Knight Lord: Start with Daily Intelligence.

Chapter 242: Signing Unequal Treaties and Establishing a Suzerain-Vassal Tribute Trade System
After Su Li learned that Hildurd had won four battles in a row and had severely defeated the army of tree demons, he was basically relieved.

After several days and nights of forced march, the remaining monster army was less than 5000 in size. This meant that when Marshal Orstein led 800 golden heavy armored cavalrymen and emerged from the horizon under the scorching sun, with the cold light of scarlet flags and spears shining on the distant sky, the remaining monster army would become fragments trampled by human iron hooves.

Victory was already in the bag, and the intensity of the battle might not even be stronger than when Commander Hildurd's pursuers forcibly defeated the Dryad Legion.

But just as Su Li was happily waiting for good news, the fact proved that the fantasy of this world directly crushed the limits of his thinking!
When he heard the military intelligence personally relayed by Champion Druid Fandral, he was so shocked that he didn't even care about his injuries. He sat up from the bed and asked, "What do you mean our human and green dragon coalition is heading towards the dragon's nest?!"

Humans! Green Dragons! Allied Forces!

How are these three words connected?

This was even more difficult for him to accept than commanding the dwarf troops to massacre humans in recent days.

The dwarf troops were not caught off guard during this pursuit because of their well-known poor mobility.

This Redbeard Clan's troops were stationed outside the city of Hesseburg, responsible for cleaning up the battlefield and suppressing the riots.

It can be said that after the city was burned down, Su Li, the human lord, relied entirely on the help of the dwarf army of the Redbeard Clan to stabilize his shaky rule, suppress the large number of thugs who took advantage of the fire to loot, and restore order in the territory.

This already made him feel a little magical, as if he, the lord, was supported by the army sent by the dwarf clan.

But now, compared to the news that Fandral brought back, the things that happened in the territory that almost overturned his three views seemed so insignificant!

He immediately stared at Fandral and said, "My Minister, are you sure you're not playing some ridiculous joke on me? Just a few days ago, we were forging mountains and rivers with our flesh and blood to fight against the Green Dragon's legions. How come in just a few days, we're standing with the Green Dragons? What exactly happened on the front lines?"

How could such a huge change happen in just a day or two? Just before, he had received accurate intelligence from Hirud that the main force of humanity was launching a fierce attack on the Green Dragon Legion.

There was no way the two sides could have suddenly shaken hands and made peace. Even if the front suddenly rebelled, it was impossible for both legions to rebel at the same time.

Fandral quickly took out the wine jug from his body and handed it to Su Li. One of the two laurel gems in the territory had always been on the priest.

"Lord, please calm down. Drink some medicinal wine first to recover from your injuries. Steward Hildreth specifically asked me to come back because he heard about your injuries and wanted to provide you with more powerful treatment."

"The intensity of the fighting on the front lines hasn't changed at all. The situation is developing as we predicted before the war. In fact, the intensity of the fighting has reached its peak since the beginning of the war. In a fierce surprise attack, Marshal Orlstein directly killed the most important pillar of the Green Dragon Throne, the elemental giant bear Ostanka."

After listening to Fandral's more detailed report, Su Li finally breathed a sigh of relief, drank a sip of medicinal wine, and felt his whole body refreshed.

It seems that the development of the situation is the same as expected, and there is no change. If there is any deviation from expectations, it can only be said that the ending is more perfect. When Marshal Orstein proposed this tactic, he did not dare to imagine that he could directly kill Ostanka in battle.

Now that another Chosen One has been killed under the Throne of Thorns, it means that the monster army has become weaker than expected, and the human coalition can make further attempts to advance into the forest.

"Then what's going on with the alliance with the Green Dragon when everything is going so smoothly and nothing has changed much?"

Fandral immediately explained, "Precisely because everything went so smoothly, the forest forces underwent a drastic coup. With the death of the giant elemental bear, the green dragon suffered a severe blow and was defeated at the foot of the Black Forest. Having lost its dignity and prestige, the green dragon Alyria could no longer maintain its rule. While it was still trying to stop our human coalition, the Chaos Monster Chimera had already fled the battlefield and led the rebels straight to the green dragon's lair!"

Upon hearing this, Su Li clenched his fists. If Chimera Scarros really led the rebels to the Dragon's Nest first, it would surely sweep away most of the treasures in the Dragon's Nest.

That means that after Su Li paid such a terrible price to win, he was unable to get any compensation from the victory!

