Berserk, Total War: Second Son of Nobles

"So why was there so much tax in this place before?" John asked.

Pros flipped through the book and replied, "According to the records, Franche-Comté is a famous trading area. Its central city connects the commercial routes of the four countries of Midland, Uda, Nice, and Barden, resulting in an annual commercial tax of 20 gold coins. Add in some other industries, and you can get about 30 gold coins in taxes a year. However, some of these taxes are not actually paid in cash, but are based on the sum of the gold coins and the value of the items."

"30 in taxes a year?" John was very surprised. He signed a treaty with King Balden for a one-time transaction of 30. Then, this territory that had been destroyed told me that the annual profit was 30. Even if it was not all money, it was still a huge sum of money.

"But it is definitely not possible at the moment. With the occupation of the Yoda people and various wars, local industries have been hit hard. In addition, the earls have increased their military spending over the years, and economic development has come to a standstill. If we want to maintain the commercial routes as before, we have to wait until the end of the Hundred Years' War." Pros analyzed.

John thought for a moment, then said: "Then give me the amount of tithes paid by each of the central territories of King Midland, and I'll take a look." Because most of the central territories are based on agriculture, they are currently very similar to his territories, so he can estimate the tax revenue of his own territories.

"Okay, let me take a look. The Counties of Picardy paid 1440 gold coins in tithes in 5300, and the Counties of Auvergne paid 1438 gold coins in tithes in 6320..."

Pros began to explain to John the tithes of each territory as mentioned in the book. The taxes of various territories in the central region were between 1430 and 1440. The main tithe payment was between 4000 and 8000, except for the coastal areas where it was a little higher. If the gold coins and items were counted in a 5000- split, the maximum amount in each place would be just over gold coins.

John relaxed after seeing this, it turned out that there were not as many things as he thought. Well, if there were really so many things, the French Palace and Midland would have fought long ago.

So John let Pros familiarize himself with the environment first, and he went to the church, opened the recruitment interface, and found that he could summon priests. At this time, John had a plan.

If I can summon priests, then as long as I summon enough, I can gradually infiltrate the Hall of the King of Popes. Then after a few years, when those old guys die and my own priests take over, I can control the Hall of the King of Popes.

Thinking of this, John clicked on Recruitment, and then found that the priest recruitment option turned gray, and there was a red note next to it: Unless you terminate the employment or the priest dies, each church can only recruit one priest.

Then a man with brown hair and a beard, wearing a brown cape, a white coat, a necklace with the emblem of the French King's Hall, came over, made the sign of the cross to John, and then said:

"Master John, Father Theodore is waiting for your arrival. May the God of Light bless you forever."

"No need to be polite, Father Theodore. May I ask what you are good at so that I can arrange some things for you to better spread the faith of God."

After hearing this, Theodore said in a calm tone: "Sir John, I have been familiar with the Bible for more than ten years, and have read many scriptures and medical books. I often have debates with other students in the seminary, so I am very good at debates."

"Then if I can allow you to study in the seminary of the French King's Hall and learn more knowledge, would you be willing to go?" John continued to ask.

"Then I feel deeply honored. Having the opportunity to go to the holy land and come into contact with the Lord's knowledge is itself a reward for believers like us." After hearing this, Theodore hurriedly thanked.

"Then you get ready and set off for Windham tomorrow." After John finished speaking to Theodore, he hurried back to the castle to write a letter, and asked someone to prepare a carriage and pay the tithe.

The next day, Father Theodore was ready to set out, carrying tithes and various precious objects, escorted by 1000 soldiers, and flying the flag of John's family and the flag of the Midland Church. They encountered almost no robbers on the way, not because the robbers had turned over a new leaf, but because the robbers did not dare to rob such a team.

The bandits in central and western Midland are far away from the war, so most of them are hooligans who bully the weak and fear the strong. Some villages are bandit villages, and the villagers make a living by robbing. The local lords pay a considerable amount of money to these bandits, and even rob various necessary goods according to the lords' orders. They are also responsible for expelling invading foreign bandits.

As for why the merchants didn't take a detour, it's because this is the case in other territories unless they are near a big city like Windham.

However, these bandits are different from those in the east who have been baptized by Midlan and Yoda. They have their own clear territory planning and their own rules. Generally, they do not rob locals, nobles, or clergy.

If a caravan is caught by them, they will be charged a toll. The specific amount depends on the regulations of the local bandits. The better ones will split the toll 20:80, while the worse ones will split the toll 50:50. In short, the caravan will make less money, but it will still be a profit. Otherwise, if all the merchants are robbed and run away, there will be no profit.

But if it was a lone stranger, except for some law-abiding robbers who would collect a toll and let him go, most of them would kill him directly, loot his valuables and bury him on the spot.

However, with the blessing of a noble and church background like Theodore, not to mention the robbers on the road, all the nobles had to be taken care of. So two weeks later, Theodore arrived in Windham smoothly and found the archbishop to discuss studying abroad in the French King's Hall.

Archbishop Midland took the letter and began to read the information on it:

To Archbishop Midland:

As a believer of the Lord, I recommend Theodore to the Archbishop to study at the King's Hall. Theodore is one of the most knowledgeable and devout people in my territory. He hopes to go to the King's Hall for further study. Please approve it. By the way, I have paid this year's tithe, including 5000 gold coins and five boxes of gold and silver equipment. May the God of Light bless the people of Franche-Comté.

Johann Hohenzollern, Governor of Midland

Autumn 1445

Archbishop Midland read John's letter and nodded slightly after seeing the tithe John paid at the end. He also understood that it was impossible for that piece of land to receive so much tithe, so he closed the letter and said solemnly to Theodore:

"I already know your request, but you can't just go to the seminary of the French King's Hall if you want to. I need to ask you a few questions..."

So Archbishop Midland asked a few questions about the Bible, but for Theodore, a priest who had studied the Bible for more than ten years, it was a piece of cake. Not only could he answer the archbishop's questions easily, but he could also extend his answers, draw inferences from one example, and introduce them into other areas.

When the archbishop saw that this man had some real talent and knowledge, and added to John's generous tithe, he readily agreed to let Theodore go to study in the French King's Hall. After writing the admission documents, the archbishop arranged for him to go to the French King's Hall with the Midland students.