Chapter 78: Sanggu Problem

Chapter 78: Sanggu Problem

Chapter 78: Sanggu Problem
For the residents of Sanggu Territory, the arrival of the new lord is definitely a big event, and almost everyone who can go out will show up.

Looking around, there were people everywhere.

Ivan made a rough estimate and the number should be more than a thousand. This means that the people of Sanggu Territory did not flee, which was different from what the government said. Looking at the people who dared to talk about expelling the lord, he was thoughtful.

He spurred his horse forward a distance and looked at the sturdy man in the lead: "You are so brave, are you a refugee?"

The sturdy man's face changed slightly, and he shouted: "Everyone knows that I, Zig, grew up in Sanggu Territory. We, the people of the territory, do not need a lord."

"Please tell me one thing. Without a lord, where would the subjects come from?"

Upon hearing this, Sieg was stunned. Then he reacted and raised his unsheathed sword, ready to teach the noble in front of him a lesson. However, the other party waved his hand, and a green vine directly wrapped around him, strangling him and knocking him to the ground, and the sword fell to the side.

"wizard!"

"The Lord is a wizard."

In this land, even the displaced refugees have heard the stories of wizards.

When the people around saw the methods he used, they were immediately shocked and looked at the new lord in awe.

"This is what wizards do."

Behind Ivan, the mercenaries were also amazed and couldn't help but put down their weapons. It seemed that they didn't need to do anything, because this baron could subdue everyone by himself.

Ivan looked around and ordered, "Repeat, I am Ivan Marichatton, the new lord of Sanggu Territory. I don't care whether you are subjects or refugees. Pay homage to the lord of this territory right now, or I will classify you all as refugees."

With the blessing of spiritual power, his voice was clearly transmitted to the surroundings.

People around immediately knelt on the ground, and others followed suit, paying their respects and greetings to the lord. Even Sieg, who had just escaped from the vines, was no exception. He found that there were two people behind him with fighting spirit, and the situation was hopeless.

Among the people behind, Sean whispered to Padget: "Ivan is so impressive."

Paul and Beeman looked at each other and felt that their younger brother had changed a lot after his return this time. He was more decisive and ruthless. It seemed that his experiences in the past two months were not simple.

After the people have submitted, the rest will be easy.

Ivan did not hold the loudest lords responsible, but only asked the surrounding residents if there were any who had served the previous lord. Three guards stood up, one in his forties or fifties, and two in their teens or teens.

He ordered the other residents to return to their homes first, and he asked the guards to take him to the castle of Sanggu.

"Hank, is anyone taking care of the castle?"

Ivan was asking the oldest of the three guards, who looked like an old farmer, and the other two were his sons.

Old Hank smiled bitterly, "Danny, Ronnie and I took turns cleaning."

"Tell me about the situation."

"Originally, Lord Bart emptied the castle when he left, leaving behind even the decorations on the walls. Later, a noble sent people to repair it. Now it is habitable, but it lacks furniture, so it needs to be rebuilt."

After listening to his introduction, Ivan could foresee how empty his castle would be. Fortunately, they brought daily necessities and he could buy the rest later.

In the corner far away from the entrance and the Black Mist Forest, there is a small hill with the castle located on it.

After a while, everyone saw where the castle was.

Like Black Pine Castle, it has cliffs on three sides and a road leading to the territory in front. Due to the limited area on the mountain, this castle is slightly smaller than Black Pine Castle, but it also has all the necessary facilities, including city walls, watchtowers, and parade grounds.

But there were no appliances or furniture, so it looked extremely simple.

Ivan showed calmness while leading everyone around. Red and Paul, father and son, had a strong attachment to the castle. They touched everything as if they were touching some treasure. Everyone came to the highest tower of the castle, which was usually used as the lord's collection room and a place overlooking the Mulberry Valley.

"Brother Ivan, don't you like it?" Paige asked curiously.

