Chapter 101: Chapter 101: Busy Days

The feast at Mountain Forest Castle was simple, consisting of little more than eating and drinking. Unlike the gatherings of some nobles, there was no music or dancing. With only burly men present, dancing was impossible, so they could only pour their energy into eating, drinking, and boasting.

For the occasion, Ronin had provided one pig, six sheep, over a dozen chickens and ducks, and countless fish.

Thankfully, the militiamen had only received some grain before returning to their own homes. If they had also joined the feast, Ronin would have been eaten into poverty.

Oh, right. Chahar had complained more than once about the castle’s alcohol supply. Several barrels of sour beer were already empty, and less than a hundred bottles of the mid-grade beer remained.

The territory was in dire need of a brewer. Otherwise, after a few more groups of guests or a few more banquets, the castle would have to spend money to buy alcohol from outside.

Faced with Chahar’s complaints, Ronin could only agree. It was a pity he himself wasn’t very interested in alcohol; otherwise, he would have remembered this matter during his last trip to Pasture City.

After the feast ended, Ronin comfortably soaked in several tubs of bathwater. He hadn’t had a proper wash in the ten-odd days since leaving Mountain Forest Town, so the feeling was indescribably refreshing.

Having changed into a set of soft clothes, Ronin returned to his study. He saw Erin sitting in a nearby chair, engrossed in a book she was holding.

Ronin glanced at the book’s title and hurried over in a few quick strides, snapping the book shut. This startled Erin, who had been completely absorbed in her reading.

But upon seeing who it was, Erin broke into a happy smile. “Big Brother Ronin, you’re done!”

“Yes, it’s over.”

Ronin replied with a smile, smoothly taking the book back and placing it on the bookshelf. “This book isn’t quite suitable for you. Let me pick one that is.”

The plot of the novel, titled *The Secret Garden of Princess Feina*, was decent enough, but the male and female leads were constantly “making out,” and the descriptions were rather detailed—not suitable for a young girl.

Ronin picked a history book from the shelf and handed it to Erin. “You should read this *Brief History of the Empire*. It’ll broaden your horizons.”

The *Brief History of the Empire* recorded the affairs of the Orland Empire, but it wasn’t a history book in the traditional sense. Most of its contents were miscellaneous matters concerning the Royal Family and nobility, even recording arguments between certain high-ranking nobles.

Although it didn’t contain much valuable information, it was at least more suitable for a young girl to read than that knight romance novel just now.

Erin took the book dubiously, her mind still on the previous one.

She asked in confusion, “Why isn’t that book suitable for me? Iven Knight was dueling for Princess Feina. Will he win?”

“Of course he’ll win. And in the end, he and the princess live happily ever after.”

Ronin gave away the ending with a smile. “Alright, Erin, Bella has prepared a room for you. She’s waiting outside, so don’t keep her waiting too long.”

Erin’s attention was finally pulled away from the book. “Okay, then. Good night, Big Brother.”

With that, she quickly left the study.

Ronin shook his head helplessly, then began to review the documents on his desk submitted by Chahar and Wilson.

These included the production status of various teams, the autumn harvest results from each village, and the grain statistics for Mountain Forest Town, among other things.

He focused on the latter two reports.

The total barley harvest this time was about 830,000 jin, similar to previous years.

Excluding the seeds set aside for next year, and calculating based on a daily intake of one jin of staple food per person, this amount could sustain the people of Mountain Forest Town for nearly ten and a half months.

In reality, however, the Peasant Slaves consumed less than one jin of staple food. Their meals were often mixed with other “creative additions”—wild vegetables were considered one of the better ones.

In other words, this much barley was more than enough to sustain the people of Mountain Forest Town until next year’s wheat and barley harvest. Surviving the year would be no problem.

By next year, with fertilizer, the promotion of new farming techniques, and a significant amount of newly cultivated land, the food supply would be even more secure.

After breakfast the next morning, Ronin mounted his Cloud Stepper and began his inspection tour.

Having spent all the Attribute Points he had accumulated from his achievements and recent daily sign-ins, he had now entered the stage of a Third-level Transcendent.

[Level]: 3 – Advanced Level Knight (30/300); 3 – Senior Mage (0/400)

Across all of Mountain Forest Town, Ronin’s strength now ranked in the top three. He no longer needed guards when he went out. At most, he would bring Chahar, who was in charge of the manure collection team; Gallon for errands; and Erin, who wanted to tag along and see the town.

