"Rumors? What rumors?"
Angus's words piqued Charlotte's interest.
"My Lord Count..."
Angus glanced at the priest Lottie and several former demon hunters accompanying the convoy, considered his words, and continued:
"Rumor has it that you betrayed your family and Castel, and sold out the interests of the Earldom of Castel to the church in order to successfully inherit the title."
Charlotte: …
Damn, why is it that I want to refute but don’t know how to refute
"Is it the vow I made to the church in Boulder last year?"
Charlotte asked.
Baron Angus thought for a moment and said:
"It's somewhat related, but not completely."
Charlotte is lost in the lake:
"How do you say that?"
Lord Angus replied respectfully:
"The promise you made in Boulder last year is well known in Castel. It has a great impact on the noble circle, and many families strongly oppose it..."
"However, the high priest of Bolde was later arrested and tried by the church's inquisition. Everyone knew that you had made an empty promise to the high priest at the time, so no one mentioned this matter gradually."
"It's just that after you ascended the throne, this matter was brought up again."
"But this is not the root cause. Maybe the nobles care about who their feudal lord is, but for most people, I don't think they care whether they are ruled by the church or the nobles. After all... In many cases, the taxes in the church are lower."
Charlotte said.
After saying that, she looked at Baron Angus again:
"Not to mention, after I ascended the throne, I also hinted to the envoys from the territory that the empty promise was just a delaying tactic I made to balance the pressure from the Duke's Mansion and other nobles."
"That's the problem. To this day, most of the nobles, including me, believe that you don't really want to dedicate Castel County to the church in the future. But the fact is that you stand with the church."
The Duke of Angus said.
Charlotte's heart moved slightly:
"Oh? So, the nobles and people of Castel don't want to see me get too close to the church?"
Baron Angus nodded:
"Yes, you set out from Boulder with the priests appointed by the church. This matter was transmitted to the earldom by magic when you just set out on your journey."
"And recently, there have been new rumors that you are not really planning to promise Castel to the church in the future, but to bring Castel back under the church's faith..."
"Many people are saying that with your succession, the church will reintegrate the faith and rule of Castel Territory, collect tithes again, and pay off all past taxes in one go..."
Charlotte: …
She knew what the tithe was. It was similar to a certain church in the western history of Blue Star in her previous life. It was a religious tax collected by the Holy Royal Court from the residents.
The Sacred Code clearly stipulates that paying tithes is the obligation of every resident who believes in the Holy Court, and the amount to be paid is one-tenth of the agricultural and pastoral products.
By the way, the Duchy of Bold has a tithe.
Not only in the Duchy of Bold, but also in every duchy or county that Charlotte passed through along the way.
Paying tithes has become a daily routine for the people in the Miria world. In some theocratic territories, in addition to tithes, the people also have to pay various other taxes to the church, such as land tax, transaction tax, etc.
The Holy Court is not a charity, and Quintana also needs the protection of the church.
But that's not the point.
The key point is the other two meanings revealed by Baron Angus's words.
First, the beliefs of the Castel Territory are not completely unified.
Second, on this basis, the Holy Royal Court may not have carried out substantive religious rule here for many years.
"Isn't there a unified faith in Castel County?"
Charlotte asked in surprise.
This matter has never been mentioned in the information of Castel Manor!
"Yes, our Castel Territory has been on the edge of the Holy Court's rule since ancient times. When the first Earl of Castel opened up the territory, there were indeed many believers of the Holy Court. But as the earldom continued to develop, more and more immigrants came from the interior and the north. Most of those who came from the interior were opponents of the church, and those who came from the north... were originally non-believers and pagans."
"Today... the faith in the territory has long been in a state of confusion."
Baron Angus said.
Charlotte: …
No wonder even though she didn't honor her promise last year, the Holy Royal Court still supported her to be the lord. It turns out that the real situation in Castel is full of heresy!
