Unknown Knight

After negotiating the terms with Ivant, the subsequent prisoner exchange went very smoothly. Just to be on the safe side, they first exchanged a small number of prisoners in batches, and then smoothly exchanged fifty or hundreds of prisoners. The whole exchange process was completed in just three or four days.

However, a small episode in the middle refreshed Aix's understanding of the bottom line. It turned out that after Ivant was released back to Zion City, he collected more than 300 slaves and handed them over to Aix. He was unwilling to spend a high price to buy slaves and then hand them over to Aix to redeem them.

But Aix was not stupid. Those who were exchanged in the early stage were some disabled and ordinary relatives' soldiers. His regular family armed forces of nearly one hundred people were kept until the end, so he was not afraid that he would not come to exchange.

These people were Ivante's core strength, and there was no way he would give up. However, he was unwilling to spend any more money, so he made up his mind and ignored the virtues of the so-called patriarch of the first family. He arrested the low-level outsiders who had settled in the city, saying that they were Aix's spies in the city. Regardless of gender, age or status, he arrested them all and made them slaves. He also raided their homes, which was another considerable income, which made up for the loss this time.

Some of these outsiders who have settled here have been here for more than two generations, or some are people with strong professional skills. In short, these people live a very comfortable life here with their abilities. Some even marry and have children, and some have bought a lot of industries both inside and outside the city. They can be regarded as high-quality people in this city.

But it is this group of highly qualified people who, when faced with turbulence, were all classified as minorities and, like those proletarian outsiders, became the objects of sacrifice and plunder.

They were forcibly driven out of their homes and were only allowed to carry the clothes they carried with them and a small amount of dry food and water. Then, they were escorted to the Aix base by a group of family soldiers who had just been released and had nowhere to vent their resentment and anger. They were inevitably scared, scolded, kicked and beaten along the way. By the time they arrived outside the base and lined up to wait for the exchange, many of them had bruised faces and noses.

They cried all the way, their lives were so miserable. They lived in this lawless place without any turmoil or upheaval, and sometimes they even lived a comfortable life. However, once the situation changed, or even if some kind of incident occurred or there was a certain degree of chaos and fluctuation, they might be sacrificed. This might be the sorrow of all ethnic minorities living under the protection of others.

When Aix saw this group of strange "slaves" including men, women, old and weak, he was very confused. Compared with the previous slaves who were almost all young and strong, he even felt that it was a loss to exchange these people for Ivant's standing weapons, and he had the idea of ​​returning them.

But after asking about the origins of these people, he was so happy that he immediately changed his original idea and happily exchanged all these people.

Are you kidding? These people are all highly qualified and have high net worth. They usually want to buy them at a high price but have nowhere to sell them.

After James and Veron spent most of the day registering and registering, Axe took a quick look at the roster and felt very happy that he had made a profit.

Among these people, there are not only blacksmiths who are urgently needed in the stronghold, but also carpenters, stonemasons, a doctor and two veterinarians, as well as others like small business owners who run spice processing workshops, craftsmen who can make pottery, tailors who make clothes, craftsmen who make various fishing gear, cooks who run small restaurants, barbers who trim hair and beards, and so on.

This wave of nearly three hundred slaves consisted of nearly forty families and several bachelors. There were all kinds of people. Every family had outstanding skilled talents, and every bachelor also had extraordinary skills. It was simply a talent pool of a small society. I'm afraid only that country bumpkin Ivante could be so stupid as to treat them as slaves for exchange. It was simply a waste of resources.

……

The stronghold of Weng City was densely packed with more than a thousand people. The surrounding walls and watchtowers were also full of people. All the people in the stronghold gathered here at this moment.

This is the city of Weng where the prisoners of war were previously detained. When the last prisoner was exchanged, Aix ordered everyone to gather here for a meeting.

There are a total of four such Weng cities planned, and currently only this one is almost completed. They are separated by three gates that can directly lead into the interior of the mound. Except for slightly different sizes, the shape of each Weng city is almost exactly the same, with two gates on the left and right for entry and exit, and two watchtowers for isolation and warning. Each Weng city is relatively independent, with only one entrance to the core mound. This is not only convenient for guarding, but also will not affect the defense of the entire stronghold even if the Weng city is breached.

Such a "genius" design was of course the work of Aix, and these four cities were not limited to military functions. They were usually used as four markets with independent functions. This not only facilitated management and tax collection, but also prevented the enemy from sneaking into the core mound, thus providing good security.

The two northern Weng cities face the cliff, and the eastern one is in the shade, so it is relatively cool and is mainly used for entertainment and receiving tourists. It has hotels, taverns, baths, and various food shops. The western one is mainly used for trading snow salt, nectar, pottery jars and other specialty products of the territory.

The two Weng cities on the south side were mainly used to trade grain, leather, wood, ore, cloth and other sundries, while the one on the east side was used to trade various livestock and fodder.

The four Weng cities are equivalent to four small special markets. They not only have the attraction of centralized effect, but are also easier to manage, making this place different from other medieval cities, appearing so orderly and distinctive.

Aix stood on a protruding guard post on the second floor of the mound, looking down at the bustling crowd below. He was filled with emotion. He had never imagined that he had built a city on this barren land in such a short time. Although it was only in its infancy, it was still a city. He felt a surge of emotion in his heart.

Seeing his master having his old habit again, daydreaming, James, who was standing next to him, poked him secretly and said:

"My Lord, it is your turn to speak."

Being in a daze at such an important moment, Aix couldn't help but blush, cleared his throat and said loudly:

"My subjects! You all come from different regions. Some of you were forced to fall here, and some of you came here in pursuit of a better life. Now we gather here, in this fortress that we built with our sweat and blood.

This will be your home from now on. Here you are the master. No one will bully you here. You will not be despised as an outsider here. Your property here is sacred and safe. No one can forcibly deprive you of your personal property. Everyone here has dignity. You will not only be able to eat enough, but also have spacious and comfortable houses to live in, clean water to use, and decent clothes to wear.

In short, here you will believe that you live like a human being, an upright person. You will believe that tomorrow will be better and more hopeful. You will believe that you are safe. Not only is everyone around you your comrade-in-arms who will protect you selflessly, but the solid walls here are also a guarantee of your safety.

Together we will protect and build this fortress, our home, and use our hands to make it prosper forever, and exist tenaciously on this barren land forever, just like the mound in front of you, which still stands tenaciously despite being attacked by the wind and sand of the Death Desert for tens of millions of years.

I declare that this place will henceforth be named Fort Standstill, and all of you will be the proud and glorious people of Fort Standstill!"