Unknown Knight

By March, the snow had basically melted and the Kudan River had completely thawed. Manid led the caravan by water and started the first trading trip of the year.

Their cargo mainly consisted of leather products, leather armor, luxury goods made from animal skins, snow salt, and the captured materials that had just been brought back from Fort Lerag.

The remaining wolves and other wild animals in the territory have been hunted by almost professional hunting teams, and have almost become extinct in the territory, or have simply migrated to more distant places.

Even Aix did not let his guard down. After all, this place used to be almost a wilderness. Imagine what would happen if dozens of people working outside were attacked by hundreds of hungry wolves rushing out of the forest without any preparation. It can be said that there is almost no possibility of survival.

Only then did he understand why there were only a few villages in such a vast area. It was because the original villagers could hardly contend with the fierce forces of nature.

Now, the people in quarries, logging camps, and herding horses and reindeer all go out in groups when working.

The hunting teams are also required to investigate the areas where they work to see if there are any signs of dangerous animals. If so, they will issue a warning in a timely manner and then send out hunting teams to investigate and clear them out to ensure their safety while working.

The militiamen who participated in the labor also carried spears and crossbows at all times, which could also be used for self-defense when necessary.

The people have now begun to clean up the farmland around the fortress, organize and pack up the farm tools, and prepare to start this year's farming.

As for what to plant, the leaders held a discussion meeting. After considering the actual situation of the territory, they finally decided to plant corresponding crops according to different plots of land.

Soybeans were planted on the original land of Aslum. Although the land here was ready-made, it was relatively barren. Soybeans had the effect of fixing nitrogen and fertilizing the fields. This was the decision made by Axe against all odds.

On the newly burned land of Tangquan Fortress, barley and rye were mainly grown, and some peas were grown, leaving only two small plots for growing wheat and vegetables.

The reason for this choice is based on the actual situation of the territory. Soybeans, barley, rye, and peas have a short growth cycle and are easy to mature. Although they are not as delicious as wheat, they are better than starving due to a complete crop failure.

Although barley and rye are coarse and taste bad, there are water mills in the territory now, so they can be ground more and fermented more when making bread, and they can also be eaten. The growth cycle of peas is also very short, so they can be picked and cooked before they are ripe, which can be regarded as a supplement during the period of shortage.

At the same time, the small piece of wheat field that Aix let Amanti use as an experimental field. He ordered Manide to bring back various wheat seeds from all over the place, hoping to select wheat seeds with a short growth cycle from these seeds and use them as promotional crops for the territory in the future.

After arranging various farm tasks, there are only three major construction projects left in the territory. The first is the repair, reinforcement and partial reconstruction of the main fortress of Tangquan Fortress, the second is the replanning and construction of Aslum Village, and the third is the replanning and construction of Hanen Village.

Aslum is a village that combines agriculture and animal husbandry, and is mainly based on agriculture. The original village buildings were demolished and rebuilt according to the plan, and the village was built according to the new plan.

In addition, Yamanti also proposed to build a bridge across the Kudan River, which would not only connect Aslum and Tangquan Fortress to facilitate the transportation of materials, but would also be beneficial in controlling the vast area from Lerag Fort to here.

Otherwise, if an emergency occurs, it will take half a day just to get the ferry across the river. However, the workload is really too large, so it is better to leave it for later construction when there is spare capacity.

Shules is a village that combines agriculture and animal husbandry, with agriculture and animal husbandry accounting for half each. There is no need to rebuild village houses. Some residents can live in Shules Castle. Only some houses need to be built outside the castle and livestock pens need to be set up.

Hanunze was a purely pastoral village. Not only did the village houses have to be demolished and rebuilt, but because it was close to the Kugit Khanate, the defensive facilities had to be built similar to those of Shules. Fortunately, it was located halfway up a mountain, so there was no shortage of stone and wood for building materials.

After the plan was made, the action began. First, Ran Hu led more than one hundred soldiers and escorted one hundred prisoners to Fort Lerag. The soldiers were to replace Robin Hood and the garrison stationed there, and the prisoners were used to build Fort Lerag and Hanen New Village.

Then Zhang Ping led more than 300 tribesmen to migrate to Shules, where there were ready-made places for them to settle down first and then slowly build.

As for the agricultural and pastoral settlements that were previously planned around the fortress, after discussion, everyone felt that there was a shortage of manpower at the moment, so they put it aside for the time being.

During this period, Aix also did a big thing, which was to release Tojunayan, and of course a hundred horses were indispensable.

After a winter in prison, the old man no longer looked old, but even more energetic. This was all thanks to the helpful people Aix had assigned to provide him with good food, clothing and shelter.

Besides, Aix was free in the winter, so he would walk over to chat with him when he had nothing to do, mainly because he wanted to learn more about the details of the Kugit Khanate through chatting with him.

Although the old man knew Axe's intention and was reserved about everything they talked about, he didn't know that Axe, who had good scores in political science and economics, was a bug to him. He could draw corresponding conclusions from every word and sentence, and even if the two things seemed unrelated, Axe could deduce a lot of useful information.

