Volume 5: If you are poor, you should be alone Chapter 146 Backlash
Sean pressed his forehead with a headache and instinctively shrank the mental field that was spreading out to around his body.
Philip and his son were arguing in the study room at the other end of the courtyard, which was diagonally opposite to the guest room. Sean started to feel a headache after listening to a few words intentionally or unintentionally... From the perspective of Philip's friend, he really regretted not taking Marcus to his side to educate him because he despised his lack of talent, which resulted in his old friend being helpless with his only son today.
Of course, this was just a fleeting thought... When a spellcaster's apprentice must travel with his master, how can Marcus, who has been spoiled since childhood, endure the hardships of living in the open air? I'm afraid that within two days of taking this young man out, he will run home crying to his father. And with Philip's usual doting, he might complain that he is mistreating his son, which will end up in a bad situation for both sides.
"Oh..." With a sigh, Sean focused his attention on the side hall on the east side of the guest room and listened attentively to Ayun's guidance to Laura.
"…Your grandfather is the head of your Philip family. You respect and love your grandfather. Why? Because your grandfather cares about your feelings and loves you deeply. Whether you are happy, joyful, sad, or upset, whether you are beautiful or ugly, smart or clumsy, you are your grandfather's granddaughter, and he loves you, right, Laura?"
"Well, I love grandpa the most!" the little girl said happily.
"Will your grandfather disown you as his granddaughter just because you cry ugly when you are sad, you are not as pretty as the little elf girl, or you are not as smart as other children?"
"Of course not! Don't say that to grandpa, I will be angry." The little girl was unhappy.
"Okay. Let's go back to the previous question. Suppose you are the Lord of Lord Bolton, the very great Countess of the Kingdom of Kronin, and the head of the Bolton Territory like your grandfather. Then some of your subjects are beautiful and well-dressed, while others are humble and ugly. Why do you only like the former and not the latter?"
"Ah..." The little girl seemed dumbfounded.
"Whether the people can wear nice clothes, eat enough, sleep well and stay fat, it all depends on whether the lord gives them the opportunity to support themselves and earn money and food with their own hands. It's clearly the lord's fault that the people are starving and miserable, but why is the lord so picky about it?"
"Eh~~~~~~" the little girl stretched out the tone in great confusion.
"Lola, you must have been unreasonable and stubborn sometimes. We all know that such a little girl is not lovable. And when you lose your temper, it is your grandfather who teaches you that this is not ladylike and that you should not do that, which makes our little Laura more and more popular. Similarly, some of your subjects are not clean and do not like to work. So, as a lord, do you think you should teach them or drive them away?"
"Well...but what if others don't listen to me?"
"This is what we are going to discuss, Laura. When you tell others what you think is right, they may not think it is the right thing to say, so they may not necessarily listen. Then we have to find a way to let others know that it is right to do so, to prove our correctness, to let everyone know that if they do as you say, they can fill their stomachs and wear beautiful and clean clothes. Then, others are not all so stupid that they can't even tell good from bad, and of course they will listen to you."
"How can we prove that we are right and make others listen to us? First of all, we need to understand the other party. We need to know the situation of the people we want to help and what needs they urgently need to be solved..."
Sean quietly (eavesdropped) on Ayun's advice to Laura, and smiled unconsciously.
No wonder Carlisle, even though he was suspected of assassinating his brother and coveting the throne of St. Bridget, was able to gain the support of a large number of nobles and citizens in St. Bridget - how could a conspiracy to fight for power and profit compare to an open conspiracy based on the control of the masses' hearts?
When a lord ruled a place, it was difficult for him to effectively control the territory. To put it bluntly, the lord needed the local nobles to manage the land and the people on his behalf. If the local nobles were dissatisfied, it was not uncommon for the lord to be sidelined.
