Mount and Blade Central Asia

Li Rufeng had no idea that the largest and richest businessman in the city was slandering him while he was visiting his own lord's mansion.

He hadn't been back for a month, and the little maid Satuya had already decorated the place to make it feel like home. Satuya moved all the things in Li Rufeng's tent into the lord's mansion without leaving anything out.

She knew that Li Rufeng liked to sleep on a soft bed, so she asked someone to weave a thick cashmere pad for him. She put it in the sun to dry every day. Now it has no smell and can be used directly.

She also knew that Li Rufeng liked to take baths, so she used her pocket money to buy several different soaps in the city and some incense to put in the bathroom.

Having served as so many maids, she had been waiting anxiously for Master Li to come back since early morning. However, she ended up waiting for the entire day, and it was only when it got dark that Li Rufeng entered her new home.

"Master Shaman!" Satuya, who had fallen asleep at some point, smelled the scent of Li Rufeng and immediately woke up. He became more energetic. "When will you come back? I fell asleep while waiting..."

"I just came back and saw you waiting for me here. I'm so happy." Li Rufeng touched Satuya's little face, which still had marks from sleeping. "Have you encountered any trouble recently?"

"I am your maid, who dares to cause trouble to me!" Satuya is like a proud little duck, raising her face, puffing out her chest, and her heart surging...

"Oh, by the way, there's a woman named Pa... Pali... something.

I came here to meet you, it seemed urgent. Oh, I forgot her name..." Satuya blinked and looked at Li Rufeng with a flushed face. Obviously, she slept for a long time and forgot half of Parisa's name.

"Okay, I got it." Li Rufeng slapped Satuya on the butt, turned and walked towards the bathroom, "Change my clothes for me, I want to take a shower!"

"Okay! The water has been boiled a long time ago. It may be a little cold now. I'll ask someone to boil some more!" Satuya jumped to the courtyard and asked Bater and others for help.

Li Rufeng knew that Satuya was talking about Parisa. He was just a little curious about what that woman wanted from him.

Ever since learning about the death of Lord Milansha, Parisa has been deliberately avoiding him. Li Rufeng guessed that she was confused about her own status and position because of the death of Lord Milansha, and had an instinctive defensive mentality towards him, an independent lord who did not listen to orders or declarations.

But why did she come to see him again now? Li Rufeng hesitated for a moment, but decided to meet her today. He turned around and called over a guard, asking him to deliver a letter to the Eagle of Order's base.

That’s right, Parisa is now living in the lair of the Eagle of Order and seems to be interested in joining that organization.

After explaining all this, Li Rufeng was finally able to relax. He took off his clothes and threw them aside, then lay down comfortably in the bathtub.

Just as Satuya said, the water temperature has dropped to less than 40 degrees, and it feels slightly warm, but it is perfect for relaxation.

Li Rufeng submerged himself in the water for over a minute before emerging and letting out a long breath. This was the fundamental reason that kept him going...

For Li Rufeng, this is not extravagance and debauchery, it is just satisfying his basic needs.

A few minutes later, as a bucket of hot water was poured into the bathtub, a soft and fragrant body slid into the bathtub. Master Li sighed and his mind was sublimated...

Chapter 230: Trial (I)

For the citizens of Aleppo, the lord's order was a little novel, but it was not out of the ordinary. In the past, when the lord asked people to come and watch the fun, he usually wanted to chop off a few heads to prove his majesty.

And now the workers in the quarry actually dared to rebel. They could be chopped off, after all, who would work in a quarry if they were good people? But the lord said he was willing to provide food, which was an eye-opener. Many people had already made preparations and planned to grab a good position when the time came. After all, this incident became the most talked-about thing in the city in just one day, and there must be a lot of people on the scene.

They also said that if they arrived too late, they would probably only be able to listen to the excitement outside the lord's mansion instead of watching it.

So on the morning of the public trial that Li Rufeng mentioned, the streets were bustling with people before dawn. They gathered in groups of three or five near the lord's mansion. At this moment, the curse that had once weighed on Aleppo seemed to be eliminated by the sheer number of people.

Big Mir and Little Mir also came with their families, but as the nominal presidents of the Blacksmith Guild, they came with invitations. According to Li Rufeng's standards, this actually acknowledged Big Mir's status as an important figure in Aleppo.

Of course, Da Mier has not realized this yet. After all, as immigrants, they have not yet officially integrated into this city. His blacksmith shop has not opened for business until now. The only thing he has made is the two-handed sword that Li Rufeng is using now.