"Look at this ravine right behind us. It must be very windy at night. Living here won't be as comfortable as the home in Flying Fish Harbor." Ivan pointed to the crisscrossing ravine between two mountain ranges. This ravine was just behind the small peak, and the wind blowing towards the territory was blocked by the small peak and the castle.

It goes without saying that there is no water on this mountain. We probably have to go down the mountain to fetch water, but there is no river at the foot of the mountain.

"Hank, is there a water shortage in Sangguling?"

"There is a water shortage for three or four months every year. You can get through it by using it sparingly. You don't have to worry about water. There are two pools of water at the foot of the mountain. We sealed them with planks and tree bark to prevent someone from fouling them. We'll dig them out for you later."

"That territory is definitely not rich in food."

"You're absolutely right."

There are springs and ponds in Sanggu Territory. There is a shortage of water and food every year, but it is not too serious. You can always get by by enduring and saving. The territory is close to the Black Mist Forest. There is no shortage of prey in the forest. Families with hunters can live a good life by hunting.

When asked about the people and the territory, Old Hank told the truth.

Five years ago, the leaves in the mulberry forest began to turn yellow. People thought it was a minor accident, but later the leaves of the mulberry trees turned yellow on a large scale and their growth became worse year by year. It became unsuitable for raising silkworms, and the territory's finances became in deficit.

Three years ago, some mulberry trees withered and died. First, a small group of trees died, and then large groups of trees died.

There were rumors in the territory that this was a plague, and some people began to flee the territory.

More than a year ago, the territory's finances were extremely difficult and unsustainable, so Baron Bart suddenly sold the territory and sold Sanggu to the Hobsons.

The Hobson family sent people over one after another, but they were unable to find out the reason for the misfortune of the mulberry tree, so they never sent a lord over. Without a lord, the subjects did not have to pay taxes, and their lives became more comfortable. Many of the subjects who had escaped returned, and a small number of refugees were also attracted to join.

"My Lord, Sieg and his men are not vicious criminals, otherwise they would have been chased away by us long ago. Can you forgive them?" Old Hank's youngest son Ronnie suddenly said, and Old Hank was so scared that he slapped him in the face, and Ronnie immediately had a slap mark on his face.

Seeing the panic-stricken look on the father and son's faces, Ivan didn't care and waved his hand to signal them to go out first.

Sanggu had a lord, and the people in the lord's territory needed to pay taxes, and he, as the lord, also had to pay taxes.

It's different in name, but he needs to pay tribute to the Duke of Xiangmai and prepare a generous gift to the Hobson family, his benefactor, every year. These are the unspoken rules among the nobles, and you must abide by them honestly, otherwise you will be excluded by other nobles.

Nobles without territories do not need these.

As a lord, he also has to ensure that his subjects do not rebel or become refugees in large numbers, otherwise Grand Duke Xiangmai will reprimand and punish them, and in serious cases, deprive them of their lordship.

"The biggest problem right now is the problem of Sanglin. If this problem is not solved, people's hearts will inevitably be unstable, and I, as the lord of Sanggu, will not be safe." Ivan did not think that the problem that the Hobson family had spent more than a year to solve was an easy problem to solve.

We have to go up the mountain to see what's going on.

The pointed tower is the Lord's Hall, which has four and a half floors in total. The top floor is a half-story pointed attic with no windows. Below is a two-story tower. The upper floor with windows is the collection room, while the lower floor has no windows.

Further down is a floor four times the size of the tower, usually used as the lord's bedroom and study.

At the bottom is the lord's hall. On the right side of the hall is a corridor connecting to a two-and-a-half-story round building with a pointed roof.

Ivan came to the Lord's Hall and clapped his hands: "Let's go to Sangling to take a look. This is the biggest problem in the territory. Danny, you and Ronnie go and notify the leaders of the four villages and ask them to come see me."

There are four villages in Sanggu, named after Silkworm, Silk, Valley and Fengchou respectively. The first three villages are next to two Sangling Mountains. Fengchou Village is closer to the Black Mist Forest and the entrance to Sanggu. It also has some functions of a small town and can accommodate merchants and adventurers from afar.

(End of this chapter)