Ayun, who was a snow wolf, knew this very well. He did not recommend young Laura to compete with those local nobles who were more cunning than foxes, but to bypass them and contact the people directly. With the large amount of cheap civilian supplies provided by the Snow Wolf Tribe and the support of the entire human resources of the Philip family, as long as Laura did not have any problems on the surface, when tens of thousands of civilians in the entire Bolton territory knew the name of Laura Philip, those local nobles caught in the middle would have to bow down no matter how angry and dissatisfied they were... because the lords who directly ruled the people no longer needed them. If they still didn't know what was good for them, they would have no choice but to get out.
Sean's thoughts gradually drifted to the southeastern coast of the southern continent, the country called Saint Bridge. It is obviously much more difficult to rule a kingdom than to rule a territory. What does Ayun want Carlisle to do? First, win the support of some nobles through maritime trade, and after obtaining human resources and funds, start to promote and train people who are only loyal to him, and at the same time win the hearts of the people in the city, attracting a large number of citizens and small nobles to support and vassal...
Sean was once a key member of the reform faction in the Kingdom of Kronin. After going through the information about Prince Carlisle in the Spellcaster Association, he discovered the weaknesses in Carlisle's series of power-grabbing methods... The prince used maritime trade to tighten his grip on the St. Bridge Navy, but had not yet taken action against the army.
"...The greatest military power in any kingdom must be in the hands of the king. Carlisle hasn't made up his mind yet, he is his father after all." Sean understood and couldn't help but sigh again.
In the struggle for the throne, Carlisle Harvey Ferdinand still had a little bit of sympathy for his own father. And his old friend... just for the precarious position of the Lord of Valentine, his son had already left him.
Marcus ran out of his father's study angrily, smashing several paintings and vases in the corridor along the way, and kicked the maid who accidentally bumped into him. After returning to his room, the anger in his heart was still difficult to dissipate.
The father who was once wise and intelligent—is now old!
He actually gave up Valentine, who had been run by Philip's family for thirty years, just for something as trivial as the Federation's expedition to a small southern country!
The position of Valentine's city lord should have been his!
Marcus circled the room like a trapped beast, his muscles tense, his expression ferocious, like a demon, no longer showing any of his aristocratic elegance.
It's not that parasites don't know they are parasites. In fact, parasites know very well the reason why they can live a comfortable and enjoyable life. Marcus knows very well that he can easily receive gifts worth hundreds of gold coins just because he is the son of the city lord. If his father was not the city lord Valentine, would Eddie of the Lamia Chamber of Commerce know who he is?
Ten gold coins can buy a young and beautiful virgin, and a few hundred gold coins can buy the life of a professional warrior above level two. Don't people know how valuable gold coins are?
A man over 40 years old, naturally endowed with power and money, suddenly lost all of it. Even though his father had always advised him that he could still have a superior status in Bolton Territory, Markas found it hard to accept it... Accustomed to the prosperity of Valentine, how could he accept wasting the rest of his life in a poor and remote place like Bolton Territory? !
"No, no!" Marcus' eyes turned red and he gritted his teeth. "This can't happen - I won't let this happen!"
After developing a desire for revenge against the alien, Marcus suddenly realized that he did not have the power to retaliate... The Snow Wolves were a fighting race among the Orcs, and as the Crown Prince of Valentine, Marcus would understand what this meant. Not to mention that the thugs hired by Philip's family to guard the house were not good enough, and even if they were strong, they were not something that Marcus, who usually did not take care of things, could mobilize; the financial power of the family was in the hands of his father, and his father could tolerate his extravagant life of drinking and drinking, but he would definitely not pay him the gold coins to hire assassins... Whether it was the Assassin's League or the Research Department of the Adventurer's Association, it would cost hundreds of gold coins to hire these people.
Just when Marcus was hesitating whether to ask Master Eddie for help, his father sent the butler to ask him... Philip still loved his son and didn't want his son to be angry with him because of what happened before.
Markus went to see his father with resentment. After hearing his father's explanation of the reason for resigning as the city lord, he became even more furious - his father did not give up on him, but was worried that he would not be able to take over after his father's death. When Markus found that his father still loved him, he was justified in his anger.
