Chapter 530 Population Sucking Tactics
Some nobles of the Kingdom of Bolen have set their sights on Rand.
Of course, Rand also had his eyes on them, or to be more precise, their population.
Rand has never slackened in the iteration of grain varieties and the upgrading of farming techniques.
Although except for the beginning, most of the time we were doing useless work, the iteration of grain varieties is not a simple task.
But after all, the food output ratio of the Holy Land forces is still much higher than that of other forces.
This means that Rand can support more people with less land.
Moreover, Rand's territory is relatively vast and sparsely populated. There are a lot of lands that have not yet been cultivated or have been cultivated but have insufficient farming population.
In short, for Rand, the more people, the better.
And here, in the Holy Moon Territory, the demand for population is even more critical.
Rand's original plan was to build roads and then transport some people from the territory, but now it seems that there is another way.
"What can we do to get those nobles to send more people here? Any suggestions?" Rand asked Lysa.
Lysa didn't spend much time with Rand.
It's not that Lysa spends a short time with Rand, but that Lysa prefers to be with Rand after get off work.
Lisa blinked her majestic and arrogant golden eyes: "Give them some hope? Just like fishing, there must be a bait to let the fish see hope, right?"
"That's exactly what I want." Rand clapped his hands. "Then give them some hope."
Rand has made a decision. The strategy is simple. Next, let them really grab something, but create some difficulties for them, such as capturing some people.
Let them realize that the standard to truly defeat Rand is just a matter of standing on tiptoe.
Then, just like a certain software called Pinxixi in Rand’s previous life, they will always be just a little short of reaching that goal.
As for when they would lose patience and give up, rob, or decide to rush forward and ignore the Lord's orders, fighting Rand to the death...
That doesn't matter.
Anyway, Rand didn't start the trouble first, everything was done by the enemy on their own initiative.
Rand estimated that in the end a great noble from the Kingdom of Bollen would come to talk to him, but no matter what, Rand believed that he would be able to gain some benefits from this small dispute.
…
Some knights and soldiers disguised as bandits were eyeing Rand's cargo.
They didn't know why the previous group had failed, but the fact that the previous group didn't come back made them much more cautious.
It reminded them of the fear they once felt when they were dominated by Rand.
Except for the time when the invincible fleet of the Kingdom of Boren attacked Crescent Harbor, they didn't seem to have gained much benefit from Rand.
"There aren't many people." The leader of the bandits made a judgment, "We can't hesitate any longer, charge."
It was a simple strategy of infantry charging together in a mass, but it was still very effective at times like this.
Rand's soldiers soon retreated while fighting, throwing away their armor and weapons and abandoning the supplies they were guarding.
But when these bandits went to rob supplies, some Rand soldiers came back and stopped some of the "bandits" who had robbed too much and whose movements were affected.
Then more and more guards gathered.
Seeing this, some of the bandits who were still able to run had no choice but to abandon their companions and flee with the looted supplies.
These soldiers did not chase after the bandits, but simply captured those who had no chance of escaping.
In fact, this is a very practical anti-ambush tactic. Rand could have just kept everyone here, but letting these people go as bait should attract more fish.
Soon, some bandits returned to the nobles with the looted supplies.
Only two-thirds of the people returned, but a lot of supplies were snatched away.
"Where are the others?" asked a noble.
"Rand is more cunning than we thought. Although he has few people, he still reacts quickly." The "Bandit Leader" replied, "Some of us didn't make it back. They were too greedy and took too many things. They couldn't run away a long time ago."
It sounds ridiculous that one cannot run because he carries too many things, but... many nobles believe it anyway.
So he just said, "Take the things apart and let's take a look."
Then some of the looted bags were opened.
Not all of them are good things, many of them are just building materials and food, but there are also good things in some packages, such as tea bags for mixing fruit juice, some farm tools and tableware produced in the sanctuary, soap, and some precious spices.
Even a small bag of gold coins was found.
"I've heard that Rand is very rich, and now it seems to be true." said a noble.
Although not all the things they looted were good, they still made the nobles very satisfied.
To Rand, these things were really a drop in the bucket, but to these small and medium-sized nobles, they were truly rare treasures.
In fact, if you look at the total assets, Rand is very rich among the dukes.
It's just that Rand doesn't like to pile up gold coins in warehouses. Instead, he likes to use them for construction and development, so Rand doesn't have much coins piled up.
Moreover, the goods produced by the Rand Territory are all valuable and good things.
Soap must be mentioned here. In the eyes of many nobles, soap is a legendary alchemical item and should at least have the same value as those high-level alchemical items.
It's really amazing that it can easily remove dirt that is originally very difficult to remove.
This made many nobles who originally valued tradition and did not take baths start taking baths.
Not to mention, mixed juice tea bags have always been a very popular item.
These small and medium nobles quickly divided the looted goods and then gathered together to discuss.
After a while, the "bandit leader" was called over again.
A noble asked him, "How many troops do you think Rand brought here?"
The "bandit leader" recalled for a moment, then said, "Not much. I'm sure Rand suffered a lot of losses during our attack on Crescent Harbor. But Rand's strategy is very powerful, so we should still be cautious."
If this was a higher-level meeting, he might be praised for his words of advice to the country from a veteran minister.
Now, he just gained some normal recognition. The nobles thought that what this knight disguised as a bandit leader said made sense, and Rand would definitely not have too many troops.
They did not deny that Rand's strategy was indeed powerful, and now that they had personally come into contact with it, they also realized that it was indeed powerful. So there was indeed a reason why Prince Alex lost to Rand back then.
But a good cook cannot cook without rice. What’s the use of having a good strategy if there are not enough soldiers?
Thinking about it this way, those people in the upper echelons are really frightened by Rand. If they try harder to mobilize their troops, maybe they can destroy Rand.
