After a pause, Lin touched his beardless chin and said, "As for the tax part. First, tell me what skills you all have?"
Lin has lived in Mi Di for more than ten years and has learned that he should take what he should take, and not taking it will make people panic. For this group of pioneers, paying taxes to the lord was more like a protection fee than an obligation. It's like 'I gave you a sum of money, and if there are monsters or barbarians that harass me, you have the responsibility to protect us. ' and the like.
As for whether they can refuse to give it? Of course, but Lin has no obligation to protect them.
In the same way, if Lin generously said that he could live here tax-free. On the contrary, it will make them worry that when danger occurs, the magician lord does not intend to assume the responsibility of protecting the people; the lord himself may even have evil intentions. This is definitely not because these people think too much, but this kind of thing is too common.
Living in such a remote place, within the reach of the magic tower, it is natural to take what each other needs. What ordinary people want is safety and security; as a lord, a magician may not necessarily need food grown in the ground, but may also need other services.
Whether the request is accepted is another level of issue. If you want to use force to unilaterally make people surrender, these people living at the bottom are mostly capable of cheating, cheating, and subverting. At worst, they'll fight for another one and walk away.
Therefore, the old man was not surprised by the magician lord's question. He said honestly: "Sir, among our people, there are tailors, blacksmiths, carpenters, wheelwrights, and bakers. There are also those who are good at farming and raising livestock. Women also have a lot of strength and can do any heavy work. "
It sounds like almost all adults have some skills. In fact, Lin also understands that this is not a group of people who really dare not bring their families and dependents to a new place to make a living.
From Lin's point of view, it would take time for this group of people to reorganize the wasteland, and the food they grew might not be enough for this group of people to eat, so why bother to compete with them for that little bit of land. The food supplies purchased from the Chamber of Commerce are all high-quality food of good grade and quality. I am still worried that I have nowhere to spend my money. I am carrying too many gold coins to make people jealous, so don’t even think about saving this small amount of money.
However, as soon as Lin heard about someone who was good at raising livestock, he immediately became interested. Although many supplies can be solved with money, dairy products are still in short supply. The main reason is that animal husbandry is not popular in the southwest of the mainland. Generally, people raise cattle and horses for other purposes, or produce a small amount of dairy products for their own use, and they are rarely sold commercially.
There was also a rise before, maybe raising one or two dairy cows or something like that. But that's too much trouble. The two dogs are being kept free, not to mention taking care of the two cows. After a whole day, do you need to do other things? Since there is a professional, of course he wants to invite him to ask: "Can you invite the person who is good at raising livestock to come in? I have something to ask him."
"Of course, sir." After saying that, the old man turned around and said, "Boy, go and ask Mr. Holstein to come in."
"Yes, Father."
After a while, the departing people brought in a tall and powerful man. After walking into the tower, he bowed to Lin and said, "Sir, you want to see me."
"Yes, I heard that you are good at raising animals. Do you know how to take care of cows or sheep?"
"My father used to help the big lord manage the ranch. I have been helping on the ranch since I was a child. So I am good at animals of all sizes."
"Then can you make cheese?"
"Cheese? Although it is more troublesome to make and it takes time to mature. But yes, I can also make cheese."
Lin Da was overjoyed, clapped his hands and said, "Great. From now on, you only need to send a bucket of fresh milk every day and two pieces of cheese every month. These will be treated as taxes for you to settle here." It's just that you are the only one who can do it." His eyes drifted towards the old man who took the lead.
That person was also a shrewd person, and he immediately understood and said: "Sir, please don't worry. We will help him share the tasks of the Holstein family. But if we want to raise cattle, we have to go to the city to buy cattle and build buildings." Fence the cowsheds to keep wild animals away. The work won’t be done quickly.”
"It doesn't matter, just wait until you are ready, and then start providing. When you first arrive, you must have a lot to do. For now, you just need to find a way to settle down. As for the problem of beasts,--" Lin turned his head and gave instructions. Girl, "──Halumi, please let Grayhoof and Whitenose recognize these people, so as not to bring harm to them."
Looking at the old man who was a little confused, Lin smiled and said: "We have two guard dogs. You will let your people recognize the two dogs later. Don't be too afraid. There are no dogs in this forest." Beasts more ferocious than them, so feel free to do so. That's it."
"Okay, thank you for your magnanimity." The old man led everyone in a salute and then left with Halumi. And Lin's figure also faded and disappeared.
The girl who came outside the tower gave a long whistle. The people who gathered under the old man's greeting expected to see two large dogs the size of sheepdogs, barking and running towards them. But the picture they imagined did not appear. Instead, a commotion in the woods attracted their attention.
The branches and leaves swayed, and the birds started to fly. Although there was no roar, there was an atmosphere of panic in the forest. This made several strong men who got off the carriage feel the crisis, and some even pulled out a large ax for logging from the carriage. The most sensitive children grabbed hold of their mother's skirts in fear and trembled slightly.
