Chapter 447: Politics is all about smoothing things over
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After this period of accumulation, Hobert now has over ten thousand pounds.
He plans to use this money to buy locomotives and carriages, and because some modifications may be involved, the carriages need to be ordered in advance.
As usual, Hobert did not immediately put the cash into the "Nation of Disorder." He once again sketched out the blueprint of the territory in his mind, and as he thought, evening arrived.
Hobert came to the yard and stared blankly at Full Moon Lake in the sunset for a while.
Golden afterglows echoed on Full Moon Lake, adding a touch of tranquility to the lake surface. The people on the construction site began to go home, showing long-lost smiles at this moment.
Hobert felt an unprecedented sense of satisfaction: This is my territory!
...
Tuesday morning, Loen Kingdom, Tingen City Railway Station.
On the platform, Serena wiped her tears and said, "Melissa, remember to write to me."
Melissa felt inexplicably sad when she saw her friend in tears. She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes: "We are only separated temporarily. Maybe you will come to Backlund to work or study in the future."
No, I might go to Feynapotter. I am already learning Highlander by myself, Serena thought.
Woo~
The departure time arrived, and they said their final goodbyes. Serena watched the train gradually move away from the station and begin to accelerate, eventually disappearing from view.
Chris Wood, with red hair and gold-rimmed glasses, came over to comfort his sister: "Separation is only for reunion. Tingen City is not far from Backlund. If you miss each other, you can visit each other by train."
Serena said with tears in her eyes: "But, but, only I am left in Tingen City."
Chris patted his sister's shoulder: "People will always experience a stage of loneliness."
Serena wiped away the last bit of tears and smiled: "Chris, you are like a philosopher today."
Chris also laughed: "Everyone says I have the temperament of a philosopher. Okay, we should prepare to leave too."
Over there, Mr. and Mrs. Wood, and Chris's fiancée, Vina, waved to Serena.
Serena took a deep breath, trying to shift her emotions to the New Year's vacation mood.
The train to Boklun Manor departed half an hour later. The always lively Serena stared blankly at the scenery speeding backwards outside the window, as if it was her 18-year-old self that would never return.
The sociable Mr. Wood and Chris had already mingled with the surrounding passengers. They talked about the world situation, the Loen Kingdom's newly built steel behemoth, and the mortal enemy Feysac Empire across Midseashire.
Serena noticed that the train had entered the mountains and would pass through a tunnel in a few minutes. She asked her father: "Dad, are we almost there?"
Mr. Wood looked at his pocket watch: "Honey, there are still a dozen minutes."
A passenger in the front left asked: "If you get off at the station ahead, are you planning to go to Boklun Manor for vacation?"
Mr. Wood smiled: "Yes, I heard the hot springs there are very good."
"That's right, and you can go hunting!" The passenger laughed: "I heard there are wild boars and sika deer, but you can only hunt one or two rabbits at most each time."
Wood laughed: "Hunting is for young people..."
Suddenly, a passenger with a low hat brim behind him said: "Don't go to Boklun Manor. There has been something bad there recently. If you go there, you will all turn into monsters!"
The Wood family looked at the passenger in surprise. Serena also turned her head to look at him. The passenger's coat collar was high, and the hat brim covered his entire face.
Although she couldn't see the other person's appearance, Serena could feel the madness and distortion emanating from him. This feeling made Serena feel uncomfortable all over.
Serena also noticed that he seemed to only have a left hand and no right hand.
Chris Wood asked with a smile: "Sir, what has appeared there? Why would we turn into monsters!"
The passenger said: "In short, don't go."
Woo~
The train's whistle woke Serena from her dream. She saw that her parents, brother, and sister-in-law all looked blank, as if they had just woken up from a dream as well.
Serena immediately looked behind her, and the other family members also looked there.
That seat was empty.
Chris Wood laughed: "You, you wouldn't be having a dream where a passenger advised us not to go to Boklun Manor, right?"
The other family members all looked at Chris with some surprise in their eyes.
Chris's smile gradually disappeared, and the family was silent for a few seconds.
Serena swallowed: "Or, or, why don't we go? It's rare to have a vacation, it's good to stay at home too."
Mr. Wood took out the Boklun Manor tickets and smiled helplessly: "I've already bought the tickets."
These were discounted tickets obtained through a relationship with a bank client, and even the discounted tickets cost a lot of money.
Mrs. Wood said: "We can't change our itinerary because of a strange dream. We, we'll go to the manor and take a look first. If something is wrong, we'll go home immediately!"
