The food prepared by Fort Nolandenburg was limited, and Balian could not keep these prisoners forever. The next day, together with Eomer and Grove, he led twenty-five soldiers of Fort Nolandenburg and ten free company servants.
An escort team composed of soldiers escorted more than forty prisoners and the heads of captured bandits to Amundine to report their victory.
When this team of nearly a hundred people arrived at the city of Amundine, the soldiers in charge of the city defense quickly closed the city gate. After the city defense officer confirmed Balian's identity, they opened the door and let Balian lead people into the city. They were talking to each other in the official residence.
Viscount Merry, who had just been promoted to Sheriff, Sir Pippin, and Sir Sack, the Deputy Sheriff who had just taken office, were discussing matters. After hearing the reports from his subordinates, Viscount Merry couldn't help but be shocked. He hurriedly took everyone to the castle in the city.
In the square, because there were too many prisoners, there was no room for them to stand in the governor's mansion. The people from the city defense battalion took Balian and the others directly to the square in the city. He asked the soldiers from the city defense battalion to clear out the people selling goods and begging in the square.
After that, he quickly reported to Viscount Merri.
After seeing Balian, Viscount Merry and Sir Pippin took the portrait on the reward order and inspected the head of the bandit leader Lal, and asked several officers who had fought against the Lal gang to come over to confirm. After confirming that it was correct,
Viscount Merry laughed and gave Balian a hug, "Dear brother Balian, the cold winter has just passed, and you have made great contributions and wiped out the infamous Blood Wolf gang for our direct county. It is really the God of Fire who has blessed you to be like this."
Good knights were sent to the direct counties."
Viscount Merry is a neutral among the nobles of the duchy. He can sit firmly in the position of county guard. One is because of his absolute loyalty to the Carolingian Duke, and the other is that he is still a practical person and can solve some practical problems.
problem. It was also because of his pragmatism that after seeing that Balian could wipe out the gangs that had been entrenched for many years, his favorability towards Balian soared, and he began to show favor to Balian, because Viscount Merry knew that such a capable and capable person
Subordinates who understand people and the world are worth your efforts to win over. From now on, you will have to rely on Balian to do many difficult things for the county directly under your jurisdiction.
Seeing his superior's enthusiasm, Balian reciprocated the favor, "My Lord Sheriff, this is all because of your good leadership. It is because of your overall planning and the support you gave me that I can achieve this smoothly."
Destroy these gangsters."
When Viscount Merrion heard that Balian had given him the main credit, he looked at Balian meaningfully, "Sir Balian, the Minister of Security in the palace sent me a letter praising you as a great knight. Now it seems
, Sure enough! I will tell the Minister of Public Security and the Palace Prime Minister about the achievements we have made together. Of course, I will emphasize your achievements in killing the bandit leader. I am already middle-aged, and it is appropriate to promote a backward person like you.
of."
Although Balian wanted to give away the main credit, Viscount Merry knew that Balian was on good terms with the Minister of Public Security and had defeated Sir Yellen in the duel at Lydberg some time ago. Now Balian has a lot of influence in the aristocratic circle of the Principality of Brick.
With a certain prestige, at this time, Viscount Merry was too embarrassed to take the main credit, so he simply took the leadership credit for overall planning. In this way, he could not only highlight his good governance, but also highlight Balian's ability. Why not
Why.
While Viscount Merry and Balian were chatting happily, after seeing the head of the Blood Wolf gang leader Lal with a ferocious face, the expression of Sir Sack, the deputy sheriff of the county directly under his jurisdiction changed drastically, and his already fair face turned pale.
When he got up, Sir Pippin, the Sheriff, who was standing beside him, saw him like this and asked with a smile: "What's the matter, my Sir Sack, have you never seen the head of a dead person before?"
Sir Sack calmed down and forced a smile, "Hahaha, how could it be? There may be something wrong with the roast rabbit I had for lunch. I feel a severe pain in my stomach now." As he said, Sir Sack said
While holding his stomach.
Sir Pippin shook his head and motioned for him to find a place to go to the toilet quickly. Sir Sack hurriedly left the city square as if he was running away.
Viscount Merry handed the heads of the prisoners and robbers to the Sheriff, Sir Pippin. He happily invited Balian and Eomer to his mansion as guests. He was going to hold a grand dinner tonight to celebrate him.
This is the biggest victory in suppressing bandits since becoming the governor of a directly subordinate county. At that time, the nobles and big businessmen in the city will come to participate.
Before the dinner, Viscount Merry and Balian had a secret conversation in the study. Viscount Merry did not ask Balian about the seizure because he knew that Balian could neither tell the truth to him nor divide the seized property.
Instead of giving it to him, it is better to do it as a favor and simply not ask, so that we can carry out other cooperation in harmony.
