Winter Lord: Starting with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 125 Grain grabbing
McKinney slowly turned his head to look at the butler, his face full of impatience, a hint of coldness emanating from his drunkenness: "What did you say?"

The steward trembled, his voice shaking, "It's true, sir... Although the granary looks full, you've been hosting banquets every day lately, consuming a huge amount of grain and meat... At the current rate... I'm afraid it won't last until the end of February..."

"Snapped!!"

McKinney jumped to his feet and slapped the butler across the face with such force that the skinny old man fell to the ground.

"Nonsense! Are you cursing me to starve to death?!" McKinney roared through gritted teeth, his face contorted with rage.

The butler covered his face and knelt on the ground, shrinking back without uttering a sound.

This baron feasted three times a day, slaughtering whole cows and sheep, bringing in a cartload of wine every week, and throwing away two buckets of leftovers every day...

Such extravagance would fill ten granaries.

But he didn't dare to say.

A silence fell over the hall, broken only by the crackling of the fireplace.

Suddenly McKinney's eyes lit up, and a greasy smile appeared on his face:

"Hehe, this little matter is no problem for this Baron! I have a brilliant plan!"

The steward quickly stood up, eagerly flattering him: "Your Excellency is brilliant! May I ask what ingenious plan it is?"

McKinney laughed heartily, tilted his head back and took a swig of his liquor, then swung the flask triumphantly and said, "While others hoard grain in winter, I hoard troops."

"As long as we wait for those fools in the Red Tide Territory to transport their grain to the neighboring Azure Deer Territory, we'll just raid it, right? They're incredibly wealthy; they get grain delivered there every ten days or so."

"Wow, you're so tall, sir!" the knight beside him immediately flattered in a gruff voice. "That's what Northern nobles are all about! What's the use of painstakingly hoarding food? With just a little effort, it's all ours!"

"That's right!" another knight grinned, raising his cup. "Come, to Lord McKinney! We don't go hungry in winter, all thanks to your wisdom and prowess!"

"That's right!" A group of people laughed and echoed, clinking cups and plates together, creating a lively scene.

McKinney was overjoyed. He put his arm around the maid in his arms, kicked aside the empty wine jug, and slammed his hand on the table with a flourish:
"Alright! We'll send out troops as soon as more supplies arrive. In the meantime, brothers, eat and drink well, don't deprive yourselves!"

"Hahaha!! Thank you for the reward, sir!"

The butler hesitated for a long time, then gritted his teeth and whispered a reminder: "My lord... this... this is probably not appropriate... Canglu Territory is Baron Calvin's territory! If it gets discovered..."

Before he could finish speaking, McKinney slammed his hand on the table, interrupting him.

"Idiot!" McKinney rolled his eyes, tilting his fat face up. "Who told you to rob us outright? Put on a mask, change your clothes, kill all the grain transporters, leave no trace, and who will know it was us?"

His fat face trembled with laughter, his eyes narrowed into slits: "Only fools would openly rob; smart people do it, then dust themselves off and leave."

"Yep!"

"The Baron is so clever!"

"Isn't this... what was it again, tactical deception!"

The knights took turns exaggerating and boasting.

One of the drunkards even raised his glass and shouted, "Why don't we just say it was the Snow Oathers! Those guys do all sorts of things, murder and arson, they're perfect scapegoats, hahaha!"

"Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!"

McKinney laughed so hard he almost fell over, pulling the maid in his arms even tighter: "Look, look! That's what a smart person's mind is like!"

The butler wanted to make one last attempt to salvage the situation: "But... what if Lord Calvin's situation..."

McKinney waved his hand impatiently: "Stop talking about Calvin all the time, who are you trying to scare? No matter how capable he is, he can't scare me."

He downed a glass of wine in one gulp, roughly wiped his mouth, and said, "Alright, stop hesitating. Go and give the orders: find someone to keep watch, and as soon as more grain arrives, take action immediately."

“Yes…” A hint of unease flashed in the butler’s eyes, but he could only leave the banquet hall.

Another round of shouting and commotion erupted in the hall.

The flickering candlelight on the table cast rosy, smiling faces, piling up into an absurd picture in the deep winter night.

…………

The main transport route from Red Tide Territory to Azure Deer Territory passes through a dense forest and then winds its way through a narrow valley.

In winter, the area is covered in deep snow and has a rugged terrain, making it an "ideal place" for bandits to ambush.

Early that morning, Baron McKinney received intelligence that the grain convoy from Red Tide Territory to Azure Deer Territory was passing through that valley today!
"What a great opportunity!" He rubbed his hands together, his eyes gleaming as if he were eyeing a piece of fatty meat on a plate. "I have to see this kind of excitement for myself!"

So McKinney decided to take the lead himself.

Although he has been dissolute and has recently fallen behind in his cultivation, he has worked hard and has already reached the cultivation level of a high-ranking formal knight.

Almost all the knights who could move within the territory were summoned.

However, due to the heavy losses in the previous Snow Eagle City war, not many knights were actually left.

There were only about ten official knights, one elite knight, and more than sixty apprentice knights. These were all the knights under his command.

This is a small amount for the Northern nobles, enough to deal with a grain transport team.

easy.

"This isn't a war!" McKinney laughed heartily. "It's just a bunch of grain transporters. If they charged in one go, they'd scare them away!"

Before setting off, the knights had another good drink in their territory, the air thick with the smell of alcohol.

Cheers to victory!

"We'll start eating the food we snatched tonight, hahaha!"

…………

Snow fell on the mountains and forests, and all was silent. Only this group of "bandits" trudged through the thick snow, lying in ambush in the narrowest part of the valley.

"Here they come, they're coming!"

McKinney squatted on the hillside, squinting, his breathing becoming heavier with excitement.

At the mouth of the valley, a convoy carrying grain slowly drove in.

Twenty-odd knights led the way, followed by more than sixty soldiers, all with alert eyes, protecting a dozen or so wagons loaded with grain.

The heavy wheels creaked and groaned as they rolled over the snow.

"Hehe, I'm rich... Looks like I've made more than I expected..." McKinney licked his lips and squinted at the line ahead.

Behind him were more than seventy knights wearing rough black cloth masks, looking like a pack of bloodthirsty wild dogs, all eager for a fight.

"Listen up, all of you!" McKinney lowered his voice, but couldn't hide his smug excitement. "They only have about twenty knights on the other side. We outnumber them and our equipment isn't inferior. One charge and they'll be routed!"

"Hahaha!"

"Lord McKinney is brilliant! Look how you've made us rich!"

McKinney was extremely pleased with himself. A deep blue battle aura flickered on his body, and he looked like a wild beast that couldn't be contained.

He raised his longsword, took a deep breath, and growled in a low voice, "Brothers, it's time to make our fortune!! Charge!!" In the next instant, bursts of fighting spirit light suddenly exploded on the hillside, and the knights, like a deep blue torrent, charged down the hill with excitement and killing intent!

McKinney was the first to charge, his eyes fixed on the slowly moving grain wagons, already planning his entertainment for the evening.

"Enemy attack!!"

Almost simultaneously, the knights escorting the grain convoy noticed something amiss.

A large group of knights rushed out from both sides of the valley, wearing heavy cloaks and rough black cloth masks, revealing only their cold and sharp eyes.

"...Bandits?" the red-robed knight leading the group exclaimed in surprise.

"Something's not right, this fighting spirit...!" the deputy exclaimed.

Suddenly, all of the "bandits" unleashed their deep blue fighting spirit, charging forward with an oppressive aura!

The red-robed knight's expression changed, and he shouted sharply, "All on alert! Protect the grain wagons! Soldiers, retreat first!"

"But, my lord..."

"This is Lord Louis's order! Protecting people is the top priority!"

Without the slightest hesitation, the red-robed knight swung his sword sharply, and a burst of blazing red battle aura exploded around him, like a blazing flame, carrying a scorching shockwave that surged forward.

Dozens of soldiers immediately received orders, carrying shields and protecting the grain carts as they quickly retreated towards the valley exit.

"Don't let them get away!!" McKinney saw through their intentions at a glance and immediately flew into a rage. "Charge! Seize all those grain carts!"

McKinney charged into battle like a warrior, his deep blue battle aura suddenly exploding, his sword energy tearing through the air with a suffocating sense of oppression.

The knights behind him roared and charged forward, their fighting spirits clashing wildly, and the scene instantly descended into chaos.

"Hold the formation! Use cross-defense and cover the retreat!"
Knights, follow me!

The crimson battle aura of the Crimson Tide Territory spread across the snow like raging flames.

The red-robed knight leading the charge brandished his sword and stopped the enemy troops who were charging forward.

Instead of engaging in battle rashly, they maintained a defensive arc, guiding the enemy to disperse to both sides and fiercely protecting the retreat route of the grain carts.