The "miracle" at her succession ceremony was so grand that her title as a saint was almost established. It was no wonder that such a lord would be hostile to the locals.
"How long has it been since the Holy Court collected tithes in Castel?"
Charlotte asked again.
Baron Angus scratched his head:
"I'm afraid... it must be more than a hundred years?"
Charlotte: …
Compared with the extraordinary protection of the church, the tithe is neither heavy nor light.
But if the rumor is that it was all paid off at once, then the tax amount of more than a hundred years... is a bit exaggerated.
However, Charlotte had never mentioned anything about paying the full tithe. She had not even learned that Lord Castel had not paid taxes to the church for hundreds of years.
Obviously, there is someone behind this rumor.
"This is a completely untrue statement. Today I learned for the first time that the church's rule has long been in name only in Castel Territory."
Charlotte shook her head.
Baron Angus was obviously relieved, and immediately smiled:
"That's true. I don't think you would do that either."
Charlotte: …
You look so relieved, you must have thought I would do this, right
You will do this, right?!
Although Baron Angus is a nobleman, he is an honest, serious and dull knight.
Even he couldn't grasp Charlotte's true thoughts, so it was normal for this rumor to spread throughout Castel.
Honestly, Charlotte didn’t take the tithe rumors seriously.
The argument that hundreds of years of tax revenue can be made up in one go will be refuted if left alone.
Charlotte didn't even think about helping the church collect taxes again. After all, she wasn't a true believer in the Holy Spirit...
But she clearly felt the malice of the person who spread the rumor behind the scenes.
Moreover... things like the tithe, which are directly related to the interests of the people, may seem to be the most important thing, but in fact, it is not.
What was really terrible was the remarks that used her pro-Church stance to pit her against her subjects, the deeper meaning behind the tithe, and the statement of "re-incorporating Castel into the Church's faith."
Originally, Charlotte was planning to act under the banner of the Holy Royal Court.
But now, perhaps she should reconsider her stance.
However, from another perspective, the confusion in Castel's beliefs is also a good thing for Charlotte, as it allows her to take advantage of the situation.
She didn't really want to preach for the Holy Court, but she wanted to find a way to spread her own beliefs.
On this basis, perhaps Charlotte should investigate who is targeting her behind the scenes.
In other words, she is not a true holy believer. If she is really a devout "saint", such remarks would really hit the snake in the weakest part.
As I said, if you want to find out who your enemy is, you have to think about who will benefit after you fail, or in other words, whose interests will be affected after you come to Castel.
Although there are archival materials in the manor, to be honest, the information from more than ten years ago does not have sufficient reference value in this regard, and Charlotte still needs more information.
She had a hunch that this must be related to the nobles in the territory.
After all, it takes a certain amount of financial resources to allow a rumor to spread easily throughout Castel.
The convoy continued to move forward.
Although he could feel the indifference and even hostility of the people in his territory, fortunately they were only watching from the sidelines, and no one surrounded the team.
Apart from Baron Angus, Charlotte did not meet any new nobles along the way.
The degree of urbanization in Castel Territory is obviously higher than that in the Duchy of Bold or even the Duchy of Moon Guard, especially after going north.
Towns of all sizes can be seen almost everywhere. In Charlotte's opinion, the population density is even higher than that of the two counties under the direct dukedom of the kingdom, and there are also a lot of small nobles.
There were quite a few minor nobles who came to pay their respects along the way, but apart from inviting Charlotte to attend the banquet, they did not accompany her like Baron Angus did.
Charlotte also obviously felt it.
Although she successfully inherited the title, she lacked authority and ruling power from top to bottom in the Territory of Castel, and was more like a lone figure.
However, this situation has improved significantly after entering the direct jurisdiction of the Earldom of Castel.
That’s right, a direct jurisdiction.
The Earldom of Castel also has a direct jurisdiction.
