Chapter 292: Planning and Admonitions

Luoning returned to his room feeling groggy, not because he had drunk too much, but because he was exhausted from socializing with the endless stream of people who came to greet him.

Attended by the servants of Wushan Castle, he took a bath and changed into clean clothes, only then feeling a sense of relief.

He summoned the system and checked the achievement interface.

【Famous Throughout the World】: A noble title is both a symbol of status and a manifestation of strength. Please strive to become a Marquis. Reward: Attribute Point +1500, Energy Essence +3000.

"Being a Marquis is not easy."

There are only two ways for Luoning to become a Marquis.

The first is to inherit the Marquis title of Wushan Castle.

Although Lulansi is willing to let him regain the right of inheritance, having the right of inheritance and actually becoming a Marquis are two different things.

In this world, generally speaking, only when a noble dies can his descendants inherit his title and territory.

In other words, if Luoning wants to become a Marquis through inheritance, he must first wait for Lulansi to die, and then wait for Weijinsi to die.

Not to mention how much longer Lulansi can live, take Weijinsi for example; although he lost a leg, with the physical constitution of an Advanced Knight, there is no problem with him living another twenty or thirty years if there are no accidents.

If Luoning wants to wait for Weijinsi to die before inheriting the Marquis title, that would likely be forty or fifty years from now.

What's more, he doesn't want Lulansi to die at all.

As long as the Soul Devouring Surge in the old Marquis's body can be removed, with Lulansi's Meteor-level strength, there is no problem with him living for several more decades.

Therefore, this path does not have much feasibility.

Besides inheritance, the second path is ennoblement.

Lulansi is a Marquis; he does not have the authority to ennoble his vassals as Marquises.

If Luoning wants to be granted the title of Marquis, he can only seek to perform meritorious service for the Royal Family, thereby having His Majesty the King grant it to him.

Although he is a vassal of Wushan Castle, Wushan Castle owes allegiance to the Auduin Royal Family; in this situation, he can perfectly well serve as the Earl of Wubei Territory while also pledging allegiance to the King, and obtain additional fiefs from the Royal Family.

An Earl of Wubei Territory and a Marquis of the Kingdom—such a situation can theoretically exist.

"Looking at it this way, the marriage alliance with Blanche is even more critical."

Marrying the Princess is of great help to Luoning.

If nothing else, at least it connects him to Auduin. If it weren't for Blanche, Luoning would likely find it difficult even to meet His Majesty the King.

"But even so, wanting to become a Marquis is extremely difficult."

Luoning sighed.

From Baron to Viscount to Earl, although he performed meritorious service, he had the halo of status, and Lulansi opened a green channel for him, which allowed him to rise in rank so quickly;

but if placed at the level of the Kingdom, there are no shortcuts to becoming a Marquis of the Kingdom.

He does not think Blanche has enough influence to make His Majesty Bruno cheat for him.

"It seems I will be wearing this Earl title for Along time."

Luoning's gaze swept past the 【King of Slaughter】 and 【Wealthy】 achievements, and looked at the remaining two achievements:

【Population Prosperity】: The registered population of the territory reaches 30,000. Reward: Attribute Point +300, Energy Essence +600.

【Gongchengluedi】: Simultaneously possess two cities. Reward: Attribute Point +400, Energy Essence +800.

The census of Chishan Town is likely already done, but the total population is probably still a bit short of 30,000.

However, if the Jushi Territory and all the people Weijinsi and Kabier gathered are counted, the population in Luoning's territory will definitely exceed the 50,000 mark.

Luoning thought about how he, an Earl, sits on such a large territory but has such a small population, and he felt a bit embarrassed for himself.

"The population of Chishan Town exceeds 10,000; according to the system mechanism, it should satisfy the conditions for Gongchengluedi. This achievement can actually be completed before setting off for Jinyu City."

As for the census of Jushi Territory, it probably won't be finished in the short term.

It will take at least ten days for the Administrator Sailin to travel from Wubei Territory to Jushi Territory.

"Ruidar needs to participate in and take over the Fifth Knight Order, and will be stationed in Anbian City in the future. I have just taken over Jushi Territory, and I need someone trustworthy to guard it and coordinate the defense of Chishan Town."

