Chapter 166: Forced Laborers, Queenscrown, and Long Lake

The tenant farmers of the Stark Estate at Queenscrown and the soldiers of the military colony hid behind the fences, watching with dropped jaws as the ragged, unkempt Wildlings marched in a long line into Queenscrown.

Among them were infants nursing at their mothers' breasts, white-haired elders, running youths, cattle and sheep, wagons, the bone chariots of the Frozen Shore people, the barefoot Hardfoot, and the Rivermen in gray-white clothes clutching ice axes.

Having crossed the Wall and bathed in the sunlight, every Wildling seemed to have been reborn, curious about everything around them; after all, there were many things south of the Wall that the Wildlings had never seen.

The Wildlings looked curiously at the curved plows in the estate, the arrow towers standing on both sides of the Kingsroad, the chimneys belching black smoke, the fragrant bakeries, and so on; the golden, crispy bread made many Wildlings drool.

Queenscrown originally belonged to a part of the Gift, but now the Gift, and even the Wall, had been pocketed by Eddard, and Stark Estates were everywhere.

Since ancient times, many Wildling Raiders would climb over the Wall to plunder the Gift, and Queenscrown was a place that had rapidly declined over the hundreds of years of constant attacks by Wildling Raiders.

As part of Eddard's land reclamation plan, Queenscrown, which had once fallen into a no-man's-land, saw estates spring up like bamboo shoots after a rain, possessing tens of thousands of residents and soldiers, becoming a bustling small town.

Queenscrown, once ravaged by Wildling Raiders, now welcomed tens of thousands of Wildling captives; when entering this side of the Wall, the starving Wildlings could all be allotted some dry rations—these were the food supplies obtained when Eddard's army and Rangers were plundering Beyond the Wall—and by the time they reached Queenscrown, many people's food had run out.

Eddard rode his direwolf through the night, walking at the front of the procession, with the mother wolf Sunshine accompanying him on the other side. By now, the direwolves were larger than warhorses and were still growing.

Recently, the mother wolf Sunshine's figure had become increasingly bloated, and the Forest Witch Mole's Mother, who was skilled in midwifery and familiar with the temperament of wild wolves, told Eddard that the direwolf Sunshine was pregnant.

"Lord Eddard, this is a good omen. The direwolf is the sigil of House Stark, which foretells that House Stark will become increasingly prosperous and usher in the age of the running wolf," Mole's Mother told Eddard.

Robb and Jon were both very happy; they both hoped that once Sunshine gave birth to the wolf pups, they would be able to get one.

The Wildlings all liked to call Eddard the Wolf King, and when Eddard rode his direwolf among the Wildlings, they all acted very respectfully.

The commander of Queenscrown, Stark's personal guard Fat Tom, came out to welcome Eddard.

"Lord Eddard, the first batch of Wildling captives has already been sent to Winterfell from here. I didn't expect there to be so many; with tens of thousands of Wildlings, a few days would be enough to eat up all of Queenscrown's winter stores. Queenscrown cannot supply so many Wildlings."

Eddard said, "Rest assured, the Wildlings' food will be allocated from the rations of the triumphant army. The Wildlings are only resting here for a moment; you just need to provide water to the Wildlings."

Thus, the soldiers of Queenscrown pushed carts piled high with water buckets and distributed the water to the Wildlings.

Jon and Robb commanded the Winterfell cavalry to take carrots, apples, and black bread from the supply train and distribute them to the Wildlings.

Tormund Giantsbane led a team of Wildlings with their hands and feet bound and arrived before Eddard.

"Lord Eddard, these are the first batch of people who violated the laws of the North, and also the first batch of forced laborers."

Eddard looked at these forced laborers; the number exceeded thirty. "What crimes have they committed?"

"One fellow stabbed the person in front with a bone dagger just because he disliked that the other person was walking slowly. A Hardfoot tried to rape a spearwife, but unfortunately, he was castrated by the spearwife before he could succeed. Others tried to steal sharp battle axes from the wagons; they are thieves."

Eddard said, "Escort them, put them in shackles, and stand them by the Kingsroad so that the Wildlings passing by behind can see the price of committing crimes and becoming forced laborers."

