Peiro Hermon was sitting at the desk, subconsciously fiddling with a piece of exquisite parchment in his hand. The housekeeper paid the deposit and sent the invitation to Shirley.
But he didn't read a word now.
Today is the seventh day of the expedition. If everything goes well, my father should return with the Duke yesterday. Maybe it was a delay on the road, or maybe it was because people were tired and they had an extra day off in Border Town? He comforted himself, but the unease in his heart was slowly expanding.
The fourth prince, Roland Wimbledon, had left a deep impression on him, and Pei Luo even felt inconceivable why such an outstanding prince had such a terrible reputation in the king. Bad character, playful, incompetent, ignorant... Any evaluation is different from the prince he knows.
It was because of this that his unease was so strong.
He was afraid that the Duke would lose to him.
"Master Pelor," the butler called from outside the door, "there is a letter from the fortress."
From the fortress? Pei Luo was stunned, "Bring it in."
When the cover was opened, Pelor was stunned by the first sentence on the letter.
This is a letter from the fourth prince!
Duke Osmond Lane attacked the king's territory by force, in an attempt to rebel, but failed. The Duke himself has fallen on the battlefield, and now Longsong Fortress is in the hands of this king.
Duke lost? His heart sank violently, and then he looked down.
With the exception of a few diehards, most of Duke Lane's comrades have surrendered and pleaded guilty. The rebellious royal family should have been put to death, but the king was merciful, and only punished the wicked and the unpardonable. The exchange location is the Lord's Castle in Longsong Fortress. The following is the list.
The words and sentences in this official document are extremely awkward, and it is not a common language of diplomacy, but the meaning of what he wants to express is clear, but the duke failed to rebel and wanted to take prisoners in exchange for money.
Pei Luo's eyes moved down slightly, and his father's name appeared in the first row.
"Hedes!" He shouted the butler's name, "Prepare the car, I'm going to the fortress castle!"
…
The Earl of Honeysuckle was located east of the fortress. When Pelor arrived at the castle area, it was already half an hour later. In front of the lord's castle, there were "militias" he had never seen before. They had no shiny iron armor, no cloaks or ribbons. Just standing neatly and standing in two rows with his head held high made him feel an overwhelming aura.
After reporting his identity, Peiro was taken into the garden and then led to the castle hall by a guard.
He has been to this place many times, but today, he seems to have stepped into a completely unfamiliar field. The guards standing guard in the aisle are all faces he has never seen before. No one nodded or smiled at him, but looked at him blankly. follow him. At the entrance of the hall, a knight greeted him.
"your name?"
"Pelor Hermon," Pelor replied slightly unpleasantly. He didn't like such an interrogative dialogue, so he emphasized it again, "Ser Hermon."
"Oh," the other party looked disapproving, flipping through the list in his hand, "Count Sharrafi Hermon is yours..."
"Father."
"I'm sorry," the knight said, but his expression showed no apology. "I'm Carter Lannis, the chief knight of the fourth prince. Please come to the side room first, we need to check if you are carrying weapons."
After a body search, Pelor's Stone of God's Retaliation was also taken down by the guards.
"That's not a weapon," Peyro reminded.
"Of course not," the knight nodded. "We will return it to you after the meeting, don't worry."
He opened his mouth and finally held back. return? The Stone of God's Punishment was considered to be of high quality, at least worth fifty golden dragons. It was impossible not to replace it with a defective one when it was in the hands of the opponent. Well, he thought, as part of the ransom.
Walking into the hall, the fourth prince was sitting on the main seat and writing something. When he looked up and saw Pei Luo, he was stunned, and then smiled, "We meet again, Mr. Ambassador."
With the familiar face and tone, Pei Luo also relaxed a little, bowed and saluted, "Greetings to you, Your Highness."
"Sit down," Roland raised his hand and motioned him to take a seat. "You must already know what happened. Your father wasn't hurt in any way. He was the first to surrender."
"Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness," Pei Luo said quickly, "I don't know how much ransom Your Highness wants. As long as the honeysuckle can get it, I will have someone deliver the money immediately."
"I don't need money," Roland shook his finger, "I want livestock and people."
It is normal to ask for livestock. Even fifty years ago, conflicts between lords ended with the losers paying for cattle and sheep. Pelor has seen this more than once in his books. But... what does it mean to be a person? "Your Highness, there are many cattle, sheep, and horses in the honeysuckle territory. As for the person you mentioned..."
"It's very simple. I want all masons, masons, carpenters, farmers, and serfs." The prince handed over a scroll. "You can convert it according to the above value, as long as the total is three thousand." He smiled, " By the way, since the Count is considered to be the one with the largest title in the capture, the value is also the highest."
Perrault spread the scroll on the table.
Seeing that it was filled with occupational categories and livestock types, followed by a number, such as: cattle 3, sheep 2, mason 10, etc., he immediately understood the meaning of the other party.
The value of three thousand means one thousand cattle, or three hundred masons to redeem the father. Of course, there are not so many cattle and masons in his territory, and there are many options just by arranging and combining the items on the paper. As a noble who deals with trade every day, Pei Luo instantly realized that there are There are plenty of articles to do. As long as he is given a few days, he can calculate the optimal solution and meet the requirement of 3,000 points at the minimum cost.
"Your Highness, can I..."
"One day, I can only give you one day," Roland stretched out a finger, "This only refers to the time when you make a choice. After all, if you want to gather so many materials and people, you can't do it in three or four days. . And I'm not going to stay here forever, I'll be out of here in a week at the most."
"But one day is really..." Pei Luo suddenly froze, looking at the prince with wide eyes, "Wait, you just said... you want to leave?" What does this mean? If the letter is correct, the Duke has already died on the battlefield, and the Changge Fortress belongs to His Royal Highness. He actually said that he wants to leave. Is this place not comparable to that small and broken border town? No, that's not the point at all! The point is that if His Royal Highness is gone, who will manage this magnificent city? A storm surged in his heart, to be inherited by the Duke's children? Think about it and know that this is impossible, waiting for them to reconvene the army to avenge their father? Apart from the Ryan family, the five great families, or other noble families
"That's right," Roland nodded, "I will take the ransom and return to Border Town."
A thought suddenly popped up in his heart, and once this thought appeared, it could no longer be suppressed.
"Your Highness," Pei Luo swallowed his saliva and asked in a low voice, "Excuse me... Does the redemption of Longsong Fortress also have a value?" It's my biggest motivation. Please come.)