High Above

Shen Xueyue (December) is approaching.

In the evening, the crimson sunset penetrated the thin evening clouds and cast the sunset over the city.

If Ian was not in Nanling, but in the Imperial Capital or somewhere else, he would be able to see heavy snow falling and silver-white ice crystals covering the ground.

Even in Nanling, the weather has turned cold, and the ground in the square will be covered with a thin layer of frost.

Ian stood on the top of the repaired lord's mansion, sitting on the shoulders of the Cyclops, overlooking his territory.

The brand new Lord's Mansion Castle has a metallic texture throughout. It is a fortress made of galvanized steel. It is essentially the same as a steel fortress, and it looks solemn and majestic.

One month after the end of the war with the rebellious mountain people, Xia Hui City has fully returned to normal operations. This alchemy material center on the west side of the Agate Stone Plain has taken over the empire's 19th Legion under the guidance of Ian. Several pharmaceutical orders were placed, and the previously deserted forest road was now gradually filled with the lively ringing of caravans.

Because the lineage of Baron Ryan was completely banned and Ian's letter of appointment had been delivered, the place was restored to its original name of 'Xiahui Land' under the young man's wishes, which is also 'Xiahui Territory'.

The reason why it is not called 'Ian Ling' or 'Alchomont Ling' is mainly because Ian feels that this place is too small and there is no need to put his name on it. Moreover, if it is called Xia Hui Ling, it will not be suitable for part of the mountain. It has a soothing effect on the people.

In fact, because of the titles of 'Messenger of the Dragon God' and 'Prophet of Thunder', some mountain people have tried to come to see Ian. They live on the wasteland on the edge of Victory Square in the west of the city. These people bring their own He took the tent and seemed to plan to stay there for a while.

Ian has a welcoming attitude towards these people. Whether these people are war refugees, ready to live in Ian, or they really think they are messengers of the Dragon God, they can become the labor force of the territory.

However, only the paperwork has arrived.

The official investiture ceremony had to be sent from the imperial capital, and they are still on the way.

Theoretically, the awarding documents should have arrived together with the host, but the situation in Xiahui was special, and the Marquis of Barton requested that special things be done, so there was a situation where Ian first received the certificate and then made up for the vote.

The Xiahui Territory is roughly divided into four parts. The west part of the city faced the mountain passes in response to the attack from the mountain people, so most of the military camps and defense facilities are located here. There are also many wastelands on the edge, which were reserved by Ian. area for future expansion.

The north of the city is where the city hall and the lord's castle are located, as well as the lord's private estate. Many alchemy workshops that process Xiahui grass are located here. It is considered the richest area in Xiahui City.

The city's operations have returned to normal, food prices have stabilized, and production has resumed. Farmers have also begun to rearrange their fields and are planting some turnips and beetroots in an effort to have more food before next spring.

Under Ian's command, everything was in perfect order.

However, there have been some funny things happening in the fields.

Based on the experience on Earth, Ian planned to carry out a land reform after counting the population and cultivated land.

No matter how the people below objected, he wanted to take over all the fields where Xiahui grass could be grown for himself, so that he could arrange for the next development.

For this reason, he even planned to go to Isengard to borrow some money, lest the lord's palace would not be able to get the money when it took back the land.

Isengard generously lent five thousand talers as the first loan, which gave Ian the confidence to summon all the planters and tell them his plan - but he found that when he told the various measures for land reform, , the expressions of these farmers did not change at all, and everyone was indifferent.

After Ian finished speaking, the planters finally understood what the lord meant. They looked at each other. The oldest old farmer stepped forward and looked at the young farmer with some hesitation. The Lord Lord bowed.

"Sir, maybe you haven't farmed before, right?"

The old man carefully considered the words and said slowly: "So... you may not know?"

"The land led by Lian...er, I mean, the land led by Xia Hui...were all yours originally?"

"We just got a little bit of your attention, and this gave us the opportunity to help you cultivate your property... Well, I mean... you don't need to take the land back from us... it is yours to begin with. ?”

The old farmer's cautious words still stimulated Ian's young mind.

"What the hell? All the land in the territory belongs to the lord?"

Because he was indeed too young and did not pay attention to the rules and regulations in this area, Ian discovered after consulting many classics that this was the case.

Terra's land system was not advanced, but an extreme primitive dictatorship - the lord had 100% power over everything in his territory.

In other words, all the land belonged to the lord.

If Ian wants to use it, others must obey it unconditionally.

However, by the same token, lords are responsible for the safety of the lives and land of everyone in their territory.

