Chapter 11 Chapter 11 Clergy
In the manors and fiefdoms, not to mention trees and stones, even a vine can be woven into baskets and sold for money.
Olivia had no idea what the housekeeper was thinking as he rolled his eyes.
She selfishly wanted to complete the task quickly and do her job well. Since she was a leader, she could no longer be cowardly and inactive. This was killing two birds with one stone.
However, Jock had been a slave in the manor since he was a child, and had been a housekeeper all his life. From childhood to adulthood, many people around him had died of colds and illnesses in the winter, but no one had ever taken care of them.
He felt a little uncomfortable now. It turned out that for the lord, letting people have a warm winter was not an easier task than climbing to the sky.
Only after he left did Olivia reopen the system interface.
After the order was issued, the progress advanced by 5%. Once this task is completed, I'm afraid the most difficult time of the year will come.
However, seeing that it was almost evening and dinner time, Olivia went to the kitchen.
During lunch, Lucy said that she didn't know what was wrong with the chickens in the chicken coop. They used to be able to collect three eggs a day, but now they can only collect five or six. After accumulating them for the past few days, most of the hens have started to lay eggs, but they are still laying eggs every day.
So she instructed Lucy to ask the cook to prepare pickled vegetable chopped vegetables and minced meat, fry a few eggs in butter, clear a deep pot, and sieve a bowl of wheat flour, waiting for her to come and cook.
She thought that she had lived another day and should reward herself. According to the custom in her previous life, dumplings must be eaten during the coldest days of winter!
On the other side, Jock called his youngest son Adam and led him along the orchard and out through a stone gate in a low wall as tall as a person.
In front of the manor, looking forward, across a piece of fertile land, there is a stream flowing forward.
There is a stone bridge over the stream, and there is a mill beside the bridge. The stream flows south and converges into a small lake.
It has now frozen into an ice cave. The shore on the other side of the lake is where the people of the manor live.
As the sky darkened, you could see wisps of smoke rising from the thatched wooden houses of many families, indicating that they were all getting ready to go to bed.
The butler and Adam first went to the mill and knocked on the door. The miller's family was responsible for managing farmland in the fiefdom, and their surname was Declan.
Old Declan was soaking his feet at home when he heard a knock on the door. He went out and saw it was the butler, who welcomed him in.
Jock had known him for many years, so without any polite greetings, he arranged for Old Dick and his children to go from house to house to call for help and gather at the mill. Jock planned to make some arrangements.
In the distance, Caesar and his entourage came on horseback from the north. Seeing that it was already late, but there were still people walking around in the village, he couldn't help but feel curious about what they were doing.
Just then, the miller's child passed by and Caesar questioned him a few questions. The child came closer with timid hands and feet. Facing the fierce warhorse in iron armor and the unfamiliar knight on horseback, he spoke for a long time in fear before he understood what his lady had told them to do.
Caesar was also very young when he left home. After returning to the manor, he didn't recognize any of the children in front of him. If he asked a few more questions, the child would be scared to the point of stuttering.
The attendant watched from the side and smiled knowingly.
"Sir, these children are afraid of you. Let them go. Lucy is waiting for me to go back for dinner, sir..."
Caesar knew his reputation outside, so he didn't say anything and went back to the manor with his entourage. It was almost dinner time, and he didn't know what his wife was doing.
In the kitchen, cold water was poured into the sifted wheat flour. Olivia was demonstrating how to knead the dough. She would take the dough out of the bowl when it was smooth and soft to the right hardness.
She stood in front of the counter, rolled up her sleeves, grabbed a handful of flour and sprinkled it on, cut into pieces, kneaded the dough, and rolled it out.
Then teach Lucy and the cook how to make dumplings, wrap the simply seasoned fillings in them, and then cook them in boiling water.
Seeing that the cook had been taught, Olivia reminded her that the food must be cooked until it floats in the water before being fished out, and then she left the kitchen.
For the next two days, Olivia asked the cook to make dumplings for three meals a day.
The dumplings made with this combination of ingredients are indeed delicious. The dough is smooth and chewy, and the meat filling inside is juicy when you bite it. The unique fresh and sour taste of pickled vegetables is wrapped around the minced meat, which is like the sauerkraut and pork filling of the previous life, but also has the unique feeling of this era.
The cook also started using various vegetables to improve the recipe, so that the food was not too bad at all, and Olivia finally no longer had to see dry bread.
The night before, the steward went out and informed everyone and marked out an area in the forest specifically for people to cut down trees.
There was no wind or snow in the early morning.
Standing in front of the window, Olivia could see several teams of people in the snow in the distance, with three or five people carrying several trees as thick as bowls with hemp ropes, and slowly walking towards the manor.
There were also some women and children dragging bundles of branches towards this side. The whole village was busy, unlike the previous two days when it was as quiet as a stagnant pool.
It gives people an inexplicable sense of accomplishment.
However, today Caesar started working the night shift and rested at home during the day.
But it wasn't completely a rest. This morning, Olivia arranged for him to go to the next village to invite his father, Knight Renault, to come over.
After all, Renault Manor is a large breeding company in the vicinity and has more local experience. Besides, he is her father's blood relative, so he can be hired.
The road was not far, just over a small hill. After Olivia went downstairs, she went to the back of the kitchen to watch how people were tamping the soil.
During this era, ordinary houses were built by leveling the ground with rammed earth and then using peeled logs to build the frame.
There are no mountain torrents and earthquakes in this place, but because of the snow, all the houses have steep roofs to prevent the accumulated snow from collapsing the houses. As for the roofs, those who can afford wood use wooden boards, those who cannot afford use thatch, and the rich use tiles.