For this inspection, Ronin’s first stop was the fertilizer base.

This base had been planned when Ronin established the manure collection team. The site was located in the Forest Land to the northwest, near the pasture. It was far from the commoners’ living quarters and also avoided water sources.

Over the past several days, the construction team had already built simple sheds here. Although they looked crude, they could shelter the organic fertilizer from the rain and would not interfere with its decomposition.

Faced with the Lord personally inspecting the fertilizer base, the ten slaves who were turning the compost piles stood aside in fear and trepidation. After an initial greeting to their Lord, they didn’t know what else to say.

His manservant, Gallon, however, kept urging Ronin to leave the place quickly. After all, for a noble of his high status to personally come to such a reeking place was truly beneath his dignity.

Erin was already pinching her nose. If she hadn’t seen that Big Brother Ronin wasn’t leaving, she would have turned and fled long ago.

The manure collection team had been gathering feces for many days, and it was all transported here. The smell was naturally awful. If he had a choice, Ronin wouldn’t have wanted to come either.

But the composting technique was still in its infancy, and it required his personal guidance.

“My Lord, as per your instructions, we have mixed useless hay, leaves, wheat stalks, and the like with the manure. We now turn these compost piles once every three days.”

Chahar reported respectfully. He didn’t enjoy this work either, but he had meticulously carried out Ronin’s orders.

Ronin looked at the dozen or so piles of decomposing organic fertilizer in the base and nodded slightly. “When composting, remember to cover the top with hay to keep it moist.”

Normally, they would need to prepare straw mats or cloth, but using those things here would be too wasteful. Covering the piles with hay would suffice for now.

He walked to one of the piles and brought his hand a little closer. The temperature was quite high, indicating that it was still in the fermentation stage.

Without a catalyst, this natural fermentation process would take a bit longer, lasting about one to three months.

Once the temperature of the compost pile stabilized and the stench dissipated, the fertilizer would be ready to use.

Ronin then spoke with Chahar and the members of the manure collection team about problems they encountered at work. Aside from Chahar, who was able to say a few things, most of the slaves were too afraid to speak up. Only one female slave named Marsin asked a few questions.

He learned from Chahar that this woman was a diligent worker who paid attention to detail, and her strength was no less than a man’s.

So, Ronin appointed her as the second person in charge of the fertilizer base, reporting to Chahar. This also helped to lighten his steward’s burden a little.

After all, just managing the grain storage in the castle required considerable effort, and later he would also need to coordinate the grain distribution with the three outer villages.

A literate and numerate person like Chahar naturally had to be put to better use.

After inspecting the fertilizer base, Ronin went to William’s Ironwood Workshop and Carlos’s blacksmith shop to check on the production of Ironwood Equipment and the forging of the Curved Plows, respectively.

This time, Ronin had brought back two Carpenter slaves from Grey Soil Village. The more skilled one, Mutal, was assigned to the Ironwood Workshop, primarily responsible for making Ironwood Armor.

The less skilled one was sent to help Carlos and his son make the bodies for the Curved Plows, striving to forge more of them for each village before the spring planting season.

Over the next few days, Ronin continued to inspect the various production teams while also having Civil Servant Wilson organize idle peasants to fell trees in the north, aiming to clear a road to Cyan Bamboo Village as soon as possible.

Ronin didn’t need to pay these people for their labor. However, unlike in the past, to incentivize them, Ronin allowed the commoners to take half of the felled timber home to repair their houses or store as firewood for the winter. He certainly didn’t want any of his people to freeze to death.

In addition, Ronin made a special trip to the tailor shop of Tom’s mother, Leia. He observed her spinning wheel and loom, and based on them, he created a modified design, having Pier build a small spinning wheel for drawing silk.

As for the loom, most people here used backstrap looms.

Ronin wanted to build a treadle loom, but that would require more detailed designs and experiments. He simply explained the principles and showed a simple structural diagram to William, Pier, and his slave Muertan, letting the latter try to build it first.

There were many other trivial matters within the territory. For example, some commoners had disputes that required him to arrange mediation or judgment. Some men and women of marriageable age wanted to wed, which required Ronin’s approval, and he also had to collect a marriage tax…

Ronin abolished the marriage tax directly. That thing was detrimental to population growth. He replaced it with one day of free labor instead.

After several consecutive days of being busy, he finally had all the arrangements in place.

On October 8th, Ronin took a few guards, traveled light, and set off on his journey back to Wushan Castle under the morning sun.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep