Chapter 224: Enclosure Movement

【Dear Mr. Prince Kelin,

It has been a week since you left, I don't know if you are well now?

I wanted to wait longer before writing to you, but apart from you, I really don't know who to tell my troubles to.

I think you should still be on the ship to the Kao continent now. I am not sure if you can receive my letter. If you miss it, don't worry, just treat it as my talking to myself.

Do you remember that I said I wanted to plan an industrial park near the refugee camp? Thanks to you, and thanks to my brother's strong support, this work is progressing very smoothly. Plus, due to the Empire's troop movements stationed in the Twilight Saint Saint Xingsheng, the prices of textiles, ironware, and a series of other products have risen. Various industries, mainly textiles, can be described as booming in the new industrial zone of Lei Ming City.

However, it is precisely because of this that the price of wool on the northeast coast of the Vortex Sea has soared, and many nobles have converted farmland into pastures to pursue higher profits...... especially since my brother's policies have also invisibly promoted this trend. Although these changes have brought about the growth of wealth, they have made me increasingly uneasy about the future.

My subordinates told me that in the Lei Ming County area, a large number of tenant farmers have lost the land they depend on for survival. Not only did their lords not take any measures to guarantee their survival, but they also rudely drove them away from their hometowns where they had lived for generations, forcing them to become refugees.

Many of them once lived a stable life, but now they can only wander around, or squeeze into simple camps. I feel very sad. They are clearly the people of the Campbell Duchy and should live in a peaceful era, but they have to endure the displacement that only exists in wartime like the people in the Twilight Saint Saint Xingsheng.

The only comfort is that the industrial zone outside Lei Ming City can provide them with some jobs. However, the growth rate of those jobs is far behind the speed at which displaced tenant farmers are leaving their homes.

I sought answers from my brother, but he told me that this is a necessary sacrifice. And my brother's staff also warned me not to pour too much emotion into this matter, because the reason why the Lei Ming City industrial zone can grow so fast is because of the influx of displaced tenant farmers far exceeding the growth of jobs. This is the correct cause and effect, and cause and effect cannot be reversed.

I feel very angry. If it is not for the people of the Campbell Duchy to live a happier life, why did my father sacrifice? My brother said that those things are enough to tell outsiders, and the strength of the Campbell family and the Campbell Duchy is the top priority.

These days, Teresa and I often go to the refugee camp outside Lei Ming City to relax, watching that simple camp becoming a new urban area, watching people coming from afar integrating into local life, watching the smiling faces of children chasing and playing...... That is my only comfort in my busy schedule.

However, recently, my only spiritual sustenance has been gradually replaced by other things.

I often hear people complain that the working conditions in the factory are too harsh. They say that those tenant farmers are like locusts pouring into the city, not only able to endure meager pay, but even willing to work hard as long as they are given a bite to eat. And even so, a large number of people can't find work and can only wait for relief in the camp.

I hear children complain that their fathers come back later and later, their eyes are increasingly tired, some people even start to drink heavily, often lose their temper at home, and beat and scold them.

In order to make a living, their mothers have to start working outside, and they can only play by themselves.

In the tradition of the Campbell Duchy, this is not normal. Unlike nobles, they don't have family tutors and can only be educated by their parents, and after reaching a certain age, go to church schools or churches to receive education, or become apprentices of craftsmen. However, there are not enough churches and schools outside Lei Ming City, and there are not so many kind craftsmen. We can only leave those children wandering on the street, or go to the factory with their parents.

The problem is far more than that.

Because of the new industrial zone, the budget of the refugee camp is being consumed rapidly. The original two meals a day have been reduced to one meal a day. And unlike the beginning, the oatmeal porridge is becoming thinner and thinner.

I tried to persuade my brother to provide more funds to help those refugees, but he asked me to simply stop the emergency porridge and invest the remaining money into the factory, claiming that this can truly save them, rather than letting them develop the bad habit of getting something for nothing. But I think it is only natural for a person to receive food from his lord. This is by no means getting something for nothing. That is the obligation of the royal family.

I have asked myself countless times, is this really the kind of change I crave? If the prosperity of a part of people is built on the suffering of the majority, can this prosperity still be called prosperity?

The citizens of Lei Ming City thank me, but after seeing those farmers who lost their land, I can't feel joy from it. Some nobles are dissatisfied because of the uneven distribution of spoils and are complaining to the kingdom, but in fact, they have already gained a lot.

Perhaps my requirements are too high. I hope they will become rich little by little. They will make those who couldn't eat bread eat bread through their own diligence, and those who couldn't eat cake taste the taste of cream, instead of letting those who have already eaten cake take away the only survival resources of the poor, and laugh at those weak people for not working hard enough.

Are my requirements too high?

Or did I or my brother do something wrong from the beginning? Or is there actually a better way......

I hope your wisdom can give me an answer, and it would be even better if you could tell me what to do next.

Sorry, I can only rely on you.

Thank you for listening to so many of my complaints. Writing to you is my only remaining comfort.

——Admiring you, Princess Princess Ailin Campbell.

】

【Dear Her Highness Princess Princess Ailin Campbell,

I have arrived safely in my homeland and received your letter. Your kindness and gentleness and your care for the people of the Duchy moved me. I wish I could return to your side immediately to comfort you.

Supporting the people is the obligation of the royal family. I agree with your point of view very much. This is not only the teaching of Saint Xisi to the first kings in the "Holy Word Book", but also the ancestral motto of the Prince Kelin family.

However, I don't think your brother is wrong.

As a king, he needs to pay attention not to whether one of the people of the Campbell Duchy is happy, but to make the Campbell Duchy more prosperous is his duty, and this is also not failing the sacrifice made by the late king.

Similarly, you are not wrong, it's just that your positions are different, and the scenery you see is also different.

The Campbell Duchy is becoming rich, the wave of industry is in full swing, the port is increasingly busy, people's wallets are becoming bulging, and the royal family's land is also increasingly valuable...... These are all facts that can be seen with the naked eye. And the things you see in the refugee camp are also true. After all, where in this world is there a machine that doesn't need fuel?

Like you, I sympathize with their situation. I don't want to use the word fuel to call them, but in fact, they have indeed burned some things for the Campbell Duchy, such as life, tradition, dreams, and youth and even souls.

This process will be very painful, but the result must be happy. I believe that Duke Edward and the nobles he leads will have a day of satisfaction, and by that time they will definitely be willing to share some of the wealth in their hands with those poor people.

When those farmers who lost their land grow old and see their children no longer have to be cattle and horses for the nobles like themselves, but live a decent life like the citizens of Lei Ming City, embrace the sunshine at eight o'clock in the morning, enjoy a relaxing cup of black tea at noon, and return home before the sun sets to accompany their families.

By that time, I believe they will definitely thank today's hard work. They didn't burn themselves in vain. Thanks to their dedication, their children will be so happy.

Please understand your brother.

In addition, let's talk about something happy. Thanks to your support and the support of His Majesty, the Prince Kelin Duchy is opening up new territories.

At the same time, we discovered something called fertilizer, which can increase the yield of land. Combined with the Empire's steam engines and advanced reclamation tools, I will do my best to help you deal with the impact of the reduction of arable land on the Campbell Duchy.

——Your loyal, Rox Prince Kelin.

】

(Note: Please pass this letter to Her Highness Princess Princess Ailin Campbell in a month.)

The morning sun sprinkled on the horizon, and the farmland outside Yinsong Town was shrouded in a thin mist.

The humid air was filled with the fragrance of soil, but the tenant farmers who were familiar with all this had no time to enjoy this quiet time.

It has been a week since Baron Gess issued the eviction order, but the progress of the relocation is not smooth.

Almost no tenant farmers actively cooperated with the relocation. They deliberately delayed time and even launched retaliatory actions.

The craftsmen hired by the Baron had just built the fence, and they took advantage of the dark night to dismantle the fence.

In addition to these fierce resistances, there were also some relatively gentle "protests".

Some lucky guys, because they couldn't bear to miss the opportunity of spring plowing, secretly sowed the seeds they had hidden.

Those fields were reclaimed by their ancestors with their own hands, perhaps using simple stone tools.

Nobles have noble ancestral mottos, and these farmers have their own traditions, just without surnames and genealogies.

They believe that when the fertile land is covered with green wheat seedlings, Master Gess will extend the relocation date by another year for the sake of money.

However, they didn't know that their gentle or fierce resistance had completely angered Master Gess, who thought he was kind.

Especially when other nobles mocked Baron Gess for not being neat, this matter rose to the height of noble honor, forcing him to take action for the sake of face.

"This trouble is not small, I didn't expect that clown to spend so much money."

On the watchtower of the town, Sheriff Adlai held a telescope, looking at the edge of the thin mist, the corners of his mouth curled up with a cold smile.

Behind the thin mist, two neat rows of soldiers were advancing along the muddy path.

They were wearing light armor, their long spears reflecting the light of the morning sun, and their eyes were as cold as winter.

Although there are a few Steel-tier experts in Baron Gess's manor, they are all good at fighting alone. It's okay to fill the facade, but it's still a bit worse to really go to the battlefield.

These guys are clearly not servants in the manor, but mercenaries who take money to do things.

"Shield-Dropper" Herbar stood trembling beside Adlai, his legs shaking, his face full of fear.

"What happened? Did Master Gess take the wrong medicine...... This is his territory."

Adlai grinned and said coldly.

"But now his tenants are disobedient, isn't it natural to teach them a lesson with a stick?"

Herbar swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

"...... What about us? What should we do......"

If he were asked to pull strong men in the field, he wouldn't even frown, and he would definitely make those lazy guys obedient. But if he were asked to point his gun at his neighbors, or drive them out of town, he couldn't do it no matter what. After all, they were his fellow villagers.

Adlai's face was as heavy as water, and he said softly.

"Nothing to do."

Herbar stared at him, held his breath, and cast his eyes on the approaching troops, finally loosening his trembling fists.

It was not monsters or mountain bandits that came, but the local lord, so they didn't have to ring the bell.

And in fact, this is the right choice.

If they don't choose to turn a blind eye, someone will make them close both eyes.

At the same time, the tenant farmers in the town finally noticed the neat footsteps.

They gathered by the field, their eyes full of undisguised fear and anger.

Baron Gess rode on his horse, looking majestically at the tenant farmers wearing coarse linen clothes, his disdainful eyes burning with anger.

"You ignorant lazy ghosts." He spurred the reins in his hand, the horse's hooves paced forward, the belly supported by the belt shook, and he continued to shout with a loud duck voice, "I gave you enough time to move out of my land, and even gave you the things on the land as compensation, and what did you do? Dismantle my fence? Attack my sheep? Poison the grass? Tsk tsk, is this how you repay my kindness?" Everyone was silent, just staring at him with wide eyes, their pupils filled with anger, shrinking, shame, and fear. Others lowered their heads, staring at their toes, wanting to drill into the soil to escape the fate of this moment.

Smelling the stench of the soil, Gess frowned, his eyes increasingly disgusted and disdainful.

His wife always felt that he was not brave enough, not like a real noble, so he would prove it.

He has honor.

"Do you know how the village next door did it? The baron there is a ruthless character. He used a magic wand to set a fire and burned every house he saw. He told me that the land burned by fire will be more fertile and the grass will grow more lush."

Everyone looked at him in fear, even those who lowered their heads raised their heads in horror.

Watching them finally show the expression they should have, the corners of Baron Gess's mouth curled up with a satisfied smile.

Fighting the Demon King's army alone was too difficult for him, but cleaning up these guys was still very easy for him.

He raised his chin and said in a higher voice.

"Of course, I am kind. Of course, I won't use a magic wand to set fire to your house...... although I have the right and the ability to do so."

He paused, his tone suddenly changed, and a wicked smile curled up at the corner of his mouth.

Everything is in the content!

"However, relatively speaking, I have prepared other gifts for you."

As soon as the voice fell, he clapped his hands.

A mage in robes walked out of the mercenary team and took off the hood on his head.

That was a Half-Elf with a handsome face and a high nose, and a head of light golden hair.

Not only that.

He also has the natural affinity endowed by his Half-Elf bloodline, as well as the natural magic he learned later.

"...... Seeds sleeping in the earth, please obey my command, the fertile soil is yours to take, please turn this place into an endless grassland."

He chanted incantations in his mouth, the magic wand embedded with malachite in his hand was slightly raised, and at the same time, he uncovered the bag hanging on his waist.

A breeze blew, countless tiny seeds were scattered in the field, and in an instant, they sprouted, turning into wild grass, vines, and thorns, and spread rapidly toward the outside!

"No!!!"

John, carrying a hoe, wailed in despair and rushed up to stop it, but was easily pressed to the ground by the soldiers.

And at the same time, the surrounding farmers watched in horror as the land where they had lived for generations was easily torn apart by the crazy vines, and the nutrients in the soil were quickly drained by the crazy weeds.

In just a few breaths, the lush grass covered the entire field, swallowing up the wheat seedlings that had not yet developed!

A drop of sweat flowed from the Half-Elf's forehead, he raised his sleeve and wiped it gently, then looked proudly toward Baron Gess.

The latter nodded with a smile and clapped gently.

"Not bad."

Although natural magic is not very good for farming, and crops only grow tall and don't bear fruit, it is perfect for opening up lawns!

This was an idea he thought of on the spur of the moment. Although other nobles were ruthless, they were far less clever and flexible than him.

