I'm not a lord

Chapter 350 The Eve of the Coronation
The fifth brother, Andrei, never refused his eldest brother's suggestions or orders.

Without his elder brother Lynn's constant support and guidance, he wouldn't be where he is today.

In hindsight, my elder brother's suggestions and orders were almost never wrong, and trusting him was definitely the right choice.

Whether out of emotion or reason, Andrei would not refuse his elder brother.

In his view, marrying his precious daughter to his eldest brother's eldest son was undoubtedly a good marriage for both the family and his daughter, even though his daughter was only a baby who had just turned one month old.

So what if she's engaged when she's only a few months old? Isn't it great to secure a good husband in advance? He's the eldest son of the eldest brother, and countless girls in the North would love to marry him but can't!
With one arm around the fifth brother and the other holding a wine glass, Lynn chuckled and said, "Then it's settled. If my son ever bullies your daughter, I'll definitely whip his ass until it's raw!"

Lynn's view on this marriage was simple: to first arrange a wife for his eldest son, Albert.

Whether she's pretty or not isn't that important; what's important is that the fifth daughter married Lynn's eldest son.

He wanted his brothers to see that he, Lynn, could share both hardship and happiness.

He wouldn't mind continuing to arrange marriages with his brothers once they all had children.

Albert, though born to his lover Leah, is currently his only son.

If his wife Chloris really doesn't give birth to a son in the future, then Albert will have a high probability of inheriting Lynn's mantle.

Lynn has definitely shown enough sincerity.

"Brother, say no more, I'll toast you again!" Andrei picked up the wine pot, poured two full glasses for himself and Lynn, and then drank them down in one gulp.

Fueled by alcohol, the two reminisced about the past, drinking more and more until the moon was high in the sky.

The next day, with a severe headache, Lynn barely opened his eyes, and a light and joyful female voice immediately entered his ears.

"My lord, you're finally awake!"

As his vision gradually cleared, Lynn finally remembered that he had most likely been drunk last night and had been helped back to his bedroom in the western suburban county palace.

He had lived in this bedroom for a period of time, and the interior decoration looked very familiar to him.

It can only be said that drinking really leads to trouble, as it disrupted his long-established early-rising biological clock.

Lynn raised her hand to rub her slightly stiff cheek and asked, "What time is it now?"

The woman attending to the bed immediately replied, "It's just past ten o'clock. I'll have someone prepare hot water and breakfast for you right now."

Lynn had an exceptionally good memory; he recognized the girl by the bed as Hela, the daughter of the former Duke of the Valley, Herman.

To be fair, Hela was indeed a bit unlucky. She ran to White River Territory to seek refuge with Lynn last year, but she was a step behind the former princess Chloris.

One slow step leads to another slow step. Chloris had long since married Lynn, while Hela was still living in the palace in the western suburbs.

Because Lynn had been away fighting for a long time over the past year, she had very few opportunities to meet with Lynn, and her budding and restless heart was hard to calm down.

Until last night, when Hela learned that Lynn was going to stay at the palace, she realized that her chance to show off her charm had come.

Her heart was already set on the new king of the North. She would cheer with joy at Lynn's victory on the battlefield and secretly shed tears at Lynn's wedding.

However, she no longer fantasized about becoming Lynn's wife, but she didn't mind becoming Lynn's mistress in the palace.

Unfortunately, Lynn got completely drunk last night and didn't have time to appreciate her carefully made-up look.

"Tell them to boil more water. I want to take a bath. For breakfast, a bowl of hot pea soup will be enough."

As they were talking, Lynn had already lifted the blanket.

As soon as he got out of bed, Hela took out her coat to put it on Lynn.

However, because Hela had been sitting on the edge of the bed all night without sleeping, she accidentally tripped over the carpet and fell flat on her face.

"ah!"

Just as she was about to hit the edge of the bed, Lynn quickly reached out and pulled her into her arms.

"My lord, I'm sorry, I...I..." Hela lowered her head in shame, but suddenly realized that she was in a warm and broad male embrace, and her pretty face immediately turned as red as if it were about to bleed.

Lynn placed his hand on Hela's back and could clearly feel her body trembling slightly. It wasn't fear, but rather the stiffness of extreme tension.

He then looked down at the face of the person in his arms, noticing the faint dark circles under her eyes, and his voice softened involuntarily: "You didn't sleep a wink last night?"

Hela's nose was filled with the strong, masculine scent of alcohol emanating from Lynn. Her heart pounded so hard it felt like it would burst out of her chest. She clutched the hem of her cashmere coat tightly, her voice barely a whisper: "My lord drank too much last night. I was afraid you'd have a headache or wake up thirsty with no one to bring you water, so..."

Lynn first laid her on the soft bed, then took the coat from her and draped it over himself, saying with a stern face:
"Isn't this kind of thing done by maids? Your father entrusted you and your sister to me so that I could take good care of you, not so that you could do these servitude jobs. Is this how the stewards and maids in this palace usually take care of you?"

At this moment, Lynn was no longer drunk.

With his physique and the alcohol content of alcohol these days, no one can get him drunk if he doesn't want to.

However, he had been under too much pressure in the past year, and last night he had a heart-to-heart drink with Lao Wu, which gave him a chance to indulge himself.

"My lord, this was my own choice. Please don't blame the steward and the maids." Hela said anxiously, her large, snow-capped breasts trembling.

“For your sake, I’ll let them off this time.” Lynn glanced at Hela, then asked, “Speaking of which, what are your thoughts on your future?”

"My future?" A look of confusion flashed in Hela's eyes. Wasn't her future entirely in Lynn's hands? Was there even a need to ask such a question?
Lynn said calmly, "You should also know that Count Vasa of Mirror Iron has become the new Duke of the Valley. He has always wanted you to marry his eldest son and is willing to offer me a generous dowry for this."

“My lord, I do not wish to return to the Valley Territory now. If possible, I beg you to refuse this marriage on my behalf!” Hela’s answer was firm and decisive.

How could she possibly marry her family's enemy? Her father died because of Vasa, and White Eagle Castle, which held countless memories for her, also fell into Vasa's hands.

Marry Vasa's eldest son? She'd probably get up on her wedding night and strangle her enemy with a rope!
Lynn was about to ask again, "Then you—" The next second, Hela raised her head and looked directly into Lynn's eyes, bravely and loudly replying, "My lord, please allow me to stay by your side! Even if it's just staying in this palace hoping for your occasional return, I'm willing!"

“Okay, I agree.” A friendly smile appeared on Lynn’s face.

Before returning to Golden Deer Castle for his coronation, this palace in the western suburbs might be worth staying a day or two longer.

Of course, Lynn's stay here was not solely for the sake of women; he also had several important official duties to attend to.

That noon, Albert, the magistrate of White River County, was ordered to come to the palace and have lunch with the lord.

“My lord, I am grateful that you have given my foolish son a chance, but with his age and experience, he is really not qualified to serve as the county magistrate.”

As soon as old Albert sat down, he began to talk anxiously about his eldest son, young Albert.

Previously, Xiao Ai was appointed by Lynn as the first county magistrate of Black Shirtland, shouldering the responsibilities of the county.

"What, are you trying to persuade me to rescind the appointment?" With that, Lynn picked up a spoon and took a sip of the warm mutton soup to whet his appetite.

The chef added several spices when simmering the soup, which effectively neutralized the unique gamey smell of the mutton, making the soup taste incredibly delicious.

“Sir, that’s not what I meant. I’m just worried that he won’t be able to carry out your orders firmly.” The soup was delicious, but old Albert had little appetite at all.

Lately, he has been constantly worried about the future of his family.

While it was an honor for both father and son to serve as county magistrates, it also brought him a lot of invisible pressure.

He was always afraid that his son would not be a good sheriff and would ruin the lord's whole plan.

After all, Blackwood County was a newly annexed territory, and there had even been fighting there recently, so the local conditions were quite complicated.

Lynn smiled and reassured him, "Your son is doing a great job in White Bear County. Don't worry, he's more capable than you think, and I need someone I can trust to govern Blackwood County."

Lynn valued loyalty more than so-called seniority or ability.

Under the administrative system he established, the loyalty of his officials always came first; he needed people who could steadfastly carry out his orders.