In fact, even Li Rufeng was not sure whether the system would recognize Damir's important status at that time. After all, he was not yet the master of Aleppo at the system level.

This matter has been bothering him for a while. He used to think that it was because the lord's palace had not been built. But now the lord's palace has been built. The people in the city, at least in name, fully recognize his rule, and those gathering places outside the city centered on Aleppo have also expressed their submission. When will he be qualified to be the lord of a city?

You can't... let Sultan Nasir personally give him a title and recognize him as the ruler of Aleppo, right?

Li Rufeng thought about it seriously for a while and felt that if he was willing to spend some money, this matter seemed not impossible. After all, he was the true love with two tons of gold, which was a fortune that could create miracles!

However, he put the matter behind him for the time being. After all, this was not a game. Although he could not borrow power from the system, the city was still under his control, and this was a benefit that no one could take away.

The public trial still had to be held today. Li Rufeng first went to the "small prison" in the lord's mansion to make sure that everyone was in good condition before having breakfast.

It must be said that since Master Li moved into the lord's mansion, the range of his diet has expanded countless times. Compared with the days in the tribe when he had mutton soup for one meal, mutton intestines for the next, mutton head in the evening, and some dairy products after the meal, life here is simply too blissful to leave.

Mr. Li's breakfast today is boiled barley porridge, with a small dish of boiled vegetables mixed with salt, and two boiled eggs. It is refreshing and warms the stomach, and it is very delicious.

Although the barley porridge tastes a bit harsh on the throat due to the rough hulling process, it is definitely a breakfast that conforms to the Chinese eating habits. After eating it, Li Rufeng felt that his whole body was activated and he felt more energetic.

"Sir, Mr. Saduddin is here."

Bell, wearing new clothes, stood in front of Li Rufeng and reported in a low voice that he had completed most of his map-drawing task. The rough sketch was already finished, and only some details remained to be outlined.

Although Li Rufeng never treated him as a slave, Bell was still excited about it.

"So early?" Li Rufeng looked at the sun and estimated that it was not yet eight o'clock. But seeing that Saduddin was so motivated, he ordered him to come in.

This kind of eunuch work has always been done by Bater in the past. Li Rufeng has trained Bater for so many years and has brought up that young man. He also has a down-to-earth personality, so Li Rufeng is at ease when entrusting anything to him.

So Bater was sent out, and now Bater is responsible for the popularization of education for minors in the city.

For most time travelers, facing the current situation of a bunch of illiterate people around them, they can only take their time to make progress. But Master Li is different. He has money, unexpected wealth, and he doesn't feel bad about spending it.

Therefore, in order to quickly cultivate the talents he needed and accelerate the population iteration speed in the city, Mr. Li directly invested in the field of education.

Just as he had said in the tribe before, families with children aged six or above but under fourteen must go to school in the school run by the lord.

Going to school is free, and the lord also provides meals. Lord Li even gives a certain degree of tax relief to children who are over ten years old and are strictly speaking considered half of the labor force in the family.

He originally planned to give the money directly, but then thought better of it. No matter how rich he was, he couldn't afford to spend like this.

Li Rufeng did not have high expectations for these children. They only needed to be able to read letters, write simple written language, and understand addition and subtraction within 100, and multiplication and division within 10, which was roughly equivalent to the level of a third-year elementary school student in later generations.

But even such a "low" requirement made Bartel so worried that he started losing his hair at a young age.

You know, during the month that Li Rufeng went out to suppress bandits, he led his soldiers to take children to school every day. That scene once made Bater feel like he was a bad guy.

Because of the reputation of the Mughals in Aleppo, Bater's school was once regarded by the mothers as the entrance to hell. It was not until the children went home on time for three consecutive days that the families' reactions eased a little.

Bater was the first person to create armed escort-style learning, and he was determined to carry it forward.

At this time, Li Rufeng did not know that when the Ottoman Empire began to revive a few years later, it would also go to the Christian area to arrest people. In the end, those people became the new Ottoman army that made the empire begin to become strong.

"Sir, I'm here to deliver that... advertising slogan to you." Saduddin smiled and explained to Li Rufeng why he came so early. "Didn't you ask me to deliver it earlier that day? I'm being presumptuous. Otherwise, let's just forget it. I just wanted to do my best to help you, sir, without expecting anything in return."

"You don't seek rewards? Then what do you want to do?" Li Rufeng joked, "If businessmen don't seek wealth anymore, I'd be uneasy."

