OBS Chapter 235 Hereditary Viscount
Chapter 235 Hereditary Viscount
In fact, not long after the outbreak of the plague, the Holy See of Light announced that it would organize priests from the other three realms to go north to treat the people.
However, the initial delays were obvious, as they clearly intended to wait until the northern population was almost completely wiped out before setting off.
At that point, they won't be healing the sick, but rather harvesting faith and, incidentally, trampling the dignity of the Northern nobles into the mud.
But who knew that Richard, accompanied by the Apostle of Life, would go around making his presence felt and steal the spotlight?
The Papacy could no longer sit idly by and wanted to immediately enter the North to intervene in the plague.
However, they were stopped outside the northern border by the Prince's Guard, and the reason given by Prince Ares was quite interesting.
Didn't the Church of Light previously say that there were followers of the evil god in the North and that they had even attacked and killed knights of light and priests?
Let's not go now. Let's wait until the Northern Lord has purged the followers of the evil god before asking you all to come and help with the treatment!
That's a well-said statement.
In reality, the slap was loud.
Both sides know perfectly well who the so-called "believers of evil gods" really are.
However, this also illustrates just how intractable the intertwined relationship between the Empire and the Papacy truly is.
Especially after the outbreak of this plague, neither side dared to completely break off relations.
You stab me in the back, I stab you in the back, but on the surface we still have to shake hands with a smile and say it's all a misunderstanding.
Otherwise, if a full-scale war were to break out, it would consume a tremendous amount of the empire's national strength, and there's no guarantee that other empires wouldn't take the opportunity to invade.
In this situation, the royal family had to ensure Richard's personal safety, not only for the sake of the empire's reputation, but also to prevent things from escalating further.
For example.
Richard is now the most prominent piece in this game.
If a piece is captured too early, the player loses face and has to fight back. But if they do, the opponent might flip the board.
However, the player did not want to see this happen, so he intervened directly from outside the game, asking the referee to give the opponent a yellow card warning.
If the opponent continues to act arbitrarily after receiving a warning, the flag player will end the game and use all the pieces on the board as weapons to crush the opponent to death.
...
And this seems to be exactly what Earl Runaway wanted to express.
Griffin turned around, picked up a gold-embossed imperial document from the desk, and handed it to Richard.
"Don't take things so simply. Xingchen can protect you now, but he may not be able to protect Qifeng. Time can erase achievements, but it can't dilute hatred."
Richard reached out and took the document, feeling quite disappointed.
These words are the accumulated wisdom of our family, and every word is piercing to the heart!
The Earl of the Wolf's meaning was clear: Richard had indeed done a good job in clearing the plague from the North for the Empire, but this credit belonged solely to Richard.
When he passes away, his descendants will inherit Chiffon, or the empire may one day suddenly want to make peace with the Papacy. What will become of Chiffon then?
As the head of a family, one must consider not only the present glory, but also the future survival of the family.
If he truly relies on the protection of the royal family, he will recklessly oppose the Papacy or launch a direct attack.
No one can guarantee that the Chiffon family won't become a victim of the deal between the Empire and the Papacy, and end up being purged.
Say something.
Earl of the Wolf taught Richard a lesson, one that only a family heir could learn.
...
Richard did not respond to Count Wolf's words, because there was no need; Chiffon's future was beyond the comprehension of others.
He removed the wax seal from the imperial document and then slowly unfolded it.
The handwriting was neat and powerful, and it bore the double wax seals of the Starry Royal Family and the Earl of the Wolf. The contents caught Richard's eye.
Richard Chiffon is hereby conferred the title of hereditary viscount of the Star Empire!
It was actually a certificate of promotion!
The fiefdom area has also been expanded, from the original 100 square kilometers of Chiffon Wasteland to 1,000 square kilometers!
The entire Chiffon Wasteland, along with the snow-capped mountain range to the west, was incorporated into the Chiffon Territory.
In addition, a clause was added at the end of the document: the land of Razor Valley in Cape Cape shall belong to Chiffon forever.
After browsing through all the information on the promotion certificate, almost simultaneously, the best fantasy novel in the Cola Novels readers' poll, "Pioneering Lord: A Leisurely Imperial Life," ranked at the top! Richard heard the system notification in his mind.