Serena was also persuaded, because she also really wanted to soak in the hot springs and see the snow scenery.
A dozen minutes later, the train arrived at the station, and the Wood family took a carriage directly to Boklun Manor.
Everywhere here there are gurgling springs. The temperature of the springs that just come out can reach a dozen degrees. In winter, they make the entire valley misty, adding a bit of dreamlike color.
The ice waterfalls and rime along the way made the family couldn't help but point and praise. The train episode was thrown to the back of everyone's minds.
After taking a carriage for more than half an hour, the family arrived at Boklun Manor.
There are many hot springs here, and the resulting mist seems to wrap the entire manor.
Entering the manor's reception hall, everything here seemed normal. Many guests were in the hall smoking and chatting, and the manager warmly greeted them: "Hello, welcome to Boklun Manor!"
Serena felt that this manager was a bit strange, or rather, his expression was a bit strange, a bit stiff? Or a bit contrived?
Neither.
After pondering for a long time, Serena realized that it was like the expression of a puppet in a puppet show, a little exaggerated, a little unnatural.
The manager seemed to notice Serena and gave her a puppet-like smile.
Serena was about to tug on her father's clothes when a bearded man came in from outside. He held a hunting fork and wore clothes made of simply processed animal skins. He looked furry all over: "Is there any gentleman who wants to go hunting? If you're lucky, you can hunt sika deer or wild boar."
Chris said with great interest: "Father, I want to go take a look."
"Go ahead, son." Mr. Wood smiled: "Enjoy the New Year's holiday, and I will settle the three beautiful ladies."
Watching Chris leave, Serena realized that she had forgotten what she was worried about just now.
She opened her mouth, as if she had forgotten something very important, but she couldn't remember what it was even after racking her brains.
"Let's go, Serena." Mrs. Wood smiled: "I can't wait to enjoy the hot springs."
...
Feynapotter Kingdom, Jeffery Territory.
Baron Hobert finally received Bishop Dick, but what made Bishop Dick a little dissatisfied again was that Hobert sat at the head, while they, the clergy, could only stand, as if they were reporting their work.
Hobert certainly saw the dissatisfaction of Dick and others. He smiled and said: "Everyone, I am a baron conferred by the king, not by the Earth Mother Church, so there is no superior-subordinate relationship between us.
"Because I am a devout believer of the Mother Goddess and a friend of Bishop Simpson, I am polite enough to greet you.
"But that's all. What else are you expecting? Do you expect me to humbly report the situation of Jeffery Territory to you?"
These words left Dick and others speechless.
Hobert added: "I can send a ship to take you to the center of Full Moon Lake to see if there is indeed no corruption. I believe you have monitoring methods.
"Okay, Allen, help me send these distinguished guests away."
Dick and others realized after leaving the main hall that they had almost been kicked out. Was this Jeffery Territory's custom of treating distinguished guests?
Some of them came to Full Moon Lake in anger, boarded the wooden boat provided by Hobert, and indeed did not detect any corruption in the center of Full Moon Lake.
After getting this result, they boarded the boat and left immediately, acting as if they didn't want to stay here for even a minute.
Hobert watched their boat leave from the Lord's Mansion, and even Philip asked with some worry: "Lord, will we offend these bishops and priests because of this?"
Hobert laughed: "I want to let the people of the Earth Mother Church see my attitude: Although I hope the church will send people here, it's not that I invited you here. It's that you came running over after I solved the problem."
The Earth Mother Church will never not send people because of the attitude towards the delegation. On the contrary, they will re-examine how to deal with the relationship with the local nobles.
Hobert did not dwell on this issue too much. Today, he was still busy taking soldiers to the Shipyard Island for "training" to see if there were any pirates to fight.
At the same time, he let the lumberjacks and craftsmen take a look at the wood there. Hobert planned to build a lumberyard on the island, because the construction of the territory required a lot of wood, and if he could build his own lumberyard, he could save a lot of money.
In Jeffery Territory, he only needed to build a kiln to dry the wood.
Because Hobert and the "Jeffery Army" appeared too strangely last time, those small pirate groups did not dare to come again. The 'Black Whale' and 'Skull' pirate groups, because they knew that the strength gap with Hobert was too great, chose to leave cautiously.
So now there are only some small pirate groups on Shipyard Island that are not well-informed or willing to take risks. Hobert led people to charge and kill them, but unfortunately, he did not catch any pirates with bounties. The spoils were far less than last time, but he did seize more fish than last time.
