Henry had changed a man’s fate with just a few casual words. The feeling was intoxicating, as thrilling as felling one Minotaur after another.

"Rise, nameless one." Showing mercy to a serf cost him nothing, after all.

A nearby stonemason also put down his tools and praised Henry’s benevolence.

Henry toured the nearby construction sites for a while longer before dismounting and entering a tavern where a Minstrel was currently performing on stage.

Henry found an empty table and sat down. A tavern server recognized him and immediately brought over cream bread and wine.

"What’s his name? I’ve never seen him before."

The server was a bit flustered, not expecting to be able to speak with the lord himself.

"My lord, he is from Xilonia. He arrived recently with a merchant caravan."

Henry nodded, and after dismissing the server, he watched the performance with interest.

Not only was the Minstrel’s singing voice captivating, but he also improvised a song of praise for Henry.

Henry was greatly pleased and rewarded the Minstrel with three Dinars, inviting him to be a guest performer at the Wolf Hunting Festival.

"Your Wisdom is like that of the sages in the Royal Capital, your heroic deeds are told as legendary tales throughout the empire, and your generosity is like the spring sun.

Your justice and mercy are a model for all nobles. Your family’s glory will be like an ancient oak, with deep roots and lush leaves, passed down through generations.

Thank you, esteemed Baron."

Henry looked at the incredibly excited Minstrel and asked, "I hear you’re from Xilonia. Why come here? The pay there is much better."

"Esteemed Baron, your deeds drove me wild with admiration! I wanted to reach your domain to see with my own eyes what kind of home you’ve built under your rule."

The Minstrel couldn’t help but gesture animatedly. "Forgive my impertinence, Lord Baron. Your domain seems to me to have limitless potential, as endless as this continent.

I have traveled through many cities and sung for many nobles, but this is the first time I’ve ever seen a place where serfs can have a bowl of meat soup in the winter.

The first time I’ve seen an esteemed noble personally inspect the progress at various construction sites, where the laborers and craftsmen receive sufficient wages and food.

Your benevolence and kindness are enough to move even those decadent nobles."

Henry’s lip twitched. He felt this Minstrel was laying the praise on a bit too thick.

The Minstrel continued, "Esteemed Lord Baron, I will compose poems for your domain, so that your good deeds may be sung and spread far and wide."

Henry put down his wine cup, wiped the drink from his mustache, and thought that this was actually a good idea.

The wealthy Henry had single-handedly driven up prices in the Odoche region’s slave market. That was all money.

Buying serfs was, in the end, an expense. Rather than buying them himself, it would be better to attract the Free People who couldn’t make it in the cities, or the self-employed farmers from other villages, to migrate here on their own.

He planned to establish four new villages this year, along with their subsidiary farms and pastures. This would require at least several thousand people to populate, and relying on buying serfs was just too costly.

"I support your idea. You can get your friends to do this as well. If many people come to my domain to become Free People, self-employed farmers, or tenant farmers, I can offer you a bonus."

The Minstrel hurriedly bowed his thanks. This was an unexpected bonus for him.

After listening to the Minstrel’s flattery for a while longer, Henry returned to his castle, thoroughly satisfied.

Henry’s satisfaction wasn’t just because the flattery felt good, but because it had given him a new idea. Upon returning to his study, he immediately summoned his Minister of State Affairs, Claude.

"My lord, is there anything you need?" Claude looked exhausted, but he was in high spirits.

As Henry’s domain developed, the number of people Claude had to manage grew. ’Sure, it’s tiring,’ he thought, ’but it’s also thrilling!’

"How is Britt Village? Has its territorial status been changed?"

Claude nodded and replied, "My lord, Britt Village has been converted from a Knight’s fief into a part of the Westwood Laine Baron’s Domain. We’ve just assigned over a hundred new serfs there. The total number of self-employed farmers, tenant farmers, and serfs is now around eight hundred."

Changing a fief’s status was a very important matter. It made it easier for a noble to manage the territory’s resources and taxes, and also facilitated the implementation of the domain’s laws.

For example, the emperor had granted Britt Village to Henry as a Knight’s fief, which meant Britt Village was independent. According to imperial law, "Westwood Laine" did not technically include this village.

Henry toyed with the "Star of the Battle of Zhiluo" medal in his hand and began, "I met a Minstrel from Xilonia in the tavern today. His talent and ability to improvise left a deep impression on me.

I’m considering whether we can hire a group of Minstrels to spread my renown in the grasslands and attract more labor."

Claude nodded slightly. He had never considered such an idea.

Nobles were proud; they would never use such methods to attract labor. While other nobles might do things that had this effect, they would never do so with this explicit intention.

After a moment of contemplation, Claude replied, "My lord, that is indeed a good idea. The songs and stories of Minstrels can spread quickly. However, there is a problem.