Suddenly, the woods opened, and two figures that were larger than bulls ran out, as fast as lightning and moving like meteors.
This is... Warcraft!
A few strong men immediately formed a human wall without thinking. Some held axes, while others picked up wooden sticks and canes, trying to protect their wives and children behind them.
They didn't take out the real stuff in their bags because they knew it was too late. Almost in the blink of an eye, two magical beasts rushed forward. One jumped, and the other flexibly circled sideways. At the moment when they were separated, they seemed to be able to see the calm gaze of the monster. There was no roar, no baring of teeth, and he was as confident as a seasoned hunter.
Either leaning back as the monster leaps over his head, or turning sideways as the monster takes a detour. The sudden change shocked everyone, and at the same time they lost their balance and fell to the ground. Just as he was thinking that there would be a bloody storm behind him, he saw two monsters squatting obediently in front of the tower master's apprentice.
Really a two-headed dog!
"Be good, be good." Halumi took turns stroking the lowered heads of the two dogs. Of course, they were inevitably washed with saliva, but she just giggled. After a while, when the fun was enough, he said: "Be good, smell these people and remember them. If you meet them in the forest in the future, don't bite them."
After hearing the instruction, the two dog heads turned sharply and looked back at the people who came to settle here. Everyone was frightened when they saw it, fearing that they would be swallowed in one bite. A big dog with black fur and gray hooves circled around from the left side; a big dog with mixed gray and white hair, and a strip of white hair on the bridge of its nose circled around the other side. Two dogs, one on the left and one on the right, walked past everyone, their noses twitching slightly.
There was no threatening bark, no arrogant barking and demonstration, he just walked by quietly. His clear eyes showed no thoughts, as if he was looking at an unrelated dead object, he was pacing slowly. It's just that this calmness is even more frightening.
The two dogs circled around and returned to Halumi. Ignoring the people behind him, he whimpered a few times towards the girl.
"Hey, you said there is something strange over there to the west?"
A few more low sounds. Halumi nodded, but came to the leading old man first and said, "Sir, that's all. You don't have to worry about the powerful monsters in the forest. They were all expelled by my teacher. But there are still some Carnivorous beasts are here, so protection is essential. In this way, you can go directly to the village."
After saying this, the girl whistled again. The two-headed dogs stood up, twisted and kicked their legs, and while running past the girl, Gray Hooves lowered his neck and lifted the girl who grabbed his hair onto his back to sit down. Then the two big dogs ran with all their strength, and in a blink of an eye, they disappeared into the forest again.
The people who were left behind looked at each other in confusion. After exchanging a few words, they each drove their carriages and horses towards the abandoned village. I want to sleep somewhere with a roof tonight, but there are still many things to do.
However, the curtain of a certain caravan was slightly opened. The person hiding inside glanced at the direction in which the two big dogs left, and then looked back at the three-story tower standing there.
The moss on the exterior walls has long been removed, and the masonry has been restored and looks brand new. There is no mottled spot, and it doesn't look like a magic tower that has been passed down for thousands of years. In addition to the large gap that was breached in the east, some people would believe that there was a newly built tower in front of them.
So what kind of person is the magician who spent so much time renovating the appearance of an ancient tower? The people in the caravan were wondering.
In the core room on the third floor, Lin returned to his homework. Although I was not able to observe the six stars in a row the previous time, the various sensors and recorders that were set up did retain the data. In the past few days, those data are being used to correct the shortcomings of the original program.
Kaya, who was taking notes on the side, let out a sigh. "Teacher, the list they provided does not match the actual number of people."
"Ignore him." Lin looked at the screen in front of him and said without looking back: "The kind of people who would come to the magician's territory to make a living are probably the kind of people who can't survive in the noble territory. And although that group of people brought their families and dependents, Yes, but they have calluses from handling weapons on their hands, and with their body as strong as a bear, I believe they are a group of elite warriors wearing armor. And the people with less names should be the ones they want to protect. Target. Speaking of which, it’s doubtful whether their names are true.”
"What about us?"
"Still, ignore him." Lin turned to look at Kaya and said seriously: "We will not intervene in the affairs of the nobles. Those people can live wherever they want. If it hadn't been for that abandoned village in X ten ( Within 10 kilometers), I don’t even want to deal with them. I don’t need to take them too seriously. Anyway, we live in the tower and can live without them. The most important thing is to keep a distance. If I get too close to them, I guess I will There will be trouble. You should also tell Halumi these words and let her know."
"So, milk and cheese?"
"On the one hand, I want to eat. On the other hand,..." Lin looked at Kaya's thin, flat body, shook his head regretfully, and said, "You are still in the growth stage, and you still need to be saved, so you need to take good nutrition. Otherwise you will regret it later.”
"Huh?" Although Kaya's expression did not change, she tilted her head and showed doubts in her eyes.