Moreover, Albert's abilities are definitely not lacking. He is a capable person who can manage tens of thousands of outsiders in White Bear County in an orderly manner, and can even master the language of the wild people in a short period of time in order to appease them.

The die-hard elements in Black Fir Territory had already been purged by the third brother, Yang. With Albert's abilities, it wouldn't be difficult for him to pacify that new territory.

After Lynn's simple reassurance, old Albert finally felt a little more at ease and picked up a spoon to sip the soup.

Although he had become the county magistrate, Old Ai's lifestyle remained exactly the same as when he was the governor of Baixiong County.

For breakfast, I would have some wheat porridge; for lunch, I would eat some bread with pickled vegetables; and for dinner, I would usually have a bowl of bean and meat soup with some vegetables.

He knew very well that he and his son owed their current achievements and status entirely to the lord's generous promotion.

The taxes and grain collected by Baihe County were used by the lord to support the huge army. Old Albert would only take a fixed salary and would never touch the deadly wealth that did not belong to him.

After Lynn finished the appetizer soup, it was time for the main course.

He picked up a knife and cut the tender lamb chops on his plate, while issuing several orders: "I have decided to expand Andrei's reserve legion and the desert legion that I personally command. Both legions will recruit two thousand new soldiers. The reserve legion's soldiers will be recruited from the refugees. You must recruit new soldiers from the counties as soon as possible."

Recruiting the barbarians is simpler; the tribal chiefs will actively cooperate. Your county office's job is to compile a roster of new recruits and provide them with the necessary equipment and pay. Official documents from the Ministry of Finance and other departments will be issued as soon as possible.

Over the past year, another 20,000 to 30,000 refugees have arrived in Wangling.

In particular, this autumn, Otto III allowed Count Harvey's 20,000 troops to forcibly requisition grain in the western part of the royal domain in order to prepare military provisions, causing considerable unrest in the region.

Large numbers of local serfs were forced to leave their homes and head west to White River County in Lynn or Mirror Iron Territory in Vasa.

Mirror Iron Territory also suffered from war in the past year, so most of the refugees voluntarily fled to White River County and were settled in batches in various counties by Old Albert.

The elderly, weak, sick, and disabled are automatically eliminated during the escape process, making them an extremely high-quality source of soldiers.

In Lao Sanyang's Turbulent Legion, the most daring battalion was made up of refugees.

Currently, the expenses of all legions under Lynn's command are approved by the Ministry of Finance, and the local counties are responsible for the specific expenditures.

With the administrative power Lynn currently wields, he is not yet able to collect all the taxes from various regions and bring them to the central government.

After all, most of these taxes are for grain that is difficult to transport. Given the current transportation conditions in the swampy territory, it is more economical to store it on-site.

To this end, Lynn specifically established local finance departments and treasurers to manage finances, while the central government established the Ministry of Finance to coordinate local resources.

Old Albert nodded repeatedly, firmly remembering all the instructions Lynn had given him.

White River County is currently of great strategic importance, serving as both a forward position against Otto III and a logistical base for Lynn's eastward expansion.

Fortunately, thanks to the careful management of Lynn and old Albert, this territory has completed agricultural reforms and possesses various advanced handicrafts, enabling it to support huge military expenditures.

Finally, Lynn looked at old Albert's face, which had aged considerably, and said with a touch of melancholy:
“Albert, I know you’ve been working late into the night lately, but White River County and I still can’t do without you. I just hope you can take better care of your health and not overwork yourself. I’ve already ordered the steward of the Western Suburbs Palace to assign you a chef and two maids. This is just a small token of my appreciation, so please don’t refuse.”

"Thank you, sir. It is the honor of my life to serve you!" Old Albert was moved to tears, but he did not know how to express his excitement. He could only stand up and kneel on one knee in the manner of a knight pledging allegiance to his lord.

The following day, Lynn bid farewell to his fifth brother, Andre, and old Albert, and left the western suburbs to continue his return journey.

Although the snowy season is approaching and the land is covered in ice, Otto could launch a surprise attack on White River County if he was willing to sacrifice a large number of his soldiers for frostbite.

Both Andrei and Albert, one a military man and the other a civil official, had to remain in White River County and would miss Lynn's coronation ceremony.

(End of this chapter)