"Bairian, how old are you?" Viscount Merry personally filled a glass of Sarion wine for Balian. This is the most famous and best-quality wine in the world. It is usually low-end and expensive.
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The clan only had the opportunity to drink two glasses of wine during major festivals, and the middle-class nobles would only share it when entertaining important guests.
"My lord, Sheriff, I am nineteen years old this year." Balian stood up and respectfully took the wine glass filled by Viscount Merry.
Viscount Merrin gently pressed Balian's shoulders and asked him to sit down, "Nineteen years old, you are really young and promising. When I was your age, I was just an ordinary attendant in the Duke's personal guard, let alone
I've been leading troops to suppress bandits, but I haven't even had a chance to fight in battle. Compared with you, I'm far behind."
After hearing what Viscount Merry said, Balian quickly replied in panic: "My respected Lord Sheriff, you are really embarrassing me by saying this. I just eliminated some robbers on the road with the help of a group of mercenaries.
He's just a robber. And you, the respected Lord Viscount Merri, are the monarch's confidant and the protector of the people of the county directly under your jurisdiction. How can I deserve such praise from you for my little merit?"
"Hahaha!" Viscount Merry laughed several times after hearing Balian's words. "For young knights of your age, most people who have made such achievements must have their tails raised to the sky, but you can be so humble. It is really rare.
.”
Balian smiled slightly and said, "Thank you Lord Sheriff for your compliment."
"I initially thought that you were a student of the Sword of the Dawn, with outstanding martial arts skills at best, but I didn't expect that you are also a brave and resourceful person. Sir Pippin interrogated several bandits. According to his description, I have no doubts about you and
You have some knowledge of the war going on with the Blood Wolf Bandits, and your method of setting up an ambush to ambush the Blood Wolf Bandits is really brilliant. To be honest, there are few lords in the city of Amondin and the counties directly under it who can compare with you.
"Viscount Merry's words were a bit confusing. Balian didn't know what he meant, so he simply continued to listen.
Viscount Merri took a sip from his wine glass and continued: "Last month, a manor belonging to the palace in the county was captured by a group of hungry refugees. Only a few soldiers escaped."
After saying this, he sighed, "Hey! You also know that this winter is not only longer than the past few years, but also colder than in previous years. Not only our direct county, but also the neighboring provinces of Jean-Vicchot, Loire, and Alpine,
There were many serfs who almost died of cold and starvation. The peasants launched a riot and robbed the granaries of the rich peasants and lords.
After being suppressed, most of them became refugees. Many of them ran into the Stag Forest and even started banditry. Some of them got entangled with some of the original gangs in the forest and attacked the direct counties.
There are many manors in the city, but this gang of people failed to take advantage most of the time. But who would have imagined that a team of sixty or seventy people, composed of refugees and robbers, actually captured the Maple Leaf Manor, which belonged to the palace.
"
When Balian was eating in Amundine's tavern, he heard someone talking about Maple Leaf Manor. This is a manor affiliated to the palace with three thousand acres of arable land and hundreds of livestock. It is definitely considered one of the best in the entire North.
It is a medium-sized farm with relatively rich products. There are more than a hundred serfs in Maple Leaf Manor responsible for farming. Basically, these serfs have families. Some have been working in Maple Leaf Manor for three generations. Not only is it very stable internally, but there are also three
Ten light infantrymen are responsible for guarding it, so it stands to reason that it cannot be easily captured.
"Sir, as far as I know, there are a lot of guards at Maple Leaf Manor, and they will not be easily defeated by the refugees with pitchforks and lack of food and clothing." Balian rubbed the beautifully made copper wine glass with his hand and said to Sir Merry
said.
Sir Merry smiled bitterly and shook his head, "I don't know the specific situation. I carefully interrogated the few soldiers who escaped. They all insisted that some serfs in the manor had become traitors and opened the door at night.
He opened the gate of the manor, let the enemies in, and then together with the bandits, killed the manor steward and guard soldiers, expelled the serfs, and occupied the farm."
Balian frowned after hearing this. Although he felt there was something wrong with what these deserters said, he didn't answer because he didn't understand the situation and couldn't make random guesses.
When Viscount Merrion saw that Balian did not continue to answer, he said: "Now, firstly, there are not enough soldiers in the county to deal with the bandits and the refugees running around. It is even more difficult to organize a large army to regain Maple Leaf Manor.
Difficulty; secondly, you know the state of the county soldiers. They usually garrison the city and bully ordinary people. But if you let them go to attack fortresses, I'm afraid they will suffer big losses.
Third, and most importantly, Maple Leaf Manor is, after all, a manor belonging to the palace. I must regain it in order to be accountable to the palace, and the steward who was killed was the illegitimate son of a palace baron who was close to me.
It is still a palace knight, and I will send troops to take it back both publicly and privately."
