After getting along with each other for a few days, Marin found that although his cheap uncle Yu Le was not a well-rounded person, he had worked as a clerk for a long time, including some hard work in government affairs, which made Yu Le in terms of organization and coordination. Possess a very solid ability.
For example, next, in Mermel, the task of inviting and summoning the local Teutonic knights was handed over to Yule. After all, Prince Philip and Marin were outsiders. When they went to those Teutonic knights, they were suspicious and defensive.
But Yule was different when he went out. Yule had worked as a clerk in Mermeer for more than ten years, and had dealt with all kinds of people. He is quite familiar with the preferences and habits of the local Teutonic knights. Even if you don't know much about it, you can go to the archives to check the files, and you will know the daily preferences of that Teutonic knight.
Moreover, as an old employee, Yule's organization and coordination skills are still good. And people like Marin are mostly mouth gun emperors. It's okay for him to command people. Commanding this and that seems like a fork, but in fact, Marin has no practical experience in organization and management at all. When encountering specific problems, we still have to rely on local talents in Europe in this era. With the help of a down-to-earth old clerk like Yule, Marin and Prince Philip were also much more relaxed.
Under the coordination of Yule, Prince Philip and Marin quickly invited all the Teutonic knights of Mermel, and while inviting them to eat and drink, they took out real money and silver.
After the difficulties at home were solved by Marin, a wealthy nephew, a big stone in Yule's heart also fell to the ground. As a result, he, who was already quite capable, gradually regained his energy and became an important assistant to Prince Philip.
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At the same time, Prince Frederick of Saxony also started the canvassing process. Following Prince Philip, Prince Frederick also began to throw a big banquet and invite those Teutonic knights. Of course, he invited first the Teutonic knights of the Saxony line, and then the Teutonic knights of the Franconia-Swabia League. Then, the Teutonic knights of those neutral factions were also invited.
However, Prince Frederick does not have the chefs under Marin who can cook Chinese food. Therefore, Prince Frederick can only set out roasted meat, boiled meat, and then put spices on the table for the knights to eat with roasted meat, bread, etc...
As a result, Prince Frederick spent much more than Marin for each table banquet, but the taste...
The Teutonic Knights of Saxony and the Franconia-Swabia Alliance didn't feel much, because they had never been to the banquet hosted by Marin. But those neutral knights had eaten the banquet hosted by Marin. Compared with the banquet at Marin's, what kind of shit is the banquet hosted by Prince Frederick? It is simply the difference between gourmet food and pig food...
Moreover, at the banquet, although Prince Frederick of Saxony tried his best to win over those neutral knights, he was full of promises and did not give any real benefits.
In fact, the benefits promised by Prince Frederick are also great. After all, the Wetting family controls the Saxon business district and is very powerful, while the Teutonic knights are also keen on doing business. If these promises can be fulfilled, the benefits will definitely be greater than the gold coins given by Marinsey.
However, in this era, the aristocrats are most popular in writing bad checks, boasting so loudly that they may not be cashed in the end. Therefore, although those neutral Teutonic knights were a little tempted, they were not moved by Prince Frederick.
After all, Prince Frederick is just the youngest son of the Duke of Saxony, not the Duke of Saxony himself, let alone the Elector of Saxony. The neutral Teutonic knights were very skeptical that Prince Frederick would be able to keep those promises.
Moreover, these knights don't study hard, and most of them don't have much vision. Therefore, the real gold coins given by Marin moved them more than those promises.
Therefore, although the benefits promised by Prince Frederick were very attractive, basically most neutral knights did not buy it. However, when the prince came to entertain them, they should still eat and drink.
When Prince Philip learned that Prince Frederick also began to imitate him and hold a large banquet to win over neutral knights, he was very anxious. Marin was also a little nervous, but when he sent someone to spend money to find out the inside story, he was relieved when he learned that Prince Frederick was just writing a blank check besides holding a banquet...
In practice, Prince Frederick came to the election this time and only brought more than 10,000 gold coins, which was only a tenth of the money brought by Marin.
This gold coin is only enough for a big banquet. Because the prince is holding a traditional spice banquet, and it takes a lot of money to take out plates of pepper, clove powder, cinnamon powder, etc., but it may not be delicious.
Therefore, after holding the banquet, Prince Frederick really couldn't spend any extra money to buy those neutral knights. Moreover, in the country of the Teutonic Knights, being able to hold a banquet to entertain these knights is also a good way to win over. After all, few local tyrants can be as rich as Marin, and they are willing to spend money.
Often, after a banquet, Prince Frederick would spend hundreds of gold coins. However, the amount of Marin spices is relatively small, and only a few dozen gold coins are needed.
Then, Marin also saved the money that was less than Prince Frederick, wrapped it in a small bag, turned it into gold coins, and sent it to the pockets of the neutral knights.
Moreover, banquets were held in the four major cities, and after the gold was sprinkled, Marin kept one of the five chefs he brought in each in Mermel, Elbin and Ton, and rented a big house, fixedly Feast the local Westphalian-Rhineland League and neutral Teutonic knights. A banquet is held every few days, so that these people can eat delicious food.
As for the capital, Königsberg, Prince Philip and Marin, with two of the best chefs, are also attractive Teutonic knights who often entertain Königsberg.
These Teutonic knights seem to be addicted to Prince Philip. Some greedy knights came here for a meal in the name of visiting, and Prince Philip also extended a warm welcome.
In order to meet the needs of these knights, Marin also paid for a group of serfs in the Teutonic Knights, and selected several good cooks who could speak German (there are Germans and Slavs in Prussia. But German is the national language of the Teutonic Knights, and it has ruled the area for hundreds of years. Therefore, many people in the area can speak German.) Serfs, learn from the chef brought by Marin to supply future needs.
After a lot of entertainment, Marin gave at least 200 gold coins to each of the neutral knights who needed to be wooed. For the knights of the original Westphalia-Swabia alliance, each of them gave at least 100 gold coins, which can be described as real money.
Prince Frederick, on the other hand, spent a lot of money on the banquet. But, beyond that, a bunch of empty promises were made, and a bunch of empty promises written.
But for these "big and rough" knights who don't have a long-term vision, these empty checks are not as impressive as those actual gold coins.
Moreover, Prince Philip does not know how to write empty checks. Under Marin's suggestion, he also made a lot of promises...
One side has only bad checks, and the other side has real money plus some bad checks. As long as the math is not particularly bad, you know how to choose...
Moreover, Prince Philip's banquet was held every few days, allowing those Teutonic knights to eat and drink for free. Prince Frederick's banquet was not only bad, but also expensive. It was impossible for the prince to hold it every few days like Marin and the others. Therefore, from the banquet, whether in terms of quality or quantity, Prince Philip has steadily overwhelmed Prince Frederick...
The balance of the campaign gradually tilted towards Prince Philip. It's just that there are too many Teutonic knights in the Franconia-Swabia Alliance and the Saxon line. If it is a reckless fight, Prince Frederick may not be at a disadvantage, and the two sides seem to be somewhat evenly matched. Moreover, those neutral knights may not all choose to support Prince Philip. Therefore, Marin began to think about how to resolve the numerical advantage on Prince Frederick's side...