But this is just talk. They still know that the Frost Moon Kingdom is Rand's backer, and there are still many unknowns if a real fight breaks out.
But now at least it has been confirmed that the troops Rand sent to the Kingdom of Boren would not be large, otherwise so many good things would not be snatched away by them.
"It's time to organize the next wave of plans." These small and medium nobles made a decision.
As for whether this disgusting act would affect the support and construction in the treaty signed between Rand and the Kingdom of Bolen, that was a problem Rand needed to consider.
The treaty required Rand to complete the construction, but how much it would cost Rand to complete the construction was not considered by them.
And it wasn’t them who were robbing Rand, it was the “bandits” who were robbing Rand.
…
"They are here again." Rand smiled as he sat in the hidden grass.
The high-ranking officials of the Sanctuary sat with Rand, waiting for their prey to take the bait.
It is still an open space where a lot of goods are stored.
Rand stepped up his guard this time.
There were many more people protecting these goods than last time, but still not a lot. In short, it exposed more of the "fact" that Rand was actually very weak and had very few troops.
This time the disguised bandits did not discuss further.
After observing for a while, he launched an attack.
Then it was almost there again.
Rand paid some goods and gained some people.
Afterwards, Rand squinted his eyes and counted the harvest.
After several times, Rand had lost nearly a thousand people due to the robberies of these bandits.
And they are all middle-aged laborers.
Soldiers always eat better than villagers, and a well-nourished body allows them to do more work.
"It feels pretty efficient." Rand said easily.
"We are now a pretty big company after all," Lisa responded.
Back then, it was very difficult for Rand to gain a population of several hundred or even a village.
Later, the efficiency of looting was actually not very high.
The reason is that the size is too small.
It is already very impressive for 100 soldiers to rob 200 people.
But now that Rand's territory's economy has developed and there are more soldiers, the efficiency of capturing people has obviously become higher.
Moreover, these small and medium nobles of the Kingdom of Borun were gathered together.
A small noble family in the Kingdom of Bollen might not have a large population, but if they cooperate and plan to make something from Rand, then the population will be quite large.
"Very good, I feel like I can make a few more profits." Rand smiled.
Lisa twirled her white hair, not really caring about it. It's not that she really didn't care, but she was more interested in the whip, the cross, and the chili oil.
Lysa still hopes that Rand's territory will develop as soon as possible. Now that some things have begun to happen in the Elf Forest, Lysa feels that the time for Rand to intervene will not be far away.
In fact, the development of things now is beyond what Rysa had expected at the beginning. Rysa did not expect that a royal elf would come over, and Vanilla is really a child very worthy of cultivation.
In addition, when Elder Nidhogg came here later, Lisa felt that many things could be changed in a simpler way.
However, she did not intend to instigate Rand. She believed that Rand would make his own decision, and she believed in... Rand's ambition.
In fact, in Lysa's eyes, Rand's ambition to dominate the world is not strong.
But Rand was determined to protect what he had now.
Rand was worried most of the time, as if he knew that the world would become more cruel and dangerous. Lysa didn't know what Rand knew.
But it is obvious that if the world really becomes more dangerous as Rand expects, then Rand will definitely need to gain greater power, which is the driving force for expansion.
And Lysa has already formulated a plan to make the elves Rand's power.
It's not about making the elves Rand's slaves, but about making more elves aware of many of Rand's ideas.
Then, whether the elves choose to be independent or to rely on Rand, it will definitely be much better than being isolated in the Elf Forest now.
Times are changing, and things that remain unchanged will become obsolete.
In a sense, the ancient elves are indeed the pioneers and prophets of the elves. At least Lysa can understand a lot of things, so she made a decision early on.
…
After two more times, the nobles finally realized something was wrong.
They always do just the right thing, taking away a little bit of supplies and leaving some people behind.
Once or twice, it can be explained by coincidence.
But after so many times, it's hard not to wonder what trap they've fallen into. "They seem to have sensed something's wrong," Rand said with some regret.
"That's indeed a pity." Lisa said.
In fact, in a sense, this is actually human trafficking.
Rand provides goods or money, while these small and medium-sized nobles provide people.
Fair trade, no cheating.
If you calculate it this way... Rand estimated the materials he paid and the population he gained.
All in all, it is much cheaper than buying from slave traders, probably because there are no middlemen to make a profit from the price difference.
Rand looked at the noble army sneaking outside, oh no, now it's the bandit army.
Rand decided to take one last bite. He estimated that he would never come back again, so he would eat his fill at once and not let go of any more.
These noble troops disguised as bandits did not know that they had already been discovered by Rand.
They are now very cautious, as they feel that Rand may have some conspiracy.
Rand does have a conspiracy.
Soon the bandits found themselves surrounded by Rand's army.
Rand did not bring too many troops this time, but he did bring all his elite troops, such as the Royal Guards. How could these small and medium-sized nobles be a match for Rand's elite troops?
Seeing this scene, the leading "bandit leader" became furious. It was clear from this scene that they would definitely not be the match.
Surrounding them were knights armed to the teeth, with calm eyes and weapons flashing coldly.
As soon as this army appeared, the air seemed to quiet down and everything was silent.
"Wait a minute." The "bandit leader" gave up resistance and planned to explain.
And Lysa, who was beside Rand, had already shot an arrow into the mouth of this "bandit leader", leaving him no chance to speak.
"How dare you, these bold bandits, covet my supplies." Rand gave the order directly, "Capture them all."
Afterwards, these "bandit gangs" that were planning to escape or surrender were directly crushed.
Rand was in a good mood, but the population he had obtained from the Kingdom of Boren recently was a bit too much. He would have to put some thought into naturalization, otherwise it would be very troublesome if they were linked together.
(End of this chapter)
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