Hear this, Balian
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I understood in my heart that what this guy was nagging about just now was probably because he wanted me to lead troops to help him regain Maple Leaf Manor, but Balian still pretended to be confused, "My lord, the county guard, if the county is short of troops, you can ask the palace to
If you want help, you can also hire mercenaries."
"If I ask the palace for help, I'm afraid I will be held responsible for improper governance first. But hiring mercenaries, a small mercenary team is unwilling to take on such a job of attacking a city, and the large mercenary team charges too high, and
The mercenaries will also deliberately delay for a long time before solving the problem so that they can get more commissions." Viscount Merry said distressedly.
After hearing this, Balian remained silent. There were some things he still had to wait for Viscount Merry to clarify so that he could take the initiative.
As expected, Viscount Merry said: "Sir Balian, the first time I met you, I knew that the son of Sir Ori and a student of the Sword of Dawn was definitely a great knight. Today I saw you again determined to destroy the blood wolf.
Thanks to the gangsters, I know that you must help me with the matter of recovering Maple Leaf Manor."
"Fuck!" Balian cursed in his heart, knowing that his boss had just praised him and brought him good wine, so he must not have any good intentions. As expected, this guy's idea was to let him fight for him.
.
I was scolding him in my heart, but I still wanted to talk to him with a smile on my face, "Your Excellency, it is my honor to be appreciated by you. I am very grateful that you can give me such a good opportunity to make great achievements."
Hearing what Balian said, Viscount Merrin nodded happily, "I knew you wouldn't let me down."
"However, I have just taken over Fort Nolandenburg. There are only more than a hundred men, women, and children under my rule. There are only a dozen hunters. The castle is guarded by hired mercenaries. Moreover, Fort Nolandenburg has just fought against the Blood Wolf Bandit, and the manpower is
The casualties are relatively large, and I really have no soldiers to use now, so you can't just watch me die on my own." Balian said with a grimace on his face.
Viscount Merrion looked at Balian meaningfully and thought: This boy is really not easy to fool, he gave me a but... It makes me happy in vain! Can't I tell whether you have soldiers under you? Then escort the robbers
Although the twenty-five captured soldiers were not well-equipped, they looked like they had received formal training, had been on the battlefield, and had killed people. They were standing in the square in the city, motionless and as steady as a rock, with such momentum.
But it is much stronger than the soldiers of the city defense battalion who maintain order on the side.
"Hahaha!" Viscount Merry smiled and took a sip of wine. He knew that Balian didn't accept the move because he wanted some benefits, so he simply opened his mouth and talked to Balian, "I know you are short of manpower. This time you
Instead of escorting over forty bandits, I can give you the same number of young and strong serfs. In this way, you can select a group from them and train them into soldiers. At the same time, I will provide you with a group of armors and weapons.
How about equipping a team and leading at least twenty soldiers to join my bandit-suppressing team?"
Now that Viscount Merrion knew his intentions, Balian stopped hiding them. The two of them negotiated like two businessmen in the study and reached an agreement on the terms.
Viscount Merry allowed Balian to go to the palace farm near the city of Amondine to select fifty young serfs. In this regard, Viscount Merry seemed generous, but in fact he did not suffer a loss. Balian gave him more than forty robbers.
, they can all be assigned to work as miners in the Snow Realm Mine. After the heads of those bandits were handed over, it was also due to Viscount Merry, the county guard, who had a good job in dispatching them.
Viscount Merry, knowing that he had taken an advantage in this regard, made some compensation to Balian in terms of armor and supplies, and allocated thirty spears, twenty one-handed knives, and ten leather bucklers from the arsenal to Balian.
Fifteen crossbows, a thousand crossbow arrows, in addition, fifteen sets of double leather armor, eight sets of iron-inlaid leather armor, ten iron-inlaid helmets, five riding horses, one four-wheeled carriage, three
One thousand pounds of grain, twenty bolts of cotton, and a bounty of 2,500 dinars was given, of which 2,000 dinars were obtained in exchange for Lal's head, and 500 dinars were obtained by hiring Balian to fight.
After regaining Maple Leaf Manor, there will be a reward of 500 dinars.
Generally speaking, the things given by Viscount Merry were not very practical. The armors and weapons were not particularly generous, and there was not much food and cloth. Viscount Merry really wanted the horses to run, but he also didn’t want to feed them.
Eating grass. However, Balian was content. The biggest benefit from this trip was these fifty young serfs. These were both fifty laborers and alternative soldiers. Although they were exchanged for prisoners, they were honest and responsible.
Compared with the serfs who have a deep hatred against themselves, the former is more secure to use.
Before the dinner started, Balian made a lot of efforts and asked for 500 pounds of pig iron from Viscount Merry. After all, there was a blacksmith in the territory now, and the county governor was not generous in allocating weapons, so he would make them himself.