Chapter 230: Splitting and Weakening

The sudden turn of events stunned everyone.

Those newly arrived Free Citizens had originally hoped that Kudorei could serve as the Guard Officer of Wubei Territory, so that they would have someone to rely on in the future.

Yet they never expected that the Lord, who had been relaxed and indifferent just a second ago, would suddenly erupt with Battle Qi and kill someone without any warning.

Looking at the decapitated corpse of Kudorei on the ground—this was an Intermediate Professional Knight, how could he have died in an instant, without even the ability to put up a fight?

They thought of their own plans with Kudorei, and for a moment, their bodies turned ice-cold.

Some of the cowardly ones collapsed directly to the ground, so terrified that they wet their pants;

Others stood there in a daze, unable to react for a moment, at a complete loss;

There were also some who felt fear and knelt on the ground one after another, begging for the Lord's mercy.

Looking at Wilson and the others, after the initial shock came a wave of joy.

Just as they said, how could the Lord possibly let an outsider Intermediate Knight serve as the Guard Officer of Wubei Territory?

Someone like Kudorei wasn't even fit to be a deputy for Maiken.

"Provoking the Lord's authority—he deserved to die!"

Wilson thought indignantly in his heart, and the anger from being slandered by the other party just moments ago finally dissipated.

To Luoning, if Kudorei had merely clashed with Wilson and the others and injured someone, it would not have been a crime punishable by death.

After imposing punishment to serve as a warning to others, he might have even been able to make use of him.

But the man had too many ulterior motives.

Not only did he form cliques and deceive Luoning, the Lord, in front of so many people, but he even joined forces to pressure the Lord for the sake of seeking benefits.

If Luoning took a step back today and let the man go, what would happen if this group pulled the same stunt again in the future?

Andongni was right; Wubei Territory was indeed short of people, and even more short of usable knights.

Luoning welcomed outsiders to join, but he also had his bottom line, and someone like Kudorei was not among those he welcomed.

"What I am willing to give is yours; do not harbor any crooked ideas about what I am not prepared to give."

Luoning's voice was infused with a knight's Battle Qi, resonant and majestic, causing the chaotic, pleading crowd to shut their mouths, one by one, silent as cicadas in winter.

"I understand your little schemes; it is nothing more than making a scene together, hoping to get a larger share of farmland, and if you don't get it, it doesn't matter—did you really think I would kill you all?"

He sneered: "I indeed will not kill you, but I can banish you."

Good news does not leave the gate, but bad news travels a thousand miles.

If he killed this entire group, once the outside world found out, they would likely call the Viscount of Wubei Territory a murderous butcher who dealt ruthlessly with the Free Citizens who came to seek refuge under him.

In that case, those who wanted to come and join Wubei Territory would be deterred, which would be extremely detrimental to the development of the territory.

"I am merciful; I will give you two hours to consider carefully. Those willing to follow arrangements, I allow you to stay; those who are not, then please leave Wubei Territory now!"

Luoning did not linger and turned to leave: "Luogena, you stay behind to maintain order; Wilson, you come with me."

"Understood, my Lord!"

Wilson followed cautiously behind Luoning; he did not know why the Lord had called him over alone—could it be that he was going to be punished for his poor handling of the situation?

The more he thought about it, the more panicked he became.

Although the Lord killing Kudorei made him feel very vindicated, the thought that the Lord could kill an Intermediate Knight in a single breath filled him with dread.

A merciful Lord also had a ruthless side.

"I estimate that not many of these people will leave; for those who stay, you must arrange them separately."

After leaving the crowd, Luoning said as he walked.

"Shanlin Town, Sanfang Town, Zhaoze Town, and Heitu Town—every place is short of people; break them up and distribute them into each town."

Wilson nodded in contemplation; he roughly understood the Lord's intention.

These five hundred-plus people accounted for one-seventh of the population of Shanlin Town; if they stayed together, it would not only be difficult to manage, but it might also cause disputes with the original inhabitants.

Although they posed no threat to Shanlin Castle, the unstable factors in the territory would greatly affect the Lord's development plans and increase the difficulty of Wilson's management.