This was something Su Li could not accept no matter what. Wouldn't that mean that he and the Green Dragon were fighting each other, and Skarros, the ugly and evil fool, would be the one who benefited in the end?
Thinking of this, Su Li pondered and said, "Then forming an alliance with the Green Dragon and marching towards the Dragon's Lair is not impossible. At least we can stop the Chaos Monster Chimera from taking away all the wealth. Is the journey smooth?"

Fandral shook his head regretfully and said, "It wasn't going well. As soon as we entered the forest, we encountered numerous ambushes. It was really difficult to move forward. We always knew that it would be difficult to penetrate the forest, but we never expected this Chaos monster to secretly collude with a large number of Howling Beasts."

"As servants of Chaos, Beastmen have a close connection with the Chaos monster Chimera. When Chimera announced its rebellion against the Green Dragon, a large number of Beastmen in the forest gathered under its command."

Beastmen are also known as the Sons of Chaos. They habitually travel in groups of wandering war beasts, appearing in the forests and wastelands of the Old World, as well as the suburban areas of human countries. The dense forests are the hardest hit areas for Beastmen, and traces of beast nests can be found everywhere.

No matter where you travel, live, or go in the Old World, the Beastmen will always be by your side.

Su Li was not surprised to see a group of beastmen gathered in the forest. The reason they did not join the war against the Black Forest Territory was because they were naturally hostile to creatures like green dragons and elves.

But when a Chaos Chosen one issues a call and asks them to ambush outsiders who enter the forest, they will surely flock to it.

Fandral frowned, his face solemn. "Furthermore, these monsters are very adept at ambushes. Human soldiers can be dragged into the dense forest if they lose their sight for more than a few dozen meters. Our legions have experienced countless fierce battles and suffered heavy casualties. Each legion is already in tatters and in urgent need of rest and recuperation. We simply cannot withstand such attrition."

As the lord, Su Li is of course very familiar with the current situation of the territory. It can be said that the status and will of the territory's army have reached their limits and they urgently need to withdraw to rest. Now they are forcing an attack into the forest, and every meter of advancement can be said to be paid at the price of blood.

Even the most brutal knight had to admit that it was an extremely ruthless decision to continue allowing this army to forcibly attack into the forest when the medicine had been exhausted and the armor had been largely damaged.

So Su Li asked, "So we decided to stop fighting the Green Dragon and deal with the Chaos Monster Chimera first? Is this kind of truce agreement so easy to reach? It's too much of a joke."

Fandral smiled wryly, shook his head, and said solemnly, "This is no joke at all. On the contrary, it's completely ironic and cruel. Our alliance with the Green Dragons is the result of a discussion between Steward Hilde and Marshal Orlstein. They sent me back to report to you and seek your instructions."

"Because when the Chimera rebelled, the Green Dragon and this Chaos monster were caught in a civil war in the forest. They actually sent messengers to win over us humans and ask us to help them deal with the other forces in the forest."

"The green dragon promised us that if we defeated the Chaos Monster Chimaera, it would give us half of the Dragon's Nest treasure, which would be worth no less than 10 gold crowns as war reparations. It also signed a series of treaties with us. These included allowing us to station troops in the Blood Mist Hills, build Storm Shadow Fortress, cede over 1000 miles of core resource areas east of the hills, including Silver Valley, Flower Language Spring, and Lake Essonide, and promised to restrain its troops from sieging the fortress. Furthermore, after defeating the Chimaera, it would give us two more rare treasures."

"The Chaos Monster Chimera promised that if we allied with it and repelled the Green Dragon, it would give us 60% of the Dragon's Nest treasure as war reparations. It would also cede all the forest territory west of the Dragon's Nest to us. If we were to face war, it would even sign a mercenary contract with us and fight for our territory."

After listening to the treaties offered by the two parties, Su Li couldn't help but be shocked. Political struggles are indeed sometimes more harmful than military defeats.

From the outset, the forest faction was internally unstable, scheming against each other for their own interests. When they were strong, they could profit from external plunder, somewhat masking their internal conflicts. However, once their external expansion failed or they suffered a major military setback, they inevitably resorted to selling out their own interests.

It can be said that the forest forces maintained a huge advantage over the Hessen Territory until the last day of the decisive battle.

If they had been a little more united, Hilde might have been killed in battle and the Hesse Territory would have been destroyed long ago.

But in the end they ended up with this sad ending.

Such a powerful force collapsed in the process of external expansion. It was once powerful and glorious, and once as powerful as a tiger, but in the end it could only survive, relying on collusion with powerful enemies to attack opponents and maintain its rule, barely maintaining a ruined forest situation.

