Letters and Meetings

Just as Victor was talking to Foss, two Great Oak Territory messengers disembarked from the docks of Linshui Town. The dock manager, Lessot, saw their uniforms and immediately recognized them as the Great Oak Family crest.

Lessot and his men went to greet them, "May I ask what brings you two to Golden Sunflower Territory?"

These nobles' private soldiers and messengers are troublesome. Sometimes, if they are not received well, they may exaggerate the situation and report it to their master, thus damaging the reputation of the territory. To prevent such situations, Lessot usually greets them personally.

However, the two men were not arrogant at all; on the contrary, they were very polite. "Hello, steward, we are here on the orders of Count Black to deliver a message to the Old Baron Wembley. Please inform him."

Seeing how polite the two were, Lessot naturally breathed a sigh of relief. However, after listening to what they had to say, Lessot was somewhat embarrassed. "Gentlemen, my master has already gone to the Northlands. He just left nine days ago. Your timing is not very convenient."

The two men looked at each other, not expecting to encounter this situation. They quickly asked, "Sir, may I ask which official is in charge of this territory? If not, we can send it to that official."

"That's wonderful. Our Viscount has recently returned to the territory. You can send the letter to him and he can pass it on to the old master."

The two messengers were stunned. The steward only told them half the story. The lord should have told them earlier at home. They were worried that they would not be able to complete their mission.

"That's great. Since Viscount Victor is here, please inform him."

"No need for such trouble. Since you two have urgent business with our lord, it is customary in our territory that I will arrange for someone to take you there."

After saying that, Lessot summoned three men, all of whom were dockworkers under his command, and gave them instructions.

"Please follow them, they will lead you to my master."

The two messengers were naturally pleased. Although the steward was a bit slow-witted, he was still very meticulous in making the arrangements.

They followed the three men to the stables behind the dock. The three men led out five horses, all of excellent quality, suitable as military horses.

This surprised the messenger, since horses were still scarce in the Eastern Four Counties, especially those that could be used as military horses. Here, military horses refer to riding horses used by the army, not warhorses. The warhorses ridden by Cavalry cannot be judged solely by their appearance; they also require training.

After Victor took Two Rivers Territory, he fought many battles and had no shortage of horses. He had plenty of riding and pack horses for the army, as well as draft horses for plowing and transportation.

Horses are sensitive animals, especially warhorses, which are meant to charge into battle amidst a hail of swords and spears. If they cannot do this, forcing them to be used as warhorses will only lead to the demise of the riders who ride them.

Many horses that were unsuitable as warhorses but were of decent quality were sent by Victor to Golden Sunflower Territory, some for sale and some for internal use within the territory.

Selling horses in this way will not increase the strength of other territories. If they dare to stubbornly use these horses as warhorses, they will naturally be taught a lesson by reality.

Therefore, the official horses in the Golden Sunflower Territory are generally of good quality. On the one hand, this is a welfare benefit, and on the other hand, it is also an advertisement to attract merchants to buy them. In just over a year, the horse trade alone has brought the territory tens of thousands of gold in profit.

The group first arrived at the Stone Castle, where they learned that Victor had already gone to Fortress Number One, and immediately turned to continue heading west.

After discussing the details of the expansion with Foss, Victor stayed at the fortress, observing the new recruits' training.

In recent years, due to the continuous expansion of the territory's military, a complete and mature system has been formed for training new recruits.

Standing on the city wall, watching the new recruits continuously conduct their drills, Victor felt there was nothing more to do and was about to leave with his men.

Unexpectedly, Foss brought two men over. "Your Excellency, these two are Count Black's messengers. They have an important letter to deliver to you."

Foss introduced the visitors to Victor. Victor was surprised to learn that it was a letter from Count Black. He carefully examined the two men and noticed that the coat of arms on their clothes was indeed the coat of arms of the Great Oak Family.

"I am Viscount Golden Sunflower. Is this letter from Count Black?"

Both men were delighted. They had met Victor when he visited Great Oak Territory and knew that this was Viscount Golden Sunflower himself. Although there were some twists and turns, they eventually delivered the letter to him, thus completing their mission.

"Your Excellency, we are here on the orders of the Count to deliver this letter to the person in charge of the Golden Sunflower Territory. We originally intended to deliver it to the Old Baron Wembley, but we didn't expect you to be in the territory. How wonderful!"

After saying this, the two took out a silver letter tube from their backpacks and, after inspecting it, handed it to Victor with both hands.

Victor took the mailbox, checked that the wax seal and stamp were in good condition, then opened the mailbox and took out the letter to read it carefully.

After reading it, Victor was very curious. The message from Count Black said that he had received a notice from the Duchy that a national Noble Council would be held on October 5, and that all independent noble families were required to send representatives to attend.

However, the letter also mentioned that, according to his inside information, this meeting might not be very friendly to the nobles of the Three Counties of the Northern Frontier, and that he should definitely not attend in person.

Upon reading this, Victor roughly understood the content of the meeting. He guessed that Grand Duke Mora already knew about the loss of the secret agreement, and the meeting notice was issued to expose the rebellion of the Northern Frontier Allied Army.

Now that they know, Victor certainly doesn't intend to participate, and he won't even send a representative. The fact that he and Alex were involved in intercepting the secret agreement probably can't be kept from the Grand Duke's Silver Maple Court, and he's probably already been labeled a staunch rebel.

However, with this in mind, Victor decided to leave Golden Sunflower Territory and visit Count Black in Suffolk County.

"If you're going to do it, then do it," Victor said to the two messengers. "Thank you for your hard work. If you're not in a hurry, you can stay in the territory for a couple of days. I plan to visit Count Black in Sunset City in person. You can come back to Great Oak Territory with me then."

"Then I shall respectfully accept your offer. Thank you, Viscount."