Early in the morning of the second day, the civil affairs official came with several assistants to check on the newly recruited refugees yesterday.
According to the regulations, young and strong refugees will be sent to the south of the valley and incorporated into the construction department to build the commercial road from the valley to the south. Other older refugees who were still able to work went to other places in Tyniec County to reclaim wasteland.
The valley is the core area of Yate, and all outsiders must pass through three checkpoints before they can finally enter the valley.
The first checkpoint is the border outpost. Its main task is to conduct a preliminary screening of the refugees, retain those laborers, refugees and beggars who are capable of working, register them, and then send them to Jushi Town. For those skilled craftsmen, the age requirement is much relaxed, and those under fifty years old are sufficient.
The second level is located in Boulder Town and is also the most critical link. Those left behind at the border post will be led by civil affairs officials to Jushi Town for further observation and review. At the same time, classify these people.
If these people pass the Boulder Town level, they will next go to Beiguan Army Fort. Beiguan Army Fort is the gate to the defense of the valley. Outsiders generally cannot enter easily, and people inside generally cannot go out. Entry and exit from Beiguan Army Fort requires double stamps from the Ministry of Government Affairs and the Ministry of Military Affairs to be valid. Therefore, in order to go to the valley, people from the civil affairs must carry the stamps and certification documents of the Ministry of Military Affairs and the Ministry of Government to enter. Anyone who goes to Beiguan Castle without supporting documents will be punished as an intruder into the earldom of Wales.
Not far from the temporary shelter for the refugees in the south of Jushi Town, the voices of civil affairs officials could be heard from time to time~
"Name～"
"Sir, my name is Feynman Tula."
"Age~"
"Thirty, Master~"
"Where did you come from?"
"Sir, my home is in a refugee camp outside the city of Tyniec~"
"Who else is in the family?"
"My mother, children..."
"Next~"
After half a day of registration, except for seven or eight people who did not meet the requirements, they were kicked out of Boulder Town, and the rest were divided into two groups. After going through other screening conditions in the next few days, a group of younger people went to various parts of the county, and another group of young and strong people entered the Wells Valley area.
………
In a tent in the temporary shack camp, four strong young men from Provence were assigned to the wave of people heading to the valley without any surprise.
"Sir, what should we do now? According to what the official said, we have to stay in this shabby place for three or four days!"
The guy wearing a worn-out cotton-padded jacket complained.
"Shut up! Remember, don't call me "Sir" in the future, either openly or secretly. If someone finds out, no one will be able to go back alive!" The flat nose roared in a low voice.
After speaking, he quickly ran to the door and looked outside the tent. Not noticing anything unusual, he immediately sat back to his original position.
"It seems that you have some memory and haven't forgotten what I said."
"Big~"
The guy in the shabby cotton-padded jacket immediately covered his mouth with his hand as soon as he opened his mouth.
She glared at him with a flat nose and said, "This way, let's give each of us a nickname. This will make it easier to address and less likely to be exposed."
"This is a good method!" Another guy with a round face and a short hair responded.
"In this case, you will call me Farmer Norman from now on. You also get one for yourself~"
"My name is Fatty Aleph!"
As soon as the fat man with an inch hair said this, several people almost laughed out loud.
"Okay! He can call him whatever he likes."
"My name is Thin Joel~"
The guy who calls himself Joel is a doctor under Walder Burley. He often poisons his business opponents and political enemies at the behest of the Earl who was a bandit. He has succeeded many times and is highly regarded. This time, I followed a few people to the Province of Wales, and my mission was to take the opportunity to poison Art.
"Then my name is Hunter Hunter~"
The guy in the shabby cotton-padded jacket finally said. There was a trace of murderous intent in the dark eyes
………
Several guys sent by Art's enemies to do dirty work had been secretly observing and looking for opportunities while they were in Boulder Town. Helplessly, he has been confined to a shack in the south along with other refugees. He has no chance to go out and check around, and he has not even seen Art's face.
A few days later, the opportunity finally came~
The refugees who passed the observation this time will go to the valley together under the arrangements of the civil affairs. At the same time, Art also ended the field training of inspecting the army and planned to return with the people from the civil affairs.
