Chapter 378 Beast Tide

The harvest season is the most fascinating. Looking at the wheat waves rolling in the wind and holding his son in his arms, Hudson couldn't help but smile with joy.

With this great harvest, the newly migrated serfs should feel at ease. For the people at the bottom, nothing is more reassuring than a good harvest.

Grain production does not lie. After several years of hard work, the territory's grain production per mu has further increased, and the average grain production per mu has exceeded two hundred and twenty pounds.

Whether it is the effect of fertilizer, the effect of seed selection and breeding, or perhaps both, Hudson is not sure.

But this is just a small problem. No matter what the specific reason is, you have to grasp it with both hands.

The seeds must be of the highest quality, Marsh brand fertilizer must continue to be used, and farm composting technology cannot be ignored.

In fact, the yield per mu is also hindered by the low yield per mu of newly developed mountainous areas. In the most fertile swamp farmland, the yield per mu is even close to 300 pounds.

Of course, this data is only in the hands of the territory's senior officials. Ordinary people only know that the mountainous areas have received a bumper harvest, but they do not have a clear idea of ​​the extent of the bumper harvest.

Even if a spy spreads the news, everyone will only think that this is an example of local land harvest. It's not like things like this have never happened.

For example: on a battlefield where two armies are fighting brutally, it will be easier to have a bumper harvest in the coming year.

Another example: If there is heavy snow in winter, the food output will be higher next year.

…

It’s just that everyone has not done in-depth research and lacks knowledge in related fields. They attribute this extraordinary thing to the blessing of gods.

Hudson already has a lot of sacred halo, and he doesn't mind adding one more.

He didn't even need to promote the title of "God's Favor". He had a bunch of tap fans to press it on his head.

The most important thing is that the status is different.

When something like this happened during the period of the little nobles, it was a matter of life and death. If you were not careful, your life and your family would be destroyed.

At this point, the most it can do is attract secret prying eyes from interested people. They will not send people to snatch it just because of a rumor that is not yet true or false.

There is no shortage of food in the southeastern province. The Dalton family may fall out with the Koslow family for other reasons, but it is absolutely impossible to launch a noble war just to gain a few kilograms more grain per acre.

The Blood Moon Defense Line is currently under construction. Everyone has money and people to contribute, and the Dalton family provides food.

With one family providing daily food and drink for hundreds of thousands of workers, the fact that the Dalton family can still have the energy to sell food to the outside world is enough to illustrate the problem.

Judging from the publicly available data, the Dalton family controls more than 30,000 square kilometers of land and has a population of over one million.

Even if the actual data is doubled, there is nothing surprising. Hudson has not forgotten that the Dalton family also has islands overseas, and these territories are not under the jurisdiction of the kingdom.

With such a strong family background, supplying food rations for hundreds of thousands of workers is naturally not a big problem. It is nothing more than taking the food that originally supported northern Xinjiang and using it to build a defense line.

Without the burden of supplying supplies to northern Xinjiang, the overall burden on the nobles of the southeastern provinces has been reduced a lot.

If grain prices had not plummeted and there were not enough buyers in the market, there would not have been so many minor nobles in financial crisis.

If you dig deeper, you can also have something to do with Hudson.

Without the military grain consumption in northern Xinjiang, the southeastern province has a serious overcapacity of grain production. However, the mountainous territory, which has always been the largest grain buyer in the southeastern province, suddenly stopped purchasing grain.

The two crises collided, directly triggering a collapse in food prices. Not to mention compared to the war period, it can't even be compared to before the war.

Hudson is also to blame for this issue. Looking at it from another perspective, the mountain territory’s large-scale land reclamation plan is purely about increasing food.

While the overall population of the southeastern province has declined slightly, the increasing food production capacity is undoubtedly the culprit of the crisis.

You know, you know, but Mr. Hudson has no intention of worrying about everyone. If it's unsalable, that's fine. Anyway, he has no food to sell now.

The current retail price of rye on the market is 2.5 copper coins/pound, which is 0.5 copper coins lower than the normal price before the war broke out.

