"Bern area?" Otto murmured to himself and began to think about Baron Charlie's proposal.
Bern is located on the west side of the Allgäu, sandwiched between the Alps and the Jura Mountains. Not to mention its better geographical location, its territory and wealth far exceed that of the Allgäu.
This can be seen from the number of barons in the Bern area. The number of enfeoffed barons is more than double that of the Allgäu.
Even when Otto was playing games in his previous life, he wanted to unify the Principality of Burgundy in Transjura and attack Bern and neighboring Neuchâtel. , Unless you have been farming for decades, there is no chance at all.
The gap in reality is far more obvious than the numerical values in the game. Just like Otto took the lead in collecting commercial taxes, and after the lords in Switzerland followed suit, even though Otto collected the highest commercial taxes, his income was not. the most.
The reason why Otto chose to expand to Basel was because he did not want to offend his neighbors. In terms of pure size, both Bern and Zurich are much stronger than the Allgäu. The Allgäu, which is sandwiched in the middle, We can't expand to the southern Alps.
As for Neuchâtel, it is also a bunch of mountainous areas, and the income from it is too low.
Otto didn't know what was going on in Bern. If, as Baron Charlie said, the Bern area was in chaos now, it would indeed be a good opportunity to expand to Bern.
"Baron Charlie, please tell me more about the situation in Bern. I don't know much about it. Then we can discuss how to capture Bern."
Expansion during this period was relatively troublesome. Military means were not the best option and would often encounter interference from superior lords. It's okay if you are under the same lord or in the same kingdom. After military expansion, you will express your obligations and pay a certain price to the superior lord, and generally they will acquiesce to your expansion.
But if you meet those so-called "just" lords or kings, then your expansion behavior will be regarded as a provocation. Not only will you have to spit out the territory you gained, but you will also be punished. Losing money or anything else is considered light. If you don't do it well, you will lose your title.
Otto was so careful not because he was afraid of the lord's intervention. The Kingdom of Lotharingia, where Argolan is located, is currently in a relatively turbulent situation. King Lothair II is busy fighting for power with the great nobles of the kingdom, so he has no time to think about this bitter cold place in the Swiss mountains.
Of course, it is also possible that Lothair II would punish Otto after hearing the news here.
If I can't cure a big noble, I can't cure you, a little count?
However, the possibility of this kind of convulsion is too low. If the general trend of history is correct, this king does not have many good days to live. Calculating time, he should not survive this year.
What Otto was really worried about was that his wanton expansion through military means would arouse the alertness of other surrounding lords, especially the Earl of Zurich. If they were united and beaten up, he would be in tears.
After Otto and the nobles discussed for a long time, they made a plan to expand to the Bern area.
There is actually nothing new in this plan, it is just eating away at it step by step.
While wooing the small nobles in the Bern area, they used the excuse of border friction to expand by taking over a village today and a river tomorrow.
Wait until the old count dies, and then conduct a large-scale military operation to ask the cowardly Earl of New Bern to cede territory and pay compensation.
Otto had no objections to this plan, but he was still obsessed with the Basel area. But don't worry, wait until King Lothair II dies and the Eastern and Western Franks carve up the territory of the Kingdom of Lotharingia, and then take the opportunity to capture Basel.
Anyway, encroaching on the Bern area will not happen overnight, and there is no need to use too much force.
An agreement was reached, and the rest of the banquet ended with a mixture of drinking and drinking.
Otto sent away the nobles in a daze. He looked back at the slightly cramped banquet hall of Chateau Lafite, which was messy with cups and plates. He couldn't help but yearn for the banquet hall of the New Castle. It was designed by him himself and was larger than the one in front of him. At least seven or eight times.
According to the progress of the project, he should be able to move to the new castle within this year. He is a little tired of living in Lafite Manor.
"Master Otto, please slow down." Gent saw Otto who was walking a little unsteadily and quickly came up to help him. "Master, Mrs. Kailin hopes that you will take time to go to the old castle and say that she has something to discuss with you."
"Is there something wrong?" Otto asked in a low voice, having sobered up for the most part. "Is my father dying?"
Gent was a little bit dumbfounded. He didn't know whether the young master cared about his father or wished that his father would die soon. Anyway, some of the guards were already muttering secretly as to why Count Aargau wasn't dead yet.
Count Argau is not dead, and Otto's identity is still just the heir. Everyone who wants to become a knight or a baron can only hope. So privately, it is estimated that many of Otto's guards wish that Count Argau would pass away soon.
Jinte shook his head and quickly put aside the messy thoughts in his mind. How could he guess the young master like this?
"Mrs. Kailin didn't say it directly, but it should be related to the young master's marriage. She also asked me what type of woman the young master likes."
marry? Otto frowned, a little unhappy. I'm not even 17 yet, so I'm not in a hurry. Why should you, a stepmother, be in such a hurry?
But Otto also knew that there was no way to escape. According to the aristocratic practice, if his Count Aargau hadn't had an accident, a marriage partner would have been arranged for him before his 16th birthday, and they might have already been engaged.
Because Count Allgäu was in a coma, and the relationship between Otto and Madame Karin was not very harmonious before. In addition, the family had only passed down the family for several generations, and there were no other elders to supervise it. Otto's marriage arrangements were delayed for a while.
Otto had never thought about free love. With his status, it was completely unrealistic for free love and marriage in this society, not to mention that it was an open secret for nobles to find lovers.
The main reason is that Otto has no idea in this regard. He only had one unsuccessful relationship in his previous life and has become accustomed to the single life. He always feels that it can be later.
But now it seems that there is no way to escape.
After opening the system that had not been opened for a long time and confirming that no message about someone trying to kill him popped up again, Otto angrily turned off the system and lay heavily on the bed.
What a broken system, other people's systems are invincible, but my own thing is of no use. Seeing as how you look like CK3's system, why don't you arrange a wife with fair skin, beauty and long legs for me! Why should I look for it myself?
Nothing, bad system, bad reviews!