Before crossing the Wall, Eddard had discussed with Mance Rayder, Tormund, Mole's Mother, Harma, the King-Beyond-the-Wall, Magnar Styr, and other Wildling leaders that after the Wildlings crossed the Wall, they must abide by the laws of the North; those who violated the law would become forced laborers, lose their freedom, and accept labor reform.

"This law cannot only target the Free Folk." At the time, as soon as Mance Rayder heard Eddard's order, he felt a bit aggrieved.

Eddard clenched his fist, "The law is not targeting the Free Folk, nor is it targeting anyone. Everyone in the North who violates the law will become a forced laborer and undergo labor reform to atone for their crimes, including the nobility."

Since the law had binding force on every subject of the North, Mance Rayder and the other Wildling leaders were immediately relieved.

The forced labor system of the North would deter those criminals with ulterior motives, and at the same time provide a large amount of labor for Winterfell, because in the letters Eddard sent to noble castles all over the North, he explicitly required the nobles to hand over criminals to Winterfell for disposal in the future; in this way, some nobles would not be able to act recklessly, because the criminals could go before Duke Eddard to seek justice.

Winterfell would send these forced laborers to the estates to farm, build houses, and work in the workshops of Winterfell.

The Starks would obtain a large amount of cheap labor, while also cracking down on crime and strengthening control over the judiciary of the Northern vassals.

The letters, in addition to requiring the vassals to send criminals to Winterfell, also required the vassals to come to Winterfell to attend the victory banquet.

Eddard had incorporated the lands Beyond the Wall into the territory of the North and migrated more than 100,000 Wildlings to Winterfell; this was an unprecedented feat worthy of a good celebration.

On the entire Kingsroad, as far as the eye could see, there were Wildlings everywhere, an endless procession stretching for dozens of miles.

Eddard had the forced laborers stand by the Kingsroad, and the Wildlings who passed by later looked curiously at the forced laborers who had lost their freedom, and some people spat at the forced laborers. Subsequently, the Wildling procession became much more orderly, and theft and fighting were significantly reduced.

The strong giant leader Mag, riding a mammoth, arrived at Eddard's side, followed by hundreds of giants, almost every one of whom was riding a mammoth.

Because of their huge size, these giants could only bring their mammoths and cross the sea from Eastwatch to enter the North. Crossing the sea with them were hundreds of terrorbirds of the Raptor Tribe, Samantha, the large black bear of Byers, and the snow bear of Varamyr, among other behemoths.

Whether they were Wildlings or residents of Queenscrown, everyone was very afraid when they saw the giants; after all, even Beyond the Wall, giants were not something one could see every day. Giants and the Children of the Forest were once the earliest inhabitants of Westeros, and the two groups were mortal enemies; however, both giants and the Children of the Forest had disappeared for hundreds of years, and many people south of the Wall believed that giants and the Children of the Forest had long since gone extinct.

The giants in legends were said to drink blood and eat raw meat, and liked to eat human flesh; this was, of course, nonsense. Giants ate animal meat and grain just like humans, and some giants didn't even eat meat at all and were vegetarians.

Mag saw the forced laborers and let out a low roar like thunder, saying a great deal in the Old Tongue.

The giants spoke the Old Tongue, so they needed a translator. Eddard looked toward the translator Leather, "What is Mag saying?"

Leather said, "He said that these Wildlings committed crimes as soon as they crossed the Wall, which is a disgrace to the Wildlings and they should all be executed."

Eddard smiled, "Their crimes do not warrant death. These people at least have hope while they are alive; if they die, they have nothing left."

Eddard told Leather, "You can teach these giants to learn some simple Common Tongue."

Leather smiled, "Lord Eddard, I have already done so. Some giants have shown a talent for language, such as the pregnant giantess Xixi, the energetic young giant Wun Wun, the young giantess Leilei, the fierce giant warrior Nene, etc., all of whom can speak some simple Common Tongue."

Eddard asked Leather, "Help me ask Mag, are the giants willing to help me build castles?"