How much do we pay them? If we pay too little, they might just cheat us. Their travels are too wide-ranging for us to effectively supervise them."

Henry blinked. That was indeed a problem. If they just took the money and ran, it would defeat the whole purpose. His main intention in hiring Minstrels was to save money, after all.

Henry stood up, walked over to the bookshelf, and said slowly, "Claude, you’re right. I want you to be in charge of this project. Draw up a plan to ensure it can be carried out smoothly."

Claude was dumbfounded. ’My lord,’ he thought, ’there’s so much work, are you just going to work me to death? What about Tommy? Can’t he help?!’

Henry looked at the expressionless Claude and asked, "Are you very busy lately? The construction of the farms for the six villages and the allocation of serfs are nearly complete.

The next busy period will be the spring planting. You can work on this during the downtime between now and then. I’ll personally supervise the expansion of the town district every day."

Claude snapped back to reality and quickly accepted the task. "As you command, my lord. I will draw up a detailed plan as soon as possible."

When the boss tells you to do something, you accept it first. Whether you do a good job or a bad one is another matter entirely.

"Very good. I have faith in your abilities. Tell me if you run into any difficulties."

The two discussed a few more details before Claude left the study.

Henry, meanwhile, remained in his study, continuing to ponder how to better manage and develop his domain.

A few days ago, Tommy had reported that the people from the Imperial Office had already paid fifty years’ rent for a plot in the town district.

This was the kind of treatment reserved for the Emperor’s own students. Who had ever heard of the Imperial Office setting up a branch and actually paying rent to the local noble?

And for a mere Baron’s castle, no less, with an incomplete town district. How could it possibly warrant the establishment of an office?

Unheard of!

Furthermore, the sum was not small. It was enough for Henry to train more than ten fully armored Heavy Cavalry.

As for why the Imperial Office had delayed for so long, Henry didn’t know the specific reason, but he intended to get an explanation.

In the days that followed, the songs and stories of Minstrels began to spread throughout the grasslands. Word of the safety of Henry’s domain, its reasonable taxes with a bright future, and more, gradually got out.

They sang catchy ballads in the grassland accent, describing the development of Westwood Laine and the benevolence and Wisdom of Baron Henry.

These songs were like an early spring breeze, touching the heartstrings of countless people.

The empire had no shortage of poor people. Even though productivity had increased over the past century, the poor remained poor.

The merchants from the Odoche region who had first started doing business with Henry also began to spread his reputation during their travels.

They told stories of Westwood Laine in various towns and villages, attracting the attention of Free People and self-employed farmers.

Some of these Free People, having heard of the safety in Henry’s domain and his high regard for craftsmen, hoped to become apprentices and learn a trade.

Others, having heard of the comfortable lives of the self-employed farmers in Henry’s domain, hoped to find a piece of their own land there.

In the domains of other nobles, the self-employed farmers, who should have been prosperous, often faced crushing tax burdens.

They toiled on their land, yet often could barely make a living.

Hearing that the taxes in the Westwood Laine region were only thirty percent and that the lord was benevolent, they began to pack their belongings, sell their land, and set out with their families and their hopes on the journey to Westwood Laine Castle.

There were even hot-blooded young men who, upon learning of Henry’s achievements on the battlefield, wanted to join his army to eat military rations and earn military pay!

The effect of this public opinion campaign was significant; even Count John was influenced by it.

Within Henry’s domain, the arrival of new self-employed farmer families brought new vitality to the various villages.

The newly arrived self-employed farmers bought or leased their own land within Henry’s domain. They worked with their own two hands to cultivate the soil, looking forward to a good harvest in the autumn after the spring planting.

Meanwhile, the families who became tenant farmers also received relatively lenient rental and tax conditions under Henry’s protection, and their lives gradually stabilized.

Most of the Free People became apprentices to craftsmen, learning various skills under the guidance of master artisans.

From blacksmiths to carpenters, from weavers to potters, Henry’s policy of favoring skilled artisans attracted many journeymen from the big cities.

In the western coastal regions, Workshop laborers killing merchants was a frequent occurrence. In the southern deserts, it was common for overwhelmed tenant farmers to lead serfs in revolt.

Henry was a benevolent lord; he would never let his domain become such a dead place. How could he let his lovely subjects run away?

As the population grew, the open-air market of Westwood Laine Castle also became more lively. The cries of small merchant caravans, the hammering of craftsmen, the laughter of children...

Henry stood on a high tower of his castle, gazing out at his domain, feeling quite satisfied.

A stable life meant stable output, which gave him more confidence to strike back hard against things that displeased him.

Henry touched the damp stone wall. The temperature was rising bit by bit, the snow was constantly melting. Spring was coming.