For example, if a monster or invader comes, the people in the territory can theoretically not resist at all. The only thing they may need to do is to go to the lord to expel the monster and the invader.

If the invader defeats the lord and becomes the new lord, the original lord cannot blame his subjects for this.

Because no matter how much the people resist, it is useless - as long as the enemy's Ascended leader is eliminated, even half-barbarians like the mountain people will not engage in guerrilla warfare and street fighting to resist to the end, because once the enemy is angered, the Ascended will be Really dig all the 'enemies' physically to find them and destroy them.

Moreover, only such a system can give lords the motivation to protect 'their' things.

This is a weird custom that can only be found in the world of the Ascended.

“There’s no need for land reform at all!”

The land policy that Ian wants to preside over is actually very simple, that is, to open up scattered fields, reclaim wasteland, connect as much land as possible suitable for planting in Xiahui Territory, and then allocate cultivated land according to the actual needs of each village, town and population. Ensure that all those in need can have land and farm nearby.

However, the ownership of the land reverted to the Lord's House.

Private sales of land are prohibited, and the use of land must be subject to the arrangements of the lord's mansion.

But originally everything was like this - the farmer's land originally only had the right to use it, and everything belonged to the lord in name.

One side is primitive feudal dictatorship, and the other side is advanced planning.

But the world is originally spiraling forward, and the primitive will occasionally become advanced. After confirming this, Ian couldn't help complaining: "I have already borrowed five thousand thalers from Ethan! Is it possible to give it back?"

Of course I won't pay it back.

I borrowed it based on my ability, why should I pay it back? The most I can do is not borrow it a second time.

Ian invested the five thousand talers in the development of the territory and invited several professional teams to explore the soil and terrain conditions in the territory. He also explored several mining areas in the Baisen Mountains and purchased a batch of alchemy furnaces. The advanced mining equipment activated in preparation for mining development.

The exploration team is still exploring, but the news reported is already very exciting: the three mining areas are rich in ores, including iron, copper and tin. The most exciting thing is that the exploration team discovered 'grained iron' from the Xiakou mining area. ', this is a mineral with a natural part of the source structure. There are layers of extremely regular lines on the ore. Common heavy iron, red steel and fluorescent copper are all refined and processed by the grained iron and its associated minerals. become.

The appearance of grained iron means that there is a rarer sublimated metal vein inside the Xiakou mining area.

Although Ian is happy, it is not particularly strange. After all, with the conditions of Xiahui Ling, it is not unusual for a mithril mine to appear.

Everything is stable and improving.

December 1, 773 Terra.

Xiahui’s first tax officer/civil service examination has begun.

Moda steward.

"Dad, do you feel better?"

A young voice sounded in the room where the lights were not turned on and the windows were closed. He was answered by the vague grunt of an old man.

Moda, the former steward of Baron Ryan, sat up from the bed in a daze. When he opened his eyes, he found that his last son, Roland, was holding a cup of medicine and looking at him with concern.

He silently picked up the medicine and drank it in one gulp. The old man, who was a little more energetic because of the bitter taste, took a breath, and then said: "Don't look at me like this... Didn't I give you permission to take the exam yesterday?"

"Isn't this because I'm worried about you?"

The young man touched his head and replied energetically: "And you did not take medicine in the morning. This is not okay."

The old man glanced at the other party.

Manager Moda has never liked his little son very much.

He is a rebellious guy. As the last boy in his family, he has longed for life in a big city since he was a child because he could not inherit the position of manager.

When Roland just came of age, he stole a sum of money from his family and went to Nauman City. By the time Steward Moda led his men to chase him to Nauman City, this guy had already sneaked into the caravan and left the Golden Plains.

No matter how hard he chased him, he couldn't catch him. When the angry steward Moda returned home, he swore that he would never have this son again, so that he wouldn't feel bad if he died.

But five years later, when his smiling son returned home with a diploma as a mechanical alchemist, the old man was still ecstatic at first.

Then he hung Roland up and whipped him severely.

Moda took charge not because of Roland's rebellion, but because Roland was always too adventurous.

For example, when Steward Moda wanted to move his family to Nauman City, Roland did the opposite and insisted on staying in Xiahui Territory to work for the new lord.

"Dad, you have served the old lord all your life, so what's wrong with me trying to see if I can become the new lord's tax collector?"

These are Roland's exact words: "And I think that with my knowledge in mechanical engineering and inscriptions, I can play a big role under this new lord, and my achievements may be even higher than yours, dad!"

Thinking of this, Manager Moda couldn't help but look even worse.

