Chapter 241 Every person in power loves him. ...
Three days later, the army of the Great City swiftly launched an attack on the major tribes closest to us. I knew I had to be quick; this was something I had learned from past battles.
At midnight, the battle began, catching them completely off guard.
Corpses lay strewn across the field, a scene of carnage; the fighting and wailing shattered the night sky.
Before the battle, the guard captain asked me, "Should we kill them all, or...?"
"Try not to kill civilians, especially women and children," I said.
The guard leader hesitated and said, "Swords have no eyes; it's probably unavoidable."
I said "as much as possible".
The head guard accepted the order and left.
The fighting continued until dawn, with almost all the strong men killed. Just when everyone thought the battle was about to end, another group of strong men rushed out from nearby. They were members of their tribe returning from a hunting trip, and another bloody battle ensued. Finally, the battle ended as daylight broke.
"Am I right or wrong to cause such suffering for the sake of the royal city's private interests?" I asked Paria beside me.
Paria fought alongside me, clad in dark silver armor that made his body appear as imposing as a mountain range.
"What you think is right is right, and what you think is wrong is wrong," he said.
I gazed at his delicate face stained with blood. "Your will to survive is too strong."
"That's really what I think."
The battle was over, and the guards, under my command, quickly regrouped and reassigned tasks. They swiftly drove wooden stakes into the boundaries of these tribes' territories and hoisted the Great King's battle flag to show that this territory had been occupied by us.
Instead of continuing the attack as others had expected, I focused all my efforts on building high walls. In this territory that originally belonged to several tribes, Paria was puzzled. "Why not continue the attack and instead waste resources and manpower?"
“They are already on guard,” I said tactfully.
This battle will surely put other major tribes and smaller kingdoms on high alert, prompting them to band together and unite to resist our army's attacks. Under these circumstances, I think an easy victory is unlikely. Rather than engaging them in a direct confrontation, it would be better to focus our efforts on infrastructure development.
The high wall was completed in two months, and the area inside was renovated into a small village. Following the style of a mini-royal city, I added a small fountain square, a market, shops, and even a small primary school—though tiny, it was better than nothing. The elderly, infirm, disabled, women, and children from the various tribes lined up to register their names and receive passes; as long as they behaved well, they wouldn't be troubled in the future.
I also reassigned houses to them according to the number of people in their families, and gave them shops as well. I also allowed them to be exempt from taxes for the first three years as long as they were law-abiding citizens. They looked shocked, and I had a steward read out the various rules they needed to follow.
As long as they have food to eat and shelter to live in, law-abiding citizens will not easily rebel, even if there was deep-seated hatred in the past.
Of course, to prevent a resurgence, I strengthened the military control of this newly built small royal city, with large numbers of guards both inside and outside.
Six months later, Little Royal City was finally on the right track, and everything was running smoothly. Although the elementary school only enrolled about ten students, it was better than I had expected—I had thought there wouldn't be any. There were only three teachers in total, and I had to go through a lot of persuasion, offering them excellent benefits and salaries, to poach them from Great Royal City. What's worse, their level was said to be mediocre, but there was no other way; it was better than no one coming at all.
"Madam, there are rumors that other tribes and smaller royal cities are secretly purchasing troops in case our capital city goes to war," the hunchbacked steward whispered to me in the cramped study.
This hunchbacked steward has been working for me for half a year. I kept him by my side because I saw that he was capable and good at running errands. Of course, his salary was higher than his steward position in the royal city that Bernot gave me.
"Didn't they start taking precautions six months ago?" I asked.
"Yes, but they relaxed for a while because they saw that the lady was still building the small royal city. Now that the small royal city is almost finished, they have started recruiting soldiers again."
"Okay, I understand."
"Madam," he spoke again just as I thought he was about to leave, "there's some news, but it's nothing important. I wonder if you'd like to hear it?"
"Oh, what news?"
"King Bernot of the East has publicly married a second wife, claiming that her rights are almost equal to those of his legal wife. The second wife is the illegitimate daughter of the Queen of the South. Could this be a sign of an impending alliance with the South?"
"What do the other two kings of the East think?"
Since the death of the previous King Amur of the East, the East has split into three parts: the Bennot, the combined forces of the Amur royal family and the former queen's Duran family, and the combined forces of the Yod family and several other powerful families. These three forces are not to be underestimated. Among them, the Bennot is the weakest and can only live far from the capital in a remote place. However, he has been forging alliances everywhere. After forming an alliance with King Daio, his strength has increased considerably.
"The other two kings are taking a wait-and-see approach, and it seems they also intend to arrange marriages with daughters of powerful figures. I've heard that the Amur royal family is actively contacting the Elf King, wanting to marry his illegitimate daughter."
"Can I marry her?"
"It's hard to say, and the veracity of the news cannot be confirmed yet."
Strangely enough, I had just chatted with the hunchbacked steward about the Elf King that day, and that evening I received a letter from the Elf King. The gist of it was that he missed me very much, wondered how I was doing, hadn't been in touch for a long time, and wanted to meet and chat. I chuckled and tossed the letter to Paria, saying, "What do you think he means?"
“Perhaps I still have feelings for you.” As Paria spoke, he took off his shirt, revealing a broad, strong, muscular chest that exuded a captivating aura of hormones.
I sat in my swivel chair and laughed. "Really? He once planned to kill me." On the ship that killed Artis.
"That was then, maybe he's changed his mind now." He took off his robe and trousers again, revealing his strong, powerful legs, his firm, round buttocks, and right in front of my face... his bouncing...
something.
My breathing quickened, and I took a step back, only to fall right on the edge of the bed. "Who knows... if he's changed his mind?"
“He makes me feel very threatened,” Paria said, approaching him naked. “He’s a rare handsome guy.”
“I’ve seen handsome men,” I said, my breathing quickening. “I’ve seen handsome men of all ages.”
"Is my handsome guy big?"
I couldn't speak, my breathing became rapid, my heart pounded, and I collapsed onto the bed, bursting into laughter. "How am I supposed to answer that?"
Answer however you like.
"If I answer yes, you'll definitely think I'm too promiscuous, because I've seen too many handsome men to compare myself to; if I answer no, you'll definitely be even angrier, because you think I'm not old enough."
He laughed loudly, then pressed down on me, his weight pressing against my breath. "No, I'm not angry, not at all. You've seen so many handsome men, yet you still chose me."
I laughed until my breath trembled, "Yes, I still chose your handsome guy."
Another thunderous explosion! Actually, we've been partying every night lately, reaching the absolute pinnacle of paradise.
I never knew I could be this happy; it was something I had never experienced before. He was extremely experienced, extremely careful, and extremely considerate. He knew exactly what I needed every time I trembled.
No wonder every male and female leader in power loves him.
He certainly has his assets, from his looks and physique to his intelligence and emotional intelligence—it's simply amazing.
High as the clouds, I wrapped my arms around his neck, panting like a tyrant, "Handsome, I'm willing to give everything for you, even start a war for you."
At this moment, I am truly sincere, genuinely.
The next morning, I wrote a reply in my study: "Alright, come on over, and bring your daughter with you. I miss Anleya quite a bit."
Instead of holding a grudge, it's better to think about whether there are opportunities for cooperation.
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Author's Note: I have some older works, including "The Fairy King's Bride," "Love for a Bloodthirsty Beast," and "A Fantastic Romance Adventure in the Fairy Kingdom." If you're interested, you can check them out by searching. If you can't find them, then come find me. Finding me is easy; just look at the book's synopsis at the beginning.
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