Not everyone is born with a willful temper. When a child makes a mistake and is punished by his parents, the instinct to seek benefits and avoid harm will gradually make the child learn to control his desires at the age of three. But if willfulness is never punished and is always tolerated by so-called "love", then willfulness will turn into more destructive recklessness.
When night fell, Xiao Yun was invited to attend a dinner at Philip's house. When he walked out of the courtyard, Xiao Yun casually glanced at the wall on the south side of the courtyard and found that Marcus's carriage was parked there without moving.
After the dinner, he continued to instruct Miss Laura until the lovely girl yawned continuously before letting the maid take her back to her room. Xiao Yun stood at the window and looked down. Marcus's carriage was still there.
"You endured it?" Xiao Yun was a little surprised. The spoiled older brat didn't seem like the type to be so patient... Did he misjudge the person?
He lay down and slept until the moon was at its highest point in the sky. Xiao Yun then quietly got up and walked to the window. In the dark night, Philip Mansion was very quiet, and the carriage in the corner of the courtyard was still in its original position.
"You really can't judge a person by his appearance..." Xiao Yun muttered, standing for a while before lying back down on the bed.
Old man Primona is indeed a great man who has snatched the title of "God of War" as a walker. Not only is he powerful in combat, but he is also a qualified city scout. In just a few days, he not only found out that several underground forces in the lower city areas of the city have inextricable ties with the Lamia Chamber of Commerce, but also found out that the people of Lamia have invested at least several thousand gold coins in Marcus... In contrast, the Lamia Chamber of Commerce occupied a large area of Valentine Wharf at a very low cost. This business is simply amazing - before meeting Marcus, Xiao Yun labeled this young master as a son who sells his father's land without any regrets.
If Marcus secretly hated him and wanted revenge, he would most likely go to Lamia. When Xiao Yun entered the city lord's mansion, he let Isaac and Hannah out and squatted near the two city gates from the middle city to the upper city. As the saying goes, a gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall. Xiao Yun did not intend to use his small body to bear Marcus' revenge! Once his adventurers found that the Lamia Chamber of Commerce had transferred people in from outside, Xiao Yun would immediately bind himself to Sean, the legendary magician, and never leave him!
It’s up to you whether you want to fight with the legendary magician who uses forbidden magic everywhere in the city!
As for leaving the city... fighting with a group of snow wolves in the open space outside the city is a waste of time.
Anyway, as long as the relationship is torn apart, Xiao Yun can not only clean up the troublesome things around the "agent", but also take the opportunity to trick Lamia. If he can't trick Lamia, he will at least smear these bears - but the idea is good, but they don't cooperate, and Marcus actually swallowed this breath, which is very embarrassing...
The next day, Xiao Yun continued to teach the future Countess Lola, while City Lord Philip personally went out and summoned the people trained and recruited by the Philip family over the years, and led a team of several hundred people to go out of the city to the port to receive the goods. Of course, there was no tax on transactions with the city lord, but Philip was embarrassed to openly break Valentine's rules, so this batch of goods did not enter the city.
At the port rented by the Adventurer's Association , Margaret, an official from the Ministry of Transport, stared blankly at the crowd busy moving goods. Her sight fell on the carriage engraved with the Philip family crest, and she didn't know whether to laugh or cry... She also showed admiration: They could actually sell such a large amount of low-end market goods to the local city lord, and have the city lord himself receive them in person. These Snow Wolves are really capable!
It's not that this batch of goods is unprofitable, but the problem is that it takes a lot of manpower and time to deal with it. It's impossible for local tyrants to take it. Margaret thought that the Snow Wolf Tribe would cooperate with some underground forces or sell it directly to Lamia, but she didn't expect the Snow Wolf Tribe to be so unconventional...
