Chapter 447 The dust has settled
As soon as Merrick said this, Lieutenant Colonel Grayling finally reacted. Even though he had seen many big scenes in normal times, he couldn't help but feel it now.
almost forgot about this...
At the meeting at that time, he personally made a decision:
He will first promote Gaode to the rank of Middle-earth. If he can be promoted to the second-level mage before the age of twenty, he will be promoted to warrant officer by then.
If Gothe was promoted to the second level after he was twenty years old, he would be promoted to sergeant when he was successfully promoted to the level.
This resolution already caused quite a bit of dissent at that time.
The military ranks of sea sentries from lowest to highest are: trainee mage (second class, first class), military-level mage (corporal, sergeant, staff sergeant), warrant officer-level mage... .．． ．
Warrant officer is a dividing line. Before the warrant officer, they are still considered to be soldiers and are managed.
When you reach the rank of warrant officer, although there is a word for it, which is the lowest rank of lieutenant officer, no matter what, you are beginning to enter the "management" level, which means a qualitative change from "being managed" to "participating in management".
There is a threshold for a military-level mage to be promoted to a warrant officer-level mage.
Many Sea Sentinel mages have been stuck at the rank of Warrant Officer for ten or even decades, or even for life.
The twenty-year-old Warrant Officer Mage was the first to serve as a sea sentinel in recent decades, so he naturally aroused opposition from many people.
However, those objections at the time were all beaten back by Grayling's great achievements.
Now, Lieutenant Colonel Grayling understands what it means to shoot oneself in the foot.
According to his expectations, with the level of 24 drops of liquid mana when Gaode entered Sea Sentinel, if he wanted to become a second-level mage, he would have to be nineteen or twenty years old.
Although the twenty-year-old Warrant Officer Mage is stunning, he is still within the reasonable range.
But now, one month after he made the decision, Gothe has successfully risen to the second level.
If Gothe was promoted to warrant officer as he said at the time, it would be a sixteen-year-old warrant officer mage.
This is too exaggerated.
It was four years faster than he expected.
After the age of thirty, the difference between three and four years is basically negligible.
But before the age of twenty, the difference of one year was already significant.
The difference between the age of sixteen and the age of twenty seems to be only four years, but the nature of them has completely changed.
A straightforward comparison is that the twenty-year-old Warrant Officer Mage is only the youngest Warrant Officer Mage in the Sea Sentinel in the past decades.
The sixteen-year-old Warrant Officer Mage is the youngest Warrant Officer Mage in the history of Sea Sentinel. It is a record-breaking existence...
Lieutenant Colonel Grayling recalled it in his mind and determined that there was no Warrant Officer Mage earlier than this age in the history of Sea Sentinel.
It’s too outrageous.
With his status and position, promoting a warrant officer is not a big deal.
But if he was asked to personally promote a Sea Sentinel's youngest warrant officer, Lieutenant Colonel Grayling felt guilty when he thought about it.
This is just like Gaode's previous life, when the youngest mayor in history was born. Not only will the young mayor himself be questioned by the public, but even the local organization department who was promoted through the appointment of the mayor will also be subject to the same attention and doubts, and be suspected of "hidden rules", "illegal promotions", etc.
This is the situation now.
Furthermore, Lieutenant Colonel Grayling immediately thought of a case that happened in the Sentinel at Sea.
Thirty years ago, Major Jaden, known as the "Silver Blade", was promoted to major at the age of 32, becoming the youngest major in the Sea Sentinel's history for a century. However, he later stabbed the dynasty in the back, and eventually the mages who recommended and approved Jaden's promotion to major were held accountable.
If he personally promoted a Warrant Officer Mage, the youngest in the history of the Sea Sentinel, Gothe's subsequent performance would not be said to be as traitorous to the dynasty as Master Jaden, even if it was just ordinary, he would attract criticism as a promoter.
To break with tradition, you also need to be able to bear the possible consequences.
This is from my own perspective.
From a high moral point of view, this is not only a promotion, but also a roasting of him on the fire.
Once he becomes the youngest warrant officer mage in the history of Sea Sentinel, he will take over the most controversial "genius" label in the entire Sea Sentinel system.
This label is not only an honor, but it is also an "alchemical bomb" that may explode at any time.
Once Gothe's performance does not meet everyone's expectations for the Sea Sentinel's youngest warrant officer, the public opinion will explode.
And not only within the system of Sea Sentinel, with the influence of Sea Sentinel, the mages in the entire Dorne area will begin to know and pay attention to Gothe.
In other words, it means being able to "get out of the circle".
Even if he is willing to make such a promotion, the question is such a "hot potato", would Gaode dare to accept it?
Can you catch it?
Various thoughts flashed through my mind, but in fact time just passed by.
Lieutenant Colonel Grayling quickly recovered from the low-level evidence and said to Captain Merrick: "The nature of this matter is different again and requires long-term consideration."