In the evening, Hobert held another banquet in the yard, eating grilled fish and stewed fish with everyone, and rewarded them as he did last time.
After deducting the spoils distributed to everyone and the bounties distributed to everyone, this time's spoils were only about two hundred pounds left, as well as some living supplies.
Those things that could only be used at sea, such as fresh water, vegetables, sextants, etc., were simply not transported back.
This time's biggest gain may be that several lumberjacks found a more suitable lumberyard, and the craftsmen also believed that the wood for the construction of the territory could be completely provided by Shipyard Island.
Subtracting the money saved from the cost of drying the wood and the wages generated by logging, Hobert calculated that he could save as much as 30,000 gold lire.
Even more money could be saved by using a large amount of wood for later decoration and furniture making. This money did not belong to the "construction funds", so it was not easy to calculate at present.
For Hobert, the money saved was equal to the money earned.
While the atmosphere in the yard was cheerful, a guest came to the entrance of the Lord's Mansion.
It was a middle-aged man, wearing a bishop's robe, looking very easy-going.
Hobert saw him at a glance: "Bishop Simpson, I didn't expect you to come so quickly. Come, come, try these sea fish. It's hard to eat such fresh sea fish in Feynapotter."
Bishop Simpson smiled and sat next to Hobert, readily taking the grilled fish and wine glass handed to him: "I asked Dick to 'report' to me as soon as he had accurate information.
"Then, with the help of the Archbishop, I arrived at your territory as quickly as possible.
"I have been to Full Moon Lake and confirmed the information you said in the letter."
Because there were still many ordinary people present, Bishop Simpson did not say it too clearly.
Sure enough, Simpson did not mention the cold reception Dick and the others received.
Hobert took a sip of wine and smiled: "I welcome the bishop of the Earth Mother Church to preach on this territory again.
"But you also see that I want to build this place into a resort area, and I also want to try to implement some new policies, which may delay your preaching."
The implication was: I have a lot of things to do, don't affect me.
Bishop Simpson smiled: "The Archbishop has instructed me to maintain a good cooperative relationship with you after I come to Jeffery Territory."
The implication was: We have enough sincerity to cooperate.
Hobert smiled slightly and said to Allen and Dennis: "Prepare a small stove in the side hall, bring a pot of fish separately, and prepare a small grill, and take a few skewers of grilled fish."
The two immediately went to work.
Hobert also said to Seel: "Let everyone drink to their heart's content tonight. If there is no wine, move it from the warehouse. I have something to talk to Bishop Simpson about."
Seeing that the lord was about to leave, everyone stood up almost at the same time to see the lord off.
Hobert waved to everyone. After entering the side hall, the yard became lively again.
Simpson saw all this in his eyes. He thought to himself: In less than two months, Hobert has completely gained a foothold in an unfamiliar territory and has cultivated a group of soldiers who are very loyal to him.
He took his wine glass and grilled skewers, and followed Hobert closely: Utravsky's evaluation of him was correct. This is a person with profound thoughts, a person whose ability is far greater than his current status. Even if Hobert was given a country, he could quickly establish rule. Before that, he just lacked a platform, an opportunity.
Arriving at the side hall, the fish stew pot was bubbling and boiling once more.
There was also a small dining table, with chopsticks, bowls, and dishes on one side, Hobert's usual tableware, and knives, forks, and plates on the other.
The fish grilling oven would take a little longer.
After Hobert and Simpson took their seats, Simpson smiled and said, "I heard from Utravsky that you were baptized in his church?"
"Yes," Hobert replied with a smile, "Utravsky and I are good friends."
He could sense that Bishop Simpson was trying to use the authority of the Earth Mother Church to regain the initiative in the conversation.
But Hobert didn't give Simpson the chance. He said, "Last night, I raided the demonic forces in Baron Teuton's territory and obtained accurate information: the Blood Sanctify Sect has a demigod and five Sequence 5s in South Colson!
"I plan to give you the Beyonder characteristics of that demigod and the credit for annihilating those demons. I think, with one of the Sequence 4 main materials, you should be able to get a chance to advance to demigod from the church, right?"
Simpson was stunned for a good two or three seconds: "You, you are confident in killing their demigod? As far as I know, demons have the ability to foresee danger, making them difficult to kill!"
"Of course, I'm confident," Hobert said, taking a light sip of wine, "But the prerequisite is that you agree to my plan for constructing official Beyonder forces in Jeffery's territory."
"Tell me."