After some thought, among his three subordinates, Luoning can only let Aierlong sit in Wubei Territory to lead and develop his Magic Potion experiments; and let Maiken take some people to Jushi Territory to assist in the defense of Chishan Town.

As for the training of the guards in Wubei Territory, it can probably only be handed over to Zhuweite, Ximu, and others who have followed Maiken and Ruidar for Along time.

Although they are not as good as Ruidar and Maiken, they are at least Professional Knights and have undergone training in military discipline; there should be no problem with them conducting preliminary training for the Wubei Territory guards.

As for actual combat, Ruidar and Maiken will still need to come back every few days to check the results and provide guidance.

The key is still that there are too few people under his command.

"I must have those two bring me more people."

The figures of the two Advanced Knights, Qiaofuli and Luogena, flashed through Luoning's mind, but in the end, he decided against calling them back.

Future wars will definitely take place in the south; let them learn more from Ruidar and Maiken, and in the future, they can also travel between Wubei Territory and Jushi Territory to lead teams and guide training.

"It's fortunate that there are no hostile forces around Wubei Territory; usually, I only need to maintain public order. Otherwise, I wouldn't have enough people to distribute."

Knock, knock~

The door was knocked.

Luoning frowned; who would be looking for him so late?

However, he didn't have Dawei and Tangmu with him this time, so he had to open the door himself.

The door opened, and he saw Maijinni, who had changed into a more casual long dress.

"I hope I didn't disturb you so late, my dear brother."

Luoning spread his hands: "Obviously you did; I was already preparing to sleep."

"Won't you invite me in to sit for a while?"

Luoning stepped aside and smiled: "Welcome."

He knew that Maijinni must have something to say coming over so late, and he was quite curious.

"Speak, sister, what is the matter that you are looking for me so late?"

Maijinni glanced into the bedroom, then sat down on a chair in the room: "You are much more steady than before; I thought you would be sleeping with your Magician."

"Please, Ailin is just a fourteen-year-old girl."

"At fourteen, one is already old enough to marry."

Maijinni emphasized this, then said: "The outside world speculates that she is your lover."

Luoning shook his head helplessly: "I only brought her out to see the world and broaden her horizons. However, I can't help how people on the outside view it."

As the saying goes, right and wrong are forced by others, and black and white are hard to distinguish; such matters cannot be explained clearly and will only become more muddled the more one tries to clarify them.

"Mother died early and didn't teach you much, and you didn't study much in the past, so now I can only be the one to remind you. Once your status rises, you cannot handle certain matters so casually."

Maijinni said earnestly: "You are about to enter into a marriage alliance with Princess Blanche. Before things are finalized, if news spreads that you are keeping a young lover, even if it isn't the truth, it will damage the royal family's reputation."

Her tone became solemn: "You have brought hope to the Wushan Family. If your reputation is affected by such matters, or if the marriage alliance even becomes unfeasible, the loss to you and the Wushan Family would be immense!"

Luoning frowned; although the feeling of being lectured was unpleasant, what Maijinni said was indeed reasonable.

"Ailin left the banquet very early; did you say something to her?"

Maijinni nodded: "She is very smart. I only mentioned the matter of you and Blanche, and she quickly left the banquet hall. Although you might blame me, I was indeed worried that you would invite her to dance and then perform actions like kissing."

Luoning sighed, "Your worries are unnecessary."

"That would be for the best!"

Maijinni smiled: "Many nobles have lovers, and even your brother-in-law Kabier might have one, but do not let these matters affect your future, Luoning."

"Thank you for your advice; I will keep it in mind."

Luoning did not blame the other party for talking nonsense, because she was also considering things for his sake.

"It's just a pity; I originally intended to bring Ailin to see the world, but I didn't expect these rumors to affect her mood."

Maijinni shook her head: "That little girl has feelings for you; I can tell. It's just that she is somewhat ignorant and perhaps hasn't even realized it herself?"

She stood up, "Alright, I have finished what I had to say. I heard you are about to set off for Jinyu City; I wish you a pleasant journey."

"Oh, that's right. During this time, I have already prepared the people Kabier promised you, a total of ten thousand. You should arrange for someone to go to Cuican City to take them away as soon as possible."

Hearing this, Luoning smiled: "Thank you, sister, and brother-in-law Kabier!" (End of chapter)