101: Encouragement (Update)

Chapter 100: Incitement (Make-up Update)

Seeing Jafar take the bait, Godwin quickly advised, “Lord Arthur has a good relationship with the priests of Whispering Place.

“Furthermore, Whispering Place is rich in grain, so you, my Lord, can completely—”

Hearing this, the commander waved his hands repeatedly, “I thought you could come up with some reliable plan.

“So it was this idea; do you think I haven't tried it?

“The primary problem is those Mother Earth priests who reside outside the city.

“Their doctrines are vastly different from ours, making negotiations extremely difficult.

“Even if Lord Arthur can facilitate the transaction,

“As a Calimshan, I cannot cooperate with these heretics.

“At least not openly; you should understand what I mean, right?”

“My Lord, you don’t have to worry about that.” Paul interjected, “Lord Arthur has already reached an agreement with the priests of Bastet.

“They will not make things difficult for you.

“Moreover, we will be responsible for transporting the grain here.

“Thus, it won't be Whispering Place trading with Lookout Fort, but the Baron of Qingfeng Valley.”

“Whether it’s the Bull Family or Emile, both have signed trade agreements with our Lord.

“Which means this matter is completely in line with regulations and there are no issues whatsoever.”

“Heh, on the surface, that’s true.” The commander chuckled, “Young man, you have a good way with words.

“But you only see the surface of things.”

“My Lord, forgive my presumption.” Godwin began, “The discontent among the soldiers in the fort is growing daily.

“We have someone who writes letters home for those soldiers.

“According to her, the soldiers complain most about the unpalatable military rations.”

“If your soldiers are having trouble even with food and drink,

“Will they still willingly obey your orders?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Know your place, attendant, it’s not your turn to teach me how to manage an army!”

After scolding him, the commander’s gaze turned to Arthur.

He saw the Baron of Qingfeng Valley leisurely sipping the hot tea in his cup.

He showed no intention of intervening in the argument.

This ignited a fire in the commander’s heart, making him feel disrespected.

While this Baron had indeed helped him solve some food-related problems,

Their relationship was far from one where his subordinates could dictate to him.

Just as the commander was pondering whether to issue an expulsion order,

Godwin spoke again, “The one in charge of logistics is Quartermaster Itmar.

“He, relying on being the Bull Earl’s brother-in-law, secretly hoards grain and supplies.

“Then he continuously bribes the soldiers.

“The most crucial thing is that he has always been at odds with you. You should know his ambition, right?”

He wants to replace him!

The commander sneered inwardly, but his face remained composed.

Godwin continued to analyze, “And the Calimshan grain transport team is managed by the Minister of Finance, Abdullah.

“As Emile’s brother, he seems to care nothing about what the soldiers on the front lines eat.

“Otherwise, the grain transported by the Wart Hog caravan would not be so inferior.

“Though I dare not speak presumptuously, I fear this Minister of Finance is also profiting from it, isn’t he?”

The commander’s face was ashen, but he had no words to refute.

He came from humble beginnings and had no backing in the court.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been sent to this place to serve as leader.

Precisely because of this, he could only turn a blind eye to these matters.

But now, the soldiers’ complaints were growing stronger.

If he couldn’t come up with a solution, he would probably be impeached and lose his current position.

This would still be a good outcome.

Worse still, those above might even make him a scapegoat to quell the soldiers’ anger.

Now, he was caught between a rock and a hard place, deeply mired and unable to extricate himself.

Paul noticed the change in the commander’s expression and quickly said, “Lord Arthur has already written a letter to Forni, Emile’s third son.

“He will vouch for you, so even if someone wants to make you a scapegoat, it won’t be that easy.”

“Furthermore, the Mother Earth priests will also advise you to accept our proposal.

“They will also speak well of you before the Bull Earl.”

Jafar looked at the two in front of him, then at Arthur.

His heart was already wavering, but he still had one concern—

Just then, Arthur stood up and said, “Lord Jafar, there’s no need to rush your decision.

“Night Mist will arrive tomorrow, and I will send you another great gift. By then, your foundation here will be solid.”

Jafar didn’t care whether his foundation was solid or not.

He cared more about the first half of Arthur’s sentence.

“Night Mist is coming!” He suddenly stood up from his chair, “How do you know?”

“A revelation from the Goddess.” Arthur replied.

“Damn it, why didn’t you say so earlier? I need to quickly evacuate the non-essential personnel!”

The commander said as he hurried out.

Arthur did not stop him from issuing orders.

Although he was confident he could repel the Night Mist, the commander probably wouldn’t easily believe him.

So instead of trying to persuade him not to panic, it was better to let him handle it according to the established contingency plan.

After giving a series of orders to the messenger, Jafar returned to the room.

Seeing that Arthur and the others were still there, he asked, “Don’t you need to evacuate your personnel?”

Arthur countered, “If the fort falls, where else can we hide?”

The commander suddenly came to his senses, “Do you have a way to deal with the Night Mist?”

“Yes.” Arthur nodded, “But without proof, I don’t think you’ll believe me.”

The commander nodded, “I cannot risk the lives of so many people.

“But rest assured, all soldiers will be on high alert tomorrow, and so will I.”

“I understand.” Arthur said, “Please consider my proposal carefully.”

With that, Arthur bid farewell and left.

That night, Arthur invited all the children of the Pioneer Group to dinner.

This was a decision he made after learning that these children were saving money for him.

He personally cooked, and with Vanka’s help, prepared a modest dinner using ordinary ingredients.

The children ate with great delight, and Arthur thanked them for all they had done, rewarding each with a silver coin.

After dinner, all the children voluntarily helped clean up.

Arthur called Katu and Isabella aside for a private conversation.

He smiled and asked Katu, “Didn’t you want to kill me?

“Why are you saving money for me instead?”

Katu replied frankly, “My skills are not yet perfected.”

Arthur grinned, “I’ve heard that the children in the group are willing to listen to both of you.

“Since that’s the case, for now, keep them in line and put aside the money-making for a bit.

“I appreciate your good intentions, but I truly cannot accept the risk of something happening to the children just to earn a few copper coins.”

“I understand, My Lord.” Isabella quickly responded.

Arthur noticed the adoration in the girl’s eyes.

Though a bit puzzled, he still said, “Don’t worry, we have some important matters to handle soon.

“There will be times when we need your help, just wait for Godwin to arrange it for you.”

“We will do our best to complete the task.” Isabella promised.

“Good.” Arthur nodded approvingly, “Go back after you’ve finished cleaning up.”