She and Lucy watched from a distance. The housekeeper was there too. First, four or five people carried hoes to dig out the stones, and then leveled the ground to leave holes for burying the pillars.
As soon as the trees were delivered, they were immediately peeled by the carpenters, the tail ends were roasted until charred, and then buried in the pit. Several people then used wooden hammers to tamp the place down.
Soon, the sound of horse hooves came closer and closer, coming from outside the manor.
Olivia and Lucy turned their heads and saw a group of horsemen getting off the horse, and behind them was a carriage, which was carrying her two sisters and mother.
The two villages are close to each other, so it is actually very easy to visit each other, but it was windy and snowy a few days ago, making it difficult to go out. Today it is sunny, and when they heard that they needed to repair the house, they naturally brought a few craftsmen to help.
Mother Theresa, sisters Lani and Sansa got off the carriage and walked towards Olivia.
Her father, old Renault, waved to her from his horse, and after getting off the horse, he went straight to design how to build the sheep pen with the housekeeper.
"Lily, we haven't seen each other for a few days. Is this a new hairstyle you've learned? I've never seen it before..."
Sansa came up and held Olivia's arm, asking her all kinds of questions until her mother talked to her and she calmed down a little.
Olivia looked at Theresa, her mother in this life. She was a simple middle-aged woman wearing a blue long dress with wide sleeves. She had a kind look and she exchanged a few polite words with the other party.
"It's too cold outside. Let Dad do his thing and let's go inside."
"Let's go, let's go." Sansa ran in front, heading towards the back of the main house, turning her head to look around.
Theresa and Lainie also couldn't help but look around and observe how Olivia was living.
Before the Baron arranged this marriage, they had heard rumors about Caesar's fierce behavior.
In addition, she had long known that Caesar's father was an irresponsible knight who had never taken good care of the manor, and she was very worried about Olivia's life after taking over.
But now, it's clear that the rumor was wrong.
What appeared before Theresa was a well-behaved and lovely son-in-law.
Theresa found that her worries were unnecessary. Since her eldest daughter could think about these things and take care of the home with peace of mind, she knew that the couple were living a good life.
Lainie next to her is already fifteen years old and will be engaged in a year. She used to be very resistant to it, but now when she sees Olivia's life, she begins to envy her freedom and the ability to arrange her life as she pleases.
Although this manor was not as comfortable as her own home, it was still okay. It was very clean. She looked down and could see the repaired floor tiles.
Olivia could see that her mother and sister had their own thoughts and seemed to be very worried about her life, but now they must be relieved.
When they arrived in the hall, Olivia asked them to sit down, talked for a while, and then asked Lucy to prepare lunch.
After watching Lucy leave, Theresa asked about the affairs of the manor, how many people served her, and whether there was enough food in the fiefdom.
Olivia answered them one by one, counting them on her fingers.
She wanted to take advantage of the good livestock prices in winter to buy some cattle and sheep, and then ask people to catch some wild boars in the mountains and bring them back to be raised in captivity. These were for her own use. Then she would start a big business of hatching chicks, and she wanted to sell them in town in the future.
As for farming, she no longer wants to grow staple foods in her private plot. She plans to buy some seeds of economic crops in the spring, such as caraway, garlic, and sage. If she can find seeds from southern countries, she will try to grow one as well.
Theresa listened, nodded with satisfaction, and smiled.
"Let's not talk about whether it can be accomplished or not. It's great that you have these ideas in mind. There are many things to do in the manor, so we have to plan it this way."
Theresa looked at the other two who were not paying attention:
"You have to learn from your sister!"
One problem that all the ladies living on the border have to face is that their husbands have to go out at any time or be away from home for a long time. If they are unable to manage the household affairs by themselves, they will be at a great disadvantage.
Lani and Sansa pretended not to hear and looked away. Lani was introverted and didn't like to talk.
Sansa is still illiterate, even though she prays and recites scriptures with her mother Theresa one day a week.
Olivia knew a little bit about the two sisters' situation, but it wasn't difficult.
"Don't worry, I'm just trying to make a living. If the harvests in this fiefdom weren't so bad every year, I wouldn't have to do these things."
After hearing this, Theresa also felt that it made sense. This person was forced into this situation. If he had nothing to eat or drink, he would know how to find a way out.
“You are still short of a priest here. When are you going to the town to select one?
We can't have a prayer day without someone to officiate. If you're not sure, I'll go to the Baroness and ask her to choose one."
Theresa, a devout Anglican believer, came back to help her solve this problem.
She knew that although the kingdom had a tradition that every village had to have its own priest to preside over prayers, this was a border area and had its own set of laws.
When Caesar's father was alive, he never appointed priests in order to save money, and many manors did the same.
Although supporting a small priest is not a big expense, it is not something that can be easily paid for.
The priest would receive a piece of land from the lord, live in the manor, and have food and drink provided for him.
However, the priests can also be used like stewards and can be dispatched to do things at any time.
Olivia did plan to bring in a priest. After all, in this manor, apart from her, Caesar, and the butler, there was no other literate person.
The priest who had studied scriptures in the Lavosen Church came to the countryside. His primary function was actually to educate people who had not received education for decades. Only after literacy was achieved could the farmers understand the meaning of the scriptures.
"Once these farmhouses are repaired, I will go to La Vossen Church to select a suitable person."
Once you unlock the function of viewing character attributes, you can easily find the kind of helper you want.
In this era, clergymen read the most and had the most free time to study various things.
Some priests are good at growing plants, some are good at making tools, and some love painting. They all have different attributes.
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