This made Su Li sigh with emotion, and then he said to Fandral, "Both Steward Hilde and Marshal Orstein think we should help the Green Dragon?"

Fandral nodded and said, "This is what the Minister of State, Oliver, told her when Steward Hilde launched his counterattack. Even before the war, His Excellency Oliver, the Chosen One, had carefully strategized and deduced that the monster army was likely to revolt or stage a coup."

"But no matter which faction of monsters allies with us, we must choose the one that agrees with our stationing of troops. Completely defeating the enemy or not entering the forest at all is not a favorable situation for us."

"The Blood Pine Forest is too vast and fertile. If we can't restrain a force and make it serve as our barrier, then within six months, any monster that occupies this vast forest will pose a terrible threat to us."

Su Li was cheered up when he heard this, and he immediately had more respect for Oliver's wisdom.

This is the talent of a king's assistant who can help him achieve great things and establish the foundation of his hegemony! He is truly a genius who can govern the country and benefit the world.

This strategic plan is undoubtedly very clear.

If humans win this war but are completely unable to expand their influence into the Blood Pine Forest, it will undoubtedly be a strategic defeat, and even the entire war cannot be called a victory.

The dense forest is like the grassland in the north of the Eastern Dynasty. Even if the farming humans defeat the monsters in the forest, they cannot survive in the forest for a long time.

The green dragon can easily recuperate in it, and a large number of monsters will flow in from other directions of the forest to hunt and survive. At that time, these monsters will be under the command of the green dragon, and soon the size of the green dragon's minions will quickly expand, and once again pose a fatal threat to the Black Forest Territory.

Even by then, the recovery speed of human territory might not be as fast as that of the green dragon! If another war were to take place, Su Li wouldn't be sure of winning.

The victory in this battle with the Green Dragon was at least 50% or even 60% due to the fierce infighting within the Green Dragon Legion.

However, it would not work if humans completely wiped out the Green Dragon forces or occupied the western part of the Blood Pine Forest, because humans do not have the ability to occupy such a vast area.

Humanity can still barely hold back the forces from the western Blood Pine Forest. If this barrier is lost, who knows what strength the forces from within the forest will have when they infiltrate next time.

If they were relatively weak, it would be fine. At most, they would continue to harass humans, causing them to suffer the damage of living in this unsuitable environment in the forest every month.

But if they become extremely powerful and integrate the vast land west of the Blood Pine Forest, then the territory will be like a hungry wolf being driven away from the front door, and a fierce tiger coming in from the back door!
Su Li didn't want to experience the situation of just escaping from the dragon's den and falling into the tiger's den.

This desperate situation is very likely to occur in this world, because the green dragon is far from the most dangerous creature in the forest. There are also a large number of minotaurs and powerful dragon apes among the chaotic creatures and beastmen.

This is why Hilde and Orstein both chose the Green Dragon instead of the Chaos Monster Chimera, because after killing the Green Dragon, this Chaos Monster is very likely to merge with other Chaos creatures and summon a large number of Beastmen and Dragon Apes.

The agreement signed with the Green Dragon was just right. It ceded the most fertile land and the most resource-rich mining areas in the western part of the Blood Pine Forest to the Black Forest Territory, and allowed humans to build fortresses and station troops in strategic locations.

Humans naturally hope to support this force to continue maintaining this vast forest land.

But Su Li was also afraid of raising a tiger that would harm him. If this force was not controlled well and allowed to recuperate, and then it became a desperate situation, then the Heisen Territory would also be in disaster.

So Su Li pondered for a moment and said to Fandral, "Let Dean Oliver come over. I will discuss with him how to weaken and control this green dragon."

Oliver is very busy now. This brutal war and the fire that burned the city have almost completely destroyed the ruling order of the territory. The territory is full of wounded soldiers. They are so weak that they cannot even suppress the thugs and rebels who took advantage of the fire to loot. They have to rely on the help of the dwarves to maintain order.

As the director of the provincial government, he was so busy that he had no time to spare. He had to count casualties, resettle the wounded, calculate the losses, repatriate farmers and herdsmen, maintain prices, and quell public grievances.

When order is destroyed, finance, medical care, agriculture and commerce all collapse, and recovery requires several times the energy.

Oliver hadn't slept for several days and nights. After listening to Su Li's greedy and demanding thoughts with dark circles under his eyes, he instantly sobered up a bit and asked, "My Lord, are you brewing another war? You want the green dragon to pay us a tribute of 500 golden crowns every month? Every tribute is like cutting flesh from the greedy green dragon's heart!"

