Vikings: Lords of the Ice Sea

Chapter 40 Income
After Herrijiffy left, Vig fell into boredom again and picked up a stone to skip across the river.

Half a minute later, Micham came up behind him carrying a stack of bills and noticed that the lord seemed a little strange. "Sir, have you taken a fancy to her?"

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

Mitcham continued, “As a nobleman, marriage is a very serious matter. If handled properly, it can bring great benefits to your rule. The best option is to marry a royal princess, but unfortunately Your Majesty has no daughter or sister, so this option is ruled out. The next option is the relatives of other powerful nobles, but I am not clear about the situation of each family, so I will not discuss it for now. Finally, as an outsider, marrying the daughter of a local gentry can reduce the resistance of the people. Herigef is a good choice; it is said that her great-grandmother was from the royal family, and she is barely a match for you.”

"This is all too sudden. Let me process this." Vig gestured for the people around him to step back, then stared blankly at a flock of wild ducks on the opposite bank of the river.

Mitcham is right. As a nobleman, it's time for me to consider marriage.

He was lost in thought.

Speaking of arranged marriages, King Eric had a young, unmarried daughter named Eve. During his two years in Eastern Europe, Nils frequently mentioned this name, seemingly obsessed with it.

“Eve is Eric’s daughter. Her aunt, Sora, married Ragnar. She is of high status and beautiful. Her only flaw is her open-mindedness, even to the point of being promiscuous. Oh well, let others worry about her.”

Then, several more names flashed through his mind, all of them sisters or daughters of noble families, but unfortunately, their level of education was generally not high. Vig weighed the options repeatedly and finally gave up on them one by one.

As for Harriet, there are three advantages to marrying her.

First, her Anglo-Saxon heritage significantly reduced the locals' hostility towards her. Second, her small family, relying solely on her, ensured her loyalty. Third, her ability to read and write Latin was a highly valuable asset in the illiterate Middle Ages, and she could also handle domestic affairs after marriage.

After agonizing for more than two hours, Vig went to a small cubicle next to the lord's hall and found Micham, who was processing accounts.

"Pick a day to go to her house to propose marriage. Try to be as amiable as possible, so I don't look like a scoundrel who bullies men and women. If we can't reach an agreement, it doesn't matter. I have plenty of other options."

Vig was not exaggerating; thanks to his legendary adventures in Eastern Europe and his achievements in the Battle of Northumbria, he was now a legendary figure in Nordic society. During his stay in York earlier this year, shield maidens approached him almost every few days, but unfortunately, their family backgrounds and talents were too mediocre to be suitable marriage partners.

"Yes, my lord."

The following day, Mitcham arrived at the Helgeif household with gifts and two shield guards. The latter's mother, Iris, was overjoyed and immediately agreed to the marriage. With the lord as her protector, her young son could grow up in a safe environment, and the worries that had troubled her for more than half a year were finally resolved.

When the lord got married, the gentry and village chiefs from the region rushed to offer their congratulations. When the wedding was over, Vig was counting the gifts from everyone when he discovered that, after deducting expenses, he had made a net profit of three pounds of silver.

"Good, they know what's good for them."

After making a note in the ledger, Vig reviewed this year's tax situation.

Tyneburg comprises nineteen large estates and twenty-three scattered villages.

The manor's total population reached 2,500. The village's inhabitants were mainly yeomen farmers and poor farmers, along with a small number of small landowners, totaling 5,000 villagers. Together, there were 7,500 Anglo-Saxons.

Including the more than two hundred Anglo farmers and five hundred Viking farmers near Tynburg (who had migrated from Northern Europe and whose numbers had been growing slowly), Vig had a population of about eight thousand three hundred. "It was sparsely populated, far worse than Leonard's Mancini."

Manchuni had two thousand citizens, and including the various villages within its borders, its total population exceeded twenty thousand, second only to York Region, which was directly under the jurisdiction of Ragnar. Moreover, the wealth created by a single citizen was several times that of a farmer, and Vig estimated that Leonard's income ranged from 250 to 300 pounds of silver.

“Ultimately, it’s the southern region that’s more prosperous.” Vig sighed and began to tally up the figures.

First, there was wheat, the most produced crop. With a tax rate of 15%, the total revenue was 28,000 bushels (about 780 tons). In monetary terms, one bushel of wheat was equal to two silver pence, totaling 60 pounds of silver.

In addition to grain, each estate contributed two sheep, five pairs of chickens and ducks, and a small amount of ale and honey. Vig yawned and casually turned to the next page.

Finally, there were his three workshops, which generated a total monthly profit of about 1.6 pounds of silver. After deducting a quarter for maintenance costs, the estimated annual profit was 15 pounds.

In terms of expenses, the annual salary of the Shield Guards is 70 silver pence, which is about 0.3 pounds of silver. In addition, considering the daily food and equipment wear and tear, each of these old men consumes 0.6 pounds of silver per year.

"Twenty shield guards cost twelve pounds of silver. If we expand to fifty, the expenses will reach a terrifying thirty pounds!"

In addition, Tyneburg had professions such as tax collectors, blacksmiths, tailors, cooks, grooms, shepherds, rat catchers, and handymen. After marrying Heligef, six maids had to be hired, and the total cost of food and wages was eight pounds of silver.

After calculating, Vig was stunned for a moment, realizing that he had forgotten to give Ragnar the tribute.

"Oh no, how could I have forgotten about this troublesome thing?"

He was caught in a prolonged dilemma. Clearly, giving too much tribute would be disadvantageous, while giving too little would lower the king's favor towards him.

“Darling, what are you saying?” Noticing that her husband hadn’t fallen asleep yet, Helgeve leaned over and watched for a few minutes before mentioning the situation in West Frank.

"The Carolingian royal family has conferred titles on many earls. My father once saw a scroll in a monastery that mentioned the expenses of earls. They were required to spend 5%-20% of their total income on fulfilling their obligations to the king (including military affairs, royal travel and receptions, and special conscription). I think that since there has been no war this year, you should at least hand over 15% of your income."

At his wife's suggestion, Vig drew up a list that included twenty woolen horses, more than ten wagons loaded with grain, and several livestock.

"Ten pounds of silver should be enough to get by."

Dragging his weary body to bed, Vig couldn't fall asleep for a long time. After doing the math, he realized that movies and TV shows greatly romanticized the lives of medieval nobles. Maintaining daily expenses was already difficult, let alone hosting extravagant events like banquets, balls, and tournaments.

Unless borrowing from a church or business group.

When the topic of loans came up, Vig recalled the negative example of the former Lord of Tyneburg, whose father was said to be a spendthrift who owed the church a huge debt that took decades to pay off, leaving him unable to build the stone city walls.

"Looks like I need to think of some new ways to make money."

(End of this chapter)