an autonomous city called Engelberg in the south of Lucese.
Engelberg is one of the few fully autonomous cities in the county. Since it is close to Lucese and business is not prosperous, Art has never paid attention to this city, which is not much larger than the county town of Tyniec. However, the trouble started here.
Early on the next morning when they were stationed outside the city, the convoy camp was surrounded by more than thirty city guards who rushed out of the city.
The leader was a guy who claimed to be the city tax officer. He claimed that Art's convoy did not take the initiative to pay the newly promulgated commercial tax to Engelberg City, so he was ordered to come and collect the commercial tax.
Att has walked on this road many times and once brought a caravan through here. In the past, as long as the caravan did not enter the city of Engelberg, it did not have the power to collect commercial taxes.
"My convoy has not entered the city, why should I pay commercial tax to you?" Salt argued with the Sheriff who came to "tax".
"If you passed through here three days ago, you really don't need to pay commercial tax, but banditry has been rampant recently. In order to protect the passing business travelers, the consul just issued a decree three days ago. Starting from two days ago, all southern goods caravans passing through Engelberg City and its surrounding half-mile range will be protected by Engelberg City. Of course, you have to pay commercial tax when accepting asylum. Otherwise, how can we support the army to protect you business travelers?"
As he spoke, the tax officer pointed back at the dozens of armored and armed city guard soldiers surrounding the convoy. His meaning was very clear. If the convoy did not take the initiative to pay, they would use force to levy the tax.
Sart looked at the dozens of vicious soldiers around him and knew that the other party must be well prepared, and they were coming for this convoy.
"Sir, what do you think?" Salt turned around and asked Art quietly, who had been silent all this time.
Art whispered a few words to Raven, the deputy steward of the caravan, and then walked up to the tax official who was arrogant, and asked: "How much did the Dean family give you?"
"You don't care how much he gave me!" The tax officer suddenly let the slip, and quickly changed his words: "I mean no one gave me money, I was acting on orders."
"Acting on orders? The consuls in Engelberg City are not stupid enough to change the laws enacted by the citizens' assembly at will. The autonomous area granted by the palace to Engelberg City is within the city walls, and the territory of the Marquis of the city outside the city walls. How dare you lead the city army out to rob the caravan without authorization? Have you seen clearly who the owner of this caravan is?" Art's tone was not high, but his tone was very tough.
The tax officer did not expect that the reckless man in Dean's mouth actually knew the jurisdiction of the citizens' assembly and the autonomous city. He lost his aura and became arrogant, "Just tell me whether to pay the commercial tax or not! My soldiers are impatient to wait!"
This is an open robbery.
Just when Art attracted the attention of the tax officer, Raven and Ron Felix had already returned to the convoy, gathered the caravan guards together and quietly took out the weapons in the car.
At took out a deerskin money bag from his arms, picked up the money bag and shook it. The silver coins in the money bag jingled and made an attractive crunching sound.
The tax officer thought that Art had given up defeat when he saw that his army was outnumbered, and stared at the heavy bag of money in Art's hand.
"So, Mr. Tax Officer, how much business tax should I pay?" Art asked with a smile.
税务官已经势在必得，对方又颇为识大体，于是拖着腔调缓声答道：「看你态度不错，这次就不增缴你拖欠税赋的罚款，看你马车不少，就缴纳五千芬尼的商税吧。」
「什么？五千芬尼！！！！」萨尔特听了税务官的话瞬时怒火烧心。
At stopped Salt with a wave of his hand, he lowered his head and slowly searched for a long time in his money bag, pulled out the most worn-out copper pfennig and threw it to the ground.
"Those who reward you, take the money and get out." Art stared at the tax collector coldly.
The tax officer looked at the old copper pfennig on the ground, his face turned purple.
"Bastard, you think I'm a refugee!!!" The tax official pointed at Art's nose and cursed.
"If you were a refugee, I would consider giving you another one."
"A bunch of desperate bastards, today I want you to learn to fear the strong. Come on!" The tax official ordered the city soldiers around him to take down the convoy.
At the moment when the tax officer shouted the order, the driver of the convoy instantly drew his weapons from the carriage, and relied on the carriage to form a formation to confront the city soldiers.
The city soldiers were frightened by the sudden change and stopped moving forward.
The tax officer did not expect why the unarmed coachmen suddenly turned into warriors and stared blankly at the convoy in front of them.
"You~you~do you want to resist the law? Aren't you afraid of being punished?"
"Be sanctioned? You should be sanctioned, Lord Tax Collector. A tax collector led his army out of the city to rob a baron's caravan without the permission of the consul and the constable. If you kill a few more city soldiers in a while, I'm afraid you won't be able to explain it to your superiors. If the palace knows that you are sending troops across the border, you may not be able to save your head!!"
Art's words touched the tax collector's pain.
The tax officer was indeed an official whom Dean bribed from the north. Dean gave the tax officer a thousand pfennigs of silver coins and asked the tax officer to try to detain a southern goods caravan coming from the south, and promised to pay another three thousand pfennigs as hard work afterwards. In Dean's words, this helpless new knight is just a wild dog that snatches food from the tiger's mouth. So the tax official found a few small officers in the city guard army, gathered these thirty or so soldiers with a few meals of wine, and quietly ran outside the city to make money.
I thought that a simple threat and fraud would make the team obediently hand over a huge sum of money, or that the team would be impounded after the other party refused to pay. Regardless of whether the money is paid or not, the tax collector will get a large windfall.
However, the situation did not seem to be as optimistic as the tax officer expected. Regardless of the status of the opponent's knight lord and the coat of arms on the flag of the convoy, the tax officer was afraid of the twenty or so coachmen and a few elite followers who suddenly took up arms. He went out privately with the soldiers in the city, and these soldiers only stayed with him to show off and show off. If a fight really resulted in a few casualties, he would have no way to explain.
The tax officer's face turned from red to purple, and then from purple to livid...
Just as the two waves of people picked up weapons and were in a stalemate outside the city, a city defender ran out of the city. The city defender and the tax officer murmured a few words. The tax officer glanced at the city defender, and the soldier nodded.
"I remember you!" The tax official put down his harsh words, waved angrily and led the defenders back to the city of Engelberg.