For food, such a price drop is already tragic. But this makes no sense. A price drop of only one-sixth is far from enough to be able to buy the bottom.

What's more, with Hudson's personality, he is not allowed to take advantage of others. Even if we purchase grain reserves, we can only do so at market prices and cannot deliberately lower prices.

Then simply wait and discuss this issue when the warehouses of the nobles are full. It is often easier to achieve the goal.

Reserve food, reserve food, and most importantly - reserve!

No one stipulates that grain reserves must be piled in one's own warehouse.

If conditions permit, temporarily placing it in a neighbor's warehouse is also a good choice.

The core factor is still caused by the immaturity of the market.

If there is overcapacity in grain production in a mature commodity market, the downstream industrial chain can also be extended, such as developing breeding, brewing, food processing...

Unfortunately, in these industries, the more they do, the more they lose.

In a self-sufficient economic model, everyone can produce these products themselves. Except for those emerging nobles in the north who need to purchase, there is no market at all.

It's a pity that transporting these products from the southeastern provinces to northern Xinjiang involves a long journey and the tolls along the way can bankrupt people.

If we could take the sea route, the situation might be better. You can do business in coastal cities, but unfortunately there are only two ports in the north.

One port is on the prairie and is controlled by the Farland Kingdom among the seven kingdoms of the prairie; the other port is in the hands of Duke Hero.

In the entire southeastern province, the only one who can do business is the Dalton family, but only at the port.

It is simply impossible to go deep into the interior to do business. The two major forces that control the port are now looking to monopolize and seek huge profits.

…

"Your Excellency, the king has sent an official document."

Tom's words interrupted Hudson's family happiness. He turned around and handed little Franz to Melissa, then took the official document and read it.

"What's wrong, Hudson? Did something happen again?"

Melissa asked concerned.

From the time the two met until now, there have been few days of peace. Either they are fighting, or they are preparing for war.

Even after the war ended, there were still a lot of problems that made everyone uneasy.

"No big deal!

The Ministry of Military Affairs planned to station two legions in the southeastern province to guard against Hessian invasion. This is asking for my opinion. "

He sounded relaxed, but deep down inside, Hudson was anything but calm. Beware of the Hessians, this excuse to fool children, he didn't believe it ten thousand times.

Even if the war breaks out immediately, if the Hessian Kingdom wants to invade the southeastern province, it must first open the road to the Blackstone Mountains.

There is a natural buffer zone, which is enough to buy time for the kingdom to mobilize its troops. There is no need to put two standing legions in the southeastern province.

Using this low-end excuse, it is better to say: Food prices are cheap in the southeastern province, and placing the standing army here can purchase them nearby, which can save military expenses.

"You want to refuse, right?"

Melissa asked curiously.

I have been aware of political sensitivity since childhood. It seems that placing two standing corps in the southeastern province is nothing, but in fact it is the central government reaching out to the local areas.

It’s easy to ask God but hard to send Him away!

Once these two legions are let in, it will be difficult to drive them out.

"They came at the wrong time. If it had been half a year ago, I wouldn't have minded them coming to muddy the waters.

Too bad not now!

It took a lot of effort for us to ease the relationship with the Dalton family and establish a fragile balance. If a strong dragon intervenes at this time, the balance will definitely be broken.

The Dalton family has long regarded the southeastern province as their own backyard, and will certainly not allow anyone to extend their tentacles unless necessary. "

Hudson said rather helplessly.

Earlier, Caesar IV reminded the nobles in the country to abandon their prejudices and prepare for war wholeheartedly. In the blink of an eye, the central government wanted to intervene in local affairs again.

Of course, it is not ruled out that this is sincerely considering the safety of the southeastern province, but the probability is too low.

…

Emerald Palace.

"Your Majesty, except Count Carles and Count Martinez, everyone else has rejected the Kingdom's garrison."

Archduke Efiero, the Minister of Military Affairs, frowned and reported.

In the conscience of heaven and earth, this time the Ministry of Military Affairs drafted the document sincerely to strengthen border defense and reduce military expenditures.

Compared with several major grain-producing provinces in the south, the price of grain in the royal capital, which needs to be imported from other places, is 70% to 80% higher.

