Chapter 31: Whatever You Tell Us To Do, We Will Do

Arthur was taken aback, looking at the adorable little boy, and felt a surge of joy in his heart.

As for the trivial matter of being peed on his shoes, he did not mind it at all.

After all, a child's urine is quite auspicious.

He picked up the little boy, patted his little head, and asked, "Little one, what is your name?"

The little boy did not answer, just staring at him with brown eyes.

Arthur did not mind such things, but others did.

Hui Pao An Bo hurriedly shouted, "Whose child is this, how dare he pee on the Lord's shoes? Why don't you come over here and wipe the Lord's shoes immediately?"

Several villagers also joined in to scold the little boy's parents.

A young woman with a panicked expression squeezed out of the crowd, her face full of apology and fear.

"I'm sorry, Lord Arthur, I'm sorry."

As she spoke, she was about to bend down to wipe Arthur's shoes.

"It's fine, it's fine." Arthur pulled his feet back, preventing the woman from touching his shoes.

The woman was at a loss, muttering to herself as she expressed her apologies.

But it was clear that she was very uneasy, her voice trembling, because her child was still in Arthur's arms.

"It really is fine. Does this child not have a name yet?"

The woman nodded, and only after confirming that Arthur truly did not mind did she set her heart at ease.

"I think this pee was quite accurate, which shows he and I are fated." Arthur teased the little boy, "Let me give him a name. Hmm... let's call him Arthur, the same name as mine, to commemorate this pee."

"Thank you, my lord, thank you, my lord." The woman thanked him repeatedly.

Arthur handed the little boy back to her, and the surrounding crowd suddenly burst into applause.

Most people's impression of Arthur became even better.

"This is for you, it's very sweet, I tasted it." A timid female voice came.

Arthur felt someone tugging at his pant leg.

He pretended to look left and right, "Eh? Why can't I see anyone? Could it be a spirit of the air?"

This gesture made the villagers laugh out loud.

"You're annoying!" The female voice sounded a bit angry.

Only then did Arthur look down, and it turned out to be a little girl holding up a peach that had been bitten once.

"Eat it, it's very sweet."

The girl insisted on handing it to him.

Village Chief Jiesi squeezed in at this moment, saw the bitten peach, and barked, "How can you give Lord Arthur a peach that you've already eaten? Can't you even offer a whole peach?"

Arthur took it, took a bite, and said while chewing:

"Put away that ugly face of yours. You, a village chief, are fiercer than me, the lord. Is that appropriate?"

Seeing Arthur was angry, Jiesi immediately switched to a fawning smile and tried hard to explain.

But Arthur didn't listen, bending down to praise the little girl's peach for being truly sweet.

Seeing Jiesi's awkward appearance, the villagers were even more amused.

Seeing Arthur was so approachable, they invited him to be a guest in their homes one after another, some asked Arthur to name their children, and some asked Arthur to treat their illnesses.

Arthur declined the invitations to be a guest, did the naming on the spot, but as for the illnesses...

That was something Arthur really couldn't do.

"Who used to treat your illnesses?" he asked curiously.

"No one. Sometimes a passing Septon could look at an illness, but I don't know why, the Septons have all disappeared now," someone replied.

Arthur questioned Jiesi, "Why didn't you tell me about this situation?"

Jiesi was stunned, "Isn't this quite normal? Why would I need to bother you with it?"

Arthur was deeply speechless at this village chief; he hadn't fulfilled his duties as a village chief at all, only bullying the commoners.

He would find someone reliable to replace him when he had the time.

However, Jiesi's thinking was also correct; they had never had anyone to treat their illnesses, so they were used to it.

Arthur carefully recalled the memories of his past life; it seemed that in the Game of Thrones world, only The North, which believed in the Old Gods, had Maesters from great houses to treat the commoners.

Like Maester Luwin of Winterfell.

But in the South, which believed in the Seven, only small Septons treated the commoners.

Maesters were there to treat the nobles and provide advice.

More accurately, to treat the high lords.

Arthur's castle had neither Maesters nor Ravens.

Of course, after the original owner got sick, he would always run to Stone Hedge for treatment; as for the smallfolk, he never asked.

After Sandor Clegane was defeated by a beauty, it was a kind Septon who saved him.

This was also the reason why the High Sparrow, who came from a background as a Septon, could wield such power in King's Landing later on.

They followed the path of the masses!

Arthur thought for a moment and asked, "There must be a place nearby where one can pay for medical treatment, right?"

"There is, Meiren Jishi has one, but it's very expensive. One Silver Stag per visit, not including the cost of medicine."

If it could be solved with money, then it was easy to handle.

Arthur waved his hand, "Then invite him to come and treat your illnesses."

Stone Hedge had earned one hundred and eighty Gold Dragons, and the Brynden affair had brought in nearly three thousand more; he was very wealthy now.

"But it's very expensive," someone sighed.

"As long as it keeps you all healthy, what does spending a little money matter?" Arthur did a little bit of showing off.

He turned his head and said to Amber, "Remember to remind me about this; I'll go invite a Septon tomorrow."

Amber nodded.

The crowd suddenly erupted in cheers.

Seeing that the atmosphere was good, Arthur stated his idea.

"Hmm, I plan to build a stockade to defend against potential enemies."

Arthur did not explicitly say it was The Mountain.

Because even if he said it, no one would believe him.

"My lord, are you preparing to guard against Raventree Hall?"

"Whatever Arthur says, we do."

"Whatever you ask us to do, we will do."

The villagers voiced their thoughts all at once.

Some even guessed that the lord was guarding against House Blackwood.

Seeing this, Arthur did not debunk the claim and tacitly accepted it.

The villagers' enthusiasm and support exceeded his expectations, so the matter was settled just like that.

What was even more convenient was that there were still several months until harvest time, there wasn't much work in the fields, and building the stockade wouldn't delay anything at all.

(The seasons in Game of Thrones are different from our seasonal cycles; summer can last for ten years, and I don't know why Martin set it up that way.)

Amidst the villagers' desperate pleas for them to stay, Arthur and his party left Riverbank Village and headed to the next village.

The remaining eight villages were much the same, all strongly supporting Arthur's decision.

In the evening, large patches of fiery clouds floated on the horizon, and the twilight draped the earth in a beautiful filter.

Arthur and his party rode their horses through an ocean of flowers and grass.

Looking at the picturesque scenery around him, he sighed, "My territory is actually this beautiful."

"It has always been this way," Amber said, stating the obvious.

Arthur continued to sigh, "My subjects are also kind and lovely."

"They might be faking it."

Amber thought to himself, you'll know whether they are truly kind and lovely or not when it's time to collect taxes.

Arthur ignored his words and continued to be moved by himself, "I must protect them."

"That is what you should do," Amber insisted on echoing the lord's words.

His lord turned his head and glared at him, "You'd better not interrupt when I'm talking to myself."

Amber nodded aggrievedly.

The group continued forward.

Before the night established its firm rule over the firmament, they returned to the home castle.

PS: Seeking recommendation tickets and monthly tickets.

Also, does anyone know the meme "The Favor of the Remaining Peach" (smirking face).

A Mount and Blade joke every day:

A Swadia spy boasted to a Rhodok spy, "We know the garrison size, training level, and food reserves of all your castles."

"So what?" the Rhodok spy countered, "We know when your King Harlaus plans to declare war on the Nord, Vaegir, Khergit, and Sarranid."

(End of this chapter)