But if this group were broken up and distributed a little to each town, it would be much easier to manage.

"I understand, my Lord."

Wilson thought for a moment and asked again: "If they are a family, do they need to be separated?"

"If they are a family, then leave them be."

Luoning had not reached the point of splitting people up by family unit; such separation would have no benefit.

"After Maiken returns to the territory, communicate this with them. In the future, when large numbers of outsiders enter the territory, have the Knight Squad arrange cavalry, infantry, and Professional Knights to maintain order on-site. A situation like today's is a slap in the face to the Lord's Manor!"

"Yes!"

Wilson lowered his head, feeling extremely uneasy, "Your subordinate will definitely make proper arrangements in the future!"

"I can still rest easy with how you handle things, but sometimes you need to make more contingency plans."

Luoning's tone softened.

"You are in charge of administration, and Maiken is in charge of defense. Although the two of you belong to different departments, some matters still require cooperation; after all, maintaining order is also part of the territory's defense."

Wilson bowed, "You are right, your subordinate understands."

Luoning waved his hand, letting the other party withdraw to continue the work of settling the Free Citizens, while he returned to Shanlin Castle.

"With more people in the territory, introducing basic regulations is imperative."

Luoning had thought about this before dealing with Kudorei—if he did not kill the man, what kind of method should he use to impose punishment?

The Kingdom had laws, but he had absolutely no idea what the legal provisions were.

The others in the territory did not know either.

"It seems I need to recruit some legal talent."

Formulate legal provisions suitable for Wubei Territory according to needs; when problems arise, there will be something to refer to, and thus there will be a legal basis for punishment.

When Wilson returned to the western square, not a single one of the Free Citizens who had come from Baron Kona's territory had left, even those who had explicitly supported Kudorei just moments ago kept their heads down and did not leave.

Firstly, if they left Shanlin Town, they would have nowhere to rely on; Luoning was willing to give them farmland and provide a low-tax policy, which other territories did not offer.

Secondly, if they left now, they would absolutely not be able to walk out of this forest before dark.

With their strength and physique, spending the night in the forest near the Wushan Magical Beast Mountain Range was an extremely dangerous thing; they dared not even think about it.

Thirdly, and most importantly, they did not know if they would be killed on the spot if they left like this.

After all, the corpse of Kudolei was still lying right there!

To leave meant a high probability of death, while not leaving meant they might still live, so they all stayed.

Had they known it would end in such a result, they would never have listened to Kudolei's call to unify their stories that day.

Some people with slightly clearer minds also realized: where would a down-and-out Wandering Knight have the ability to challenge a Viscount?

"The Lord is merciful; not only will he not hold you accountable for the mistakes you have committed, but he will also treat you according to the policy set previously."

Wilson's words allowed their hanging hearts to settle, and at the same time, some of them began to resent Kudolei in their hearts for having to stir up trouble for no reason.

Wilson let the injured Assistant go back to rest and took the other few Assistants to continue throwing themselves into work.

"Continue the registration now; I will complete your assignments in these two days, and by then, someone will lead you to the respective towns where you will live."

Luogena, who was guarding to the side, heard this arrangement and, after thinking carefully, roughly understood the Lord's purpose.

By splitting and weakening them, this group of people would be easier to manage.

Luogena had once again learned the Lord's way of handling matters, and he could not help but sigh in his heart.

He had always naively viewed bringing people to the Wubei Territory as a simple escort mission, never expecting that this group of people would have such thoughts.

Speaking of this disturbance, it did have an aspect of his own oversight.

Thinking about it now, this group of people had indeed been somewhat dependent on Kudolei along the way, with a faint sense of centering themselves around him.

If he had been vigilant enough, he would have informed Luoning of this matter.

"I still thought too little; I must keep an eye out for such things in the future."

He lowered his head to look at his sword, which had been returned to its sheath; he did not understand why the Lord had used his sword to kill Kudolei just now—was there some hidden intention in it?

"I suppose he is not very satisfied with what I did this time."

In fact, regarding the use of Luogena's sword, it was purely a case of him overthinking.

Luoning simply felt that using the Liuyan Sword to kill Kudolei was giving the other party a bit too much credit. (End of chapter)