Chapter 10

The conception of elvish insects required abundant nutrition. The barrenness of the land limited their growth. Also, since the nutrition was concentrated at the center, the peanuts in other places were dying.

The cure was simple. Just fertilize the peanut land.

Recalling his knowledge on farming, Liszt said to Old George, “Here are my instructions. Firstly, ask the farmers to pick up wood and grasses, burn them into ashes, and collect the ashes. Secondly, ask the adult farmers to dig the mud at the bottom of the pond. Thirdly, ask the children to pick up feces wherever.”

Old George did not question his lord’s orders. “At once, my lord. I will carry out your instructions.”

Old George stumbled away.

Liszt then said to Goltai, “Mr. Goltai, I’m afraid that the feces of Peanuton are not enough. Go to the town and organize all the farmers to pick up feces… Well, let’s just purchase feces under the name of the administrative officer. One bucket of excrement for one copper.”

Copper, silver coin, gold coin, and dragon coin were the currencies in this world.

However, different regimes had released coins in different shapes. The copper that Liszt mentioned was the currency of Archduchy Sapphire. One copper was enough to buy four boxes of brown bread.

One silver coin equaled a hundred coppers, and one gold coin equaled a hundred silver coins.

As for the dragon coins, they were the magic coins attached with the power of the only dragon in the country. Each of them could be exchanged for ten thousand gold coins. They were magic items themselves.

Goltai complained, “Wow, Liszt, why are you paying for filthy, demeaning feces? They are utterly useless other than contaminating your eyes and nose.”

“No, feces are useful. Just release the order. Also, find a depot for the feces, preferably a wasteland far away from the town.” Liszt understood the value of feces. They were the best fertilizers when chemical fertilizers were unavailable.

As a great landlord who owned Flower Town, Liszt had plenty of land to farm. He needed an abundance of fertilizers. Also, he did not want to see feces and urine everywhere on the street.

He intended to purchase feces partly for fertilization and partly for sanitation. Toilets couldn’t be promoted for now. Purchasing feces was most effective at this time.

“But the price is too high. We should offer one copper for ten, no, twenty buckets.”

“Just do as I command, Mr. Goltai,” Liszt said rigorously.

Goltai finally stopped complaining. “As you wish.”

…

The lord was the highest authority in this age.

Nobody dared to ignore Liszt’s instructions. The clerks and the farmers worked fast. Very soon, the mud, feces, and ashes he demanded were piled in Peanuton.

“Very well, Old George, mix those things, dig a hole next to the root of every peanut seedling, and spray some of them down. Then, refill the hole and water the plant. I believe that the seedlings will be recovered soon.”

Liszt commanded the farmers delightedly to fertilize the farmlands.

As their lord, he naturally wouldn’t do it in person. It was not expected of a noble, and he was unwilling to do it himself.

Peanuton had about a hundred acres of farmland in total and 23 families, or 92 people.

The 92 serfs, subtracting the little children, were working busily with the serfs sent from the town.

“Mr. Goltai, what’s the total population of Flower Town?”

“Well, excuse me, Liszt, I’m new to the job. I haven’t figured it out yet.” Goltai turned to a clerk. “You’ve lived in the town for years. Do you know the demography of the town?”

“No, sir.” The clerk shook his head.

Goltai turned to another clerk.

The second clerk shook his head, too.

So, nobody in Flower Town knew the population of the town. Liszt was lost for words. Was Flower Town a forgotten place? Nobody ever had any statistics?

I need a complete census. It’s humiliating that a lord doesn’t know the population under his command.

Thinking about that, he commanded, “Mr. Goltai, arrange a census as soon as possible. I want to know the number of households, the names of everyone, and the relationship of the households, as well as their occupation, age, gender, and marriage status.”

“That’s a lot of work to do. Liszt, you know that we have few officials in the town. We do not have a finance officer, a defense officer, a law officer, or a diplomacy officer. Actually, we don’t even have an administrative officer. I’m supposed to be your consultant instead of the administrative officer of the town.”

The civil officials of a dominion were usually headed by the consultant, who commanded the other officers.

The captain of knights managed the knights.

Although Goltai was at the lowest rank of nobles, he was still a noble. He followed Liszt here to be a consultant. As for Marcus, Liszt’s knight teacher, was undoubtedly supposed to be the captain of knights, although it remained to be seen whether Flower Town could afford any knights.

“Don’t worry, Goltai. Both Flower Town and my castle are on the rise. Just help me manage Flower Town and complete the census first.”

The consultant was too powerful. Liszt did not intend to appoint Goltai as that right now, not because he was worried about his own power, but because Goltai was too pedantic and stubborn. The man couldn’t keep up with his ideas.

“Alright, Liszt. You are an adult and a qualified lord. I will carry out your command.” Goltai showed the manners of a noble.

…

For three days in a row, Peanuton was fertilized heatedly. All the land was soon irrigated with the organic fertilizer that was a mixture of mud, manure, and ashes.

The land at the center was given multiple times more fertilizers.

Liszt supervised it for three days. When everything was done, he could only wait for the farmland to recover.

I’ve done everything I can. Hopefully, the mission will be accomplished soon. He was not an idle man. After the job was done, he soon shifted his attention to other affairs in his dominion.

The most important thing was the elvish insect.