"Master Otto, the Basel area is not easy to get. Count Fried II of Sundegaard and Count Dalrich of Bresgau are both competing for it. I am afraid that our strength cannot compete with them."
Hearing that Otto wanted to choose Basel as an expansion target, Baron Dillon was the first to jump out and object.
Immediately afterwards, Baron Charlie also spoke.
"Yes, Master Otto, although our strength is not weaker than that of the Sund High-Leader and the Bresse High-Leader, it is too sensitive there. If the Zurich Leader also comes in, wouldn't it turn into a big war?
Master Otto, I suggest you wait for two years. If you really want to fight, it won't be too late to train more troops. "
Although Baron Charlie's words were euphemistic, the meaning was the same, and he was also opposed to Otto's expansion to Basel.
For a time, other vassals also expressed their opinions, and the meaning behind their words was nothing more than opposition.
This made Otto feel a little unsure.
What's the situation? Shouldn't it be that the subordinate vassals are more active than him when it comes to external expansion? Why are they all opposed to it now?
Could it be that I am really too anxious? However, more than a year has passed since he took power. Argolan is thriving under his rule. Now that it is no longer hindered internally, it is time to expand externally.
Basel's location is very critical. It is not only close to the Jura Mountains and one of the exits across the Jura Mountains. It is also adjacent to the Danube River and is an important transportation hub. Whether from a military or economic perspective, Basel has extremely high strategic value.
Therefore, Otto will consider the first step to expand to Basel. However, the attitude of the vassals was somewhat beyond his expectation. Without the support of his vassals, Otto could not force a war, but if he encountered a setback, he would suffer a great loss in the reputation he had built up over the past year, and the gain would not be worth the loss.
I still have to think about how to convince everyone.
"Let's have a drink first." Otto raised his glass and said to everyone without comment or revealing his true intention. "What everyone said makes sense. Let me think about it carefully."
In the wine glass was the result of Claire's arrival at Chateau Lafite - Lafite wine.
This kind of liquor, brewed from wheat as the main raw material, quickly became popular in Aargauland once it was launched. Not only the general public, but also the nobles fell in love with this new wine with a higher alcohol content.
Originally, Otto's plan was to use distillation to make a higher alcohol spirit if the alcohol produced was not strong enough.
But I don’t know if Otto was just too lucky, or if the craftsmen responsible for winemaking at Lafite Manor were too skilled. In short, other than trying to brew white wine, there were no surprises. Otto tasted the brewed wine himself. Afterwards, I found it tasted surprisingly good.
So that night, Otto held a banquet and invited the nobles of Argauland to taste it together to see how much alcohol content the wine had. As a result, he accidentally got drunk.
Fortunately, Otto's wine was always good. After drinking too much, he just slept and didn't do anything extraordinary.
As soon as he woke up, Otto gave up his plan to make distilled liquor. The alcohol content of the newly brewed liquor was completely sufficient. Any more alcohol would kill people.
This kind of white wine was named Lafite by Otto, and the wine brewed at Lafite Manor is called Lafite. The French people in the future will probably not have any objections if they know about it.
Hearing Otto say that he would think about it again, the nobles breathed a sigh of relief and quickly raised their glasses in response.
Otto stopped talking and lowered his head to think. The nobles looked at each other privately, not knowing what to say for a moment. The atmosphere became awkward. It seemed that everyone was concentrating on enjoying the food.
It's not that they are afraid of external expansion or conquest, but the situation in Basel is indeed a bit complicated.
Since the Basel area is adjacent to the four counts and its geographical location is very important, everyone wants to control Basel. In order to compete for the Basel area, several counts of Allgäu before Arachol tried to Having controlled this place, many wars broke out.
But in the end, several counts in the Basel area were unable to control it. Instead, the church became the largest force and actual controller in the Basel area.
In addition, the Basel area is also the border area between Lotharingia and the Kingdom of East Francia.
In such a region, even if everyone knew that Basel was very important, they would not dare to easily let the Allgäu get involved in such a whirlpool again. You must know that the biggest reason why the Alaholf family became the Counts of Allgäu is that the original Count Allgäu unfortunately died in the war for Basel. There happened to be no heirs left, so the Alaholfs were given the opportunity to take over. Chance.
In their opinion, Otto was a wise lord, and they still wanted him to continue to lead the Argau Territory.
Since Otto took over the power of the territory, everyone has seen the changes in the territory, and everyone has also shared the dividends.
Taking commercial tax as an example, Otto first asked Baron Dillon and Baron Charlie to lead the army to clear out the bandits in the territory and the Jura Mountains.
Later, because several caravans chose to bypass the Aargau collar and were robbed by "mountain bandits", subsequent caravans gradually learned their lesson and paid business taxes honestly.
There were more caravans coming and going, and Otto concentrated the craftsmen and craftsmen in the territory around the new castle, and moved many farmers to build villages around it.
Relying on the new castle, a small market was formed on the periphery, and there were best-selling products such as Lafite wine in the territory. The business in Aargauland unexpectedly prospered.
With the benefits brought by prosperous trade and business taxes, each of the nobles has truly benefited, and they also quite recognized Otto's abilities.
After the silent atmosphere lasted for a while, the thoughtful nobles began to think. Since what Otto wanted was to expand his territory, why not change his goal?
Immediately afterwards, some nobles began to whisper.
Otto was sitting in the main seat and had been thinking about how to speak to the nobles, but after much deliberation, he could not think of a good excuse. At this time, the whispers of the nobles disrupted his thoughts.
He raised his head and looked at the nobles in the hall, and couldn't help but frown. What were these guys discussing?
Soon, he knew.
"Ahem, Master Otto." Baron Charlie stood up and saluted Otto respectfully. "We just had a private discussion and felt that it is not wise to compete for the Basel region at this time. A better choice is the Bern region.
The Count of Bern, Grold, is old and faint, and his successor is a notorious coward. We take the opportunity to expand our influence in the Bern area, and there will undoubtedly be no resistance. "
