Specialties and Girls
That evening, Victor finally got to experience the unique cuisine of the Barbarians, something he hadn't done in a long time. Although the food looked rough and unrefined, it was still carefully prepared.
This vast grassland also nurtures many delicious ingredients that can bring satisfaction without requiring too many cooking techniques.
The mere sight of a mushroom that resembled the button mushroom from his previous life whetted Victor's appetite. The soup he made was incredibly delicious. He deduced that this mushroom must be rich in amino acids, and that grinding it into powder might even make it a good MSG.
Victor had originally commissioned a caravan sent to the south to find seafood similar to kelp in order to create a substitute for MSG. He thought it would be a long way off, but today he got it without any effort at all.
However, he was also puzzled as to why he had never seen this kind of mushroom before, since he had had quite a few encounters with Barbarian Tribes.
He questioned Luda carefully and got the answer: this kind of mushroom was not produced in this area at all. Instead, it was a specialty of the primeval forest in the Frost Tear Mountains, which was further north.
Luda obtained this mushroom while traveling across the grasslands with his caravan.
Some rather unique tribes also live in those forests. They do not live by herding, but rather by fishing and hunting, making them more savage and primitive than the Barbarians on the grasslands.
Even such primitive and backward tribes still have a need for trade.
Victor was very satisfied with Luda's discovery. He suggested that Luda should not stop the caravan trade while carrying out land reclamation, but should take the initiative to trade with these tribes, find out all the information about this mushroom, and preferably confirm whether this mushroom can be artificially cultivated.
Victor discovered that the mushrooms Luda had traded were all quite uniform in size, which wouldn't happen if they were wild-collected. It's possible that these primitive tribes had mastered the cultivation method of these mushrooms, or at least figured out their growth patterns.
If Luda can obtain the production method of these mushrooms, Victor plans to develop them into a specialty product of the Two Rivers Territory. This natural MSG is an excellent seasoning that could definitely become popular throughout the entire duchy.
Luda was also pleased that his discovery had been recognized by the Viscount, and he repeatedly stated that he would complete the task well.
The evening was quite pleasant for both host and guests. Victor was about to return to the room that Luda had prepared for him to rest when...
He found two girls sitting on the bed in the room. They looked to be in their late teens, young and beautiful, and showed no shyness in front of Victor. On the contrary, they seemed eager to try.
They were dressed very lightly, both wearing short white linen tops with their arms and legs exposed, their healthy wheat-colored skin giving them a unique charm reminiscent of Barbarians girls.
"Who are you? Who sent you?"
One of the girls, with long, shiny black hair, replied, "Your Excellency, I am Aprily." She pointed to another girl with short hair, "This is Luxi'ai. Chief Luda sent us to serve you as you retire for the night."
Victor knew that this was probably Luda's private arrangement to curry favor with him, the lord.
However, Victor wasn't going to fall for it. First, he and Veronica had just gotten married, and he didn't want to betray his promise to Veronica. Second, even if he wanted to marry a court lady in the future, Luda's family wouldn't be suitable.
In the future Luda's tribe will be an important force in developing this black soil. If he marries these two girls, his subordinates may mistakenly believe that Victor is giving Luda's tribe so much support because of this.
Victor did not want his personal preferences to influence his subordinates' judgment or cause them to have inappropriate thoughts.
Victor immediately had Luda brought over, and he sat down and began questioning the two girls, taking the opportunity to learn about the Luda tribe.
The two girls thought Victor was being too reserved and tried to grab Victor arm, but Victor just put his hand on their shoulders, making them sit on the bed and unable to get up.
After trying a few times and finding that they couldn't move it at all, the two girls finally gave up.
Aprily looked at Victor with a disappointed expression, making Victor think that he had done something heinous to her.
"Alright, you two quiet down. I want to ask you some questions. As long as you answer them properly, I promise I won't Luda blame you!"
Aprily and Luxi'ai exchanged a glance, then nodded.
Victor asked directly, "Approximately how many people are in your tribe now? How many are able-bodied? Is there enough food?"
After listening to Victor's questions, although there were some things they didn't understand, the information they gleaned from the girls did indeed corroborate Luda's words.
After Victor sorted through the information, he found that Luda's tribe indeed had only about three thousand people, with little difference, but there were many young and strong men, a considerable number of whom were slaves captured during the conscription of Barbarians.
As for his people, not all of them left the Horseshoe Tribe with him; many stayed behind. If it weren't for these slaves, Luda might not have had enough manpower and confidence to break away from the Horseshoe Tribe.
After Luda arrived, the tribe had plenty of food thanks to the supplies and livestock they obtained from trade with Two Rivers Territory.
Luda was quite generous; after arriving here, he distributed cotton-padded clothes and food to everyone in the tribe, and even built houses for each household.
Because of his generosity, everyone responded enthusiastically to his reclamation and planting plan, although some elderly people did have some doubts about leaving the nomadic life.
But since they were being fed, even those who had reservations couldn't oppose Luda's plan, and the rest of the tribe supported Luda's actions.
Currently, Luda's reputation is still quite high overall, and it's estimated that even if he proposes formal annexation, no one would object.
After all, when they left the Horseshoe Tribe with Luda in the first place, everyone was already mentally prepared, regardless of whether Luda became independent or joined another tribe.
Hearing this, Victor was relieved; it seemed that Luda's inner power was indeed genuine.
Luda is capable and prestigious enough to lead his tribe to complete the land reclamation. Victor originally planned to have the Government Affairs Office of the Two Rivers Territory send Luda a deputy, but it seems that this is no longer necessary.
Just then, there was a knock at the door. "My lord, it's me, Luda. What can I do for you?"
"Luda, just come in."
After listening to Victor's words, the door was pushed open, Luda poked his head in first. After seeing Victor sitting in the chair and the two girls still sitting on the bed, he moved into the room.
Luda's movements were cautious, and Victor quickly realized that Luda probably thought the two girls hadn't behaved well, which angered Victor.
Victor spoke directly, "Luda, I don't like what you're doing. You should know I just got married."
Aren't you afraid that if you arrange for someone to sleep with you like this, it will reach my wife's ears and she'll make things difficult for you?
Besides, you know what kind of person I am. I'm not the kind of person who's obsessed with women. Don't make things difficult for these two girls; I really have no interest in them!
Luda heard Victor say that, she knew that Victor simply didn't like doing it that way, Luda realized that she might have done something wrong with good intentions.
He quickly explained, "My lord, this is my fault. Alas, I never expected that our Barbarians etiquette would cause you trouble."
"As long as you work hard for me, you'll get everything you deserve, but don't try anything funny with me."
"Yes, yes!"
Luda then wanted to take the two girls away, but after thinking for a moment, Victor Luda to take the two girls to Wood Fort Town.
Victor remembered that Veronica only had one personal maid who came from home, and these two girls could be her maids.