Chapter 115 – Rewarding Merits and Luxury Goods Marketing
After three days, Charlotte finally got dressed and went out again. She wore a handsome, well-tailored military uniform, with the viscount's shortsword at her waist.
"Where does Miss intend to go first?" Renee asked before the carriage set off.
Cecilia, sharing the same carriage, secretly observed Renee. Charlotte was staying at Cecilia and her sister's house, so naturally, Renee was living there too. Cecilia herself blushed just thinking about the intimate proximity of the past three days, but this little maid had remained utterly unfazed, witnessing the erotic scenes for three days straight. During that time, she even had the composure to handle some of Charlotte's work, like sending and receiving official documents and relaying orders. Looking at her now, the little maid still wore a calm expression. Cecilia was at a loss for words.
"Let's go to the territory's public treasury first," Charlotte said.
The Lanwan Viscountcy's newly built public treasury was just outside Elm Tree Town. The viscountcy's grain, non-strategic materials, and captured spoils were all stored there.
"Your Excellency the Viscount, Miss Cecilia."
As soon as Charlotte arrived at the treasury, a middle-aged man trotted up to the carriage to greet them. The man's name was Gomez. He had once been the manager of a small nobleman's shop—essentially the shopkeeper—and was poached by Charlotte four or five years ago for his business talents. Now, Gomez served as the chief administrator of the Lanwan Viscountcy's public treasury.
Although the title sounded like he just watched over a warehouse, Gomez was actually responsible for the allocation of materials throughout the entire territory. In terms of authority, he was more like a chief of logistics. Gomez had always done an excellent job in this position and was a capable subordinate under Cecilia.
"No need for formalities," Charlotte said with a smile as she stepped down from the carriage, raising a hand to dismiss the courtesy. Then she asked, "Are the swords I ordered from the craftsmen ready?"
"They are all ready," Gomez answered immediately.
Guided by Gomez, Charlotte entered a warehouse storing many luxury goods made of gold, silver, and jewels. In a corner of the warehouse, Charlotte saw rows of neatly arranged mahogany boxes.
"These are the swords you requested," Gomez said.
Charlotte opened one of the mahogany boxes. It was lined with silk, and resting upon the silk was an exquisite silver shortsword inlaid with gold.
Charlotte picked up the shortsword; it felt heavy in her hand. She drew the sword from its sheath. The blade gleamed brilliantly, and along its spine were engraved the small words: "Battle of Dorukocha – Celine Adkins." On the reverse side, the spine also bore words: "Sword of Merit – Charlotte Mellerfield."
"Have these swords all been inspected?" Charlotte asked.
"Miss Cecilia and I have both inspected them," Gomez said. "Every single one is of fine workmanship. Any sword with the slightest flaw was rejected. These are all flawless."
"Very good." Charlotte placed the sword back in the box and said, "Load these onto the carriage for me."
"Yes." Gomez immediately went to arrange for a carriage and guards.
Meanwhile, Cecilia, following Charlotte's instructions, loaded all the silk and ten bottles of the antique wine "Sea Serpent" onto the carriage.
"Load some more cash. Hmm... let's make it seven hundred thousand Fuso," Charlotte said.
"Eh? We're loading that much money?" Cecilia was a little surprised.
"Yes," Charlotte confirmed. "Don't we have that much?"
"We do. After all, the spoils you brought back included four hundred and fifty thousand Fuso in cash."
Although she said this, there was still a hint of reluctance in Cecilia's voice. She understood what Charlotte intended to do.
Upon returning to the Lanwan Viscountcy, Charlotte had immediately given all the knights who participated in the expedition an extra month's salary, plus a three-day leave. Now, the three-day leave was over, and some post-war matters had to be dealt with, such as rewarding meritorious service.
Charlotte had her guards clear out the racetrack south of Elm Tree Town and set up a platform in the center. She then had seven hundred thousand Fuso in gold coins poured out in front of the platform, instantly attracting a crowd of countless onlookers. It couldn't be helped; the glittering golden mountain was simply too eye-catching. Beside the mountain was a row of long tables, on which were displayed silks and a row of dusty-looking wooden boxes.
After these preparations were made, Charlotte had Cecilia send someone to the military camp to deliver the order.
The juxtaposition of the eye-catching mountain of gold, the magnificent silks, and the somewhat worn-out wooden boxes was inevitably strange. Charlotte personally stepped forward, opened the wooden boxes, and took out ten sea-blue crystal bottles, arranging them beside the boxes.
Most of the people coming and going or staying to gamble in Elm Tree Town were merchants. Soon, a sharp-eyed merchant recognized the iconic blue-green crystal bottles and the crest of the Gangtu Empire on the old wooden boxes.
"Miss Cecilia," a merchant who knew Cecilia asked in a low voice, "May I ask what this is..."
"The last batch of 'Sea Serpent' brewed by Master Manai before his death," Cecilia replied.
Another commotion rippled through the crowd. This was the legendary famous wine, and there were ten bottles of it here at once.
