Fertile Black Soil

"Your Excellency, please look, this is it!"

On a small hillside on the east bank of the river, a dozen or so knights had stopped their horses.

Gansen stood at the front and pointed to a small plain below the hillside.

Victor looked in the direction Gansen was pointing and saw that the plain was covered with a layer of snow.

But the snow did not obscure the natural endowments of this plain. The small plain in front of us covers an area of at least several tens of square kilometers and is dotted with rivers and streams.

The meadows were completely covered by heavy snow, but the large, tall reeds fully demonstrated the fertility of this land.

At this moment, Luda also stepped forward and said, "Viscount, look."

He used his foot to clear away the snow beneath his feet, revealing the bare ground, which was as thick as ink.

Then Luda drew his long sword, grabbed the hilt, and struck the ground heavily with the handle. After several rounds of heavy blows, he dug out a pile of frozen soil.

Luda carried the frozen soil to Victor. Victor reached out and grabbed a handful of frozen soil clumps, then squeezed them hard, crushing them into a smooth, delicate texture.

At this point, Gansen explained, "Your Excellency, this land is all covered in black soil like this. This layer of black soil is very thick, generally reaching 30-40 centimeters or even deeper, and it is jet black in color."

It's quite a large area. Luda people to scout it out. This black soil covers both banks of the Lime River, and the terrain is extremely flat, with very few rocks.

"Yes, this black soil area is at least tens of thousands of square kilometers. The exact area may need to be investigated by the Ministry of the Agricultural Department of the territory."

The agricultural experts sent by the territory previously stated that this black soil was formed from the decay and decomposition of meadow plants accumulated over millions of years. The soil structure is loose, rich in nutrients, and is considered top-grade fertile soil.

The two of them started introducing themselves to Victor, one after the other.

"It will take some effort to develop because of the abundant water system. We need to build dikes and dig ditches in advance to drain the water, otherwise there will be many swamps on this land, which can easily trap people and horses."

However, once the weeds are removed and the water is drained, this place becomes excellent land, yielding high yields without the need for fertilizer.

Unfortunately, the territory can't accommodate a large workforce in the short term; developing this land will take a long time.

Gansen said with a regretful expression.

Victor didn't reply; instead, he rubbed the black soil in his palm with his fingers and fell into deep thought.

Victor was extremely excited at this moment. "Isn't this the black soil? Even in my previous life, it was the best agricultural land. I never thought there would be such a large and good black soil here."

It is better and more fertile than the land of Two Rivers Territory.

I didn't notice it when we were marching before. It's a pity I have to fight Civil War, and I really can't spare too many men from my territory.

Otherwise, I would bring the entire army here and wage a massive agricultural campaign. After two or three years of development, the Two Rivers Territory could supply the entire duchy with grain.

Caught between excitement and inner turmoil, Victor struggled for a while before finally breaking free from his thoughts and letting out a sigh.

"This is a land of plenty, but unfortunately, we can't devote our energy to its development right now."

Luda and Gansen nodded in agreement with their lord.

"It's no wonder you have disputes, after all, this is the foundation for generations to come, and it's worth fighting for by everyone."

But..."

Luda and Gansen heard Victor say this, their hearts were in their throats, wondering why their lord was keeping them in suspense.

"You deserve a reward for discovering such a piece of land, but with the Horseshoe Tribe and Supply Station Number Three, even if the number of people doubles, developing this place is still a long way off."

It requires the full strength of the Two Rivers Territory and even the entire Golden Sunflower Family to develop this area more quickly and effectively.

Here's what we're doing: the hillside we're standing on runs east to west and is a full 2 kilometers long.

I will use this hillside as the boundary. The land 20 kilometers south of this hillside will be given to the military post as garrison land; the land 40 kilometers north of this hillside will be given to your tribe, Luda.

Luda became anxious upon hearing this. He knew, of course, that his lord would not give such good land to the two families. But even if it was divided according to population, the Horseshoe Tribe should get five or six times as much land as the military post, if not ten times.

But he dared not tell Victor, after all, the Viscount was always a man of his word and had a firm will, and he was afraid of angering Victor, in which case Victor would take back these lands.

Luda looked anxious, Victor could tell at a glance that he was feeling unbalanced.

"Luda, don't be in a hurry. There's a reason why I've allocated so much land to the military outposts."

I have obtained unlimited expansion rights from Count Colt, and in the future, after the Civil War ends, I will devote all the resources of the territory to expansion to the north.

In other words, the entire Great Fish River, especially along the Lime River and around Blue Lake, will be the focus of future development, and the land beneath our feet will serve as a support point for this endeavor.

The Supply Station Number Three will soon be expanded, and I will station two detachments here, and their families will be moved here later.

The population of the supply depot won't be much less than your tribe's population at that time.

Hearing Victor say this made Luda feel a little better, but after learning about the territory's grand strategy for the future, he became somewhat worried again.

After all, if the territory were to expand in this direction, his tribe might be forced to relocate again.

However, Luda quickly dismissed the idea, since the Viscount had already granted him so much land, and he didn't think the Viscount would go back on his word.

Gansen, who was standing to the side, had no objections. After all, the 40 square kilometers of fertile land, even if not all of it could be used for farming, would be enough to meet the needs of tens of thousands of people.