Volume Two: The Iron Baron Chapter 225: The Journey to Vallombre (9)
However, thankfully, the baron conferment ceremony did not involve sitting around a fire and keeping vigil. Balian could play casually the day before the promotion ceremony, but he had to get up early the next day. There were a lot of complicated things in the palace.
The process is waiting for you.
On the day of the promotion ceremony, Balian came to the palace early in the morning to wait. In the morning, he followed the Lord Privy Seal, whom he had already met once, and went through various procedures, including documents for titles, documents for new fiefdoms, etc. There were a lot of things to do anyway.
However, since Balian was acquainted with the Lord Privy Seal, and Balian had given him a heavy gift last time, he did not come empty-handed today. After stuffing a money bag to him, Balian leaned into his ear.
He whispered: "Gold coins."
The Lord Privy Seal immediately beamed. He was already very polite to Balian, but now he was even more polite. Many documents and procedures were handled directly on Balian's behalf. Balian was responsible for signing and stamping his seal.
.
Looking at the Lord Privy Seal who was busy with his entourage, Balian couldn't help but sigh. It's great to have money. It can save him a lot of travel. However, he was also quite distressed. Five gold coins at once
, how many soaps and painted pottery do you have to sell to earn back the money?
However, Balian also knows that if you want to do big things, you can't settle small accounts. You must focus on the big accounts and the long-term benefits. Dealing with the Lord Privy Seal will not only save him trouble this time, but he who has experienced his generous methods will be able to do it in the future.
You will definitely not be at odds with yourself easily, but will try your best to have a good relationship with yourself.
In the palace, there is an extra friend who is not a strong support. Although it is usually invisible, it can always come in handy at a certain critical moment in the future.
After finishing his busy work in the morning, the hungry Balian had a meal with the main ministers in the palace. This kind of meal was a common practice in the Brick court and was used when the nobles with the title of baronet or above were canonized.
One is to let the ministers who hold the power of Brick get to know the new backbone nobles; on the other hand, it is also to let this new noble show his face in front of everyone. This can be regarded as a special favor from the monarch. After all, it allows you to follow him in advance.
Knowing the important officials in the palace also allows you to accumulate some connections so that you can seek help if you encounter problems.
Normally, such a banquet would be for the Prime Minister, Count Rolfburg, to have a meal with the court ministers from the camp to which the new nobleman belongs. Those from the north would be the Count of Loire and his gang, and those from the south would be Windholm.
The Earl's group, the centrist nobles, and the Earl David's group will never have a situation where both forces are present. After all, who belongs to whom, and if someone from other forces comes, everyone will feel uncomfortable.
of.
However, this time, Balian was really miraculous. Ministers from the north, south, and centrists all came. This shocked the palace officials responsible for preparing the luncheon. After reporting to the Prime Minister, Count Rolfburg
After that, the banquet was held as usual. Count Rolfburg was not afraid that they would cause trouble on the roof. After all, he also wanted to see whether this prestigious young hero was really what everyone said.
When Balian followed the Lord Privy Seal to this special banquet hall, he didn't know the rules mentioned above. He thought that everyone wanted to meet all the palace ministers, so naturally he didn't care. Naturally, under the Privy Seal, he
Under the introduction of the minister, I met with all the dignitaries.
The Lord Chancellor was a little confused. In the past two years, the only time this happened was when the monarch's legitimate son Sir Charles, now Earl Charles, was knighted.
Thinking of this, the Lord Privy Seal couldn't help but make a bold guess, that is, Balian was actually the illegitimate son of the monarch. Otherwise, how could the ministers from the two opposing factions of the north and the south sit together?
Also, Earl David, the centrist representative who usually does not interfere with the forces of the north and the south, is also here. This is too strange. If he is not the king's illegitimate son, what else could be the reason for gathering the leaders of the three parties here?
Woolen cloth?
Amidst doubts and random speculations, Balian met all the ministers. These people had a very good impression of Balian. Not only was this young man tall and outstanding in appearance, he also showed a middle-aged talent.
Some are calm, which is rare.
The southern nobles headed by Count Windholm actually resented Balian, a newbie from the northern faction. After all, it was Balian's outstanding performance that made the northern faction appear to have a lot of credit, and also made the Earl of Loire and his gang more prominent in front of the monarch.
His voice is getting stronger and stronger, and Earl Windholm, for his part, no longer has much communication with the monarch himself even over a meal once a week.
But Earl Windholm, the top nobleman of the Duchy of Brick, was still proud and polite. He did not embarrass Balian as soon as he met him, but showed himself to be a superior person and an elder when faced with backwardness.
The enthusiasm you should have.
With the leader of the faction setting an example in front of them, the other southern palace ministers naturally greeted Balian warmly. For those who didn't know, they thought Balian was from the southern faction. Otherwise, why would they be so enthusiastic?
Not to mention the centrist Earl David and the others. Both parties are old friends who have cooperated in depth, and their interests are tied together. Of course, they are more enthusiastic. Earl David even gave Balian a hug directly and said it in front of everyone.
In person, he gave him a gift.
Unlike the other two factions who greeted Balian warmly, the northern faction, the Count of Loire and the Count of Alpine Castle, were not so enthusiastic in their greetings to Balian. Firstly, they had met each other in the past two days, and secondly,
They felt very unhappy when they saw the enthusiasm of the southern party to Balian, and thought they were trying to steal people from them.
However, the overall performance was still very kind, especially the Earl of Alpine Castle, who also said that he hated that he no longer had a daughter, otherwise he would definitely let her marry the young hero Balian. This sentence made everyone laugh.
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After seeing that the three factions were so enthusiastic about Balian, the Lord Privy Seal sat aside. He was really stupid. Now he was really sure in his heart that Balian was the illegitimate son of the monarch. He regretted accepting Balian's gold coins.
, he thought about returning it later.
However, with an above-average IQ, he still decided to go home after dinner, put another dozen gold coins in the purse, and give them to Balian as a gift for his title promotion. Balian never thought of this.
While he was immersed in the joy of being promoted to a noble title, someone was thinking about how to curry favor with him. The money he spent in the morning went around in a circle and came back with more gold coins.
Enthusiasm and politeness started at the beginning, and the real confrontation started soon after the banquet started. I was prepared myself, otherwise I would have been defeated by the southern ministers.
After working all morning, the somewhat hungry Balian had just eaten a sausage and a piece of roasted chicken. Count Gonders, the tax minister sitting diagonally across from him, asked: "Dear Baron Balian, I heard that you beheaded
You killed a thousand Toba pirates. This is really impressive. I want to ask you a question. You killed so many pirates, so the losses on your side will not be too small. I remember that your territory seems to have citizens.