"Your Excellency the Viscount, Your Excellency the Viscount!" a merchant who recognized Charlotte shouted. "I am willing to offer ten thousand Fuso to purchase one bottle of 'Sea Serpent'."
"What good is ten thousand? I am willing to offer fifty thousand Fuso!" another person bid.
Hearing such offers, Cecilia's mouth opened slightly, but she stopped herself from speaking. Whether it was ten thousand or fifty thousand, both were clearly far below Cecilia's psychological expectations.
Charlotte was not surprised at all. The reality was that when the expected market price of a commodity became expensive enough, it ironically became difficult to actually sell it at a high price. Many people knew this batch of "Sea Serpent" was priceless, but no one could say exactly how priceless. Was fifty thousand Fuso low? Actually, it wasn't. There were two thousand bottles in that batch of "Sea Serpent" from before Manai's death. At fifty thousand Fuso per bottle, the entire batch was worth a full one hundred million Fuso! This was no small amount and fully deserved the "priceless" description.
This was why Charlotte was not nearly as excited as Cecilia when she suddenly heard that she had acquired a batch of precious antique wine for free.
"I'm sorry, but this wine is what I will use to reward my brave warriors. It is not for sale," Charlotte said to the merchants with a smile.
The onlookers grew even more curious. What kind of warriors were these, to be rewarded with such a grand display, where even the wine was so precious?
Before long, Herman Green arrived at the racetrack with the entire army that had campaigned in Dorukocha. As soon as they entered, even the usually calm and composed Herman Green was taken aback by the golden mountain before him, to say nothing of the other knights and squires. Their eyes simply could not be torn away from that mountain.
Charlotte walked onto the high platform, surveyed the surroundings, and waited for the crowd below to quiet down before speaking. "My subjects, my knights, and our guests from afar. Perhaps you already know that not long ago, the shameful people of Dorukocha, in league with city-states like Badan and Carmela, intended to invade my territory. I, Charlotte Mellerfield, Viscount of Lanwan, led my knights in a valiant resistance..."
Charlotte unhurriedly described the recent war. Of course, in her telling, she was entirely the victim, the bullied party, the one deserving of sympathy.
"Although I was inferior to the enemy in terms of insidious cunning and the number of troops, thanks to the fearless, bloody struggle of my loyal knights who defied death, the Lanwan Viscountcy still won the final victory!"
"This loyalty and bravery have moved me, and it should be respected and rewarded. Therefore, I have decided to heavily reward those who performed meritorious service in this battle."
After her long speech, Charlotte paused for a moment before announcing the first reward. "All squires who went on the expedition to Dorukocha will be rewarded with one hundred Fuso each; knights will be rewarded with five hundred Fuso each!"
"Woah..."
The surrounding crowd erupted in an uproar. There were two to three thousand armored soldiers present. Even if all were calculated at one hundred Fuso, the total reward would be close to three hundred thousand Fuso.
The soldiers below also found it hard to believe, especially the squires. In the past, not only did they receive no income for their service, but they were also often treated as servants or used as cannon fodder. It was good enough not to die inexplicably on the battlefield; when did they ever get a share in the rewarding of merits?
However, Charlotte had already started distributing the money. She personally took five hundred or one hundred gold coins from the small golden mountain and handed them to each of the soldiers. The soldiers who received the real money all flushed with excitement. Not only the squires, but even some knights were so moved their faces turned beet red. Some had been knights for ten or twenty years, tilling their fields, and might not have had five hundred Fuso in savings at home.
In the end, Charlotte distributed about six hundred and forty thousand in bonuses, her wrist aching from the effort. But seeing the beaming faces of the crowd, Charlotte felt that spending so much money was worth it.
"Next is the second reward. Ed Adkins, Rayne Nazares, Adams Bell, Celine Adkins..." Charlotte walked back onto the high platform, took out a sheet of parchment, and read the names on it one by one.
Every time Charlotte read a name, Herman Green would remind the person to go on stage. This list was provided by Herman Green, recording the ten knights who had performed outstandingly in the war.
After all ten were on stage, Charlotte spoke again, "You all advanced fearlessly on the battlefield, fighting bravely to kill the enemy. Today, in the name of Charlotte Mellerfield, I bestow upon you these treasured swords that record your merits." With that, she presented the ten swords of merit to the ten individuals.
These swords of merit held no miracles, nor were they made of any extraordinary materials. Their only characteristic was that they were ornate, beautiful, and exquisitely crafted with fine carvings. They might bend if used to kill someone, but they were certainly sharp instruments for parading through the city.
The knights who received the swords of merit from Charlotte's hands were all beaming with joy, especially when they saw their own names engraved on the blades. They were moved beyond words. Although a knight was the lowest rank of nobility, they were nobles nonetheless, and nobles cared about face. In the past, many of them lacked the means or opportunity to care for their face, but this time Charlotte had let them truly feel what glory was.
