Vikings: Lords of the Ice Sea

Chapter 141 Annual Meeting
For a period of time afterward, Vig was busy attending various banquets, taking the opportunity to gather information, but unfortunately most of it was gossip that was difficult to distinguish between true and false.

In late October, with the autumn winds blowing, Vig bid farewell to the nobles and returned to his own territory with his goods.

Upon entering the castle, two little boys wrapped in thick clothes clung to Vig, clamoring for gifts.

The older boy is his nephew, Leif, who is ten years old. Another boy is his eldest son, Frode, who is only three years old. In addition, there is his younger son, Frey, who is not yet one year old and has not yet learned to walk independently. He is currently curled up in Helijf's arms and sleeping.

"Here's the candy. Remember to rinse your mouth after you're done." Vig took two bags of sugar cubes from the carriage and sent the noisy little ones away.

In the 7th century AD, with the expansion of the Arab Empire, sugarcane was introduced from India to Persia and the Mediterranean coast.

This plant requires ample sunlight and water, making it unsuitable for growth in Western and Northern Europe. As a result of its scarcity, sugarcane became a luxury item exclusively enjoyed by the upper classes in Europe.

While the servants were loading and unloading goods, the chief craftsman Rugal approached Vig. "My lord, we have found a suitable 'honeycomb briquette' recipe. Do you have a moment now?"

"lead the way."

The group headed to the dock, where a lot of coal was piled up in the open space. A shirtless, burly man poured the coal into a stone trough. Driven by the water flow, the ore crusher broke the coal into small pieces, which fell into a wooden sieve. Coal powder as fine as wheat grains leaked through the sieve's holes.

Subsequently, the craftsmen mixed the clay with coal powder in a ratio of 30% clay to 70% coal powder, added water and stirred it, and also added a small amount of sawdust and charcoal powder to increase the burning speed.

After mixing, the craftsmen scooped up the wet mud and filled it into molds. Then they piled the shaped wet coal briquettes on an open ground to dry in the sun for a period of time before selling them to the common people.

Noticing the lord's satisfied expression, Rugal asked in a low voice, "My lord, after limited use, the public has given this new fuel very high praise. What do you think we should price it?"

Looking at the disheveled people near the dock, Vig suppressed his profit-making thoughts and decided to supply Tyne County and the four northern counties at a lower price, asking these old men to drink more hot water and take more baths to reduce their chances of getting sick.

For years, he has been concerned about the cleanliness and hygiene of the territory, and has even asked the ravens to add "drink more hot water, take regular baths, and abstain from raw meat" to their doctrine.

If civilians had access to a stable supply of cheap fuel, they might be more willing to accept the sanitation measures implemented by Tyneburg.

Besides drinking more hot water and taking regular showers, another way to improve cleanliness is to use soap.

Currently, soaps in Northern Europe are mainly made from animal fat and wood ash. Some artisans also add flower petals to create luxury items such as "rose soaps".

Unfortunately, the current low level of agricultural production and the high price of animal fat limit the widespread promotion of soap.

"Besides animal fat, olive oil is used to make soap in Southern Europe, which is also unaffordable for the poor."

Vig was troubled by this problem for a long time, and had no choice but to give up and shift his focus to other things.

On December 31, Tyneburg held its annual meeting.

To date, County Tyne has a resident population of 32,000, with 17,000 Vikings.

A total of 5,000 Nordic immigrants (including Finns and Sami) have settled in the four northern counties, mainly distributed in the towns of the four counties, as well as seven baronies and more than 100 knightly lordships.

Vig's ruling core—Tyne Town—has 3,500 residents, making it the third largest town after Landneum, Winchester, Tamworth, and York.

There are two reasons for the rapid development of Tyne Town:
First, the territory is located at the northern end of Britain, which facilitates the absorption of Scandinavian immigrants along the Bergen-Shetland-Britain route.

Second, the lord's own vision and knowledge. The vast majority of Viking nobles were only interested in war and feasts, much like Anglo-Saxon nobles; those willing to settle down and read were rare. Even when they did read, they primarily read religious texts, far inferior to Vig-Tynburg, who possessed the wisdom of later generations.

With the population topic settled, let's move on to fiscal revenue and expenditure. This year, Tyne County's revenue increased to £550 due to the rapid growth of the shipbuilding, blacksmithing, and paper mill industries, while the proportion of agricultural tax decreased to 50%.

The iron ore in Stirlingshire yielded £400, and with the tin ore profits, the total came to £450.

The commercial tax in the four counties of the North totaled one hundred pounds, and the agricultural tax was about two hundred pounds.

After hearing the figures reported by the county magistrates, Vig's smile faded, and he paced back and forth in the hall, clutching the ledger.

"The four counties in the North have a total of 160,000 residents, and the agricultural tax they pay is only 200 pounds. That's less than what County Tyne pays. It's outrageous!"
I hope you'll spend more time on your work and stop playing cards and chess all day. In any case, the combined agricultural tax revenue of the four counties must exceed that of Tyne County next year!

Finally, there was a special income – a surprise attack on Bergen, resulting in the capture of one hundred pounds of silver.

£1,400, that's the total income for 850 years.

Expenditure:

The number of standing troops was expanded to two thousand (a new garrison infantry company of two hundred men was formed in Tyne). Due to the repeated raids on the mountains to suppress bandits, military expenditures exceeded the expected three hundred and sixty pounds and soared to four hundred and fifty pounds.

Secondly, there were expenses for the administrative system, schools, temples, and hospitals. With the increase in the number of civil servants and shamans, the total expenditure amounted to three hundred and twenty pounds.

The expenses at Tyneburg remained largely unchanged at £150.

Miscellaneous expenses such as engineering construction, warhorse procurement, and tribute payments increased slightly to three hundred and thirty pounds.

The total expenditure was £1,250.

Overall, the company has secured a fiscal surplus of £150 this year, and Vig plans to use a portion of it to pay off debts.

Last year, he borrowed a total of four hundred pounds from Ragnar and others, and it was only right that he repay the money. However, he did not intend to repay one hundred and fifty pounds at once, but rather to repay it gradually in small amounts, concealing his strength and making outsiders mistakenly believe that Tyneburg was in dire financial straits.

“Fourteen hundred pounds of silver, on par with the Duke of Wessex. In the next few years, if I can successfully digest the Scottish Lowlands, my income may reach the level of Gunnar.”

After the annual meeting concluded, Vig hosted a grand banquet for vassals, officials, guards, and prominent merchants from Tyne Town, totaling three hundred people. Due to limited space in the first-floor hall, the guest rooms on the second floor were used as private rooms to accommodate the guests.

"Thanks to the gods for their protection, this year has gone relatively smoothly. I hope everyone can eat and drink to their heart's content and enjoy this feast."

Since his personal reputation was at stake, Vigé did not try to cover up the poor quality of the food. Instead, he served his guests expensive wines and meads, and added precious spices and truffles to all the dishes.

The meal lasted for a full two hours before the guests gradually dispersed.

That evening, as snow fell heavily and the fireplaces on both sides of the hall crackled, Vig hosted a small family dinner.

The eldest son sat on his left, Helgef held his second son on his right, followed by his sister Britta and nephew Leif, and his mother-in-law Iris and her son Hosa.

Raising his glass, Vigé delivered a brief speech: "To my family, to everyone here. In this chaotic world, the lower classes struggle for survival, while the elites scheme against each other for profit. When the storm comes, who can we rely on but our family members who share the same blood?"

"To our families." Everyone raised their glasses in repetition, enjoying the dinner quietly amidst the howling wind outside.

(End of this chapter)