The Manor Banquet 2

Translator: Cinder Translations

...

"Lord Ferguson? What are you daydreaming about?"

The call from someone opposite him interrupted Ferguson's thoughts. He looked up and saw that it was someone sitting across from him who had spoken.

The style of the Northwest is so rugged, even among the wealthy families.

"Haha, Lord Shank, hearing you talk about last year's war reminded me that none of my men from Grayman served under the Earl. I'm truly ashamed."

"There's no need for that, Lord Ferguson,"

Lord Walter, seated at the head of the table, lifted his wine glass in consolation. "I've heard that, apart from those who are still serving as officers in the military, the Earl of Grayman has not summoned any other knights at home. Currently, Alden has strong and numerous soldiers. Even without war, it maintains thousands of troops and trains them daily. I think even the King's army might not be as impressive. With such soldiers charging into battle, do you really need skilled individuals like yourself? That would be like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut."

At this description, everyone at the banquet laughed. In this era, knights are decisive on the battlefield, but it seems the guests were so immersed in their victory and glory that they didn't consider that the enemy Kent family would almost certainly send their knights into battle.

The person who had just spoken to Ferguson, named Shank, clicked his tongue and said, "Maintaining thousands of soldiers, I really don't know how Earl Grayman manages it. Even with the taxes from Byerldine and Emden, it must be quite a strain!"

Someone next to him said, "With the food supply, one can maintain as many soldiers as one wants. Think about it, not to mention Byerldine and Emden, but just Alden alone—how many new farmlands have been opened since Earl Grayman took over as lord?"

This remark led to a lively discussion among the guests.

"I estimate it must have doubled at least. With the mechanical harvesters, tillers, and threshers bought from the Alden Machinery Factory, who wouldn't want to grow more crops? Praise to Earl Grayman, for he invented these great machines."

"The increase in farmland, and the promotion of crop rotation, has led to a significant increase in yield compared to two years ago."

"There have also been many water conservancy projects in the past two years."

"Iron farming tools have also become cheaper, such as sickles, hoes, forks, and shovels. Especially the iron plow—don't laugh at me, but a few years ago all the farming tools in my place were made of wood. It feels odd, but lately, iron has become very cheap in Alden. The town shops are full of iron tools, and they don't cost much."

Hearing this, Ferguson couldn't help but smile. Nowadays, the manor is almost self-sufficient; these landowners spend their days drinking their own brewed wine, eating food grown on their own land, and wearing clothes woven by their own servants, rarely interacting with the outside world. They only go to the town or city when they need something they can't produce themselves. Their knowledge isn't much more than that of their peasants.

Most in the room probably don't know that Earl Grayman has built several ironworks using new technology. Alden has them, Byerldine has them, and even the recently acquired Emden is actively exploring mines, examining water resources, and preparing to build new ironworks.

Currently, Alden and Byerldine have a near-monopoly on iron supplies in the Northwest Bay. Traditional iron-making methods are no match for the new technology. Many private miners and ironworks have gone bankrupt, and their former workers have moved to Alden or Byerldine for employment. Many lords who also mine have had to raise tariffs or issue bans just to keep Alden's iron out. Why just "keep out" and not "completely block"? Because of smuggling—smuggling is an unstoppable phenomenon in this era.

Lord Walter, the host of the banquet, raised his glass and said admiringly, "In previous years, many people would freeze and starve to death during the winter. This winter, although there are still some deaths, the number has decreased. This is all thanks to Earl Grayman's excellent governance."

Someone proposed, "Let's raise a toast to Earl Grayman!"

"To Earl Grayman!" The crowd agreed and raised their glasses, drinking in one go.

As the guests had already drunk quite a bit, though the wine was not strong, the quantity was significant.

A somewhat inebriated person swayed his glass and said, "Speaking of our current little lord, everything here and there is fine, but there is one thing that's not so good."

Ferguson frowned upon hearing this and said to the person, "Eldo, you're drunk."

The person named Eldo shook his head vigorously and laughed a few times, "Lord Ferguson, I didn't mean to criticize the lord. I support Earl Grayman one hundred percent and wish him a long life. But… people always have a few grievances. Just consider my remarks as drunken nonsense."

Seeing everyone's attention shift to him, he continued, "What I mean is—this salt field owner—what's his name—hic—what's his name, Gedwyn, actually stopped me from taking people, saying that those peasants had signed a contract with him. Damn him!"

"What happened then?"

Eldo sneered, "Of course, I took them back. I went back to the manor, gathered a large group of people, and directly smashed his salt field, rescuing the people. To my surprise, this fool still didn't know what was good for him and actually complained to the town mayor, Theodore."

Ferguson's face darkened as he asked, "How did Mayor Theodore handle it?"

Eldo chuckled, "What could he do? I was in the right after all. It was Gedwyn who indiscriminately hired workers without checking who they were. It's laughable that he still talked about personal freedom in front of the mayor!"

The crowd burst into laughter.

Shank clapped and laughed, "I think Gedwyn must have been fooled by Morrison's preaching team!"

Morrison was the priest Paul encountered while eliminating the pirate Shark Gang in Port Frand. Morrison agreed to help hide Paul's unsavory experience of being forced into the pirate gang and stayed by Paul's side as a chaplain. After Anderson took over as the head of the North Shore Monastery, Paul arranged for Morrison to "assist" him. As Anderson became increasingly absorbed in his research, Morrison ended up handling the monastery's various affairs and gradually was called the head instead.

Previously, at Paul's behest, Morrison organized several preaching teams under the guise of the church to attack the serf system in the countryside. However, the results were…

"That preaching team didn't stay long at my place before they left in defeat! Instead of discussing the sacred texts, they talked about nonsense like equality. The peasants still have farm work to do. Who has the time to listen to their drivel? And besides, they don't understand it anyway!"

"I had the same experience. These people are so ungrateful, spouting heretical nonsense."

Listening to the discussion at the banquet, Lord Walter snorted, "We use our brains to work, while the peasants use their bodies. The rule of using brains to control those who use their bodies has been a truth since ancient times. Even the church, which has been shouting about equality for a thousand years, hasn't changed."

Someone immediately echoed, "Yes, the peasants are as thick as wooden blocks and can't even work properly without control. And the noble lords are so esteemed, how can they manage the messy affairs in the fields themselves? Naturally, we have to manage the peasants on their behalf."

The crowd began to clamour.

"These merchants in Port Frey, taking advantage of the money they've made in recent years, are starting to act high and mighty in front of us."

"I think they've been corrupted by their counterparts over in Horns Bay!"

"A bunch of bloodsuckers!"

...

The topic of conversation at the banquet gradually shifted to criticizing the merchants, and Ferguson shook his head. He had just wanted to quietly enjoy his wine, but it had turned into this.

(End of the Chapter)

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