"I think if you really add this clause to the treaty, even if the Green Dragon signs it now, he will definitely be filled with resentment and fight us desperately in the future."

Hearing this, Su Li pondered for a moment. Is it really not feasible to add a tribute clause to the treaty signed with Green Dragon?
However, according to the conventions of this world, the defeated party must not only pay a one-time reparations, but also pay a tribute every year.

The green dragon should pay the price for its defeat. Moreover, it is in urgent need of human help to defeat the rebels in the forest. If we don't take the opportunity to greatly weaken it now, there will be no such good opportunity in the future.

So Su Li frowned and said, "But we can't rely on the opponent's weakness and composure. If we want real long-term peace, weakening the opponent and strengthening ourselves is our most reliable means."

Oliver shook his head firmly and said, "It would be easier for the Green Dragon to accept a tribute of 8000 gold crowns per year than 500 per month. Even so, it would only delay the Green Dragon from launching another war."

"Once this treaty is signed, it means we will have to face a ten-month truce. At most, in ten months, the Green Dragon will make a comeback."

Su Li clenched his fist firmly, hammered it against the bed, and said, "No matter what, we must weaken the Green Dragon's power. This is the established strategy of the territory. You need to come up with a plan on how to implement it."

As a lord, he could be so overbearing. And in fact, this might not be a bad thing for a faction.

A lord does not need great wisdom. As a monarch, what he should need is a firm will and a clear strategy. As long as the direction of his sword is clear and he can gather all the power of the territory, it will be much more meaningful than his wild thoughts!

A territory is not afraid of no one coming up with various brilliant plans and strategies. What it fears most is that the monarch is indecisive and changes his orders every day.

No matter how powerful a force is, if its policies swing 180 degrees two or three times, it will consume a great deal of its strength and will not be able to achieve even % or % of the effect.

Under Su Li's resolute attitude, Oliver's talents were fully utilized. After a brief thought, he said thoughtfully, "In that case, we can adjust our thinking and reward the Green Dragon with 1000 gold crowns every month!"

"Reward the Green Dragon with 1000 gold crowns every month?" Su Li raised his eyebrows. Why did this routine seem vaguely familiar? "Tell me more about it."

Oliver patiently explained, "Given the green dragon's extreme greed for gold, even if it knew it was coated in poison, it would swallow it without hesitation. If we asked it to pay 500 gold crowns every month, it would undoubtedly resent it. But if we rewarded it with 1000 gold crowns every month, it would certainly be happy to accept it."

"But this 1000 gold crown is not so easy to obtain. It must bear the tribute and vassal tax worth 1000 gold crowns."

“比如每个月向领地缴纳300颗火尖晶石、1名精英骑士、50名奴隶以及5000斤铁矿石、10斤振金！”

Su Li immediately realized that this was a simplified version of the Eastern vassal tribute trade system.

In theory, Su Li rewarded Green Dragon with 1000 gold crowns every month, and Green Dragon earned 13000 gold crowns from Heisen every year. Just relying on the title of vassal, it was able to earn nearly 20 gold crowns from Heisen in just over ten years, thus becoming extremely wealthy.

But the problem is that the colonial power has the pricing power in this trade system!
300颗火尖晶石、1名精英骑士、50名奴隶、5000斤铁矿石以及10斤振金，你说他们的价值才1000王冠？

The value of those 300 fire spinels alone is more than 1000 gold crowns.

In this battle, why was the human army able to easily defeat the dryad army in the decisive battle? It was because Hildurd had combined the territory's fire spinel weapons.

Even an ordinary weapon, if inlaid with a fire spinel, will emit a fiery red light when it hits hard or performs a combo, accompanied by a whistling flame sound, increasing the fire damage.

The dwarves used their superb forging skills to combine the powerful properties of fire spinel into rune weapons, which can unleash even more powerful fire properties. When a fire knight uses a rune weapon, even ordinary attacks can unleash a brilliant and scorching red light, adding extremely powerful fire damage.

One of these gems can easily equal a farmer's family's annual income.

If he could really get 300 gems every month, Su Li could sell these gems as the new specialty of the territory.

The content about slaves in the agreement can also force the Green Dragon Legion to be unable to rest and recuperate. 50 slaves are easy to deal with. The Green Dragon Legion can gather them by simply destroying a group of forest bandits or capturing beastmen captives in the forest, but elite knights are not so easy to capture.

This meant they had to attack more monster camps to find these captives. Constant warfare would inevitably drag down the Green Dragon Legion's energy and strength, but it would also provide Hessen Territory with a new source of permanent population.

(End of this chapter)