That day, the group set off immediately and headed towards the valley in a mighty way. Art and several high-ranking officers were escorted by the earl's guards and walked in front of the team, while the newly joined citizens followed behind the group under the leadership of the civil affairs.
Looking at the newly recruited citizens behind him, Art felt deeply pleased. At the current pace, the shortage of staff in the Construction Department will soon be made up for. Once the manpower is replenished, the construction progress of the business road will also be greatly improved.
This time, taking the opportunity to inspect the army's field training, Art also made a special trip to the thirty miles west of Andermatt Castle to investigate.
Although the land in Tyniec is not fertile, it can even be described as barren. But there is a large grassy meadow near Andermatt Castle. A small stream flows out from the mountain canyon to a slightly gentler place, making the area lush with water and grass. This is one of the few places in the county where cattle can graze.
Long before this, Art had ordered civil affairs officials to go to various parts of the county to count the lands of other lords, and this grassland happened to be the territory of a lord who had secretly opposed Art. Last time Ron was ordered by Art to clean up the lords who had colluded with foreign enemies to attack the valley last time, and this unlucky guy was among them. Come to think of it, only a pair of bones are left in a cesspit outside Tyniec County.
Now, the lands of the cleared lords are all under the name of Art. Of course, this includes this wide meadow.
At the time when he became the earl of one side, while building his territory and developing commerce, he would certainly not forget about the construction of the army.
"Sergeant," Art turned his head and glanced at Angus beside him, "I took people to that grassland to check it out a few days ago. It is indeed, as you said, a good place to train cavalry."
"Sir, what do you mean~"
Angus's eyes lit up.
"I agree with your opinion, set up a cavalry camp there to train cavalry."
"Great, sir!" Angus was extremely excited.
A few days ago, Angus and a group of officers jointly proposed to Art to establish a strong cavalry team on the original basis to enhance the military strength of the Welsh Army.
This idea originated from an unforgettable battle Angus had before.
A few months ago, Angus led more than a hundred people to fight against the southern army of Cordor, and he had a good understanding of the combat effectiveness of the enemy's cavalry. It has to be said that although Kodor's infantry has little combat effectiveness, the cavalry has good combat effectiveness. If it weren't for the protection of the chariot array, Angus and the others would have been killed by the Kodor cavalry in that blocking battle.
It was based on this lesson that Angus proposed to expand the size of the cavalry and upgrade it to a cavalry regiment. Let the cavalry become the core force in the hands of the Welsh Army.
“It’s just~” Art frowned slightly. "With the current economic strength of the Province of Wales, it will inevitably cost a huge amount of money to train a cavalry regiment of 500 people. You also know that cavalry is different from infantry. A good horse alone will cost six to seven thousand pfennigs. Coupled with the weapons and armor equipped by the cavalry, it will cost at least ten thousand pfennigs to train a fully equipped cavalry."
Angus's face suddenly darkened.
"However," Art continued, "we can add a hundred cavalrymen to the original basis, and gradually increase investment as the province of Wells develops in the future to form this cavalry regiment step by step."
"Your Excellency is right. It took the Earl of Codor to run the province of Codor for more than ten years before he had a few hundred cavalrymen. We indeed still have a long way to go."
Matt patted Angus on the shoulder and said, "Who do you think is the best candidate to train this cavalry team?"
Angus thought for a moment and blurted out: "Of course it's the guy from Lusignan. He is a cavalry man himself and knows how to train cavalry."
Matt smiled slightly and nodded in agreement with Angus's view. "That's him. In addition, Jafar is the deputy commander and is responsible for assisting Lusignan."
"Yes, sir." Seeing that the formation of the cavalry regiment was finally settled, Angus smiled knowingly~
…………
Behind the team, a few pairs of eyes were staring at Art and others who were riding in front and talking.
"Norman, I seem to have heard the earl call the man next to him sergeant major."
"Let's be clear~"
"I heard that some of the Crusaders who fought in the East were able to become sergeants major because of their outstanding combat skills. Could it be that this person also participated in the Crusades?"
"You mean that both of them were A member of the Knights Templar? "
"That's right! Lord Walder said before that Art and his father are members of the Knights Templar. I can't be mistaken, this person is the person we want to get rid of~"
The guy in ragged clothes glanced at Art lightly after speaking.
