11: Territorial Finance

Seeing that this prime land along the river had such a low yield, Renn felt a sense of frustrated disappointment.

"Change, there must be change!"

Renn felt an urgent desire to change the current production situation of the territory, improve productivity, and increase grain output.

"Fornal, how many mu of land have been reclaimed in our Red River Territory in total?"

Fornal calculated quickly in his mind and soon answered Renn's question.

"My Lord, including all the reclaimed farmland up to now, the territory should have nearly 100,000 mu."

"How much?"

"100,000 mu?"

Renn was somewhat surprised by this number.

From his observation just now, the farmland in the Red River Territory relied almost entirely on manual labor; looking across the fields, the number of oxen assisting in the work was pitifully small.

Renn only saw four or five Northern Black-backed Oxen working in the fields, a number that was practically zero for nearly 10,000 mu of farmland.

On the other hand, he saw that the tools held by the farmers were very backward; there were few iron tools, and a significant portion were made from a mix of polished stone and wood.

Under such conditions of backward tools and pure manual labor, Renn hadn't expected the Red River Territory to have reclaimed nearly 100,000 mu of farmland. This was beyond his expectations, as the entire Red River Territory previously only had a population of just over 30,000.

"Yes, My Lord, 100,000 mu of farmland, at the very least."

"Our Red River Territory occupies the downstream outlet of the entire Red River Valley. The territory is vast, and most of this land is good for reclamation. If it were all reclaimed, it could increase several times over from the current 100,000 mu."

"However, because the population has always been insufficient and there are too many Foreign Races in the wilderness that need periodic clearing, otherwise the reclaimed farmland would be destroyed or occupied by them."

"Therefore, the speed of land reclamation has never been fast; these 100,000 mu were accumulated bit by bit by several generations of previous lords."

Fornal explained the reasons to Renn.

In Renn's memory, the area of the Derrick Family's Red River Territory was indeed much larger than a typical Barony, even comparable to the size of an ordinary Viscounts Territory. Moreover, its location was excellent, with flat, fertile land perfectly suited for farming.

The territory's prime location was related to the founder of the Derrick Family, the Wild Wolf Knight, Derrick.

Back then, this ancestor of the original Renn had an extraordinary relationship with the Grand Duke of the Raging Bear and enjoyed his deep trust, so the granted territory was exceptionally good.

According to the secrets passed down in the Derrick Family in Renn's memory, if not for many under the Grand Duke's command being jealous of the Wild Wolf Knight Derrick and obstructing the process when titles were being conferred, the Derrick Family would certainly have been titled as Viscounts rather than just a Barony.

In the end, for various reasons, Derrick was only titled a Baron. Granting the territory in the precious land of the Red River Valley was also the Grand Duke's way of compensating Derrick.

"100,000 mu of farmland. The family hasn't worked in vain these past 180 years; finally, some good news."

The 100,000 mu of farmland gave Renn a surprise. Because of the Red River, most of these fields were high-quality and, at the very least, not lacking in water. Although the yield did not satisfy Renn, it was significantly higher than that of other noble territories in the Rage Bear Territory.

Previously, the Red River Territory not only had enough grain to sustain itself every year but could also export large quantities of grain and cereal to earn gold coins.

"My Lord, before the Fel Orcs invasion, the territory could produce nearly 10,000 tons of grain every year. Aside from keeping about 5,000 tons for the territory's own use..."

"All the remaining grain was sold to the Salak Merchant Guild. It's been this way for many years; two gold coins per ton, and the price has never changed."

"The Salak Merchant Guild? The one under the Grand Duke?"

Renn had heard the name of this merchant guild.

"Yes, My Lord, it is indeed the Salak Merchant Guild established by the Grand Duke."

"The Red River flows out of the Red River Valley, heads south, and eventually empties into the Crimson Gold River, which in turn flows past the Rage Bear Fortress."

"Every year, the merchant ships of the Salak Merchant Guild set out from the Rage Bear Fortress, travel North along the Crimson Gold River into the Red River, and finally arrive at the Red River Valley for the grain trade."