Not only was there glory, but there were also more tangible benefits. Charlotte had the guards bring up the rewards for these ten—a roll of magnificent silk and one thousand Fuso for each.
Standing on the high platform, basking in the envious and admiring gazes of the local people, foreign merchants, and mercenaries, the chins of young knights like Adams couldn't help but lift a few degrees.
Actually, the people who most deserved commendation this time were Herman Green and Robin Mancini. The former, as the commander of the surprise attack force, had led the charge at the forefront. The latter, leading the Gray Cloak Order, had successively guided one siege and two night raids and had performed outstandingly.
But Herman Green insisted that Charlotte was the commander of this campaign. He had only held the title of commander and had not actually made many contributions, not even achieving much in terms of kills, so he didn't need to be commended. And considering the special nature of the Gray Cloak Order, Robin Mancini could not be publicly commended either, only rewarded in private. Thus, neither of them went on stage.
Charlotte had Cecilia bring a bottle of "Sea Serpent" and eleven exquisite wine glasses. "This is a spoil of war we captured in Dorukocha, the last batch of 'Sea Serpent' brewed by the Badan wine master Manai, a famous wine that the Gangtu imperial family sought but could not obtain. Today, let us use it to adorn your glory."
Pop.
Charlotte opened a bottle of "Sea Serpent" and began pouring, starting with Ed Adkins. After finishing one bottle, she opened the next.
Pop, pop, pop.
She opened four bottles in a row. Charlotte didn't feel the slightest pang of pain as she opened them, but the audience below felt pained just watching.
After filling the glasses of the ten meritorious knights with "Sea Serpent," Charlotte also poured a glass for herself. "To your loyalty and bravery." With that, she downed it in one gulp.
"Sea Serpent" was a slightly salty fruit wine with a unique flavor and rich, varied layers. It was indeed a good wine, but Charlotte was not a wine lover, nor did she know much about wine, so she couldn't taste why it was priceless.
After Charlotte downed her glass, the ten knights also excitedly drank theirs in one go, as if chugging water. Charlotte estimated they didn't taste the amazing qualities of the "Sea Serpent" either.
So, pop, pop, pop, pop, Charlotte opened four more bottles of "Sea Serpent" and refilled the ten knights' glasses. This generosity left the audience below dumbfounded.
This glory made the knights and squires in the audience endlessly envious. Costa Scamario was secretly regretting; if he hadn't made a mistake when assassinating the sentry, he would have had a place on the stage now, wouldn't he?
After the "award ceremony" for the ten knights was over, Charlotte finally announced one last decision: "For all those who died in this battle, the Lanwan Viscountcy will grant their families five thousand Fuso. For those severely wounded and disabled, three thousand Fuso will be granted."
This decision once again made the crowd below boil over. It wasn't that the Oran Empire didn't have a system for death benefits, but the amount was extremely small. For example, when Mario Dolan "died in battle" for Charlotte, Charlotte didn't give a single coin, and no one thought there was anything wrong with it. In the traditional imperial mindset, it was a knight's duty to fight for their lord. If they died in battle, then they died.
Examples like Charlotte giving such a high amount of compensation were extremely rare. Five thousand Fuso was a considerable sum for an ordinary knight's family. The cost of the Rite of Awakening for the Royal Griffin Knights faction, prepared by the Green Plains Duchy for ordinary squires, was about two thousand five hundred Fuso—there were folk versions of the rite that compressed the cost to below one thousand Fuso, but their success rate was truly worrying. Five thousand Fuso was enough for the children of a knight's family to undergo the Rite of Awakening twice. This death benefit would undoubtedly greatly reduce the knights' worries when fighting.
The knights and squires were all stirred with emotion, and the onlookers were full of yearning. The only person on the scene who was probably not too happy was Charlotte's chief steward, Cecilia.
In a "medal ceremony" that wasn't particularly long, Charlotte had spent almost all of the seven hundred thousand Fuso and had also taken on over a hundred thousand Fuso in death benefits.
"I think you might have lost money in this battle," Cecilia couldn't help but mutter in a low voice as she stepped down from the high platform.
"War is supposed to cost money," Charlotte said nonchalantly. "Besides, the real spoils of this war have not yet arrived."
"The real spoils of war?"
Cecilia was curious, but before she could speak, a figure suddenly rushed out from the crowd and blocked Charlotte's path. The surrounding guards were startled and almost drew their swords to cut the person down.
"Your Excellency the Viscount! Your Excellency the Viscount! Please wait," the person raised his hands to show he had no weapon and did not intend to assassinate her. He spoke with the accent of the Gangtu Empire. "I am willing to offer five hundred thousand Fuso to purchase your remaining two bottles of 'Sea Serpent'."
A sly smile inadvertently flickered across Charlotte's face, but she continued to speak nonchalantly, "'Sea Serpent'? I said I don't intend to sell it, didn't I? Those are the last two bottles. I plan to keep them for my own enjoyment."
The man gritted his teeth and said, "Seven hundred thousand! I am willing to pay seven hundred thousand Fuso!"