A large number of troops gathered near the royal capital, which was a burden to the kingdom. With limited military spending, the Ministry of Military Affairs has to find ways to reduce expenditures.

However, all the hard work was not understood at all. Except for the provinces of Covasia and Obra, which were frightened by the Hessians, several other southern Xinjiang provinces did not buy it at all.

"Forget it, let them go! They chose the path themselves, and they have to bear the consequences. If a war breaks out in the future, they will cry."

Caesar IV said angrily.

The local nobles were worried that he, the king, would use the garrison to interfere in local affairs, but he was very restrained.

A large province like the Southeast Province has only two legions stationed in it. At most, it can only gain some say. How can it be qualified to compete for the decision-making power of local affairs!

It's a pity that no one will believe this. After all, his political credibility as a king has not yet been established.

"Your Majesty, the garrison is just a small problem. Since they can choose to refuse, it is naturally due to their strength.

Compared with the great nobles in the north, the great nobles in the south are better at hiding their strength. It seems that they have tried their best in every war, but no one knows how much is actually hidden.

For example, take the Liufeng family. Everyone thought that after the entire army was wiped out, the Liufeng family would be completely devastated, but their remaining strength still preserved most of their interests.

If the political influence was not too bad and he needed to give everyone an explanation, I am afraid that Duke Liufeng would not even give up the position of governor.

In name, they have declined into middle-class nobles, but their overall strength is still the number one family in Fengyun Province.

The situation of the Dalton family was similar. They thought that the Koslow family would challenge them after the war, but nothing happened.

With Earl Hudson's methods, he chose silence, which is enough to prove the strength of the Dalton family.

In name, the military strength of these great nobles in southern Xinjiang is far inferior to that of several families in northern Xinjiang, but the real gap may not be as great as we imagine. "

It's not that the northern nobles are honest, they are beaten by orcs all year round, and they can't hide their strength at all.

In contrast, the great nobles in the south are different. They have played the role of reinforcements in every war. The deeper they hide, the better it is for the family.

Simply calculating the apparent military strength, the Dalton family's strength is only one-third of the weakest family among the five major noble families in Northern Xinjiang, and the Liufeng family is only half of the weakest family among the five major families in Northern Xinjiang.

However, judging from the performance of the two major families, it is not just this little strength at all.

After the visible army was completely lost, the organization was able to be restored immediately. Even if the combat power has declined, it is enough to prove that the family has a strong foundation.

From the perspective of the kingdom, it is undoubtedly a good thing that the domestic nobles are strong.

But for the king, that may not be the case. No monarch likes his subordinates to hide their strength, and such hiding often means they are uncontrollable.

"Don't worry, Prime Minister, I'm not a petty person either. They have the confidence to stop the invasion of the Hessian Kingdom, which is also a good thing for the kingdom.

There is no need to mention the garrison matter anymore. The next strategic focus of the kingdom is to recuperate and regain strength.

Except for the newly recovered seven provinces in the North, which still need time to develop and are not required, the other provinces must replenish their noble private armies within three years.

In particular, these border provinces must be urged to expand their military and prepare for war. The Ministry of Military Affairs will pay close attention to this aspect of work and ensure that everyone is ready for war at any time. "

Caesar IV said calmly.

Obviously, Caesar IV, who said he didn't care, was not really so generous. It can be seen from the content of the words that it is completely disgusting in the name of "for your own good."

Expanding the military and preparing for war is simple, but these preparations all cost money. Unlike the serf soldiers who served for free, the formal private army of the nobles also needed to be paid.

No matter how much you save, you must be able to support your family. Otherwise, those wandering knights would not have come to seek refuge.

It doesn't matter to the big nobles if the private military system is restored. Originally, their structures were all intact, and the only difference was that their combat effectiveness was reduced.

The ones who were really injured were the little nobles below. Theoretically, after two years of rest and recuperation, they should be able to catch their breath.

Unfortunately, in the past two years, there has been an additional war repayment tax. This tax is not too much if it is distributed to an individual, but the tax is collected purely in cash and cannot be offset in kind.

