Chapter 142 Thousands of Gold to Buy Horse Bones

"Thank you for your hard work, let's go and rest."

Lothar pushed back the hussars and thought to himself.

Hussein, a local tycoon passed down from generation to generation, had gained a lot of wealth through plunder, so he must have a large amount of gold and silver hidden in his home.

During this period, whether it was building a new Habsburg, expanding the production capacity of the blacksmith shop, building public toilets, or digging iron ore, it was a huge amount of expenditure.

In addition, there are as many as five hundred city guards. They are standing troops, that is, off-duty soldiers, and they need to be paid.

If the vassals hadn't given them a large amount of gifts when they came to see him, Lothar would now be worried about whether the wealth he had obtained from Prince Zahir would be enough.

But confiscating homes is definitely not a long-term thing.

He touched his chin and considered: "Andreas, do you think the number of city guards is too many?"

Andreas hesitated and said: "Sir, the number of city guards is not large, but I think there are a large number of rabble among them, and it would be a good thing to kick them out."

Lothar nodded and said: "Then I'll leave this matter to you and reduce the city guard to three hundred people."

In addition to the 100 remaining veterans, the remaining 200 city guards were also prepared by Lothar to wait for new recruitment buildings to be used for job transfer.

Andreas nodded and said, "Sir, I will do a good job."

Even after being streamlined, there is a standing army with a total number of more than 300 people, and it is still expanding at a rate of two (one each for Varangian Guards and Hussars) every day.

If fully recruited, the Varangian Guards would number two hundred, and the Hussars one hundred.

Counting the city guards, including one hundred remaining veterans, his standing army would reach an astonishing five hundred men.

You know, Lothar's father, Count Werner, only had a total of more than a hundred standing troops.

If a war breaks out, Lothar can also recruit his vassals, knights, and peasants and soldiers. He can definitely pull out an army of at least 5,000 people to deal with foreign enemies.

Therefore, even if 200 people are laid off, there will still be enough manpower.

But it’s not enough to cut costs; we also need to increase revenue.

Lothar had planned this for a long time, so he asked: "How is Malles doing? The newly recruited manpower should be in place. How is the refined plate armor I asked him to build?"

Andreas Hui reported: "Mr. Malles has completed two pairs of refined plate armor and three pairs of ordinary knight's full-body plate armor. They were all shipped to the warehouse yesterday."

Refined plate armor is plate armor that is engraved with patterns and has put a lot of effort into its appearance. There is almost no difference in defensive power from ordinary plate armor.

"Put them all in the car and take them with you, along with the 100 copies of Songs of Winter and Summer that were recently printed. Tomorrow, after Jeanna has escorted all the prisoners back, and after the trial has been carried out, we will set off for Jerusalem. "

Compared to Hebron, Jerusalem, which is only 40 kilometers away, is much more prosperous.

As the war subsided, pagan pilgrims and caravans, and the Crusaders from the Eastern and Northern Expeditions returned one after another, and Jerusalem returned to its former prosperity.

There were a large number of Crusader nobles living in Jerusalem. They did not want to live in remote fiefs and lived concentratedly in the city. They were both wealthy and fond of comparison.

Song of Winter and Summer, this book contains too many of Lothar's private goods, including the promotion of grape purple clothes; gorgeous, strong, flexible, and easy-to-maintain plate armor; and metal knives and forks Waiting for cutlery.

The nobles of this era often only used wooden spoons when eating, and most often grabbed them with their hands. He believed that the "Westeros table manners" described in the book would be an eye-opener for many nobles.

If there is no demand, create demand by force.

This should be the earliest marketing, right?

"grown ups!"

Ulm came leading a group of cavalry.

Lothar couldn't help complaining to Andreas beside him: "Look, today is really a special day. I think I should hold a special meeting for this purpose instead of sitting here wanting to take a nap, but... I was interrupted one after another.”

This was the first time for him to relax in the mansion, and he originally planned to spend some time with Prajna and Fringilla.

Andreas smiled sarcastically and didn't answer.