"Besides our Red River Territory, the grain produced by the other barons in the Red River Valley is also sold to the Salak Merchant Guild. Ultimately, all the grain from the Red River Valley is collected by the Salak Merchant Guild and taken back to the Rage Bear Fortress."

The Rage Bear Fortress is the core of the Rage Bear Territory. Rage Bear City, built around the fortress, has a population of nearly a million and is the third-largest city in the North.

"Transporting grain by water?"

"True, Rage Bear City has a large population, and the daily grain consumption is astronomical. A massive influx of grain is required to meet daily needs."

"Calculating it this way, the territory sells nearly 5,000 tons of grain every year, which alone brings in 10,000 gold coins from the grain trade. Why then are there only a few thousand gold coins in the family treasury?"

An income of at least 10,000 gold coins a year was already quite high among Northern nobles. Renn now felt that the Red River Territory was perhaps not as worthless as he had imagined.

"My Lord, in normal years, our territory could earn 12,000 gold coins. The bulk of it comes from the grain trade, with the rest coming from the sale of timber and some specialties from the Black Forest."

"However, while the income is not small, the territory's expenditures are even greater."

"The territory's five hundred warriors are all full-time professional soldiers. Their food, lodging, salaries, and the consumption and replacement of weapons and equipment require an investment of over a thousand gold coins a year."

"The Magic Wolf Knights require 1,000 gold coins for daily expenses each year. Beyond that, Lord Bode invests about 2,000 more gold coins into the Magic Wolf Knights every year; as for the specifics, only Lord Bode knows."

"In addition, the other daily operations of the territory require about 2,000 gold coins a year."

Fornal calculated the territory's financial accounts for Renn, item by item.

"Do the daily operations of the territory require so many gold coins?" Renn was curious; 2,000 gold coins was no small sum.

"My Lord, the operating costs for other parts of the territory are not much; the bulk is here at the Red River Fortress."

"As a noble, proper etiquette is required, which cannot be neglected, and the expenses in this regard are not cheap."

"Combined with the normal annual expenses of the hundreds of people within the Red River Fortress, it adds up. This is even with Lord Bode being frugal and rarely hosting noble balls; otherwise, the costs would be even higher."

"I see!"

Renn remembered the great nobles he had met in the Rage Bear Fortress. Their lives were indeed extravagant and wasteful, spending money like water; a single ball could cost hundreds or even thousands of gold coins.

Even though he had been studying at the Knight Academy and usually dealt with soldiers and knights, he could still sense the luxurious lifestyles of the nobles.

Compared this way, the Derrick Family's annual expenditure of 2,000 gold coins was indeed not much.

"The army plus the territory's daily expenses require 6,000 gold coins. What about the remaining 6,000?"

"My Lord, what I just mentioned are only the most basic operating expenses for the territory. Besides those, there are various other expenditures."

"Every year, the territory suffers from incursions by wilderness races and Magical Beasts. These attacks often destroy buildings and cause casualties; replenishing the population and repairing the territory requires a significant expenditure."

"The territory's army defends against these foreign invasions. Although Lord Bode always personally leads the troops to defeat these invaders and wins every time, casualties are inevitable."

"Lord Bode has always been generous to the warriors. He gives rewards after every victory, and for those who die in battle, a pension is paid. Injured warriors need treatment in addition to their rewards. These are all expenses."

"Additionally, the construction of the Red River Fortress requires money every year. Since the territory was established, construction on the Red River Fortress has basically never stopped; it is reinforced or expanded every year."

"There are also other miscellaneous expenses, which usually add up to over 3,000 gold coins."

"Besides these, there is one massive expenditure that consumes all the remaining gold coins and sometimes isn't even enough: the costs for Lord Bode and the family's Professionals to practice. This expenditure was previously handled by Lord Bode personally."

Fornal listed the territory's expenditures one by one, giving Renn a basic understanding of the Red River Territory's finances.

Fornal might not have been clear about that final expenditure for the Professionals' practice, but Renn understood it quite well.

A professional's practice is a bottomless pit. It's easy for a Silver Rank professional to consume thousands or even ten thousand gold coins in a year of practice; if it's a Spellcaster, it's even more exaggerated.

Nothing related to Professionals is ever cheap.