Chapter 293: Setting Off

When Luoning suggested to Weijinsi that day that the population of Wubei Territory was insufficient, the latter promised to gather ten or twenty thousand people and also let Kabier transfer some from Cuican City, though no specific number was mentioned at the time.

Luoning had originally thought five or six thousand would be quite good, but he never expected Kabier to gather ten thousand for him, and to have them ready a step ahead of Weijinsi.

It was evident that Kaerbi was very attentive to the affairs of his brother-in-law; the other party's attitude toward Luoning had not been like this before.

The reason for this was that Luoning's current status, position, and strength had undergone earth-shaking changes compared to the past.

Before Luoning was stripped of his inheritance rights, Kabier's situation had been somewhat awkward.

After all, if Buleidun were to inherit the title of Marquis in the future, as the Regiment Commander of the Wushan Castle Knights, the person he would owe allegiance to would be Buleidun.

This was not actually a problem; the key was that the other party was Maijinni's sister and Luoning's brother-in-law.

If the Haide Family had any designs on him, his situation would become as passive as that of Viscount Mawen of Muma City.

The actual situation was indeed so; his relationship with Balindun was not good, and with the recent dispute over command, the extent to which they looked down on each other had grown even greater.

Now that Luoning had risen strongly and had the high regard of Lulansi, Kabier's worries about the Haide Family naturally diminished.

It was precisely because of this that he valued Luoning's affairs and looked forward to Luoning marrying into the Auduin Family, which was why Maijinni had specifically sent Ailin away and cautioned Luoning.

Luoning felt some resistance toward others interfering with his actions; after all, his freedom was being hindered.

However, he also knew that Maijinni's warning was reasonable.

Although his predecessor's various experiences were not glorious, there had been no plans to marry into the royal family back then, so being a bit of a playboy was fine.

Now that the outside world could guess about the marriage, although there was truly nothing between Luoning and Ailin, if someone with ulterior motives used this to spread rumors and smear him, it would be hard to defend himself.

The night passed without incident.

Early the next morning, Luoning specifically went to express his gratitude to Kabier and build rapport.

Afterward, he visited Weijinsi to finalize the approximate time for picking up the people.

Luoning prepared to transport all twenty-five thousand of them back to Wubei Territory.

With these people, the construction of Wubei Territory, the reclamation of farmland, and the expansion of mulberry fields could all be greatly improved.

As for the mining of the Chishan Iron Mine, he believed that with the population supplement from Jushi Territory, there should be no problem.

After handling these matters, Luoning bade farewell to Lulansi and left Wushan Castle with the handwritten letter the latter had written to His Majesty Bruno.

On the mountain behind, Kaierluosi was already waiting there; as a Mounting Dragon, it was dutiful and responsible.

"Come."

Luoning reached out his hand, preparing to pull Ailin up.

Throughout this journey, the other party had remained silent, a stark contrast to her usually lively personality.

Ailin hesitated for a moment, but ultimately, considering she could not get up on her own, she reached out her hand and was pulled onto the dragon's back.

She had been filled with excitement when she came, but she was downcast and passive on the way back.

Once on the dragon's back, she prepared to distance herself from Luoning a little—not because the other party's embrace wasn't warm, but because such behavior was not very appropriate.

"If you keep moving around, Kaierluosi won't be happy," Luoning teased with a smile, pulling her into his arms.

Ailin struggled a bit but couldn't break free, so she had to let herself be held like that.

"My Lord, this isn't very good. If someone sees us, it will affect your reputation and make His Majesty the King dislike you."

Luoning couldn't help but laugh, "You even changed how you address me; did my sister Maijinni tell you to do this too?"

"No, I just happened to hear the nobles discussing it outside when I left the banquet hall yesterday."

It really is true that no matter where you go, there are always people discussing others behind their backs.

He smiled and deliberately held the girl tighter: "Seeing you looking listless the whole way, did you not sleep well last night?"

Ailin hummed an acknowledgment; it wasn't just that she hadn't slept well for one night—she hadn't really slept at all.

"Thinking too much about some things will only increase your troubles; it's better to cherish the present and get a good sleep in my arms."

