I'm not a lord

Chapter 6 I Just Want to Be a Baroness
The layout of the White Bear Territory Castle is not much different from that of other baronies in the North.

The city wall is composed of a three-meter-high fence made of sharpened wooden stakes, with rammed earth watchtowers distributed at the four corners. Guarded in the middle is a two-story stone house with a red roof.

It is called a castle, and in fact it only has the outline of a castle, which is very different from the real brick and stone castle that is easy to defend and difficult to attack.

Brick and stone castles are the crystallization of handicrafts.

Given the North's currently backward craftsmanship and economic conditions, only the king, dukes, and a few wealthy earls can afford to build brick and stone castles.

In the White Bear Territory, this type of earthen mound-walled castle is sufficient. It can easily intimidate the serfs in the territory and defend against attacks from the barbarians in the north.

You have to know that some poor barons could not even afford to build a castle of this level and could only live in wooden houses.

As night falls, candlelight lights up, casting a veil of mystery over the White Bear Territory Castle, which appears somewhat simple during the day, like a ferocious beast lurking in the darkness.

Lin En sat on his horse, squinting his eyes as he looked at the castle lying on the west bank of the White River, and suddenly remembered the former lord who had encountered a hunting accident.

After all, he was the previous owner of this castle.

And Lynn is about to become the new owner of this castle.

"Albert, how old was the previous lord when he died?"

"Should be twenty-three, no. Probably twenty-two." Albert still followed Lin En closely.

People these days really don’t care much about age and lifespan.

Because the average life expectancy is just over 30 years old, only a handful of people can live to 40 years old, and even fewer can live to 50 years old.

Albert only turned 40 last year, but he already felt his health was failing. He just hoped to live out the rest of his life in White Bear Territory.

"Have you found the body?" Lynn pulled the reins to control the speed of the horse under him. The castle was already in sight.

"Well... not really." Albert hesitated a little.

"Did he really die in a hunting accident?"

"I can only say that there is a high probability."

"High probability? The territory governor can't confirm why his previous lord died?" Lin En was a little angry.

He didn't really care how the previous lord died.

In the North, the ways in which lords died were truly diverse.

Some were bitten to death by monsters, some were stabbed to death by horse bandits, some were ambushed by the neighboring lord, some were hacked to death by the natives, some died in rebellions by their subjects, and some were strangled to death by their wives or maids.

There were even many lords who drowned in cesspools after getting drunk.

This also leads to the leaders often having no descendants.

The drunkards in the tavern like to talk about the unfortunate deaths of those unfortunate lords.

What Lin En cared about was that Albert, the governor of the territory, neglected his duties.

He told others that it was a hunting accident, but he was hesitant when Shinichi asked him about it.

"Master, I think there are people who are better suited to answer these questions than me."

"Who?"

"The wife of the former lord."

"Madam? His wife is still in the territory?"

In the castle's living room, Lynn met the wife of the former lord.

Yagna, a very common female name in the North.

She has an oval face, big eyes, long golden hair, fair skin, delicate features, and is wearing a soft white long skirt. Her chest is straight and full, and when she kneels to salute, you can see the almost perfect curve.

A typical Northern beauty, but a little young, said to be just seventeen years old.

Of course, this is nothing. At this time, both men and women mature very early. A 17-year-old female serf is likely to be the mother of two children.

In this era when there is basic reproductive isolation between the nobility and the lower-class peasants, Yagena, as a former baroness, naturally has a complicated background.

She is the daughter of the Baron of Shoal Territory and was married to White Bear Territory at the beginning of last year.

The Shallows Territory is just south of the White Bear Territory, separated by a low mountain and a large dense forest. The two territories are neighbors.

After a mediocre dinner, Lin En chatted with Yagna and the Territory Chief, Albert, for a while before asking directly, "So, why are you still in the White Bear Territory?"

"My father passed away last summer, and my five-year-old half-brother inherited the territory. However, the one who actually controls the territory is my stepmother."

Agna only said half of her words, but it was enough for Lynn to imagine a classic medieval aristocratic family ethics drama.

The old baron's ex-wife died, leaving behind only a beautiful and charming daughter, and the territory lacked a legitimate heir.

But he didn't want his son-in-law to inherit the territory. In order to continue the family name, he married a young new wife and was lucky enough to get a healthy male heir.

