Chapter 68: Field Distribution

Chapter 68: Field Distribution

Outside Den Burg, the Spring Ploughing was being executed at a large scale. By utilizing the bend plows and the 1000 draft horses that Marin already owned, the development speed of the fields was quite quick.

During the times the fields were being plowed and sown, Marin had cultivated 2200 morgens of new farmland, as well as fertilizing with manure and sowing down rye seeds.

Of course, in order to feed the horses, 200 morgens of that land would be planted with oats. Because horses ate a lot of oats (Note: At this point in time, Europe had no soybeans which were better for feeding the horses). One must know, that was a whopping 1030 horses. During this period of time, just to purchase oats had costed Marin a lot of money. The good thing was Marin was wealthy enough, so he didnt end up bankrupt. If it was some other small Manor-owner, the feed for 1000 horses would definitely bankrupt them.

Under Kohlers leadership, there was a constant stream of soldiers kin arriving. The adobe houses were quite functional, and wouldnt have problems housing a family. One must know, most serfs in current Europe were living in straw-bale houses that would get blown away when the wind picks up, or start leaking when it rains. The poor people could not afford bricks, neither could they afford wood. In reality, most houses of the poor people were basically propped up with firewood and dried straws, then covering the outside with some mud. Those dilapidated houses were much much worse compared to the standard Adobe houses Marin had constructed.

However, the adobe houses seemed really ordinary, and was very earthy, and it was obviously a place where only poor people lived. Only after painting the exterior with some lime, did it look better.

But what Marin was thinking, besides the adobe houses being more practical, there was also the consideration of cheap costs and quick construction. If it was a standard and official brick-laid house, he had to send someone inland to purchase bricks, hire a bunch of masons, which was a waste of both time and money.

As for Marin himself, who lived in the castle, he actually didnt find it comfortable at all. The castle was different from the manor, the manor had great natural lighting, the windows were all opened up, with plenty of glass around. As for the castle, due to concerns of security, the windows were really small, akin to lookout holes and shooting slits.

Thats why, the lighting within the castle was very dim, which made things really gloomy. In some places of the castle interior, they needed to have a light or light up a torch in the middle of the day, otherwise they would have trouble seeing.

Luckily, within the main building at the center of the castle, the room on the third floor facing north had good lighting, and the window could be opened quite widely. But what made Marin wonder was, the glass window seemed really odd

Why did it seem odd? It turns out, although the windowpanes of the window were without a doubt glass, but, from the looks of it, it doesnt seem that uniform. Because, the windowpanes were pieced together by smaller pieces of glass. Each piece of glass was roughly several palms wide.

After asking about it, it turns out that in this day and age, glassware were all blown out by the glassblowers. And the glassblowers were unable to produce glass plates with a large surface area A thought suddenly entered Marins head, Rolling Method was a technique used to produce large and wide glass plates however, he did not have any ideas of making glass at the moment, neither did he know anybody in that field, that thought was just a brief revelation

Marin had once promised that he was going divide the farmland to the soldiers under his command. As such, one morning after the Spring Ploughing had ended, Marin ordered Schwartz to gather the soldiers

Brothers, before, I had promised to distribute land to all of you. Now that the Spring Ploughing has ended, it is also time for me to deliver my promise!

Once hearing that, the soldiers underneath his command stared fervently. However, due to strict discipline and habit, they did not make much noise.

Hearing that, everyones heart tightened. If they really wanted that land, then they cannot run away in wars. However, wasnt the reason why they came selling their lives, was to make their families lives better? If their land gets confiscated, how would their family survive?

Boss, what if I die in battle? What happens to my land? A soldier asked.

If you fall in battle, or get crippled in a war you are fighting for me, then this land would belong to your family forever. Also, they would be exempt from Lordship taxes for 20 years. Once 20 years has passed, they would continue paying the 10% of farmland tax, they wont pay anything more, neither will there be miscellaneous taxes. As for the Churchs tithe, that is not within my jurisdiction. However, if you fall in battle, and your family is temporarily unable to pay the tithes, I will help them pay it

Those are very good conditions Many people were moved. In reality, those who step into the world of mercenaries had long prepared themselves to charge into their deaths, so they were not afraid of it.

Their only fear was, after their death, nobody would look after their families. With Marins promise, that had obviously settled their worries.

Boss, I have a question A soldier raised his hand.

Speak

I dont actually care if I die, just just

Just what? Speak your mind!

Just that I havent gotten meself a wife, and I dont have any children. The young men spoke with a blushing face.

Hahahaha Everyone started laughing. However, what that soldier said was good. Back when Marin was selecting his soldiers, he had chosen poor, young men who had not married, or were unable to afford to marry, so everyone was actually ina a similar situation

That wont be a problem, since I did promise to help you guys find wives. How about this, wait until Ive finished my current tasks, then Ill think about ways to help you guys find wives

Oh yeah! Long live the Boss!

Stop wasting breath, now come on up, its time to draw lots for your land! Marin pulled out a box, inside it were all coded letters, which represented the land that was being marked