Knight: Becoming King of the World

Chapter 132: Chapter 111: A Tax on This, Too? I Will Make a New Tax Law

Henry’s gaze swept across the council chamber. "We’ve just won a victory, but this is only the beginning. Count John’s reinforcements will arrive soon."

"Yes, my Lord!"

The artisans of Ximira Castle had been rounded up by Claude and were already busy reinforcing the defensive structures on the walls.

Meanwhile, the castle’s storerooms were being reorganized. Food and supplies were properly stored away in case of an emergency.

Outside the castle, Bain led a squad of soldiers to the nearby villages to warn the inhabitants of the impending danger and invite them to take refuge inside the castle.

Upon hearing the news, the villagers immediately expressed their gratitude for Henry’s benevolence. They packed their belongings, gathered their families and livestock, and headed for the castle.

If another noble’s Private Army truly was coming to attack, they would almost certainly be plundered and left with nothing.

Fortunately, they had already completed the autumn harvest, so their hard work over the past half-year wouldn’t be in vain.

As for having a new lord ruling over them? It didn’t matter. It was all the same no matter who came. They’d still pay taxes and provide labor as required. Life would go on.

As streams of villagers entered the castle, hauling their belongings, stored grain, and savings, the prisoners tied up in a corner of the castle all breathed a sigh of relief.

Their families were among the villagers, and they knew all too well what nobles were like... The prisoners exchanged glances. ’Perhaps under Baron Henry,’ they thought, ’we won’t be sold off?’

Henry sat in the castle’s council chamber, awaiting the arrival of the two village chiefs from the vassal villages, who were coming to meet their new ruler.

Only his ministers, Attendants, and family members were permitted to enter his study.

Before long, the two village chiefs entered the council chamber and bowed respectfully to Henry. One was an old man with a face full of wrinkles named Abel, and the other was a slightly younger but equally weathered middle-aged man named Wodar.

"Chief Abel, Chief Wodar, I’d like to understand your previous tax situation. What taxes did the Baron of Ximira Castle levy on you?"

The two men exchanged a look, unsure of Henry’s intentions, but they didn’t dare deceive him and answered honestly.

Abel sighed and began to speak. "My Lord, our lives have been hard. Besides the basic land tax, we also had to pay a harvest tax. This tax was based on our grain yield and took almost half of our harvest."

Wodar continued, "And it gets more absurd, my Lord. We even had to pay a tax just for gathering berries in the woods. They said it was the lord’s land, so naturally, a portion of the berries we gathered had to be given to them... This kind of tax was abolished in other regions long ago."

Henry cracked a smile. ’These two old fellows call me "my Lord" right off the bat.’ But his brow quickly furrowed. He hadn’t expected the Baron of Ximira Castle’s taxes to be so heavy and unreasonable.

’No wonder the tower of Ximira Castle was so lavishly decorated. He was bleeding his people dry!’

"Besides these, were there any other taxes?"

Abel replied with a bitter smile, "There was also a house tax, a livestock tax, and even a birth tax when our children were born. These taxes were crushing us."

For the first time, Henry truly understood what a "bitter smile" looked like. It was the expression of someone so oppressed they’d gone numb, able to only smile while recounting their sorrows.

Wodar added, "The worst part was, sometimes after we’d paid our taxes, the Baron would send men to collect a so-called ’special tax.’ They’d claim it was for castle maintenance or some other pretext, but in reality, we never saw any changes to the castle or our two villages."

Henry nodded. ’The Baron of Ximira Castle did indeed maintain the castle, but only his own residential tower.’

Listening to the two chiefs’ accounts, Henry was inwardly shocked. The Baron of Ximira Castle’s methods of rule had oppressed the villagers and destroyed the prosperity of this land.

"Did you not try to..."

Henry cut himself off before he could finish the question. ’How foolish of me. Even if these people rebelled, their lives wouldn’t get any better. Not unless they escaped, running as far away as possible.’

’Find a remote corner, clear some land, and live in seclusion—and even then, they’d have to watch out for bandits and the like.’

Henry fell silent for a moment, then declared, "I, Baron Henry Bro, ruler of Westwood Laine and Ximira Castle, announce to you that from this day forward, I will abolish these unreasonable taxes.

You will only need to pay the basic land tax and a reasonable harvest tax. All other exorbitant and arbitrary taxes, such as the head tax and the birth tax, are hereby abolished."

Henry found such practices unacceptable. ’The people pay taxes, and the lord protects the people—that is a healthy cycle. A tax on newborns... Heh, how utterly foolish!’

Upon hearing this, the two village chiefs’ eyes welled up with tears of emotion.

Abel said emotionally, "Lord Baron, the people of our village will be eternally grateful to you."

Wodar also hurriedly expressed his gratitude. "Lord Baron, we will engrave your benevolence in our hearts. We will work even harder on our farms to provide you with more food."

The two men handed over their tax ledgers. Henry called for Claude and had him tally and audit the accounts.

Henry sent the two chiefs out to settle the villagers who had come seeking refuge. These people were his subjects, and they would be farming and working for him in the future; they needed to be well-organized.

Claude, along with three Record Keepers, began to study the past account books of the two villages.

They sat in the castle’s council chamber, two thick ledgers and records laid out before them. These books chronicled the tax burden the people of Ximira Castle had borne for many years.

As they turned page after page of the ledgers, Claude’s and the Record Keepers’ brows grew tighter and tighter.

The densely packed entries in the ledgers, each one representing the blood and tears of the villagers. They saw all sorts of taxes, from land and harvest taxes to house and livestock taxes, and even so-called "air taxes" and "water taxes." The creation of these levies was utterly absurd!

"This is outright plunder! This is banditry!" Claude said indignantly, his voice trembling slightly.

A Record Keeper nodded in agreement, his finger sliding gently over the ledger, pointing to a series of entries. "Look here, even newborns were taxed, and the price was steep. How could people afford to have children?"

Henry put down the Knight novel he was reading and looked at the incensed Claude and his men. "The past cannot be changed. They are my subjects now. From now on, the policies here will be the same as in Westwood Laine."

"My Lord is benevolent!" Compared to the vassal villages of Ximira Castle, even the serf farms under Westwood Laine’s jurisdiction seemed like a paradise.

Over the next two days, the castle grew even more crowded. Matters such as waste disposal became the most pressing daily concern for Claude and his men.

Fortunately, the castle was under military control, and Henry’s army was large enough to prevent any foolish troublemakers from stirring things up.

On the walls of Ximira Castle, soldiers patrolled vigilantly.

Bain and Philip were responsible for the castle’s defense and the outer patrols, respectively. Count John’s reinforcements could arrive at any moment, so they couldn’t afford to let their guard down for an instant.

Suddenly, the soldiers spotted two Scouts spurring their horses, racing toward the castle. It seemed they had important intelligence to report.

Upon reaching the castle, they wasted no time, riding directly into the stables. After handing their horses to the grooms, they made straight for the barracks to find Bain.

"Lord Attendant, we’ve found traces of the enemy reinforcements!"

After receiving the news, Bain immediately went to the castle study to inform Henry. On Henry’s command, Bain summoned all the officers for an emergency meeting.

In the council chamber, Bain gave Henry a detailed report on the Scouts’ findings. "My Lord, our Scouts have discovered signs of the enemy army to the west of the castle."

That simple sentence immediately made the atmosphere in the council chamber tense. They had been preparing for this battle for days. ’Is it finally about to begin?’

Henry stood up, his voice filled with unquestionable authority. "Activate the defense plan immediately. All soldiers to their battle stations. Bain, you will command the defense of the walls. Philip, you will command the archers."

Bain and Philip quickly accepted their orders, turned, and strode out of the council chamber to carry out Henry’s commands.

Soon, the bronze alarm bells within the castle rang out. The soldiers sprang into action, hauling more arrows, stones, and other defensive supplies to strategic positions on the walls.

This activity quickly caught the attention of the villagers and prisoners inside the castle.

Some of them may not have understood military matters, but seeing the tense expressions and hurried movements of the soldiers, they knew their new lord’s enemies had appeared—and they were no simple foe.

The villagers exchanged worried glances, while the prisoners secretly wondered if the arrival of this new enemy might bring a change in their fortunes.

On the walls, soldiers checked the ballistae, ensuring the heavy siege weapons were in optimal condition. Archers tested the tension of their bowstrings and adjusted their positions to ensure they could shoot quickly and accurately during the battle.

Meanwhile, Claude was also busy inside the castle. He not only had to ensure the supply of materials but also had to soothe the nerves of the villagers and prisoners to prevent unnecessary panic and chaos before the battle.

The villagers were manageable, but the prisoners were truly bewildered. They huddled in a dim corner, their eyes filled with confusion.

Henry hadn’t taken any extreme measures against them, but he also hadn’t given them any clear arrangements for their future. This state of limbo left them feeling confused and anxious.

"What in the world does the Lord Baron plan to do with us?"

"Who knows? Normally, prisoners of war are either killed, sold off, or forced into labor. But here... it seems different."

"Perhaps Baron Henry has other plans."

However, this uncertainty only made the prisoners more anxious. They didn’t know if freedom or a deeper form of enslavement awaited them.

They could only stare out from the dungeon at the world beyond, listening to the sounds of the soldiers’ tense preparations on the castle walls, their hearts filled with uncertainty about the future.

’Just tell us if we’re to live or die. End the suspense.’