「Very good~」
The few people who followed Art all the way from Boulder Town were observing everything secretly along the way. In addition to the terrain along the valley and the layout and defense of the Beiguan Army Fort, the approximate number of defenders. The officers and guards around Art were also under their surveillance.
In addition to Angus, who followed Art on horseback, Ron, who never left Art, also came into their sight. The scars on Ron's face told them that this man must have been on the battlefield for a long time and should not be underestimated.
………
In the afternoon, after half a day's journey, the group finally arrived at the wooden castle in the valley.
Little George, who was waiting outside the door, couldn't wait to run over the moment Art dismounted.
loyous intous
Art lifted little George above his head and carried him on his shoulders. Walking all the way towards the oncoming Lottie.
"Dear! You're back~"
Lottian couldn't bear her excitement, walked up and kissed Art's cheek.
"Lottie, are you okay?"
At asked with concern.
"It's been half a month since you left. Do you still remember us mother and son~"
Lotti said coquettishly, while patting the dust on Art's body.
"Okay, come in quickly, it's cold outside, but don't get frozen."
After speaking, Lottie took Art's arm and walked towards the house.
“The people behind us will follow. It’s still half a day’s journey before we reach our destination. Hurry up~”
The voice of the civil affairs official came from outside the house.
In the crowd, a few pairs of eyes looked at the leaving Art family, looking behind them from time to time.
"Maybe this count has a wife and children now. If the countess and that little bastard can be tied together, I'm afraid Art won't be obedient~"
Such an idea flashed across the bridge of his flat nose.
The crowd did not stop, and walked all the way through the residential areas around the wooden castle in the valley, and then headed south. The layout around the wooden castle was kept in mind by several people~
Hhi In the evening, the group finally arrived at the southernmost village and moved into the tent temporarily arranged by the Construction Department for these newcomers.
In the tent near the southernmost point, four people gathered together and whispered, seeming to be brewing something big enough to overthrow the entire province of Wales~
……
… The next day, in the capital of the Principality of Lombardy, a caravan of more than forty people slowly left the city, pulling five carriages of southern goods, and headed north.
The leading merchant is a baron from the inner palace under the Duke of Lombardy, and most of the caravan guards are also drawn from soldiers in the army.
Since the last Great Council, the Duke of Lombardy began to send people to the north to inquire about the situation in the Burgundy Kingdom and to find out the details of Earl Art in the south.
After repeated deliberation, he decided to send one of his inner barons to disguise themselves as a caravan leader and go northward, in the name of a merchant, to inquire about information along the way.
At this time, the Kingdom of Burgundy was first established and was in urgent need of southern goods abundant in Lombardy, Provence and other countries. Going in the name of a caravan will not arouse others' suspicion.
According to the wishes of the Duke of Lombardy, the caravan was divided into two parts after entering the territory of Burgundy.
One of them, led by the Baron of the Household, went to Wales. He contacted Art on the grounds of finding a business partner, and used the market in the Principality of Lombardy as bait to test Art's position. If it can be used for its own use, it can be used as a breakthrough to gradually control the economic lifeline of the Burgundy Kingdom. The reason why Yate is so valued is largely due to the fact that the European trading company under his name has already controlled the economic lifeline of the princely country through the battle of succession. As long as you control Art, you will control the European trading houses; if you control the European trading houses, the Burgundy Kingdom will be in the hands of the Duke of Lombardy. By then, the Kingdom of Burgundy will be just a piece of meat in the mouth of the Duke of Lombardy, and he can eat it whenever he wants.
The other part continued northward, collecting information beneficial to the Principality of Lombardy along the way. At the same time, he used the southern goods in the Principality of Lombardy as bait to get acquainted with the powerful businessmen and nobles in the Principality, so that they would be willing to be used by the Duke of Lombardy.
Once Art can no longer be used by him, the Duke of Lombardy can use the power of other large merchants to weaken the influence of the European trading houses, indirectly affecting and controlling the economic lifeline of the Burgundy Kingdom.
As long as the throat of this newly born princely country is firmly controlled, it will be a matter of time to swallow this piece of fat~
The Duke of Lombardy, who is based on business, knows this well.