Chapter 67: Chapter 67: Warrior
Rows of wooden houses were built, surrounding the village.
An open large kitchen, five large pottery pots can be used simultaneously for cooking!
Beside the kitchen, three smoke rooms and a cellar are established.
Used to store meat and vegetables transported back from outside.
A livestock shed capable of accommodating seventy to eighty heads of livestock stands several hundred meters to the right side of the village.
The right side is a barren land of low hills stretching endlessly.
Lynn plans to construct the future pasture over there, making plans in advance.
...
The total population of the village has reached one hundred and eighty, with efficiency in labor rising sharply.
Whenever a Wheel Plow is forged and completed, Lynn would instruct Gavin and Wilbur to teach two slaves, making them undertake the tilling.
Before summer planting, for every extra acre of land cultivated, an extra acre of wheat can be planted.
Having a stable food source is having confidence!
Lynn roughly calculated, one hundred and eighty people need to consume over seven hundred pounds of food daily.
If you add the livestock, close to a thousand pounds of food is needed per day!
Right now, it’s still fine.
When the scale expands in the future to thousands or tens of thousands of people, relying solely on buying grain won’t suffice.
Watching Guy lead slaves with Level 2 Breeding experience to orderly guide the draft horses and oxen into their respective barns.
The oxen and draft horses lay down on the soft and dry land, beginning to rest.
Let these cattle and horses rest well first, they’ll be the main force when officially starting the cultivation!
With Guy around, he’s not worried about the breeding side of things.
Professional matters are best left to professional people.
What Lynn regrets is the lack of domesticated pigs in the village for now.
Two wild boar piglets had been raised for a month but only weighed twenty to thirty pounds.
Breeding at the mature stage is a bit too distant.
Lynn went to the Blacksmith Shop.
Ding ding ding.
The constant clash of metal against metal resounded in his ears.
Since the first Wheel Plow was forged, the pace of the Blacksmith Shop has accelerated.
Both Ehrelo and his apprentices are busy working.
Unlike in the beginning.
Only Ehrelo was busy rushing around, with apprentices just standing there wide-eyed and watching.
Pieces of forged plows were taken out of the furnace.
Under Ehrelo’s guidance, the apprentices swung hefty arms and hammered down, perfecting the details of the plow tools.
To further speed up the Blacksmith Shop, Lynn added five more robust laborers to assist in forging Cross Pickaxes and Iron Hoes.
The increase of manpower isn’t to make the work easier for them.
But to ensure they work in shifts, continuously day and night.
This way...
Lynn felt maybe in less than half a month.
In about ten days, they could complete the forging of twenty Wheel Plows.
...
Lynn was just about to head to the Salt Factory when he was stopped by Lex, emerging from the brewing workshop.
"Master Lynn!"
Seeing Lex’s face full of smiles, Lynn asked, "Are you thinking about the Iron Pot?"
"George hasn’t returned yet; we don’t have more iron to forge you an Iron Pot!"
Though an exchange of five hundred pounds of quality iron was made from Grayson, Lynn had other uses for it.
Not only did he withhold iron from Lex, but Lynn even contemplated melting down the Iron Pot in Lex’s brewing workshop.
But upon thinking the pot has too much residue and the difficulty in forging iron is too high.
Melting it down wouldn’t have much value.
He abandoned the idea.
Lex quickly shook his head, "Master Lynn, you misunderstood. I thought of an idea to increase the profits of the brewing workshop!"
Lynn raised an eyebrow, "Let’s hear it."
Lex said, "Master Lynn, you might consider opening a tavern in Morgan Town, specifically to sell beer."
"The price of beer naturally can’t compare to wine, but it can be sold more with less profit, that’s one point."
"Secondly, a warehouse can be set up behind the tavern, serving as a transit station to purchase any goods needed by the village from the town..."
Lynn gave Lex a surprised glance.
Not because the idea was good.
But because Lex could think of such an idea!
This thought was something Lynn considered when planning to sell rock salt.
On the surface, it seems to have many benefits and no harm.
But practically, opening a tavern or shop is more complex than imagined.
Involving the interests of various Manor Lords in Morgan Town and the restrictions from Church doctrines.
His identity would be more easily exposed.
If Lynn were a regular Lord, he’d consider opening a shop in Morgan Town.
But Lynn is a bastard with a record of attempted murder!
Until he has absolute power to swat down any future enemies.
He must stay hidden!
On another note.
Aside from George, Lynn didn’t see anyone suitable for commerce.
Sending Lex back to continue brewing, Lynn headed to the Salt Factory instead.
Lynn has increased the number of people at the Open-pit Salt Mine to fifty!
With the help of Cross Pickaxes and Iron Hoes for excavation, they can now extract 3,500 pounds of rock salt daily.
The Salt Factory’s daily production of fine salt also reached 400 pounds.
Even though the Salt Factory can’t completely process all the extracted rock salt, Lynn prefers to store it and slowly process it.
Lynn’s gaze kept scanning through the slaves.
Strings of words flashed before Lynn’s eyes.
With the growing population in the village, Lynn needs more talented people with management abilities.
After a rough scan, Lynn didn’t see any suitable talent.
Upon reconsideration, he found this normal.
The Shar Khanate was only temporarily defeated by the Tetlan Empire; these are just slaves from the Shar Khanate, not war captives.
In the end.
Lynn instructed Red to expand the Guard Team to ten people.
The cumulative population in the village now reaches a high of one hundred and eighty, and five guards are somewhat insufficient.
Ten tall and strong guards, each equipped with a scimitar confiscated from bandits.
More than enough to deal with slaves!
Having arranged everything, Lynn left the Open-pit Salt Mine.
In the corner of the crushed rock salt processing area of the Salt Factory.
A burly middle-aged man was fixatedly watching Lynn’s departing figure.
His sturdy right hand gripped the Iron Hammer, his right arm tense, even the diamond-shaped muscles could be seen.
Bang.
The Iron Hammer fell, shattering the rock salt in front of him into egg-sized fragments.
Even though rubble splattered over him, he paid no heed to the pain.
A sallow-skinned boy approached him.
The boy responsible for collecting salt shards, anxiously glanced around.
He spoke quietly, "Brother, have you decided? Are we escaping tonight?"
Ross showed determination, "Yes, Charles! We leave tonight!"
Facing Ross’s unquestionable expression, Charles felt hesitant.
He still asked, "But Ross... how are we leaving this territory?"
"They have a guard team, horses, and sharp scimitars..."
"Even if Ross you are strong and can help me escape the territory, can we go back to the Shar Khanate?"
Charles pointed to his face.
"...This will reveal our identity."
There was a menacing scar there.
To easily identify the slaves, the slave traders would leave this kind of branding on each slave’s body.
Shoulder, chest, it could even be the arm... or the face!
Seeing the scar on Charles’s face brought a sharp pain to Ross’s heart.
His own chest was branded with the marking of a slave by those traffickers.
If it were on the body, it could be covered with clothes.
But, it’s on the face, such a brand would follow Charles for life.
Ross’s somewhat wavering resolve hardened once again.
"Don’t concern yourself! I’m a Horseback Warrior of the Shar Khanate!"
"Shar Khanate... needs me!"
Feeling the imposing aura emanating from Ross, Charles had no words.
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