City Lord Philip solemnly handed over six thousand gold coins for the goods plus one hundred gold coins for escort fees to the grassroots chief, waved his hand and watched the group of snow wolves follow his team to the Bolton territory, then turned back to the city.
Goods move slower than people do. Laura, Sean and Xiao Yun can set off a day later. Philip knows that the recruitment of workers in Bolton Territory is just a cover - if he still doesn't know that the Snow Wolf Tribe is openly recruiting people in the lower city and has offended the Brotherhood, then his position as the city lord is in vain - but he will not ask what the Snow Wolf Tribe is doing there, he is not that stupid... If he were a human, he would still worry whether these people want to make trouble in Bolton Territory. What can foreigners do in the territory of the Kronin Kingdom!
Xiao Yun was happy that the city lord didn't meddle in other people's business and didn't explain at all. He originally wanted to recruit people from poor places, and he had no choice but to make do with it. Now he can go to Bolton Territory under the banner of the Philip family. Only a fool would not do it!
On the third day, accompanied by Sean and Xiao Yun, Miss Laura Phillips set off for the Bolton territory. Before leaving, City Lord Phillips recruited a group of people for his beloved granddaughter - two of the three capable stewards in the mansion were assigned to Laura, half of the family thugs were taken away, and all the young men from the family branch who relied on the mansion for survival were arranged to be taken to Laura.
Markus stood by with a smile on his face the whole time, his heart bleeding... His father had made it clear that he was determined to abandon Valentine's power and run that shabby place of Bolton. This made Markus grit his teeth in hatred, and his originally hesitant determination became firm.
Philip was not so stupid as to think that his son was attached to the position of Lord of Valentine. His position was already coveted, and it would be fine if there was no excuse. But when the Federation officially went to war with St. Bridges, Philip had no doubt that those bastards in the Noble Council would take the initiative to prolong the war and make a fortune from the war. By then, the Philip family would be standing in the way of others' wealth, not to mention continuing to maintain their power, and would be lucky not to be eaten up by those tigers and wolves.
Miss Lola reluctantly said goodbye to her father and grandfather, and the bloated team left the city that day.
Sitting in the luxurious carriage engraved with Philip's family crest, Xiao Yun was smiling as he watched Laura and Sean acting coquettishly, when suddenly his face froze.
He lowered his head and picked up the exquisitely carved water cup that the nobles loved, and looked out the window as if nothing had happened.
The years he had lived in the information age were the most precious wealth to Xiao Yun. Not only could he get access to all kinds of knowledge as long as he was willing, but he could also see all the major events and anecdotes in the world without leaving his home. This was perfect for broadening his horizons. After thinking over Marcus's behavior during his stay at Philip Mansion, Xiao Yun suddenly thought of a possibility that even made him shudder.
A fact has been repeated countless times in social news, hearsay, and legal program cases: if a group of children must devour the flesh and blood of their parents in order to survive, the first one to show his sharp teeth must be the one who is the most doted on by his parents.
"...When wild beasts hunt, they will first lower their heads and conceal their murderous intent, quietly approaching their prey. How could intelligent creatures not understand this routine?" Xiao Yun sighed in his heart, and his expression showed only a moment of reluctance before returning to normal.
Even without Philip's interference and widening of the rift between father and son, the pathological support model of Philip and his son would eventually become unsustainable... Philip could not always be the city lord who had the final say in Valentine. When he showed signs of fatigue and could no longer provide his son with the luxurious life he needed, Marcus would inevitably retaliate.
The day after Laura left, Philip began to write a transfer request to the Noble Council, or a transaction request: using the position of Lord Valentine as a bargaining chip in exchange for his granddaughter taking over the Bolton territory, and proposed additional conditions one, two, and three - without the additional conditions, those guys would doubt the intentions of Philip's family. After dealing with these bastards for so many years, Philip knew this very well.
After sealing the envelope with wax, stamping it with Philip's family crest, and handing the letter to the butler who stayed behind, Philip felt empty in his heart, yet as if a heavy burden had been lifted, and he felt relaxed all over.