"Tell me, what is it?"

After Ulm saluted Lothar, he said: "Sir, didn't you authorize me to establish a rural circuit court?

This infidel named Aziz came to me to accuse Master Adnan of Abdul Village. I didn’t know what to do, so I brought him back to see you. "

Lothar suddenly understood: "Adnan—I remember this name. He came to see me on the second day after I arrived in Hebron and presented three fine war horses and a season's tax as gifts."

Ulm was stunned for a moment: "Sir, shouldn't I bring him back?"

Lothar shook his head and said: "No, of course it should be done. This is why I want you to open a circuit court. I have to let these heretics know that there are still people who can control the tax collectors who are riding on their heads."

He looked at the infidel named Aziz.

His nose was bruised and his face was swollen, he was miserable, and it was obvious that he had just been beaten severely when he arrived.

"Aziz, I am the Lord of Hebron, Lothar von Habsburg. Since you are willing to accuse the leader of your village to my patrol officer, you must have heard of my name. I I heard from my patrol officer that your wife was raped by Adnan, is there any proof of this?"

On the side, a cavalryman named Senmut talked with Aziz for a while and replied: "Sir, he said he had no evidence, but this matter is not a secret in the village, and many people know it."

"Did you send someone to verify it?"

Lothar looked at Ulm.

Ulm was ashamed: "I'm sorry, sir, I'm afraid of disturbing this Adnan."

Lothar shook his head and said, "No need to apologize. It's normal for you to have concerns."

Many villages in this era were quite closed, and it was impossible for a stranger from outside to ask for information.

Lothar looked at the heretic. His clothes were disheveled, and there were many marks on them that looked like they had been cut by tree branches while running wildly.

Just by looking at his face, Lothar believed him.

But he still said: "Aziz, I have to warn you, if you are making a false accusation, once it is verified, I will sentence you to hanging."

Senmut translated: "My lord, he said that he swore in the name of the holy fire that if he told a lie, his body would be eaten by vultures and never be thrown into the flames."

Lothar nodded slightly.

He just asked a question in a programmed manner.

Let me ask, if there is no real grievance, who would think of accusing the "master" of his village to a pagan lord?

As a model of buying horse bones for thousands of dollars, Lothar attached great importance to this matter. He said: "Ulm, you immediately go to the city guard to find someone from the village of Abdu, or someone who has relatives there, to inquire about this matter." Whether this is true or not, if it is true, lead troops immediately to attack Adnan’s mansion.”

Ulm took the order.

Senmut also translated this to Aziz.

Aziz immediately fell to his knees and thanked him repeatedly with a choked voice.

Before he came, he had already considered that Lothar would hang him indiscriminately and that Lothar would use him as a bargaining chip to blackmail Adnan.

But I didn't expect that things would progress so smoothly.

Even if there is a language barrier, Lothar can feel the sincerity of the other party.

He smiled: "No need to thank me, Aziz. As my subject, I have the obligation to protect you while enjoying the taxes you contributed."

Lothar ordered people to take Aziz down and find a room to have a good rest.

Andreas opened his mouth and closed it again.

"Why are you hesitating?"

"Sir, I understand your thoughts, but would it be too drastic to kill two pagan 'leaders' in a row in one day?"

He carefully chose his words and did not express his biggest concern.

Lothar smiled and said: "It's good to be fierce. I hope they join forces to start a rebellion, so I have a reason to kill them all in one fell swoop."

Although these pagan leaders have money, this money cannot be converted into military power in an open and honest manner.

If the opponent is not a pagan, but a group of Western European lords, even if they spend money and hire mercenary groups, they can piece together a large army of tens of thousands of people.

But there is never if in this world.

"A bunch of stinky fish and rotten shrimps, do you really want me to spend several years, or even more than ten years, slowly grinding against them? I don't have the leisure to do so."

Lothar muttered to himself.

"But let me see, as long as the masters are famous, there is no possibility for these people to unite."

Don't be afraid of returning.

But if a fight breaks out, it will consume the development potential of the entire Hebron.