Leather asked Mag and replied, "Mag said that the giant population is declining day by day, with only six hundred people left. If it weren't for Duke Eddard, they would still be shivering in the bitter cold Beyond the Wall. The giants' life in the North is all a gift from Duke Eddard. Every giant is willing to be loyal to Duke Eddard and loyal to the Starks."

Giants were not skilled craftsmen, but their massive physiques and astonishing strength allowed them to easily move huge stones. Legend has it that it was the giants who helped Brandon the Builder construct the Wall.

With a large number of Wildlings migrating to the territory of Winterfell, Eddard planned to build several castles, and the giants could be of great use.

Eddard rode his direwolf away from Queenscrown, following the tide-like Wildling procession all the way south, with the giants' procession and the skinchangers' procession accompanying Eddard.

Among them were Varamyr Sixskins riding on the back of a four-meter-tall snow bear, followed by three wild wolves and a shadowcat. Samantha was riding on the back of a terrorbird, and the terrorbird was as strong as a rhinoceros. Borroq was riding a demon boar. The Goat Girl Gisella. The Cat Girl Jeyne.

Orell was controlling an eagle. The Eagle King McCain was controlling an eagle, a falcon, and an owl; Daron was riding a three-headed dog; Atuta was riding a tall stag; and Michu was riding a giant eagle, soaring in the gray-blue sky.

The direwolves, the skinchangers and their beasts, and the giants made the Wildlings afraid; the more afraid the Wildlings were, the easier they were to manage and the easier they were to submit.

More than ten days later, Eddard arrived at Long Lake, which was the largest lake in the North, located on the east side of the Kingsroad.

The architect Donnel was waiting here; Eddard had long ago sent a raven to Winterfell to have Donnel meet Eddard at Long Lake.

Donnel looked with dropped jaws at the skinchangers riding large bears, boars, and terrorbirds, and then looked at the giants riding mammoths; he muttered, "By the mercy of the gods, Lord Eddard, how on earth did you defeat these ancient spirits that only exist in stories?"

Eddard, riding on the back of his direwolf, said proudly, "By sword, courage, and wisdom. Now, these Wildlings are the subjects of the Starks and the people of the North."

Donnel joked, "Lord Eddard, you've even changed your mount. I remember your previous mount was a gray warhorse, wasn't it? The Master of Horse Hullen always loved to brag that it was the best warhorse in Winterfell. Now you've switched to riding a direwolf? You really do as the locals do! It's as magical as the mounts of the Wildlings Beyond the Wall."

Eddard dismounted from the direwolf. The Wildling procession, stretching to the horizon, continued to march south, and the giants' and skinchangers' processions stopped along with Eddard.

Donnel and Eddard stood by Long Lake; the water was cobalt blue, and as the cold wind blew, ripples appeared on the lake. Eddard gazed at the Lonely Mountain in the east.

"Donnel, during my expedition Beyond the Wall, how is the progress on the castles on the West Coast of the North?"

Downs opened the map of the North, "Lord Eddard, everything is progressing smoothly. According to your instructions, the castle of Warhorse City, which we are building at the mouth of the First Men River between the Rills and the Barrowlands, is already two-thirds complete. As for Dawn Watch, the castle at the mouth south of Barrowton, it is nearing completion."

"Seeing the castles rise, the people of House Ryswell of the Rills and House Dustin of Barrowton have both begun to regret selling the land at the river mouths to Stark. Additionally, our castle at the mouth of the Stony Shore, Stony City, is finished, as the Stony Shore is rich in stone resources, making it convenient to source materials."

"Following Lord Eddard's instructions, the castle of Blacksmith City, located beside the Flint cliffs at Sea Dragon Point, has also been completed. House Flint of Flint's Finger gave us great support. It is a very sturdy fortress, possessing a dock and harbor, with stone sourced from the adjacent Flint cliffs."

Throughout thousands of years of history, House Stark only possessed one castle, Winterfell, because the cruel winters left Stark unable to build new ones. Not only that, the maintenance costs for Winterfell were too high, and some of Winterfell's towers were once even abandoned.