"I'm really old." Philip smiled bitterly. A few years ago, he was a little jealous of Sean, who still looked young after so many years, and Primo, who was older than him but more agile than young people, but now Philip has come to terms with it... When he was young, he yearned for success and fame, and fearlessly plunged into the power arena. Since he chose this path, there is nothing to regret.
Feeling sad about the passing of time, Philip put on the attire of the city lord and went to the city hall. Before leaving office, he had to finish the matters he had not dealt with yet, and also arrange for the people under him to go somewhere else... He would take people like the mayor and municipal staff with him, and these people could only follow him. The new city lord had his own people, and he would not trust the team left by his predecessors.
The carriage drove out of the city lord's mansion. Philip, who was sitting in the carriage, closed his eyes and was thinking about which people to take away and which to eliminate. Suddenly, he heard a muffled groan, and the whole carriage shook and stopped suddenly.
Philip quickly grabbed the armrest of the seat in the carriage to steady himself. Before he could ask the driver, the door was suddenly opened from the outside and a crossbow with a cold glow was handed in.
Philip was shocked. Before he could ask any questions, a palm-long crossbow arrow pierced his neck.
Philip's body fell backwards, and the world in front of him quickly lost color and shrank.
Before the last bit of light faded, Philip suddenly thought of his son who came to see him off when he was leaving ... Come to think of it, Marcus hadn't cared so much about him as a father for many years.
The assassins retreated quickly, leaving only a magnificent carriage with its driver dead in the middle of the road in the upper city.
A servant of a certain family saw a carriage with the city lord's family crest parked in the middle of the road. He walked around curiously to take a look, and was frightened by the driver's broken neck and screamed.
The butler of Philip's family delivered the important letter entrusted by the master to the Bards Guild in Midtown. After paying the coins, he saw with his own eyes the Bards Guild releasing the messenger bird to take away the letter before he returned home with peace of mind. As soon as he returned to the Upper Town, he heard the tragic news that the master was assassinated in the street.
The grief-stricken butler immediately sent people to look for the young master who was hanging out in places of entertainment, and only found Marcus two hours later in a top club.
The mayor of Valentine was assassinated in the street, which shocked the entire upper city. The masters and young masters who valued their lives were so frightened that they dared not go out for several days.
Fortunately, Master Marcus is safe and sound, so the City Hall will not become a headless fly...
At the funeral of the Lord Mayor, Master Marcus, no, now it should be said that Master, Master Marcus’s best friend Master Eddie sent a funeral gift of 800 gold coins to comfort his sad friend. Such a generous gesture made the nobles attending the funeral secretly astonished, but no one discussed it openly, and instead, they all kept silent - it was not a good thing for the Lamia Chamber of Commerce to openly support Master Marcus... After all, Lamia’s greed has always been ugly, and if Marcus only follows Lamia’s lead, they will be in trouble.
The nobles of Valentine were worried for a few days, and a piece of news suddenly spread in the upper city - before being assassinated, Lord Philip submitted a transfer request to the Council of Nobles, in exchange for the position of Lord Valentine for the neighboring Bolton territory!
The Council of Nobles attached great importance to the request of City Lord Philip and immediately issued a transfer document. His Excellency the Duke, one of the speakers, personally rushed to Valentine to handle the handover of the City Lordship!
Marcus spent five days holding a grand funeral for his father. Just when he had a chance to catch his breath, and before he had time to order a new castle lord's uniform, he received a letter of praise from the Duke, sent by express horse.
The Duke praised the Philip family for their courage to retreat, and claimed that he would fully support Countess Lola Philip's rule over the Bolton Territory. He also hinted that he had persuaded King Kroning to allocate a family army to the Philip family...
Marcus instantly slumped in his chair.
In the Lamia Chamber of Commerce branch hall, Master Eddie put down the Duke's letter copied by the spy, closed his eyes to calm down, and said hatefully: "——This rubbish!"