For nobles in areas with convenient transportation and developed commerce, there is not much pressure and they can just cash out the output of their territory.

But for some noble lords with limited transportation, remote locations, and lack of means of cashing out, this is a big trouble. If a big noble is stuck, the problem will be even more serious.

Life is already difficult, so how can we find the spare capacity to expand our military and prepare for war? It's okay if the Kingdom doesn't raise this issue, but if it is pressed and added layer by layer, it will be a heavy burden.

…

Bloody Moon County.

"Are you sure you saw it correctly? The monsters in the Blackstone Mountains are gathering?"

Governor Pierce asked solemnly.

In recent days, the number of cases of Warcraft attacking construction teams has been increasing. In order to understand the situation, he had to send experts deep into the Blackstone Mountains to check the situation.

A problem arose in this investigation. According to past experience, the gathering of a large number of monsters often means that the beast tide is about to break out.

"Your Majesty the Governor, I have witnessed this with my own eyes. If my Soundbreaker wasn't fast enough, I almost wouldn't be able to come back!"

Magister Yuli said with lingering fear.

After wandering among the monsters, being able to come back intact is definitely the blessing of the Lord of the Dawn.

If he is not lucky enough to be targeted by the high-level monsters in the Blackstone Mountains, his fate will be to turn into poop.

"How big is the herd?"

Governor Pierce asked with concern.

There are also three, six or nine levels of beast tides. Some small beast tides can be dealt with by small rural nobles. It is not surprising that large beast tides attack counties and destroy provinces.

The largest beast tide in history has even recorded the destruction of a country.

"I don't know! Anyway, I saw hundreds of monsters, and there were monsters gathering here on the road.

There are many high-level monsters living in the Blackstone Mountains, and ordinary people cannot get close to them. If you want to know the specific situation, you should ask Earl Hudson to check it out! "

Magister Yuri suggested.

It's not that he wants to shirk the blame, it's actually too dangerous to go deep into the Blackstone Mountains now. On the way back, he saw many mercenary groups turned into snacks for the monsters.

Not to mention that the magister was in danger in the past, even the great magister could not guarantee that he would be able to escape unscathed when encountering these high-level magical beasts.

Even the legendary strong men in the sanctuary must run away quickly when encountering a herd of beasts. Once surrounded, it is also possible to bury the bones in Qingshan.

In the past years, not just one or two masters died in the Blackstone Mountains.

The dragon knight was able to go over to check, not only because the dragon was powerful in combat, but also because the dragon ran fast.

Even high-level monsters are rarely able to catch up with the giant dragon. Being able to catch up does not mean being able to defeat them. After all, Warcraft is not omnipotent.

Having gained the advantage in speed, there are inevitably certain disadvantages in other aspects, and it is impossible to take advantage of all the talents.

"Nothing bothers you, Master. Magister Yuri's matter involves a lot of things. It's not appropriate to leak it now. I'll trouble you to go to the mountains to lead the way."

Governor Pierce said slightly tiredly.

I was really tired. I thought I could take the opportunity of building the Blood Moon Defense Line to complete the further integration of the nobles in the province.

Unfortunately, the plan did not change quickly, and the start of the defense line has not been smooth. First, the kingdom's debt crisis broke out, and then the international situation became tense again.

It seems far away from the southeastern province, but it is inseparable from everything. Governor Pierce needs to pay attention to everything.

He had just rejected the kingdom's garrison, and now there were signs of a beast tide, giving him no chance to relax at all.

If he had known earlier that there was a beast tide waiting here, when the Ministry of Military Affairs proposed to garrison troops, he would not have refused so simply.

When the scale of the beast tide is uncertain, it is definitely a good thing to have two more standing legions to fill the hole.

Unfortunately, in politics, once you say it out loud, it will be difficult to recover. Having just refused to garrison the Kingdom, we cannot immediately change our stance and invite them back.

"That's all, for the sake of the safety of millions of people in the Southeast Province, I will just make a trip!"

After finishing showing off, Magister Yuli turned around and walked out of the door. Summoned the crackling beast and headed straight for the mountain territory.

…