On the second Sunday of March, the chapel of the Valley Wood Castle was filled with worshipers.
Hunter Lottie, Lord of the Knights of the Valley, is leading the people to accept the blessings of the parish priest Hamish. Most of these believers who come to the church to worship are the residents of the wooden castle and the earliest farmers in the valley. They have basically been able to provide food and clothing, so they have time to come to the wooden castle to pursue their inner beliefs.
Almighty Lord, may your name be hallowed.
May your kingdom come.
May your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.
Lead us not into temptation. Deliver us from evil. [Or one who escapes from evil]
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours forever and ever
Amen! ! !
Amen～
"Mrs. Lottie, you can get up, the Holy Lord has heard your prayer, and he will let the Holy Light fall on your head." The liturgy prayer has ended, but Lottie is still bowing her head and clasping her fingers in front of the icon in the temple to pray devoutly.
"Almighty Lord, may your light guide the way home for my beloved, and may my beloved and his warriors return safely and triumphantly." Lottie slowly opened her eyes and drew the Holy Cross on her chest with her right hand.
"Dear Father Hamish, can the Holy Lord hear my humble prayer?" Lottie asked the parish priest Hamish softly.
Hamish also drew a Holy Cross and comforted: "The Holy Lord can hear the prayers of every devout believer, and your husband and his warriors will definitely return safely."
Hamish "Thank you, priest." Lottie was lifted up by Ollie, the personal maid, and walked out of the church.
Lottie left the church, and Emma was already waiting at the door with Camille and Salt's little daughter. Emma had a wooden basket in her arm, which contained small bread, apples, raisins, dried fruits and other food.
In the open space outside the church, more than thirty citizens who had finished their prayers were waiting here quietly for their lord's wife.
Lottie walked out of the church door and glanced at the people outside the church with a smile. Ollie, the personal maid, took the basket from Emma's hand and followed Lottie.
Lottie took out two small pieces of bread from the wooden basket and handed them to a peasant woman who came to the church. Then she took out an apple and bent over and handed it to the little girl next to the peasant woman.
"Thank you, madam, and God bless you." The peasant woman bowed to Lottie.
Lotti nodded slightly and walked towards the next subject...
This is what Lottie has done in person almost every Sunday since Ater went south to fight.
The food given away is not much, and it is not worth much, but it is a kind act. Lottie hopes to pray for her lover far away through her charity.
Lottie handed the bread apples or dried fruit grapes in the basket to the hands of the people one by one, and the people also accepted the kindness of the lord's wife with a grateful heart.
Just in the middle of the donation, there was a burst of cheers outside the gate of the wooden castle. A peasant soldier who was patrolling the wooden castle rushed to the door of the church, bulging his eyes and shouting at the top of his voice: "Sir! It's my lord! Your Excellency, they are back!!!"
The crowd did not hear the peasant soldier's words clearly and stayed where they were.
"Who's back?" Emma stepped forward and asked the sentry peasant soldier.
"Sir! It's Master Art! There are also Chief Angus and your Chief Ron. They are back and will be at the wooden castle soon!" the peasant soldier replied excitedly.
The crowd suddenly buzzed, and they rushed to the fort gate.
Lottie also lifted up her skirt and walked quickly to the castle gate accompanied by Emma and Ollie.
Everyone stood up and looked at the carriageway to the north. After a while, several figures riding majestic war horses appeared in everyone's eyes.
At the lead, he led everyone along the carriage path and slowly approached the wooden castle.
Arrived in front of the crowd, Art jumped off his horse and walked to Lottie who was surrounded by the crowd, "I'm back~"
Lotti stared blankly at the thin man with stubble in front of him for a long time, suddenly raised his hand and punched him in the chest, and then hugged the man who was thinking about him day and night.
The crowd burst into loud cheers.
Ron, who was hiding at the end of the line, was infected by the cheers of the people. He mustered up the courage to slowly move to the front row and shouted to Emma who was following Lottie: "Mother, I'm back~"
Emma squeezed out, looked at the young man whose face was torn by scars, and screamed: "Ron? What's wrong with you!!!"
Kuangtong~
The basket in Ollie's hand fell to the ground. She stared straight at Ron's face and took several steps back.
The smile that just appeared on Ron's face slowly solidified...
............
In the afternoon, a small but lively banquet was held in the wooden castle in the valley, and the people who returned home had a feast that made them think about it all day and night. New arrivals also received a welcome meal.
At night, in the lord's hall on the first floor of the knight's mansion, Art had taken off his heavy mail and plate armor during the battle and replaced them with a set of comfortable cotton robes. The stubble on his face was also shaved clean by Lottie.
The civil affairs officials headed by Cooper gathered here. Bass had been promoted to the commander of the Valley Guard Corps and was responsible for the stability of the valley and all At's territories and spheres of influence during the army's campaign, so At'at also asked him to participate in the discussion.
"You have stayed in the valley for several months, and you have worked hard. Time is running out this time. The army has already moved to the east to prepare for another battle with the Lombards. This time we just stopped and came back to have a look at the valley. I will leave the valley in two days to catch up with the army. I called you here today to hear about the major events in the valley and arrange important tasks for the next period~"
Several civil affairs officials briefly reported to Art on various matters such as wasteland reclamation, grain sowing and harvesting, village construction, Beiguan Fort progress, wood fort craftsmanship workshop operations, school apprenticeship teaching, and garrison recruitment and training.
Yat quietly listened to the reports from his key managers, and from time to time he encouraged and praised their work and made arrangements. "I was very happy when I heard your introduction just now. During the time I left, you not only did not relax your work, but also made arrangements for their work." This task has exceeded my expectations for you. I don’t have time to describe my merits to you this time. When we return from the Eastern Region, I will position you to discuss your merits.”
"The first is to properly bury the bones of the heroic spirits we brought back, and their families and relatives must be well settled. The pensions that should be paid should be paid in full, and all the benefits that should be enjoyed cannot be discounted. In addition, the group of people I brought back from Provence must also be properly arranged. Those who are suitable for entering the workshop must enter the workshop, and those who are suitable for farming must open up wasteland and farm land."
"Second, starting immediately, civil affairs began to be organized. Collect food manually and store it in the wooden fort. Mainly by going out to buy food. Farmers in the valley who have surplus food can also buy it at a price. Not only must you try to ensure that there is enough food in the valley granary for everyone, but you must also ensure that enough food is available when the army needs food support from the valley. "
"The above two matters are under the leadership of Cooper, and you will give your full cooperation."
"The third is to strengthen the construction of the valley garrison. Although the war in Provence and Lombardy in the southern continent has a tendency to be extinguished, it is far from being extinguished. And the undercurrent is surging in the north."
"In the next period of time, The Valley Guard Corps is about to enter a new round of expansion and preparation, and at the same time strengthen contact with the border outpost town and the patrol garrison in Boulder Town. I want to ensure that the army has no worries when it goes out to fight. Bass will take the lead in doing this, and Cooper and the civil affairs people will give them their full support."
"In addition, there are other trivial matters in the territory. The first is the parish school..."
Hand arranged and arranged a number of important matters for a group of people, and the discussion did not end until the waning moon set in the west.
Back upstairs, Art originally thought that Lottie had rested, but when he opened the door, Lottie was half lying on the bed wearing a light gauze dress, staring at him affectionately.
Yate didn't understand what his wife was thinking after being away for a long time, so he closed the door and rushed forward...