The sanitary conditions in the Middle Ages were extremely crude, and the drinking water in Westeros was often unclean and could easily breed diseases.
Various fruit wines, including wine, have become the most important drinks in the daily life of the aristocratic class, which is why the sales of wine are so good.
Because of this, the profits from the alcohol trade are quite huge, especially for high-end products. The aristocracy has always been the main consumer force in this world.
Like Arbor's House Redwyne, he made his fortune from his family's wine trade and became a wealthy and influential person like Seven Kingdoms.
After the Velaryon and Hightower families were "lost" one after another, Lannister and Tyrell became a new round of competition for the throne of "the richest man in the kingdom". Contenders. Even if Arbor is not as good as Casterly Rock, which has a mine at home, and Tyrell, which has land at home, it can easily rank among the top five in mainland China.
Everyone picked up the wine glasses as instructed, first brought them close to their noses and sniffed, then took a sip and savored it carefully.
Soon, many knights showed surprise in their eyes.
The flavor of this soon-to-be-shipped "Lafite" is very distinctive. It has rich fruity aromas of dark fruits such as blackberries and black cherries. The taste is mellow and full, and is also mixed with a light violet floral aroma and a woody aroma of cedar.
The taste is extremely rich.
The wine is clear and bright, with a delicate and smooth entrance, clear but not obtrusive acidity, and a long aftertaste, showing its "tactful and introverted" elegance. This is in sharp contrast to the strong style of most wines on the market today.
Most of them are not connoisseurs, but as an audience, they also think that the wine is very competitive.
"Master Titus, this wine has a unique taste and mellow taste. It can be called a fine wine!"
"Yes, the entrance is smooth and the taste is long. It's not much better than Arbor's wine, and it's almost as good as their gin wine!"
Some knights who knew a little about wine tasting gave heartfelt praises, while others followed the crowd and flattered them. The atmosphere in the hall relaxed a bit.
Someone is helping Earl warm up for a purpose.
Titus did not comment on these compliments and just nodded with a smile.
After everyone had finished tasting and put down their glasses, he spoke of the topic, "Let's stop talking politely and let's get down to business."
I decided to deprive - no, take back the actual control rights of all the landed knights in the territory over their villages and manors.
From now on, supplies will no longer be produced by local villages and towns - they will be provided directly to the knights, and during battles, knights from all over the country will no longer recruit young men from the villages on their behalf - "
Before the knights could digest this shocking news, Titus continued, "----But don't worry, Starpike will not touch the private property of the knight family.
I will not recover the income you received in the form of fiefs in the past. That part of income will be replaced by the financial system of Starpike in the form of fixed stipends.
As for the village lands you were originally in charge of, I will also assign separate personnel to manage them."
He increased his tone and added, "To be specific, I will select professional talents with knowledge, character, and passing the assessment from the apprentices trained by the Soul Knights to be the new managers of each area."
In the future, the managers of each area will have their duties divided into three roles: administrative officer, finance and tax officer, and peace officer.
They are the grassroots officials who take over your local management responsibilities."
Nowadays, the number of landed knights with fixed settlements and fiefs in the territory of Starpike alone exceeds 200.
The twenty-three people attending this meeting are only their representatives.
As soon as these words were spoken, it sounded like thunder in everyone's ears, and the originally orderly front hall instantly became an uproar.
The fact that they were able to wait until Master Titus finished speaking was due to their authority, which was photographed by Earl.
As soon as he stopped here, the knights immediately "rioted" -
"Sir! How can this be possible? Loyal and brave knights have always been in charge of the fiefs and recruiting troops for House Peake. This is our tradition passed down from generation to generation!"
A knight with a bad temper and unable to control his emotions couldn't help but stand up and loudly expressed his objections.
"Did someone confuse you, sir, and come up with random ideas? Please don't fall into the villain's trap and take back this random life!"
"Yes, sir! Without the knights to help you take charge of the place, who will maintain the order and security of the territory? Who can guarantee that those young men will respond to your call?"
Another knight also echoed, with a tone of anxiety - even anger.
The knights who can be "representatives" naturally have a certain weight. They have either followed House Peake for a long time and have made great achievements, or they have strong strength under their command and have made some achievements in the "Battle of Usurper".
More knights were not as bold as them, but turned pale and looked around in panic.
They are afraid that there are tricks like "breaking a cup as a sign" and "five hundred swords and axes" hidden in corners or behind walls.
After all, with the ruthless methods of "Black Earl", it is impossible not to be prepared.
Since he dared to raise this issue that most knights would vehemently oppose, he was not afraid that they would refuse to resist.
Titus Seeing this, the smile on his face turned a little cold.
