calm!
calm!
The more this is the case, the more calm you are!
"Your Excellency Kurt, you...you are joking. [Zero↑Nine△↓说△网]"
The second son of the baron tried his best to control himself, but there was still a slight tremolo in his calm voice: "Ah... Ackford leader, now... how can there be such a large piece of permanent land now."
No wonder the second son is so sensitive. In feudal society, land was the greatest wealth, and "permanent land" was the most sensitive topic.
Anything related to these words, serfs can beat their heads to death, free people can fight to the death, and village gentlemen can commit massacres and rise to the level of lords, it is even more frightening and bloody. It's windy.
Moreover, what the baron's second son said was true. Akford Territory is indeed vast in land, but even the top ruling class living in the castle, the "permanent land resources" that can be used are extremely tight.
The land is so precious, and the matters related to the land are so sensitive, as the second son of the baron who can barely squeeze into the top 20 in the territory ranking, at most, he can resettle two or three households, seven or eight The land of the serfs; the eldest son of the baron, who is ranked fifth in the territory, is not qualified to decide the ownership of the land that requires more than 50 serfs to work; such a large area, only the baron, can face the important gains and losses At that time, he gritted his teeth and cut his flesh with blood dripping from his heart.
Hearing Tines' refusal and welcome, the water officer Kert knew that the second son of the baron had already made the right decision.
"Permanent allotment is really troublesome. But..." With an initial tacit understanding, the water officer didn't care to speak more clearly: "If you really need it, there are not only Ackerford Castle, but also many. For example... Boli O village, Assab village, especially..." Speaking of this, the water officer emphasized again: "Burning Liu village...these places!"
Burning Willow Village!
really!
Sure enough, that's the case!
The place names that the water officer spit out lightly confirmed the second son of the baron's conjecture.
In the Middle Ages world, where certain information has been grasped, the social structure is quite backward. Even if there is a supernatural force suspected to dominate, the level of civilization is still quite low. Most of the areas are still in the primary stage of feudal society where the serf system and the self-cultivation system coexist.
It can be seen from the daily administration of Akeli village and the busy summer labor and farming that the ruling class in the medieval world lacked in many aspects such as organization, mobilization, and management.
The software is unsatisfactory, and the hardware such as transportation, communication, military, and logistics is also flawed everywhere. Combining various factors, the level of dominance comprehensively displayed in the medieval world can be imagined.
According to comprehensive information, divided according to the way of the earth, and according to the difference in dominance, the Akford Territory can basically be divided into four grades:
The first grade, the core of the territory, the location of Fort Ackford, directly led by Ackford, the land in front of the house, His Excellency the Baron can clearly see every detail, like his fingers. —It is also obvious that there is only one such village. According to the calculation method of feudal society, the power that the baron can use can reach about 80%.
The second level is strong control. The villages of Akeli, Loveland, Ori, and Witton are within two or three days' distance from Fort Ackerford. The traffic and communication are relatively smooth. It is quite convenient, and the logistics can also be guaranteed in the area. In these villages, His Excellency the Baron's political, economic, and military demands will basically not be discounted much. — There are four such villages in total, and the power that the baron can use is basically 60%.
The third grade is barely controlled. The villages of Adovi, Kanagu, and Tarafa are five or six days away from Fort Akford. The mountains are majestic and rugged, and the roads are in disrepair. It is very difficult, large-scale arming is even more laborious, and material transportation is extremely difficult. In these villages, the orders of the baron, under the dual effects of natural factors and human factors, will inevitably become ineffective. — There are a total of three such villages, and the power that the baron can use fluctuates around 40%.
The last grade, mandated autonomy, Luarca village, Miral village, Connerski village, etc., at this grade, the most skilled messengers in these villages will almost need to spend a trip to Fort Ackford In about ten days, it will take nearly a month to walk back and forth. With such a speed of information feedback, and after losing the maintenance of the dominant supernatural power, the roads between these villages and Fort Ackford have basically recovered. Originally, the mountains were high and the forests were dense, and the bridges were broken and the roads were buried. Under the constraints of the tragic hardware facilities, let alone the dispatch of armed forces, even if it is normal communication, if the messengers with less seniority and experience receive an errand, they must have deeply offended a few elders, and they must first give back to the family. People explained the funeral, and then set off while crying.
It is conceivable that such a ghostly place is so oily, and it is not worth the loss to barely control it. The Ackford family has passed it down from generation to generation, referring to the advanced experience of other lords, and gradually handing over these places to close brothers. Or a high-ranking bureaucrat with outstanding merits, who appointed him as a knight of detached status.
The detached status means that in order to thank these knights for their outstanding dedication and hard work in defending the border, these high-ranking gentlemen in charge only need to pay a sum of important materials such as honey, refined salt, and precious metals to the castle every year as a gift to the lord. Consecration of gifts (limited to transportation, no matter how much food is harvested, it will not be shipped out), and when discussing important matters, and when concentrated for other reasons, the top-ranked favors (anyway, there are few opportunities in a lifetime). — There are five such villages in total, and the baron can use up to 20% of his power.