Nowadays, Eddard has made a fortune relying on fine salt, vodka, blueberry wine, maple syrup, perfume, soap, and more. The wealthy Eddard not only gave Winterfell a brand-new look but also built four castles on the West Coast in one go: Stony City on the Stony Shore, Warhorse City at the mouth of the Rills, and Dawn Watch at the mouth of the Barrowlands.

Added to Abyss Keep on Skagos, once these castles are finished, House Stark will possess six castles at once. The common folk of the North are all accustomed to calling these castles built by Eddard 'Wolf Castles' collectively, because the sigil and totem of House Stark are precisely the direwolf.

Even looking across the Seven Kingdoms, nobles possessing more than two castles are rare; a noble possessing six castles is simply in a league of their own.

Nowadays, the noble with the most castles in the entire Seven Kingdoms is undoubtedly House Baratheon.

King Robert Baratheon sits in King's Landing on the Iron Throne, possessing the royal castle, the Red Keep. Robert's second brother, the Master of Ships Stannis, possesses the legendary Dragonlord castle on Dragonstone, among which the Painted Table Hall and the Stone Drum Tower are famous throughout the world. Robert's third brother, Renly Baratheon, possesses the majestic seaside fortress of Storm's End, ancestral seat of House Baratheon.

Many lords build castles to show off their wealth and power, but Eddard has no such thoughts; the castles are part of the North's defense and governance plan.

Looking closely at Eddard's castle layout in the North, besides Winterfell being located in the heart of the North, the other several castles are scattered across the Stony Shore, the Rills, the Barrowlands, Sea Dragon Point, and Skagos. Winterfell's control over the North is unprecedentedly strong—blooming at multiple points, intertwined and complex—outwardly capable of resisting foreign invasions, and inwardly capable of intimidating vassals to ensure they remain loyal and obedient.

Stony City will guard the Stony Shore, Warhorse City chokes the mouth of the Rills, and Dawn Watch chokes the mouth of the Barrowlands. Both mouths flow into the North's inland sea, the Salt Spear, which will strengthen the defense of the Salt Spear, thereby protecting the throat of the North, Moat Cailin, from attacks by enemies on the sea to the west.

As for Blacksmith City at Sea Dragon Point, it is located beside the Flint cliffs and can be the first to discover Ironborn Pirates coming from the south. Now, a fleet of longships is already stationed at Blacksmith City. Furthermore, Blacksmith City can also provide a place for rest and resupply for merchant ships involved in future north-south trade.

Near every castle, military colonies have been established, and manors and salt pans have been opened to support the soldiers guarding the castles.

The architect Downs asked curiously, "Lord Eddard, why give the castle at Sea Dragon Point the name Blacksmith City? I know you piously worship the Old Gods, but the Smith is clearly one of the Seven of the southern faith!"

Because Blacksmith City will hammer the Ironborn Pirates of the Iron Islands across the sea to pieces; hammering the insufferable Ironborn—that is the real reason Eddard named that castle Blacksmith City. However, there is no need to tell Downs; if this word reached the ears of King Balon of the Iron Islands, it would only incite unnecessary hatred from the Ironborn.

Eddard chose the safest answer, "Sea Dragon Point has a lot of iron ore; in the future, it can serve as a castle for forging iron."

The Long Lake is sparkling, surrounded by the dense Wolfswood, with towering trees everywhere, and the Lonely Mountain to the east is rich in stone resources.

Eddard said, "Downs, you have always dreamed of building a castle that could be called a miracle. Now that we have giants, I will satisfy your wish and give you the manpower to go build a castle. I will leave several thousand wildlings and one hundred giants with you. You take them and build a castle east of the Kingsroad, adjacent to the north side of the Long Lake, and call it Long Lake City."

Eddard still remembers that on the first day Downs arrived at Winterfell, he suggested that Eddard build several castles in the Winter Town, such as Spring City, Xia Ri Cheng, and Jin Qiu Cheng, completely disregarding the financial, material, and human resources of Winterfell at the time, and completely disregarding the practicality of the castles.

Nowadays, under Eddard's transformation, Downs has become a pragmatic architect, but his dream of wonders remains. Eddard originally thought that having giants help build a new castle would make him happy, but unexpectedly, Downs looked at the giants and revealed fear.