Attendant Jero also felt the change in the atmosphere, and couldn't help but take a step forward, preparing to shout out to stop the chaos in the venue.
Then Earl raised his hand again.
The somewhat superior knight representative who was arguing loudly and trying to ask Titus Earl to "take back his life" immediately shut his mouth tightly and not a single word came out.
The entire front hall returned to absolute silence again.
"Tradition? What is tradition? What is in House Peake's interests and what I think can be continued is tradition."
Titus sneered and said unhurriedly, "Unfashionable traditions." I think those things that need to be broken are the dross that must be cleared away.
You are the representatives of the territorial knights, so before speaking, think through your words first, so as not to cause trouble for you and the resident knights behind you.
What I give to you is yours. If I don't give it to you, why do you still dare to snatch something that originally belonged to Peake and was only temporarily lent to you for care?"
His tone was light and airy, but he had been arrogant in his anger before. The loud-voiced knight who had made many achievements on his own was completely mute. The man's forehead was covered with sweat, and he sat down quickly, not daring to look directly in the direction of Earl.
Just now her voice was loud and her head was held high, now she is silent and her head is hanging low.
Regarding the "local management" issue that has been questioned the most, Titus smiled lightly and said, "I mentioned it just now - just in case you are too emotional and didn't hear it clearly, I will explain it in more detail now.
Administrator, tax officer, and peace officer, these three junior officials trained by Starpike and passed the examination, will go down to the grassroots level, replace the original group of knights, and fully take over the villages, manors, and towns within the territory of Peake.
You don't need to worry about trivial matters in the future, just focus on the military. It's not like I haven't prepared a place for you, so why are you so impatient now?"
In Titus's mind, administrators are equivalent to people-friendly chiefs at the grassroots level. They are responsible for handling daily affairs in villages and production areas, announcing laws, explaining policies, mediating disputes, and organizing agricultural affairs.
As the name suggests, the fiscal and tax officer is in charge of local financial revenue and expenditure, tax collection, labor organization and craftsman statistics.
The Sheriff is responsible for maintaining local security, arresting thieves, apprehending bandits, and responding to small-scale local conflicts. Although its functions are similar to those of the previous landed knights, in terms of military affairs, with the intervention of the training corps, its power will be greatly reduced.
Some of the resident knights who originally had great power could be selected to serve as peace officers.
After all, the bachelors of the forts who are known as "Psychic Knights" can teach "civilian officials" and occasionally know some high-end knowledge about military warfare, but they are not familiar with the practical work of leading troops to patrol and eliminate bandits.
However, the knights who serve as peace officers must be soldiers who have made military exploits under Titus to be eligible to serve.
It is no longer passed down from father to son, nor hereditary.
There is no longer a small noble at the level of a knight who can use his long history to dominate the land under his control and play tricks like "The sky is high Earl far away".
Titus emphasized several key points, his eyes swept across the audience, and his tone was unquestionable.
"After I finish speaking, who is in favor and who is against?"
There was silence in the hall.
The knights quietly observed the reactions of their companions and found that no "brave" appeared. Their hearts were filled with resentment and resistance to the new decision of the Peake family master, which undoubtedly touched their core interests and deprived them of the power passed down from generation to generation.
In the past, they were considered military nobles--although they were only the smallest nobles.
From now on, I can only pursue military glory, not aristocracy.
According to Earl, the only way out for the knights from now on is in the Peake Legion, or as a so-called "sheriff" who cannot be passed down from father to son?
Everyone is dissatisfied.
However, House Peake has the highest legislative and law enforcement power in this land. As long as the superior Highgarden and the superior Iron Throne do not interfere, they can only choose to obey or start a rebellion.
Highgarden? How can Tyrell, who has become a joke, have the ability to deal with the person who tells the joke?
Iron Throne? Brothers are like brothers, and the kingdom was conquered together. Who would care about you little knights?
As for starting a rebellion, just rebel——
Looking at Titus's increasingly cold eyes and thinking of his past thunderous methods, no one present dared to have the idea of rebellion, and no knight had the courage to stand up in person and once again insist on his inner opposition.
Well, that's okay.
Earl secretly withdrew the slap, and no one present was slapped.
Only a few senior knights who relied on their families to serve House Peake for generations, begged politely and wanted to delay the implementation of the reform.
Titus After listening to their hesitant words, he blocked the thoughts of this group of people with the sentence "That's a good point, don't mention it next time."
When several representatives of the knights who were closest to the star shuttle and had already passed the Qi agreement in turn, they agreed to Earl's decision.
The remaining knights' hearts sank, and they slowly gave up their struggle.
"Dark Star" Jero·Dayne: