Chapter 85: Chapter 76: Burgeoning Vitality, Flourishing Development
Henry suddenly looked up and said, "Don’t forget to look around. My fief is quite large now. What if we find an iron mine?"
"My lord, tomorrow I will send people out to find qualified scholars to survey the territory for any mineral resources."
Tommy had always had this idea, but he was just a Housekeeper, and his master Henry was always out fighting wars, which would last for months at a time.
So there were some things he thought of, but couldn’t act on.
"Alright, if there’s anything else, we can discuss it tomorrow."
The two bowed and left. As night fell, Henry’s castle was brightly lit by candlelight, and the burning fireplace filled the cold stone fortress with a cozy warmth.
A patterned tablecloth was spread across the long table.
The first course was a rich, hot soup. Floating in the broth were vegetables stored in the warehouse cellar and tender slices of meat, steaming and giving off an enticing aroma.
Henry blew on it gently, then took a small sip. The savory flavor and warmth of the soup made him feel happy.
’A person really has to eat well. Otherwise, you don’t even feel like you’re alive.’
Immediately after, the maids brought out the main course: roasted black pork, golden-brown with crispy skin and tender, juicy meat inside. According to the maids, the ingredient came from the Forest Hunting Ground.
Henry lightly cut a piece with his knife and fork and brought it to his mouth. Thanks to the seasoning, the rich aroma of the black pork filled the air, leaving a lingering, unforgettable taste.
Besides the roasted meat, there were also various vegetables on the table, including carrots roasted until soft and a salad tossed with olive oil.
After the hot soup and roasted meat came a steaming stew containing potatoes, chunks of chicken, onions, and carrots, all simmered until perfectly tender.
Henry took a sip of the fruit drink Ailia brought over, and his eyes widened.
The fruit drink was made from fresh-squeezed fruit juice with honey and ice.
After Henry had eaten and drunk his fill, the maids cleared the plates. Henry walked over to a bookshelf, where various books were arranged.
These were the precious treasures he had collected from his academy days, each book a vessel of his memories and knowledge.
He picked up a heavy, leather-bound book. It was an account of travels on the grasslands, one he had never read.
Henry sat back down in his chair. Soft light fell upon the pages as he began to leaf through the travelogue, immersing himself in the world of words.
As time passed, Henry began to feel a little drowsy. He gently closed the book, stood up, and stretched his body.
The fire in the study’s fireplace flickered, making a crackling sound that added a touch of warmth to the quiet night.
Henry left the study and returned to his bedroom.
The bedroom was lavishly decorated. Exquisite tapestries hung on the walls, and the bed was covered with soft velvet bedding.
He took off his outer clothes, changed into a luxurious silk nightgown, and slid into the bedsheets that Ailia had warmed for him beforehand.
Henry closed his eyes, letting the day’s fatigue and thoughts fade away with the sound of his steady breathing.
「The next day.」
Henry officially began to direct the infrastructure plan.
To develop the fief’s economy, building roads was the first step.
Roads were not just the links connecting the various villages, farms, and the castle; they were also essential for promoting trade with caravans. Good road conditions would not only speed up the army’s movements within the territory but also prevent merchant caravans from taking one look at the narrow dirt tracks and turning right back around.
Therefore, the fiefdom had to build a main road that traversed the entire territory.
Henry summoned the fief’s only three Engineers and architects to plan the road’s route with them.
Terrain, water sources, and the distribution of various settlements were all factors that needed to be considered.
After two days of gesturing and sketching, the group finally settled on a route that would both minimize construction costs and maximize convenience for residents’ travel and goods transport.
Next, Henry issued a mobilization order, calling on the fief’s residents to participate in the road construction. There would be no wages, but everyone would be fed until they were full.
Some self-employed farmers and tenant farmers responded enthusiastically. They put down their farm tools, picked up shovels and hammers, and joined the road construction crews.
Henry also specially assigned some exiled nobles with construction experience... ah, no, that’s not right, he assigned Record Keepers to supervise the project’s progress and ensure the quality and efficiency of the road construction.
The serfs were the main workforce for building the main road. Unprecedentedly, Henry let them have some meat scraps and hot soup every two days—an act that was practically "squandering the family fortune."
During construction, drainage ditches were also dug along both sides of the road to prevent water from pooling and affecting its use during the rainy season.
In addition to this, Henry also ordered the establishment of several hundred public latrines in all the settlements of the fief, including near the villages, farms, and the castle.
The fief’s population was already approaching ten thousand, most of whom were serfs. If sanitation problems weren’t managed proactively, an outbreak of disease would be a regret that came too late.
’Most importantly, it’s disgusting!’
The cleaning staff for each latrine would be provided by the nearby settlement and would perform regular maintenance, composting the waste as a side benefit.
Next, Henry had Claude issue a new decree that explicitly prohibited public urination and defecation.
To strengthen the enforcement of this decree, he specially assigned a few Record Keepers and some well-behaved serfs to oversee the matter.
Henry established harsh punishments for those who violated the rule. Anyone found relieving themselves in public would receive a financial penalty corresponding to their status and the circumstances.
If they were Free People or self-employed farmers, they would be fined a certain amount of money.
If they were a serf, their food ration for the next meal would be reduced, so as to reinforce their understanding of the importance of public sanitation.
’Urinating when you really can’t hold it is understandable, but defecating is absolutely forbidden!’
With the construction of public latrines and the management of public defecation, the fief’s sanitation improved significantly.
While the infrastructure plan was progressing steadily, Tommy hadn’t forgotten to find people to search for mineral resources. A team of experts hired from the Odoche Empire’s office began to search everywhere within the fief.
If they could find mineral resources, Henry’s fiefdom would be able to reduce its expenditures considerably. It could even sell ore externally, bringing additional wealth to the fief.
Right now, the Hunters of the Forest Hunting Ground provided the fief with timber, furs, and meat; the pastures provided a steady supply of beast milk; and some serfs were drafted from each settlement to expand and repair the roads.
This scene of vibrant life and burgeoning growth unfolded right before Henry’s eyes.
With just a few days left until the New Year festival, good news came from the prospecting team.
In a small hill in the southern part of the fief, they had found traces of a silver mine! ’Everyone else digs for iron to sell for money, but I get to dig for money directly!’
Although the initial survey showed that the vein wasn’t very large, it was more than enough to make Henry happy.
’Who could refuse the chance to sit on a mountain of gold and make money? Even if it’s a silver mine, it’s still a mountain of silver! And a small mine is a small mountain of silver!’
He immediately left the barracks, no longer watching the five Knights practice with their Riding Spears. He summoned the prospecting experts and began planning how to develop the silver mine.