Of course, as his prestige spread, other nobles would probably imitate it soon.

Just like when he appeared at the banquet wearing white silk, he also led this wave of fashion at that time.

Looking at John who was pressed to the ground, Jimmy walked up trembling, looking at Master Gess in despair.

"...... This land is our lifeblood, without it...... where can we go?"

"Get lost!" Gess cursed, staring at this guy who didn't know the height of the sky and the thickness of the earth, "This is my land, the land of the Gess family, it has never belonged to you for a minute! My ancestors just allowed you to farm on this land, and you took this place as your own territory? This is the last warning, I give you...... the last three days! And as punishment for your delay during this time, I will dismantle your doors and windows...... and the bed too!"

Gess finally softened a bit, and didn't go down to kill, even though he did have such plans at the beginning...... After all, other nobles did the same, and he wouldn't have too much psychological burden.

Perhaps his wife was right, he was indeed not a qualified noble, and the extraordinary power bestowed by his ancestors was completely wasted by him.

But none of this matters anymore.

Later he will move into the city and never have to deal with these muds again.

That will be a truly decent life. He can focus on the banquets he likes and deal with decent gentlemen and ladies.

Even if he returns here again, it must be with his family to go outing on the lawn, not to smell the annoying pig dung.

He waved his hand, signaled the mercenaries to move forward, and let the Half-Elf mage continue to cast spells.

He spent a lot of money to invite these people over, so he couldn't let this money be spent in vain.

The mercenaries began to act.

They had no feelings for the locals. For the tenant farmers who blocked the way, they gave a punch or a kick, and then picked up the things in their hands and smashed everything that could be smashed in their homes.

These poor ghosts had nothing valuable in their homes to loot, so they naturally wouldn't spend too much time distinguishing between doors, windows, and tables.

They only knew that only by completing the mission beautifully could they get the reward from Baron Gess.

The roar of anger and the miserable begging were one after another, and the outside of Yinsong Town was like hell.

Old Adam's legs were like lead, his eyes looked at the farmhouse dismantled into junk, listening to the wailing and crying of his wife and children, as if he had lost his language.

The lame carpenter Tom chose to fight them, holding a musket and rushing out.

He probably didn't want to live, and indeed didn't want to live, actually trying to assassinate the mage with a fire stick.

As a result, the Half-Elf just waved his magic wand gently and unloaded the other leg that he had left.

Fortunately, Baron Gess only paid for teaching them a lesson, so that elegant Half-Elf didn't kill anyone.

The residents of the town closed their windows and doors tightly, silent as cicadas, not even daring to go out and take a look.

And those adventurers were also silent, and could only stand in a safe place and watch silently.

Their hometown is not here, and this matter has nothing to do with them.

Actually, Master Gess is not bad.

It's just smashing some things, not killing people...... Otherwise, he could do it more neatly, far from having so many screams, and maybe he would let the gods in the dark hear it.

"Shield-Dropper" Herbar wiped the sweat on his head and prayed silently that his friends would be okay.

And that old Abel, that stupid "Shoe-Dropper", the poor ghosts in the tavern always mocked them as a pair, one dropping shields and one dropping shoes. Although he was very annoyed by this, he still didn't want that guy to really have an accident.

That was one of the few fun things he had after work.

"Saint Xisi is above...... Please bless him. That guy is a good man, although a bit cunning, but he doesn't deserve this."

Sheriff Adlai didn't speak, just watched everything happening outside the town silently, watching Baron Gess laughing loudly on his horse.

The Demon King was right.

This guy is a born demon.

But at the same time, he was also convinced that Saint Xisi might really not see anything.

Perhaps that existence is like the Emperor of the Empire, who can only see that piece of land under the steps.

And the Empire is too big.

Even the capital of the Ryan Kingdom is far enough from the Emperor's knees.

Let alone here......

"...... If the Demon King invades, Yinsong Town probably won't even be able to gather 2,000 conscripts." Herbar muttered in a low voice, looking at Sheriff Adlai who was indifferent on the side, and said with difficulty. "Does His Majesty not care?"

Adlai's mouth curled up with a smile.

Before seeing Edward's military power, his loyalty to the Demon King was still a bit wavering.

But now, that bit of anxiety has vanished.

"Aren't there those 'pious' mercenaries? Why are you worrying about that lord."

After dropping this sentence, he held the ladder and left the watchtower.

He couldn't bear to see this miserable picture.

He has to go to the church to pray for a while.

(End of this chapter) ===== CHAPTER 225 =====