Mobilization

Magnus Valorion looked at the disappointed faces of the people around him and felt a heavy burden in his heart. Their steps were slow, seemingly ready to leave. At this moment, Magnus took a deep breath and, seizing the opportunity, shouted loudly, "Dear villagers, the court is currently controlled by treacherous villains, and the Emperor is enamored with a wicked concubine, ignoring the people's suffering, which has plunged you into this dire situation."

He paused for a moment, observing the somewhat responsive faces of the people, and continued, "Your suffering breaks the hearts of those who hear about it and brings tears to the eyes of those who see it. Though I, Magnus Valorion, am powerless, I have some savings at home and am willing to share this burden with you, to overcome these difficulties together."

"Tonight, a large batch of grain I purchased will be delivered here, and relief food will start being distributed tomorrow at noon." Hearing this, the people, who were initially about to leave, gathered around again, a glimmer of hope in their eyes.

Magnus continued, "But to receive relief food, you must contribute. The town's walls are now in ruins and cannot withstand any enemy attacks. Starting tomorrow morning, we will begin repairing the town's defenses from the south. Regardless of age or gender, anyone who participates in the repairs will receive relief porridge."

The townspeople had no objection to repairing the walls; they even supported it but were skeptical about Magnus's ability to provide food on time.

"Neil Thompson," Magnus turned and ordered, "send people to take a census of the town's population, categorize them by age and gender, and particularly identify those who are literate or have skills." With that, he walked with Galen Veritas towards the dilapidated town hall.

Neil quickly assigned two people to count the population and then followed Magnus into the hall.

Neil was doubtful, thinking that although Magnus had wealth, it was unlikely he could support the entire town for long, even if he sold all his assets.

"Neil, where is the granary?" Magnus asked directly.

Neil was startled and quickly replied, "My lord, are you planning to use the granary's stock to aid the people? The grain was looted by the Altai Tribe half a year ago."

Magnus shook his head and said, "I have arranged for some grain to be delivered tonight. We need a suitable place to store it."

Hearing that grain was coming, Neil immediately led the way. Soon, they arrived at the granary. It was empty but thankfully undamaged.

"Neil, find some locks and secure the granary. Give the keys to Galen. The people delivering the grain will contact him later," Magnus instructed.

Galen smiled at Neil and said, "We will be working together to support Magnus. Please take care of us."

Understanding that Galen was Magnus's trusted aide, Neil responded politely, "Please take care of me as well."

Although the Altai Tribe had looted everything, finding a few locks was still possible. When Neil brought the locks, he asked Galen, "When will the grain arrive? Do you need people to help unload it?"

Galen shook his head, took the locks, secured the granary, and mysteriously said, "No need for help with the grain. Just have some large cauldrons set up in the south gate area by noon tomorrow, boil water, and have people ready to help me unload the grain."

Seeing Galen's firm attitude, Neil reluctantly agreed, though he was still doubtful. Whether Magnus's arrangements could be fulfilled remained uncertain, making the night restless.

Galen refused to specify when the grain would arrive, and Neil dared not press further. After all, this grain, not yet delivered, was something Magnus had risked everything to secure for the people.

Neil then took Magnus on a tour of the devastated Green River Town. After a full afternoon of inspection, Magnus had a preliminary understanding of the town.

Initially, Magnus planned to rally the poor to seize the wealth from the rich, but after walking around, he realized there were no wealthy people left. Those with any means had fled the war-torn town, leaving only the impoverished who had no way to escape.

By evening, the men Neil had sent to take the census returned to the hall. They reported their findings to Magnus, who then understood why the system provided him with unlimited rice and pickles.

The town now had only about 1,800 people, a third of whom were the elderly, women, and children, another third were disabled, and the remaining third were able-bodied workers. There were over twenty blacksmiths, carpenters, and stonemasons, but only seven literate people among the 1,800.

If not for the system, coming to Green River Town as its Mayor would have been a nightmare start for Magnus. Modern society values talent, but in this ancient period, the scarcity of both talent and population was stark.

The next morning, Magnus, Galen, and five town patrolmen with tools arrived at the south gate. Magnus had expected more people to join the wall repair efforts, concerned for their safety.

However, upon arrival, he saw that most men were disabled under Noah's leadership, and only about twenty able-bodied people had come.

Seeing this, Magnus was angered and scolded, "Damn it, these ungrateful people! Reinforcing the walls is for their safety. When the Altai Tribe attacks again, do they think only I will be killed and not them?"

Neil, seeing the Mayor's anger, quickly consoled him, "My lord, please calm down. It's currently the busy farming season..."

Farming? Magnus had seen the fields yesterday, and the wheat, resembling wild grass, hadn't even sprouted. He couldn't understand what these people could be busy with.

The military disaster six months ago had robbed most of the people's grain, and only hidden supplies allowed them to barely survive this famine. Starvation had left them too weak to work.

To them, repairing the walls seemed like forced labor. Not having seen the Mayor's grain, they preferred to conserve their strength rather than gamble on repairs.

Realizing this, Magnus regretted not distributing food the previous night and suggesting wall repairs while everyone was fed.

"I'm still too young, lacking experience! And to think I'm a university student from the modern world!" Magnus berated himself internally.

"My lord, what should we do now?" Neil's question interrupted Magnus's thoughts.