After all, he decided to promote Goude at a formal meeting in front of everyone, so he couldn't just say it without doing anything.
Lieutenant Colonel Grayling thought for a while and then said: "Call Gothe here, and I'll see what he thinks."
"Okay." Captain Merrick nodded in agreement and exited the room.
He is a smart man, and he roughly understood what the other party was thinking from Lieutenant Colonel Grayling's reply.
An hour later.
Captain Merrick took Gothe to the door of Lieutenant Colonel Grayling's office again.
He raised his hand and lightly knocked on the door, and the order coming in came from the door.
Captain Merrick opened the door, turned slightly sideways, and motioned for Gothe to follow him in.
The office room is filled with the smell of cedar wood incense and high-end ink.
Lieutenant Colonel Grayling is sitting behind a long walnut table, with crossed staffs embroidered on his collar. He is reviewing documents, and the rustling sound of the pen tip across the paper can be clearly heard.
He quickly made the last stroke, then raised his head and looked at Gaode in front of him.
"I met Lieutenant Colonel Grayling." As soon as he entered the office, Gothe gave Lieutenant Colonel Grayling a sergeant salute.
On the way here, Captain Merrick had already made a preliminary introduction to Lieutenant Colonel Grayling with Gothe, including the fact that he could become Middle-earth because of Lieutenant Colonel Grayling's promotion.
Because he knew this relationship, Gothe still had a good impression of Lieutenant Colonel Grayling, whom he met for the first time.
"It's good to be promoted to the second level at the age of sixteen. I'm lucky to have a talent like you as a mage under my command."
Lieutenant Colonel Grayling opened his mouth with praise, and without waiting for Gothe's reply, he gestured: "Sit down first."
Gothe followed Captain Merrick and sat down beside him.
Lieutenant Colonel Grayling was not in a hurry to talk, but took out a silver-plated tea can from the ebony cabinet on the side. The can was also embossed with the coat of arms of the Dorne Chamber of Commerce.
“This is the Darjeeling Spring Picked Tea shipped from the Atrium Continent.” He tapped the body of the can with his fingertips. He only introduced the name of the tea, but did not explain in detail how precious the tea was.
But Gothe noticed that when Lieutenant Colonel Grayling used a copper tea spoon to save the tea leaves, those dark brown leaves were interspersed with tiny golden bud tips - this is the "gold tip" grade that can only be found in private collections of nobles.
Lieutenant Colonel Grayling put the tea leaves into a sterling silver teapot, and the spout of the teapot was set He took the shape of a lion beast and took out the boiling water from the kettle on the side. He slowly poured it into the teapot. The water flow formed a thin silver line and stirred up amber foam. "The mage needs to keep his mind sharp. Tea is more suitable than cocoa." Grayling also sat down and poured the tea soup with a silver filter spoon.
Each cup of tea he dispensed was exactly seven-tenths full - this was the code of hospitality for the Plantagenet nobles, "no overflow, no underflow".
The rim of the porcelain cup was painted with the Sea Sentinel emblem, and the cup holder was made of walnut.
"Do you need to add sugar?" Lieutenant Colonel Grayling pushed over a sugar bowl inlaid with mother-of-pearl, which contained cubes of sugar cut into small cubes, and a silver saucer next to it held fresh cream.
Merick nodded, added two pieces of sugar to his cup, and stirred it with a gold-plated key.
Tea, as an imported product from the Zhongting Continent, quickly became popular among the upper class people on the Norland Continent due to its unique and excellent taste.
However, the drinking method has also been localized. According to the local tastes, it is often necessary to add sugar, cream or even salt to the tea soup.
The original way to drink it is not in line with the taste of Nolan mainlanders.
But the country where Gothe lived in his previous life happened to be the birthplace of tea, and the way to drink it was the purest way of drinking in the Zhongting Continent. This kind of tea with a bunch of seasonings was naturally heretical in his eyes.
So he shook his head, took the porcelain cup, picked it up and took a sip.
The tea soup is slightly astringent in the mouth, with a hint of smoky flavor in the aftertaste, which is a bit weird.
It’s just that Gaode didn’t have time to reflect on this weird taste.
Because a refreshing fragrance had already rushed straight into his nose, and a sense of clarity fell into his stomach, which seemed to sweep away all the restlessness in his heart, making his whole body feel lighter.
"Good tea." Gothe couldn't help but sigh, feeling refreshed and nourished.
"After drinking this Darjeeling spring tea, you can restore your energy without any side effects. It is really a wonderful thing to deal with the situation of work." Captain Merrick said half-exclamation and half-explanation.
Gaode's heart moved slightly.
Tea tree, that’s a tree too!
If we can get the Darjeeling spring tea tree species, why not try to develop the tea industry in the north?