"Look at me, drawing, drawing, why not drawing!" Saduddin smiled bitterly, feeling that he would never be able to keep up with the lord's thoughts. He handed over a piece of paper and said, "Do you think this is okay?"

Chapter 231: Trial (II)

The paper handed over by Saduddin read: Fasif Trading Company, dealing in spices, cloth, cotton and linen, copper, iron, grain, coke, timber and other businesses, honest and trustworthy, and a five-year-old store.

Li Rufeng laughed out loud when he saw the last sentence. This sentence was full of black humor, just like the later comments on the Internet that there were no century-old shops in Hiroshima.

Obviously, although Mr. Saduddin Fasif said he didn't want it, he was very honest and wrote a lot of things, basically covering all the existing businesses in Aleppo.

There is no other way. Aleppo had been damaged by the war and its trade share had been severely reduced. In order to fill its appetite, newcomers like Saduddin had to do everything.

Li Rufeng will not say anything about Saduddin's business empire now. He believes that as Aleppo's trade market recovers rapidly, this smart man will soon make a choice to divide his own industry.

But this slogan... Li Rufeng flipped the paper over, looked at Saduddin with a half-smile and shook his head: "It's so poorly written. What a waste of good paper."

Saduddin didn't understand what Li Rufeng meant and could only smile awkwardly.

"Bring me a pen, I'll write a new one for you." Li Rufeng snapped his fingers, and the little maid Satuya immediately ran back to the room and brought Li Rufeng's seldom-used feather pen.

Li Rufeng had never used a feather pen in his previous life, but he had some skills in calligraphy. Under the guidance of the old shaman, he could write in a decent handwriting.

Finally, he left these words on the paper: Fasfu Trading Company, there is no small business that we don’t do, and no big problem that we can’t solve.

Li Rufeng wrote it in Turkic and Persian respectively, then sighed. He thought of the language problem that he could not avoid. Can you imagine a city with a population of 5,000 where five to seven different languages ​​exist at the same time?

So even though Saduddin fell into deep thought because of the exquisite core of this sentence, intending to pass it down as a family motto and began to admire the lord's talent from the bottom of his heart, Li Rufeng had already begun to lose interest.

.

"Find someone to translate it into Ottoman and Arabic, and then write it on the wall at the entrance of the lord's mansion for three months. This will be your reward this time." Li Rufeng waved his hand, signaling Saduddin to get out.

Saduddin sensitively noticed the change in Li Rufeng's mood. He didn't dare to say a word and left quickly.

But compared to when he came here, Saduddin felt that he had made a great profit at this moment. He excitedly mounted his horse and galloped home. He told the servants who were responsible for supplying food and tea for the public trial to put some tea leaves in the tea in addition to willow branches and leaves. As for snacks...snacks would be fine...

The cold wind on the road gradually calmed Saduddin's turbulent heart, and the businessman's profit-seeking instinct once again took over.

He began to think about the points at which the Lord's emotions changed, and soon realized that the Lord began to change after he wrote that classic advertising slogan in another language for the second time.

A while before the gathering, Saduddin easily deduced the major event that the lord was doing recently because of the incident that the lord's confidant Bater went from house to house to take children to school!

He wants to have the same writing system and the same pronunciation!

In an era when the concepts of this country and nation were not yet deeply rooted in people's minds, there was no so-called moral pressure for Saduddin on this matter. The only thing he wanted to know was how he could profit from it, or how he could play a role in it and please the wise lord.

But all this is in the future. Right now, he needs to focus on how to handle this public trial.

Miam opened her eyes, stretched, and looked much better than before.

Although they were locked up, the lord did not torture them and even provided them with three meals a day. You should know that even during the years that Miam served in the army, she only had three meals a day for a few days.

Moreover, since moving into the lord's prison, the haunting Aliche has disappeared, and Miam no longer needs to worry about the unknown future. She no longer has headaches or back pains, and she looks refreshed.

Just as he opened his eyes, the guards of the lord's house had already delivered breakfast to the cell. As for the people around the lord, Miam had seen with her own eyes how the meat for lunch was delivered from the kitchen every day in the past two days. It was handed to them as it was without any deduction.

This was something Miam had never seen before. Not to mention prisoners, when he was in the army, he would usually only see meat before a tough battle. However, even then, it did not stop the officers from eating and drinking their fill before letting them have the leftovers.

This made Miam think that he might be hanged, but when he thought about the reason he was arrested for inciting riots and that being hanged was completely normal, he suddenly felt that he had made a profit.

After a day of eating and drinking well and going to bed after having enough food and drink, Miam was finally taken out of the cell by the guards.

Although Miam thought he was prepared, he still felt his legs numb at this moment. It was more like he was dragged away by two guards than being taken away.

But what awaits Miriam is not the gallows, but...

"Look! It's coming!"

"Where is it! Where is it! People in front, don't stand up! Sit down! Sit down! You can't see behind you!"

"Hey, stop pushing in the back! I can't stand!"

"Who the hell touched my wife! Who!"

Miam looked at the chaotic crowd in the hall of the lord's mansion, her mind went blank. What was going on?

Of course, the businessmen who contracted the quarry were also confused. It could be said that except for Marinus who went to Mosul, all the new businessmen were here. There were six people in a row, all with sad faces, and they looked much worse than Miam.

"Okay, silence!" Li Rufeng took a small wooden hammer and knocked hard on the table. Then the guards who were maintaining order on the scene shouted in unison, and the solemn atmosphere immediately made the scene quiet.

Li Rufeng watched all this with great satisfaction. He was a person who loved to entertain people, and the more audiences there were, the less nervous he was.

"Today we are here to try the quarry riot. I hope everyone present will remain quiet and listen to both sides' accounts of the cause and effect. Anyone causing trouble will be fined and imprisoned," Li Rufeng said majestically. Then, pointing at Miam, he said, "Please introduce yourself and let us know who you are."

The author says:

Author's words: The advertising slogan is an old IBM advertisement

Chapter 232: Trial (3)

"Little man... I... My name is Miam..." Miam looked at the many people around her, so many smiling faces that ruined the atmosphere, and suddenly she couldn't open her mouth.

Miam's performance made the citizens watching around her laugh even more happily. They started to make a fuss, launching rounds of boos, forcing Miam to lower her head deeply.

"Enough! Quiet!" Li Rufeng knocked the hammer again, and the guards instantly drew their sabers. Everyone in the audience immediately regained their composure. "From now on, anyone who roars in the court will be dragged down and beaten with a stick. Right at the gate! No matter if it's a man or a woman, they will be beaten with their pants pulled down!"

Li Rufeng's words made these citizens look at their noses, their noses at their mouths, and their mouths at their hearts, and they dared not say anything more.

"I'll give you one more chance to speak again. If you can't explain it clearly, I'll let those businessmen speak first." Li Rufeng looked at Miam and said with some disapproval, "What? You dare to riot but not to speak?"

"My name is Miam! I'm from Zelan Village! I'm the one who started the riot in the quarry! I'm the leader! They were all coerced by me!" Miam finally mustered up the courage and spoke in a resounding voice.

This was the result of his two days and two nights of deep thought in the prison of the lord's mansion. He wanted to take all the blame. Since he was going to die anyway, he might as well die meaningfully.

"He said he was the leader and you were all coerced. Do you admit it?" Li Rufeng turned his head to look at the stonecutters who were captured with Miam and asked them.

There were nineteen people brought to the scene. When they heard Li Rufeng ask this question, twelve of them nodded silently, and only seven hesitated and did not answer.

"Why didn't you nod?" Li Rufeng continued to ask, and ordered his guards to release the twelve who nodded on the spot. "I only arrest the main culprits. I'll give you a chance if you're being coerced."

Seeing that Li Rufeng released the people on the spot, five of the seven people admitted that they had been coerced and blinded by Miam.

Seeing this scene, Miam closed his eyes in pain, but did not say a word. Some of these people were his fellow villagers, some were his comrades-in-arms, and even his cousin, but they left without hesitation.

Seeing this, Li Rufeng waved his hand again and released the five people.

At this time, there were only two people left by Miam's side. One of them looked to be over 40 years old, with gray hair and an old face full of wrinkles. The other was a little younger than Miam, but his eyes were firm, and there was no panic when he looked at Li Rufeng.

"Tell me, what's going on between you two?" Li Rufeng still gave them a chance to speak.

"Sir, I'm Murad. I'm joining this rebellion for my own good. Miam didn't coerce me. I'm doing this of my own accord. I want my wages back," the older man said slowly. "Sir, we're not disobeying your orders, but we've lost our way."

"My name is Tomalan!" the young man shouted, looking determined. "I don't need encouragement or coercion! If they don't pay me for my work, I'll chop off their heads with my own hands!"

Tomalan stared at the merchants as he spoke. If they hadn't been held back by his personal guards, they would have probably rushed over.

Compared with these quarry workers, the businessmen over there were all dejected, as if their mother had died. When they were frightened by Tomalan, several of them sat down on the ground, while Tomalan burst into laughter.