These are the grades of the four obvious faces. In addition, there is a hidden grade: nominal possession.
These villages are exactly the Borio village, Assab village, and Burning Willow village that the water officer read out softly at this time.
The traffic distance between these villages and Fort Ackford is between 8-15 days, all of which are far away from the emperor.
Among them, the village of Borio, which is the farthest, reaching about 15 days, originally belonged to another lord on the border. The knights, through marriage and inheritance operations, resolutely transferred their allegiance to the Baron Ackford of the previous generation, and then took advantage of the contradictions between the two territories time and time again, basically did not give Ackford What a decent offering to bring. —Of course, it was a flying thing, and the Akford leader didn't care too much about gains and losses.
The nearest village, about 8 days away, was a knight appointed by the previous Baron Ackford 30 years ago. This knight family is quite loyal, but for some reason it was offended by the master. After a few years Just encounter disasters, either flash floods, or no rain for months, finally the weather is smooth, and there will be insect infestation, wandering between disasters and recovery all year round, not only has no income for the castle, but often has to worry about it. Allocate some rebuilding supplies. — which in turn boosts the village's loyalty.
Apart from these two special circumstances, there are several other distances. For example, the village of Burning Willow, where the water officer deliberately emphasized his tone, is the heart disease of the leader of Akford.
In the medieval world, there were frequent wars in the territory, violent social turmoil, and sharp class conflicts. Many factors were superimposed and the living environment was extremely harsh. At the same time, a large number of distinctive armed forces were born: defeated nobles, out-of-control stewards, and big thieves.
These heart-wrenching villages led by Ackford are the victims of these characteristic armed forces: one was attacked by the remnants of nobles who escaped from nowhere; Ge... Well, the group of thieves has been forcibly taken over.
This is the situation formed during the tenure of two or three generations of barons in the past few decades.
To be honest, when it comes to devotion, the food and valuables sent to Akford by these unstable village rulers are far from being comparable to the powerfully controlled area of Akeli Village, but compared to The villages that were barely controlled by the third tier, and the knight leaders who were delegated to the fourth tier, all had two or three times more.
However, apart from food and supplies, these villages have always been deeply separated from the castle due to their congenital defects in legal principles, class, likes and dislikes, etc.
The Akford leader had to spend energy and materials to strengthen the armed forces around these sick villages for defense. The rulers of these villages who were not in the right position also had to regroup their troops and always be on guard against attacks from the castle. .
Guard, hostility, confrontation... Under the chain reaction, these villages can't talk about the accumulation of strength, and Fort Akford has to consume an extra sum of manpower and material resources every year.
Regarding these "nominal villages", the Akford Territory is not completely helpless.
One is instigated by the arm, four are under strong control, three are barely under control, and five are entrusted to manage. The combined power of thirteen villages can completely overthrow these heart-ill villages with a thunderous force.
However, everything has to pay attention to cost.
These disgusting villages are not only far away, the roads are in disrepair - some key locations have been deliberately damaged - it is difficult for armed forces to pass through, and the logistical costs are extremely high. The Akford Territory must mobilize considerable forces to suppress these bastards.
The trouble is, given the environment of the medieval world, if the leader of Akford dared to mobilize the mobile power of the territory on a large scale, the surrounding forces would immediately be ready to move.
Therefore, under such helplessness and compromise, under the mighty power of time and history, the Akford collar exerted pressure, and these damned villages increased their dedication; the Akford collar was strongly dissatisfied, and these ghost places hurried Compromise; the Ackford collar asked for the placement of managers, and these places gradually accepted it with a pinch of their noses. The Ackford collar relaxed a little, and these bastards immediately made progress!
In this way, ten years, twenty years, thirty years...
It is also the great power of time and history. When both sides have scruples, the relationship between the territory and these annoying villages gradually begins to move closer to the balance line, and the way of getting along gradually develops in the direction of normalization.
In the past few years, the second son of the baron has also vaguely heard: Damn it, hate it, Burning Willow Village, where thieves were born, has sacrificed many innocent farmers in the past few years, and made some evil deals with the devil. Everything is going well, and I have accumulated a fortune. I am packing up the team, thinking about sending it to the castle, seeking a formal recognition, and marrying a family lady, planning to become a real knight who plays an important role in the territory. .
At the same time, some of the core management in the castle also made secret announcements on different occasions on many occasions: the past has long passed, and since the descendants of this thief have repentance, it is not absolutely impossible to give the territory a chance. —If you don't give a chance at all, this beast who is eager to clean up is still in contact with the other two neighboring territories. If you are not careful, the wealth of the territory will flow out, and the leader of Akford may have more at any time A nail inserted by another lord!
However, at this moment, the second son of the baron heard a completely different wind from the list that the water officer made lightly but with great certainty:
These ghostly villages, at least Burning Willow, the most annoying ghost place in Akford, have come to an end!