Knight Lord: Start with Daily Intelligence.

Chapter 35 Fertile Land: Hessen Foothills
Hearing Su Li's assurance and threat, Shabulin crawled to the counter, took out a new map and showed it to Su Li.

He quickly assured, "Respected Pathfinder Lord, I guarantee that every word I say is true. Look at the location of the Black Forest foothills. They are located northeast of the Border Prince's Territory. The Gray Mountains, a branch of the Black Mountains, stretch across the north."

"Many rivers flow from the Grey Mountains into the vast Black Plains at their foot, vital to the development of the territory. Furthermore, the lower slopes of the Grey Mountains are also a valuable resource for the lords. Numerous veins can be dug here for mining various minerals, including iron, gold, marble, and gemstones."

"To its southeast lies the vast Blood Pine Forest, primarily composed of oak, pine, elm, and beech trees. It also produces a reddish-brown, high-quality pinewood that's sold worldwide. Furniture merchants and hired workers often come here to cut down the pinewood. However, because the forest is so dense, some loggers are often attacked by forest goblins and beastmen hiding within. You can provide them with protection and earn a handsome profit."

"Your territory lies between the Great Bloodpine Forest and the Gray Mountains, an area of ​​rolling hills and fertile valleys known as the Black Forest Foothills."

"The land here is fertile, the water network is dense, the river transportation is well developed, and there are many opportunities. The northern mountains are full of dwarven tunnels, although many of them have been abandoned. However, some dwarven fortresses still exist in the highlands of the Grey Mountains, but most of these small islands are surrounded by a sea of ​​beastmen, goblins, bandits, and mountain trolls. If you can open a road, you can get in touch with them. Their engineering technology will be of great help in your construction of water conservancy projects."

"The Blood Pine Forest to the east is rich in resources. The precious wood can help you quickly accumulate wealth, and the various precious fruits and herbs can help you strengthen your troops. The only thing to be careful of is the surprise attacks from the beastman warbands and goblin tribes within. But I believe all of this will be no problem for a powerful and wise lord like you."

Looking at the geographical situation drawn on the map, Su Li's mind was already moved. The green area marking the fertile plain was very vast. Gray mountains and black forests surrounded the plain. It was a considerable distance away from the human stronghold, making it suitable for exploration while also leaving time for daily intelligence warnings.

Su Li thought about it and said, "Then I'll register here first. I'll stay in Marley Castle for a day or two. If I have other ideas, I'll come back and make changes."

"No problem, no problem." Shablin nodded quickly and said, "This is a common practice among pioneering lords. Do you want to enjoy yourself for a few days? I can recommend some good taverns, brothels, and singing theaters."

Su Li glared at him unhappily and said, "I'm not interested. If you want to recommend some good places, you can tell me which business is good."

"Oh, oh, this is a great place." Shabulin quickly replied, "The Gray Market Chamber of Commerce east of the City Hall is a good choice. They have a lot of contraband, and their Dark Night Slave Catchers often produce some slaves that are not very worthy of being seen in public. If you don't have connections, you usually can't get involved in this trade. But if you tell them that Shabulin introduced you, they will definitely receive you into the Dark Zone."

With this opportunity, Su Li finally waved to Shabulin with satisfaction: "Thank you very much. We won't disturb your rest. We'll take our leave."

After saying that, Su Li took Orstein and Hilde and left the city hall directly. The surrounding guards did not stop them at Shablin's instruction.

An elite knight got up from the ground, limped over to Shabulin, and asked, "Lord Shabulin, what did they say? Should we just let them go?"

Shabulin watched the group depart, gritting his teeth in anger. "Hmph, you offended me, and you still expect to get away with it? Another damned bastard from the foothills of the Black Forest. He won't survive more than six months! This bastard got off easy. This information used to sell for at least 200 gold coins, tricking countless idiots who wanted to take the backdoor."

The eyes of the elite knight at the side lit up: "The foothills of Hessen? Is that a place where ordinary pioneering lords can stay? Without the support of the great nobles, there is no way for them to gain a foothold there. They will definitely be eaten to the bone. I have a feeling that in less than three months, they will continue to trick the next idiot into paying for his death." Su Li had no idea what was happening in the Government Affairs Hall. He left the Government Affairs Hall and went directly to the Gray Market Chamber of Commerce. It covered a very large area and was a tall Gothic building with four floors and multiple shops.

At the entrance of the Chamber of Commerce, Su Li soon waited for Hildreth to summon Frederick and Schwartz.

Schwartz held a cash box in his hand and respectfully handed it to Su Li, saying, "Master Su Li, our transaction went very smoothly. After comparing with several trading houses, we sold it at a very high price, earning a total of 342 gold coins. We spent 100 gold coins on buying food, seeds, and various pioneering tools. We bought a total of 5 carts of apples, 20 carts of cabbage and beets, carts of dry food, black bread, barley, and wheat, as well as sheep and cows. We also bought some wine, cheese, and sausages."

Su Li smiled with satisfaction. This number was already very impressive. Adding the money he brought with him when he left Bauhinia Castle, the wealth he gained on the road, and the expenses for purchasing food and fodder, he now had 931 gold coins left.

Procuring food was the biggest expense. Even a simple peasant, living on a bland diet of black bread, beans, and cabbage, would cost three to five copper coins a day. This kind of food would cause complaints from squires, let alone knights. Unless under special circumstances, a knight's diet typically consisted of cheese, bread, ale, pies, and some roasted meat and dried meat. This amount could quadruple or even five times the cost of a single meal. Knights were voracious eaters, requiring ample nutrition to maintain their strength.

A knight's daily food expenditure is at least 30 copper coins. If he eats barbecue on the same day, this expenditure will soar to more than one silver coin.

These little brats are eating my father out of money. We have hundreds of mouths to feed, and even if we do nothing every day, we still consume thousands of kilograms of food.

After arriving at the frontier territory, they would not have food income until autumn, so they had to store enough food.

In addition, of the remaining 831 gold coins, 60 gold coins are rewards that the soldiers deserve for collecting herbs and fighting monsters on the road, and 200 gold coins will be left to pay the soldiers' wages.

Although these knights had vowed at Bauhinia Castle that they would not complain even if Young Master Su Li's pioneering territory had no money to pay their salaries.

But if any lord really does this and doesn't pay wages, he will be overthrown by the knights.

After all, there really is no money. Not being able to pay salaries is one thing. Having money but not paying it is another.

The knights need wages if they want to settle down and build a career in the frontier territory.

So after deducting 200 gold coins from his salary and bonus, Su Li still had about 671 gold coins left to spend at the Gray Market Chamber of Commerce, which was a considerable sum. If this money was donated to the Knights, the Knights could dispatch several squads of elite knights with nearly a thousand armed retainers to help the lord fight a war from beginning to end.

(End of this chapter)