Baldwin gently picked up the wine glass, stared at the exquisite patterns with bulging eyes, and casually ordered the butler: "In the name of the Marquis, I issued an order to the Chancellor of the Finance Office to withhold 200,000 pfennigs from this month's taxes to the Construction Office of the Côte d'Or Province to repair the free markets in various city fortresses that were damaged by the war, so as to prepare for us to continue to recruit merchants from all over the country and increase tax sources."
"Repair the free market?"
The butler suddenly realized, "Mr. Palace Minister, you are simply the embodiment of wisdom! You can think of such a comprehensive idea. The Marquis is near. We are most concerned about expanding tax sources, so the Marquis will definitely sign this order. The Marquis Construction Officer in charge of repairs in the Côte d'Or Province is ours, and the 200,000 Fen will be able to enter our treasury smoothly."
The housekeeper thought for a moment and frowned: "But repairing the free market is a matter of visible progress. If the Marquis sends someone to inspect it, what will we do with it?" "All this money can be left."
Baldwin put down his wine glass and walked down from the luxurious fox-skin chair. Amidst the confusion of the butler, he began to issue the second decree, "In the name of the financial controller of the Earl of Jonah's Palace, the news will be released to the merchants of Jonah. From now on, any merchant who can invest his own money to repair the free markets in various places in the Côte d'Or Province will be able to obtain trading privileges ranging from high to low according to the amount of his investment."
The trade routes in Kodor are too fertile, and no powerful merchant is willing to give up the opportunity to enter Kodor. Baldwin had a clear grasp of the virtue of profit-seeking businessmen.
"This matter needs to be kept secret, and the old guy Galvin cannot know about it. Recently, that old guy has always been against me in court discussions because of his identity as the Marquis's uncle."
The housekeeper is familiar with such shady matters, "Mr. Palace Minister, don't worry, I will let Jonah do this. The people in the guild will deal with it and never mention your name to the outside world. At that time, you only need to give them trading privileges in the name of the palace. Even if the matter is exposed, the people below will make money privately in your name, and then they will just deal with a few minor retainers and disobedient merchants."
Baldwin nodded with satisfaction.
“But~” The butler thought of something.
"But what?"
"Your Majesty the Palace Minister, the province of Codor is a commercial territory specially given to Count Ater by the Marquis. Will we crowd out Earl Ater's trade routes like this???"
Baldwin sneered lightly, "Ater? Count Ater~"
"You know he did it last month? "How much tribute did the European trading company give me?"
The steward rubbed the back of his head and recalled, and replied: "About five thousand pfennigs. The tribute paid to the mansion by European merchants in the past few months is basically the same as before."
"Huh! Do you know that in the past few months after the War of the Successor, how much money has his European trading company made through the Kodor trade route than before the war?"
Baldwin held out three fingers, "Three times! Exactly three times!! The profits have tripled, but the tribute to me has remained the same. Does he think I'm a pariah begging on the roadside?"
"This time I remind him in this way, lest he think he has become an earl and forget who gave him everything he has now, and who is dominating everything." Under Baldwin's bulging eyes was a red fleshy face.
The butler often ate meat from the Continental Trading Company. He originally wanted to speak out for the Continental Trading Company, but Baldwin was determined, so he kept silent and stopped causing trouble.
"Mr. Palace Minister, I have one more thing to report to you." The butler changed the subject.
"Hmm~" Baldwin lay back in the armchair.
“Recently, the lords from various places in the province of Yona have reported that there are some officials who look like people who are surveying and drawing atlases in various parts of Yona. They claim to be surveyors and painters sent by the palace, saying that they are redrawing the kingdoms and maps.”
Balwin closed his eyes and nodded slightly, "I know, this is the idea that the old guy Galvin came up with, saying that the newly established kingdom needs new maps to collect taxes as its territory expands."
The Marquis agrees very much with this, and we don’t need to stop it. Let them do it. Just let the lords in various places pay less for land harvest and trade taxes.”
The steward nodded repeatedly, “But those officials. In addition to surveying the boundaries of the territory, the officers also investigated the number of troops stationed and arsenal reserves in various places~"
When the butler raised his head and was about to report something strange, Baldwin on the armchair was already snoring...
In the center of the city of Besançon, in the palace of the prince, the aftermath of the Battle of the Successor can be vaguely seen, and some holes smashed by stones can still be seen on the outer wall of the palace.
Flanders was not in a hurry to repair the dilapidated palace when the princely state was newly established. In his heart, a powerful princely state was far better than a tall and towering palace wall.
In the palace, Flanders was feasting in front of a long table. He soaked a piece of rye bread in the broth until soft and then stuffed it into his mouth. His cheeks were bulging.
Count Galvin, the finance minister of the Marquis of Burgundy, sat aside and stared at the rough rye bread on the plate. He smiled bitterly and said: "Your Majesty, now that you are the king of a country, your food does not need to be so rough, right? Although you have ordered strict frugality, can such a large kingdom not be able to provide you with a meal of fine wheat bread?"
Flanders swallowed the bread in his mouth alive, "Uncle, this is the inner palace, not the court hall. Just call me Flanders."
Galvin responded with a slight smile.
"It's enough to eat bread soaked in broth. When I led the Longxia Army to fight in the south, I often used moldy wheat flour mixed with wheat bran to satisfy my hunger when the war was unfavorable. That stuff is called rough."
Flanders picked up the tablecloth on the wooden table and wiped his mouth, "Okay, let's get down to business. Has the message been sent back to the ears sent out?"
Galvin straightened his expression, looked around a little, and said softly: "Baldwin's evidence of guilt has been obtained. Since the founding of the kingdom, he has swallowed up half a million pfennigs in commercial taxes alone. In addition, the officials appointed in various parts of the kingdom also have many of Baldwin's partisans. Baldwin If you sneeze in the palace, the official circles of the princes will tremble. Many imperial orders that you issued through the palace will not be implemented even if they are sent to various places. Of course, the provinces of Longxia and Wales are not included.
"Your Majesty, the Marquis, it's time to be alert."
Flanders glanced at Galvin with a smile, then picked up half a bowl of leftover soup on the wooden table with both hands and put it into his mouth.
"Why aren't you in a hurry? This is your kingdom!" Galvin was a little angry.
Flender wiped the corner of his mouth and said harmoniously: "Uncle, don't be angry. Baldwin has implicated the old nobles of the entire Burgundy Kingdom, but these things can't pull out those rotten roots." Just let him expand a little more."
"From today on, all documents submitted by the Prime Minister will be accepted."
"I want everyone to know that the palace is the same as the king."
Galvin was stunned.
"Hmm? Well. That guy hasn't contacted me much recently, and I'm afraid he has forgotten me as my father-in-law. But this month Lottie wrote a letter saying that he has now gone south."
h We don’t have the strength yet.”
Flender got close to Galvin and whispered: “Tell him to hurry up and train the army. It could take a few months or a year at the earliest. I need him to lead the army northward...”
“My Lord Marquis, you mean to deal with it~” Galvin stopped.
by "As you think]"