Chapter 13: The Rediscovered Ledger

Beneath the Lancaster City Hall lay a dim dungeon. It was dark and filled with damp, decaying air, mingled with the unmistakable stench of death, making the atmosphere reach its peak of gloom.

Leading the way was Rog, holding a torch. At the rear, Jehoum's face was full of vigilance, his right hand resting on the hilt of his sword. John's reaction was the most straightforward—he pinched his nose, his face filled with disgust.

"Here we are," Rog said.

Approaching a cell door, Rog took out a key and, after a clinking sound, managed to open it.

Once the door was open, Rog dragged out a person from inside. At first glance, John thought the person was dead. But his chest was still rising and falling, proving that he was at least alive.

"This guy assaulted Sheriff Edward," Rog kicked him. "Edward had a habit of carrying the Lancaster County ledger with him. It was because of him and his accomplice's attack that Edward couldn't produce the complete ledger."

John scratched his head, surprised by the story behind it all.

Curious, John asked, "I have a question. Why did he attack Edward?"

Rog chuckled. "That's where Edward's past deeds come into play. He pursued a beauty from our county named Margaret. But later, Margaret married another man and had several children, which drove Edward to despair."

How is this related to a love story?

Seeing John's curious gaze, Rog continued, "Later, Edward found an opportunity and killed the man, forcing Margaret to become his wife. Not long after, Margaret hanged herself—truly a pitiful woman."

According to Catholic beliefs, people who commit suicide go to hell, a terrible thing.

It's hard to imagine how painful Margaret must have been to choose suicide.

"And then there's this guy, Jacques. After his father died, Brother Guy of the monastery adopted him, but he managed to escape from the monastery and attacked Edward."

When he said these words, Jacques, curled up on the ground, raised his head and stared at John.

"So it's you," John crouched down. "Because of you, I couldn't get my hands on the ledger here."

John didn't expect there to be such a tragic story behind it all. But regardless of how tragic the story is, the problem remains to be resolved. Finding out the situation in Lancaster quickly is John's top priority.

Just as John was pondering, Jacques suddenly spoke up.

"I know... where the ledger is," Jacques' voice was hoarse, "Let me out, and I'll take you there."

Hm?

What kind of plot twist is this?

John and Rog looked at each other, neither knowing if Jacques' words were true or false. So, John turned to Jehoum. Ultimately, this loyal and honest old knight was the best choice.

"Jehoum," John ordered, "Take this man and bring back the ledger."

Jehoum nodded decisively, then took Jacques out of the dungeon. Meanwhile, John and Rog returned to the surface. After all, the smell of death in the dungeon was too much for John to bear.

"I have a question. How long ago did the attack on the sheriff happen?" John remembered the Edmund he had met before, and now he was a little worried that he might be getting caught up in another conspiracy.

Rog recalled, "It was about twenty days ago. Sheriff Edward had just returned from Preston Abbey and was on his way to Lancaster when he encountered Jacques. He attacked Edward, escaped, and then we caught him."

Listening to Rog's account, John pondered slowly.

"Jacques was usually good-tempered at the abbey, a decent guy," Rog didn't notice John's expression, "I don't know what happened to him to make such a mess. If it weren't for Brother Guy's protection, Edward would have killed him."

Based on the information now known, this incident didn't seem to involve any conspiracy.

Therefore, John chose to return home and rest in the castle.

After resting in the castle for a while, Jehoum brought Jacques into the castle.

"Milord," Jehoum took out a tattered book from his chest, covered in mud and water stains. John took it from Jehoum's hands and examined the book.

Jacques kept his head down, silent, as if awaiting his fate.

John didn't even look at him, but opened the book.

It has to be said that the bureaucracy of medieval England was considered top-notch in the entire Western Europe.

Opening the ledger, there was a scent of fresh grass mingled with the distinct aroma of parchment. The ornate Carolingian script detailed the local land conditions, the number of knights, their service status, and last year's tax reports.

As John perused this information, he felt a deep satisfaction in satisfying his curiosity. There were approximately 5,000 knights scattered throughout England, along with a substantial number of self-sufficient farmers who owned their land and occasionally served. 

One-eighth of Lancaster's land belonged to the English king, but the revenue and authority over these lands now belonged to John. Additionally, taxes of various kinds were collected from vassals and now also belonged to John. It's worth noting that England's tax system was relatively advanced in Western Europe at the time. Henry II divided the task of taxation into two parts: royal lands' taxation was managed by royal tax collectors, while taxation of vassals was handed over to "sheriffs."

The vassals, known as "sheriffs," were even fewer in number than the knights, totaling just over a thousand in all of England. According to the records in this ledger, Lancaster County had a total of thirty-two sheriffs and one hundred and sixteen knights.

It was strange that, according to the ratio of sheriffs to knights, either there were too many sheriffs or too few knights. But the number of sheriffs wouldn't decrease.

So it must be the knights that were decreasing. In the medieval era, knights weren't always fixed. In this era, as long as you had enough land, you could become a knight. Of course, once you became a knight, you had to assume corresponding military obligations. Yes, once you had money, you had to go to war. The simple-minded medieval people believed that those who could bear military obligations were the cream of the crop.

However, some of the real cream of the crop were sometimes not interested in fighting at all. Many among them refused to serve, seeking ways to avoid military service, leading to the emergence of the "shield tax." 

The shield tax, just as its name suggested, arose from war. All knights who didn't want to go to the battlefield could pay one pound to be exempted from military service.

As a county that wasn't so wealthy, Lancaster County's annual income was probably only around £1200, which couldn't compare with the wealthier regions in the central and southern parts of England.

But John also controlled tax revenues from Gloucester, so he actually had an income of about £2500 a year. Looking at it this way, John was simply the most powerful landlord in all of England, second only to the king.

According to the records, Lancaster County's tax revenues would be sent to London after Christmas. In other words, this money now belonged to John.

Life was good.