"Lord Eddard, I heard that giants like to eat people, and female giants will snatch handsome men away to be their little lovers. If you let the giants work under me, won't they eat me?"

Eddard smiled, "Rest assured, your small frame isn't enough to fill the gaps in a giant's teeth. The giants have already sworn allegiance to Stark; they will listen to you. This place guards the Wolfswood and the Lonely Mountain, so materials are easy to obtain. This castle must have stables, a forge, and barracks, and the walls must be thick."

After the strong Mag, Leilei, Xixi, and other giant leaders discussed it, they finally arranged for the giant Nene to take one hundred giants and stay at the Long Lake to build the castle.

Because there were simply too many wildlings, many wildlings volunteered, hoping to stay behind to build the castle. In the end, Eddard selected the cave dweller tribe of Doss the Blind. Doss will lead over two thousand cave dwellers to collect and transport stones together with the giants at the Lonely Mountain.

Additionally, there are over two thousand wildlings from the Snow Forest Tribe responsible for felling timber in the Wolfswood. These wildlings originally lived in the Haunted Forest Beyond the Wall and were very familiar with the forest. Many wildlings grinned when they received sharp axes; one must know that axes were extremely precious Beyond the Wall. Many Snow Forest Tribe wildlings had been woodcutters their whole lives and had never used iron axes; they mostly used stone axes.

To the east of the Long Lake is the Lonely Mountain, to the west are the Northern Mountains, and to the north are the Last Hearth and the Wall. The area west of the source of the White Knife at the Lonely Mountain belongs to House Stark, and to the east is the territory of House Bolton of the Dreadfort.

Once Long Lake City north of the Long Lake is completed in the future, Stark's soldiers can reach the Wall, the Last Hearth, and the Northern Mountains faster, and can also reach the Dreadfort and Karhold faster.

Eddard announced the annexation of the lands Beyond the Wall. There are still wildlings Beyond the Wall, but most wildlings followed Eddard and migrated to the territory of Winterfell; the wildlings can hardly pose a threat. The potential enemies threatening the Wall in the future are the Others and foreign enemies coming across the sea; Long Lake City can allow Stark to better support the Wall.

Furthermore, Long Lake City itself can also settle many wildlings. There are very few villages around the Long Lake, and much fertile black soil is left uncultivated. Eddard can settle many wildlings here. In Eddard's plan, this will become a large settlement in the North in the future.

Downs said excitedly, "Lord Eddard, I believe Long Lake City will surely become a majestic and legendary castle, standing for a thousand years like Winterfell. Once we have Long Lake City, House Stark will possess seven castles. Gods above, seven castles is a sacred number; the proud Seven are exactly seven."

"Seven is still not enough to satisfy my appetite." Since there was plenty of manpower, Eddard simply embarked on large-scale construction. Eddard opened the map, and his gaze rested north of White Harbor, where two tributaries of the White Knife converge.

"Downs, once you have planned the castle of Long Lake City, just leave the specific work to the craftsmen to lead the wildlings and giants to do. Your next task is to build me a castle at this place north of White Harbor, where the White Knife converges. The name of this castle shall be Spring City."

Downs blinked, "This place is all fishing villages!"

"This place has huge potential for the future." Eddard gestured on the map, "Look, this is located exactly between Barrowton, Winterfell, and White Harbor. Ships from White Harbor and Winterfell all have to pass through here. I envision that Spring City must span the confluence of the White Knife and possess a shipyard, a fish market, barracks, stables, and a forge."

"Timber and stone can be transported directly to Spring City using the White Knife. I will allocate several thousand more wildlings and several hundred giants to you; anyway, I have an inexhaustible supply of manpower. Spring City must be completed as soon as possible, so that we can also settle the wildlings."

Downs rubbed his hands and admired, "Lord Eddard, your strategic vision is truly astonishing. I couldn't even see the potential of this place. In the future, Spring City will surely be prosperous; this is destined to be a great castle."

"In this way, the number of castles of House Stark actually exceeds seven. Lord Eddard, you are crazier than Brandon the Builder and prouder than the Seven!"

Thanks to "Man You You De You" for the monthly ticket, thank you for the support!

(End of this chapter)