Ailin turned her head to look at Luoning and seemed to muster the courage to ask: "Then will you leave me, my Lord?"

Luoning looked at the cherry lips so close at hand and the expectant look in her eyes, and couldn't help but raise his hand to flick her nose: "I won't."

Such an intimate gesture made Ailin's face flush to her ears in a flash, and she even kept her eyes tightly shut, not daring to open them.

Luoning couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Get some good sleep."

She didn't dare to speak anymore and could only turn to the side, hiding against Luoning's chest and pretending to fall asleep.

Luoning didn't know what kind of feeling could be called love; he only knew that he felt quite happy when he was with Ailin, just like when they had a snowball fight at Shanlin Castle last winter—he even found back the feeling of living on Earth.

As for questions about marriage or lovers, just as he said, thinking too much would only increase troubles; since he had already transmigrated, he should at least live a relaxed and happy life.

Kaierluosi spread its wings and glided steadily at high altitude, returning to Zhaozebao before long.

It had been nearly twenty days since the withdrawal of troops; apart from Ruidar, Qiaofuli, and others who were left in Chishan Town, Maiken, Luogena, and the others had already returned to Wubei Territory.

In the fortress hall of Zhaozebao, Luoning summoned Wilson, Chahaer, Maiken, and the others, and informed everyone that he had been promoted to Earl of Wubei Territory and had acquired the two exclaves of Jushi Territory and Chishan Town.

This naturally drew cheers and celebrations from his followers; from Baron to Earl, the higher the achievements of the lord they followed, the greater the benefits for them in the future.

Luogena and Kelami looked at each other, both seeing the emotion in each other's eyes.

Although the first Baron had not yet appeared in Wubei Territory, they could feel that Viscount Mawen's decision to have them follow Luoning was a wise choice.

Besides announcing this, Luoning also had to reward the knights and soldiers who had followed him on the expedition.

His rewards were naturally not titles.

Not to mention whether he was willing to grant titles and land, even with the military merits of this battle, not even Ruidar was enough to be made a Baron.

Therefore, Luoning's reward was money—giving everyone three months' salary as compensation for this campaign.

Three months' salary as a bonus might not sound like much, but it added up to nearly six hundred gold coins, which was not a small amount.

Plus, the followers also had some spoils of war they had gathered on the battlefield, so overall, no one was at a loss.

"Next, I am going to Wangdu. Except for Dawei and Tangmu who will accompany me, I will have tasks arranged for the rest of you."

Dawei and Tangmu were stunned for a moment, then immediately revealed excited smiles.

Wangdu—a place they had never dreamed of going, and now they actually had the chance to go there!

The others could not help but show expressions of envy; first, they envied them for having such an opportunity, and second, they envied that these two were so highly valued by the lord.

Sometimes, status is not determined by one's position, but by how close one is to the center of power.

As long as Dawei and Tangmu do not make any major mistakes and their strength remains high in the future, they will achieve great things.

Next, Luoning went over the main responsibilities for everyone.

Maiken is to take two Knights and a squad of Infantry to take over Jushi Territory, while the administration there will be presided over by Administrator Sailin, who will bring along several newly trained Assistants;

All administrative affairs of Wubei Territory will be presided over by Wilson and Chahaer, with Aierlong, Jennie, and others holding the fort.

Luogena's next task is to safely transport all twenty-five thousand people provided by Weijinsi and Kabier back to Wubei Territory.

In addition to administrative matters, Luoning also arranged for the expansion of the military.

Although Ruidar is about to take over the Wushan Castle Fifth Knight Order, Wubei Territory needs to have its own Knight Squad.

Generally speaking, a standard Count possesses at least one Knight Order; Luoning currently only has one Knight Squad, which is far from enough.

Therefore, both Wubei Territory and Jushi City must recruit enough soldiers for training.

However, compared to training ordinary soldiers, the shortage of Professional Knights is the key issue.

Luoning can only rely on Luogena traveling to various places to promote the policies of Wubei Territory and then select suitable Knights to join.

This is destined not to be something that can be accomplished quickly. (End of chapter)