Chapter 85: Miners Marching in Line

During the meeting, someone brought up Gwynnis Wentaling from the Targas Territory. Several nobles eager to impress Lockwood mentioned that the young Wentaling had recently opened an iron mine in his territory. Taking advantage of the current chaotic situation, he borrowed grain from others and managed to get around six thousand people to work in his mine.

This revelation left Lockwood astonished. "Why didn't you inform me of such a significant matter earlier?" he quickly inquired for more details. However, the nobles involved in this matter remained calm, asserting that they had carefully analyzed the situation. They were confident that Gwynnis couldn't manipulate the situation with his limited resources. They shared the entire thought process with Lockwood, observing his expressions with a somewhat arrogant demeanor.

After this thorough analysis, Lockwood could only temporarily believe that Gwynnis was genuinely mining to capitalize on the impending war. In response, Lockwood gave his assessment, "The lad who hasn't even grown a beard yet has some ambition. Though starting a mine in haste at this point is a bit late, if he manages to catch the tail end of the Eastern conflict, he might still make some money. This guy is not to be underestimated."

Subsequently, the participants discussed some related details and adjourned the meeting. The next day, under Lockwood's management, the gates of the Handi River Castle swung open, and a large convoy of grain transportation teams set out. They would deliver this batch of provisions to the various noble families present at the meeting. While each noble might only receive a relatively small portion—perhaps only two or three dozen tons—the immediate crisis could be alleviated.

For some nobles who had already sent a portion of their subjects to Gwynnis, this additional grain would make managing the remaining subjects in their territories even more comfortable.

Indeed, when sending people to Gwynnis, the nobles had carefully chosen whom to send and whom to keep. For specific subjects whose contracted fields suffered severe damage or even complete crop failure, they could be temporarily sent away and accommodated with Gwynnis. Meanwhile, those whose wheat fields suffered only minor damage and could still hope for a successful autumn harvest had to stay behind. Whether surviving on grass roots or bark, they needed to remain and tend to the fields, enduring until the autumn harvest for success.

Now, with the additional grain provided by Lockwood, the lives of those who stayed behind would undoubtedly become more manageable. Despite everything progressing positively at the moment, a dark cloud still loomed over the heads of the nobles—a looming issue regarding this year's tax collection.

It was essential to note that Count Osborn of the Handi River Valley had issued a strict order: regardless of the harvest results, every noble had to pay their taxes. For local nobles, taxes were usually determined by a lump-sum system. The Count would set a reasonable tax amount based on the actual situation of each territory. Each year, the nobles would pay this predetermined amount to the Count. If the harvest was good, the Count wouldn't demand more. However, even in the case of a poor harvest or complete crop failure, the Count wouldn't reduce the tax by a single copper coin.

Now, for the various noble families, even if they managed to overcome the immediate food crisis, the issue of this year's taxes remained a significant problem.

Now that it's an established fact that the harvests in various territories are poor or even failed, demanding money from the subjects is impossible. In other words, these nobles from the western region will have to bear the burden of this year's taxes on their own. They need to come up with the amount due to the Count themselves.

Some wealthier nobles might have some savings, but what about those who are destitute, perhaps even drowning in debt? What can they do?

...

While other nobles were still worrying about this year's taxes, Gwynnis's mining operation was already flourishing. After half a month of adaptation, the workers had become proficient in collecting ore and using soil furnaces to reduce it into sponge iron. On the blacksmith side, with prior preparation and the establishment of workshops, the production of weapons and tools gradually fell into a routine.

Fast forward to July.

In the Targas Territory, within the forest, under Gwynnis's arrangement, the original subjects continued their agricultural production, and the slave craftsmen from Wendemir were responsible for the production of iron tools. As for ore collection, thanks to the open-air ore vein that Gwynnis acquired with governance points, these iron ores were exceptionally easy to extract. Some could even be picked up directly from the surface without using shovels. The ores varied in size, but the iron content was roughly the same. The larger pieces were left for later processing by the men, while the women handled the smaller ores.

Yes, the women were the ones picking up iron ores. And what about the men? They were in training.

...

Gwynnis stood on a raised platform, observing as the newly conscripted subjects assembled and listened to Jervis's instructions. After two weeks of adaptation, these subjects from all directions could now execute simple commands like forming lines and marching.

Under Gwynnis's arrangement, out of the six thousand newly recruited people, two thousand were children and the elderly, not suitable for heavy labor. They were assigned to do simple light-duty tasks. Women could perform jobs that didn't require excessive strength, and at present, they were handling the ore collection at the mining site. As for the remaining two thousand adult men, Gwynnis had brought them all here for military training.

Initially, conscripting and training two thousand men of this scale caused Gwynnis some trouble. However, with his gained experience and the collaboration of individuals like Jervis and Sadies, they quickly overcame the initial chaos. It was the same old routine—physical training, discipline, and combat training.

Sometimes, Gwynnis would bring the subjects from the territory to train them hands-on, passing down the knowledge from experienced soldiers to the new recruits. Five hundred experienced soldiers instructed two thousand fresh recruits—a not too burdensome task, and the results were promising.

After two weeks of training, these two thousand men received the newly produced spears. Gwynnis smiled as he watched them proficiently marching forward with their spears.

Meanwhile, Rosalin, standing nearby, was puzzled. "Why help others train an army? And why train them so well? What if they come to attack us later?"

Gwynnis gave her a wry smile. "You don't seriously think I brought people here just to open a mine, do you? A mining operation of this scale with such high production capacity— who in the vicinity can consume it all?"

"From the moment I negotiated with those dear neighbors, I had no intention of returning these six thousand people to them. Why do you think I had them sent over with their families? Six thousand able-bodied men are more useful, don't you think?"

"But what if you don't return them, and they come to trouble us?"

"Well, give me another month. By the time I finish training them, and the grain outside the castle is harvested, I'll have people, food, and weapons. Who's going to bother whom isn't certain yet."

Upon hearing this, Rosalin widened her eyes. "But you signed a contract!"

"Yes, I promise not to appear on the scene. At that time, I should be busy supervising the subjects harvesting wheat. Very busy indeed."