NOVEL NEXT Chapter 132: The First Night as a Lord
The tax officer, Gaspardon, began reporting information about Baron Gene's Domain one item at a time.
Baron Gene's Domain encompasses a baronial castle and town, a horse farm, a grape vineyard, and five natural villages. The Xinong River, flowing from the mountains, divides the baron's domain in two. There are mines in the mountains within the domain and some workshops along the river.
Every year, the baron's domain can provide Baron with an income valued at approximately 700-800 gold crowns, in addition to the vineyard's income and a small amount of income from the mines, totaling about one thousand gold crowns. However, around 300 gold crowns are used to pay various expenses and maintain routine military expenditures. Lord Laine also needs to pay a tithing to the Lake Fairy, but as a Holy Grail Knight, he no longer has to pay the 5% "King's Tax" to the King.
Thus, his actual annual income is about 500-600 gold crowns.
However, besides this, the high-ranking Master Knights are unlikely to just let the poor peasants and townsfolk off the hook. War taxes, transit taxes, various special taxes, business license taxes, and even poll taxes could all be collected based on the Master Knight's mood. The amount from these taxes is not fixed, and some Master Knights even send tax officers to collect "birthday taxes" as poll taxes from all the peasants on their birthdays.
In other words, if he disregards the cost and consequences, he could forcibly achieve a net annual income of one thousand gold crowns.
When Duke of Winford issues a call to arms, Laine must dispatch at least two knights, five cavalrymen, and fifty infantrymen, or pay a conscription exemption tax equivalent to the recruitment cost of these troops.
What he didn't know was that the performance of this Holy Grail Knight surprised Gaspardon immensely.
The Knight Lords of Brittania generally share a common trait: they dislike focusing on these cumbersome matters and are not sensitive to those chaotic numbers. Hence, the Master Knights generally set a rough figure after an assessment and leave it to the tax officer to achieve. Their focus is on how to serve their Lady and demonstrate their martial valor.
This provides many tax officers and their stewards with opportunities. Clever tax officers and stewards spend years or even longer gradually turning the share of the noble lords into their own and finding ways to avoid working under someone else.
As a tax officer sent by the Lake Fairy, Gaspardon naturally wouldn't embezzle, but it was the first time he saw a Holy Grail Knight who could understand all the accounts at a glance and estimate the approximate income range. This middle-aged man not only took everything into account but also made Gaspardon think that it was no wonder the person before him could become the Divine Chosen Champion of the Lady of the Lake.
"How many standing soldiers are there in the territory now?" Laine asked casually.
"There are currently twenty-five infantrymen and four sergeants," Gaspardon immediately replied.
"Why so few?" Laine frowned.
In the ancient times of the Celestial Dynasty, under a feudal system, the limit was one soldier per ten people. However, in this medieval world, it couldn't be calculated like this. Considering the productivity of Baron Gene's Domain, the fertility of the land, and the warfare potential of the peasants, having twenty-five individuals per soldier was a relatively normal number for the standing army.
Even so, Baron Gene's Domain, with a population of about six to eight thousand, should not have only this number of standing troops.
"I disbanded most of the standing army, leaving only the most outstanding young men. I believe the army should be personally selected by Lord Laine," Gaspardon spoke of this matter with ease. He said cheerfully, "To fight for Lord Laine, a Holy Grail Knight, is the greatest honor. We can't allow just anyone to join Lord Laine's forces. Surely, Lord Laine has his selection criteria."
Oh? Laine's eyes lit up at the middle-aged man before him. This insight showed that the tax officer sent by the Lake Fairy was indeed excellent because his original plan was also to disband and reorganize the army. However, he did not want to be the bad guy. Gaspardon being able to think this far was indeed commendable.
Subsequently, Gaspardon elaborated on many details. Not only did he send people to clean and repair the castle in advance, but he also prepared enough furniture for the living quarters on the second and third floors of the castle. The money for this was all provided by Lake God Witch Mogiana, showing the Lake Fairy's favor towards Laine.
Gaspardon's handling of many areas was meticulous. He posted notices in several villages to make all the peasants aware that the new Lord was a Holy Grail Knight, continuously urging the planting of spring crops and encouraging the peasants to cultivate diligently. He also borrowed some rangers from Duke of Winford to patrol the borders of the Charon Forest in the north, ensuring that he could organize a militia to counterattack the moment Beastmen invaded.
"Very good! Mr. Gaspardon, were you temporarily seconded to this location, or do you have a prior position?" When Laine asked this, the forty-year-old man immediately realized something and restrained his excitement before quickly replying, "No, Lord Laine."
"That's great. For the time being, you'll serve as my tax officer. If you perform well, I will consider formally appointing you to the position... but not now." Laine showed no expression on his face. He waved his hand, signaling Gaspardon to leave.