"My family is very supportive of my development in Jeffery's territory, so they sent me a Sequence 6 and some helpers," Hobert said, "And before that, I had already contacted the Theosophy Order, and they basically agreed to my demon eradication plan and will send a Sequence 6 and several helpers..."
Simpson frowned and said, "Cooperating with the Theosophy Order will get you killed!"
"Hear me out," Hobert said with a smile, "South Colson is full of evil Beyonder forces. If we rely only on you and me, we will have to pay a huge price to complete the cleanup.
"We can completely use the Theosophy Order to consume the power of the Blood Sanctify Sect and the Aurora Order!"
Simpson also took a sip of wine: "They're not that stupid, are they? To be used by you like that?"
"Of course, they're not stupid," Hobert said with a smile, "I promised them that as long as this battle is over, I can keep a legitimate official Beyonder team for them.
"Of course, the price they have to pay is: to send out a demigod to help kill the Blood Sanctify Sect's demigod, and the Beyonder characteristics of that Sequence 4 'Demon' will be given to you as your credit."
The Theosophy Order certainly did not make such a promise, but Hobert was confident that he could make them fulfill such a promise. If it really didn't work, he would let the 'Bull Devil Monarch' take action.
However, Hobert didn't really want the 'Bull Devil Monarch' to appear in South Colson, as it would easily lead some people to associate him with the 'Creator'.
Bishop Simpson was tempted, of course he was tempted. That was an opportunity to become a demigod!
Taking this step meant a qualitative change in oneself, becoming a legendary half-human, half-god.
Bishop Simpson originally thought he would never have a chance in his life. Who would have thought that an opportunity would come so suddenly! When Bishop Gabriel talked to him about this issue before, he still felt that it was just drawing a pie in the sky. He didn't expect that this in-depth conversation with Hobert would already have a concrete plan!
Hobert continued from the side: "Without the help of the Theosophy Order, we two Sequence 5s simply can't kill the other side's demigod, and we don't have much chance of winning against this group of demons.
"I don't know the church's promotion standards, but according to my idea, killing ten Sequence 5s may not necessarily be as meritorious as killing one demigod, right?"
Hobert's guess was very much in line with the actual situation. Bishop Simpson pondered for a moment before saying, "I must report this matter to the Archbishop, but he may not agree."
This was basically an agreement, but there were still some concerns.
Hobert smiled and said, "Anyway, the church can't send enough power to wipe out the evil Beyonder forces here for the time being. You can just say that you are cooperating with some 'folk Beyonder organizations' to deal with the Blood Sanctify Sect and the Aurora Order.
"There's no need for the Archbishop to agree, just let him default."
Hobert would not say things like "Since the Archbishop asked you to cooperate with me, this is my plan," as it would be equivalent to giving Bishop Simpson an excuse to pin the blame on him in the future.
Simpson didn't hear the promise he wanted, so he said with some concern, "What if, after we cooperate, the Theosophy Order recklessly creates tragedies in South Colson?"
"If such a tragedy occurs in my territory," Hobert said coldly, "I will make the Theosophy Order pay the price."
Hobert dared to make a promise on this point. Not only did he make a promise, but if such a thing happened, he would really do it.
Bishop Simpson thought for a long time before smiling and saying, "I will report to the Archbishop."
But it did not include the deal with the Blood Sanctify Sect's demigod.
Hobert raised his glass, and the two clinked glasses: "Happy cooperation!"
Hobert's plan was that as long as Bishop Simpson became a demigod with his help, then the two would be an inseparable community of interests. When the time came to talk about the Theosophy Order, the positions of both parties would be different.
Dennis, who was on the side, didn't quite understand what the two were planning, but he had already given Hobert an evaluation in his heart: a sinister baron.
After seeing Simpson off, Hobert asked Dennis to fetch him foot-washing water.
After the foot-washing water was brought, Hobert asked, "Do you know why I asked you to do this?"
Of course, it was to humiliate me! But the words came to his lips, and Dennis still didn't dare to say them.
Hobert looked at the angry expression on Dennis's face: "When you figure out this question, you won't have to fetch me foot-washing water."
Dennis was slightly stunned, then smiled: "I will figure out this question tomorrow!"
Hobert smiled, guessing that this kid wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.
...
Loen Kingdom, East Chester County, Boklun Manor.
Selena looked at the guests in the hall smoking cigarettes or cigars and chatting, and the fog rolling outside in the wind.
Something seemed a little wrong!
"Beautiful lady, welcome to Boklun Manor."
Selena saw the hall manager with an exaggerated and unnatural smile: "You... you..."
"Hehehehehe~"
A sinister laughter echoed around.
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