Unfortunately, the old baron suddenly fell critically ill before his son grew up.

Before he passed away, he tried his best to arrange a marriage for his daughter with someone of equal social status, and on his deathbed he left his territory to his young heir.

According to convention, an underage male heir cannot govern the territory, and his mother will manage it on his behalf.

The daughter did not get along with her stepmother, but fortunately she married another baron, became a respected baroness, and started a new life.

However, she did not expect that her husband would die mysteriously less than half a year after their marriage.

The Baroness was not pregnant with a posthumous child, so the territory changed hands directly and her status fell.

Now she is neither a baroness nor a baron's daughter.

Coupled with her strained relationship with her stepmother, she was unable to return to her original family and could only awkwardly live temporarily in her ex-husband's territory.

Yagna took a sip of the warm apple mead, crossed her fingers, and spoke in a tone that was slightly pitiful and sad:

"As you can imagine, I have nowhere to go right now. Fortunately, Mr. Albert can understand my difficulties and allow me to stay in White Bear Territory temporarily. Otherwise, I might have been kicked out by my stepmother and frozen to death on the ice field in the north."

Albert sat beside him with an awkward smile on his face.

After all, Yagna was the wife of the previous lord. Before the new lord arrived, no one had any reason to drive her out of the castle.

This matter can only be done by the new lord.

"So, how did your ex-husband die? Albert said you can give me a reasonable explanation." Lynn returned to the original question.

“We really don’t know how he died. It should have been on the last day of September last year. He took a servant to the western forest, saying he was going hunting, but he disappeared in the forest.

We sent four or five teams in to investigate, but not only did we find nothing, but six more people disappeared. At night, people in the western part of the territory could hear the terrifying roars of the monsters in the forest. From then on, no one dared to enter the western forest again. We can only say that he died in a hunting accident."

When talking about the death of her ex-husband, Yagna did not feel too sad.

She had never met her ex-husband before getting married, and their marriage lasted less than half a year, so it is hard to say how much affection they had for each other.

"It's likely that he was eaten by a monster, or died at the hands of hunters. Of course, we can't rule out murder by his servants." Lin En has killed more than a dozen barons with his own hands, so he is no longer surprised by this.

Yagena suddenly hesitated and said, "There's one more thing I think you need to know." "Tell me."

"My ex-husband doesn't like women, he only likes men. The servant he took away should be considered his lover, so it's unlikely that she would murder him."

Perhaps because the mead was quite strong, Yagna lowered her head, and a blush appeared on her fair cheeks.

After all, she is still a little girl and there are some things that she is embarrassed to say.

"understood."

Lin En could hear the meaning behind Yagna's words.

The nobles these days not only have diverse ways of dying, but also diverse hobbies.

Playing with men is not an uncommon hobby. Some nobles even like to play with goats or even Warcraft.

Anyway, Lin En really saw it.

It is said that the first King of the North, nicknamed 'The Conqueror', was promiscuous, having more than 20 mistresses in his palace and more than a dozen male favorites.

There were even rumors in the tavern that the first Duke of the Swamp was one of the King of Conquerors' male favorites and that he earned the title of Duke by selling his ass.

In any case, the first Duke of the Marsh did not hide his experience as a leatherworker.

It is obvious that there were some unknown secret experiences behind the fact that a lowly shoemaker could suddenly become a duke, which gave fictional historians room to play with.

"What are your plans next?"

After saying that, Lin En picked up the wine glass and took a sip of White Bear Leader's apple mead.

It's ok, no different from other places in the North.

This wine is brewed with apples and honey. It is sweet with a hint of sourness and has a higher alcohol content than ordinary ale. It is the most popular drink among the nobles in the North, without a doubt.

Wine is an expensive rarity in the North. After all, the climate is not suitable for growing grapes, so it has to be imported.

Before Yagena could speak, Albert stood up and said, "Master, please allow me to leave first. I am old and my body can't bear it anymore."

In fact, Albert's house is right next to the castle. It is built quite grandly and it only takes a few minutes to walk there.

If a war breaks out in the territory, he can hide in the castle as quickly as possible.

With Lao Ai's departure, only a young man and a young woman were left in the already small living room.

The candlelight was dim, the air was filled with the smell of alcohol, and the atmosphere became inexplicably ambiguous.

