I'm not a lord

Chapter 23 Stop pretending

Lynn had never been a particularly patient person.

What you want, you get immediately.

Whatever I want to do, I will take action immediately.

It was this characteristic that enabled him to grow from a low-level mercenary to a horse bandit leader, and then to become the Baron of White Bear.

But pregnancy, or giving birth, is more complicated.

It’s not that you can give birth to a child immediately if you want to.

Even if Lin En is a sharpshooter who never misses a shot, he will make Yagena pregnant tonight.

By the time the baby is born, that will be next year.

Before discovering the salt mine, Lynn was willing to give Yagna time to think about it.

After all, he couldn't be sure when he would have the hard power to annex the Shoal Territory.

Besides, Yagena is the daughter of a nobleman after all, so it’s okay to give her some dignity.

But with the discovery of the salt mine, Lynn was confident that he would be able to take control of the shallows by next year at the latest.

In order to ensure that she was legitimate and to silence the gossips of the people, especially the elite army of the Duke of the Swamp, Yagna had to appear in the Shallows Territory as a pregnant woman.

And it would be best if she could give birth to a boy.

Of course, if it’s not a boy, it doesn’t matter. You can just hold a boy of the same age and pretend to be one.

In short, when Lynn took over the Shoal Territory, the daughter of the former Baron of Shoal Territory must show up with a big belly.

Everything must fit perfectly, otherwise everything will fail.

As for Yagna's personal opinion, Lin En didn't care.

Everyone has agreed to help her get revenge, what else does she want?

This is how the game is played in this era. Everything can be traded, including your body and will. If you are not happy, don't play.

Moreover, it was Yagna who first proposed this gameplay, and Lin En just slightly modified the terms.

"Sorry, I... I'm not sorry yet."

Faced with Lin En's questioning, Yagena hesitated again. The deer that had strayed into the forest was completely lost.

In fact, she didn't know why she was still hesitating.

There is clearly only one road ahead, and endless darkness behind.

All I can say is that she still couldn't break through her inner defenses and put the title that she despised on herself.

Lin En pushed the chair away and stood up. Her expression remained calm, but her voice was filled with threats. "Before the spring plowing begins, I want you to give me a clear answer. Become my woman and I will avenge you, or you leave the castle on your own."

He hates uncertainty and doesn't like to keep idle people.

The next morning, Lin En got up early again, and the fatigue from running in the forest for eight days was swept away.

All I can say is that a young body that has been tempered is really useful and can be fully restored after a good night's sleep.

While he was enjoying breakfast with his brothers, old Albert showed up at the castle on time again.

"master."

Compared to Yagna who has a sad face all day long, Lao Ai's rank is obviously much higher.

In front of the lord, he always puts on a bright and flattering smile.

He had the good sense to not show up last night, waiting until morning to come. After breakfast, Lin En took Old Albert into the study and took out the simple map he had hurriedly worked on the night before from the drawer.

"I found a peat mine in the forest. It's a perfect substitute for compost and can solve the problem of insufficient compost in the territory. The only drawback is that the mine is 20 kilometers away from the territory, and the road is surrounded by forests and swamps. It would be difficult to transport the peat back to the territory without building a road."

Lin En's drawing technique is very primitive, but primitiveness also has its advantages. At least it is easy to understand.

Lao Ai actually doesn’t know what peat looks like exactly, but since the old man said it can replace compost, then it can definitely replace compost.

He stared at the map and studied it carefully for a moment, then pointed at it and slowly replied:

"Master, if we were to go purely by land, we would indeed have to build a twenty-kilometer-long road through the forest. But I think this peat mine is only four or five kilometers away from the White River. If we go by water, we can save a lot of man-hours. We only need to build a few kilometers of road and add a simple dock."

Lao Ai was in charge of the conscription of corvee labor in the territory.

Based on his past experience, he estimated that if all the young and middle-aged men in the territory were mobilized and it took an entire summer, they should be able to build a simple dirt road of 20 kilometers.

Yes, but not necessary.

The physical fitness of serfs in those days was very average, and excessive physical labor could be fatal.

Whether it is the hot and rainy summer or the cold winter, it is actually not suitable to conscript labor.

However, spring and autumn are the seasons for sowing and harvesting, and we cannot ask serfs to give up their crops to perform labor service.

There is only a small chance of death from performing corvee labor, but death is certain if the crops fail.

"Your suggestion is good, but waterways have their own shortcomings. What about the dry season and ice age? So we need to build a dock and a road through the forest."

Lin En originally planned to build a road in the shape of the number '7', connecting the White Bear Territory, the peat mine and the salt mine in the northwest. The total length of the road is more than 50 kilometers.

Now, after listening to Lao Ai's analysis, he changed the road plan to a 'T' shape, and the total length of the road will be extended to nearly 60 kilometers.

It is more convenient to transport bulk goods by water, but if the two mines are attacked from outside, it will be faster to provide support by land.

Moreover, the Baihe River has a dry season and a long ice age, so there is too much uncertainty in the waterway.

Old Albert nodded repeatedly. "You're right, but this will only make the project much more challenging. Building roads in the forest in the summer will present many problems, such as mosquitoes, swamps, and endless, massive tree roots. We might even be harassed by desert dwellers."

Lao Ai actually doesn’t really want to build this road.

If there is not enough compost, the yield in the fields will simply be lower.

However, building roads would consume huge amounts of financial and material resources, and would also cause the deaths and injuries of serfs.

However, he did not object directly. Instead, he laid out all the possible problems and let Lin En make his own decision.

After all, the White Bear Territory is the lord's private property, and it is not up to him, a mere steward, to have any say in it.

"No matter how many difficulties there are, this road must be built. Construction must begin immediately after the spring sowing. Before autumn comes, I want to see a straight road leading directly to the peat mine."

Lin En didn't care about these things, he directly gave the death order.

Building the road to the peat mine was just the beginning. There were still more than 30 kilometers of road to be built, but he did not intend to reveal the existence of the salt mine to Lao Ai now.

"Everything will be as you wish, sir."

What else could old Albert say except accept the order?

He could only pray that fewer people would die in this major project.

Old Ai finally understood that the lords were essentially the same. In their eyes, serfs were always just numbers, and the new lord was not going to pretend anymore.

Thanks to Emperor Baye, Nantong Town's tough guy Zhazha Lei, Xuehai Yingyang, Read for a Lifetime, and Qianse Huiyi for their monthly ticket support!

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(End of this chapter)