——This stupid kid doesn’t understand at all that his family is the steward family of the previous lord.

One lord and one official. Look at the presidents of the chamber of commerce, captains of the guards and other managers in the old Leian territory. Which one has not been expelled? Xilin’s head was directly burned!

That is, Amber, the madman who was not loyal at all and spent all day in the laboratory, was retained.

But even so, the new lord still parachuted a new alchemy steward as the leader. The young man was almost his grandson, but Amber treated him with respect and discipleship all day long.

Even though he was so humble, he was kicked out of the laboratory and could only go to the alchemy workshop for eight hours a day.

In this case, what craftsman would respect Amber?

How can he be in charge of all the major and minor matters of the alchemy workshop?

Although Steward Moda has known Ian for a long time and knows that he is a warm-hearted and good knight, there is a huge difference between a good knight and a good lord.

In particular, suppressing former lord officials is what a good lord should do.

"You are not afraid of death, and you are very confident. You don't think you will be buried at all... Then besides letting you go, what other options do I have?"

After waving his hand, Manager Moda stood up with the help of his child's arms.

"Why should we be afraid of death..."

Supporting his father, Roland muttered. In the past, he studied mechanical alchemy and inscriptions under a scholar in Fallen Star Hills. He did not come back to take care of the old man until the drastic changes in the former Leian leader.

Originally, Roland planned to leave when his father was in better condition and continue his studies in the Imperial Capital.

Unexpectedly, the alchemy genius Ian whom he had heard of in Fallen Star Hills would actually come to his hometown to become the lord!

——Have the light in your heart, God has given you good luck.

If you don't seize this opportunity, will you still be a human being? So he directly signed up to take the tax officer exam without even thinking about it. Whether he had experience or not was another matter.

Anyway, with my own knowledge, even if I can't be a tax collector, I can still go to teach - anyway, make some connections first, and maybe I can get some advice from Ian in the future.

Who knew that his father would get angry about this, and he persuaded him for a long time before he let him go and agreed to take the exam at the city hall.

Moda really has a headache for this overly straightforward young son. Ian is obviously an extremely capable lord. This can be seen from the fact that he directly found out the truth behind the baron's crime in just one day and night when he came to Ryan Territory. It can be seen that his decisive underground killers against the middle class in Leian City and his thunderous methods against the mountain people later represented his superb methods.

When working under this kind of person, the best thing is not to have your own ideas and just follow the other person's orders seriously.

But is it possible that his son's out-of-the-box temperament could satisfy Ian's conditions?

Moda is pessimistic.

But he didn't intend to persuade Roland. The old man could see that Roland would not listen to his opinion at all.

If I don't allow him to use his family identity to take the exam, this kid will use a fake identity to take the exam - then things will be much more troublesome.

not to mention……

I'm dying.

Turning his head, the old man looked at his closed window.

There are no windows in his house, and he has not been out for a long time, because Moda is afraid that when he opens the window and goes out, he will see a completely unfamiliar city.

The old man knew that with the arrival of a new lord, everything would be turned upside down, and the streets and past where his past memories rested would disappear.

Most of all, he was afraid.

I'm afraid that I will start to doubt that all the memories in the past are all hallucinations and false...

He was dying, and Steward Moda knew it.

Taking the potion every day can help him live for a few more months at most.

He died because of his heart, but it was not that his life span had actually reached its end.

——If I had known earlier, I would have listened to the Sister Huaiguang and went to the Holy Mountain with them to recuperate and cure their heart ailments...

But what’s the point of living? I can't distinguish between reality and fiction, and I lose the sustenance of my life's struggle.

Steward Moda doesn't want to look at the new city outside, because he wants to keep all the memories of the past in his mind and die with the memory of the old Ryan Territory... Only in this way can he rest in peace.

but……

But he still wants to know...

After shaking his head, Steward Moda whispered something, but his voice was too low for Roland to hear clearly.

"Father?"

Roland lowered his head, and then heard the old man murmuring: "Just think it's for me."

"Roland, if you must go and meet the new lord."

The young man turned his head and looked into a pair of old and turbid eyes. The owner of the eyes that was almost dead stared at him and said in a weak tone: "Then just take it for my sake to see it."

"Let's see what he will turn this city, this territory... my hometown where I have lived all my life into..."

"Yes, Father."

Hearing this, Roland, who kept a smile on his face and didn't want to worry his father, finally showed a solemn expression.

He nodded seriously and held his father's hand: "I will help you see it."

"Look at...the future of my hometown."