Yan Xing had not expected his initial location to be so perilous, causing him to involuntarily scan his surroundings.
Unknowingly, night had fallen. The bright moon hung in the sky, and stars twinkled. The breeze continued to WHISTLE, making Yan Xing feel as if something hid in the scruffy grass nearby. The outline of the farming tricycle glimmered in the glow of the fire, and the shadows of three people were cast upon the tent.
Yan Xing asked his subordinates in a low voice, "Could we encounter Orcs and Elves here?"
The talkative Gao Sipa replied, "My Lord, our location is in the eastern part of the Wildwind Highlands, close to the Rithine Sea, and far from the Orc strongholds in the west. Orcs are highly unlikely to come here. To the north lies a vast swamp area, inhabited by the Swamp Tribe. These mud-wallowing creatures never participate in the conflicts between the three races on the Wildwind Highlands, nor can the three races defeat them in the swamp. As a result, it's rare for the Elf Race to cross the swamp to come here. Even the Human noble lords look down on this place."
"Why?" Yan Xing was puzzled. If this place wasn't threatened by Orcs and Elves, wouldn't it be a good place for farming?
Gao Sipa answered, "Because there are no forests or stones here. Without the ability to build lumberyards or quarries, we can't gather wood or stone. Constructing a territory requires a large amount of wood and stone. If we can't collect them ourselves, we can only buy them from elsewhere. Although this isn't the main confrontation area between Humans, Orcs, or the Elf Race, it's also not very safe. Being close to the swamp, Marquis Anderson isn't willing to provoke the Swamp Tribe and hasn't built a city here. Other nobles, unable to receive assistance from Storm City, are also unwilling to invest their own money and take the risk of offending the Swamp Tribe by establishing a city here."
Yan Xing kept nodding as he listened. In short, this barren grassland held little strategic significance for Human powers. Orcs wouldn't traverse the Wildwind Highlands from west to east for no reason, and it was difficult for the Elf Race to cross the territory of the Swamp Tribe to reach this place. Moreover, the area was resource-poor, making it of little value for Human development and defense. If they inadvertently offended the Swamp Tribe, they could lose a natural barrier against the Elf Race. Therefore, this piece of wasteland became a place of balance on the tense Wildwind Highlands, formed by many factors. In the short term, the only likely threat to this place probably came from the Swamp Tribe in the northern swamps.
Thus, Yan Xing asked, "Will the Swamp Tribe come here?"
Gao Sipa replied, "The Swamp Tribe is definitely active within the swamps. However, their Werewolf patrol squads sometimes patrol this area, but they won't stay for long. Since Humans are powerful on the Wildwind Highlands, the Swamp Tribe won't easily trouble any Humans they encounter. But if they come across Human peasants, they will surely plunder them. After all, they are envious of the Gold we can contribute as taxes every week."
Indeed, wealth is the root of all evil. Who wouldn't love peasants who can eat a bit of grain and then lay golden eggs? Now I have two peasants under my protection. If we run into a Swamp Tribe patrol, they would likely become their peasants.
"Eat, eat, eat! As long as I, your Lord, am here, no one can snatch you away!" Yan Xing enthusiastically invited his subordinates to eat and drink.
After witnessing Yan Xing's "mount" and "Magic," Gao Sipa and Eddie had a lot of confidence in Yan Xing's strength and ate and drank heartily.
However, Yan Xing felt heavy-hearted. Although this grassland was a bit safer, it was still located on the battleground that is the Wildwind Highlands. With the Swamp Tribe nearby, it was difficult to predict fortune or catastrophe. Although I'm a Human Knight Hero now, my combat strength isn't much better than that of these two peasants. The camp is undefended on all sides. It really isn't a good place for farming. But I'm very unfamiliar with this world, and Gao Sipa and the others don't know anything beyond the Wildwind Highlands. Moving blindly would be no different from sending ourselves to our deaths. I must fortify the camp's defenses as soon as possible. At the same time, I need to quickly enhance my own strength and the strength of my territory.
Of course, I'm not without advantages. Being able to haul supplies from the real world with a farm tricycle, and to bring back Gold and skills from this world, means I can act as a trader between the two worlds. Profiting from the price difference. Isn't that the very reason I returned to this game world? Moreover, with the support of the real world's internet platform and access to global supply chains... No wood or stone? No problem! I can build houses here with steel and concrete just as well. Of course, the future blueprint is beautiful, but the present is difficult. My territory is destitute, and I myself am penniless. How to deal with the immediate plight using limited funds and resources is the urgent matter that requires a solution. Even building a wall around the camp with bricks and cement requires money to buy them, right? What I lack is money. Let's see if there's anything in the Lord's authority that can help.
Yan Xing's consciousness sank into his personal data panel, and he finally opened the entry for Lord's territory management. There was a myriad of items, each categorically detailed. A vertical territory construction and upgrade tree presented a vast territorial system before Yan Xing.
Yan Xing studied the construction and upgrade tree for a long time. By combining his knowledge of strategy games, he finally figured out a bit about how to develop a Human territory.
The foundation of a Human territory is to center around the development of peasants. Peasants, once recruited by a Human Lord, automatically gain the status of territorial civilians. Apart from contributing one God-granted Gold coin as tax weekly, they can produce various materials through labor, with the trade of these materials generating revenue in the form of territorial taxes. Lords can use these taxes for territorial development. Depending on the size of the territory, Lords can obtain a certain amount of God-granted Gold every week. The main source of God-granted Gold for other races is this mechanism. This is also why other races covet the Human race's peasants. Even within the Human race, peasants are resources that Lords plunder from each other. Thus, while Human Lords benefit from their peasants, they also have to do everything in their power to protect their peasants and attract more to join their territory. This leads to considerations of the territory's prosperity and public sentiment. Prosperous territories have a high attraction for refugees and can also attract peasants from less prosperous lands to migrate there. Public sentiment refers to the territorial civilians' support rate for the Lord. In a territory with high public sentiment, subjects generally live and work in peace and contentment and usually won't leave. In territories with low public sentiment, however, where subjects feel their livelihood and safety are not guaranteed, they will try every means to leave... Prosperity and public sentiment are very complex matters, influenced by many factors. But as long as the Lord adequately provides for the civilians' needs for clothing, food, shelter, and transportation, and there are no natural or man-made disasters, the territory's prosperity and public sentiment won't be too low.
Clothing... I've bought several sets of durable clothes and pants; I'll have Gao Sipa and Eddie change into them later. Food... They're happily eating right now, and the supplies I brought are enough for the three of us for a month. Shelter... The canvas rainproof tent isn't exactly great, but it'll do for temporary accommodation. Transportation... If they want to go anywhere, I, their Lord, will personally drive them in the farm tricycle. The service in this territory is quite up to par, right?
Therefore, Yan Xing was not worried about losing public sentiment just yet, nor that Gao Sipa and Eddie would finish their hotpot and think about running away.
Now, let's see how to build up the territory's defenses and military strength.