For example, when Tuoju mentioned the amount of crude salt consumed in the city of Aichemol every year, after calculations with Zhang Ping, Aix was able to deduce that there were about two thousand five to three thousand horses in the entire city of Aichemol.

For example, when talking about the Khergit Khanate, they also planted wheat, and the slaves used to plant wheat were mainly slaves they plundered from the Tang Dynasty in the east. Originally, there were more than a thousand people in his territory alone, but now basically all of them have been replaced by Aix.

Aix opened the map of the Khergit Khanate and, combining various verifiable information, roughly deduced that there were at least five to eight thousand Han compatriots in the entire territory of the Khergit Khanate.

This was also the reason for deciding to release Tuoju Nayan early, hoping to rescue these enslaved tribesmen through him. He first had a long talk with Tuoju Nayan, understood his current thoughts, and listened to his suggestions.

Then, according to Toju Nayan's wishes, he sent a messenger to Asugan Nayan, the lord of Asugan Fort and his second brother with whom he had the best relationship, to ask him to find a way to raise a ransom of one hundred horses for Toju Nayan.

Soon, Asugananayan, who was worthy of being Tuojunayan's closest second brother, single-handedly arranged the ransom of 100 horses, and the two parties held an exchange ceremony in Lelag Fort.

When they parted, Aix couldn't bear to see Toju's old age, so he gave him some advice. One of them was to tell him not to rush to launch a power grab in Aichemore, as there might be better opportunities in the future.

He also agreed with him to buy one Tang slave from him at the price of two heads. This way, after deducting various costs, Tuoju could get at least 50% profit for each Tang slave he sold. It was definitely a huge profit, which was used to accumulate strength for him to counterattack his own son.

Before leaving, the old man was a little moved and held his hand and said:

"Good boy, I would be very satisfied if I had a son like you. In such a short time, you have expanded your influence here. I really regret not getting to know you earlier!"

"Old man, it's not too late now. From now on, our two families will be back to back and rely on each other. You will herd horses and cattle, and I will grow crops and produce grain. We will benefit from each other and develop together."

Aix seized the limited time and tried his best to PUA Tuoju Nayan in the hope of having a stable and friendly neighborly relationship in the future.

"Don't worry, I will never attack your territory after I take power. I don't dare. I have to admit that I am no match for you. But I'm afraid you still have some ideas, right? It's good that you don't come to attack my territory!"

"What are you talking about, old man? I am just a newly promoted noble. I don't have any foundation. Besides, my subjects are all from here. Why would I go to the grassland?

You are experienced, but you don't know the temperament of us Tang people. As long as we have land to plant and food to eat, why would we expand everywhere? Now we have such a large territory that we are already busy reclaiming it, so how can we have the mind to do anything else?

I promise here that as long as you don't send troops to attack us and don't cross Lelag Castle, I will never put the slightest thought into your territory."

Aix explained, trying his best to comfort Tojunayan with words.

"That's right, you can at least live in peace for a few years, but you better listen carefully, don't be careless with the price you promised to the Tang people."

Selling Tang people should be his main way to accumulate strength in recent times, Toju Nayan confirmed with Aix again.

"Needless to say, I am the most honest person. Don't worry, as long as you transport the Tang people to Fort Lerag, I will take as many as you can. You can see that I am short of people."

"Well, it's because I don't have a daughter of the right age. If I did, I'd really like to give it to you. Hey, second brother, how old are your daughters? Is there any suitable one?"

Tuoju Nayan asked his second brother Asugan Nayan.

Asugan Nayan said unhappily:

"Brother, you are getting old and confused. Isn't Kofi already engaged to Akadan? Maz is only eleven years old, still young. Isn't your second daughter, Aisu, fourteen years old? Wouldn't it be appropriate to wait two years?"

"Yes, my second daughter, Ai Su, will be sixteen in two years and can get married. You are not much older than her. When the time comes, I will make the decision and marry her to you.

I don't want anything else, as long as you treat her well, and you just need to fulfill your promise, and our two families will form a permanent alliance."

Aix was made to laugh and cry by the old man. He thought to himself, who knows how current affairs will change in two years. You can't ask me to agree now. Maybe the two families will fight by then.

But it was not easy to reject him openly. After all, he still had the intention of forming a good relationship with their family in the future. After thinking about it, he set a language trap and replied:

"Okay, don't worry, old man. As long as our two countries are in good terms, I will accept this marriage."

When the old man heard what Aix said, his eyes lit up instantly, and he patted him on the shoulder and said:

"Good boy, I really didn't misjudge you. It's settled. You are not allowed to regret it when the time comes.

Develop and grow well, and pay more attention to Voldrat Boye near you. He is not a good guy. The troubles in our two countries in recent years are all caused by this old man. "

After listening to this, Aix nodded seriously to Tuoju Nayan, and the two groups said goodbye.