They demanded a ransom of 100,000 gold coins, which was unsurprisingly rejected outright.
After several rounds of back-and-forth wrangling, the ransom was finally settled at 20,000 gold coins.
Looking at this number, Su Qing was speechless. It was exactly the same as the system's estimate, so whether or not Miss Bubble was sent back wouldn't make much difference to him.
At most, it would only save one person's food rations.
Su Qing pondered for a moment, then arrived at the castle's back garden, where three girls were playing and frolicking around a snow-white pegasus.
Two girls, Mary and Irene, were very curious about this rare and docile magical beast. In many stories, princes and knights often ride pegasus.
The princesses' mounts were often unicorns.
This has led to the fact that although Pegasus is not as rare as unicorn, the two are equally famous.
Miss Bubble, seeing the envious looks in the two girls' eyes, felt a strange sense of pride and excitedly described to them how she had tamed the Pegasus.
Su Qing watched this scene with surprise at how the three of them could get along so well: two girls who were sixteen or seventeen years old, and one who was over thirty and already a mother of two.
Does every girl always have a girlish heart?
He coughed lightly, interrupting the three's conversation.
Su Qing flapped her wings and landed, looking at Miss Bubble: "Your brother and I have reached an agreement. Pack your things, and I'll have someone send you back tomorrow!"
In business, he was very particular about integrity. Since the other party had already delivered the gold coins, he would naturally return the girl to him.
Hearing that she could finally go back, Miss Bubble was naturally overjoyed, but she quickly thought of something and asked somewhat uncertainly, "By myself?"
Su Qing felt this woman was being ungrateful: "What? Do you expect to eat and take something in return?"
The surprised look made Miss Bubble's face darken. She wanted to talk about her two bodyguards and her Pegasus, but after thinking about it, she kept quiet.
After spending several days with the two girls and talking to them, she clearly realized the shamelessness and greed of the dragon in front of her.
It's already a miracle that I was able to go back!
"fine!"
Su Qing was relieved, fearing that the other party might make unreasonable demands.
Back at the castle, I summoned Alan and asked him to escort Miss Bubble back to Bubble Territory. We were to depart tomorrow, so I asked him to prepare.
Meanwhile, while Su Qing was arguing with Bubble Territory, the female knight had already successfully taken over the territory in the east.
To facilitate management, Su Qing divided the three territories on the map into two parts, establishing a city in the north and a city in the south.
With the city as the center, ten towns radiate outwards from each.
Subsequently, some loyal and capable individuals were selected from the territory and assigned to twenty small towns for grassroots management.
The two cities, one in the north and one in the south, were to directly manage these twenty towns, and Su Qing assigned Old Sam and Li Ming to be in charge of them respectively.
He was directly responsible for managing these two people.
While this might cause some trouble in the short term, once things settle down, it will strengthen his control over the territory.
In addition, the academy project has been largely completed. The academy, located not far from the castle, can accommodate over a thousand students.
The specific courses consist of roughly four parts: literacy, arithmetic, management, and singing.
The first three items need no further explanation. The last item was strongly suggested by Old Sam, and Su Qing could not refuse the butler, so she reluctantly agreed.
The course content mainly praises the greatness of the lord and strengthens the students' sense of belonging to the territory and the lord.
The student body was also very simple. Su Qing directly ordered that anyone between the ages of ten and sixteen must study at the academy.
Once anyone is found to disobey orders, no other punishment will be imposed; instead, the land tax will be increased by 50%.
Moreover, because Su Qing acted steadily and surely, all the land and people he annexed were registered and recorded, making it impossible to hide them.
In just a few days, they directly enrolled 1,300 students.
Fortunately, food and lodging were provided, so those families didn't complain much.
While Dragon Territory was developing rapidly, Bubble Territory on the other side seemed to be in a precarious situation.
Mr. Bubble, in his forties with snow-white temples, still sat on his throne, but now he was clad in heavy armor, exuding a chilling aura.
Looking at the report in his hand, a murderous glint flashed in his eyes.
The Duchy of Roland has been making a series of small moves lately. What exactly is the newly appointed marshal planning to do?
He frowned repeatedly, a bad feeling creeping over him.
Among the northwestern kingdoms, Roland and Carter are among the most powerful, with similar national strength. However, the biggest difference is that Roland is completely controlled by its monarch, who can fully mobilize the power of the entire nation.
Carter, however, had his power divided among many lords, resulting in a fragmentation of national strength.
Because the focus of the Duchy of Roland's previous campaigns was not on the Duchy of Carter, the two sides were able to maintain stability despite occasional friction.
But now, the Duchy of Roland has a new commander and has repeatedly harassed the border, the implications of which are self-evident.
A major battle is likely about to begin. Given the current strength of Bubble Territory, it's uncertain whether it can match the now much stronger Duchy of Roland.
In addition to this, what troubled him even more was that, for some unknown reason, the northern monster forest had been somewhat unsettled recently, with groups of monsters frequently rushing out of the forest, forcing him to divide his forces to hunt them down.
It's fair to say that Bubble Territory is now fraught with danger, making him somewhat regretful for so rashly redeeming his sister.
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