Knight Lord: Start with Daily Intelligence.

Chapter 54 Territory Development (Part )

Fishing and hunting should not be a stable mode of production, but with the help of Su Li's daily intelligence system, the harvest from fishing and hunting is exceptionally rich, and the territory has initially gained a foothold.

However, if they wanted to continue to grow, fishing and hunting alone were not enough. The territory had nearly 200 serfs, 120 armed retainers, and 50 knights, a total of nearly 2000 people, and hundreds of livestock. Every day, the food consumed by people and horses was over kilograms of food and fodder.

Therefore, in order to ensure a more stable development of the territory, Minister of Seals, Lawn, and Minister of Agriculture, Vandal, both focused on farming.

At their urging, Boros Dragonhammer, the dwarven runesmith, was forced to take on a cameo role as a village farm toolsmith. Over the next two weeks, he successfully crafted over 130 pieces of ironware. He had intended to use the remaining iron ingots to craft a cavalry breastplate. However, the old druid, Fandral, was adamantly opposed, his aura frightening. After several days of heated discussions, he managed to force the stubborn dwarf into a compromise, forging only a set of mail shirts and using the remaining iron ingots to work with him on a Nord heavy plow.

With the help of so many iron tools and three sets of heavy plows, nearly two hundred serfs, including women, the elderly and teenagers, worked hard in the fields day and night. In 15 days, they successfully reclaimed more than 1200 acres of fertile land.

The water of the Brienne River is crystal clear, and the climate is mild and unpredictable. On the fertile plains on the north bank of the river, the 1,200 acres of fertile farmland are neatly cultivated, the ridges and roads are very reasonably planned, and space is left for water ditches. As long as it is carefully cared for, in time, it will surely produce a large amount of grain.

Three farms each take care of this fertile land, where wheat, carrots and cabbages are cultivated in different areas.

The climate here is mild and suitable, the soil is fertile, and three harvests can be produced a year. So after the seeds are planted, lush green sprouts will appear in half a month.

Looking east from Su Li's castle, the emerald green fields, neat farmlands, and vast pastures together form a beautiful picture. The breeze is gentle and the sun is shining brightly, it is a perfect pastoral life.

Carrots and cabbages are both high-yield crops. Even without chemical fertilizers, they can produce at least 4000 to 6000 carrots per acre, easily achieving a yield of kilograms per acre.

Their biggest problem is that they're difficult to store; most of them would rot within a month or two. Taking all this into account, a total of 400 mu (approximately 600 acres) of the two vegetables were planted, with the remaining 200 mu planted with wheat. Assuming a yield of 12 imperial catties per mu, this would yield a total of catties of wheat. Once these hundreds of thousands of catties of grain are harvested, it will be enough to supply all the people in the territory for at least a quarter, allowing the territory to continue purchasing slaves and increasing its manpower.

The final two hundred acres were planted with ramie, a cash crop. Territory development required more than just food. Hemp could be made into clothing and shoes, as well as rope, sacks, fishing nets, hunting gear, and more. So, despite the perceived cost of land and labor, Laun defied all odds and allocated two hundred acres of fertile land.

While progress was being made in farming, the territory's military strength was also steadily improving.

A total of 47 pieces of dragon blood stone were unearthed from the dragon blood stone vein toward the reservoir! Su Li obtained 33 of them. Unable to sell them for the time being, he rented 20 of them to his knights at a price of 1 gold coin per year, ensuring that all his men above the rank of full knight wore a piece of dragon blood stone. Under the influence of the dragon's aura, these knights' physiques were gradually growing taller and stronger.

On the other hand, the effect of the Light Scale Fish wasn't as immediate as the Tinder Rabbit; it was a subtle, gradual process. On the day Su Li generously gifted the soldiers, nothing happened. However, within the following 15 days, a high-ranking apprentice knight successfully advanced to the rank of full knight, and two armed attendants successfully awakened their bloodlines and were promoted to apprentice knights.

Moreover, the effects of this aptitude boost would be long-lasting, raising the upper limits of many knights significantly. The number of elite and official knights was bound to continue to increase over time. Su Li could vaguely feel that his bloodline and strength were constantly improving, and it seemed that a breakthrough to a high-level apprentice knight was only a matter of time. This had been secretly surprising him for the past few days. Could he actually be a hidden cultivation genius?

As the second son of the Guardian Knight of Earl Bauhinia, Knight Stern possessed the strength of a formal knight at the age of 20 and was praised by many as a genius.

Then Su Li felt that if he could break through to become a formal knight at the age of 18, wouldn’t he be a genius among geniuses?

It's only been a month and a half since he'd broken through to the novice knight level, but he's already solidified his position as an intermediate apprentice knight and is on his way to becoming a high-level apprentice knight. This speed, while not as fast as Hilde's, is already several times faster than most elite knights.

The improvement in military strength not only excited Su Li, but also the military commander of Hesse, Knight Commander Orstein.

This proud and dignified knight attributed his increased military prowess primarily to his own rigorous training. He sought to rival Grand Master Aldred in every aspect, including command and training.

He is a believer of the Goddess of the Fiery Sun, and demands all-round excellence from himself in leadership, strategy, military tactics, and martial arts. Therefore, one of his goals is to train a knight group from scratch that is larger in scale and more powerful than the Knights of the Scarlet Night.

The fact that two armed attendants were promoted to apprentice knights undoubtedly boosted his confidence and enthusiasm.

He trained the Hessen Territory's knights and squires with even greater rigor. This squadron of squires was well-fed, and under this rigorous training, their combat effectiveness was rapidly improving. They were now considered a force of beast-killers, capable of performing impressively even if deployed immediately on the battlefield.

Of course, the border prince's territory is much more tolerant and open than the empire. Extraordinary powers are not limited to knights. Dwarves and elves can also display their unique racial abilities here.

Therefore, in order to cultivate extraordinary strength, in addition to the human knights, Su Li also selected three teenage boys from the people of his territory to serve as blacksmith apprentices to the dwarf Boros Dragonhammer. They could learn to forge weapons and armor, and help Boros, so that the dwarf master would not have to do some trivial chores himself.

In addition, Fandral selected a 30-year-old woman with hidden elven blood from among the female slaves purchased by Su Li and trained her to become a priestess of the Church of Dawn. Given her age and mixed blood, it would be difficult for this woman to learn the extraordinary abilities of the elves, but she would have no problem learning the teachings of the Church of Dawn, the art of farming, and guiding farmers in their work.

In short, Su Li has been in a particularly good mood for the past half month. The territory is thriving and everything is full of vitality. He has completely regarded this place as his home and hometown. The lonely soul wandering in another world has finally found a sense of belonging in this fertile land. His heart is like a seed, taking root and sprouting in this beautiful and fertile land, and blooming with the fragrance of home.

(End of this chapter)