Before entering the living room, Price was searched again. This time, the body search was much more meticulous. Every place that could hide a knife or dagger was touched from top to bottom, not even the soles of the shoes.
Then, in the hall, he met the fourth Prince of Graycastle, the lord of Border Town, who defeated the Duke's allied army, and the new head of the Western Territory, Roland Wimbledon.
This prince has long gray hair that symbolizes the blood of the royal family, and his face looks very young, at most in his twenties. He had no hair, nor did he wear any crown. The fingers holding the quill were slender, and likewise, there was not a single jewelry ring or ring on his hand, not even a bracelet, which was very rare among the nobles.
"Prius Dissa, the knight of Earl Elk?" Roland leaned back on the chair and flipped through the list in his hand.
"Yes, Your Highness." Prius knelt down on one knee and said.
He still finds it hard to believe that such a man with no beard on his face can lead a group of miners and hunters to defeat Duke Ryan, who has been entrenched in the West for a long time.
"Are you literate? Reading and writing? Get up and answer."
"I will, Your Highness, this is the most basic requirement of a knight," Prius swayed and stood up, suddenly thinking that when some old knights were canonized, Greycastle hadn't become popular in both civil and military, and added, " I mean, a new batch of knights."
In the past 30 years, fewer and fewer knights have been canonized by force and merit, and other considerations have also increased. If you don't know how to write, write, and official documents, it is difficult to be favored by the lord. And the rise of outstanding young people like Howling Knights of the Royal Capital and Dawn Morning Light of the Western Regions has raised the demands of knights to a new level.
Therefore, after becoming an apprentice knight now, the first thing to learn is to read and write, and if the level is higher, you also need to be proficient in all kinds of etiquette.
But Prius didn't understand, why did His Highness ask himself this question
"Very well," the prince nodded, "then I will pronounce the sentence now."
This sentence made him hold his breath for a moment.
"You have two choices. One is to go to the North Slope Mine for 20 years to pay for your sins, and the other is to become a teacher and teach my subjects how to read and write. Miners are not slaves, and they are also paid. , can take three days off every month. Teachers not only have salary, but also free housing, and can take two days off a week. However, if you choose the latter, you must work until you are fifty years old before you can let go of this position. Rest assured, At that time, even if you quit, the salary will be paid as usual.”
After listening to this, Prius breathed a sigh of relief, and as expected, there was no execution or exile. However, these two options puzzled him. The miners sounded like coolies, but His Highness said that there is still salary and... vacation? As a teacher, isn't it only a person who has learned a lot to do it? He can only read and write. Moreover, what does it mean to teach the territorial people? Could it be that His Highness wanted to train these commoners as nobles
Crucially, neither mentions what to do with their territories.
Prius looked up at the prince and asked cautiously, "Your Highness, I don't know if I choose one of the two, my territory will..."
"From the moment you raised your sword to me, your territory no longer belongs to you," Roland said unceremoniously, "On this point, I have reached an agreement with the heir of the Elk family, he will take you The property in the territory is converted into Golden Dragon to compensate you, and after you make a choice, the new earl will send the compensation and your family to Border Town, so that he can free up a new place to recruit knights.”
Prius's heart sank. There was nothing but a house on his territory, a group of chickens and ducks and fish in the pond. How much compensation could these things be worth? The new earl will definitely cut another knife on it... It's hard to say whether there will be thirty golden dragons by then. As soon as the earl died, his heir abandoned himself like this. This ruthlessness disappointed Prius.
"As an accomplice of a rebel accomplice, this is already a very slight sentence." Roland paused, "Besides, what is there to regret about a bare territory? Whether you choose to go to a mine or become a teacher, you can save money. To the reward for purchasing land in Border Town."
Hearing this sentence, Prius recovered a little bit of energy. He would definitely not consider going to the mine. As for the other option... "Your Highness, do you know what the teacher's salary is?"
"In the case of junior teachers, 20 silver wolves per month, with an increase of 5 per year until the age of 50. The salary after the age of 50 is calculated according to the maximum increase. By the way, this right cannot be inherited, nor Non-transferable."
After a little mental calculation, Prius found that there are nearly 3 golden dragons in income a year, and it can increase year by year. As long as four or five years pass, he can almost catch up with the income of his own territory. "His Royal Highness, what do you mean by junior teachers... Are there other types of teachers?"
"Of course there is. Elementary teachers only teach reading and writing, while intermediate and advanced teachers teach knowledge of various subjects, covering everything. As long as they have a unique skill that is beneficial to the development of Border Town, they can do it." Roland sat up straight. "What, do you have any skills that you are good at? I don't need horseback riding and swordsmanship."
But I'm not good at that, Prius thought. After hesitating for a while, he said, "Your Highness, does raising chickens and ducks count? I'm good at fishing, too." As soon as he said that, he regretted it. What kind of skill is this? , There are many aristocrats who keep cats and birds, and no one has ever raised this stuff. As for fishing... It's just a personal hobby, just like hunting.
Unexpectedly, His Highness became interested in the first half of the sentence, "Oh? How did you raise it, let's hear it."
Prius had to bite the bullet and said: "Uh, according to my experience of raising in the territory, compared to complete stocking, and feeding some grains every day, they can grow faster. If the grains are mixed with a little sand, The same effect can also save food. It is best to set up a shed in a ventilated place, which can shade, protect from rain and cold. Especially in hot summer, if there is no shed, the hens are likely to stop laying eggs. Putting straw in it in winter can help Avoid freezing the chickens to death. In addition, if you feed some small fish every month, the chickens will rarely get sick, and of course, the cleaning of chicken manure is also very important... "
At the end, he found that His Royal Highness actually laughed. "Yes, it seems that the nobles of the Western Region are not useless."
"His Royal Highness?" Prius was momentarily uncertain about the meaning of the other party's words.
Fortunately, Roland Wimbledon quickly relieved his worries, "I will send someone to buy a batch of chickens and ducks from Longsong Fortress, and at the same time I will give you a piece of land west of the border, and you can raise all these poultry. If it is good, then teach the breeding method. The salary is calculated according to the intermediate teachers, starting from 50 silver wolves per month in the first year, and increasing by 10 every year. Of course, if it fails, the Beipo mine is your only choice.” ( .If you like this work, you are welcome to come and vote, your support is my biggest motivation. Please come.)