In addition to the three viscounties and seventeen baronies that were granted, the remaining one-fifth of the territory of Castel was directly governed by the Castel family, covering an area of approximately 26,000 square kilometers and a population of approximately 1.8 million, accounting for one-third of the population of the entire earldom.
To be honest, this area is quite large. If it were placed in the Crescent Kingdom, it could be an independent and wealthy earldom.
This area can be further divided into two parts, which are located exactly on the two obtuse sides of the obtuse triangle of Castel Territory, one on the left and one on the right.
The area on the left is directly north of Castel Territory, where the capital North Port is located, and is also known as the Viscount of North Port.
That’s right, the Viscountship.
Strictly speaking, in addition to being the Earl of Castel, Charlotte is also the Viscount of Northport.
The Viscountry of Beigang covers an area of about 16,000 square kilometers, which is about the same size as the imperial capital of the Celestial Empire. It concentrates the most essential areas of the entire Castel Territory, has a population of over 1.5 million, and is also Charlotte's destination.
The area on the right is the Castel silver mining area on the border, which is about 10,000 square kilometers. It is mostly hills and low mountains, and has a population of only 200,000.
Unlike the Duchy of Bolder which had baron vassals, and the Duchy of Crescent Kingdom which had earl vassals, the Duchy of Castel did not have any noble lords with the title of baron or above.
Here, the Castel family directly ruled the territory by the aldermen and the court nobles without fiefs. They only had administrative districts, no ownership of territories, and no military power.
Of course, they also had their own land, but at most they were just some estates.
The Viscountry of North Port is obviously richer than other places in Castel. The official roads in the wild are built like the city roads in the outer city of Boulder. The pedestrians passing by are dressed more decently, and there are endless carriages on the road.
As soon as Charlotte entered the direct territory, she was warmly welcomed by the municipal officials who had been waiting for a long time.
It was truly a warm welcome, which made Charlotte subconsciously think of the leadership inspection in her previous life. Many officials from the territory came, and there were even citizens who wanted to be the majority and watch.
Not only that, there are even soldiers standing guard on both sides. They are well-equipped and include a large proportion of extraordinary people. They are obviously the armed forces of Beigang.
Looking around, the team coming to greet Charlotte was probably around three to four hundred people. If the people watching were included, there would be even more people, probably over a thousand.
It can only be said that not everyone believed the rumors, or that in Castel's direct jurisdiction, the people's trust in the Castel family may be higher than in non-direct jurisdictions.
And this is just at the entrance to the direct-controlled territory, not yet reaching the capital Beigang.
The leader of the welcoming team was the mayor of North Port, Madoc Oran, a municipal official of common origin.
Madoc was a middle-aged man who looked to be about fifty years old, with quite a bit of gray hair.
Compared to the mayor, he looked more like a businessman. He was chubby and always cheerful, like a Maitreya Buddha, which reminded Charlotte subconsciously of the fat butler of the Duke of Bold's family.
As soon as he saw Charlotte, his eyes lit up, and he rushed over with a group of city officials and nobles, saying happily:
"Lady Charlotte, you are finally back. I haven't seen you for many years. You are getting more and more beautiful."
Well, another unfamiliar acquaintance.
Not to mention that the memories Charlotte inherited were not very complete. Even if they were complete, the people the original body met as a child would definitely have vague memories after so many years.
Charlotte could only smile and nod.
"Lord Charlotte, you must be tired from the journey. The Earl's Mansion in Beigang has been cleaned up and you can move in any time!"
Madoc said with a big smile.
Afterwards, he took the reins and actually drove the horse for Charlotte himself.
Surrounding Charlotte's carriage, the huge team continued to rush north.
After walking for about half a day, Charlotte finally arrived at her final destination, the capital of the Earldom of Castel, the economic and trade center of the Northern Lowlands, one of the Crescent Kingdom's megacities with a population of over half a million, and a water city known as the Pearl of the Sea - North Port.