Although there are wells and water intake facilities around the castle, the fire broke out so violently that thick smoke spewed up the corridor, making it difficult for rescuers to even approach the first floor hall.
The First Army quickly withdrew from the castle and sealed off the area. The fire burned for almost two hours, and they could not enter until the afternoon of the next day. At this time, there was nothing left in the dungeon.
Afterwards, on-site cleanup and investigation followed. Officials from the army set up a temporary city hall and began to take over the administrative affairs of Jinsui City.
The fire in the dungeon soon came to an end: a group of rats, out of hatred for Duke Borg, who had turned the prosperous city into a poor fortress, sneaked into the basement of the castle through a secret passage and ignited the piles of straw in the prison.
Therefore, this was an extremely vicious man-made arson case, which not only posed a major threat to the order of the Eastern Territory, but also provoked the First Army of Neverwinter City.
In addition to vigorously publicizing the results of the survey, the First Army and the City Hall also launched a city-wide campaign to eradicate rats. Confession and leniency, resistance to strictness, reward for reporting, distribution of food for disclosure... In addition, the food reserves found in various aristocratic mansions were successively put into the market and relief, and the lifeless city instantly became noisy.
On the night the rat eradication order was issued, Bear's paw once again got into Iron Axe's tent.
"Boss, there are signs of those big families evacuating. Today, more than a dozen carriages passed through the Xicheng Gate, and they were heading for Haifeng County. Some of them had very deep ruts. I think they should be... "
"Gold and silver jewelry," Iron Axe put down the quill in his hand, "but I said at the beginning that as long as there is food, they will let them go with anything else."
The commander-in-chief was not surprised by this occurrence.
When the fire broke out, the trust between the First Army and the traditional aristocracy was completely disintegrated. No matter what they considered, escaping this place was the only way they could think of to survive. Losing the pillars of the family and a few knights is not an unbearable loss for a noble family. The title can be inherited and the knights can be canonized again, but the courage to confront it head-on will no longer be available.
Rather than staying here and waiting to die, it's better to take the family, servants, and wealth to other places. It's important to find new opportunities and fiefs, but the latter is more reluctant than life.
What's more, in order to prepare for this war, Willian Borg concentrated all the resources in the Golden Spike City. Most of the nearby territories were seriously deserted, and it would be difficult to recover in two or three years. Otherwise, they would not have made up their minds so quickly. determination.
"Boss, there's one more thing..." Xiongpaw said half-heartedly, but it was a rare expression for a one-strand adjutant.
"You said," Iron Axe said sternly.
"The fire in the dungeon... did you set it?" Bear Paw hesitated for a while, and finally asked in a low voice.
"Why do you say that?"
"Let's not mention that there is an iron gate in the dark passage. It is difficult to break through with the strength of a few mice. I don't think the team stationed is so slack that no one is arson. In addition, I have also seen it in the dungeon. , the flames did not seem to be drawn from the room, but spread from the aisle to both sides, and judging from the burned wreckage, it should be caused by oil."
After listening, Iron Axe nodded, "You guessed it right, it was my order."
Probably didn't expect him to admit it so readily, and Bear's paw couldn't help being stunned for a while, "...Why?"
"It's okay for me to do this kind of thing, but it's easy to go wrong when you know it."
"I didn't ask that," the adjutant shook his head. "I mean didn't they surrender?"
"I see..." Iron Axe pondered for a moment, "In simple terms, I don't have the time to judge whether they are really willing to surrender, and His Majesty also has no time to judge them. This is why His Majesty Roland will take all the Eastern Front before the army goes to war. The reason why the matter is fully entrusted to me.”
"But… "
"Do you think making such a decision without trial might lead to the death of innocents among them?" Iron Axe interrupted the adjutant, and handed him a booklet on the table, "Look at it. this."
"This is... a demographics book?"
"It was found in the castle study." The commander nodded and said, "Five years ago, Jinsui City and the surrounding area had a population of about 220,000, which can be called the most prosperous area in the East, but this year, This number has plummeted to around 60,000. The cumulative number of refugees we have received from the eastern border is about 30,000 to 40,000. Even if we count 40,000, there is still a shortfall of nearly 120,000. This is based on the fact that the number of refugees does not increase. You should know exactly why this happened."
Bear's paw sucked in a breath, "Those farmlands that were flooded..."
"And this unrecognizable Golden Spike City." Iron Axe stood up and walked to the candlestick with his hands behind his back, "In order to block the road and thicken the city wall, Willian obviously recruited all the nearby territorial residents. Without the permission and assistance of other lords, he would never have been able to do this alone. And the massive concentration of the population made the problems of business interruption and farmland production more serious, and the final consequence was the numbers in the statistical books. In other words, These nobles are all accomplices of the Duke, do you still think that Your Majesty will accept their service?"
"..." Bear's paw was speechless for a moment.
"But what they say they are innocent of is not a lie," continued Iron Axe, "because in their eyes it is nothing at all. Even though the farmland under cultivation has shrunk by more than half, the noble mansions are still full of grain. , and even… people. After all, meat can last longer than wheat when stored properly.”
Bear's paw's pupils shrank suddenly.
"Of course, the most important thing is that they have seriously hindered His Majesty's plan. Population is His Majesty's most favorite resource, but they are spending recklessly. If we don't carry new firearms, what will the war situation look like? Field artillery will be in the mud. The ground is difficult to move, and we can only force a siege of the city, or fight a protracted war. At that point, I don’t think the nobles will surrender until the city’s population is exhausted.” Iron Axe turned around, “You Any other questions?"
After a long time, the bear's paw raised his head and said, "You did the right thing and it's too cheap to burn these guys to death... However, this method of handling is not from His Majesty's intention, right? In case he finds out..."
"What if?" Tie Axe raised his brows, "Do you think I will hide this matter and not report it? No, Your Majesty, he will definitely know that I have written everything that happened in Golden Spike City into the report, no matter what. Whether he agrees with this approach or not, I will be responsible for this matter alone."