Although there were many people on McKinney's side, they were impulsive and reckless after drinking, shouting and threatening each other without any order.

The two sides clashed fiercely, and the battlefield was filled with the sounds of impact, with snow flying everywhere.

"Die!!" McKinney roared, sweeping his longsword horizontally. Deep blue battle aura surged like a giant wave, forcing back three knights from the Crimson Tide Territory.

But when he tried to give chase, he found that his opponents had already created some distance and quickly surrounded him, defending the area flawlessly and even killing several of McKinney's knights.

"Damn it!!" McKinney kicked over a corpse that had fallen to the ground in a fit of rage. "These scum!"

Several of the knights he had brought also began to cry out, "Sir, they retreated too quickly! We only managed to grab half the grain!"

"Shut up! Keep grabbing, pack up everything you can!"

In the chaos, several Red Tide soldiers failed to retreat in time and were swiftly cut down by the masked enemy knights, their blood leaving several glaring red streaks on the snow.

Even so, the knights of the Crimson Tide Territory maintained their composure, strictly executed their tactics, protected the vast majority of their soldiers, and quickly withdrew from the battle.

"Quickly, protect the grain wagons and retreat in batches!"

After a series of urgent commands, the grain transport team disappeared into the distant valley entrance, leaving only a few hijacked grain carts and the lingering smell of blood.

"Hahahaha!"

McKinney, panting heavily, stood in front of the stolen grain cart, a smile on his face that was hard to tell whether it was triumph or malice, staring at the grain sacks with a greedy glint in his eyes.

"Hmph... See that? I still got what I wanted."

He slammed his hand on the grain cart, his voice carrying a hint of arrogant venting:
"What is that Calvin kid? No matter how tough he is, he can't stop Baron McKinney from taking our grain!"

The surrounding knights burst into laughter, some brandishing their swords and shouting curses:

"Haha! Is this all the Red Tide Knights are capable of? They start running away after just one encounter!"

"Exactly! If they hadn't run so fast, they would all be dead by now, hahaha!"

Several apprentice knights stood triumphantly around the grain cart, drawing their long swords like robbers, and with a few clangs, they loosened the knots binding the sacks.

"Come on, come on, see what good stuff these Southerners have brought!"

One of them squatted down, pulled open the sack, and a familiar smell immediately wafted out.

"Wow, this time we've struck it rich!"

His eyes lit up, and he reached out and grabbed a fish: "Smoked fish!"

Another knight rummaged through the bag next to him and shouted, "There are dried vegetables here! And fresh vegetables too! Damn it, where did they get fresh vegetables from!"

"Look at this bucket, smoked fish! It's a perfect match with strong liquor!"

"Damn, there's even pickled wild boar meat! It's such a big piece, and judging by all the fat, it's definitely been salted thoroughly!"

They rummaged through the grain cart like a group of children searching for treasure, their mouths gleaming with oil and grime as they smiled.

Some people couldn't wait to bite off a piece of dried meat and chew it with a crunching sound.

"There are only a few of us, this is enough to keep us stuffed until spring!"

McKinney also stepped closer and glanced at it, clicking his tongue twice: "Tsk, wine, meat, and smoked fish, these people are living a really good life... Now, all of this is mine."

He said this, but his eyes twitched slightly, and a hint of unease flashed in them.

Something's not right...

The original plan was to take advantage of the chaos to slaughter all the escorts, leaving no one alive, and ideally even burn their bodies.

In that way, even if the Red Tide Territory suspects something, they won't be able to investigate.

But this time, they only managed to kill a few grunts, while most of them escaped with the protection of those damned Crimson Tide Knights.

"Damn it..." he cursed inwardly, his eyes fixed on the direction of the valley entrance, gritting his teeth.

If those people find out something after they go back, and then point the finger at me...

McKinney's mind flashed back to the red battle aura of the knights he had just seen, and the reputation of the young prefect.

He knew perfectly well that he was no match for the Red Tide Territory.

A cold wind howled through the valley, and McKinney instinctively shivered.

But he quickly shook his head violently, as if trying to shake that unease out of his mind, and a sinister smile reappeared on his lips.

"Ha... What are you afraid of? I'm wearing a mask, they won't recognize me!" He said, raising his head, then roared, "Load the truck! Let's go back and celebrate!!"

Cheers erupted again, and the raiders laughed even more wildly in the cold wind.

(End of this chapter)