As far as he knows, the tea leaves from Zhongting Continent are very valuable in Nolan Continent.
Transporting tea from the Atrium Continent to the Norland Continent requires crossing the ocean. Not only is the transportation cost extremely high, but it also has to pass through the Nollaka Strait controlled by Linhai City and pay customs duties to Linhai City.
If the tea industry can be developed in the north, the distance between the north and the Plantagenet Dynasty can be reduced to one-third of the original cost, or even lower.
And there is no need to pass through the "Sun Gate" of Linhai City, and there is no need to have a layer of profits taken away by Linhai City.
With this cost advantage at hand, why worry about not having sales?
Thinking about it this way, Gothe seemed to see a sparkling way to make money.
But now he just thinks about it first.
Although it is theoretically possible, there are still a lot of oranges, and now is not the time to daydream about business opportunities.
The dignified Lieutenant Colonel Mage, entertaining him with such high-standard tea, obviously had something important to do.
Thinking like this, Gaode was already sitting upright.
"I called you here this time mainly because I have something to tell you..." Here, Lieutenant Colonel Grayling also took a sip of tea, put down the porcelain cup, and finally got to the point.
He did not hide anything. He stated the causes and consequences as well as his concerns to Gaode one by one. He just selectively ignored the pressure and worries that he had to bear as a promoter.
Big shots also want...::. Or more importantly, face.
Lieutenant Colonel Grayling wanted to "repent", but the reason could not be that he was a "turtle", but should be that Gothe was afraid and he was thinking about Gothe.
You will be under a lot of pressure. Many people will focus on you, pay attention to your every move, and have unreasonable demands and expectations on you. "
"With your talent, you will definitely have a bright future in the Marine Sentinel in the future, and there is really no need to rush into promotion."
"So, if you need it, I can postpone your promotion proposal for a few years until you are nineteen or twenty years old before starting the promotion. By then, your pressure will not be as great as it is now."
"What do you think?" Lieutenant Colonel Grayling shared his thoughts, pros and cons with Gothe.
This is the best solution. Postponing the promotion of warrant officer for a few years is neither a faux pas nor a loss to Gaode. It also avoids bearing the huge pressure of that day.
流浪乞儿出身，一路摸打滚爬才有了今天的成就，高德在处事上必然是十分谨慎与稳重，知晓其中利弊，肯定会一口答应。
Just as he thought, Gothe answered without even a moment's hesitation.
But the answer was completely opposite to what he thought.
"Thank you Lieutenant Colonel Grayling for taking care of me, but I have never been afraid of pressure, so there is no need for such trouble." Gothe said.
Lieutenant Colonel Grayling opened his lips. He did not expect that the plot would develop like this.
Hym I was surprised, but for a person like him, it is a basic quality to keep his emotions and anger hidden, so he immediately nodded with an extremely calm emotion, "Okay, I understand."
Then he waved his hand and asked Gothe to leave.
After Gothe had completely left, Captain Merrick finally couldn't help but ask: "Lieutenant Colonel Grayling, what about?"
"Since he is not afraid, just follow the original decision," Lieutenant Colonel Grayling seemed to have figured something out, and said calmly: "His military merit is more than enough to be promoted to a warrant officer, and his sixteen-year-old second-level strength also meets the requirements. Everything is in compliance with procedures and rules."
Captain Merrick was stunned for a moment, and he knew what was going on.
“What do you think of him?” Lieutenant Colonel Grayling asked again with interest.
"I haven't had much contact with him, but I am deeply impressed by his resume.
His background and experience are extremely bizarre. He was able to go from a small local medicine garden to our Plantagenet Dynasty as a wandering beggar. Needless to say, his determination is strong, so it is not surprising that he would give such an answer today. ”
Captain Merrick carefully recalled the “backstory” against Gothe at that time, and then said: “In our investigation at that time, Gothe was adopted by an old mage when he was a beggar, and was used to test medicine. He could not control his life or death. Later, the old mage suddenly disappeared. He was lucky to escape this disaster.::::. At that time, we all I think there is a high probability that the old mage died of old age."
"After all, he was only a young apprentice at the time, how could he resist an old mage."
"But now combined with his performance after joining the Sea Sentinel, I think it is more likely that the old mage died in Gaode's resistance."
"This boy's use and understanding of magic, as well as his combat power, are beyond the reach of ordinary mages.
I might as well be able to defeat him." He sighed.
"That's because I thought less about it. When he was a child, he was already facing the pressure of life and death. How can he be afraid of this kind of pressure now?" Lieutenant Colonel Grayling also believed that he had seen through Gothe's character and felt that the decision he made was very reasonable.
This is the general promotion document. I have already signed it."
Lieutenant Colonel Grayling used his mage's hand to take the document that Gothe and Merrick had reviewed when they just entered the door, and handed it to Merrick.
“Yes.” Captain Merrick took the document and responded quickly.