【Congratulations!】
[You have obtained the hereditary viscount title of the Star Empire, and the area of the Chiffon Wasteland Primitive Farm has expanded to 1000 square kilometers!]
You have acquired ownership of land in Razor Valley, Cape Region. Your farm area has increased, expanding by 500 square kilometers!
[Map data loading...]
Loading complete
The system farm map in my consciousness expanded instantly, and the outline of the territory, which was originally limited to a corner of the wasteland, spread outwards.
In the southeast corner of the map, far from the main northern region, there is a small, jagged terrain marker with three small characters next to it: Razor Valley.
...
Richard was both surprised and speechless.
The good news is that the title has finally been elevated from baron for life to hereditary viscount, giving him a foundation for inheritance and the right to grant fiefs.
Furthermore, the farm's area has greatly expanded, and the legal land of Chiffon Wasteland and Rock Forest has finally been connected.
What's frustrating is that Earl of the Wolf's work is far too sloppy!
Such a big deal as a promotion, and they just casually handed over the documents without even a proper ceremony?
Isn't this a classic case of hiding one's true colors in the dark?
When other feudal lords promoted their vassals, according to tradition, they would invite nobles from all sides to witness and celebrate in a lively manner.
Even if there's no banquet, shouldn't we at least bring out that 30-year-old Elf Moonlight Wine and offer a simple congratulatory toast?
In fact, based on his achievements, he was already qualified to be promoted to earl, but the Wolf Rank itself is an earl, so it is impossible to give him an equal status.
...
Richard, clutching the document, looked up at Griffin, his tone tinged with complaint.
"Your Excellency, such an important matter as a promotion should be handled according to tradition, shouldn't you at least show some respect?"
Griffin raised an eyebrow, picked up the wine jug on the table, and prepared to pour himself a glass, seemingly too lazy to pay any attention to him.
Richard was furious. He snatched the wine jug and downed it in one gulp!
Richard let out a burp, completely disregarding the other person's reaction, and refocused his attention on the document proclaiming his title.
"The viscount's base fief is one thousand square kilometers. You've already given me the entire Chiffon Wasteland, so why add Razor Valley as well?"
Earl of the Wolf shook the now-empty wine jug, his face falling.
"This is a reward from the royal family. When we conquered the Cape Region, Grand Duke Frostfox offered up a batch of resource-rich lands, and Razor Valley is one of them."
"Preliminary exploration revealed that although the area is barren, it contains several extremely rich iron ore veins and a small copper ore vein, enough for the Chiffon family to mine for hundreds of years."
Although the reward was extremely generous and could guarantee the Chiffon family's survival for hundreds of years, Richard still sighed silently.
Before bestowing rewards, couldn't you have asked the person involved for their opinion first? Ordinary minerals aren't very useful for Chiffon cakes!
The Cape Region is inhabited by orcs who don't even have currency; they rely on bartering to meet their daily needs.
Moreover, the Varg tribe is currently exploring and excavating a trade route from Chiffon to the Cape Region, so that goods can be transported without the need for teleportation portals in the future.
Even if we can mine and sell the minerals, we'll have to wait until the major land grants begin next year. By then, it'll be too late!
If possible, even if it were only one square kilometer, he would prefer the western land bordering the Titan Empire or the eastern land bordering the Demon Spirit Empire.
That way, he wouldn't need to worry about obtaining the other two imperial titles; he could simply rely on the advantage of border proximity to open up trade routes with other empires.
...
But it's not impossible.
-- Land swap.
The specific procedure is to find a nobleman who owns a fiefdom in the western or eastern border.
Both parties reached an agreement, and then you enfeoffed my subordinates, and I enfeoffed your subordinates. Then, the two subordinates returned the land and titles to their respective lords.
Finally, report to the local official in charge and register the fiefdom.
We have no choice but to do it this way.
The empire's system of granting fiefdoms to one clan and one city had many limitations, and this was the only way to exploit loopholes.
As long as they don't engage in large-scale land swaps to expand the land surrounding their main city, the royal family will turn a blind eye.