Lin En didn't feel uncomfortable about this. Having been a bandit leader for several years, what kind of scenes had he not seen?
After all, the bandits only know how to sing one song, and that is the song of killing and fighting.

Yagena was rather thin-skinned, and since she was indeed an inexperienced girl, her face became increasingly redder as time went by.

But her character still has some of the boldness of the cold wind from the north.

After making sufficient mental preparations, she raised her head and looked directly at Lin En, saying seriously:

"I heard you're not married yet. If you don't mind, I hope to continue living in White Bear Territory. As you know, there are only two territories in the upper reaches of the White River, White Bear Territory and Shoal Territory. I really have nowhere else to go. Besides, nothing ever happened between my ex-husband and me. He really only liked men."

"Well, I understand. You just want to continue being a baroness, right?"

Putting herself in the girl's shoes, Lin En could understand her thoughts very well.

If he has a bad relationship with his stepmother, he will definitely not have a good ending if he returns to Qiantanling.

In addition, she has already been married once, so she would be lucky to be a knight's wife next time she gets married.

How can this compare to the Baroness?

In the White Bear Territory, she can live in a safe castle and enjoy the respect of the people and the service of the servants.

But Lynn still underestimated this seventeen-year-old girl. She wanted to be more than just a baroness.

Yagna suddenly stood up, placed her right hand on her towering chest, and after mustering up her courage, the words she had been brewing for a long time burst out like a volcano:

"My Lord, my current status is indeed unworthy of you, but please believe that I will be of great use to you! You are born into the noble Cold Wind Family and had the opportunity to inherit a vast earldom, but now you have only this remote, barren, and narrow White Bear Territory.

If you want to expand your territory, Shoal Territory is your best and easiest prey. My young brother and jealous stepmother are definitely no match for you.

If I can give birth to a boy, then after you get rid of them, you can rule the Shoal Territory in the name of my child. As long as you pay taxes on time and provide sufficient knights, there is no need for Your Excellency the Duke to interfere.

By then, you will own two baronies. As long as you manage them carefully, you may be able to acquire a territory larger and richer than the Coldwind Valley in the future. From what I have seen in the Duke's court, the Northern Kingdom will not be stable for long in the future."

Before the little girl could fully express her passion, Lin En quickly raised his hand to stop her, saying, "Stop, stop, stop! Stop now."

The courage that Yagena had finally mustered suddenly withered away, and she also became dejected: "Sir, did I say something wrong?"

"This is not a question of right or wrong." Lin En held his forehead, feeling that his experiences in the past few days were nothing short of fantastic.

First, he received news from the black market and robbed a weak baron, and obtained the lord's commission.

When he took office pretending to be the baron, he met the former baroness who refused to leave the territory.

Although this former baroness is young, her experience and thoughts are very complex.

Not only had she been in the court of the Duke of Swamp, she even had a broad vision, like a female Zhuge Liang who was willing to analyze the general situation of the world and get involved in it herself.

Lynn was indeed unwilling to be a baron and live a life of idleness and waiting for death, and his ambitions were indeed big.

But he didn't need a hot-blooded seventeen-year-old girl to teach him how to do things.

"We haven't met before?"

Lin En even suspected that the girl had seen his true face, otherwise why would she get so close to him and start a fight as soon as they met?

"Today is the first time."

"How dare you? You don't even know what kind of person I am or what my character is like, yet you dare to say this to me? You even suggested that I seize your family's territory? Just what you just said, if the Duke heard it, it would be enough to hang you three times, do you know? Three times!"

".I know."

"Then why? Is it because my last name is Hanfeng?" Lin En also imagined at this time that if the real baron came to Bai Xiong, he might really be fooled by this little girl.

Although that boy was as timid as a rat when facing weapons, he was a real rat who dared to plot against his brother's inheritance rights.

This is probably the kind of person who looks fierce but is timid and makes plans without making decisions.

The only possible fate that awaits them is to have their heads and bodies separated.

Nothing can be accomplished by slogans and strategies alone.

Seeing Lin En's relatively gentle attitude, Yagena suddenly felt that there was hope, and her courage was restored a little: "This is just one of the reasons. The first time I met you, I knew that you must not be an ordinary lord."

"Why, you can tell faces?"

"No, but I heard that you personally visited the serfs' homes to investigate as soon as you arrived at the territory."

(End of this chapter)